“Young at Heart” – Season 1 Ep. 16

Mulder: Steve Walenberg had a wife and two kids. One of his boys is an all star on his football team now. I pull that trigger two seconds earlier and Walenberg would be here to see his kid play. Instead I got some dead man robbing jewelry stores and sending me haikus.

Written by: Scott Kaufer & Chris Carter

Directed by: Michael Lange

Original Air Date: February 11th, 1994

Principal Setting: Washington, D.C.

Episode Summary: 

Mulder is haunted by his first Bureau case, an assumed dead killer John Barnet is robbing jewelry stores and leaving behind cryptic notes directed to Mulder. Barnet was captured with the help of Mulder, but not before he killed the hostage and an FBI agent. Mulder regrets going by the FBI code and not shooting someone holding a hostage, even though he had the perfect shot. Mulder’s strong testimony in court puts Barnet behind bars for many years, although Barnet threatens Mulder he will get his revenge.

In 1989 Barnet supposedly died in prison, but through a medical cover up he is back to taunt Mulder. With the help of Mulder’s old partner, Agent Reggie Purdue (looking a lot like Reggie Jackson), they track down secrets of a fountain of youth formula, that a doctor has designed by studying cases of progeria, that Barnet could be using. It leads them down a cat and mouse game to find Barnet before he does any more harm. He sets strategic bombs around the city and hints that we may have not seen the last of John Barnet.

Personal Commentary:

I guess the writers really wanted to build up each of Mulder and Scully’s back stories in these earlier episodes, since this is another welcomed background story on Mulder’s first case and the repercussions he still is feeling. We learn one of the reasons he doesn’t like playing by the rules. He played it safe and by the book earlier in his career, only for it to backfire and cause two unnecessary deaths.

This very well could have been a typical cop drama where they must find the killer before time runs out, but Carter throws in some paranormal X-Files pizzaz with the fountain of youth testing and the certain reptilian side effects of this elixer. Alan Boyce, who plays the young Barnet, plays the part very menacing, giving his best Jack Nicholson impression when he’s talking to Mulder on the phone.

I really liked Mark Snow’s score in this episode. Incorporating opera singer chanting really created the right mood.

I also appreciated the mutated, lizard hand effect.

Episode Grade: C-

Fun Video: 

Don’t really have a favorite scene in this one. This trailer makes this episode seem a lot more attack of the lizard man then what actually happens.

Fun Facts:

• The CIA man in the background of the final scene is William B. Davis (Cigarette Smoking Man) making his second appearance on the show. Like his first there appears to be no dialogue.
• SPOILER Fact…
  The first time that Scully is shot, although she wears a bulletproof vest. Also the first time Mulder kills someone.

Faces You Recognize:

Not too many you will immediately recognize this episode…

• Christine Estabrook, who plays Agent Henderson, is famous for playing in The Usual Suspects and Spiderman 2. 
• Dick Anthony Williams (Agent Reggie Purdue) played a cop in Edward Scissorhands.