TV
Buffy the Vampire Slayer At 25: “I Only Have Eyes For You”
25 years ago, Buffy the Vampire Slayer was going through it.
She lost her virginity to her hot vampire boyfriend Angel (David Boreanaz), who then lost his soul because of a curse, went evil, and killed her computer science teacher. Principal Snyder (Armin Shimerman) was busy blaming her for everything, anything that went wrong at school, and her mother had yet to learn her daughter was the Chosen One.
As her final battle with her vampire ex seemed to be looming on the horizon, the last few episodes before said confrontation saw our beloved slayer facing many iconic monsters of the week. Teens turned sea monsters, a Freddy Krueger rip-off, and the tortured spirits of two former lovers.
We’re here to talk about the tortured spirits.
A Haunting Lesson in Forgiveness
“To forgive is an act of compassion, Buffy. It’s… It’s not done because people deserve it. It’s done because they need it” – Giles
The Buffy the Vampire Slayer season 2 episode, “I Only Have Eyes For You,” aired April 28th 1998, and it used a classic gothic ghost story as the framing. The episode used the ghosts to have our slayer and her vampire ex-boyfriend come back together via possession. The ghosts were a student who was a scorned lover and the teacher who broke off their affair in the ‘50s. The student shot his teacher after she broke it off with him and was cursed with reliving that moment repeatedly. His spirit is violent yet looking for forgiveness.
Exploring Grief and Heartbreak in Buffy Season 2
The ghost story framing helps the themes of the show shine, specifically the themes of that season—grief, heartbreak, and forgiveness. The spirit of the shooter is looking for forgiveness, something Buffy does not think he deserves. Buffy’s anger could be seen in two different ways—she’s angry at herself for all the murder and havoc that’s broken out since she slept with her ex and didn’t think she deserved forgiveness, or she views the ghost in the same way she views Angel. Either way, Buffy is a lot harsher than usual. She’s still beating herself up for what happened and blaming herself for everything that’s happening. She sees no way of ever forgiving herself or Angel. Quite frankly, she’s fucking depressed.
Giles’ Struggle with Loss and Irrational Hope
And speaking of depressed, there’s Giles. He’s still grieving over the loss of his love Jenny Calendar (Robia LaMorte), at the hands of Angel. He’s not just Buffy’s father figure, but the father figure to damn near every character on the show. He’s the smart, sensible one, yet here we get an irrational man desperate for one last moment with Jenny. His logic is out the window because he’s drowning in his grief. When the Scoobies tell him this spirit seems too violent to be Jenny, he tells them how it’s always good to question authority—but not right now because he’s clearly correct (he’s clearly not). It’s sad to see. He wants it to be her so badly that the usually rational watcher is being incredibly irrational. It’s humanizing and upsetting to see the group’s surrogate father spiral like this. The show also shows you how Giles doesn’t really get over his grief; he learns to manage it.
Lasting Impact of Death in Buffy the Vampire Slayer
Grief is something this show always did well. If a character died, it wasn’t forgotten about an episode later. Jenny Calendar, Joyce Summers (Kirstine Sutherland), Tara Maclay (Amber Benson)—all characters who show up or are talked about long after they’ve died. Their presence is still felt (albeit mainly through The First Evil turning into 2 out of the 3 of them). The show would go on to spend the better parts of seasons 5 and 6 navigating grief. Also, Giles doesn’t get another love interest on the show besides his brief encounters with Olivia (Phina Oruche) in season 4. So, to see him grieving like this hurts—while also taking him out of the picture momentarily.
Horror Tropes and the Scoobies’ Solo Mission
The Scoobies are on their own for this caper, making it seem scarier. The episode also leans hard on horror tropes—something it would mostly abandon in later seasons. We see Cordelia Chase (Charisma Carpenter) attacked by a snake when they invade the school and later look at a disfigured version of herself in the mirror. Willow (Alyson Hannigan) has the idea for the failed séance and gets sucked into a ghostly portal that opens up in the floor below her. Xander (Nicholas Brendon) is attacked by a demon arm popping out of his locker and choking him. But, in true Buffy fashion, the monsters are stand-ins for something else—in this case, they’re stand-ins for what Buffy and Giles are going through.
