“The Host” is episode two of season two of The X-Files.
The episode begins in the Atlantic Ocean, 2 miles from the coast of New Jersey, on what seems to be a Russian freighter. A crewman notices water in one of the corridors and opens a door to find one of the toilets has backed up. Another man tries contacting the engine room, then calls a man, Dmitri, over. He has a job for him.
Dmitri undoes the bolts on a bulkhead; the system is backed up and the blockage needs to be removed before the tanks can be cleared. Dmitri asks why he always gets these jobs. Because he’s young. And because it’s terrible, smelly work. Dmitri looks inside the tank, climbing the rungs to get a better look. Then something grabs him and starts pulling him inside. Two others grab his legs, but are unable to hold on and Dmitri is dragged under the water. A man orders the tanks to be flushed but there appears to be no sign of Dmitri.
Mulder is still working the wiretap from the previous episode, “Little Green Men”, when two agents arrive. One is taking over as Mulder has been relieved. He has a new assignment and has a flight to catch. A murder case in Newark, New Jersey. Assistant Director Skinner made the request.
In Newark, the detective says that forensics are just wrapping up. They’ve left the body where it was found and this is a case they are happy to turn over to the FBI. And gets Mulder some wellies. The body is in the sewers and was found by a sanitation worker. There’s not much to go on, no ID and it’s been eaten. Mulder isn’t that interested and, when asked what to do with the body, tells them to send it to the FBI care of AD Skinner.
Mulder then heads to Skinner’s office when back in DC, demanding to speak to him. Skinner is not impressed with Mulder’s attitude, but gives him a few minutes. Asking him to explain to the others in Skinner’s office why Mulder thinks his work is meaningless. Mulder thinks it’s an obvious body dump. Skinner tells him he expects Mulder to carry out his assignments to the best of his ability. Whatever they are.
Mulder is sitting on a bench outside at night when Scully asks if she can sit down. He warns her he’s experiencing violent impulses. She’s armed, so will take her chances. Scully heard about Skinner. It’s not as if Mulder has tried to fit in. Mulder is thinking about leaving and pursuing his work another way. Scully suggest he transfer to Quantico and the BSU. She also asks about the case. Mulder still thinks it’s nothing. Scully wants to see the body and do an autopsy. Mulder thinks there is nothing to it. Scully points out that there is a body.
Scully does the autopsy; the body may be Dmitri, but it’s in pretty bad shape. There is a Cyrillic tattoo on one arm. Scully is working on the liver when she discovers a parasite inside, which she grabs.
In Newark, two men are working in the sewers. One goes into the water and examines a broken grate. When the other goes up to grab some materials, the first man is grabbed by something and dragged under. He gets to the surface and calls for help; the other is able to get him out but there’s a large wound in the worker’s back.
The worker gets checked out in the hospital and complains to the doctor about a bad taste in his mouth. He would like something for it. She gives him a piece of chewing gum. Mulder is also there; she surprised the FBI is involved. The doctor fills Mulder in; the worker claimed to be attacked and she thought at first it was a bogus disability claim. But it seems to be true. The man has a strange wound in his back.
The man thinks it could have been a python, or a boa constrictor. A pet snake someone flushed away. They found an alligator a couple of years back. The doctor examines the wound and says that it does almost look like a bite. Scully then calls and says she has something Mulder needs to see, a parasite. Then he gets another call, and a man tells Mulder he has a friend at the FBI.
At Quantico, Scully tells Mulder that the parasite is a flatworm or fluke. Flukes are endemic in unsanitary conditions. She doesn’t know whether the man was infected before or after he died, and it seems unlikely a single parasite killed him but there was no other discernible cause of death. She mentions the bitemark, and Mulder shows her the wound from the worker which sounds like it. Only it’s much bigger. The sanitation worker still has a bad taste in his mouth. And is spitting up blood. And flukes.
Mulder heads to the sewage processing plant in Newark and is speaking to the supervisor when someone outside sees something in the water and calls his boss. The something turns out to be a humanoid. With a parasitic mouth.
Earlier, Mulder wondered if they would have to tell Skinner his suspect is a giant bloodsucking worm. Then he does have to tell him that. How do you deal with such a thing? Prosecute it as normal. That doesn’t work out very well.
There’s a new mysterious individual feeding Mulder and Scully information and Skinner gives more hints that he may not be as opposed to Mulder’s work on the X-Files as he appeared to be.
Gillian Anderson is now rather pregnant, and she’s having to be filmed quite carefully to stop this from becoming too obvious.