The X-Files (TV Series) John Doe (2002) User Reviews

"I'll take the bad as long as I remember the good."

[classicsoncall · 8/10 · 26 August 2017]

The teaser for this episode has Agent Doggett wake up in some Third World warehouse with someone trying to steal his shoe and he can't even remember his name! That's some case of amnesia he's got going, as the rest of the story tries to unravel his predicament and bring him back to reality.

You know, with those crescent shaped cuts on the side of Doggett's head, it appeared the story was going in the direction of another alien abduction possibility. Instead, we learn that some Mexican cartel big-wig 'disappeared' Doggett's memories in some fashion, though it's never really made clear how. Doggett has a recurring flashback type of dream in which he plays with his son, the one that 'disappeared' himself and wound up murdered. They provide the only inkling to who he really is but he can't make the connection on his own.

Regarding those dreams, I had a surreal thought. When we see Doggett in bed at home playing with his son, his wife is on the bed with her back to the camera so we don't know what she looks like or who she is because it's never been revealed in the show. Wouldn't it have been something if she turned around and it was Suzanne Pleshette the way she did in the final episode of the 'Newhart' show, declaring it all a bad dream? Okay, it wouldn't have worked as a comic element, but that's what ran through my mind watching those scenes.

What the writers did though, in yet another one of those off handed tributes to the 'Star Trek' TV series that they seemed to come up with quite regularly, was that nifty Vulcan mind meld the head cartel guy did on Domingo Salmeron (Frank Roman) to find out if he was telling the truth about his conversation with Doggett. In the cast credits, that head cartel guy is listed as Caballero (Zitto Kazzan), but I don't recall him being referred to that way in the story. That happened from time to time in the series as well.

Well, you can see the writing getting a little sloppy for these X-Files stories at this point nearing the end of the series run. The case Agent Doggett was initially working on is never resolved, while Scully is written into and out of the episode without much effect. The one thing the story does is take advantage of Agent Reyes's background, affording an opportunity to make some use of her Spanish.

Robert Patrick

[tilloeds · 8/10 · 25 October 2023]

Brilliant Vince Gilligan episode that just gets better and better with every viewing.

This would actually make a brilliant movie (albeit non X-Files) where you could script the events leading up to it etc and it would go down well.

The effects are brilliant I love the quirky really bright, almost blinding outside light - a stark contrast to the famous, dark earlier years of the show.

Robert Patrick owns this episode though. He was such a great actor and such a great character to The X-Files, he never short changed the crew when he got in front of a camera.

His acting when he remembers his son is dead is so emotionally powerful, while his line "I'll take the bad as long as I can remember the good" is a personal favourite of mine from the show and has become a mantra of mine over the years.

Great episode.

Reyes is sooo not Mexican.

[Sanpaco13 · 7/10 · 1 October 2007]

OK I know I've said before that this is one of my least favorite season 9 episodes and well its still not a favorite but after watching this I have to say it is better than I gave it credit for. I still don't like the overall idea of the story. A memory vampire is kind of lame in my opinion. But there are many good points. Doggett does a great job in this episode and as I have said before I wish that there could have been more Doggett centric episodes rather than Reyes all the time during season 9.

This episode takes place in a small town in Mexico. Agent Doggett wakes up to find someone stealing his shoes. As he gives chase he is arrested by the corrupt police. By the way this will happen to you in Mexico if you don't have money to bribe your way out. I spent a couple years down there and the only reason I think I stayed out of trouble like this was because I was a missionary for my church. We find out in the teaser that Doggett has amnesia. Anyway I love how Doggett completely schools that guy after he gets out with the gun. Just takes it from him in one swift action and then unloads it and dumps it in the trash. Well I better sum up here before this gets too long. Basically Doggett falls in with some criminals as he is trying to remember who he is and figure out how to get back. Reyes and Doggett show up and help him escape and catch the memory vampire.

A couple things I disliked. I have said before that I can't stand how in American TV whenever someone speaks Spanish it seems so fake. Well in this episode the actors actually did a really good job of not doing that however I sincerely doubt that Monica Reyes was "crereerdo eee nachida" like she says with her terrible accent to the town police. Wow she sounds just like a real Mexican! I also dislike as I have said already the idea of the memory vampire. Lame. Things I did like. Doggett. I like how he takes the gun from the guy as I said already. I like how he still is able to think like a detective even without knowing who he is. I like how he totally schools the gun guy again when he comes to kill him. I love the scene where he remembers his son. Very emotional scene. And I love when he confronts the cartel guy at the end. Robert Patrick is awesome. Still not a favorite episode but I rate it higher than I would have previously. 7 out of 10.

