Body swaps are an inherent part of science fiction, and usually follow one of two threads whenever they are featured. Sometimes you get a body swap episode that reveals a lot about the characters involved, exploring new depths to their psyche as they inhabit opposing bodies. Then there are the episodes which are pretty much played for laughs. Like season four's previous Mulder body swap episode Small Potatoes, Dreamland is another comedy X-Files hour, enlivened by some engaging performances from David Duchovny and Michael McKean, but something that struggles to be more than the sum of its parts.There are obviously some great moments here, from seeing Morris Fletcher's inspired glee at suddenly becoming a badass FBI agent with purpose, to Mulder being unexpectedly brought down to suburban family politics, with stereotypically whiny kids and a nagging wife. Gillian Anderson has some nice scenes here, too, notably with Scully's worry about Mulder's irrational behavior.
But there's definitely that feeling of the show staggering through, especially with the thin story spread over two episodes. Obviously I'm not sure if the second part will reveal a whole shitload of intrigue and mystery, but so far it's a little underwhelming. I'm liking the concept of the body swap itself and what appears to have caused it, but Dreamland so far is still the show treading water. C
Credits
Guest stars Michael McKean (Morris Fletcher); John Mahon (General Wegman); Michael Buchman Silver (Howard Grodin); James Pickens, Jr. (Alvin Kersh); Scott Allan Campbell (Jeff Smoodge); Julia Vera (Lana Chee); Nora Dunn (JoAnne Fletcher)
Writers Vince Gilligan, John Shiban, Frank Spotnitz Director Kim Manners
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