It took a while, but Mulder and Scully are working as a team again after spending the last few issues separately investigating (or fleeing from) the Acolytes. And while issue #5 offers a heavy dose of the team dynamic that X-fans have been craving, the resolution to the “Believers” doesn’t altogether satisfy.

Here’s the official word from IDW:

“Believers,” Part 5 of 5: The sense-shattering conclusion! Reunited at last, Mulder and Scully pursue the Deacon deep beneath the surface of Yellowstone National Park. Also in pursuit are the telltale black helicopters of the FBI, but are they friend… or foe?

After being kidnapped by the Acolytes Scully makes a daring escape and then encounters Mulder, who’s been searching for her all along in Yellowstone Park. Together, they begin to hunt the Acolytes instead — this brief sequence offers some of the best moments of issue #5 but writer Joe Harris is too caught up with action to let us enjoy any real banter or interaction between the two. More frustrating, Harris pens a “ Deus ex machina” moment that totally lets him off the hook from having to answer any real plot questions and proves more annoying than awesome. I think Harris had hoped this ploy might allow him to deepen the mystery, but instead the arc just feels unresolved.

Michael Walsh has found a good groove with this title. The characters read true, and his style is appropriately creepy when necessary. His sequencing can be a bit bland at times, however; he’s not going out of his way to create innovative POVs or offer anything more complicated than the traditional 6-8 page paneling. That said, despite its odd-ball flare, X-Files is still a police procedural (a pretty conservative genre) and Walsh’s more traditional execution actually fits nicely as a result. So maybe I shouldn’t complain.

Despite its mixed ending, “Believers” is still a promising start to this new series. It brings fans back up to speed, and squarely places Scully and Mulder right back where we wanted them: together, and battling the unknown.

3/5