Bad Blood (The X-Files)

"Bad Blood"
The X-Files episode
Patrick Renna as Ronnie Strickland: a vampire. The faux vampire teeth—which were sardonically labeled "funny fangs"—were created by makeup coordinator Toby Lindala. The glowing eyes were created with a fluorescent material.
Episode no.	Season 5 Episode 12
Directed by	Cliff Bole
Written by	Vince Gilligan
Production code	5X12
Original air date	February 22, 1998 (1998-02-22)
Running time	45 minutes
Guest appearances
Mitch Pileggi as Walter Skinner Luke Wilson as Sheriff Hartwell Patrick Renna as Ronnie Strickland Forbes Angus as Funeral Director Marion Killinger as Detective David Major as Vampire Brent Butt as Coroner
Episode chronology
← Previous "Kill Switch" Next → "Patient X"
The X-Files season 5
List of episodes

"Bad Blood" is the twelfth episode of the fifth season of the American science fiction television series The X-Files. Written by Vince Gilligan, directed by Cliff Bole, and featuring guest appearances from Luke Wilson and Patrick Renna, it aired in the United States on February 22, 1998, on the Fox network. The episode is a "Monster-of-the-Week" story, unconnected to the series' wider mythology. The episode received a Nielsen rating of 12.0, being watched by 19.25 million viewers. In addition, "Bad Blood" received largely positive reviews, with many critics praising the episode's humor.

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, Mulder and Scully must report to their supervisor, Assistant Director Walter Skinner (Mitch Pileggi) after Mulder kills a young man he believes to be a vampire. The agents each tell a different version of events, leading them to realize the inconsistencies in their investigation.

"Bad Blood" was inspired by an episode of The Dick Van Dyke Show in which the main characters tell different versions of a fight they had. According to critical analysis of the episode, "Bad Blood" explores the dynamics of the relationship between Mulder and Scully. In addition, some scholars argue that by Scully telling the tale from a perspective opposed to Mulder's, the episode subverts the male gaze (the concept that films tend to cater to male viewers and perspectives). The episode's makeup and special effect coordinators used various techniques to create many of the effects seen in the episode, such as the vampire teeth, the glowing eyes, and the bite marks.