|
"731" is the tenth episode of the third season of the American science fiction television series ''The X-Files''. It premiered on the Fox network on . It was directed by Rob Bowman, and written by Frank Spotnitz. "731" featured guest appearances by Stephen McHattie, Steven Williams and Don S. Williams. The episode helps explore the series' overarching mythology. "731" earned a Nielsen household rating of 12, being watched by 17.68 million people in its initial broadcast. The show centers on FBI special agents Fox Mulder (David Duchovny) and Dana Scully (Gillian Anderson) who work on cases linked to the paranormal, called X-Files. In this episode, Mulder risks his life infiltrating a train carrying a human-alien hybrid. Meanwhile, Scully tries to uncover the truth about her abduction. "731" is a two-part episode, continuing the plot from the previous episode, "Nisei". The production of "731" involved several stunts, including the explosion of a retired railway car. The episode's production was successful for two members of the crew—earning director of photography John Bartley an American Society of Cinematographers award nomination for his work, and securing Bowman the job of directing the series' subsequent film adaptation, ''The X-Files''. == Plot == In Quinnimont, West Virginia, a team of soldiers arrives at an abandoned leprosy research compound, rounding up most of the patients. One patient, Escalante, hides beneath a trapdoor during the arrival and follows the group to a secluded field nearby. He watches as the soldiers shoot the other patients, including apparent alien-human hybrids, into a mass grave. Fox Mulder loses his cell phone after jumping on top of the moving train, losing contact with Dana Scully. When questioned by Scully, X tells her to analyze her implant, saying that it will give her answers about the train and her sister Melissa's murder. Meanwhile, Mulder enters the train and finds that the secret railcar is quarantined and protected by a security system. He searches for Zama, enlisting the train conductor for help. In Zama's compartment, they find hand-written journals in Japanese. However, elsewhere on the train, the Red-Haired Man intercepts and strangles Zama. Scully sees Pendrell, who tells her that the implant contains highly advanced technology that can replicate the brain's memory functions and enable someone to know a person's very thoughts. The manufacturer of the chip was Zama, who created the implant at the West Virginia compound. Scully travels there, meeting a group of deformed patients who have eluded the "death squads." Escalante tells her that the patients were experimented on by Zama, who departed long ago; since then, the death squads have set out to massacre them. Escalante shows her the mass grave but is killed when soldiers arrive to capture Scully. She is brought before the First Elder. Mulder returns to the railcar, seeing its door ajar; an alien-human test subject is locked in a room inside. The Red-Haired Man attacks Mulder, causing the conductor to lock them both in the car. The Red-Haired Man claims to work for the NSA, and that a bomb in the car was triggered after he gained entry with Zama's pass code. Mulder doesn't believe him, but he is called by Scully on the Red-Haired Man's cell phone. Scully—who is with the First Elder in a similar railcar—tells Mulder that unwitting subjects, including herself, were operated on by Zama in the secret railway, with the alien abduction theory used as a smokescreen. She also confirms that a bomb is in the car and believes that the quarantined patient is infected with hemorrhagic fever. She fears that thousands will die from the disease if the car explodes. Mulder finds the bomb in the ceiling. After the car is disconnected from the rest of the train on a remote rail siding, Mulder questions the Red-Haired Man, who says that the patient is immune to biological warfare. Zama had tried to sneak the patient out of the country, but the government would rather see it destroyed than let their research fall into Japanese hands; the Red-Haired Man was sent to kill them both. Mulder, however, believes that the patient is an alien-human hybrid. With help from Scully, Mulder successfully unlocks the door of the railcar, but he is knocked unconscious by the Red-Haired Man. As he is about to leave, X appears and shoots him. Realizing that the bomb is about to explode and that there is not enough time to both save Mulder and secure the patient, X decides to save Mulder. X exits carrying the still unconscious Mulder shortly before the bomb explodes. After recovering from his injuries, Mulder attempts to find information on the railcar, but he is unable to do so. Scully returns the journal that he found on the car, but Mulder realizes that it is a rewritten substitute. Meanwhile, the real journal is translated in a shadowy room as the Smoking Man watches.〔Lowry, pp. 129–131〕〔Lovece, pp. 206–208〕 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア(Wikipedia)』 ■ウィキペディアで「731 (The X-Files)」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
|