MORGAN AND WONG WEEK: DAY 2 - X-FILES: HOME
While this may be a Millennium focused campaign, and while there maybe a plethora of Morgan and Wong material out there in the bleak bloody wastes of Millenniumland, to ignore Morgan and Wong's other great achievements in our week's celebrations would be short-sighted.
So for day two, we thought we'd look at Morgan and Wong's work on Millennium's older sibling, The X-Files - and perhaps one of our duos most controversial episodes, "Home".
Indeed, to lazily coin a pun, the truth is out there and to aide us finding the truth behind "Home" we have X-Files News.com content and PR guru Tiffany Devol.
Following this article, a chance to win season four of the X-Files (which of course includes "Home" - so check out the details at the bottom of the page).
So without further ado, Morgan and Wong Week Day 2: Home
Home - by far the creepiest "X-File" ever told. Pedophile priests have nothing on the incestuous baby killing Peacock family. What is fascinating about the episode is how bright and cheery everything outside of the Peacock house looks. Equally fascinating is after years of seeing Mulder and Scully in the dark, they look pretty damn good under a sunny blue sky.
Written by long-time friends and writing partners Glen Morgan and James Wong, Home was the first "X-Files" episode to get a viewer discretion warning for graphic content. In the original aired version, the baby's cries at the beginning of the episode were removed due to a request by Standards and Practices. The DVD version has the original audio. Home became one of the most popular episodes of "The X-Files" and was one of director Kim Manners' favorites.
Even now, the episode is as witty as it is disturbing.
The story begins with 3 brothers and a mother whom they keep under the bed. The father was killed in an automobile accident that also claimed the arms and legs of the mother. To continue her family tree, the mother has incestuous relations with her three sons, business as usual for generations of Peacock kids. When the child born to them is riddled with a host of deformities, the brothers take it out back and bury it alive in the cold wet ground as it squeaks more than screams its first breaths.
Days later a few neighborhood boys are playing baseball nearby when the batter kicks at the ground only to discover blood on his tennis shoe. The FBI soon arrives and Mulder and Scully are tasked with solving the horrific crime. They are taken to the police station to examine the body and Scully determines that the child suffered from a host of rare birth defects. After a nice little chat on the park bench outside the police station about babies and Mulder's genetic muster, the duo head out to the Peacock farm where they pass a bloodied hog's head lying on the front porch. Yet another reason why it was better to eat long before 9pm on Friday nights.
Mrs. Peacock overhears Mulder and Scully talking about the investigation and tells her sons who then head to Sheriff Andy Taylor's house in their white caddy. If infanticide was not enough, the Peacock brothers roll up listening to "It's Wonderful, Wonderful" by Johnny Mathis and then proceed to break into the Sheriff's home, brutally murder the man and his wife.
When Mulder requests that backup accompany them to the Peacock farm, Scully voices her concerns over the time that will take given that a woman could be captive in the farm house. Sheriff Taylor's deputy, understandably upset about his partner's death, enthusiastically agrees to take them to the farm house, a house they soon realize is booby trapped. After the deputy quite literally loses his head, Mulder and Scully proceed more cautiously. They hunker down in the mud and set a pen full of swine free in order to distract the brothers and gain entry into the house. That'll do pig.
Just before they get to the porch, partnership is in full swing as Scully bends, grabs a plank of wood and tosses it to Mulder who catches it one handed and heads toward the front door. Once they gain entry, they storm the dark house, working in tandem with flashlights and guns drawn. They soon discover Mrs. Peacock who tells Scully that a boy will do anything for his mother. Realizing the woman is not held against her will, Mulder and Scully try and determine what to do next but the Peacock brothers have picked up their scent and two of them come charging into the house.
When the brothers attack Mulder, Scully empties her clip but they don't stop, intent on killing her partner. The next logical move for Scully? Loudly threaten that she has their mother which gains their attention and forces Mulder to try and keep them from chasing her down. As one brother gains on her, Scully drops to the floor while Mulder shoots the second brother in the kitchen and the brother chasing Scully falls over her and is killed by one of his own booby traps. Whew that had to be fun to film. Mulder runs after Scully as she gets up and he puts a hand out, stopping her from walking toward the dead brother and presumably, toward any more traps.
As the dust settles our dynamic duo realize that the mother and older brother are gone and in the final scenes for the episode, mother and brother are rolling in their caddy, "It's Wonderful, Wonderful" playing joyfully through the stereo.
Home had horror, humor, action and suspense but more than anything, it had the heart of a MOTW story with some great Mulder and Scully moments.
With Home, you could have your cake and eat it too, assuming you didn't throw it up afterward.
- Tiffany Devol
X-Files News.com
Do you want to win a copy of season 4 on Region 1 DVD, which includes "Home"? Well here's your chance! Simply send us an email to info@backtofrankblack.com headed "X-Files Competition" with your name and address and we'll randomly select a winner at the end of the week! The winner will be announced on Sunday during our Glen Morgan interview podcast - so stay turned to that! Couldn't be simpler! More competitions later in the week!
