Expert: Leia - 10/9/2005

Question
how come they had to cut krycek's hand off, and why isnt mulder screwed up b/c they  dripped black oil in him

Answer
In Tunguska, Russia, scientists discovered the Black Oil in the rock. The corrupt government agents turned that area into a gulag/mining camp because they realized this substance can be a powerful weapon, so they used innocent people, "prisoners" in the area to mine the rock and to experiment with the Black Oil on them. One prisoner, a scientist who was among the first to discover it, told Mulder about the Black Cancer, which eventually kills the more and more they are experimented on. He was experimented on once and escaped. The owner of the truck he stole brings him home. He is quite angry, and for good reason. The wife explains that they did not use her husband in the expieriments because he had a truck and could work delivery for them. She calls her son into the room and explains... "No Arm, No Test."

When Krycek, dressed as a guard after betraying Mulder is found in the woods by a band of one-armed men, he convinces them that he escaped from the prison. Later that night, they cut off his arm, because if he doesn't have an arm, they cannot experiment on him, thereby saving him from the "Black Cancer." Little do they know of Krycek's true nature.

Now the black oil seems to work several ways, because it is after all, an intellient substance. In one episode, we see Krycek vomit the remains of black oil in his system onto a ship in a silo - The oil controlled him, and other people. We've also seen it infect and kill... as a virus over time and many exposures, or instantly, or even mutating and gestating into a being. The Black Oil has many different properties... and we actually see in a later episode that Mulder was not entirely unaffected, but the alien DNA in the oil actually melded with his own, making him in a way, part alien. It was too much for his body to handle at one point (late season 6) and after an operation orchestrated by the Cigarette Smoking Man, his symptoms seemed to have mysteriously disappeared. It might never be known the true complexity of the Black Oil, but as you can see, Mulder did not come out entire unscathed. I hope this answers your question!

~Leia~