I liked the blurring of reality and the otherworldliness that the show does so well, and the idea of a common myth being based on plausible anthropological events is intriguing, as the case takes a serious scientific approach the more evidence Mulder finds. But there is a missed opportunity for true scares. They could have gone a gigantopithecus or Sasquatch route to raise the creep factor, but the actual reveal is somewhat mundane.
The local police obstruct Scully and Mulder throughout the episode, but their motives are unclear - the city want to keep the "devil" alive to draw tourism, but later they are trying to shoot to kill it. Some of the commentary on man's destructive role with nature is also pertinent, but a little heavy-handed, and the subplot of Scully's dating life dragged a little. However important it was to see Scully being torn between the normality of family life and the crazed obsession driving Mulder, too much time was spent over Scully's romantic life. Overall, the episode feels like a wasted moment for something as enigmatic as the Jersey Devil. Maybe Chris Carter didn't want to rip off the "Mothman Prophecies" too much?
The local police obstruct Scully and Mulder throughout the episode, but their motives are unclear - the city want to keep the "devil" alive to draw tourism, but later they are trying to shoot to kill it. Some of the commentary on man's destructive role with nature is also pertinent, but a little heavy-handed, and the subplot of Scully's dating life dragged a little. However important it was to see Scully being torn between the normality of family life and the crazed obsession driving Mulder, too much time was spent over Scully's romantic life. Overall, the episode feels like a wasted moment for something as enigmatic as the Jersey Devil. Maybe Chris Carter didn't want to rip off the "Mothman Prophecies" too much?