Everybody likes Dolls. Almost.
.

In "Born Again", Michelle, 8 years old, disfigures dolls in the way Detective Charlie Morris, who has supposedly been reincarnated in the little girl, was killed.

The unforgettable Clyde Bruckman fishes for hints about the murderer of a fortune-teller who collected Dolls. In his visions, he got more that he bargained for as the toys seem to horridly decompose (Clyde Bruckman's Final Repose).

Dolls - Gargoyles - Illustrations - Jewelry - Logos - Occult - Tattoos

On the verge of insanity

 

In "Grotesque", Mulder faces two enemies: a killer that may, or may not, be a living gargoyle, and his former boss, Bill Patterson. Patterson investigates murders committed by an art student who paints and sculpts monstruous faces.

Scully, worried about Mulder's sanity, finds a new wallpaper covering his appartment: dozens of sketches of the gargoyles. The sketches were designed by Gary Allen and Vivien Nishi.

Catholic have perceived gargoyles as a symbol of Evil. A Catholic hospital refused to welcome the shooting of "Grotesque". In Europe, gargoyles can be commonly found at the top of gothic churches.

Dolls - Gargoyles - Illustrations - Jewelry - Logos - Occult - Tattoos

The Pen vs. the Sword

The most famous illustration that can be found in the X-Files world is without a doubt, the "I want to believe" poster. This poster, that it would seem Mulder found in a small boutique on M Street, had been on the X-Files Office wall for years. It was partially destroyed during a fire in May 1998 then replaced in 1999 ("The End"), a gift from Karen Berquist, the dog-lady ("Alpha").

Books can also be meaningful: "Alice in Wonderland" was at the heart of the "Paper Hearts" plot.

In "Jose Chung's From outer Space", Scully reads "From Outer Space", a novel based on an adventure that happened to her and Mulder.

The book's protagonists are Diana Lesky and Reynard Muldrake (Reynard stands for the French word 'renard'that means 'fox').

Robert Patrick Modell, aka the Pusher, glances at a tabloid in the beginning of "Pusher"; the paper features a well known X-Files character: the Flukeman ('The Host'). According to the X-Files prop masters, they have to create lots of fake newspapers and books for the show.

Cards can also be very significant; in "Clyde Bruckman's Final Repose", the bellhop killer go to see a fortune-teller and this card come up.

In "Unrequited", the killer, Vietnam Veteran Nathaniel Teager, uses special playing cards as death signature; he leaves them near his victims bodies.

These illustrations refer to painful events: Scully's abduction at the top of Skyland Mountain, and plain stupid racism in "Kaddish".

On the lighter side: the unfortunate bug exterminator in "War of the Coprophages" ...

... A copy of "the Great Mutato" comic book ("The post-modern Prometheus") and an advertising poster for Eddie Van Blundht Senior's show as a monkey boy (Small potatoes).

Dolls - Gargoyles - Illustrations - Jewelry - Logos - Occult - Tattoos

Scully's cross.

 

Scully's little gold cross proved to be an essential element in X-Files mythology. Mulder founnd it in the trunk the car in which Duane Barry drove an abducted Scully to Skyland Mountain. It remained his only connection to his partner during her missing time. He also clung to it when he found it inside the craft Scully was held into in Antartica.

Religious items

Margareth Scully calls in Father McCue to pray at Scully's bedside in "Redux II". He uses a catholic rosary.

In "All souls", Scully and Mulder investigate a series of bizarre deaths and their relation of the Church of St. Peter the Sinner. To Mulder it represents "a protest. A sacrilege against the Church."

"It was a communal wedding ring made in Kolin, a village near Prague. My father apprenticed to the man who designed it…. Every woman who got married in the synagogue wore this ring. As a symbol that she was a queen, her husband a king and the home they made a castle, not only on their wedding day but for the rest of their lives together." Ariel, whose fiancé was killed then returned from the death as a Golem. ("Kaddish").

Classics

 

Well, they don't wear too much jewelry but Mulder does have a nice watch (Swiss Army - "Max") and Scully wears lots of earrings, usually pearls or golden.

Dolls - Gargoyles - Illustrations - Jewelry - Logos - Occult - Tattoos

 

Linked to the alien conspiracy: Zeus storage facility (1616 Pandora Street) houses men floating in a strange green liquid ("The Erlenmeyer flask") - The Morley cigarettes smoked by CGB Spender are actually herbal cigarettes to preserve William B. Davis' health.

Linked to Scully: The Mutual UFO Network gathers women abducted and experimented on, like Scully ("Nisei") - The Apollo 11 commemorative keychain was offered by Mulder to Scully on her 33rd birthday ("Tempus Fugit"). For Scully, it symbolizes teamwork; Mulder just thinks it's "a pretty cool keychain".

Dolls - Gargoyles - Illustrations - Jewelry - Logos - Occult - Tattoos

Encounters with Voodoo and exotic mysticism.

In "Fresh Bones", poor Private McAlpin crashes his car in a tree where a 'vever' is painted. This sign, belonging to the 'loa', spirits honored in Voodoo, is said to be a 'loco-miroir', a mirror of the soul. Zombies are coming, my friend.

Sheriff Tom Arens, from Dudley, Arkansas, wears a tribal mask as he tries to protect, by chopping Scully’s head, really nice townfolks who actively practices cannibalism. Remember the Chaco Chicken slogan: 'good food, good people'? ("Our Town").

 

In "Teso dos Bichos", an Amaru urn is found in Equador. It contains the remains of a female Shaman and the discovery of this sacred piece upsets the Secona tribe; they believe that the Shaman will not let her remains be disturbed. In fact, she acts upon it and aggressive felines are then involved.

Urban legends have been used as starting point for several episodes.

 

In "Hell Money", the apparition of three shadowy masked figures appears to be a bad omen for those who see them: they force you into a game where your vital organs are at stake.

El Chupacabra is a goat-sucker featured in a Mexican folktale, that eerily resembles a Reticulan Alien. 'El Chupacabra Vive' means 'the Chupacabra lives' ("El Mundo Gira").

Dolls - Gargoyles - Illustrations - Jewelry - Logos - Occult - Tattoos

Aaah, Tattoos... The dread of all relationshippers...

 

But first, let's remember the Conundrum, a circus freak who amused us in "Humbug". Paul Lawrence (aka The Enigma) is, as Mulder puts it, a real life 'jigsaw puzzle tattooed naked guy'. This geek, in the noble sense of the word, can eat various things, from insects to fire, and composes music as well.

In the intense "Never Again", a confused Scully meets Ed Jerse, an attractive guy with a talking tattoo (voiced by Jodie Foster)...

She ends up getting her own indelible marking: an 'Ouroboros', a snake eating his own tail. This tattoo, which as far as we know still remains a mystery to Mulder, reminds us of a cycle, of the repetitive routine of our lives. To Scully, it could also be seen as a way of exorcising her fear of going nowhere, the dread of seeing her life empty and pointless.

Dolls - Gargoyles - Illustrations - Jewelry - Logos - Occult - Tattoos

The pictures, as well as the information, featured on this page were taken either from the Official Guides to the X-Files, The Books of the unexplained or various publications. No infringement intended.