Firewalker (The X-Files)
Encyclopedia
"Firewalker" is the ninth episode of the second season of The X-Files
television series
, broadcast by the Fox Broadcasting Company
on November 18, 1994. "Firewalker" features Mulder and Scully investigating a mysterious life form that kills members of a team researching a volcano.
, intercepts a visual transmission from Firewalker, a mobile robot
sent by a volcanic
research project on Oregon
's Mount Avalon. Firewalker is broadcasting from inside a volcanic cave, where Pierce glimpses the dead body of the chief seismologist, Phil Erickson. He also sees a shadow moving in the cave, an impossibility due to the extremely high temperatures. The figure in the cave then destroys Firewalker's camera, ending the transmission.
Pierce goes to Fox Mulder
and Dana Scully
, showing them a news report featuring the project's leader, Daniel Trepkos; Pierce was with the project until he and Trepkos had a falling out. The agents take the case, but Mulder is reluctant to let Scully go to Oregon, given her recent abduction; Scully, however, insists that she is ready. Upon arriving at Mount Avalon, Pierce goes out in the woods to inspect the project's equipment while the agents search the laboratory
. They meet the seemingly traumatized
team: robotics engineer Jason Ludwig, systems analyst Peter Tanaka, and graduate student Jessie O'Neil. They claim that Trepkos, who has bipolar disorder
, behaved erratically after Firewalker's first descent, destroying their lab before disappearing. Meanwhile, outside, Trepkos strangles Pierce.
After the team finds and stores Pierce's body, Mulder reviews Trepkos' fragmented notes. He finds references to a new silicon
-based organism existing inside Mount Avalon; Scully, however, points out Trepkos' mental state
and questions his conclusions. Tanaka breaks into convulsions and displays a high fever, but refuses any help from Mulder or Scully. When he is put on a stretcher for a medivac pickup, Mulder notices a throbbing bulge in his neck. Tanaka flees into the woods and dies when a tentacle
bursts out of his throat. An autopsy by Scully finds sand in his lungs, indicating the existence of a silicon-based spore
; she theorizes that when exposed, the spore infects the nearest hosts or otherwise dies. Mulder contacts the CDC to have them quarantine
the site.
Mulder and Ludwig venture into the volcanic caves to find Trepkos. When they find Firewalker, Trepkos shoots Ludwig in the back with a flare gun
, killing him. He then burns Ludwig's body, as he was infected with the spore as well. Trepkos tells Mulder that after Firewalker returned from its first descent, Erickson pulverized a rock in one of its samples, resulting in his death and the infection of all the scientists immediately surrounding him. Trepkos says that the spore is parasitic in nature, making its hosts pass itself on to others. Meanwhile, in the lab, O'Neil handcuffs
herself to Scully to expose her to the spore, but Scully protects herself by throwing O'Neil into a sealed chamber and closing the door. A protrusion bursts out of O'Neil's throat, killing her without spreading the spore to Scully.
Mulder and Trepkos arrive on the scene. Mulder radios the evacuation team but -- knowing that Trepkos will refuse to go -- reports that only he and Scully have survived the ordeal. The agents enter a month-long quarantine while the Chemical Corps confiscates the lab and cordons off Mount Avalon. Firewalker is salvaged, but is too damaged to yield sufficient data. Trepkos and O'Neil are officially unaccounted for and presumed dead; Trepkos is last seen carrying O'Neil's body as he disappears into the volcano.
was inspired to write the episode after seeing two news reports about Project Dante, a robotic explorer created by NASA
that had been sent into a volcano. Chris Carter
said of the episode, "I think that's the first time in our second season that we were telling what's one of our serial stories rather than our mythological stories. In other words, it was an X-File rather than one of the cosmology shows that explore the characters."
The episode shared themes with previous episodes from the first season
such as "Ice" and "Darkness Falls
", which both featured the agents finding new lifeforms in remote locations. James Wong
was somewhat negative concerning the episode's similarities to "Ice", saying, "If the show starts to cannibalize itself, there's going to be trouble." Gordon stated, however, "I know there are some similarities with 'Ice', but I think once you get beyond the similarities of a group of people in a confined space going up against a creature, there are enough differences to separate the two."
Gordon was praiseful of Toby Lindala's effects on this episode, saying he "won the gross-out award". He also praised Nutter's job in directing the episode. Carter said that "Firewalker" was a "very successful episode. David Nutter added a nice directorial touch; the guest appearances were very good."
The X-Files
The X-Files is an American science fiction television series and a part of The X-Files franchise, created by screenwriter Chris Carter. The program originally aired from to . The show was a hit for the Fox network, and its characters and slogans became popular culture touchstones in the 1990s...
television series
Television program
A television program , also called television show, is a segment of content which is intended to be broadcast on television. It may be a one-time production or part of a periodically recurring series...
