Perry was inspired to write the episode after considering the "dark side" of the internet, drawing influence from Jennifer Ringley's JenniCam website.
Millennium Group consultant Frank Black (Lance Henriksen) finds that police across the United States have received calls from witnesses to the killing.
He and fellow Group members Peter Watts (Terry O'Quinn) and Brian Roedecker (Allan Zinyk) identify the victim as Rebecca Damsen.
He is shot at by a masked gunman and gives chase; however, he soon sees that the attacker is another kidnap victim, a gun tied to her arm in an attempt to trick Black into shooting her.
He was shown Jennifer Ringley's JenniCam website, which provided a constant webcam view of her daily life, and wondered what sort of investigations would arise if a murder were witnessed on a similar broadcast.
[7] After principal photography had finished for the episode, additional inserts were shot to add more variety to scenes featuring a lot of dialogue; Perry noted that this was something he had learned about from Wong and felt the technique was put to "great use".
[8] Filming several of the episode's scenes, including the webcam feeds and footage Black watches of police officers investigating suspects was filmed in a deliberately low-resolution manner, on handheld cameras, as Perry felt footage that was too clean and high-quality would lessen the episode's tension, citing The Blair Witch Project as an example of how this approach has later been put to use.
Wong and fellow executive producer Glen Morgan wanted to sign Zinyk on for further appearances, but actor declined in order to pursue a career in the theatre in Toronto.
[14] Gibron compared the episode to the films Seven and 8mm; he also felt that the unresolved plot helped to temper concerns about Black's seeming infallibility.
[14] Robert Shearman and Lars Pearson, in their book Wanting to Believe: A Critical Guide to The X-Files, Millennium & The Lone Gunmen, rated "The Mikado" three-and-a-half stars out of five.