Case 02, File 15: Fresh Bones

AKA: Go Do That Voodoo That You Do So Well

The X-Files is a Canadian production, which is varying degrees of obvious throughout the series, at least if you know what you're looking at (personally I've always been fond of the Vancouver SkyTrain showing up briefly in Ghost in the Machine). This isn't a bad thing, nor a good thing, it's merely a thing; A lot of stuff is shot in Canada. But I think in this case, and in some specific other ones, it's useful, because it gives them a certain distance from American politics to criticize some of our...less savory actions.

Case 02, File 14: Die Hand Die Verletz

AKA: The Devils of New Hampshire

So, some of you may not be aware of this, but back in the 80s, there was this thing called the Satanic Panic, where a bunch of people actually started believing there was a massive Satanic conspiracy in the USA. There were a lot of moving parts involved, but the actual accusations got really weird and really bizarre (look up the McMartin Preschool Trial for further reading, some of that shit was weird). While the whole thing was patently absurd, it inspired a lot of people's imaginations. And if any show could spin the lunacy of that particular moment in history into a good episode, it would be The X-Files.

Case 02, File 13: Irresistible

AKA: The Kinkshaming of Donnie Pfaster

I don't think it's unfair to say that The X-Files is a pretty dark show, and I'm not talking about lighting. Okay, not JUST talking about lighting. The series has always trended towards being grim, since it's typically, you know, about monsters killing people horribly, being a little dark about it is to be expected. Hence why, when I say an episode is extraordinarily dark, even by X-Files standards, you know it's not screwing around.