, broadcast by the Fox Broadcasting Company
Fox Broadcasting Company
Fox Broadcasting Company, commonly referred to as Fox Network or simply Fox , is an American commercial broadcasting television network owned by Fox Entertainment Group, part of Rupert Murdoch's News Corporation. Launched on October 9, 1986, Fox was the highest-rated broadcast network in the...
on November 18, 1994. "Firewalker" features Mulder and Scully investigating a mysterious life form that kills members of a team researching a volcano.
Plot
Adam Pierce, a scientist at the California Institute of TechnologyCalifornia Institute of Technology
The California Institute of Technology is a private research university located in Pasadena, California, United States. Caltech has six academic divisions with strong emphases on science and engineering...
, intercepts a visual transmission from Firewalker, a mobile robot
Mobile robot
A mobile robot is an automatic machine that is capable of movement in a given environment.-Overview:Mobile robots have the capability to move around in their environment and are not fixed to one physical location...
sent by a volcanic
Volcano
2. Bedrock3. Conduit 4. Base5. Sill6. Dike7. Layers of ash emitted by the volcano8. Flank| 9. Layers of lava emitted by the volcano10. Throat11. Parasitic cone12. Lava flow13. Vent14. Crater15...
research project on Oregon
Oregon
Oregon is a state in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States. It is located on the Pacific coast, with Washington to the north, California to the south, Nevada on the southeast and Idaho to the east. The Columbia and Snake rivers delineate much of Oregon's northern and eastern...
's Mount Avalon. Firewalker is broadcasting from inside a volcanic cave, where Pierce glimpses the dead body of the chief seismologist, Phil Erickson. He also sees a shadow moving in the cave, an impossibility due to the extremely high temperatures. The figure in the cave then destroys Firewalker's camera, ending the transmission.
Pierce goes to Fox Mulder
Fox Mulder
FBI Special Agent Fox William Mulder is a fictional character and protagonist in the American Fox television shows The X-Files and The Lone Gunmen, two science fiction shows about a government conspiracy to hide or deny the truth of Alien existence. Mulder's peers consider his theories on...
and Dana Scully
Dana Scully
FBI Special Agent Dana Katherine Scully, M.D. is a fictional character and protagonist on the Fox television series The X-Files , played by Gillian Anderson. She also appeared in two theatrical films based on the series...
, showing them a news report featuring the project's leader, Daniel Trepkos; Pierce was with the project until he and Trepkos had a falling out. The agents take the case, but Mulder is reluctant to let Scully go to Oregon, given her recent abduction; Scully, however, insists that she is ready. Upon arriving at Mount Avalon, Pierce goes out in the woods to inspect the project's equipment while the agents search the laboratory
Laboratory
A laboratory is a facility that provides controlled conditions in which scientific research, experiments, and measurement may be performed. The title of laboratory is also used for certain other facilities where the processes or equipment used are similar to those in scientific laboratories...
. They meet the seemingly traumatized
Psychological trauma
Psychological trauma is a type of damage to the psyche that occurs as a result of a traumatic event...
team: robotics engineer Jason Ludwig, systems analyst Peter Tanaka, and graduate student Jessie O'Neil. They claim that Trepkos, who has bipolar disorder
Bipolar disorder
Bipolar disorder or bipolar affective disorder, historically known as manic–depressive disorder, is a psychiatric diagnosis that describes a category of mood disorders defined by the presence of one or more episodes of abnormally elevated energy levels, cognition, and mood with or without one or...
, behaved erratically after Firewalker's first descent, destroying their lab before disappearing. Meanwhile, outside, Trepkos strangles Pierce.
After the team finds and stores Pierce's body, Mulder reviews Trepkos' fragmented notes. He finds references to a new silicon
Silicon
Silicon is a chemical element with the symbol Si and atomic number 14. A tetravalent metalloid, it is less reactive than its chemical analog carbon, the nonmetal directly above it in the periodic table, but more reactive than germanium, the metalloid directly below it in the table...
-based organism existing inside Mount Avalon; Scully, however, points out Trepkos' mental state
Mental health
Mental health describes either a level of cognitive or emotional well-being or an absence of a mental disorder. From perspectives of the discipline of positive psychology or holism mental health may include an individual's ability to enjoy life and procure a balance between life activities and...
and questions his conclusions. Tanaka breaks into convulsions and displays a high fever, but refuses any help from Mulder or Scully. When he is put on a stretcher for a medivac pickup, Mulder notices a throbbing bulge in his neck. Tanaka flees into the woods and dies when a tentacle
Tentacle
A tentacle or bothrium is one of usually two or more elongated flexible organs present in animals, especially invertebrates. The term may also refer to the hairs of the leaves of some insectivorous plants. Usually, tentacles are used for feeding, feeling and grasping. Anatomically, they work like...
bursts out of his throat. An autopsy by Scully finds sand in his lungs, indicating the existence of a silicon-based spore
Spore
In biology, a spore is a reproductive structure that is adapted for dispersal and surviving for extended periods of time in unfavorable conditions. Spores form part of the life cycles of many bacteria, plants, algae, fungi and some protozoa. According to scientist Dr...
