“Fresh Bones” – Season 2 Ep. 15

Mr. X: In case you haven’t noticed, Agent Mulder, the Statue of Liberty is on vacation. The new mandate says if you’re not a citizen you’d better keep out.

Written by: Howard Gordon

Directed by: Rob Bowman

Original Air Date: February 3rd, 1995 

Principal Setting: Folkstone, North Carolina

Episode Summary: 

Scully and Mulder investigate the death of a soldier working at a Haitian refugee camp. It is revealed early that he has disturbing hallucinations and is struggling with what looks to be PTSD. He drives his car into a tree and it appears only to be a suicide, but the man’s wife doesn’t believe he would have done that. After interviewing a Haitian refugee Pierre Beauvais, rumors are revealed the the camp commander, Colonel Wharton, may be systematically abusing some of the detainees.

There is also evidence of voodoo curses being strategically placed to take revenge on the colonel, and Scully even cuts her hand on a thorn which plagues her with a curse. Someone unexpectedly returns and throws everyone for a loop. They receive help from a young kid in the camp, Chester Bonaparte, who gives them a protection anti-voodoo charm. He, along with Beauvais, have secrets that Mulder and Scully may never solve. Mr. X warns Mulder that the military may be behind all of it (isn’t that always his conclusion for everything?), but it could be the curse of voodoo after all.

Personal Commentary:

“Fresh Bones” seems like a continuation of “Sleepless” with what looks like the military doing tests on soldiers which affects their psyche and gives them hallucinations. It turns out to be voodoo curses, which makes for a very creepy, and much more interesting episode than “Sleepless”.

Spoiler- There are some slower moments, but the conclusion is very terrifying and gross as Scully encounters a hallucination of Beauvais crawling out of the cut in her hand and the colonel getting his ultimate revenge as he is buried alive. There are a few messy plot points not explained, like the true reasons why the colonel is abusing some of the detainees and his history in Haiti. Overall, the voodoo fit very well with the paranormal feel of the show and it mostly was free of the cliches of voodoo practices. So glad they didn’t write in Mulder and Scully voodoo dolls. We will see some voodoo dolls come into play in the episode “Theef” in Season 7 however.

.Episode Grade: B-

Favorite Scene: 

This scene that feels straight out of a horror movie. Disturbing, terrifying, and gross.

Fun Facts:

• To achieve the effect where a man emerges out of Scully’s hand, an actor pushed his gelatin-covered fingers through a fake hand.
• The “vever” that is painted on the tree McAlpin crashes is a sign belonging to the spirited honored in voudoun that symbolizes a mirror of the soul.

Faces You Recognize:

• Roger R. Cross is back playing a small role as Private Kittel. If you remember he also appeared in E.B.E. and will be in two other episodes. He’s famous for playing Curtis Manning in 24 and Oval Office Agent Cartwright in X-Men 2.