Our Town (The X-Files)

"Our Town"
The X-Files episode
A man wears a sacrificial mask. Director Rob Bowman found scenes featuring the mask the most difficult to shoot.
Episode no.	Season 2 Episode 24
Directed by	Rob Bowman
Written by	Frank Spotnitz
Production code	2X24
Original air date	May 12, 1995
Running time	44 minutes
Guest appearance(s)
John Milford as Walter Chaco Caroline Kava as Doris Kearns Gary Grubbs as Sheriff Arens Timothy Webber as Jess Harold Gabrielle Miller as Paula Gray Robin Mossley as Dr. Vance Randolph John MacLaren as George Kearns Hrothgar Mathews as Mental Patient Robert Moloney as Worker Carrie Cain Sparks as Maid
Episode chronology
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List of The X-Files episodes

"Our Town" is the twenty-fourth episode of the second season of the American science fiction television series The X-Files. It premiered on the Fox network in the United States on May 12, 1995. It was written by Frank Spotnitz and directed by Rob Bowman. The episode is a "Monster-of-the-Week" story, unconnected to the series' wider mythology. "Our Town" received a Nielsen rating of 9.4 and was watched by 9.0 million households. The episode received mixed reviews from critics.

The show centers on FBI special agents Fox Mulder (David Duchovny) and Dana Scully (Gillian Anderson) who work on cases linked to the paranormal, called X-Files. Mulder is a believer in the paranormal, while the skeptical Scully has been assigned to debunk his work. In this episode, Dudley, Arkansas is the site of the latest investigation for Mulder and Scully, who are sent to find a missing poultry inspector. The case takes a twist when another poultry worker is shot after she goes insane, leading Mulder to believe that certain townspeople are cannibals.

"Our Town" was future executive producer Spotnitz's first stand-alone episode for the show. Spotnitz was inspired to write the episode after thinking of cannibalism occurring at a chicken processing plant, an idea that he thought was one of the most despicable and vile things. Spotnitz later named the characters after real life cannibals.

In Dudley, Arkansas, government health inspector George Kearns follows his seemingly young lover, Paula Gray, into the woods. However, after losing track of Paula, Kearns soon finds himself surrounded by approaching lights in the woods. He is then killed by an axe-wielding assailant wearing a tribal mask.