After the previous season and a half of character departures, character introductions, retooled mythology, and unyielding darkness and despair, "Lord of the Flies" feels like a deliberate attempt to recapture the lightheartedness and simplicity of a certain subset of pre-Doggett episodes. It would have felt right at home in season 6; the storyline of a misunderstood teenager whose unusual powers alternately empower and complicate his unrequited love for an unsuspecting girl would nestle snugly alongside an episode like "The Rain King."
The cast is pretty good for this one, even if Erick Avari is underutilized as the coroner. Michael Wiseman is a standout as the smarmy, pompous Dr. Rocky; his cocky flirtation with an unreceptive Scully finally gives brilliant comic straight (wo)man Gillian Anderson something to do other than shout about her baby and pine over the lost Mulder. (What that woman could do simply by raising an eyebrow...) Look for future TV stars Jane Lynch and Aaron Paul as a well-meaning single mother and a high school bully with a frat-boy mentality, respectively.
Late television director Kim Manners handles the teleplay's uneven tone deftly, imparting the same understated quality to the humor that brought many a Darin Morgan and Vince Gilligan script to life with such grace. As a prolific veteran of the show, Manners crafts an episode that feels familiar, and very much welcome amidst the inexorable momentum of the unceasingly tense Super Soldiers storyline. On its own, "Lord of the Flies" is by no means a great episode, but in the context of the 9th season it is a pleasant diversion.
The cast is pretty good for this one, even if Erick Avari is underutilized as the coroner. Michael Wiseman is a standout as the smarmy, pompous Dr. Rocky; his cocky flirtation with an unreceptive Scully finally gives brilliant comic straight (wo)man Gillian Anderson something to do other than shout about her baby and pine over the lost Mulder. (What that woman could do simply by raising an eyebrow...) Look for future TV stars Jane Lynch and Aaron Paul as a well-meaning single mother and a high school bully with a frat-boy mentality, respectively.
Late television director Kim Manners handles the teleplay's uneven tone deftly, imparting the same understated quality to the humor that brought many a Darin Morgan and Vince Gilligan script to life with such grace. As a prolific veteran of the show, Manners crafts an episode that feels familiar, and very much welcome amidst the inexorable momentum of the unceasingly tense Super Soldiers storyline. On its own, "Lord of the Flies" is by no means a great episode, but in the context of the 9th season it is a pleasant diversion.