Monday (The X-Files)
It was written by Vince Gilligan and John Shiban, directed by Kim Manners, and featured guest appearances by Carrie Hamilton and Darren E. Burrows.
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.
[2] Since the cast and crew were required to shoot the same scene several times, director Kim Manners attempted to make each camera angle interesting.
The episode opens in media res with FBI special agent Fox Mulder (David Duchovny) bleeding out from a gunshot wound while Scully tends to him.
[1] Mulder then wakes, unharmed, to find that his waterbed has sprung a leak, his alarm clock is broken, and he needs to pay his landlord for water damage.
To do so, he is forced to go to the bank, instead of going to the meeting with his partner Dana Scully (Gillian Anderson), Walter Skinner (Mitch Pileggi) and various other FBI officials.
[1] Mulder then wakes to find that his waterbed has sprung a leak, his alarm clock is broken, and he needs to pay his landlord for water damage.
Over multiple iterations of the events, Pam tries various methods to save the agents, including trying to prevent them from entering the bank, informing them of the time loop, and begging Skinner not to let the police into the building.
In the following iteration of the day Mulder finds himself repeating the phrase in the bank, and acting on his hunch, calls Scully and then confronts Bernard before he begins the holdup, changing events on a fundamental level.
The bomb blast averted, the time loop finally breaks, with Mulder waking up the next morning, informing Scully that his hunch regarding Pam was "just a feeling".
Millikan expressed the difficulty in casting the role:"You had to feel sorry for this woman's terrible, unbelievable plight—basically she's trapped in a living hell—without at any time thinking she's insane.
[5] Director Kim Manners, realizing the monotony of some of the scenes, such as Mulder waking up after each successive explosion, attempted to make each shot interesting by incorporating new camera angle so that the final episode would be visually appealing and hold the viewers' attention.
During the hold-up scenes taking place outside the bank, a four-block area was blocked off by police to allow film crews ample space to work.
Dena Green, the hair department head, was tasked with creating an exact wig replica to be worn by Hamilton's stunt double.
Tom Kessenich, in his book Examination: An Unauthorized Look at Seasons 6–9 of the X-Files gave the episode a positive review, writing "One of the strengths of 'Monday' is in showing us Scully's evolution and how her experiences with Mulder allow her to embrace, albeit reluctantly, ideas that are not grounded in science.
This episode is definitely the latter, as the downtrodden girlfriend of a bank robber is forced to witness the deaths of her boyfriend, Mulder, Scully and a large group of innocent people die over and over again until finally she breaks the loop by dying herself [...] The onus of saving everyone being largely on the shoulders of an unknown woman effectively brings in a change of pace and a welcome breath of fresh air.
Farley applauded the show's gall to seemingly kill one of the leads in the teaser and appreciated the entry's mix of humor—during the scenes with Mulder and his water bed—and its alternative scenarios in the bank.
As an audience, we become increasingly frustrated that the two people that we know can solve the problem are unaware that it exists, which makes the payoff when they finally find a way out much more satisfying.
