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Feb 02, 2016 By Cody Ray Shafer Web Exclusive

That sound you heard last night—no, not the confused cheers of Bernie Sanders supporters at the Iowa caucus, the other sound, the geekier one—was the collective sigh of X-Files fans after watching the third episode of the revived miniseries. “Mulder & Scully Meet the Were-Monster” wasn’t just a return to form after a couple of lackluster episodes, it was a brilliant 45 minutes of television that both embraced its legacy and inverted it for comedic effect.

It starts with Mulder lamenting the non-existence of monsters, or at least the constant scientific explanations for supposed monsters. It’s a great way to kick off what is essentially the latest “monster of the week” episode, addressing the series’ long history with chasing down the supernatural with a conscious self-examination. In fact, it does a lot more to tell us where Mulder’s head is than his long, expository rants in “My Struggle.” This is simple; he’s bummed out that his life’s work is a sham, but here comes a case that just might redeem all of it.

The case involves a giant lizard-man who is apparently terrorizing a small town. Mulder and Scully investigate, honing in on a suspicious Guy Man (Rhys Darby), who it appears is changing into a man-sized horned lizard during a full moon and embarking on mad killing sprees. Only (spoilers) it turns out the lizard was bit by a man, and started changing into a human just a few nights ago. It’s a brilliant twist, and played for laughs by Darby, who insists he just picked up all of these mannerisms along with a surprising penchant for bullshit. Of course, Mulder doesn’t know if he can buy his story, even if he desperately wants to.

This episode is really funny, and more importantly, what we need from this new X Files. It manages to assess the elements that make up The X-Files and examine its dated paranoia with well executed whimsy, and deconstructs Mulder’s driving characteristics with humor that keeps a healthy distance from parody. (www.fox.com/the-x-files)

Author rating: 8/10