Director: Cliff Bole
Agents Mulder and Scully return to Washington to discuss the events that led to the bizarre death of a teenage boy, Ronnie Stickland in Chaney, Texas during their investigation before they have to report to Assistant Director Skinner to explain why the FBI is being sued for 446 million dollars by the Strickland family. But the two agents recollection of the events differ. Scully recounts how they went to Texas to investigate a series of cattle exsanguinations after a holiday maker, Mr. Funt met a similar fate.
Scully performed an autopsy on the body that revealed that Mr. Funt was drugged and his blood then drained by syringe. After a second victim was found under similar circumstances and a second autopsy. Scully concluded that someone was attempting to emulate vampires as seen in the movies. Mulder's version is very different, he paints himself in a good light, while Scully is suspicious of his every word. Mulder recounts how they went to Texas to investigate Mr. Funt's death and discovered evidence of the involvement of vampires. Which culminated when Ronnie Stickland, a suspected vampire attacked Mulder, who then killed Ronnie with a wooden stake through the chest after chasing him through the woods. With the two agents unable to agree on the events, the situation is further muddled when word is received from the coroner in Texas that Ronnie Stickland is not dead after all.
Notes:
This episode was inspired by an episode of the old "Dick Van Dyke Show", titled "The Night the Roof Fell In", in which Rob and Laura Petrie have a fight and then each tell their neighbor their version of what led up to it.
In an amusing coincidence, there is a town in Georgia called Hartwell which has a Stricklands Funeral Home in it.
Scully's "It's not that Mexican goat-sucker, either" refers to the 'Chupacabra' from season 4's ''El Mundo Gira''.
This is reportedly one of Gillian Anderson's favorite episodes.
Quotes:
Scully: Skinner wants our report in one hour. What are you going to tell him?
Mulder: What do you mean what am I going to tell him? I'm going to tell him exactly what I saw. What are you going to tell him?
Scully: I'll tell him exactly what I saw.
Mulder: Now, how is that different? (Scully gives him an exasperated look) Look, Scully, I'm the one who may wind up going to prison here. I got to know if you're going to back me up or what.
Scully: First of all, if the family of Ronnie Strickland does indeed decide to sue the FBI for... I think the figure is $446 million... then you and I both will most certainly be co-defendants and second of all ... I don't even have a second of all, Mulder. $446 million. I'm in this as deep as you are and I'm not even the one that overreacted! I didn't do the ... (she makes a stabbing motion) with the thing!
Sheriff Hartwell: Yeah. Okay. Uh ... what she said, that's what I'm thinking, and, uh ... Yeah.
Mulder: The absence of birds singing.
Hartwell: There ya go! 'Cause I - I ain't hearin' any birds singin', right? 'Course, it's winter and we ain't got no birds, but is... is there anything else?
Mulder: C'mon, Scully, get those little legs moving! C'mon!
Scully: But Mulder, he had fake fangs. Why would a real vampire fake fangs? I mean, for the sake of argument.
Mulder: Fangs are very rarely mentioned in the folklore. Real vampires aren't actually thought to have them. It's more an invention of Bram Stoker's. I think maybe you were right before when you said that this is just a guy who's watched too many Dracula movies. He just happens to be a real vampire.
Scully: Stomach contents show last meal close to the time of death, consisting of... pizza! Topped with pepperoni, green peppers, mushrooms... mushrooms... That sounds really good.
Scully: Did he have...
Mulder: Two small puncture marks on the neck? Too bad. We got 'em. Check it out.
Scully: Well, these may be syringe marks. Their placement meant to emulate fangs. Such ritualistic blood-letting points towards cultists of some sort, in which case... What?
Mulder: Yeah, that's probably it, satanic cultists. Come on, Scully.
Scully: You're not gonna tell me you think it's that Mexican goat sucker thing.
Mulder: El Chupacabra? No, they got four fangs, not two, and they suck goats, hence the name. Scully: So instead, this would be...
Mulder: Classic Vampirism.
Scully: Well, there is a psychological fixation called Hematodipsia which causes the sufferer to gain erotic satisfaction from consuming human blood.
Sheriff Hartwell: Erotic. Yeah.
Mulder: I think that what we *may* be looking at is what appears to be a series of vampire or vampire-like acts.
Scully: On what do you base that?!
Mulder: Uh... well, on the corpses drained of blood and the fang marks on the neck. But, as always, I'm very eager to hear your opinion.
Scully: Well, it's obviously not a vampire.
Mulder: Well, why not?
Scully: Because they don't exist?
Scully: If there's a point, Mulder, please feel free to come to it.
(Fantasy sequence)
Sheriff Hartwell: You really know your stuff, Dana.
(Mulder interrupts the fantasy sequence) Mulder: DANA?! He never even knew your first name!
Scully: You gonna interrupt me or what?
Mulder: No. You go ahead. (Mockingly) Dana...
(Fantasy sequence) Sheriff Hartwell: Agent Scully, you really know your stuff.
Highlights from: ''Bad Blood''
Episode Number: 109
Season Number: 5
First Aired: Sunday, February 22, 1998
Production Code: 5X12
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