X-Files 5.15 "Travelers"

Well..........that sucked. I mean, if it were another show, it might
be OK, but it wasn't the X-Files. Oh Wait, it WAS another show. It was
distressingly close to the pilot episode of "Dark Skies." If you
didn't see that, it was like this episode, only it was more interesting and
scarier and it was set in 1963. ANd it sucked! It was an X-Files
rip-off.I'm sorry, I try to be upbeat and positive, but this was just
insulting!

That movie better be pretty @*# % ! --ing AWESOME, OK? Because I'm
tired of this stuff. The show isn't about aliens, it isn't it about
conspiracies, it's about MULDER and SCULLY. And we've had how
many episodes with just
one of them? Too many. Any other season, and this is ok, a little
diverting. We get to see Mulder's dad with a soul (sort-of) we get to
see Hoover, the X-Files was originally set-up because some secretary ran
out of space in the U's (The most interesting character in the whole show was
that secretary, I was hoping she'd be Mrs Mulder or something but of course,
nothing cool happened). Darrin McGavin from the "Night Stalker" series
has his much-anticpated appearance in an episode that DOES NOT MATTER.
And what's up with his character suggesting that an FBI agent, with a
college degree of course (WE know Mulder has a Master's level degree but this
guy knows Mulder's a college man) and he says "oh you wouldn't know about
the House of Un American Activities-before you're time. UH, if he went to
high school, he'd know at least vaguely what he was talking about. Why's
Mulder playing with his hair? I could just see Duchovny in his trailer
coming up with a little tic to make it clear that this is a less-confident
Mulder. He looked adorable, but It was too-bad. And what's with the powers that
be letting him wear his wedding ring during the episode. And don't think
it's anything cool like a short-lived marriage that he's never
mentioned before--that would again imply that there was something interesting
about this episode, some reason to talk about it after tonight....there
isn't. It was just a screw-up. And finally, Mulder's dad tells mcGavin's
character he's putting his family at risk. Who's he talking about? Mulder and
Samantha aren't born until the next decade! And DON't suggest that he
has some secret family from before...well, YOU KNOW. Hope you're doing
well.

I'll talk to you again in THREE WHOLE WEEKS, when we get another new
episode. Hey, maybe the highly paid stars will be in it. For those of
youwho don't know, it was officially announced that X-Files is moving to
L.A. next season, so NO EXCUSES GUYS!!!! I want 30 GREAT episodes, yeah,
that's right 30!!! They all so happy to be close to their families and lovers
and whatever, great--TIME TO MAKE CHRISTINE HAPPY, OK CHRIS CARTER???
Ya got that? I hope you all have super weeks. :) (smiling through the pain)

Christine

X-Files 5.14 "The Red and the Black"