I'll take the bad, as long as I can remember the good.

[Muldernscully · 9/10 · 14 November 2007]

John Doe is another excellent episode written by Vince Gilligan. It's different and different is good. Episodes like this cause me to write few notes, because I'm so entranced by the story.

Of course, in this episode, it's the cinematography that jumps right out at you. The overexposure is used to show the bright, hot, Mexican sun beating down on Doggett. The Mexican music is used judiciously throughout the episode, not too heavy, but it's there from time to tome.

On day 8, Doggett should have a much longer beard. I'm a slow grower, and my stubble is longer than his after days, and I doubt they allow him to shave in that jail hole. Also, his future boss, Domingo, if he had all these "connections", why did he have to sit in the jail for eight days as well? The makeup on Doggett is great, making him look all haggard and beat up.

I love seeing Scully sticking it to Kersh by directly disobeying him....again.

The guest actors do a good job, beginning with Domingo, Doggett's "boss".

Despite how cool the episode is, there are some nagging questions that aren't answered. Why is Doggett investigating the disappearance of that man? It is not an x-file. How does Reyes find Doggett in that garage? That seems like a pretty big jump. And how does Doggett manage to find the Skull guy in the end so easily? I would've liked a little more background to the Skull guy and what he was. He did the fingernail thingy on Dogget's boss, for no good reason, and then we don't see him again.

I think John Doe could've worked easily as a two-parter. I felt there was more story there, but Gilligan had to wrap thinks up quickly to get it under 44 minutes. It's too bad. I love the originality of John Doe and the camera work was top-notch. It's one of the best episodes of season nine.

The first time a real beer brand is shown on X-Files

[XweAponX · 10/10 · 28 March 2022]

All throughout the X-Files whenever we see things like cigarettes and beer and sometimes even soda pop, the packaging of the product will look similar to a famous product like Coca-Cola or Budweiser or Samuel Adams or Marlboro... but if you look closer, there are apparent differences especially with the actual name of the products on the packaging. We got to see a lot of this in "War of the Coprophages", during Skully's little store meltdown. But here...

This is the first time where they show an actual brand of what we consider import beer (but I assume this would be domestic beer in Mexico), and they even have a good shot of the actual name of the brand when "John Doe's" initial benefactor is drinking in the bar, while excellent and authentic mariachi music is playing in the background. Speaking of John Doe's "benefactor", we develop a little bit of sympathy for "Domingo", as he was actually trying to help John Dogget to some extent... but his reward for doing so was unfortunate.

I have to say they got the atmosphere of this episode perfect: I really believed that this was filmed in some Mexican town, there are towns that look just like this when you get south of Tijuana or Tecate (this is also a hint toward the brand name of the aforementioned beer). Especially if you get into the middle of Baja California, towns really look like this in Central Baja, or, on the coast on the other side of the gulf.

It amazed me to discover just now that this sleepy Mexican town was actually in a suburb of Los Angeles, aka Pomona. I have driven through and it looks nothing like that. Especially 22 years ago it did not look like that. I imagine that the area around that location is a little bit more developed now, there has been a lot of development in the last 22 years.

Highly reminiscent of the film Traffic, which has been one of my favorite movies ever especially with the cinematography, and they did a great job with the direction of this episode but more so with the Director of photography. Everything looks exactly as it should to make us believe that this is happening where we are being told it is happening.

Now, somebody is whining that Monica Reyes "does not look Mexican", sorry but there are Mexicans living in Mexico that do not look Mexican. Maybe she is not literally Mexican as an actress, but as a character she's got the language perfect, she's got the inflections, she's got the slang. And, she knows how to talk to the crooked cop and get what she wants out of him. Also, she knows how to browbeat the crooked John Deere tractor dealer. So there is no issue with the way that the Monica Reyes character is performed in this episode, or my belief in her fictional heritage. Lots of people complain about actors portraying nationalities that they do not actually have a heritage with, but this is Horse Pucky. I think it is a high honor and accomplishment for actors to portray a nationality that they are not, and pull it off, if of course they pull it off. In the X-Files we have seen various nationalities being portrayed, and we have believed it because it was always handled well, using character actors that easily portrayed the nationalities required. One last tidbit needs to be addressed: "Too Much Spanish", what?! When X-Files, or any other television show for that matter, has an episode that occurs in something other than an English speaking country, it is more authentic to have people speaking in the language of that country. You can't have "too much" of it.