Buffy’s Emotional Journey and the Power of Possession
Buffy is grieving for what could have been—the love of her life is technically still there, but the man she fell in love with is dead and gone. And while it might sound a little heavy-handed, seeing our hero endure this loss while also still dealing with everyday things like school, friendships, hiding her secret identity, and evil spirits is compelling TV (and okay, maybe those last two aren’t everyday things but if you’re a Vampire Slayer they are). Buffy spends most of the episode refusing to understand why this ghost of a murderer deserves forgiveness—but in the end, she learns it doesn’t matter why.
The ghosts both get to move on only after possessing the bodies of Buffy and Angelus, bringing them together for one last kiss before the season’s over. The shooter, however, inhabits Buffy’s body as he related more to her pain. Angelus survives the gunshot because he’s a vampire, which helps the ghosts reconnect and move on from this trauma. Sarah Michelle Gellar also gives one hell of a monologue as the possessed shooter.
It’s the emotional boost she needed before facing off against Angelus a few episodes later. It makes her understand that it doesn’t matter why he’s doing all of this—she just needs to stop him. And maybe forgive herself.
TV
The Secret of Skinwalker Ranch: Hot Pursuit (S7E12)
Welcome back, fellow ranchers! I thought my intro to last week’s episode would genuinely be the last time I discussed Ufology out loud (aside from interviews and The Horror Press Podcast). But the Ufology civil war is now among us. When I last wrote, UAP Gerb had publicly spoken with Ross Coulthart regarding multiple aspects of Ufology. In said conversation, barbs were thrown toward Lyin’ Lue Elizondo. The “Final Thoughts” section of last week’s The Secret of Skinwalker Ranch article mentioned how Lue had “clapped back” and vaguely threatened Gerb.
Then, shit hit the fan. Lue’s lawyer started beefing with a literal elected official. The elected official hit back. Then Lue’s lawyer doubled down. Lue moved to DC. And all hell broke loose. UFOTwitter has turned into a literal warzone. People have been doxxed. Lives have been threatened. Friendships have been broken. But most importantly, it caused Jeremy McGowan to come out of his sporadic Ufology retirement to put Lue in his place.
Due to the litigious nature of Lue’s lawyer, I am going to hold my tongue (even though everything I want to say is truthful). All I will say is that I saw this coming from miles away–it was clearer than Jose’s original Fresno Nightcrawler video. Simply put, all of this is laughable and sad. Grown men acting like teenagers for nothing more than a handful of likes on Twitter. Get a life.
Anyways! This week’s episode of The Secret of Skinwalker Ranch is a doozy, so let’s not waste any more time! Let’s head back to our second favorite ranch in Utah to see if we get any closer to uncovering The Secret…of Skinwalker Ranch.
Cameron Fugal Spots a Metallic Object Near Homestead Two
The Triangle – 3:26 AM
We pick back up exactly where we left off from Season 7 Episode 11 “On The Radar”. Cameron Fugal is flying his helicopter while Jereme Manhart and Technologist Pete Kelsey throw aluminum bottles down to the ground. Pete notices something flying over the treetops near Homestead Two. Cameron studies the object as best he can and states that it’s definitely metallic in nature.
Dr. Travis Taylor reiterates a point made last episode when he says that it appears the dropped bottles bounced off The Bubble and slid down the side. Cameron is certain this isn’t a bottle. Thomas Winterton and Kaleb Bench look towards Homestead Two, but they don’t see anything. Even Jim Royston, who is with Travis at the science tent, doesn’t see anything.
The Doppler on Wheels Team Comes Up Empty-Handed
Travis radios over to Dr. Karen Kosiba and Dr. Joshua Wurman, two of the three members of Doppler on Wheels, and asks if they see it on their Doppler radar. He reminds the audience that Doppler radar relies on radio waves that reflect off water droplets–hopefully, the flying object reflects enough for the Doppler to catch it. Unfortunately, they don’t see anything either. Travis wonders aloud if the UAP could have come from The Bubble.
