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Episode 4 -- The Lost Art of Forehead Sweat was possibly the best X File episode ever, though it was only possible to create it after the previous history of the show.
chromedog wrote: The standout "Good" episode of last season (where it stood head and shoulders above the rest of them, at "meh").
The interminable global conspiracy shark-jumping plotline is still as tired as it was in the 90s, though.
Yes. I loved the X-files back in the day, but dreaded it's return, and it went exactly as I thought it would: 1 good episode per season, a bunch of bleh ones, and a handful of terrible ones.
lord_blackfang wrote: Respect to the guy who subscribed just to post a massive ASCII dong in the chat and immediately get banned.
Flinty wrote: The benefit of slate is that its.actually a.rock with rock like properties. The downside is that it's a rock
Yeah, the episodic self contained ones are much better than the ridiculous conspiracy ones. Unless, of course they are the conspiracy ones where they are making fun of themselves. The show is best when it doesn't take itself too seriously. And Gillian Andersen is great.
Kilkrazy wrote: You dhould watch The Lost Art of Forehead Sweat, though. It's a brilliant parody of 50s SF, The X Files themselves, and the state of the world today.
I did! I thought it was terrific - this season's good one. I'm all caught up except for the very last episode this season.
i wish they would abandon the mythos, and just do MOTW episodes, especially Darin Morgan ones.
Much like George Lucas, I think Chris Carter needs to be seperated from his creation.
lord_blackfang wrote: Respect to the guy who subscribed just to post a massive ASCII dong in the chat and immediately get banned.
Flinty wrote: The benefit of slate is that its.actually a.rock with rock like properties. The downside is that it's a rock
I agree. There is such a history of the alien invasion/black oil being the deep conspiracy that underpins the whole show.
So much has been done about it that it's almost impossible to separate it from the overall story, and they also can't find a good way to resolve it.
I liked the episode about the brother and sister playing Hangman. That was vintage X Files, IMO. I felt the hairs on the back of my neck stand up when I saw the doppelganger Mulder reflected in a window.
The poor man really has a stake in the country. The rich man hasn't; he can go away to New Guinea in a yacht. The poor have sometimes objected to being governed badly; the rich have always objected to being governed at all
We love our superheroes because they refuse to give up on us. We can analyze them out of existence, kill them, ban them, mock them, and still they return, patiently reminding us of who we are and what we wish we could be.
"the play's the thing wherein I'll catch the conscience of the king,
Well, looks like Chris Carter has succeeded in fething the X-files to death. Thanks, Chris.
Spoiler:
Every time they introduce the mythology, it's confusing gibberish, twists that are reverted and then re-implemented, uncharismatic secondary characters with constantly shifting allegiances for no reason, and poor plotting. Essentially he took all the stuff that tanked the show 20 years ago, and doubled down on it and also added MULDER DRIVING FAST.
One of the main actresses has vowed never to return - which no one can blame her for with how shabbily both her and her character have been treated, consistently - so why not end the show with a truly inane cliffhanger hinging on her? Sure. Spend all season focusing on a plot line no one asked for or cared about or wanted, and then brusquely shrug it off in a really abrupt way? Sure.
Chris Carter is X-files cancer. He is everything George Lucas is accused of without the grace of finally stepping aside. He drove the show into the ground, then resurrected it and did it again.
If only they had ended the show on "Lost Art of Forehead Sweat" instead. That would have been a legitimately amazing ending.
This message was edited 2 times. Last update was at 2018/03/23 22:46:53
lord_blackfang wrote: Respect to the guy who subscribed just to post a massive ASCII dong in the chat and immediately get banned.
Flinty wrote: The benefit of slate is that its.actually a.rock with rock like properties. The downside is that it's a rock
Apaprently Gillian Anderson has said she will leave at the end of this series. It could be a bid for more money, but I feel the revival of the show hasn't set the world alight the way that the renewal of Doctor Who did with Chris Ecclestone, so probably it won't get renewed whatever its quality. It doesn't help that in the UK it was first aired at 9 pm, then moved to 10, then to 11.
I think the problem is that the modern X Files appeals mainly to people who loved the original.
To some extent TV has moved on, for example with the proliferation of darkness and violence seen in series such as the Nordic Noir genre, Spooks, and Hard Sun.
Not everyone likes it, of course, leading to the popularity of shows such as Death In Paradise, Shakespeare and Hathaway, and Father Brown.
Anyway, all good things must come to an end. At some future point I will sit down with my boxed sets of 11 series of X Files and watch the whole thing, with a suitable break after 9, and if necessary I will make The Lost Art of Forehead Sweat the very last episode I see.
Then I will watch my boxed set of Twin Peaks and lament my lost youth. At least I have a cellar full of good wine, whisky and gin.
I think the problem is that the modern X Files appeals mainly to people who loved the original.
I loved the original and I find the new seasons to be bad. Really bad.
Honestly they did the dumbest thing imaginable with the first reboot season, which was the same thing they did with the last reboot season (after the X-Files movie revived the show originally) in that they threw everything the myth arc was building out the window and asked me to keep believing they'd ever resolve it. The myth arc as dumb as it was was a centerpoint of the show and even back in the 90s when the show was fresh it was dragging horribly.
If anything has killed the X-Files I honestly think its the ongoing failure to provide meaningful progression and developing of its central myth, made worse by how it keeps getting retconned in universe.
I'll watch the new Seasons when they finally get round to resolving the Alien invasion arc. As much as people seem to dislike it, I really want to see how it ends.
In the meantime, I'm about 5 years overdue for a binge watch of the entire series.
I'm a few episodes behind, but, fun fact, the episode with all the tech going psycho was co-written by Kristen Cloke, who to gamers of a certain vintage will be familiar as the smoking hot Vansen from Space: Above and Beyond.
We find comfort among those who agree with us - growth among those who don't. - Frank Howard Clark
The wise man doubts often, and changes his mind; the fool is obstinate, and doubts not; he knows all things but his own ignorance.
The correct statement of individual rights is that everyone has the right to an opinion, but crucially, that opinion can be roundly ignored and even made fun of, particularly if it is demonstrably nonsense!” Professor Brian Cox
