"The reasonable man adapts himself to the world; the unreasonable one
persists in trying to adapt the world to himself. Therefore all progress
depends on the unreasonable man."
-- George Bernard Shaw
Bernard Shaw's quote is, perhaps, the definitive explanation of the character of Fox Mulder. For "Dreamland I" is not just an episode that tries to display both the comedic and dramatic talents of the actor who breathes life into the Fox Mulder character; "Dreamland I" is also a demonstration of how a failure to adapt by one character can be contrasted with another character's ability to do so, offering insight into the depths to which someone can fall.
A close encounter with a UFO causes Mulder to exchange consciousness with a member of Majestic, a Man In Black. The minds exchange bodies, or perhaps, the bodies exchange minds. But the difference between the way the two men react to this anomaly is striking. Guest star Michael McKean adapts to his new identity well. He bumbles and stumbles around, is late for a meeting with Kersh, and acts like the poster boy for sexual harassment. But he does adapt. He makes a temporary peace with Kersh and a "lunch" date with Kersh's Administrative Assistant. He enjoys being single again, and he's willing to play by the rules, promising Kersh that he and Scully won't be investigating any more X-Files. He uses his position to try to determine who's ready to leak information about Area 51. He adapts himself to the world.
Mulder, on the other hand, struggles to become part of the world which has been thrust upon him. He doesn't bring home the milk his wife asked him to get, a cardinal sin. He heads straight for the soft-core porn channel, fumbles with the children's names and alienates them, then indulges in a less graphic form of self indulgence by dancing with his new body in front of a mirror. He finally has almost unlimited access to the secret installation that may hold the answers to many of his questions. Yet, he delays trying to find proof of the existence of extraterrestrial life until such time as he's set up to be captured. But Mulder's unreasonableness also reveals his humanity. When the service station owner is caught between floors without the benefit of an elevator, Mulder wants to help him. Surely this was considered unreasonable by his "colleagues," who quickly and mercilessly kill the hapless victim. But Mulder never met a victim he didn't want to help, and it is this unreasonableness that bespeaks his nobility.
"Dreamland I" offered many humorous moments mixed with dramatic images. As affecting as seeing the copilot trapped inside a boulder was, it was just as charming watching a 75 year old woman snap to attention and bark responses back to a general. As distressing as it was to hear Morris!Mulder tell Scully to "get her panties on straight" and to watch him pat Scully's derriere, it was charming to watch Mulder!Morris claim he wasn't the man she married and to feign impotence when Joanne leapt to the wrong conclusion. Tension and revulsion were balanced with humor throughout the episode. Sometimes it worked; sometimes it didn't.
I have long maintained that David Duchovny's best work is when he's doing comedy. His deadpan expressions and droll delivery are beautiful to watch. In "Dreamland I," however, Duchovny went over the top with his mugging. The mirror dance scene came off as an X-Files version of Tom Cruise's lip synching "That Old Time Rock 'n' Roll" in Risky Business, with boxers instead of briefs. Duchovny added in the stance from "The Karate Kid Part II" to segue into his pants when caught by Morris' wife. But the topper was his facial expression after Joanne went to answer the door after the "Viagara" scene.
Gillian Anderson did an admirable job, given that she spent most of the episode being Idiot!Scully. She was appropriately wistful while talking to Mulder about missing a "normal" life with kids, a mini van, etc. Yet she was adamant about protecting her and Mulder's work and their sources when faced with what amounted to a betrayal by Morris!Mulder.
What was irritating was that Anderson had to play Idiot!Scully for most of the episode, watching someone in Mulder's body do and say so many unMulder-like things and still not believing the real Mulder when he tells her what happened to him. She reacts to Morris!Mulder's sexual innuendoes and advances in disbelief and disgust, wondering what's come over her partner, yet she never deigns to see the light when it's presented to her. She watches Morris approach them with a cigarette in his hand, then doesn't make a connection when Morris!Mulder asks her to get him a pack of Morleys at the gas station. She hears him call her "Dana" multiple times, yet never thinks something is amiss. She sees her partner being promiscuous with her AD's Administrative Assistant, but that doesn't set off any alarms. She accuses her partner of "losing his mind," but she refuses to believe that this is literally what has happened when she's given proof. Some people just won't take "yes" for an answer.
Michael McKean did a nice job portraying the unctuous Morris Fletcher. I liked the way he crushed his cigarette under foot, the way CSM does. He placated Kersh with what appeared to be a sincere devotion to duty, and he was subservient to Kersh's authority by declaring to Scully that they don't work on X-Files any more. He was shifty and sleazy and underhanded. He was wonderful.
Mark Snow must have spent days mixing the music for this episode. There were several different interludes, each carrying the mood of the scene expertly. I particularly liked the Country and Western guitar riff as Mulder soliloquized, "Ladies and gentlemen, Mr. Johnny Cash." There were several instances reminiscent of the lighthearted scores from "Small Potatoes" and "Bad Blood," particularly during Mulder's domestic tribulations. I enjoyed Snow's music very much this week.
Director Kim Manners moved the story along briskly, although I would have preferred that he had reined in Duchovny's mugging during the comedy bits. Special mention must go to the FX people. The visuals of two different people and a lizard caught in solid objects were exceptional. Director of Photography Bill Roe's breathtaking view of the base at night, bathed in blue light, was exceptional.
Screen writers John Shiban, Vince Gilligan and Frank Spotnitz brought us an entertaining script. That script could, however, have used some discipline. There were a couple too many attempts at being cute, such as the "You don't have to be a Nazi about it" line and the whole Married with Children breakfast scene.
"Dreamland I" was an interesting mishmash of humor, drama and pathos. I laughed at some parts and groaned at others. But such is the nature of episodic television these days. So few Network Suits are willing to take chances, or worse, willing to let their creative people take chances that when they do, they should be encouraged, not disparaged. Maybe the mix of comedy and drama was a bit out of kilter; "Dreamland I" wasn't a straight comedy nor a straight drama. But it was distinguishable from the seemingly endless parade of formulaic sitcoms and dramas that pass for entertainment these days.
I was not a viewer of Quantum Leap, but I am familiar with the show's premise. It's obvious that "Dreamland I" traded heavily on viewer familiarity with that show. "Dreamland I" was stylish in is presentation, if not flawless in its execution. It was something different, and it was fun.
My Score: 9 out of 10