I know this has probably been brought up before, but I’ve noticed something quite hysterical about this show. Whenever someone says anything about something anomalous, there’s a reality-based conversation about what’s been seen. And then after that, someone follows up with something that most likely sounds ridiculous by saying “looks like” or “maybe”. It’s an interesting form of manipulation that works incredibly well to keep audiences engaged in the possibility that this thing that’s most likely a bird could possibly be something other than a bird.
It’s brilliant television.
A Familiar Cylinder-Shaped UAP Returns to the Same Spot
Travis, Jim, Kaleb, Thomas, Erik Bard, Dr. Karen Kosiba, Dr. Joshua Wurman, Dr. Oluyinka Oluwale, Cameron, Jereme, and Pete all meet up outside the Skinwalker Ranch Command Center. (It should be noted that Pete is still wearing his harness from when he was strapped into the helicopter, and it’s giving him a crazy moose knuckle.) Cameron mentions that this is without a doubt the clearest thing he’s seen on the ranch. The object, per Cameron, is like a cylinder that was moving in a rolling motion.
Erik notes that they recently saw a cylinder-like UAP in Season 7 Episode 5 “Home Sweet Homestead”. The UAP in that episode and the UAP they just saw from the helicopter…were in the exact same location.
Doppler on Wheels Data Reveals Multiple UAPs Near The Triangle
Skinwalker Ranch Command Center – Next Day – 11:36 AM
Dr. Travis Taylor, Erik Bard, Jim Royston, Thomas Winterton, and Kaleb Bench sit around the Skinwalker Ranch Command Center Table. They are joined by Dr. Karen Kosiba and Dr. Joshua Wurman via video call. We start by taking a look at the data set from Doppler on Wheels’ day one tests when the team set off rockets. Their data shows multiple UAPs (not their words) near The Triangle. What’s weird is there are two specific points of data; a series of green blots are moving toward The Triangle while a series of brown (orange) blots are moving away from The Triangle.
Dr. Wurman says he is unable to tell what these pieces of data truly are from radar alone. But he says that doesn’t negate the fact that these objects were moving in the air. What’s more interesting is how the sky was cloudless that day and no one reported seeing anything, nor did any cameras pick anything up.
A Second Data Set Points to the Same Wooded Area
The Doppler on Wheels team has a second set of data that is from one minute later. We see some interesting objects south and southwest of The Triangle. One of the objects is placed in the wooded area–behind Homestead Two–where Pete Kelsey and Cameron Fugal saw the metallic UAP. Dr. Travis Taylor asks if they were able to capture the UAP that Pete and Cameron say, but the team didn’t have any conclusive data-driven evidence of the UAP.
While discussing the UAP, Travis mentions how it very clearly “glints” off the sun. What’s important to note is how the object doesn’t stay one distinct shape; rather, it seems to be changing its shape, which could be for several reasons. Erik Bard suggests the change in shape could be because it changes its angle of trajectory. One thing is clear: Travis believes the object is being propelled by something and is moving laterally.
The Team Assembles for a Major Skinwalker Ranch Experiment
Skinwalker Ranch Command Center – Three Days Later – 5:18 PM
Kaleb Bench stands longingly at the Skinwalker Ranch helipad as Cameron Fugal flies in with Jereme Manhart and Mormon millionaire Brandon Fugal in tow. Once landed, everyone meets outside the Command Center. We have Dr. Travis Taylor, Thomas Winterton, Jim Royston, Erik Bard, and Pete Kelsey. But that’s not all! We have some familiar faces on Skinwalker Ranch! Joining the team for this experiment is thermal camera expert David Mason, SFX experts and smoke specialists Steve Bolan and Jeff Ference, and Nu-Salt Laser’s Tim Anderson (who we last saw on the show in Season 6 Episode 7 “Lights Out”).