Boy, that sure wasn't the kiss I was expecting! I think Krycek really
meant it, too. After Marita's betrayal, he's sworn off women for good,
although if he's looking to avoid being treated badly, Mulder's a poor
choice. He did SOME running, looked a little relieved that Scully was
alive, but remained a self-involved jerk until the end, when he saw
something, experienced something, and it was all about him again, so
then he could believe again. Ok, I'm getting ahead of myself. My reception
was like, the best reception I've ever had ever! It was like I had digital
Tv or something. The letter had a twin reference, and that was fitting,
since my twin and I turned 27 today. Is Mulder a twin? Is Spender aware of
this fact? We're watching a soap opera, I'm telling ya! Just a thought:
Could all these "Duchovny's leaving" rumors be disinformation by Fox to make
us question whether Mulder will survive the film? Just thinking. Scully
was so scared in the hospital--I hope the FBI has a damned good insurance
plan, cuz sheesh! She may as well have stuck it out as a doctor, she's in
the hospital so much. I loved him stroking her hair and his glee at her
survival, at her existance, at her just being her. I didn't like how
he remained petulant and detached, as if her pain was somehow an
inconvenience for him. Just me, or did Mulder seem to shave on his way out the door.
He seemed less grizzled when he spoke to Spender... I dig this John
Neville guy, he's cool. "Well-Manicured Man," that's his official designation,
but I hate that, so I'm going to call him Jeeves. Jeeves has a heart. Is
Marita his lover? His daughter? He clearly cares for her a great deal.
And he warned Scully about the threat against her life. Melissa wound
up dead anyway, but that was only because scully was so eager to believe
that Skinner was going to betray and kill her--sound familiar? Poor
Skinner. He constantly puts his job on the line, he takes a bullet even, and
Scully still treats him like Mulder treats her, in other words, like crap. I
think it's all the unresolved sexual tension. I like how Scully was
annoyed at Mulder's expecting her to just accept his new road, and
follow him down it. You're going to have to prove your skepticism, the way
you did your belief, she says. She needs him to believe, and he needs her
to be rational. His faith, and her doubt, are their strentghts, and you
can feel both of their characters, as well as their partnership, being
weakened without them. Because they can't do the other's role with any
integrity--both are acting from positions of fear. His doubt is this
defeated petty pity party, and her belief is a defeated frightened
child who's sure there is a monster under the bed, but is too afraid to tell
her parents, beacuse they won't believe her. Mulder's belief and Scully's
doubt were crackling powerful weapons of avengence! They reacted
(usually) with compassion towards those they encountered. Mulder's now mean, and
Scully, defensive. Her regression session was great, because those
defenses came down. Loved Scully looking to him the way a child looks
at a parent when they're going to get a shot at the doctor's office. Loved
Mulder holding her hand, hated how he walked out in a huff when she
could have used his support--surprise!. Liked the spiritual imagry of
Scully's recollection of Cassandra's abduction, as they raise their hands in
ecstatic wonder as she goes into the light. Hated Mulder as he showed
off his psychological interpretation of Scully's memories and lumped them
in with those of hundred's of strangers' memories. Glad Mulder got beaten
up, even by that sicko Krycek. Knock some sense into that boy, alex! It
seems to work. He reluctantly goes back to believing in the possibility of
something supernatural, since he needs to believe in something or else
whither away, and classifies Cassandra's disappearance as an X-File.
Scully timidly reverts to being a skeptic, mainly because Spender
play's the "You're being taken for a fool" card, and she's too afraid of being
a sucker, of being stupid, of being wrong, to fight to embrace a truth
she doesn't want to believe anyway. The scene where Scully recognizes the
guyin the truck from the bridge was similar to "Red Museum" when she sees
the Bounty Hunter who killed Deep Throat driving by. Scully getting
detained by army men while Mulder runs off happened in "E.B.E., " and "Fallen
Angel." Ditched again. The set up with Cancer man being Spender's father
sets up the possibility of his being perhaps Mulder's OR Samantha's
twin, or sibling, at any rate. Here's a theory for you to chew on: In Season
One's "Gender Bender" our heroes deal with a group of cultists who can
change gender at will, and who disappear by, maybe, spacecraft. So
what if Spender...is really...SAMANTHA!!!!!! Ok, you might want to spit that
out. In the end, all that matters is that Scully takes Mulder by the hand in
the patrol car, and agrees to go down that road with him: Regardless of
what side they're now on, how blurry those once clear lines between them
have become, they are destined to seek the truth together, and
wherever those answers lie, I will follow.

Christine :)

X-Files 5.13 "Patient X"

Uh, well, if anyone thought the show was getting too light, I think the
show made up for every single joke they've ever made in this joyless affair.

