Teliko

"Teliko"
The X-Files episode
The pigment loss of one of the black victims. To achieve this look, several layers of cover-up cream and white powder needed to be applied.
Episode no.Season 4
Episode 3
Directed byJames Charleston
Written byHoward Gordon
Production code4X04[1]
Original air dateOctober 18, 1996 (1996-10-18)
Running time43 minutes[2]
Guest appearances
Episode chronology
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The X-Files season 4
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"Teliko" is the third episode of the fourth season of the American science fiction television series The X-Files. It was written by Howard Gordon and directed by James Charleston. The episode originally aired in the United States on October 18, 1996, on the Fox network. It is a "Monster-of-the-Week" story, a stand-alone plot which is unconnected to the series' wider mythology. "Teliko" earned a Nielsen rating of 11.3, being watched by 18.01 million people upon its initial broadcast.

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. In this episode, Mulder and Scully are called in to investigate the unexplained deaths of several African and African-American people whose skin color has turned white as the result of either a rare medical disorder or a bizarre curse.

The episode features the second appearance by Laurie Holden as Marita Covarrubias, following her debut in the fourth-season premiere "Herrenvolk". Carl Lumbly guest stars as a social worker. Inspired by the topics of racial discrimination, "Teliko" explores xenophobia and prejudice. The make-up effects in the episode were difficult to apply and took several hours to be completed. The episode received mixed reviews from critics, who compared the episode to older episodes of the series. The racial topics of the episode drew mixed attention.

  1. ^ The X-Files: The Complete Fourth Season (booklet). R. W. Goodwin, et al. Fox.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  2. ^ "The X-Files, Season 4". iTunes Store. Apple. Retrieved August 28, 2012.
  3. ^ Cite error: The named reference plot was invoked but never defined (see the help page).