This week, the team will be doing a similar experiment to what they had done in Homesteads Two and Three. They plan to fill The Triangle with smoke and have Nu-Salt fire lasers through The Triangle. Tim says they will utilize eight 30-watt RGB solid-state lasers. Steve has brought a mega-smoke machine to the Skinwalker Ranch for this experiment. It uses a turbo jet aircraft engine, which will pump five gallons of smoke per minute of air show smoke oil to create 10,000 ft³/minute. Once that’s done, Cameron Fugal and Pete Kelsey will fly above The Triangle and shine a laser light directly into The Blob.
Everyone heads to their respective locations and tests their equipment. Everything seems to be going swimmingly. Surely that won’t change! (I can now understand why Steve and Jeff were referred to as smoke specialists because their smoke rig is NO JOKE.)
The Team Sets Up for Another Night at The Triangle
South Field – 9:01 PM
Kaleb Bench and Thomas Winterton join Dr. Travis Taylor at the South Field. Dave Mason is near the Skinwalker Ranch Command Center and is setting up his FLIR thermal cameras. Jim Royston gets his thermal drone set up. And it’s showtime!
Steve Bolan’s Smoke Machine Suffers a Mysterious Malfunction
Tim Anderson gets the lasers turned on. I always love when they do giant laser experiments on the show. Steve Bolan goes to turn on the smoke machine…but nothing. Brandon Fugal humanly says, “Where’s the smoke?” Steve’s smoke machine is broken.
What we learn is that four different malfunctions happened simultaneously. They lost their fuel control, the battery blew a fuse, the smoke pumps broke, and the ignitors went out. Jeff Ference radios Erik Bard and tells him that they have never had issues like this before. Erik tries to make them feel better by saying, “Welcome to the club.” Steve drops the line of the season when he says, “Feels like some voodoo shit going on here.”
In a talking head, Steve states that he and Jeff have been prepping for weeks for this experiment. That includes new parts, batteries, etc., they prepared to the max. Steve has been doing this for 35 years, and he has never once had things go haywire as they have tonight. Dr. Travis Taylor makes a fascinating point when he says that Skinwalker Ranch does an excellent job of demoralizing expert after expert. Which is very true.
Jim Royston’s Drone Gets Pushed by an Unseen Force
Dr. Travis Taylor radios Sam Deriso and says he wants to get Jim Royston’s thermal drone in the air. The drone goes up without any issue. But as Jim is flying his drone towards The Triangle, something happens. Well, two things happen. Firstly, the drone has an error stating it failed to obtain remote control (we’ve seen that one before). Secondly, a warning pops up and says Gimbal 1 pitch axis endpoint reached. And then suddenly, the drone is pushed 15 feet in the sky. And it wasn’t due to wind.
Dave Mason is watching through one of his two thermal cameras, but doesn’t see anything physically push Jim’s drone. And then it happens again. They have Jim return the drone so that they can move on with the next part of the experiment.
Cameron Fugal’s Helicopter Flight Gets an Unexpected Visitor
Cameron Fugal is radioed and told to start his flight. They get the helicopter in the sky, and Pete Kelsey successfully shines the laser into The Triangle. Suddenly, something zips by the helicopter. And it’s not a bird.
Thankfully, Dave Mason was able to catch the thing that flew by the helicopter. That’s when Jim Royston, who is watching Dave’s FLIR video on a monitor, sees a second object in the sky. This second object flies in and out of frame multiple times. Dr. Travis Taylor tells Jim to get his drone back up in the sky, hoping they can get a better look at whatever is flying around Cameron’s helicopter.
Multiple UAPs Engage in a High-Speed Chase
The drone goes up, but not all that glitters is gold. Jereme Manhart sees a “dot” chasing Jim’s drone. First it’s in front of the drone, then behind, and then back in front. It’s moving surprisingly fast. But no one can see this from the ground, unfortunately.
At that exact moment, Dave reports seeing an object in front of Jim’s drone through the FLIR. And as he sees that object, Jim’s drone is harshly pushed multiple feet. This happens multiple times whenever Jim is trying to fly the drone over The Triangle. But that’s not all! A third UAP appears, and at this point, it feels like a giant cat-and-mouse game.
Due to the potentially unsafe nature of what’s going on, Brandon Fugal radios his brother, “Hey Cameron, this is your brother…pull the plug.”
