X-Files 8.4 "Roadrunners" Worst episode ever?

I really think this is the worst episode ever. Just icky and pointless,
and they make Scully stupid.

I'm not going to spend a lot of time here--I'm tired. I drove down from
Sacramento this evening and the grapevine was a mess. It was a nice
holiday though, painless, good food. Weather was chilly, in the fifties,
which I found appropriate--it's in the seventies down in LA.

I'm not going to make any more comments about the election--this is in
deference to my Republican friends who will get to hear me bitch for the
next four years--I'll cut ya some slack here ;)

First off: This is nothing new, even by X-Files standards. We've done
freaky small towns run by a murderous mob ("our town" season...three? two?
where they eat the brains?) and "Gender bender" from the first season
which covered the quasi-Christian cult up to no good stuff. They were
maybe aliens, it turned out. So, this is all old hat.

Now, I have teased Diana about her love for Vince Gilligan, but I have, in
the past been very glad to see his name scroll across the screen. He's
usually good. What the hell happened here is anyone's guess. This was
just hack-work. Ickyness as a substitute for drama--maybe he should submit
for "ER" which has fallen into a similar rut of squirting blood and vomit.
The story is a complete zero: we never really get a hold of these people,
who they are, what they believe (Scully informs us they thought the worm
thing was Christ in the closing seconds--oh, REALLY?). They're just your
generic "cult members" complete with creepy smiles and religious dialogue.


Liked Scully on the phone with Dog, it was kinda cute, her ditching him and
then needing his help. But it was very Un Scully to actually put herself
in that position--out in the middle of nowhere with no backup. Just
stupid. Scully was kind of amusing when that guy accused her of mother ing
him and she was all "I'm A DOCTOR." Well, excuuuuse me , Scully.

This episode was tediously slow--they kept giving us little glimpses meant
to be creepy or compelling, but, like last week, there was no mystery: We
say these people kill before. We know they did it, the WHY doesn't
engender any excitement or anticipation. Was anyone out there saying, "Oh
my gosh! I know all these people killed and will kill again but--WHY???
Oh, the suspense I KILLING ME!"

The only truly cool scene was Scully, dozing but ready. That Quickdraw
thing she did was like old-school avenging Scully. It's power is
completely erased when Scully GIVES HER WEAPON AWAY TO A COMPLETE STRANGER
WHO DOESN'T EVEN KNOW WHO HE IS!!!!!!!!! Even if he is a good guy
(something she couldn't really have ascertained) couldn't he be altered by
that thing in his spinal cord?? DUH!!!! This was unforgivable. I mean,
they obviously think we need Doggett to rescue her in order for us, the
dumb fans, to say "gee, Dog's all right. He saved Scully." I'm on board
with Dog you nincompoops! I'm prepared to like him, but don't belittle
Scully in the process! Don't make her dimmer just so Dog can shine!
Scully could have been overpowered if they needed her to lose the gun,
sheesh! Scully also says she's "completely unfamiliar" with a parasitic
worm that can control your mind, even though she encountered that very
thing in first season's "ICE"

If these people regarded this worm as God, and truly did seem to think it
was an honor to have it in them, why did they get strangers to host it?
Wouldn't they want it? And what was it? Oh, yeah, never mind...guess it
doesn' matter. The scene with Scully screaming for mercy for her unborn
child were undoubtedly trying to conjure up Manson family murders, as these
were Sharon Tate's last words. Any one else excited about 18 more episodes
like this? Scully as a pregnant woman either in jeopardy herself, or
jeopardizing her baby every time she wanders away without backup or tries
to save her partner? It's bad
enough Mulder's absence makes her sad, thus crippling any chance for real
wit
or humor or joy, but now she can't even be action-girl without our
cringing. And it's always bad when writers have to make their characters
stupid in order to drive story.

The religious angle was so lame and underdeveloped, I can't even muster any
offense. It's not so much a slam of Christianity, or Mormonism, as it is
just sheer laziness. Why come up with something cool and creepy when you
can have people say amen and live in Utah? Oooo creepy!

Four episodes in and Scully's been in the hospital TWICE.

So, in a word, yuck. We've got lousy x-files, and no "we're in this mess
together" camaraderie form Dog and Dana. It's the chemistry between Mulder
and Scully that made the X-files special. They aren't giving us that
charming humor and sense of mission that made even lame X-Files worthwhile.
Like my sister Jen says, "The truth is out there" doesn't mean anything
without the conspiracy. I'm going to hang in, but I wouldn't blame anyone
for calling it quits. Next week: creepy kid AND religious overtones! Oh
boy! SCRams lost to the Saints, har har. Like Green Bay, they've called
themselves a "dynasty" a BIT prematurely. Have a great week, Christine :)

X-Files 8.3 "Patience"

"If you've got a gun...get it."

OK. Was this, or was this not, utterly confusing? I totally dug the
X-file, by the way, and thought it was really scary--something that didn't
happen all last year--but the character end of it was like, huh?

