Well, I was not expecting a Skinner episode. I especially wasn't expecting him to be that heavily involved in any case of the week episode, let alone the prime suspect.
While this is another one with a bit of a shaky resolution, the basic plot is rather solid and certainly makes Skinner a more sympathetic character, and really helps explain a lot about the way he works at the FBI.
Skinner is a very closed off person, and naturally, that led to his wife's decision to file for divorce. But it also very nearly got him not just dismissed from his position at the FBI, but also possibly imprisoned for murder.
I think this episode, more than any other, shows Skinner's interesting relationship with the X-Files. He supports the work they do, but doesn't really believe in paranormal phenomena - or at least doesn't accept explanations of such as legal defences, even within the X-Files universe.
He's more willing to take the fall for something he's at least pretty sure he didn't do, simply because there is no other plausible explanation. He even goes so far as to instruct Mulder and Scully to leave the case alone, despite knowing they are probably his best allies and the most likely to actually discover what was done to him. I think he also needs to maintain his distance, because the entire frame job does seem to be related to his work with Mulder and Scully on the X-Files, and any confirmation the villains get that he's still on their side would likely not help his case.
While the plot isn't exactly resolved at the end, except for Skinner returning to work, I think the character development was the strongest part of this episode. I feel like I understand Skinner more now. I don't necessarily like what I learned, because I think if he were able to be more open with Mulder and Scully, it might make their jobs and lives a little easier. Of course, given that Cancer Man is seen in this episode, there's obviously more to that story, and it seems like his hands are tied to some extent. He's damned if he does, damned if he doesn't.
But this also further develops Mulder's and Scully's relationship with Skinner, because as much as they are both skeptical of his motives at times, especially regarding who he answers to, they do respect him, both as their boss and as an investigator who worked hard to get where he is. He's obviously very good at his job, even if he is sometimes too constrained by, well, reality.
And of course, whoever set up this whole thing (Death Eaters, I'm sure) was trying to undermine the work Mulder and Scully do without drawing too much attention. Killing Skinner would be harder to cover up and harder to keep Mulder and Scully off of investigating. Simply weirding him out and making him think he committed murder, well, that's the easy part, even if (especially if?) the science of it is never really explained that well.
I loved Scully's interaction with the other agents at the hearing. She's obviously more of a believer than she was when she started out, but she does a good job of essentially taking their initial assignment of her to the X-Files and throwing it in their faces. This was their idea, and it's not her fault or Skinner's that her lines of legitimate scientific inquiry have led to some unusual and uncertain conclusions.
Not that it mattered, because they clearly had an agenda and were not interested in her logic. I did like that this, even as a case of the week episode, tied into the main plot of the series and hope there are more of these kinds of episodes in the future. There's a lot more going on behind the scenes than just a coverup of alien life.
Plus, by the end, Skinner shows that he really did care about his marriage as he puts his ring back on, though I suspect it's still probably too late to save it. Still, points for trying?
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