"Soft Light" is the twenty-third episode of the second season of the American

science fiction Science fiction (sometimes shortened to Sci-Fi or SF) is a genre of speculative fiction which typically deals with imaginative and futuristic concepts such as advanced science and technology, space exploration, time travel, parallel uni ...

television series ''

The X-Files ''The X-Files'' is an American science fiction on television, science fiction drama (film and television), drama television series created by Chris Carter (screenwriter), Chris Carter. The series revolves around Federal Bureau of Investigation ...

''. It originally aired on the

Fox network The Fox Broadcasting Company, commonly known simply as Fox and stylized in all caps as FOX, is an American commercial broadcast television network owned by Fox Corporation and headquartered in New York City, with master control operations ...

on . It was written by Vince Gilligan and directed by

James A. Contner James Atwater Contner (born June 12, 1947) is an American film, television director and cinematographer. His work includes episodes of such television series as ''Miami Vice'', ''Angel'', ''Buffy the Vampire Slayer'', ''Firefly'', ''The X-Files ...

. The episode is a "Monster-of-the-Week" story, unconnected to the series' wider

mythology Myth is a folklore genre consisting of narratives that play a fundamental role in a society, such as foundational tales or origin myths. Since "myth" is widely used to imply that a story is not objectively true, the identification of a narra ...

, or overarching fictional history. "Soft Light" received a

Nielsen rating Nielsen Media Research (NMR) is an American firm that measures media audiences, including television, radio, theatre, films (via the AMC Theatres MAP program), and newspapers. Headquartered in New York City, it is best known for the Nielsen rati ...

of 8.5 and was watched by 8.1 million households. The episode generally received mixed to positive reviews from television critics. The show centers on FBI special agents

Fox Mulder Fox William Mulder () is a fictional FBI Special Agent and one of the two protagonists of the Fox science fiction-supernatural television series ''The X-Files'', played by David Duchovny. Mulder's peers dismiss his many theories on extraterrest ...

(

David Duchovny David William Duchovny ( ; born ) is an American actor, writer, producer, director, novelist, and singer-songwriter. He is known for portraying FBI agent Fox Mulder on the television series ''The X-Files'' (1993–2002, 2016-2018) and as write ...

) and

Dana Scully Dana Katherine Scully, MD, is a fictional character and one of the two protagonists in the Fox science-fiction, supernatural television series ''The X-Files'', played by Gillian Anderson. Scully is a Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) Spec ...

(

Gillian Anderson Gillian Leigh Anderson ( ; born August 9, 1968) is an American actress. Her credits include the roles of FBI Special Agent Dana Scully in the series ''The X-Files'', ill-fated socialite Lily Bart in Terence Davies's film '' The House of Mirt ...

) who work on cases linked to the paranormal, called

X-File In the fictional universe of the television series '' The X-Files'', an "X-File" is a case that has been deemed unsolvable or given minimal-priority status by the Federal Bureau of Investigation; these files are transferred to the X-Files unit. Th ...

s. In this episode, an ex-student of Scully's (Kate Twa) asks the agents to help her with her first investigation concerning a number of disappearances with very few clues. Mulder ponders the idea of

spontaneous human combustion Spontaneous human combustion (SHC) is the pseudoscientific concept of the combustion of a living (or recently deceased) human body without an apparent external source of ignition. In addition to reported cases, descriptions of the alleged phen ...

but rethinks it when they find a man, Chester Ray Banton (

Tony Shalhoub Anthony Marc Shalhoub ( ; born October 9, 1953), is an American actor. His accolades include five Emmy Awards, a Golden Globe Award, six Screen Actors Guild Awards, a Tony Award, and a Grammy Award nomination. He played Adrian Monk in the USA N ...

), who is afraid of his own shadow. Banton is a scientist researching dark matter, and his shadow has somehow developed the ability to disintegrate people who come across it. "Soft Light" was the first ''The X-Files'' episode written by Gilligan, who would go on to write several acclaimed episodes such as " Pusher", " Bad Blood" and "

Memento Mori ''Memento mori'' (Latin for 'remember that you ave todie'X (

Steven Williams Steven Williams (born January 7, 1949) is an American actor in films and television. He is known for his roles as Captain Adam Fuller on ''21 Jump Street'', Lt. Jefferson Burnett on '' The Equalizer'', Det. August Brooks on '' L.A. Heat'', X on ...

) was not in the script initially. His character was added to give Banton a legitimate fear of the government.

Plot

At a hotel in

Richmond, Virginia (Thus do we reach the stars) , image_map = , mapsize = 250 px , map_caption = Location within Virginia , pushpin_map = Virginia#USA , pushpin_label = Richmond , pushpin_m ...