PAGING STORY EDITOR! I know it must be hard to edit the boss, but Chris
Carter seems to either a) be totally dense b) think we are totally dense
or c) a little of both. This script was in need of a good polish but it
never got it. He's trying to hard. Carter, I'm watching the damn show,
I'm taking notes. I want to enjoy it. STOP OVERSTATING THE OBVIOUS.
Let's begin.

Idaho. The West--not California, but a state that California can pass
for--what a novel concept.

Liked the opening--it was creepy, but the dialogue..."that embalming fluid
of yours..." so awkward and on the nose. HE'S THE UNDERTAKER!!!! I also
thought Carter laid on the homespun too hard, you know "Lan' Sakes" and all
that. THEY'S COUNTRY FOLK!!!!!!!!!

I stand by my earlier assertion that the opening with floating Mulder into
Scully's eye is lame, but liked the amended Scully and Doggett with
flashlights and Gillian with top billing. I assume we've had the standard
passage of time between the conspiracy season opener and the first monster
story of the year--sort of tradition to gloss over the emotional minefield
of the openers and dive into the X-Files with little comment. Scully
looking at Mulder's nameplate, all emotional. it was sort of moving the
first time she did it--the next five times? Not so much. SCULLY REALLY
MISSES MULDER.

Liked the idea that Doggett sort of needs to impress Scully--she's in
charge (I assume. I would hope.) Loved Scully trotting out the old slide
projector. Sad that she didn't say they were going to the very plausible
state of Idaho--though, it isn't is it? It's kinda kooky out there. But
hated Dog's "I'm a tough New York cop, seen all kinds of stuff"
dialogue--Chris, let someone help you, for Pete's sake. Just dreck.

Liked Scully taking over everybody's head at the crime scene, and her "It's
not my fault that you're stupid" air when Detective Idaho was trying to
bully her. Dig Scully's wardrobe this year--little more stylish, and she
has good hair. Dana and Dog do not present a united front at the crime
scene. There was a sort of sex-politics thing going on, Detective Idaho
seemed to be treating Dog like he was in charge, simply because he was a
man. Just a vibe, and of course, not really fleshed out or explained.

Just me, or was Scully showing some cleavage to Det. Idaho on the
porch?--just Mulder's luck, she start's unbuttoning and he's out in space
being probed.

"Mulder used to call it..." Scully's using past tense already. The scene
where they go up into the attic was pretty creepy, I thought. But then
Carter ruins with that stupid flashlight business. Doggett: "You ever
carry one of these?" Scully (wistful pause) "No." SCULLY MISSES
MULDER!!!!!!!!!! Why would Doggett even ask that? Like, Mulder and Scully
invented flashlights? It's their "special thing"? My sister Jessica
carries a mag lite, does that mean she's an FBI agent? What's really
terrible about that moment is I can see Carter typing it going, "There, the
little bastards (us) have there flashlight moment, that oughtta make 'em
happy!" Like that's what it was about. It's the characters, stupid!

Pretty icky that Scully knows what a regurgitated finger smells like.

I know Scully is angst-girl right now, but I don't get her hostility
towards Dog. He seems to be trying to go along with her--he's being a hell
of a lot more open and understanding than she ever was in her first...seven
years on the X-Files. It would be so much more logical for her to be like,
"I know this may sound crazy, I know where you're coming from.." etc. I
mean, he's not mocking her the way she did Mulder, so why is she so
defensive? Dog's theme is Billy Joel's "An Innocent Man" taking the brunt
of her anger towards all those Bureau jerks and conspirators.

Then they suddenly agree on everything, yet still act like they don't.
that was the fundamental problem with this episode. Doggett finds the
newspaper article (somehow?!?!?!?!), says "It's a bat man, like this one in
Montana!" and Scully's like, "OK!" And the police are like, "OK!" But
everyone's going around accusing everyone else of having a weird theory,
even though they all seem to agree it's a bat man.

Nonsense alert: Dog says "I spent the weekend reading all the X-files, and
saw that most of them broke with a leap. But in my experience, leaps get
you killed." ZUH? Do detectives really get killed making inferences?
REALLY? And if he has gathered that making a leap in usually gets the job
done, why is he dissing the idea? HE'S A TOUGH COP FROM NEW YORK__NO
NONSENSE. We get it Chris. Again, Dog seems pretty reasonable, doing
everything Scully asks, helping to get the body exhumed, etc. He's being
deferential to Scully, even. That bit where he takes the guy aside was
strange--what DID he say? was it a threat? Did he really call her an
expert on paranormal phenonoma or was he shining Scully on? There was that
undercurrent of his protecting her, and her chafing at it a bit. If they
want to deal with that fine, but it doesn't fit here. Scully's been around
the boys club (navy brat, Med school, FBI) too long to not just let some of
that roll off her back. If Dog is the guy that can get result's out of
Det. Idaho, fine, let's play it that way.

Do people at the GAP realize we don't all live in New England? I like
sweaters and all, but...really.

Do people at Carl's Jr. really think that the sounds of someone else eating
and slurping their sodas and making a mess is appetizing? It's really
quite the opposite for me.