The Team Reviews Dave Mason’s FLIR Footage at Brandon’s Office
Salt Lake City – Two Days Later – 1:13 PM
Dr. Travis Taylor, Kaleb Bench, Jim Royston, Erik Bard, Thomas Winterton, and Cameron Fugal join Brandon Fugal at his villain-like office. Dave Mason joins the team via video call. Erik Bard pulls up Dave Mason’s FLIR video. The first thing we see is Jim Royston’s drone getting pushed hard by an invisible force. But this happens the first time we see a UAP.
It’s actually incredible to watch the UAP slowly come into frame before disappearing into nothing. What’s more incredible is how the UAP is nearly four times the size of Jim’s drone. Dave Mason is sure the UAP is not a cloud.
And then the episode just kind of ends?
Steve Bolan’s Smoke Machine Meltdown Was the Episode’s Real Highlight
Typically when we have these data review segments at Brandon Fugal’s office, there are some high-profile people there. Or, at the very least, tons of data to look through. But this whole setup feels weird. Why are we at Brandon’s office to just look at a couple pieces of FLIR video? Is this a weird way to justify using his office space as a write-off?
The experiment would have been so much cooler had the smoke machine worked, but I think that goes back to something I’ve been saying for a while. Steve Bolan’s smoke machine incident is captivating. He, like Dr. Jan Francke, the team from LOC Precision, and Sky Elements, are respective experts in their fields. Seeing Steve’s reaction after his smoke machine went down shows that he is either an INCREDIBLE actor, or he was truly surprised by what happened. I am going to say it was the latter.
I don’t know…nothing from this episode really felt solid. It kind of was a beat-to-beat episode that had a few incredible moments that felt like they didn’t lead to anything worthwhile. Oh well, that’s just how it goes, I guess. That’s it for us this week, so join us next week to see if we get any closer to uncovering The Secret…of Skinwalker Ranch!
TV
The Secret of Skinwalker Ranch: On The Radar (S7E11)
Welcome back, fellow Skinwalker Ranch fans! I slopped my way back into the depths of UFOTwitter, and there is quite a divide happening right now. Just know that I did all of this for you. But what I’ve come to notice is that it’s AI pfps arguing with each other nonstop about the dumbest things. The time of active conversation in Ufology is dead. Hell, it might have died with Art Bell. Ufology is such a vast topic that can be discussed for thousands of hours.
But that’s not what’s happening. Part of me thinks that Lue Elizondo soured many people. David Grusch just barely outshines Lue’s questionable stranglehold on this topic. Seriously. Only a few people in this space can actually have and hold legitimate conversations. With all that said, I feel like my adventure into Ufology is better left as a singular experience.
I’ll continue reading my books and watching Grant Lavac, but there’s no point in paying any mind to UFOTwitter and Reddit. I’ll stick to things that bring me joy. And one thing that brings me joy is this week’s episode of The Secret of Skinwalker Ranch!
The Secret of Skinwalker Ranch Launches a High-Altitude Drone Experiment
Skinwalker Ranch Command Center – 5:38 PM
Erik Bard, Thomas Winterton, Jim Royston, Matt Edminster (Sky Elements), and Brian Woodard (Sky Elements) sit around the Skinwalker Ranch Command Center table. Dr. Travis Taylor video calls in from his trailer on the ranch. He states he’s “sick as a dog” and unable to join the team in person. But he states there is an ambitious experiment he has planned that he doesn’t want to miss.
Erik Bard concurs on the importance of this experiment. This is something they’ve been anticipating for quite some time, especially now that they’ve found magnetic anomalies (Season 7 Episode 6 “All Mesa’d Up”). Dr. Travis Taylor states he’s excited to learn if the magnetic anomaly ends at the 1,000-foot mark or if it extends above that. Hell, what if it is…multiple?
Matt Edminster lays out the plan for the experiment. They will utilize 100 drones in the usual 10×10 grid. The drones, which will be spaced 5 feet apart, will take off and reach a staggering 4,000 feet. Travis compounds that information when he reveals that not only is that the highest elevation a drone has reached on Skinwalker Ranch, but in the United States of America. The team from Sky Elements must have some good pull with the FAA.
