"All Souls" is the seventeenth episode of the fifth season of the American science fiction television series The X-Files. The episode originally aired on the Fox network on April 26, 1998. The episode's teleplay was written by Frank Spotnitz and John Shiban, from a story by Dan Angel and Billy Brown; it was directed by Allen Coulter. The episode is a "Monster-of-the-Week" story, a stand-alone plot which is unconnected to the mythology, or overarching fictional history, of The X-Files. "All Souls" received a Nielsen household rating of 8.5 and was watched by 13.44 million viewers in its initial broadcast. It received mixed reviews from television critics.
The show centers on FBI special agents Fox Mulder (David Duchovny) and Dana Scully (Gillian Anderson) who work on cases linked to the paranormal, called X-Files. In this episode, the unexplained death of mentally and physically disabled girl prompts Father McCue (Arnie Walters) to ask Scully for her help, but her investigation leads her to a mystery involving Nephilim—children of mortal women and angels. Scully soon learns that Aaron Starkey (Glenn Morshower), a department of social services worker and demon in disguise, is after the girls, in order that the Devil may control their power.
The original version of "All Souls" was a simple story about Mulder, Scully, and angels. Shiban and Spotnitz, however, overhauled the idea and added elements extrapolated from the season's earlier "Christmas Carol" and "Emily" two-parter, making "All Souls" the "unofficial third part" of its story arc. The entry also contained several elaborate effects, which were achieved via makeup and CGI. After they viewed the final cut of the installment, Shiban and Spotnitz decided to frame the action around Scully confessing her story to a priest in a confessional.
Plot
In Alexandria, Virginia, sixteen-year-old Dara Kernof (Emily Perkins), a mentally and physically disabled girl who uses a wheelchair, somehow manages to leave her house in the middle of the night, soon after her baptism. Her father, Lance (Eric Keenleyside), eventually finds her outside with her arms raised upwards towards a strange figure. Suddenly, lightning flashes and the figure disappears. When Lance reaches Dara, he realizes she is dead and her eyes have been burned out. Eventually, Dana Scully (Gillian Anderson) is contacted by Father McCue (Arnie Walters), who asks if she would be willing to assist the family in figuring out what exactly happened. Soon thereafter, Scully visits the Kernofs and learns that Dara was adopted. Given her severe spinal deformities, Scully is unable to explain how Dara walked, let alone got outside. Lance then tells Scully that he saw a strange figure before her; he confides in her that he thinks the mysterious being was the Devil.
While this is going on, a priest named Father Gregory (Jody Racicot) visits a hospital to visit Dara's twin, Paula Koklos (Perkins), but he is stopped by a social worker named Aaron Starkey (Glenn Morshower). That night, Paula dies mysteriously when a man enters her room. Fox Mulder (David Duchovny) soon learns that Paula and Dara were not twins, but rather two of four quadruplets. The agents also learn that Father Gregory was hoping to adopt Paula and they visit the priest. Gregory protests that he is innocent and was simply trying to protect Paula by taking her under his wing. Later, Scully experiences a vision of her daughter Emily (Lauren Diewold).
Mulder soon learns the identity of another sister (Perkins), who is troubled and homeless. With Starkey's help, Mulder finds the girl in a rundown part of the city, but the figure from the beginning of the episode kills her before Mulder can get to her. Mulder discovers Father Gregory at the scene and believes that he is the perpetrator of the crimes. Under questioning by Mulder and Scully, Father Gregory insists that he was attempting to ward off the Devil, who was hoping to claim the girls' souls. He is adamant that the fourth and final sister must be located. Later, when the agents have left the room, Starkey enters and asks for the whereabouts of this last girl. Gregory remains silent and soon begins to burn; it is revealed that Starkey is the Devil.