Liked the flying creature at the cemetery, SCARY. Again, when all the cops
are ready to lynch Scully, they first say they should have been told about
the creature, then they say they don't need Scully's "far out theories."
But...DOESN'T EVERYONE IN THIS ENTIRE EPISODE AGREE THAT THE CULPRIT IS
SOME SORT OF BAT-LIKE CREATURE? Idaho Potatah, potato, Bat=creature,
Bat=MAN, let's just go and KILL IT Before it kills again. Who the flip
cares what it is EXACTLY. ANd how does it break down, exactly? If you
thing it's a large homicidal bat with a grudge, than you're OK but if you
think it's actually more like a man with fangs and wings well then, you are
CRAZY! This is just weak plotting.

they gotta give us more on Doggett, a hobby, personality quirks, family
ties, SOMETHING. All this "I'm just a simple New York cop turned
hard-nosed FBI agent, Scully. I don't know nothin' about goblins and what
not. Let's just do some good cop work and be sure and use little words so
my head don't explode" drivel is driving me nuts.

Scully's wardrobe continues to rock--love the long black wool (?) coat.
The scene in the car, when they're staking out the old guy and Scully
cracks a joke, and Dog laughs was sweet. At First. nice character
moments, getting to know one another, then Carter has Scully say "I'm sure
about the facts as I deduced them scientifically." REMEMBER EVERYONE?
SCULLY IS A SCIENTIST! Then she wonders if she's "TRYING TO BE MULDER."
Gee, is that what's going here? Scully's the believer now and the new guy
is the skeptic? SOnofabitch, I wasn't aware, thanks for SPELLING IT OUT.

Then he assures her they're DOIN' GOOD COP WORK just like we do up in the
big apple, lil' lady. I'M NOT FOX MULDER EITHER. Not here tryin' to take
anyone's place, just a decent working class ex-marine and New York city
Cop, trying to do my darndest. Didn't go to Oxford, no siree Bob. Not
much on booklearnin' miss, jus' doin my job. Dial it down a notch or two,
Carter.

And, you don't have to mention Mulder's name every ten minutes, either. We
Remember him, Chris, we really really do. ANd we know Scully does too.
Gillian can convey that without having to fondle his nameplate or look at
his picture or feed his fish or talk about him all the time. Trust your
actors and your audience!

Liked the actor that played Ernie, thought he was great. the whole idea of
them living in fear on this island was pretty freaky. I don't really get
how the bat would find them though. I mean, couldn't you just...move? How
good is it's sense of smell, really? And...did I miss something? If they
were all form Montana in the first place, why are they in Idaho now? I
mean, I get it with the man and his wife, but why would his wife's mother
be in the same general area of Idaho? She went up to get the photo album,
which implies she lived there (to me) but why would she if she had no way
of knowing her daughter lived there. And why did he burn her body? If it
was to get rid of the smell, it didn't work because the bat creature still
dug for it in the cemetery.

Then Ernie says all that stuff about bats being close to monkey's on the
evolutionary chain (whatever), and I don't know if that's true or not but
he ends it all by saying this is a bat that's evolved into a man and Scully
says "Even if that's true..." and here we go again! ISN'T THAT YOUR
THEORY??? Upshot: IT'S A BAT CREATURE!!!! We ALL AGREE. ANd how stupid
did Dog and Dana look when Ernie gives them this stunning bit of news: bats
only hunt AT NIGHT! Jeepers Creepers, maybe your brother isn't safe!
DUUUUUUUUH!

Historic X-Files moment, mark the calendar folks. On their first official
mission as a team, Dog ditches Dana! Not Mulder indeed. "You stay here."
Over protective? Sure. Chauvinist? Maybe. But Scully doesn't put up
any argument. "Yeah, good plan. You go out into the night where the
psycho bat killing machine is, I'll stay in here with the old man and the
fire and the hot cocoa." It occurred to me when Dog got attacked by the
beast (how'd he survive? I dunno, neither does Carter, just go with it)
that it'd be kinda cool and unexpected if he just died. I like him and
all, but you have to admit, it'd be shocking.

There was something very "Friday the 13th" about that lake.

Then we have another stupid scene where the old guy is asking Scully who
believed in the bat creature first, who put it together. The point of this
scene is supposedly, Scully having to admit she believed in a monster--big
character moment, she pushed, she MADE A LEAP.

But.

EVERYONE BELIEVED IT WAS A BAT CREATURE. Scully, Doggett, Detective Idaho,
30 assorted Idaho cops: There's a Picture of it in the FREAKIN MONTANA
GAZETTE, Headline: BAT CREATURE KILLED!! Why, There's even a PHOTOGRAPH
OF IT!!!! Old guy: "How'd you put it together." Scully "Uh, well the
picture in the newspaper with you holding the dead bat creature? That was
a big clue." Scully as "lone believer" in this story doesn't work, cuz
Doggett ran out and got the newspaper immediately, and Scully as Skeptic
doesn't work either because she pretty much strolled into town like
"there's a new paranormal sheriff in town, kids. I may use words like
"science" and "evidence" and "deduce" but make no mistake, I MAKE LEAPS, I
BELIEVE IN WEIRD STUFF, Just like....(sniff) Mulder. I'M FINE!"