To make sure that he doesn’t feel left out, Travis will take part in the experiment, too. In an effort to keep his distance, Travis will be in a Jeep out in the East Field with two spectrum analyzers–both antennas facing The Triangle.
Drone Tests Detect Strange Signals and Communication Loss
East Field – 6:18 PM
Dr. Travis Taylor pulls into the East Field in his Jeep and sets up his antennas. While Travis sets up, Erik Bard, Sam Deriso, Thomas Winterton, Cameron Ellis (Sky Elements), Matt Edminster, Brian Woodward, and the rest of the Sky Elements team start setting up for the experiment. Due to the gravity, heh, of this experiment, you can almost feel a sort of unspoken anxiety in the air. Eyes dart quickly, people unable to remain still; it’s a very human moment we don’t often see in this show.
We are told that the drones will be equipped with GPS devices and magnetometers; the drones are coordinated from Wi-Fi access points placed on the ground. Since this is the highest they’ve ever gone, the Sky Elements team decides a few tests are in order. Dr. Travis Taylor says this is smart because of the Season 5 Episode 12 “Drone-Ageddon” incident; they should run tests to make sure no drones suddenly start falling out of the sky.
The Skinwalker Ranch Drones Fall From 3,271 Feet
The Triangle – 8:10 PM
With everything set for testing, Cameron Ellis sends up the first four test drones. While this is going on, Brian Woodward will be flying his FPV drone. Honestly, it’s crazy how he keeps bringing that (probably expensive) thing back, as it has crashed nearly every single time on Skinwalker Ranch. With the test drones and FPV drone in the air, the test is off. But, as probably expected, Dr. Travis Taylor notices the pesky 1.6 GHz signal. Right as that happens, Cameron mentions that the drones lost communication. All of this is around the 800-foot mark.
That’s around where the magnetic anomaly begins.
Once the test drones make it above the 1,000-foot mark, they somehow regain connection and continue on their flight path. Travis wonders if this reveals a defined space for the anomaly. The test drones continue ascending and eventually reach 2,500 feet in the air. Suddenly, Brian’s FPV appears to be pushed backwards by SOMETHING about 100 feet. It’s still unclear what it was.
Drones Crash as The Bubble’s 3,271-Foot Anomaly Intensifies
The drones continue their approach to the 4,000-foot mark, but all hell breaks loose at 3,271 feet. The test drones go black and fall from the sky like frozen birds. (Brian’s FPV drone is somehow unaffected.) Thomas Winterton screams to run for cover as these drones have 3,271 feet’s worth of time to gain acceleration. Eventually, all four test drones crash into the ground.
I just want to make a note of something I want to call before it inevitably happens. I truly believe that within the next few episodes we will learn that there’s a second, much larger bubble around The Bubble. Inside that larger bubble will be another magnetic anomaly. It will most likely be called The Big Bubble, or Bubble Two. (Or maybe the big one will be called Bubble One and the smaller one called Bubble Two.) Nevertheless, I’d put 50 on Kalshi for it.
Kill Command
They eventually find all four drones. Cameron Ellis looks at his flight system and concludes that something tampered with the flight; it’s as if the drones were told to deactivate. Erik Bard runs with this idea and asks aloud, if it is a kill command sent to the drones, where did it come from? Thankfully, the Sky Elements team is comfortable doing another test flight, as long as everyone is ready to run for cover should the drones fall again.
A Second Drone Test Repeats the Mysterious Failure
Test flight number two is off. Brian’s FPV drone takes off with no issue. And, once again, the drones hit 3,000 feet and immediately start plummeting out of the sky. Erik wonders if there is a second phenomenon above The Triangle. But, for safety, the Sky Elements team says they don’t think it’s a good idea to run all 100 drones and they call it for the night.