That night, the figure from the beginning of the episode presents itself to Scully, revealing that it is a Seraph. This seraph had fathered four nephilim (i.e. the disabled quadruplets) and God sent the angel to earth to return the girls to Heaven. The angel is attempting to outmaneuver the Devil, who hopes to use the girls' souls for his own nefarious plots. Scully and Starkey later find the fourth girl, Roberta Dyer (Perkins) at Gregory's church. However, Scully sees that Starkey has a horned shadow, revealing his true origins. As Scully tries to help Roberta escape, the women are confronted by the Seraph. Scully reluctantly lets go of Roberta's hand, after seeing Emily in place of Roberta, and lets Roberta enter Heaven.[1]
The script for "All Souls" was written by John Shiban and Frank Spotnitz, and directed by Allen Coulter.[2] The original genesis for the episode was an idea developed by Dan Angel and Billy Brown, two story board editors for the series that had left after Christmas of 1997. In this incarnation, the plot was radically different; according to Shiban, the story was "about Mulder and Scully and angels, but it never quite worked the way it was originally conceived."[3] Shiban and Spotnitz decided to overhaul the script and feature elements of the earlier "Christmas Carol" and "Emily" story arc, as the writers wanted to include the "very universal" idea of Scully exploring feelings for her deceased daughter.[3] This episode, according to Andy Meisler, thus became the "unofficial third part" in the story.[3] With this episode, Scully dons the role of the believer, whereas Mulder plays the skeptic. This "Mulder-Scully criss-cross" accentuated a major theme for the fifth season.[3]
In order to counter some of the darker aspects of the script, Shiban and Spotnitz—on the behest of co-star David Duchovny—added several lines of comic relief, delivered by Mulder. According to Duchvony, "It was in the more straight ahead investigative shows, the creepier, scarier shows, that I would try to make sure that we kept this kind of humanity alive through humor".[4]
Filming
Shiban and Spotnitz decided to frame the action of the episode around Scully confessing to a priest (confessional pictured).
Scenes at "St. John's Church"—the church featured in the episode—were shot in the actual St. Augustine Church in Vancouver, British Columbia.[3] Prior to filming, the script for the episode was approved by the church's local Monseigneur. As a fail-safe, the production crew scouted several other churches in case permissions were rescinded.[5] Special stained glass windows were created that featured an angel ascending into Heaven, to go along with the themes of the episode. The book that Father McCue has about Nephilim was created by assistant art director Vivien Nishi with guidance from Spotnitz.[3] Scenes at Father Gregory's church were filmed in an older boiler room at George Pearson Hospital. This location had previously been used in the earlier fifth season entry "Kitsunegari" as a cafeteria. The production crew initially worried that the building's high windows would bring in too much natural light and so some of the windows were lit up via artificial means.[5]
The episode contained several elaborate effects, which were achieved via makeup or CGI. Makeup artist Laverne Basham and hairstylist Anji Bemben were tasked with giving each of the quadruplets, all played by Emily Perkins, a different look. They were also responsible for making Jody Racicot appear older, which proved particularly difficult given that Racicot did not have any hair that they could dye grey and he had "the tightest skin of any thirtysomething guy [they'd] ever seen."[3] The visual effects to create the shifting heads of the Seraphim were created with CGI, which visual effects supervisor Laurie Kallsen-George finalized only "hours before airtime."[3] The scene was created by having actor Tracy Elofson wear a lion mask to track the scene. Then, the different heads were filmed against a green screen and composited. Various light effects were then interlaid to "make it look scary" and more "angelic".[6]
After watching a rough cut of the episode, Shiban and Spotnitz decided that they were "far from the end".[3] Feeling that something was missing, the two decided to frame the happenings of the episode with two scenes featuring Scully in a church confessional. Vancouver producer J. P. Finn was chosen to play the priest, due to his "hushed delivery and map-of-Ireland features".[3] Initially, Gillian Anderson had been given the script for these scenes days in advance. On the day of filming, however, she was sent a number of rewrites and subsequently demanded more time to become familiar with the new script, so as to not rush or undermine the emotion she was supposed to put into the scene. The crew ended up shooting a day later. Due to this, Finn never actually filmed with Anderson. In order to make up for the addition of the church scenes, the first cut of the episode had to be trimmed "scene by scene and line by line".[3]
Broadcast and reception
