"Our Town" is the twenty-fourth episode of the second season of the American science fiction television series The X-Files. It premiered on the Fox network in the United States on May 12, 1995. It was written by Frank Spotnitz and directed by Rob Bowman. The episode is a "Monster-of-the-Week" story, unconnected to the series' wider mythology. "Our Town" received a Nielsen rating of 9.4 and was watched by 9.0 million households. The episode received mixed reviews from critics. The show centers on FBI special agents Fox Mulder (David Duchovny) and Dana Scully (Gillian Anderson) who work on cases linked to the paranormal, called X-Files. Mulder is a believer in the paranormal, while the skeptical Scully has been assigned to debunk his work. In this episode, Dudley, Arkansas, is the site of the latest investigation for Mulder and Scully, who are sent to find a missing poultry inspector. The case takes a twist when another poultry worker is shot after she goes insane, leading Mulder to believe that certain townspeople are cannibals. "Our Town" was future executive producer Spotnitz's first stand-alone episode for the show. Spotnitz was inspired to write the episode after thinking of cannibalism occurring at a chicken processing plant, an idea that he thought was one of the most despicable and vile things. Spotnitz later named the characters after real life cannibals. Plot In Dudley, Arkansas, government health inspector George Kearns follows his seemingly young lover, Paula Gray, into the woods. However, after losing track of Paula, George Kearns soon finds himself surrounded by approaching lights in the woods. He is then killed by an axe-wielding assailant wearing a tribal mask. When Kearns is reported missing and a witness claims to have seen foxfire near Dudley, Fox Mulder (David Duchovny) and Dana Scully (Gillian Anderson) investigate. At the site of the alleged foxfire, the agents find the ground burnt. After visiting Kearns' wife Doris, the agents discover that he was about to recommend a local chicken plant, Chaco Chicken, to be closed down for health violations. While giving the agents a tour of the plant, floor manager Jess Harold claims that Kearns held a vendetta against Chaco Chicken. After hearing this, a hallucinating Paula, who works at the plant, grabs and holds Harold at knife point. Mulder and Scully attempt to reason with Paula until she is shot and killed by Arens, the local sheriff. The plant's physician,