Meta-Frame Data Reveals a Possible UAP Above the Drones
Skinwalker Ranch Command Center – Two Days Later – 10:43 AM
Dr. Travis Taylor, Erik Bard, Thomas Winterton, Kaleb Bench, and Jim Royston sit around the Skinwalker Ranch Command Center table. Erik Bard says he has interesting data from when the drones started falling. Jim Royston also brings up the weird incident that took place with Brian Woodward’s FPV drone and how it seemingly got pushed about 100 feet by something invisible. Thankfully, Erik has that incident on his Meta-Frame.
Erik pulls up the Meta-Frame data of Brian’s drone. You can see it separated from the four test drones. Out of nowhere, we see it shoot away from the pack quickly. If it had been wind, then the rest of the drones would have been affected, as they were smaller and easier to manipulate with air. Moreover, Brian didn’t have any issues with wind resistance or controller malfunctions up to that moment or after. It’s a damningly interesting piece of data.
From there, Erik pulls up video of when the drones first fell out of the sky. One moment they are in the air, the next they are not. But before they start plummeting to the ground, we see them quickly shoot horizontally to the south (a different direction than Brian’s drone) a few feet. Erik has more video of the fall through his Meta-Frame. And a UAP appears directly above the drones seconds before they fall to the ground.
Doppler On Wheels Arrives to Study the Sky Above Skinwalker Ranch
But the fun isn’t over! Erik mentions another study they’ve been wanting to partake in. The space above Skinwalker Ranch is still a beast of its own. What better time than now to study it since the drill is still out of commission. They’ve been wanting to bring a Doppler radar onto Skinwalker Ranch to scan higher altitudes than they’ve been able to before.
Skinwalker Ranch Command Center – 5:15 PM
Kaleb Bench stands outside of the Skinwalker Ranch Command Center as large cars pull up; one is towing a giant radar-looking dish. Out of the cars come Dr. Karen Kosiba, Dr. Josh Wurman, and Dr. Oluyinka Oluwale. These three people are with Doppler On Wheels. Kaleb takes them (sans Dr. Oluwale) into the Command Center, where they meet up with Dr. Travis Taylor, Erik Bard, and Thomas Winterton.
Doppler On Wheels is a group of meteorology researchers who operate a fleet of mobile weather radars. Dr. Kosiba says Doppler radar is kind of like flashlights going through the atmosphere, sending out pulses of electromagnetic energy, and then measuring the point of return. While Doppler radar was initially designed for weather, the team has different plans for this experiment.
Dr. Travis Taylor Uses Aluminum Bottles to Test Doppler Radar at Skinwalker Ranch
Dr. Travis Taylor states that instead of relying on water, as Doppler radars usually gather information, they will be utilizing aluminum bottles. Travis goes deeper into the how and why. Doppler radars send out microwaves that bounce off raindrops in the air and then return to the radar dish. This helps spot and track storm clouds. But tonight, they will be adopting the technology. Since there is no rain in the forecast, they will be dropping GPS-equipped aluminum bottles with parachutes from a helicopter. The hope is that their movements can be tracked through the Doppler radar.
This test is best performed in the daytime, and since it’s so late already, they will do a test run. But it wouldn’t be The Secret of Skinwalker Ranch if there weren’t rockets involved.
A Strange Yellow Streak Appears on the Doppler Radar
East Field – 6:44 PM
The teams set up for the test experiment. Dr. Travis Taylor is with the Doppler On Wheels team at the East Field. While the radar gets set up, Kaleb Bench, Thomas Winterton, and Technologist Pete Kelsey set up the rocket at The Triangle. Once set up, the rocket is launched. It’s picked up by the Doppler radar! But that’s not all.
The Doppler team makes note of an anomalous yellow streak on the radar, and it’s not the rocket. This yellow streak is moving at a high rate of speed towards The Triangle. Travis tells the team at The Triangle to look up in the sky, but they don’t see anything. Suddenly, the yellow streak is gone.
Doppler On Wheels moves the antenna to a new angle. The yellow streak is back! Travis tells The Triangle team again to look towards the posts marking the western side of The Bubble boundary. But they don’t see anything still. Now, the yellow streak finds itself directly over The Triangle. They still don’t see it.