"All Souls" premiered on the Fox network in the United States on April 26, 1998.[2] It earned a Nielsen household rating of 8.5, with a 12 share, meaning that roughly 8.5 percent of all television-equipped households, and 12 percent of households watching television, were tuned in to the episode.[7] It was viewed by 13.44 million viewers.[7]
"All Souls" received mixed reviews from television critics. Dave Golder from SFX magazine named the episode's Nephilim as among of the top "10 TV Angels". He applauded the episode's role-switching, allowing Scully to be the believer and Mulder to be the skeptic.[8] Emily VanDerWerff of The A.V. Club wrote positively of the episode and awarded it a "B+". Despite calling the entry "an occasionally too-slow episode", VanDerWerff praised Anderson, lauding her performance as "another […] potential Emmy tape in a season full of them".[9] Furthermore, she enjoyed the juxtaposition of Scully's skepticism and her religious beliefs, noting that the series could have taken the idea into the realm of irony, but instead played it "with a deathly seriousness" that allowed it to work.[9]
Other reviews were more negative. Paula Vitaris from Cinefantastique gave the episode a largely critical review and awarded it one star out of four.[10] Vitaris wrote "with its trip into blatant religiosity, 'All Souls' comes off like a bad episode of Millennium".[10] Furthermore, she was critical of the scenes wherein the Nephilims' souls were taken, noting the excessive religious imagery: "as [Dara's] soul is taken, the camera pans to the right and stops to linger on a telephone pole that forms a cross."[10]Robert Shearman and Lars Pearson, in their book Wanting to Believe: A Critical Guide to The X-Files, Millennium & The Lone Gunmen, rated the episode one star out of five. The two derided the fact that the episode's killer appears to either be God or an angel commanded by God, along with the fact that the four girls are destined to die because they are disabled and "have no right to live".[11] Furthermore, Shearman and Pearson concluded that, while religious worship is not a passive act, it is treated so in the episode.[11] Ultimately, they concluded that while "looking at death from a different angle is fascinating" it would be explored better "in 'Closure'."[11]
Hurwitz, Matt; Knowles, Chris (2008). The Complete X-Files: Behind the Series the Myths and the Movies. New York, U.S.: Insight Editions. ISBN978-1933784724.
Meisler, Andy (1999), Resist or Serve: The Official Guide to The X-Files, Vol. 4, London: HarperCollins, ISBN0-00-257133-1
Shearman, Robert; Pearson, Lars (2009). Wanting to Believe: A Critical Guide to The X-Files, Millennium & The Lone Gunmen. Mad Norwegian Press. ISBN978-0975944691.
"Nisei" is the ninth episode of the third season of the American science fiction television series The X-Files. It premiered on the Fox network on November 24, 1995. It was directed by David Nutter, and written by Chris Carter, Frank Spotnitz and Howard Gordon. "Nisei" featured guest appearances by Steven Williams, Raymond J. Barry and Stephen McHattie. The episode helped explore the series' overarching mythology. "Nisei" earned a Nielsen household rating of 9.8, being watched by 16.36 million people in its initial broadcast. The episode received largely positive reviews from critics.
"The Field Where I Died" is the fifth episode of the fourth season of the American science fiction television series The X-Files. It was written by Glen Morgan and James Wong, and directed by Rob Bowman. The episode originally aired in the United States on November 3, 1996, on the Fox network. It is a "Monster-of-the-Week" story, a stand-alone plot which is unconnected to the series' wider mythology. This episode earned a Nielsen rating of 12.3 and was seen by 19.85 million viewers upon its initial broadcast.
"Leonard Betts" is the twelfth episode of the fourth season of the American science fiction television series The X-Files. It premiered on the Fox network on January 26, 1997. It was written by Vince Gilligan, John Shiban, and Frank Spotnitz, directed by Kim Manners, and featured a guest appearance by Paul McCrane as Leonard Betts/Albert Tanner. The episode is a "Monster-of-the-Week" story, unconnected to the series' wider mythology. Aired following Super Bowl XXXI, "Leonard Betts" became Fox's debut Super Bowl lead-out program since the network acquired NFL broadcast rights in 1994.
"Memento Mori" is the fourteenth episode of the fourth season of the American science fiction television series The X-Files. It premiered on the Fox network on February 9, 1997. It was directed by Rob Bowman, and written by series creator Chris Carter, Vince Gilligan, John Shiban and Frank Spotnitz. "Memento Mori" featured guest appearances by Sheila Larken, David Lovgren and Morris Panych. The episode helped to explore the overarching mythology, or fictional history of The X-Files. "Memento Mori" earned a Nielsen household rating of 15.5, being watched by 19.1 million people in its initial broadcast. The title translates from Latin as "remember that you will die."