Then he says all that stuff about her giving up her family blah blah blah,
even though SHE ALREADY HAS. Yeah Chris, we know.

Scully was cool, shooting up the joint. Love it when she goes all action
hero: "if you've got a gun, get it." Outside stuff was creepy, but
....couldn't they have just phoned the brother, told him not to go outside
at night (duh), then waited until morning? And, if a killer bat
creature--yeah, folks, I know it sounds kinda kooky, but I'm gonna go out
on a limb and say it was some sort of bat...creature--had been staling you
for 44 years--wouldn't you always keep your shotgun loaded? And how did
the bat get in the house?

then we have the coda, Scully mercifully putting MULDER'S NAMEPLATE in his
desk so they can stop having her moon over it. She tells Doggett to "get
used to" people not believing their reports, then telling him she'll get
him a desk, he's alright. "Shucks, so are you. Just doin my job, ma'am"
ANd I hate that whole "I never had a desk" thing. It's stupid. It was
stupid four years ago and it remains stupid. She'd have a damn desk down
there. Sigh. Hopefully Carter will put away his typewriter with
sledgehammer keys and throw the next several episodes to his staff. Also,
they still call each other "agent." Time for first names soon, or will
they--gasp! Call each other by THEIR LAST NAMES! Oh the intimacy! Oh the
Betrayal! Oh the riots this will cause in the chatrooms!

That is all. Niners won! Yay! No new President! Booo! Since both sides
have reason to feel totally gypped and robbed of the election, I kinda want
gore to lose. I'd rather be the "wronged party" than the party that got
away with something shady (and either way, that's what you'll wind up
with). Don't know what that says about my personality but there you go. I
also feel that next election, we don't count ANY Florida votes, how's that.
They've lost their privileges. Okay, that's it. Have a great
thanksgiving, eat that pumpkin pie! I hope to be thankful for the Vikings
stomping all over the evil cowboys on turkey day--I can't think of anything
better to do with your loved ones than to watch those bad men suffer.
Niners get a bye week for the holidays, cuz they are so good and noble and
true. :D Safe travels for all, Christine

8.2 --one more thing......

I meant to say, "Worst season opener ever!" Easily. And not because of
Robert Patrick or no David, but just the lack or any real suspense, poor
plotting, dumb dialogue. Season two had the cool poetic opening (unlike
this year's silly one" and Mulder almost seeing an alien, season
three--c'mon Melissa gets shot, lots and lots of files. Season four--bees
and Samantha clones. Season five, Mulder's fake suicide, scully almost
dies from her cancer. Season Six, face eatin alien at the nuclear plant,
gibson when he was cute, all sorts of Scully jealousy over Mulder and
Diana. Even last year started great, with alien artifact flying all over
the place. I hope this year improves. Of course, Carter's already talking
season nine--one thing at a time, boy! Christine ;)

X-Files 8.2 "Without"

Okay,

Sorry for my silly prediction that we'd know who our next president is by
now. I think we should have a news blackout on the subject until all the
absentee ballots have been counted. I (reluctantly) voted for Gore, and
think he should and could have won if people in Florida weren't TOTALLY
STUPID. But since they are, Gore should concede if the absentees put Bush
over the top as they are likely too. And those who know what an absolute
zero I think Dubya is know how hard it is for me to say that, but look,
half the country is going to be ticked off no matter what happens, so let's
just move forward already.

Enough with real life editorializing, onto the supposed purpose of my
little review. The X-Files.

Sigh. Chris Carter's pretentious poetry really weighed on me. That's two
short openings in a row--short little nonsensical ramblings. I mean, I've
really liked Scully's musings in the past, but I defy you to explain what
she said beyond: Why are these aliens doing this? And why can't we do it
back to them? It begs the question...why are they doing this? what is
left for them to know about us? Do they collect human sperm as well as
ova? Gross, I realize, but isn't that the reason they took Scully and all
those women?

My sister jen is visiting this weekend. When I ranted about Carter's
"poetry" she said, "Chris carter is like Jamie from the Real World [New
Orleans]. He THINKS he's deep." if you don't get the reference...good for
you, Real world sucked this season.

Gibson is apparently going through a bizarre growth phase. 'Nuff said.
But his acting was kinda weak. That's what happens with kid actors
sometimes. They have good memories or whatever, so as little kids you're
like, WOW! Then they become teens and you're like, EH. He just didn't
seem wise and all knowing. He just seemed bored. Maybe if you're wise and
all-knowing, you ARE bored a lot, but still. And what was with all the
deaf kids anyway, was that supposed to be freaky or something? A way to
not pay the kids to talk? I saw no real point to it. Deaf people have
thoughts, so gibson would stiff be hearing voices.

"Mulder" going over the cliff. Whatever. So obviously the shape shifter.


