Dreamland (The X-Files) - Broadcast and Reception

Broadcast and Reception

"Dreamland" first aired in the United States on November 29, and "Dreamland II" aired on December 6, 1998. The first part of the episode earned a Nielsen rating of 10.1, with a 15 share, meaning that roughly 10.1 percent of all television-equipped households, and 15 percent of households watching television, were tuned in to the episode. It was viewed by 17.48 million people. The second part received a 10 rating, with a 15 share. It was subsequently viewed by 17.01 million people. The first part aired in the United Kingdom and Ireland on Sky1 on March 28, 1999 and the second part aired on April 4; part one received 0.73 million viewers and was the fourth most watched episode that week, and part two later received 0.88 million viewers and was the second most watched episode that week, after an episode of Friends. Fox promoted the first part of the episode with the tagline "what if you could discover the truth by living inside another man's body?" They promoted the second part of the episode with the line "Can he get back?"

The episode received mostly mixed reviews from critics, with many commenting on the episode's reliance on humor. In a review of part one, a critic from the Knight Ridder wrote, "As disorienting as this body transfer had to be for Mulder, the experience provided amusing television. And that seems to be a problem for some X-Files fans. Knowing that the human population's survival is imperiled by the colonization plans of a fierce extraterrestrial race, a large number of X-Philes want the show to focus on our heroes' efforts to come to the rescue". The newspaper's review of Part 2 was much more negative, with the article saying "by the end of the latest X-Files episode, we were wishing we could push a reset button on Dreamland II, just to forget some of the silly stuff that transpired in this show". Robert Shearman and Lars Pearson, in their book Wanting to Believe: A Critical Guide to The X-Files, Millennium & The Lone Gunmen, rated the episode two stars out of five and noted that the episode lacked "structure and point". Paula Vitaris from Cinefantastique gave both episodes mixed reviews, awarding the first part two-and-a-half stars out of four, and the second part two stars. Vitaris was unhappy with the amount of comedy used in the episode, noting that once Mulder visited Fletcher's house, "the comedy turns sour": she argued that the members Fletcher's family were examples of caricatures. Despite this, she praised the scene featuring the murder of the gas station attendant, claiming that "for a moment, this episode really clicks". Vitaris, in her review for part two, called the episode "purely illogical", although she noted it did feature "minor fun", pointing out the scene wherein Scully catches Fletcher by handcuffing him.

Not all reviews were completely negative. Zack Handlen from The A.V. Club wrote positively of the first part of the episode's humor and awarded it a B+. Handlen noted that "the context of seeing actors in the wrong places" is "what’s funny about the episode". However, he did slightly criticize the episode's padding—specifically Nora Dunn's role as Fletcher's wife and the Duck Soup mirror gag—but argued that "for every bit that doesn’t play in the episode, there are three that do." Todd VanDerWerff, also from The A.V. Club, gave the second half of the episode a B– and wrote, "I have basically nothing to add to what Zack said about the first 'Dreamland' last week. 'Dreamland II' is a fairly unnecessary hour of television, and there’s no reason this logy two-parter couldn’t have become a much tighter one-hour episode." Tom Kessenich, in his book Examination: An Unauthorized Look at Seasons 6–9 of the X-Files wrote that "my final judgement on 'Dreamland' is that I enjoyed the entertainment value it presented. It was fun and I'm not not to begrudge atone a little romp now and then." Kessenich, however, did note that the second part "felt strung out". Den of Geek writer Juliette Harrisson, however, saw the episode in a more positive light and said, "Season six included some more excellent episodes only peripherally related to the main story arc, Dreamland parts one and two". Kerry Fall from DVD Journal wrote positively of the episodes and described them, together as "one of the best episodes in years". Topless Robot named "Dreamland" the fourth funniest episode of the series. Earl Cressey from DVD Talk concluded that both "Dreamland" parts one and two were among the "highlights of season six".