If I recall this one correctly, Mulder has tickets to a Monday Night Vikings-Redskins game. But this was in November 1994, and the Redskins didn't have any Monday Night games that year. That one took a bit of looking up.

I have to question the key guest performance of this episode. As good as it is, is it really appropriate? I mean, the script deals with how anyone can be a serial killer, from all facets of society, etc. But our serial killer here is hardly an everyman. He's probably the creepiest man to ever live! I can confidently say I wouldn't tell him about the unlocked back door to my house! (I hate to say it, but it's a shame that woman didn't die... it would be a fine example of selective breeding!)

"Creepiness" is in the eye of the beholder. Apparently, neither the woman at the placement agency nor the woman who tells Donny about the back door see him as dangerous. The prostitute does not realize (until it is too late) that Donny is dangerous.

Perhaps what is scariest about this episode is that it reminds us that evil people do not wear "I AM A SICK AND EVIL PERSON" signs on them. We all have heard what the neighbors of serial killers say, "Gee, he was so quiet, who would have imagined...?"

Throughout X-Files there were many depraved villains who seemed like ordinary people at first. Every one of them illustrates the "who would have imagined?" point better than Donnie Pfaster. He was simply miscast... better to save the actor for another role.

Murray:

I watched the episode last night, and I have to agree that Pfaster does look creepy, even without the benefit of lighting, mood music and the works.

Here is the funny thing. To the audience, it is obvious that Donnie is creepy. Is it obvious to the characters?

It is not obvious to the lady in his delivery route. It is somewhat obvious to the lady in the placement agency, but she dismisses her reaction and gives Donnie a job.

The prostitute feels safe accepting Donnie as a customer. My inclination is to think she found his request (to shampoo her hair) a bit unusual but not *that* bizarre. Given her line of work, it is probable she has had kinkier customers. Dismissing her instincts ends up badly for her.

The female student keeps her guard up while talking to Donnie. Is this in reaction to Donnie himself, or in reaction to a stranger approaching her in a dark, deserted parking lot?

Scully, when exchanging looks with Donnie, appears disturbed. My take is that she thought her feelings were brought on by the grisly nature of the case, and not by the creepy-looking guy leering at her from his jail cell.

On a different subject, the placement agency woman asks about Donnie's religious inclinations. I thought asking about religious affiliation during job interviews was illegal. I could be wrong.

I don't think it's illegal to ask about religion, just discriminate on the basis of that (and the person can choose not to answer).

What was the point of Donnie shape-shifting? The first time I saw this episode that was what confused me.

Apparently some network guys decided that the plot wasn't X-Files enough, so they added the 'alien' shots to add extra kick.

Some anti-nits:

Phil mentions that prisoners in minneapolis are indeed brought to one central location, so Pfaster could see Scully when she and Mulder interrogate the guy slashed by the prostitute. However, is it really proper police procedure to interrogate a guy in an open holding cell, where everybody else can listen in, instead of a questioning room? (And that guy seems to be pretty open when talking, considering that he has been going to a prostitute. I'd have thought he would be more ashamed of being exposed and not say anything.)

Phil mentions that several nitpickers thought Scully did a bad job of defending herself when Pfaster took her. But when she's driving in her car, we see the headlights of Pfaster's car approaching, he rams Scully's car, we see the headlights again, and a cut to Mulder worrying. When Scullys car is found, its been forced of the road. Well, if it happened quickly and violently, Scully might have been knocked uncoscious and therefore not been able to defend herself.

I want to commend Scully on her defense in Pfaster's mother's house. She is defending herself with all she's got, and very inventive, too (using a can to spray him). This is what I like to see more, a capable female character - instead of the prostitute who just cowers against the wall, saying no.

Phil remarks on the prostitutes comment about the cold in the house. I don't know what the house is made out of - wood or stone/brick - but I know from experience that an unheated stone/brick house in winter will be much colder than outside (if no wind is going outside). Also, the prostitute was probably thinking already of undressing herself, and that made her feel the cold more than on the street.

Why does the prostitute undress herself during Donnys telephone call, instead of him being present? (Wouldn't she get more money for a well-done striptease?) And why didn't she test the water temperature with her hand before?

Donny is released from holding because the female student redrew the accusation. I wonder how she felt: When Donny is standing close to her, looking creepy, she is scared, and the viewers are scared, thinking she'll be the next victim. Then she kicks him and gets help and him arrested. Then she thinks closer about what exactly he did wrong, and feels very stu-pid about overreacting, since he hasn't actually done anything at that point, and redraws the accusation. What will she think when she opens her newspaper next day and learns about his arrest and his crimes?

(This is generally a very problematic decision for young woman alone with a creepy guy: Kick too early, and its overreaction to a harmless situation; Kick too late, after he has attacked you, and your are already handicapped by his first attack.)

And I think the "demonic" pictures were a bad decision to add. The X-files have their share of serial killers without paranormal events, and the monologues indicate how important it is to remember that monsters look like everybody else. Mulder talks of fetishim, saying that a monster like this isn't made overnight, he has a long history. By making it appear as though Pfaster is possessed by a demon, it appears as though Pfaster isn't fully responsible for what he's doing. We don't know if he fights his fetishim, or knows he is doing sth. wrong, or simply accepts it. (In that respect, I think the later ep. "Hunger" was very good in showing the fight against an urge).

I know this episode came out way before Star Trek Nemesis, but whenever they showed the bald silhouette, I kept thinking, "She's being menaced by Shinzon...." The baldness, the ears, and the thingys on his shoulder all reminded me of Shinzon.

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I noticed Scully referred to Mulder as 'Agent Fox' in her report. That's quite a script slip-up!

(Apologies if this in Phil's guide; I haven't read up to there yet.)

And the dead prostitute is obviously breathing.

The Bureau trio should've had Pfaster as a suspect much sooner than they did. At the cemetery Fox was telling Bocks that this person likely worked at a mortuary or cemetery before, and had that been followed up on they would've found he was fired from a funeral home a couple days ago! There were a few other instances of what I'd call 'serial killers 101' throughout this ep that should've been looked into as well, but wasn't for plot purposes.

I find it incredibly unlikely that the victim at the adult school would drop the charges the very same night as her attack, or at all quite frankly! At least wait to learn if he is a repeat offender or something.

Phil mentions the scene where the prostitute complains about it being cold in Pfaser's residence, and constanze touches on that as well. However, I'm fairly sure it was an apartment and not a house (also claimed in the guide), and it appears to be at least on the second floor, judging by the view from the window. Assuming all that is correct, wouldn't heat from neigboring apartments raise the temperature at least some?

Somewhere in the episode it's stated that Pfaster, played by Nick Chinlund, is 28. I was skeptical about the age of a character in Born Again but this time I looked up Chinlund's bio: he was born in November 1961 and Irresistible aired in January 1995 (likely filmed sometime in 1994). While 5 years isn't that big of a difference, I still wonder why TPTB felt the need to make the character younger when such a change was unnecessary.