, Chester Ray Banton (

) reaches a room and frantically knocks on the door while shouting the name ″Morris″. Banton's shouts attract the attention of Patrick Newirth, a guest in the room across the hall. When Newirth looks through his door's peephole, Banton steps back, causing his shadow to slip beneath Newirth's door. Newirth suddenly evaporates, leaving a strange burn mark on the floor. Banton realizes what has happened and flees the scene. The case of Newirth's death, the latest in several of its kind, is assigned to local detective Kelly Ryan (Kate Twa). She seeks help from

(

), her former instructor at the

FBI Academy The FBI Academy is the Federal Bureau of Investigation's law enforcement training and research center near the town of Quantico in Stafford County, Virginia. Operated by the bureau's Training Division, it was first opened for use on May 7, 19 ...

(

) also takes part in the investigation, believing Newirth died from

. While searching the home of an earlier victim, the agents realize that both she and Newirth had recently traveled by train. Meanwhile, Banton sits in a train station, cautiously looking at the floor; because the room is lit by soft light, his shadow cannot be seen. After he leaves, Banton is confronted by two policemen patrolling the area. Despite Banton's warnings, the officers step into his shadow and disappear, leaving more burn marks. The following day, while reviewing the station's surveillance tapes, Mulder sees footage of Banton staring at the floor. After blowing up the frame, Mulder sees the logo for a company called Polarity Magnetics on Banton's jacket. At Polarity Magnetics, the agents meet scientist Christopher Davey ( Kevin McNulty), who identifies Banton, a

physicist A physicist is a scientist who specializes in the field of physics, which encompasses the interactions of matter and energy at all length and time scales in the physical universe. Physicists generally are interested in the root or ultimate cau ...

conducting research into

dark matter Dark matter is a hypothetical form of matter thought to account for approximately 85% of the matter in the universe. Dark matter is called "dark" because it does not appear to interact with the electromagnetic field, which means it does not ...

. Davey reveals that Banton disappeared five weeks earlier after an incident in his

laboratory A laboratory (; ; colloquially lab) is a facility that provides controlled conditions in which scientific or technological research, experiments, and measurement may be performed. Laboratory services are provided in a variety of settings: physi ...

in which he was locked in a target room with an active

particle accelerator A particle accelerator is a machine that uses electromagnetic fields to propel charged particles to very high speeds and energies, and to contain them in well-defined beams. Large accelerators are used for fundamental research in particle ...

and exposed to a large amount of

subatomic particles In physical sciences, a subatomic particle is a particle that composes an atom. According to the Standard Model of particle physics, a subatomic particle can be either a composite particle, which is composed of other particles (for example, a pro ...

. His account is enough for Scully to consider spontaneous human combustion, but Mulder is now doubtful of this theory. The agents find Banton at the train station, but he runs to a poorly lit area. He indicates that walking into his shadow will kill the agents, so Mulder shoots out the overhead lights. Banton allows himself to be taken to a

mental hospital Psychiatric hospitals, also known as mental health hospitals, behavioral health hospitals, are hospitals or wards specializing in the treatment of severe mental disorders, such as schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, eating disorders, dissociative ...

, where he is put in a room with soft light per his own request. He tells the agents that the accident in his lab caused his shadow to behave like a

black hole A black hole is a region of spacetime where gravity is so strong that nothing, including light or other electromagnetic waves, has enough energy to escape it. The theory of general relativity predicts that a sufficiently compact mass can def ...

, splitting atoms into component particles and reducing matter into pure energy. Banton claims that the deaths were all accidents, and that the government wants to exploit him. Ryan and her superior stop the questioning and declare the case closed, despite Mulder's objections. Mulder contacts X (

), who assures him that the government has no interest in Banton. However, X and two associates later attempt to remove Banton from the hospital by cutting the power. In the process, X's associates are killed when the emergency lights turn on and Banton's shadow falls upon them. Banton flees from the hospital. Banton returns to Polarity Magnetics and is confronted by Ryan, whom he reluctantly kills with his shadow when she tries to arrest him. Banton orders Davey to destroy him with the particle accelerator, but Davey reveals that he has been helping the government hunt him down. Davey locks Banton in with the particle accelerator, but is shot by X. Mulder and Scully arrive soon after, seemingly too late to save Banton from being vaporized by the accelerator; Mulder realizes that X has betrayed him, and tells X to never contact him again. The case is considered closed, but Mulder notes that Davey disappeared after the incidents. At a research facility, X watches as experiments are being performed on a despairing Banton.Lowry, pp. 219–21.

