The X-Files

Yes, the X Files. Just finished the 3rd season. I know, still miles to go before I sleep, but I feel as a long-time X Files admirer and as someone who has gone through 60 episodes already, I am somewhat qualified to say something about it.

I really wish I had seen it on TV when it was still on air. AKA if I saw it in real-time. I know it is silly, but sometimes it's really hard to get past the 90's fashion statements. Like Scully's hair. Or her innumerable power suits. Over all, I find Gillian Anderson very fitting to Scully's character, and Anderson is an attractive woman who exhibits this subtle vulnerability that is the perfect combination with her scientific, rational exterior. But the hairstyle, the shoes, call me superficial, but they are important too.

Which is why I can't wait to get past the earlier seasons so I can reach the more contemporary episodes. I'm not one for skipping around and watching episodes out of order, so I guess I'll have to labor through.

That's not exactly accurate though. It's not laboring through; the earlier episodes have its charms. They have this 90's paranoia about the government, about conspiracy theories, about extraterrestrial life. Which brings us to the slightly ridiculous visual effects.

I know, I know, it was the 90's, they did the best they could, I should give them a break. I understand that. But that doesn't mean the make-up, the visual effects were good. I think they really suffered from a more-is-better mentality. Pile on more to make a person look older, or weirder, or more monstrous. Pile on more to make a person look younger or more normal. Pile on more to make the person look like themselves. Okay, you get the idea. The wrinkles and the aliens all look so... superfluous. With that said, I want to re-emphasize the fact that I know it was in the 90's and they did their best. And it doesn't look... THAT bad.

I know the alien storyline is actually the most important plot because it spans across seasons and never goes away, but I have to confess that I don't like it that much. The smaller, single-episode cases are much more fascinating and freer, because they all have different writers and you can feel the difference. A lot of them explore seemingly mundane or cliched supernatural topics and turn them into something fun and worthwhile. The alien plot kind of takes away from them. Alright, there are aliens, we get it, Mulder. We also get it that you will never catch them. Now go catch a flesh-eating bug or something.

The relationship between Mulder and Scully is also fascinating. They are more than friends; they trust each other with their lives. Yet they will never be lovers because... that's just not who they are. There are moments, though, when you are not so positive. They sure have feelings for each other, but ... well, friendship lasts longer anyway, so we should be happy.

And it's an obvious reversal of sex roles where Scully's the more logical, more scientific-minded one and Mulder relies more on instinct. But there are still adherences to the rule. For example, Mulder is always the one who drives.

David Duchovny kind of breaks my heart by taking on series like Californication and by having sex addiction problems. He will always be Spooky Mulder. And what exactly were his parents thinking when they named him Fox? I know exactly what the writers were thinking when they gave him that name (it's kind of obvious, isn't it. He's suspicious and tracks things down all the time), but what do they think Mulder's parents' thought process was?

Alright, I should give it a rest before I start writing about Grudge 3 and Walled In.