I like Doggett, but that NYPD Blue stuff wasn't flying, all the tough guy
talk, and the accent he does when he feels like it. Again, Scully being
alien girl seems to quick, only because of Carter's ineptitude. Her
arrival at the truth should have been gradual, but instead, we've had her
deny deny deny the obvious for seven years, and now Mulder's gone and she's
like "you all are so whacked, HELLOOOOOO! It's aliens!" She has such
contempt for Doggett not believing what he sees, and it makes me want to
shake her, since she was like he was through, like, a hundred odd X-Files,
right? Hopefully, when they start doing real X-Files, she'll be more of
the reluctant believer (more on that later). Scully's line about Mulder
"he better well be smiling." HUH? What did that mean, he should be glad
cuz she's finally admitting he was right now that he's being tortured? And
what's with the naked stuff, Scully got to wear a robe--but maybe SHE was
indeed taken by the government, where as Mulder is with the aliens.
Anyway, the way mulder's smiling now is if alien torture elements placed in
his mouth are incidentally lifting his lips up.

When Doggett encounters the shapeshifter and is all "you were supposed to
be cleared out", why didn't he make him leave?

Scully's pants are too nice for a trip to the desert, and was she wearing
heels? C'mon.

As she follows a strange kid out into the Arizona desert (without water,
that's good for the baby), I was reminded of Bobby and Cindy Brady chasing
that Indian boy into the grand canyon til they got lost. Yelling, "Bobby!?
Cindy!?" when you're hiking in the Grand Canyon never gets old, try it.
So, she finds gibson and he's all vague. She says she'll protect him and
he says she said that before--Ouch! Was it cancerman that kidnapped him or
Krycek? Cant' remember. But...just how did he get away from the alien in
that nuclear reactor??? Oh...nevermind I guess.

"You've painted me a picture, now put it in a frame" : why chris carter
doesn't write for nypd blue. Liked Skinner's trying to help Dog, and liked
that dog seems to have good people instincts and trusts skinner and
Scully--at least their motives. But WHY would Kersh want to set Dog up for
the fall? Why pick a good agent to take the rap? I don't follow.

Just me, or were there A LOT of witnesses to the two Scully's incident?
And, if WE were allowed to see blood on that guy's hands, why didn't anyone
think to check everyone's hands for blood? Scully says "It's someone in
this room!" And then, we come back from commercial and everyone's outside!
Whatever! So, wouldn't scully keep in contact with Skinner? we have that
lame scene where they pull their guns on each other, trying to recreate the
kick ass Mexican Standoff scene back in season three's two part opener,
when the "dead in the boxcar" Mulder comes back. Maybe Scully was hoping
he'd appear to back her up like that time. I appreciated the continuity of
having Scully distrust Skinner. Of course, the purpose of this dumb scene
would be reveled later in the show...

Scully's crying thing worked as usual, she wants to see Mulder again, but
this coy "did they or didn't they" thing is terrible. WHY IS SHE PREGNANT?
what purpose does this serve? Mulder and scully's bond was this beautiful
strong spiritual thing. We don't need her carrying his child to justify
her desperately searching for him. I can't see why they would bother
making her pregnant with anyone else child, either, so I'm just going to
assume (I know, I know) that it's Mulder's. I mean, her being pregnant is
just a DRAG. It doesn't work for me at all, especially since now we get to
wince everytime she runs, falls, jumps, gets thrown across a room, hit,
whatever. Reminds me of a very funny Saturday Night Live skit from years
back: "Lisa Pongrasic, very pregnant undercover cop" Mary Stuart
Masterson. This is bad news, kids. Now I have to think badly of Scully
for putting her baby in jeopardy everytime she does something
exciting--this season's gonna be a blast!

Skinner and Scully. He's too much of a flunky, and...doesn't he seem kinda
whipped? Like, he's the pathetic guy that's in love with this girl who
clearly doesn't love him but he does everything she says anyway? Like "The
Carpet Man" the 5th Dimension sang about? "She walks all over you cuz she
knows she can..." Not that Scully's THAT bad, I'm just saying, he needs to
get back to his office so he can boss her around a little, so I can respect
him more. Would Skinner REALLY leave Scully out in the dark desert
alone??? If she SAYS SO, apparently. Gibson's "you're so close now"
reminded me of Lecter saying to Clarice "you're so close to how you're
going to catch him" Not that I think Gibson's a serial killer. Didn't
Gibson have parents? Did they die or something? If so, I missed it.

When Scully looked up into the night sky at the light coming towards her,
Jen and I started singing the theme to "The greatest American Hero."

Liked the bit where we thought she saw the helicopter, but then we saw that
there was a space ship too. That was neat.

Didn't like gillian's yelling in the desert. Maybe it was the
direction--she was yelling, perhaps because of the helicopter rotors? But
he was kinda whispering. He only started yelling when he got mad. SO,
maybe it was him, Patrick, or the direction, but the upshot was Scully came
off kind of shrill, I thought. Liked that Mulder could maybe sense Scully,
or maybe he just yells her name all the time during his ordeal.

