The X-Files Season 11: 10 Things We Learned From 'This'

After the madcap pacing of My Struggle, Part III, which served as season eleven's premiere, the return of The X-Files showed no signs of slowing down in week two. The season's second episode, entitled simply "This" and scripted by series veteran Glen Morgan (who also handled directorial duties) brought with it an opening sequence shootout, a handful of fight scenes, and the return of The Lone Gunmen.

Well, a Lone Gunman. Sort of.

Dean Haglund, aka Richard 'Ringo' Langly, has been advertised for the eleventh season of The X-Files for some time now. His hauntingly distorted image, encased within the confines of a smartphone, was glimpsed in early trailers. In This, Langly has a small but crucial role.

Of course, the big question for fans is, is Langly alive? And what of the other Gunmen?

It's a question that both is and isn't answered all at the same time. In true X-Files fashion, it's really in how you approach the subject. In fact, that's one of the underlying concepts of the This. What do we consider life? What do we consider being alive? Weaving a story about digital consciousness into the ongoing mythology of season eleven, This takes a stab at answering some bigger questions while continuing to show that even in a post-9/11 world where Donald Trump is a world leader, The X-Files remains as relevant as ever.

Now, let's take a look at 10 things we learned from this season's second episode of The X-Files, This.

Let's cut right to the chase, shall we?

In This, the second episode of The X-Files eleventh season, Richard Langly, a.k.a. Ringo but more commonly referred to as simply Langly, is dead. His body, we learn, was cremated prior to his burial back in season nine's Jump the Shark. We know this because Walter Skinner tells us so. The Lone Gunmen are dead.

Without getting into a long discussion about this being a wasted opportunity to bring back the popular trio (as was done in the comic series), what we can say is this: The events of this episode do not completely eliminate the possibility that he is alive somewhere. And regardless, it doesn't matter.

Langly being alive or dead in physical form has no bearing on the outcome of this episode. If you believe the narrative, he died saving thousands from a weaponized, airborne variant of the Marburg virus alongside Frohike and Byers. Yet the Langly we meet in This is digital Langly. Well before his eventual death, he cut a deal with a government contractor to transfer his consciousness to a simulated world. That simulation runs within an NSA governed complex. And it is from that simulation that Langly reaches out to Fox Mulder.

The simulation, says Langly, is as if he designed the world. With the Ramones alive and playing every night, and all the hot dogs he can eat. The New England Patriots never win.

And everyone is a digital slave. Mulder, he says, must shut the simulation down.