I liked most of it, although I can't say I understood all of it.
Mulder's little opening speech was like the one he gives in "Little Green Men",
the second season opener, except there he was lamenting how everyone used
to beopen to UFO's and now their not, and now he's complaining about how
gullible and fickle everyone is. I do feel I need to inject that Mulder's
timetable doesn't really hold up, and Monotheism has been around since,
well, the beginning. Not just with Jews but with pagans too, you
Anyway, Ol' Blondie finally turns up, scowling as usual, and
there's good ol' Krycek, presumably an arm short, I didn't notice.
This was a bad-guy reunion! I was ready for cancer man to show up! It was
also a two-parter that visited two parter's past--we visit the Skyland Mnt.
of "Duane Barry-Ascension" and the Tunguska of "Tunguska-Terma." In the
Star Wars dept., I thought Marita's "mercy mission" speech, and Krycek's
disbelief was reminiscent of the exchange between Vader and Leia at the
top of Star Wars. Like Vader, Krycek also tortures somebody later,
although Krycek's more like...Greedo: a petty, ineffectual thug. Who gets
killed by Solo, who is Scully in this cross-over, so keep that gun loaded and at
your side, Dana. Kill that sadistic creep. I enjoyed how even the UFO nuts
mock Mulder now for his new government conspiracy thoery, and how, with
Cassandra, we see that the burden of credibility is much heavier on his
soul that all the mocking disbelief he's faced in the past. I found
myself seriously missing Scully 20 minutes into the show... I also felt much
of the show was over-written, a lot of the dialogue seemed too preachy
speechy, especially between Mulder and the doctor. I also expected a big THANK
YOU STEVEN SPIELBERG FOR ALL THE COOL STUFF WE BORROWED FROM CLOSE
ENCOUNTERS
billboard to run along with the mature content ones, but, ok, maybe He
borrowed from the literature of abduction accounts. Scully didn't play
with her food, but, still...Did anyone else feel Scully fell for Spender's
line about not wanting to be labled in the bureau the same way Mulder
fell for Krycek's "I want to believe" line in "Sleepless?" I don't want to
add any fuel to the "Duchovny's leaving the show" fire, but Spender could
be the Scully in a scenario where Dana becomes the believer in the wake of
Mulder' disappearance, whatever. However, it would be unfair that you
men would still have Dana and we'd have this dork. I'm just worse-casing
it, but this was going to be their last year, so anything beyond is bonus.
I really do think David will stick around and it'll be OK. It occured to
be that Marita and Alex stand out among this group of old white men who
run the show. How'd they get this gig, did they go to the wrong booth at
the college job-fair? And how jerky is Mulder in this episode? He whines
to Scully that he had his head up his ass for five years. Well, Mulder,
you still do if you can't notice Scully's obvious inner-torment! I love
how they're roles have shifted and it's almost physically painful. Mulder
wants to believe and can't, Scully doesn't want to believe, but the
girl can't help it. Cassandra seems to recognize Scully--if it's from the
"testing place" than she must've really made an impression cuz' there
seem to be thousands of abductees and they all remember Dana. Isn't Gillian
terrific? The way she holds it all in, yet still shows it to us? The
way her emotions teeter on the brink of escape the same way her tears just
cling to her eyeballs, refusing to fall? You may have been touched,
but Mulder can't be bothered with her distress, with Cassandra's pain, with
the horrific murders of hundreds of innocents. He's too busy having a
pity party for himself! "What am I supposed to do? I can't help you" He
whines to anyone who'll listen. His mocking "prophet" jibe towards cassandra
was REALLY low, but who cares, It's all about him. Spooky. As Diana
would say, he's dizzy from being the center...I loved how Scully won't, at
first, tip her hand to Mulder. She feels him out about his thoery and when
she realizes it ain't as weird as hers, she withholds. She's a pleaser,
and is, unlike Mulder, unwilling to be thought of a fool. Mulder WAS much
better at that. Braver. His belief in the truth, and in himself were
enough for him but Scully's a pleaser. She' s too embarrassed to admit
believing in what she can't prove, be it her Catholic faith that she
occassionally acknowledges during times of great personal stress, or
her present alien/salmon spawn instinct. Notice how both Krycek and Mulder
were distracted by Marita, and both lost someone important?? Remember
that guys, don't trust those blonds (Sorry Diana, but you're more of an
ash-blonde, and thus, not evil. That's how it works, trust me.

Anyway, Scully painfully, almost violently lets Mulder know she might, maybe, i
don't know, think this was uh paranormal, Ok? And Mulder won't even
follow for her sake, the way she's been backing him up for the last five
years, out of duty and respect and love [the reader may interpret if this
refers to romantic or brotherly love] and just guard her soul, the way she
did his, when she'd she him fall under the spell of some shyster! Maybe
she'sbeing duped by the government mister Educated-at Oxford jerk! She's
depressed and vulnerable and all you see is some kind of betrayal,
like, "how dare you believe in anything now that I've stopped since I think
my sister's alive and all I cared about all along was my own personal
quest and now that that's seemingly obsolete I'm going to pout and whine
and...Scully? Scully? So as usual, he ditched her. I realize she
walked out on him, but only because she was Emotionally Ditched, ya see?
Pretty cool cliff-hanger, Scully's a sheeplike believer AND in mortal
danger...tune in next week. Mulder needs to do a lot of running and
screaming and crying to make up for his behavior this week. Let's hope
he does right by Dana, it'd be a real nice thing to do, and a nice
birthday present for me as well. I know, pretty shameless, but hard to resist
when I've got you all here...Oh, was that Cassiopia , the constellation they
were following and is that significant of anything? Help me out with
the mythology: all I'm getting is a random Battlestar Gallactica reference,
as that was the name of Starbuck's girlfriend, and Starbuck is what Dana's
Dad called her...well, I'm sure you can do better that THAT!!! I have a
vague memory that Cassandra was a prophet whom no one believed--was Mulder trying to show off when he made that snide remark? Probably. Anyway, I
anxiosly await his redemption.

I'll talk to you all next week, March 8, a very
special day in the life of someone you all have in common. ;)

Christine