Production

"Soft Light" was written by Vince Gilligan and directed by

. Prior to writing this episode, Gilligan, who had long been a fan of the show, learned that his agent was a relative of series creator Chris Carter. Thanks to this connection, he was allowed to meet Carter. During this meet, Carter asked Gilligan if he had any episode ideas, to which Gilligan quickly noted that he had been observing his shadow and thought it would be "creepy" if it began moving independently. Carter asked Gilligan to develop a script based on the idea as a freelance project (although when the episode was finished, Carter offered Gilligan a job as a permanent writer). This episode was thus one of the first episodes to be written by someone from outside the main writing staff of ''The X-Files''. Originally, the script called for Banton's shadow to be able to move independently; Carter and writer

Howard Gordon Howard Gordon (born March 31, 1961) is an American television writer and producer. He is well known for his work on the Fox action series '' 24'' alongside the Showtime thriller ''Homeland'', which he co-developed with Alex Gansa and Gideon ...

rewrote the story to remove this aspect, which ended up "sav ngan enormous amount of money in animation costs", according to Gilligan.Hurwitz and Knowles, p. 66. After reading the first draft, Carter also felt that Banton's fear of having the government control him should be "more than just paranoia".Lowry, p. 221. He thus wrote X into the story; writer

Frank Spotnitz Frank Charles Spotnitz is an American television screenwriter and executive producer, best known for his work on ''The X-Files'' and ''The Man in the High Castle''. Spotnitz is also the chief executive officer and founder of Big Light Production ...

later noted, "It had been a long time since X had done anything and the character really needed to grow." Gilligan himself inserted a reference to the villain

Eugene Victor Tooms "Squeeze" is the third episode of the first season of the American science fiction television series ''The X-Files''. It premiered on the Fox network on September 24, 1993. "Squeeze" was written by Glen Morgan and James Wong and directed by Harr ...

from the first-season episodes " Squeeze" and "

Tooms "Tooms" is the twenty-first episode of the first season of the American science fiction television series ''The X-Files'', premiering on the Fox network on April 22, 1994. It was written by Glen Morgan and James Wong, and directed by David Nut ...

" in a conversation between Ryan and Mulder. The episode guest stars

as Dr. Banton. Shalhoub, who had a recurring role on the

NBC The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is an American English-language commercial broadcast television and radio network. The flagship property of the NBC Entertainment division of NBCUniversal, a division of Comcast, its headquarters are l ...

series ''

Wings A wing is a type of fin that produces lift while moving through air or some other fluid. Accordingly, wings have streamlined cross-sections that are subject to aerodynamic forces and act as airfoils. A wing's aerodynamic efficiency is expre ...

'', was not familiar with ''The X-Files'' when he was offered the part because at the time he did not watch much television. However, after reading the script for "Soft Light", he enjoyed the story due to its ''

The Twilight Zone ''The Twilight Zone'' is an American media franchise based on the anthology television series created by Rod Serling. The episodes are in various genres, including fantasy, science fiction, absurdism, dystopian fiction, suspense, horror, sup ...

''-esque nature. When Shalhoub informed people that he had secured a part in ''The X-Files'', he claimed that "the response was unbelievable". Shalhoub was impressed with the on-location filming that the series did; he noted, "Ninety-nine percent of our filming on ''Wings'' is done on a

soundstage A sound stage (also written soundstage) is a soundproof, large structure, building, or room with large doors and high ceilings, used for the production of theatrical film-making and television productions, usually located on a secured movie or ...

, while most of 'The X-Files''is shot on location in and around Vancouver. It's an ideal city because it gives producers so many options." Both the

Pacific Central Station Pacific Central Station is a railway station in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, which acts as the western terminus of Via Rail's cross-country '' The Canadian'' service to Toronto and the northern terminus of Amtrak's '' Cascades'' service t ...

and the Pacific Marine Training Institute in

Vancouver Vancouver ( ) is a major city in western Canada, located in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia. As the most populous city in the province, the 2021 Canadian census recorded 662,248 people in the city, up from 631,486 in 2016. ...

stood in for the train station featured in the episode. Initially, the Pacific Marine Training Institute would only give the series permission to film after 5pm, but the show's producers eventually talked the dean of the station into letting production begin at 2 in the afternoon. Because he was a fan of the series, Gilligan traveled to Vancouver and video recorded the filming of "Soft Light".Gradnitzer and Pittson, p. 77.

Broadcast and reception

"Soft Light" was originally aired in the United States on the

Fox Broadcasting Company The Fox Broadcasting Company, commonly known simply as Fox and stylized in all caps as FOX, is an American commercial broadcast television network owned by Fox Corporation and headquartered in New York City, with master control operations ...

on May 5, 1995, and was first broadcast in the United Kingdom on February 13, 1996 on

BBC One BBC One is a British free-to-air public broadcast television network owned and operated by the BBC. It is the corporation's flagship network and is known for broadcasting mainstream programming, which includes BBC News television bulletins, ...