Thought the episode was at it's best when Skinner and Gibson were missing,
but it didn't last long. Skinner was SO OBVIOUSLY not Skinner, and aha,
the reason for that dumb scene before--Scully feels sooo bad for doubting
Skiiner earlier, she lets her guard down and the bounty hunter (duh!) gets
the jump on her. It was cool that she killed the bounty hunter--Crack Shot
Dana! But, the whole baby thing me ill as she's thrown around and exposed
to deadly alien gas. Liked her crying in dog's arms, liked how protective
of her he seemed.

Sneery Kersh is all well and good, but he lacks cancerman's menace. We
need scarier govt. bad guys--Strom Thurmond perhaps? Is Dog on the X-files
as punishment? or did he want them? Scully in the hospital--too bad you
don't get "frequent dire miles" for being hospitalized, Scully'd have free
catscans for life. Look forward to seeing how the pair manages as a team,
with Scully as, hopefully, a reluctant believer. Frankly, there's no
reason she can't be. Maybe she can finally use her science to come up with
weird but plausible theories. I mean, for all the stuff I can see her just
not believing (i.e. ghosts), there are things like mutants that we saw her
believe several times. The end was supposed to be all scary--THERE ARE
MORE ALIEN BOUNTY HUNTERS! THEY ALL LOOK THE SAME! BRIAN THOMPSON ISN'T
OUT OF WORK! But, all i thought was a) bummer, scully didn't kill the
alien bounty hunter, she killed one alien bounty hunter. And, b) If ther
are hundreds or billions or even just dozens of the guys, why don't they
send more than one at a time? It's like those dumb ninjas in those movies
that only attack the hero one guy at a time.

Maybe they can just stop doing that "Scully doesn't believe in ANYTHING!!!"
bs they were doing the last few years when they were in the rut of keeping
things the same even when it no longer made sense. I mean, they acted like
Scientists don't believe in ANYTHING. But Scully said she needed proof,
and it demeaned the character when she ignored proof to remain in
ignorance.

And, I can see her pursuing X-Files to keep mulder's work alive, and to
remain close to the investigation/cover-up, so she has a renewed reason to
stay in the FBI, so that's a plus.

I hope not to be so negative in the future. The conspiracy episodes will
be tough this season, since Carter so decimated it when he thought the'd be
done by now. Marita and krycek are out there, and so's cancerman. They
keep saying they killed him (by pushing him done the stairs? the guy
that'sbeen shot all to hell and lived? that guy? Please. Oh, and William
Davis isn't on contract anymore! Oh, that settles, it Cancerman's dead!
Chris Carter, you are so lame, and you're little mind tricks only work on
the weak-minded. I hope we'll see more Scully's and hope that We can
explore the character of Scully some more--it's why I'm still here, Carter.
have her talk about growing up on military bases when he starts talking
about being a marine, something!

Next week bats: hopefully, it ain't Scully's turn to shag a vampire while
mourning her missing partner...unless it's David Boreanez.

Have a good week! The Niners Won! 3-8, baby! Two more wins, and we
finish better than last season. Sure, it's a dream. But it's my dream.
Christine :D

X-Files 8.1 addendum

Okay,

I check my email in the morning, and I get my first complaint! I said the
Mulder's were buried in Virginia, instead of Raliegh, North Carolina.
Sorry, I messed up--why?? because that makes EVEN LESS SENSE than
Virginia. SInce when was Mrs. Mulder buried in NC? Didn't she live in
Massachusetts? Or Rhode Island? So, I was confused--still am. Maybe
I'll rewatch the episode where she kills herself and see where she was
living then, maybe she moved states. It was an apartment and not the
Northeastern home we'd seen in past shows.

Christine--feel free to
enlighten me, if this made sense to you. :)

X-Files 8.1 "Within"

OK.

Let me begin by saying, there's no point in lamenting the show I wished
they'd made a few years ago--cut Mulder and Scully off from the Bureau,
spending some time on the run, encountering weird happenings on the
way...and, yes, maybe falling in love. There's just no profit in it. We
must deal with reality, and leave the what ifs and could have beens to the
Internet fan fic writers. I'm not a fan of Scully's pregnancy but it's
there and I have to deal with it. That, and the fact that we don't know
who the father is (such an irritating point to go soap opera on us, who's
the father? But would they give us Mulder and Scully have a relationship
(with each other or with someone else)? Noooooo, too soapy.) I just did
parenthesis within a parenthesis. Scully's not freaking out, so,
presumably it's not an alien baby though I can't for the life of me figure
out how she COULD be sure of such a thing. It continues to gall me that
Carter feels this is none of my business. I maintain that an off-screen
consummation of the mulder scully relationship is a slap and damned lousy
story-telling. I watched much of last season over the summer and though
there was a flirtatious undercurrent to some of the shows, there was
nothing to indicate that the earth had slipped of it's axis, Mulder and
Scully's beautiful platonic love had become physical. But any other
alternative seems almost worse: another guy? Who? Aliens? Yeee! But, I
must come to terms with my frustration and deal. This is the X-Files.
Season Eight. Clearly, they couldn't go on with the old formula, so, change
was necessary.