"Max" is the eighteenth episode of the fourth season of the American science fiction television series The X-Files. It premiered on the Fox network on March 23, 1997. It was directed by Kim Manners, and written by Frank Spotnitz and series creator Chris Carter. "Max" featured guest appearances by Joe Spano, Tom O'Brien and Scott Bellis, and saw the final appearance of Brendan Beiser as special agent Pendrell. The episode helped to explore the overarching mythology, or fictional history of The X-Files. "Max" earned a Nielsen household rating of 11.6, being watched by 18.34 million people in its initial broadcast. The episode received mixed to positive reviews from critics.
"Elegy" is the twenty-second episode of the fourth season of the American science fiction television series The X-Files. It was written by John Shiban and directed by James Charleston. The episode aired in the United States on May 4, 1997, on the Fox network. It is a "Monster-of-the-Week" story, a stand-alone plot which is unconnected to the series' wider mythology, although Scully's battle with cancer is an important plot point. "Elegy" earned a Nielsen rating of 10.6 and was seen by 17.1 million viewers upon its initial broadcast. The episode received mostly positive reviews from televisions critics; the performance of lead actress Gillian Anderson was especially praised.
"Redux" is the two-part fifth season premiere of the science fiction television series The X-Files. "Redux" first aired on November 2, 1997, on Fox in the United States, with "Redux II" airing on November 9. Both episodes subsequently aired in the United Kingdom and Ireland. Both episodes were written by series creator Chris Carter, with "Redux" directed by R. W. Goodwin and "Redux II" helmed by Kim Manners. "Redux" became the second-most-watched episode ever broadcast, earning more than 27 million viewers in the United States alone. The first part of the episode received mixed to negative reviews, whereas the second part received mixed to positive reviews from critics.
"Christmas Carol" is the sixth episode of the fifth season of American science fiction television series The X-Files. It was written by Vince Gilligan, John Shiban and Frank Spotnitz and directed by Peter Markle. The episode explores the series' overarching mythology. The episode premiered in the United States on December 7, 1997 on the Fox network, earning a Nielsen household rating of 12.8 and being watched by 20.91 million people in its initial broadcast. It received moderately positive reviews from television critics, with many complimenting Gillian Anderson's performance.
"Emily" is the seventh episode of the fifth season of American science fiction television series The X-Files. It was written by Vince Gilligan, John Shiban and Frank Spotnitz and directed by Kim Manners. The episode explores the series' overarching mythology. The episode premiered in the United States on December 14, 1997, on the Fox network, earning a Nielsen household rating of 12.4 and being watched by 20.94 million people in its initial broadcast. It received mixed reviews from television critics.
"Kitsunegari" is the eighth episode of the fifth season of American science fiction television series The X-Files. It was written by Vince Gilligan and Tim Minear, and directed by Daniel Sackheim. It aired in the United States on January 4, 1998 on the Fox network. "Kitsunegari" earned a Nielsen household rating of 11.6, being watched by 19.75 million people in its initial broadcast. The episode received mixed reviews from television critics.
"Field Trip" is the twenty-first episode of the sixth season of the science fiction television series The X-Files. It premiered on the Fox network on May 9, 1999, in the United States and Canada, and subsequently aired in the United Kingdom on Sky1 on July 18. The episode was written by John Shiban and Vince Gilligan, from a story by Frank Spotnitz, and was directed by Kim Manners. The episode is a "Monster-of-the-Week" story, unconnected to the series' wider mythology. "Field Trip" earned a Nielsen household rating of 9.5, being watched by 15.40 million people in its initial broadcast. The episode received largely positive reviews from television critics.
"Patient X" is the thirteenth episode of the fifth season of American science fiction television series The X-Files. It was written by series creator Chris Carter and Frank Spotnitz, directed by Kim Manners and aired in the United States on March 1, 1998, on the Fox network. The episode earned a Nielsen household rating of 12.6, being watched by 20.21 million people in its initial broadcast. The episode received moderately positive reviews from critics.