Helicopter Drops 200 Aluminum Bottles Over the Ranch
The Next Day – Skinwalker Ranch Command Center – 12:33 PM
Dr. Travis Taylor, Erik Bard, Pete Kelsey, Jim Royston, Thomas Winterton, Dr. Karen Kosiba, Dr. Josh Wurman, and Dr. Oluyinka Oluwale meet outside of the Skinwalker Ranch Command Center. Cameron Fugal, who has now been on the ranch more times this season than his brother, arrives with his helicopter. Alongside Cameron is Director of Maintenance for Aero Dynamic Jets Jereme Manhart.
We are told that Cameron will make multiple passes (they say multiple, but it’s two) above The Bubble. Once at the proper altitude, Jereme and Pete will release 100 aluminum bottles.
The teams head to their respective positions, the same ones they took during yesterday’s test. A rocket is launched from The Triangle; this is because they wanted to see if they could replicate the yellow streak from the day before. Once the rocket launch is complete, Cameron and his helicopter team take off.
Cameron gets the helicopter to 2,500 feet. Dr. Travis Taylor mentions how there is practically no wind, so the hope is that these aluminum bottles fall straight down. (But let’s not mention the amount of wind produced by the helicopter blades.) Jereme and Pete start dropping the bottles, and Dr. Karen Kosiba confirms that they are appearing on the Doppler radar.
A Mysterious Object Flies Over Skinwalker Ranch
Rather than falling straight down, Thomas Winterton notices that the bottles seem to be falling directly on the edge of The Bubble boundary. Not a single bottle made it anywhere near The Triangle. But they’re not done.
Cameron takes the helicopter to 3,500 feet. Jereme and Pete release a second set of 100 aluminum bottles. (After a quick rocket launch.) The bottles are dropped from the helicopter, but land in similar places as the first drop–nowhere near the center of The Triangle.
With all the bottles dropped, Cameron and his team decide to head back to the Skinwalker Ranch Command Center’s helipad. But as they’re flying back, Pete makes a startling discovery: something is flying above the treetops, and it’s not a drone.
To be continued.
Final Thoughts on The Secret of Skinwalker Ranch Season 7 Episode 11
It’s been a veeeery long time since The Secret of Skinwalker Ranch ended with a literal to be continued. And I’m kind of loving it. Since we didn’t get a data review for the Doppler radar/Doppler On Wheels stuff, I will hold off on giving my full thoughts on that part of the episode for next week. But I will say, the experiment seems kind of simplistically stupid. Though I honestly don’t understand how Doppler radar works, so I’m not a great judge on that.
What I will cover is the drone-ageddon incident. Now it’s made clear that drones aren’t supposed to go as high as the drones did. So it made me wonder: are they even supposed to go that high? My second car, a 1994 Cutlass Supreme, has 160 as the top of the speedometer…But I know for a fact that that car, even on its first day out of the factory, could never hit that speed.
Could this be an example of the drone manufacturer saying, “Yeah, sure, these drones have a 5k-foot range,” knowing full well that the drones will rarely ever hit half that height. But that’s not to say I don’t believe the Sky Elements team. As I’ve stated before, the only people I truly believe on this show are the team from LOC Precision, Dr. Jan Francke, and Sky Elements. I don’t believe they would sell us a false bill of goods.
I just find it odd that the drones died at the same height both times. They’re show drones. Brian Woodward’s FPV drone had no issue, sans the weird 100-foot push in midair. Could this just be an example of people pushing machines to a level they are told they can hit, while the makers know full well the drones will not be pushed to that extreme?
Wrapping this up, I know I said at the top that I was done commenting on Ufology stuff. And that’s true. But I should say my initial opening was a hellish rebuke of all things Lue Elizondo. Color me surprised when I woke up and scrolled Twitter for a few minutes. What do I see? A video of Lue Elizondo in his car (not driving for once!) basically threatening someone in the community who goes by the name Gerb. Fucking GERB. I can’t.
That’s all I have for you this week! Join us next week as we get closer to the season finale and see if we get any closer to uncovering The Secret…of Skinwalker Ranch.