I'm intrigued, but wary. How's that? Is it possible to view this episode
without baggage? Doubtful. Let us begin....

Scully has a vision of Mulder's torture--is this a dream? Or some sort of
psychic connection? If she were having psychic visions, she wouldn't tell
us, would she? Flashbacks to her own abduction experience maybe? For
those new to these reviews, or perhaps even new to the show, get used to a
lot of rhetorical questions from me. If Chris Carter doesn't see fit to
give me any, I'll be damned if I give any to you. I'm petty that way. Not
that I watch this show for answers, but I feel like Carter crippled himself
when he excised the conspiracy a while back but I'm jumping ahead of
myself.

The new opening was sooooooooo lame. I mean, I get needing to tweak it a
little, because the show is no longer about Mulder and Scully and their
avenging flashlights of truth, but...to replace the "remington Steele"-like
floating body and eye with Mulder's body and Scully's eye was sooooooooo
stupid. It was like they were acting like they always envisioned being
here at season 8 with a missing Mulder and a searching Scully instead of
making this up last spring when they realized "Ooops, Fox is giving us
another garbage truck full of dough, better think of something fast..."

Last season, Mulder seemed really at peace, like "Yay, I'm being abducted!
At long last!" And all the other abductees were all mellow and cool, like
"Hey man, glad you could make the 6pm abduction." now he's being sliced
and probed and poked and stretched. Bet he feels mighty stupid. Though,
Jen pointed out to me that when Scully was on the bridge a few years ago,
when all the abductees were waiting for the mothership and they got fried?
They were all happy too, so maybe, Jen postulated, the aliens do something
to you--use a sense-of-well-being ray on you so you don't run away.

The Music continues to be completely out of control. Can we fire Mark snow
and just use the old music? It just tries to hard. And this one was
(prepare to lose all respect for me as I make this reference) especially
over-done--this woman wailing mystical earthmother crap. How pregnant is
Scully? They won't even tell us that. Scully's got morning sickness does
that tell us anything? I'm asking. Oh, the shameful reference: It
sounded like the music they use(d) on Xena: Warrior Princess when someone
dies and they have Lucy Lawless sing this old-world ancient dirge while
they all stand around the funeral pyre. If there's a Xena Warrior Princess
drinking game? That'd get you drunk: Xena sings over the burning body of
a dead comrade, take a drink. So anyway, Music: bad.

Dug Scully's first outfit, the brown-orange shirt? A winner.

So...Season TWO: Scully gets abducted in the woods, the only witness, her
partner who sees what's either a helicopter or a spaceship flying away and
Duane Barry who Krycek kills right quick. She is classified an X-File, and
Mulder puts her file away along with her glasses and her gold cross and
goes to L.A. to shag vampires. Mulder gets abducted, the only witness,
Skinner. Same thing, bright light. Scully will devote her LIFE TO YOU
MULDER!!!! SHe will wander the earth, win a trip to MIR space station on
some cheesy game show, ANYTHING! FOR YOU! Worthless jerk. Mulder gets a
whole task force looking for him--Scully? Zip. Figures.

Just me? Or was Skinner's concern for Scully's pregnancy a
little...paternal? Just stirring the pot a bit. Say, a Skinner/Scully
pairing puts a whole new spin on the last scene last year, in the hospital?
When she says "I'm not...sure how...' or whatever? SKinner: "You told me
that those secret governmental tests had rendered you sterile!!" Scully:
"Walter, you know that no method of birth control is 100% effective..."

Anyone else notice that for all this "Now Scully's the believer" crap, she
didn't say what she believed? I mean, does she really believe in aliens?
I thought it was the government that got her, that was doing all the tests.
Now she seems to be down with the alien thing (my impression, anyway), but
what's changed? Mulder's been "dead" before, missing before. The
characters seem to be aware of Duchovny's contract status a little, you
know?

Liked Robert Patrick. It's refreshing to have a male lead who'd glad to be
on the show ;) Liked him trying to play Scully--DE NIED! She gives her
best Joan Collins as she throws water in his face. What DO the other
agents think of Scully, I wonder? "She had a promising career, but all
those years in that basement with that a$$&@*^ drove her NUTS." She's
truly Mrs. Spooky now (season 1 Squeeze). Thought Scully's snooping on her
computer was a nice was to do the exposition on Doggett (nypd, marine corps
etc.). I wonder if she could really pull up a personnel file from her
personal computer, however. Nice to hear Mama Scully's voice if only for a
moment. Liked "fragile Scully. I thought she had a ground floor apartment
in previous episodes. Hated "stupid Scully" leaving the door open so some
one could steal her computer.

Liked Scully sleeping in Mulder's bed. It was sad and sweet, her smelling
his shirt.....sigh......Okay, they got me there. I'll admit it.

Glad to see the gunmen, but wonder if they can pull off their own show.
Like how Skinner's becoming the real UFO nut.

