"End Game" serves up high strung drama doled out equally across an hour and an equal amount of WTF!! mystery, which serves its purpose to string us along for years. The episode isn't perfect, leaving us a mere taste of what is out there without laying down a proper foundation to build upon other than the usual aliens stuff.
The mythology episodes are usually plot-heavy and "End Game" is no exception. The pacing is pushed far more than usual, the locations spanning great distances with Mulder traveling all the way to the Arctic. Mulder's sister is traded for Scully, but she turns out to be nothing more than a pile of green goo. Meanwhile, the bounty hunter is on the move, burning down the clinic with the rest of the Samantha clones just as Mulder arrives.
X plays a pivotal role in the episode, though we're still not sure what his role is. He gives Mulder the location of the submarine, but refuses to give it to Scully until he gets the snot beat out of him by Skinner. We know he gives Mulder information, because he wants everyone to know the truth one day, but a big problem is that we have no clue about the group he's with or how it operates. What allows him to tell Mulder information without being caught? Why would he tell Skinner the truth?
By the end of the episode, Scully's faith in science is renewed because it proved viable in combating the new alien virus and Mulder's faith to keep looking is renewed, having been a brush away from the real deal. We see the resilience in these two, fighting on through all adversity, even redoubling their efforts. All attempts to stymie them have only served to push them further, because now they know, cliched as it is, the truth is out there. And in this way, the answers aren't that important (emphasis on that), because the focus is on the characters, no the aliens.
Of course the episode ends without us learning much, but it was cool to see everything unfold either way. I won't deduct points for the pitiful explanations (basically non-explanations and only more mystery) later on.
Score: 9.4/10