Alex Daikon (Who usually plays various Russian characters or creepy characters or hypnotists or an occasional peeping tom hotel manager in the X-Files) is the uncredited "memory vampire".

Wait... What?!?

What is a memory vampire? Well, watch this and find out. Wait... I am mistaken, The memory vampire was played by Zitto Kazan. He looks a lot like Alex. Whether Alex or Zitto, it was perfect casting.

This is John Doggetts breakout episode- well, this episode and "via negativa".

Nice shoe!

[RuthAkien · 7/10 · 1 May 2010]

Overall I enjoyed this much more at the start of the episode where you have the mystery, than when it's solved and you know how they survive. The truck stuff and lack of thought behind the memory-vampire spoilt things a bit.

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Good:

• cinematography.

• Love the shoe. That shoe deserves a best supporting actor award (at least until they invent an award for best prop use).

• re: the shoe. It's moving that under the circumstances D would want to hold onto the only things he had. Shows his character.

• several great one-liners (already mentioned by others).

• Yay the acting of Robert Patrick.

• acting from everyone in Mexico very good.

• surprised D would back out of a deal.

• gun taking awesome

• good that because R can speak Spanish she actually does something in this ep. The scene with her and the lawyer makes her look like a capable useful agent.

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not so good:

• Would like a bit more Scully and a little less R. Mostly because I think the D-remembering-scene would have a more interesting dynamic with S(and R does spoil the moment by yelling at him). It'd be interesting to see how S would handle that moment, and we wouldn't have the R + D romance hanging over things.

• plot contrivances

• lack of detail on case D originally investigating.

Dead on arrival

[graylittlewood · 7/10 · 21 October 2010]

For me this episode is a chore from it's very opening moments, which is ironic, because the whole thing is beautifully filmed. I think it's the setting that I struggle with - a Mexican town (or Mexican film set) featuring only John Doggett – minus his memory. To me it just feels wrong – I almost feel it's going to turn into a trad. western or something. Once the rest of the team appear and we learn of Doggett's disappearance it starts to hot up. Scully makes a couple of brief appearances – she arrives at the FBI office in Mexico, but I'm not sure why, because she isn't seen again and doesn't even make an appearance at the climax shoot-out when a much under-used AD Skinner rolls in with the cavalry. What a guy! We learn a bit more about Doggett's back story, his missing son and how he and Monica met. The shoot-out is impressive, but then the episode ends and there has been no explanation as to what has actually gone on. This has been the only season 9 episode that I've struggled to sit through – and although it gets there, the pacing is slow. 7/10.

Watchable, but boring.

[Sleepin_Dragon · 5/10 · 5 October 2022]

Doggett wakes up in Mexico, suffering with amnesia he has no idea why he's there or how he ended up there.

Think, The X Files does The Prisoner in Mexico. If you're a fan of cult classics, I think this one may have an extra appeal to you.

I'll be honest, I didn't enjoy this episode, for me it really was a slog, I found it quite boring and just too far fetched, I'm happy to accept the sci fi elements of the show, but the way Doggett and Reyes fled the scene, come on. I just don't see how it was an X File, what was John doing there, it made no sense.

No issues with the production values, I thought the team did a fine job, it looks great, I did quite like the Latin flavour too, it was just the storyline I had major issues with.

I suppose the most interesting thing about this episode, who exactly was responsible for putting him there? As Kersh was about as helpful as an anvil in a hot air balloon, it's perhaps him.

Didn't rate this one, 5/10.

Was there ENOUGH Spanish?

[xhidden99 · 5/10 · 6 December 2014]

I mean really, 60% of the episode? 70%. Aside from that is that this is not really an XF ep. It could be anything. Ir could be almost any show. What was the original case? What role does the cartel boss play? How does Skinner come to the rescue? How can Reyes Spanish be that awful? Why is Dogget resistant to the 'wipe'? Why does the gangster hire a crazy unknown gringo? This is one of the few eps that I jusy wanted to end asap. But it kind of underscores the whole aimlessness of the last season. It's painfully clear the whole thing is winding down and spluttering out. I guess I have to keep typing because in IMDb world when they say 10 lines they kean 14 or 15.