The 23 Best Mulder and Scully Moments

The X-Files, episode: “The Unnatural;” screengrab via Fox.

#7: The Unnatural

Another not-super-important episode with a bunch of great moments, this season 6 gem features more than a few classic Mulder/Scully moments.

The bulk of the episode is a Mulder quest, the story told largely in flashbacks to an 1947 integrated baseball team whose MVP is also a straight-up alien. We learn that the Bounty Hunter, who manages to insert himself in almost every alien adventure in the present day, was ALSO a huge, scary bummer back then. But, like I said, aside from that tiny bit of mythology, The Unnatural’s charm lies in the episode’s bookends: scenes of Mulder and Scully NOT EVEN ALMOST bothering to hide their flirtation.

Inspired by the day’s revelations, Mulder invites Scully to an empty baseball field under the guise of an early and/or late birthday present. And he teaches her how to hit a baseball. It seems so ordinary to the naked eye, but to an X-Phile, Fox Mulder’s hands on Dana Scully’s hips as he corrects her batting stance is basically Magic Mike XXL.

And perhaps the best part of this whole incomprehensibly romantic debacle? David Duchovny wrote it. At least we know that Mulder himself ships the duo as hard as we do. And by the uncontrollable grin on Scully’s face, I think it’s safe to say he’s not the only one.

Next: #6: Requiem