"Travelers" is the fifteenth episode of the fifth season of American science fiction television series The X-Files, and the 111th episode of the series overall. It was written by John Shiban and Frank Spotnitz, directed by William A. Graham and aired in the United States on March 29, 1998, on the Fox network. The episode earned a Nielsen household rating of 9.9, being watched by 15.06 million people in its initial broadcast. The episode received mixed reviews from television critics.
"The Pine Bluff Variant" is the eighteenth episode of the fifth season of the American science fiction television series The X-Files. It was written by John Shiban and directed by Rob Bowman. The episode aired in the United States on May 3, 1998 on the Fox network. The episode is a "Monster-of-the-Week" story, a stand-alone plot which is unconnected to the series' wider mythology, or fictional history. "The Pine Bluff Variant" received a Nielsen household rating of 11.4 and was watched by 18.24 million viewers in its initial broadcast. It received largely positive reviews from television critics as well as fans on the internet.
"S.R. 819" is the ninth episode of the sixth season of the science fiction television series The X-Files. It premiered on the Fox network on January 17, 1999, in the United States. The episode was written by John Shiban, and directed by Daniel Sackheim. The episode helps to explore the series' overarching mythology. "S.R. 819" earned a Nielsen household rating of 9.1, being watched by 15.7 million people in its initial broadcast. The episode received mixed to positive reviews from critics.
"Alpha" is the sixteenth episode of the sixth season of the science fiction television series The X-Files. It premiered on the Fox network on March 28, 1999, in the United States. The episode was written by Jeffrey Bell, and directed by Peter Markle. The episode is a "Monster-of-the-Week" story, unconnected to the series' wider mythology. "Alpha" earned a Nielsen household rating of 10.1, being watched by 17.7 million people in its initial broadcast. The episode received mostly negative reviews from critics.
"Milagro" is the eighteenth episode of the sixth season of the American science fiction television series The X-Files. It originally aired on the Fox network on April 18, 1999. The episode's teleplay was written by Chris Carter from a story by John Shiban and Frank Spotnitz, and directed by Kim Manners. The episode is a "Monster of the Week" story, unconnected to the series' wider mythology. "Milagro" earned a Nielsen household rating of 9, being watched by 15.2 million people upon its initial broadcast. The episode received mixed to positive reviews from television critics.
"The Unnatural" is the 19th episode of the sixth season of the American science fiction television series The X-Files, which first aired on April 25, 1999, on the Fox network. Written and directed by lead actor David Duchovny, the episode is tangentially connected to the wider mythology of The X-Files, but narratively functions as a "Monster-of-the-Week" story. "The Unnatural" earned a Nielsen household rating of 10.1, and its first broadcast was watched by 16.88 million people. The episode received positive reviews from critics, and was well-liked by members of the cast and crew, including series creator Chris Carter and co-star Gillian Anderson.
"Orison" is the seventh episode of the seventh season of the science fiction television series The X-Files. It premiered on the Fox network in the United States on January 9, 2000. It was written by Chip Johannessen, directed by Rob Bowman, and featured guest appearances by Nick Chinlund and Scott Wilson. The episode is a "Monster-of-the-Week" story, unconnected to the series' wider mythology. In addition, "Orison" serves as a sequel, and brings closure, to the second season episode "Irresistible", with Chinlund reprising his role as Donnie Pfaster. "Orison" earned a Nielsen household rating of 9.4, being watched by 15.63 million people in its initial broadcast. The episode received mixed reviews from critics, with some criticizing the final scene featuring Scully killing Pfaster, calling it a betrayal of characterization.
"Tempus Fugit" is the seventeenth episode of the fourth season of the American science fiction television series The X-Files. It premiered on the Fox network on March 16, 1997. It was directed by Rob Bowman, and written by Frank Spotnitz and series creator Chris Carter. "Tempus Fugit" featured guest appearances by Joe Spano, Tom O'Brien and Brendan Beiser, and saw the return of Scott Bellis as alien abductee Max Fenig. The episode helped to explore the overarching mythology, or fictional history of The X-Files. "Tempus Fugit" earned a Nielsen household rating of 11.9, being watched by 18.85 million people in its initial broadcast. The title translates from Latin as "time flies."
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