[[WMG:[[center:[-'''RECAP:'''\\
[[Recap/TheXFiles Index]] | [[Recap/TheXFilesS01E01 1]] | [[Recap/TheXFilesS01E02DeepThroat 2]] | [[Recap/TheXFilesS01E03Squeeze 3]] | [[Recap/TheXFilesS01E04Conduit 4]] | [[Recap/TheXFilesS01E05TheJerseyDevil 5]] | [[Recap/TheXFilesS01E06Shadows 6]] | [[Recap/TheXFilesS01E07GhostInTheMachine 7]] | [[Recap/TheXFilesS01E08Ice 8]] | '''9''' | [[Recap/TheXFilesS01E10FallenAngel 10]] | [[Recap/TheXFilesS01E11Eve 11]] | [[Recap/TheXFilesS01E12Fire 12]] | [[Recap/TheXFilesS01E13BeyondTheSea 13]] | [[Recap/TheXFilesS01E14GenderBender 14]] | [[Recap/TheXFilesS01E15Lazarus 15]] | [[Recap/TheXFilesS01E16YoungAtHeart 16]] | [[Recap/TheXFilesS01E17EBE 17]] | [[Recap/TheXFilesS01E18MiracleMan 18]] | [[Recap/TheXFilesS01E19Shapes 19]] | [[Recap/TheXFilesS01E20DarknessFalls 20]] | [[Recap/TheXFilesS01E21Tooms 21]] | [[Recap/TheXFilesS01E22BornAgain 22]] | [[Recap/TheXFilesS01E23Roland 23]] | [[Recap/TheXFilesS01E24TheErlenmeyerFlask 24]]]]-]]]
'''Season 1, Episode 09:'''
!Space
[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/thexfilesspace.png]]
[[caption-width-right:350:''"It's coming at me! Holy God!"'']]
->Written by Creator/ChrisCarter\\
Directed by William Graham

->''"I have reason to believe there may be a saboteur at work inside NASA."''
-->-- '''Michelle'''

When the Space Shuttle mission is forced to abort three seconds before launch, the fiancée of one of the astronauts suspects sabotage and secretly calls in the FBI. As the shuttle and its crew face one crisis after another, it becomes clear that someone or something wants this mission to fail. But is it the work of a human saboteur, or of an alien presence that would prefer mankind to remain earthbound? The future of the space program is at stake, and Mulder gets to meet a childhood hero (Creator/EdLauter)—who may not be all that he seems…
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!!Tropes:
* AndMissionControlRejoiced: When the ship lands safely despite the complications, the mission control crew bursts into cheers.
* BittersweetEnding: Mission Control is able to get the ship carrying Michelle's fiance to safety, but it comes at a shocking cost: the suicide of Col. Belt to stop the alien ghost inside him from wrecking more havoc. He is however hailed a hero at his funeral, even by Mulder, who initially had a BrokenPedestal that started after the two's first meeting.
* FightingFromTheInside: Even while the alien entity inside him attempts to sabotage the mission, Col. Belt tries to save the astronauts under his command. He sends anonymous evidence that leads to Scully and Mulder investigating and makes decisions that, while dangerous, are the best options to save the astronauts and keep NASA running. The stress of fighting against his possessor [[HeroicSuicide drives him to suicide]].
* HeroicSuicide: In order to save lives from becoming further victims of the alien ghost's constant possessions of him, Colonel Belt throws himself off a building.
* TheKnightsWhoSaySquee: Mulder turns into a fanboy when he meets Col. Belt. [[BrokenPedestal He gets over it quickly.]] Though by the end when he realizes the truth, it's clear [[RebuiltPedestal Mulder has regained great respect for him and his courage]].
* NoCelebritiesWereHarmed: Col. Marcus Belt appears to be ''very'' loosely based on Col. David Scott, the real life pilot of Gemini VIII, who would have performed a spacewalk during the course of the mission, but nearly died when an accident forced an emergency landing.[[note]]The other pilot on the mission was some guy named Neil[[/note]]
-->'''Scully:''' Didn't you want to get his autograph?
%%* ReentryScare: ''À la'' ''Film/Apollo13''.%%ZCE -- what does that mean?
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->''"Hey, Scully, we send those men up into [[TitleDrop space]] to unlock the doors of the universe, and [[TheseAreThingsManWasNotMeantToKnow we don't even know]] [[NothingIsScarier what's behind them."]]''