. In its original broadcast, it was watched by 8.1 million households, according to the

Nielsen ratings Nielsen Media Research (NMR) is an American firm that measures media audiences, including television, radio, theatre, films (via the AMC Theatres MAP program), and newspapers. Headquartered in New York City, it is best known for the Nielsen rat ...

system. It received an 8.5 rating and 15 share among viewers, meaning that 8.5 percent of all households in the United States and 15 percent of all people watching television at the time, viewed the episode.Lowry, p. 249. "Soft Light" received mixed to positive reviews from television critics. ''

Entertainment Weekly ''Entertainment Weekly'' (sometimes abbreviated as ''EW'') is an American digital-only entertainment magazine based in New York City, published by Dotdash Meredith, that covers film, television, music, Broadway theatre, books, and popular ...

'' gave the episode a "B−" and noted that the episode "gains points for the obscure subject matter" but "loses them for the strained conspiratorial element". Zack Handlen of '' The A.V. Club'' also gave it a "B−". He praised the cold open for its strangeness and X's involvement, but thought that the explanation for Banton's shadow was not satisfactorily fleshed out.

Robert Shearman Robert Charles Shearman, sometimes credited as Rob Shearman, is an English television, radio, stage play and short story writer. He is known for his World Fantasy Award-winning short stories, as well as his work for ''Doctor Who'', and his asso ...

and

Lars Pearson Lars Pearson (born 1973, in Iowa) is an American writer, high school teacher, editor, and journalist. He is the owner/publisher of Mad Norwegian Press, a publishing company specializing in reference guides to television shows including ''Buffy th ...

, in their book ''Wanting to Believe: A Critical Guide to The X-Files, Millennium & The Lone Gunmen'', rated the episode four stars out of five. The two wrote positively of the episode's case, calling it one wherein "Mulder and Scully get to investigate properly, coming up with theories that they later build on or retract." Shearman and Pearson also wrote positively of the episode's conclusion, noting that "there's no better illustration for distrusting the government than the brilliant closing scene" which features Shalhoub "fixed to a chair, bombarded with flashes of light, as one single tear rolls down his terrified face."Shearman and Pearson, p. 52. Other reviews were decidedly more critical. John Keegan from Critical Myth awarded the episode a 5 out of 10 and wrote, "Overall, this episode falls short due to a completely ludicrous central concept, only partially countered by an interesting resolution highlighting the more sinister side of Informant X. Much like last season’s final few episodes, this season is ending with plenty of hints that Mulder and Scully are pushing the wrong buttons." Critic A.J. Black compared Banton to Vince Gilligan's later creations, such as

Walter White Walter White most often refers to: * Walter White (''Breaking Bad''), character in the television series ''Breaking Bad'' * Walter Francis White (1893–1955), American leader of the NAACP Walter White may also refer to: Fictional characters ...

from ''

Breaking Bad ''Breaking Bad'' is an American crime drama television series created and produced by Vince Gilligan. Set and filmed in Albuquerque, New Mexico, the series follows Walter White (Bryan Cranston), an underpaid, overqualified, and dispirited h ...

'' and

Saul Goodman James Morgan Jimmy McGill, better known by his business name Saul Goodman, is a character created by Vince Gilligan and Peter Gould and portrayed by Bob Odenkirk in the television franchise ''Breaking Bad''. He appears as a major character i ...

in ''

Better Call Saul ''Better Call Saul'' is an American crime and legal drama television series created by Vince Gilligan and Peter Gould. Part of the ''Breaking Bad'' franchise, it is a spin-off of Gilligan's previous series, ''Breaking Bad'', and serves as a ...

'': "Banton feels, intriguingly for Gilligan’s first ''X-File'', like the end of the writer’s exploratory road, certainly in the kind of tragic masculine figure he is so fascinated by. Banton is exhausted, worn out, paranoid and anxious about anyone who gets too close to him. “Please, I’m warning you! I’m a dangerous man!” He feels more equivalent to Walter or Jimmy/Saul (the latter, perhaps, in his future guise as the broken Gene Takavic) at the point they have lost their souls."

Footnotes

Bibliography

* * * *

External links

"Soft Light"
at TheXFiles.com * {{The X-Files episodes, 2 1995 American television episodes Television episodes written by Vince Gilligan The X-Files (season 2) episodes Television episodes set in Virginia Spontaneous human combustion in fiction