kind of texture for the show. Light, magic, nothing terribly threatening". Snow received many requests for a recording of the music used at the end of the episode. Website IGN named "Paper Hearts" their sixth favorite standalone episode of the show, calling it "creepy and unsettling", and claiming Noonan's character was "one of the most disturbing villains to make an appearance in the series". Noonan's acting has also been praised by Vince Gilligan, who says the "understated" manner in which Roche is portrayed "sends chills down [his] spine every time". The A.V. Club's Emily VanDerWerff reviewed the episode positively, rating it an A. She felt that Noonan's performance was "terrific", noting that the actor "makes Roche into one of the series' great human monsters"; and believed that the episode's premise was important to developing the character of Mulder further. The website later named the episode the sixth best example of a television dream sequence, noting that it "suggest[s] how this methodical man [Mulder] might puzzle over cold cases in his subconscious". The article also complimented the entry's metaphor that laser pointers were Mulder's mind that pointed "out bits of evidence his conscious brain missed all those many years ago." Starpulse named it the second best episode of the series. Footnotes Bibliography External links 1996 American television episodes Television episodes set in Connecticut Television episodes set in Delaware Television episodes set in Massachusetts Television episodes set in Pennsylvania Television episodes written by Vince Gilligan The X-Files (season 4) episodes Television episodes set in Virginia Television episodes set in West Virginia