Liked the Doggett/Kersh interplay. Like the symmetry. Doggett, like
Scully before him, is chosen for his ambition and seriousness, but the
baddies underestimate both of their integrity. Something about the way
Doggett walked into the room made me wonder...what if Robert Patrick had
gone on "Spin City" and we got Charlie Sheen.....

Liked the Dog and Dana banter in the bedroom. Scully used the "feeding the
fish" line to explain her presence in Mulder's apartment back in season
two, when he went AWOL to Puerto Rico.

"I've seen things I can't explain." Scully continues to be chickens***
about her beliefs. She'd make a good politician--you can't nail down how
she feels about anything. I laughed when he asked if she'd seen an alien,
we should have had this montage of tall the things we've seen her see and
then explain away, then she shrugs and says to Dog, "I dunno, maybe."

It's kind of embarrassing to see Skinner treated like such a flunkie, like
watching one of your parents getting yelled at by their boss or something.

Liked the whole angle that the government is trying to make Mulder look
suicidal and crazy, but wonder what took them so long? Is it cancerman's
absence that makes Mulder suddenly expendable? Who's in charge of the
conspiracy now? Who's Kersh answering too? Carter shouldn't have cleaned
them all out--I liked that whole element, and yeah, it was confusing--but
in a good way.

The Mulders' being buried in Virginia made no sense to me AT ALL. Weren't
they Rhode Island/Massachusetts folk? That didn't track with me. And why
was Mulder going to Maine? Doctors? family bodies? Did I miss something?
Mulder was confronted with Scully's headstone back in season two's One
Breath, after Mom tells him the story about Dana killing the snake and
feeling bad? that's where we find out she TWO brothers too. Scully seemed
awfully quick to accept the medical records as plausible, like paper
records aren't hard to fake. But her doubt, even in her own experience, is
one of the more consistently Scully traits so, I guess I shouldn't
complain.

Mulder, with his pierced wrists and head surrounded by pins like a crown of
thorns--subtle, Chris, subtle. Mulder, the Christ figure. Scully is
Peter? Or Thomas perhaps as she is tempted to believe that Mulder faked
the whole thing to make himself SEEM true and noble. She's all discouraged
and unable to get excited about Skinner and the gunmen (other disciples?)
and their "mulder sighting" on satellite 9a stretch, I know.) the FBI
theory of Mulder's stealing his files reminded me off the theory that
Jesus' disciples stole His body to fake his resurrection. Skinner might be
Peter, especially if his "I won't sell Mulder out," line is a foreshadowing
of future weakness.

Scully's "Why don't people believe in aliens after all the accounts..."
speech was painful. Like I said earlier, why is she so gung-ho alien
rather than government conspiracy? It's be need if she went back to the
Iowa pine forest of "Conduit" and looked up those alien abducted people
that she scoffed at, if she really is a believer. And, it wasn't very well
done anyway. Dialogue isn't really Carter's forte is it?

That annoying music seemed to be trying to conjure up a spiritual element
that feels missing to me--Mulder's search was always very spiritual. Why
is Scully pregnant? What possible purpose is there for this? I hope it's
not stupid. Not the kid, the story.

Not to be mean, but puberty has not made Gibson Praise less strange. How'd
he get away from the face ripping alien of some years back?

The Mulder torture was a bit over the top--the gore implies we don't have
imaginations, Chris. We do. We need them to fill in all the blanks so we
can follow your show.

Scully didn't mention her own abduction--seems like it would come up,
but...maybe next week?

So, duh, is that the shape shifter pretending to Mulder? He looked all
bloated and uncute. Robert Patrick isn't saying "sexy" to me yet, so I
guess I'm stuck with Skinner. I read in TV Guide where Carter said this
year doesn't lend itself to comedy as much as the last few years--THANK
GOODNESS!!!!!

So...I'm intrigued, but wary. By the time I write my next review, we will
have elected a new president, or be plunged in a Constitutional
crisis--let's dump the electoral college regardless. It's stupid. Seems
everyone's nervous, on both sides, but, remember, our system is really
designed so that nothing much changes. It's not (despite what you may have
heard) a battle between the fascists and the communists like in other
countries. Our lives won't change that much either way. But, oh
Republican friends, if Bush is elected, and I don't get my unemployment
when I'm on hiatus? I'm mooching off you. It's the least you can do.

FEARLESS PREDICTION: The 43rd President of the United States will be: A
total cheeseball with zero charisma and poor speechmaking ability.

I think some of my Republican friend's might be under the impression that
Dubya HAS charisma (that's so cute!), so they might think I'm saying Gore
will win, so let me explain that the above statement refers to both
candidates ;) Love Ya!

EVERYONE VOTE!!!! *Battle Hymn of the Republic playing* It's an honor and
a privilege and your civic duty. And Republican friends, I can only cancel
out one my sisters, the rest of your votes actually COUNT!

Have a great week, no rioting, no matter what happens. Go see 'Charley's
Angels" I thought it was great fun. Christine :D (feels so good to be
ranting again...)