; she theorizes that when exposed, the spore infects the nearest hosts or otherwise dies. Mulder contacts the CDC to have them quarantine
Quarantine
Quarantine is compulsory isolation, typically to contain the spread of something considered dangerous, often but not always disease. The word comes from the Italian quarantena, meaning forty-day period....
the site.
Mulder and Ludwig venture into the volcanic caves to find Trepkos. When they find Firewalker, Trepkos shoots Ludwig in the back with a flare gun
Flare gun
A flare gun is a firearm that launches flares. It is typically used for signalling, as distress signalling, at sea or from the ground to aircraft...
, killing him. He then burns Ludwig's body, as he was infected with the spore as well. Trepkos tells Mulder that after Firewalker returned from its first descent, Erickson pulverized a rock in one of its samples, resulting in his death and the infection of all the scientists immediately surrounding him. Trepkos says that the spore is parasitic in nature, making its hosts pass itself on to others. Meanwhile, in the lab, O'Neil handcuffs
Handcuffs
Handcuffs are restraint devices designed to secure an individual's wrists close together. They comprise two parts, linked together by a chain, a hinge, or rigid bar. Each half has a rotating arm which engages with a ratchet that prevents it from being opened once closed around a person's wrist...
herself to Scully to expose her to the spore, but Scully protects herself by throwing O'Neil into a sealed chamber and closing the door. A protrusion bursts out of O'Neil's throat, killing her without spreading the spore to Scully.
Mulder and Trepkos arrive on the scene. Mulder radios the evacuation team but -- knowing that Trepkos will refuse to go -- reports that only he and Scully have survived the ordeal. The agents enter a month-long quarantine while the Chemical Corps confiscates the lab and cordons off Mount Avalon. Firewalker is salvaged, but is too damaged to yield sufficient data. Trepkos and O'Neil are officially unaccounted for and presumed dead; Trepkos is last seen carrying O'Neil's body as he disappears into the volcano.
Production
Howard GordonHoward Gordon
Howard Gordon is an American screenwriter and producer.-Life and career:Gordon was born in Queens, New York, New York. After graduating from Princeton in 1984, Gordon came to Los Angeles with fellow filmmaker Alex Gansa to pursue a career in writing for television. Both broke into the industry...
was inspired to write the episode after seeing two news reports about Project Dante, a robotic explorer created by NASA
NASA
The National Aeronautics and Space Administration is the agency of the United States government that is responsible for the nation's civilian space program and for aeronautics and aerospace research...
that had been sent into a volcano. Chris Carter
Chris Carter (screenwriter)
Christopher Carl Carter is an American screenwriter, film director and producer. He is the creator of The X-Files and Millennium.- Ten Thirteen Productions :...
said of the episode, "I think that's the first time in our second season that we were telling what's one of our serial stories rather than our mythological stories. In other words, it was an X-File rather than one of the cosmology shows that explore the characters."
The episode shared themes with previous episodes from the first season
The X-Files (season 1)
The first season of the science fiction television series The X-Files commenced airing on the Fox network in the United States on September 10, 1993 and concluded on the same channel on May 13, 1994 after airing all 24 episodes....
such as "Ice" and "Darkness Falls
Darkness Falls (The X-Files)
"Darkness Falls" is the twentieth episode of the first season of the American science fiction television series The X-Files. It premiered on the Fox network on April 15, 1994. "Darkness Falls" was written by series creator Chris Carter, and directed by Joe Napolitano. It featured guest appearances...
", which both featured the agents finding new lifeforms in remote locations. James Wong
James Wong (producer)
James 'Jim' Wong is a Cantonese-American television producer, writer, and film director notable for his screen works of The X-Files, Space: Above and Beyond, Millennium, Final Destination 1 & 3, The One, and the remakes of Willard and Black Christmas along with writing partner Glen...
was somewhat negative concerning the episode's similarities to "Ice", saying, "If the show starts to cannibalize itself, there's going to be trouble." Gordon stated, however, "I know there are some similarities with 'Ice', but I think once you get beyond the similarities of a group of people in a confined space going up against a creature, there are enough differences to separate the two."
Gordon was praiseful of Toby Lindala's effects on this episode, saying he "won the gross-out award". He also praised Nutter's job in directing the episode. Carter said that "Firewalker" was a "very successful episode. David Nutter added a nice directorial touch; the guest appearances were very good."