“You have no rights, only orders to be carried out.” – The Smoking Man.
ASCENSION [Mythology] October 21, 1994
Episode: 2×06 / 30 Overall
Director: Michael Lange • Writer: Paul Brown
Mulder attempts to rescue Scully after she is abducted by a strange man who believes in UFOs.
Alternate tagline, ‘Deny Everything’.
Paul Brown penned the follow up to Duane Barry in his first of only two episode as lead writer that feels more like the second act in a three episode arc, it would have been appropriate to end this episode with a ‘To be concluded…’. Scully is essentially absent from this episode barring two short scenes, a necessity to allow Anderson to give birth to her child while off work. As stated, nothing is resolved by the episode’s conclusion and the whereabouts of Scully are a matter of debate. Is it an Alien abduction or are the military involved? It’s certainly insinuated that Krycek and the Smoking Man are involved in the disappearance of Scully. In retrospect we now know that it was a government conspiracy under the guise of Alien abductions that was responsible for her capture but it’s still speculation in season 2. This episode marks the official re-opening of the X-Files unit, thanks to A.D. Skinner, who is edging ever closer to the side of good despite his resistance to Mulder’s more extreme theories. This is a tense, race against time thriller that moves along at an unrelenting pace so that by the 44 minute mark we’re left wanting more, not least because of our, and Mulder’s, desire to find Scully.
Duane Barry felt more like a standalone episode, while Ascension is much more in the vein of previous mythology episodes. What the writer, Paul Brown, does here is firmly establish both Krycek’s position as a series villain and the extent of the Smoking Man’s power and influence. Up until now the character had been used predominantly as background decoration, uttering only one or two lines per appearance, if that. While the Smoking Man still hasn’t been given much of an opportunity to speak, his actions and the actions of Kryceck working under him, make it clear that he will play a pivotal role in the series from now on. There’s a nice sense of urgency throughout and Mulder’s sense of desperation is evident. This is probably one of the only episodes in which we don’t miss Anderson’s presence, due to the fact that her character plays such an integral role in the story, despite not appearing on screen. It’s a similar effect to what happens in season 8 when Mulder is abducted and Duchovny is absent for more than half the series, but his character still feels like an important part of the story since there is so much time devoted to finding him. For a while at first it doesn’t really feel like he’s gone.
One thing I’ve always wondered about, concerning the Smoking Man, is his tendency to butt out cigarettes prematurely. He seems to waste quite a lot of the cigarette as we see can see from the ash tray in Skinner’s office. This has always struck me as odd, the idea that a chain smoker would waste so much tobacco. It’s unknown whether this was simply the work of an art department unaware of the cigarette smokers etiquette, or in fact a conscious and intentional character trait designed by the writer’s. Possibly this says that the Smoking Man is in such a privileged position of power and that he’s so used to getting whatever he wants that he can afford to be wasteful in this way. It could also be like a calling card, that he leaves behind to indicate his presence. Then again it’s possibly just an oversight.
★★★☆☆
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