Episode no. Season 10
Episode 4 Written by Glen Morgan Original air date February 8, 2016 | Directed by Glen Morgan Production code 1AYW02 Running time 44 minutes | |
"Home Again" is the fourth episode of the tenth season of The X-Files. Written and directed by Glen Morgan, it first aired February 8, 2016, and guest stars Tim Armstrong as Trashman, Sheila Larken as Margaret Scully, and Veena Sood as Dr. Louise Colquitt.
Contents
Plot
Mulder and Scully are sent to investigate the murder of a city official, which it seems no human could have committed. Meanwhile, Scully copes with a personal tragedy, which brings up old feelings about her and Mulder's child, William, who was given up for adoption for his protection.
Mulder and Scully then track down a mysterious creature known as the Band-Aid Nose Man. He is a force of destruction — ripping bodies apart — but the cause of the rage is complicated. The creature is the inadvertent creation of a street artist named Trashman, who drew the image of a defender of the homeless. Trashman claims the Band-Aid Nose Man is a "thought form".
Production
"Home Again" was written and directed by executive producer Glen Morgan. Guest stars include Tim Armstrong as Trashman, Sheila Larken as Margaret Scully, and Veena Sood as Dr. Louise Colquitt. Morgan was inspired to cast Armstrong because he is a fan of the punk rock band Rancid. Sood previously appeared as a different character in the first season episode "Shadows".
Reception
"Home Again" was met with positive reviews from critics. On Rotten Tomatoes, the episode received an 85% approval rating and an average score of 7.7/10. The consensus reads: "'Home Again' blends dramatic performances and spooky fun, all in service of a storyline that sends the characters on a dark, personal journey."
Alan Sepinwall of HitFix called the episode "more representative of the original series' meat-and-potatoes substance, and was a terrific example of that."
In its initial broadcast in the United States on February 9, 2016, it received 8.31 million viewers, a slight decrease in viewership from the previous week of 8.37 million viewers.