Kill Switch (The X-Files)

Infobox Television episode
Title = Kill Switch
Series = The X-Files


Caption ="Kill Switch" promotional poster
Season = 5
Episode = 11
Airdate = February 15, 1998
Production = 5x11
Writer = William Gibson, Tom Maddox
Director =
Guests =
Episode list = List of The X-Files episodes
Prev = Chinga
Next = Bad Blood

"Kill Switch" is an episode of the popular American television series "The X-Files" notable for being written by William Gibson [cite web |url=http://www.aintitcool.com/display.cgi?id=5140 |title=Alexandra DuPont Interviews William 'Freakin' Gibson!!!! |accessdate=2007-07-08 |work=Ain't It Cool News ] , together with fellow science fiction novelist Tom Maddox. The authors and long-time friends had discussed various collaborations before and approached the production company with an offer to write an episode. [cite web |url=http://www.streettech.com/archives_Special/maddoxSpecial.html |title=Tom Maddox Unreal-Time Chat |accessdate=2007-07-13 |work=Shop Talk ] The result was "Kill Switch" (5x11), which first aired on February 15, 1998. The episode made frequent appearances in reruns and its success encouraged Gibson to continue working in television, resulting in his writing a second episode "First Person Shooter" (7x13)—again in collaboration with Maddox—which aired on FOX two years later on February 27th, 2000.cite web |url=http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m0HDN/is_2000_Feb_24/ai_59615707 |title="X-Files" Writer Fights For Online Privacy |accessdate=2007-07-13 |last=Fridman |first=Sherman |date=2000-02-24 |format=news article |work=News Briefs |publisher=Newsbytes PM ] [cite web |url=http://www.spikemagazine.com/0899williamgibson.php |title=William Gibson : All Tomorrow’s Parties : Waiting For The Man |accessdate=2007-07-13 |last=Johnston |first=Anthony |year=1999 |month=August |format= |work= |publisher=Spike ] The episode deals with recurrent Gibsonian themes: alienation, paranoia, the will to survive, emergent technology, the evolution of artificial intelligence, virtual reality, and transferring one's consciousness into cyberspace.cite news |first=Alex |last=Strachan |authorlink= |coauthors= |title=Gibson writes this Sunday's X-Files |url=http://www.mjq.net/xfiles/gibson.htm |work=Local Entertainment |publisher=Vancouver Sun |date=1998-02-14 |accessdate=2007-07-13 ]

"Kill Switch" was written outside the giant backstory or mytharc of the series as something of a once-off, which Gibson intended to be reminiscent of the "dark visions" of filmmaker David Cronenberg and to contain "many obvious pokes and prods at high-end academic cyberculture."Silberman, Steve. " [http://www.wired.com/culture/lifestyle/news/1998/01/9625 William Gibson to Write X-Files Episode] ". "Wired, 1998-01-13]

Plot summary

The episode begins at Metro Diner at night. We see a man with a laptop computer, who is trying to get access to some files but the message "Access denied" appears over and over again. Meanwhile several criminals receive anonymous phone calls about the whereabouts of their enemies - they are supposed to be in the Metro Diner. Two policemen receive a similar phone call. As the man with the laptop gains access to the files and the screen says to press enter, the policemen appear and order everyone onto the floor. The drug dealers take their weapons and heavy gunfire begins.

Agents Mulder and Scully arrive at the scene of the crime and identify bodies of the criminals. Mulder also identifies the man with the laptop - he is Donald Gelman - "a Silicon Valley folk hero. He was writing internet software even before there was an internet." Mulder hides Gelman's laptop under his coat and takes it into Scully's car. He also finds a CD and puts it into car stereo. "Twilight Time" by The Platters starts playing. The agents take the laptop to the Lone Gunmen for analysis. They cannot break the security code and Scully suggests that they should check Gelman's e-mail account. They find an e-mail sent by someone named Invisigoth. It says that someone named David is missing. Moreover, the message contains a standard ID number for a shipping container.

Mulder and Scully find the container. When they approach it a girl runs out of it but Scully catches her. The container is full of state-of-the-art computer equipment. The girl warns the agents that an armed Department of Defense satellite has pinpointed their location. They leave the place immediately. A green laser descends from the sky and destroys the container.Inside the car, the girl admits that she is Invisigoth (her real name is Esther Nairn) and Mulder realizes that Gelman has created artificial intelligence, thus fulfilling his dream. Invisigoth describes how the AI works - it monitors all communication and recognizes her voice so she cannot make any phone calls. Moreover, once the AI locates its enemy it destroys them using the satellite. According to Invisigoth, Gelman was creating "Kill Switch" - a virus that could destroy the AI, but the AI killed him using drug dealers in the Metro Diner. The only way to destroy the AI is to find its hardware, the computer on which the AI is stored. It turns out that David is Invisigoth's friend and he also worked with Gelman. Later, Mulder, Scully and Invisigoth visit the Lone Gunmen.

Mulder uses his governmental source to find a secret T3 line, one that the AI uses to access the Internet. He also finds the trailer that is connected to the line. Meanwhile, Invisigoth forces Scully at gun point to drive to David's residence. However, they only find a destroyed house there. Esther admits that she and David had been planning to transfer their consciousness into cyberspace and enter the AI. But Gelman was against the idea because he considered it too dangerous. Inside the trailer Mulder finds a lot of computer hardware. He also finds David’s dead body - he has a virtual reality helmet on his head. Suddenly Mulder is constrained by moving cables and wires and experiences a strange vision: he finds himself in hospital where nurses threaten to amputate his limbs unless he reveals where the Kill Switch is. Meanwhile, the AI locates Scully and Esther in their car near a bridge. They become trapped so Scully tells Esther to throw the laptop into the water. One moment later, a green laser hits the water.

Scully and Esther go to the trailer in which Mulder is trapped. It turns out that Esther still has the CD with Kill Switch so Scully puts it into the drive because the AI wants it. The AI releases Mulder, and Scully removes a virtual reality helmet from his face. She takes him outside but Esther stays in the trailer. She instructs the satellite to locate the trailer's position. Then she puts the virtual reality helmet on. One moment later, the green laser destroys the trailer. Mulder tells Scully that Esther's consciousness probably joined the AI. Later, the Lone Gunmen get a strange message on their computer reading "Bite me". Just before the credits we see a trailer similar to the one the AI lived in at first, with automatic security cameras monitoring a boy who had gone behind the fence surrounding the trailer to get his ball.

References

External links

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* [http://www.tv.com/the-x-files/kill-switch/episode/598/summary.html?tag=ep_list;title;10 Kill Switch] at TV.com