[X Fool]

I have to say i missed that in-joke, clever. This was the season of self awareness.

Sein und Zeit

The One where Mulder's mum dies

Spooky Crusader
Mulder is asks Skinner to give him the case of the missing children. He denies he is too emotionally involved to make a proper judgement because of the similarities to Samantha's disappearance. He proves everyone right. He is so caught up in it, he misses a chance to speak to his mum before she dies.

World's Best Friend in these situations
Scully is sceptical. Scully autopsies Mulder's mum. Enough said really......
Scully works out the puzzle of number 74. Why the ghost couldn't have given the zip code for the sat nav though. How supportive is Dana Catherine in this episode. She knows he's too emotionally involved yet indulges him and backs him even at the risk of her own life. Loyalty personified. Love?

Overall
Sorry, I like it. I know this storyline is controversial with fans. The Samantha story needed resolving before Mulder left the show. Could i have done better? Ask yourself. It's very suspenseful. The cliffhanger is excellent. It's just a bit of a damp squib after all the years of CSM showing bits and feeding into Mulder's search, it doesn't make sense that she was buried behind Santa's Grotto all this time. The only explanation i have is that Bill and Teena were forced to give her up but then she escaped and was kidnapped by the protagonist of this episode. Am i right?
The drama was good. Again i don't have the answer for Mum's suicide. Was it just the illness? She wasn't murdered.

8/10

Originally Posted by Little_Stewie (View Post) I did not notice that! Then again, to some people, self-references like that one are a sign of a show jumping the shark. I dunno, it's fun to analyze when the show lost its momentum.

It's just starting now in these episodes. I can't see it from The Great Muleeni or Signs and Wonders, s7 is still just hanging on. Then we come to the slow decline though the Samantha double bill is still not it.

[reason to believe]

That had the touching moment where Scully comforted Mulder when he was upset.

[X Fool]

Closure

The One where Mulder finds out what happened to Samantha

Overall
Good episode. Cameo from Dr Chilton "Have the lambs stopped crying Clarice?"
"I'm having an old friend for dinner"

Highly charged emotional episode. The only title could have been Closure, not something in Latin meaning Closure. The bit where he is lead to the field and comes back to tell Harold his son is dead is very powerful. The son helped Mulder, it's really sad. So his mum did kill herself. CGB didn't bat a smoky eyelid. She just had too much baggage to deal with. Scully's loyalty knows no limits as previously stated. The proof Samantha lived with Jeffrey is a good link, did Jeff not know the connection? The escape then treatment in the hospital. The nurse remembering her. Finally not an elaborate hoax but the truth with a small t.

It was time to end this, knowing that DD was finishing soon, it gave his character peace and also a fat nothing to lose especially with mum dying also.

9/10

[reason to believe]

I liked David Duchovny’s performance in this episode, especially the very end.

[X Fool]

Yes DD was on top form. He has not in any way gone through the motions in this last full season of his, he has been true to the character he created, cultivated. He underplays this correctly beautifully. It's proper closure for Mulder, acceptance and time to move on, his family are dead, he has nothing to lose. Except one thing, one person that keeps him going.

X Cops

The one when they used a shaky camera.

Overall
Voted in the top 10 all time list on a random you tube upload. This is a list where Home was number 9.....

I loved it, couldn't take my eyes off it, but it's not that good..

Scully's side looks and moments hiding away from the camera are brilliant . The plot is fairly standard X Files which is why you have to rely on the atmosphere and reality show style to keep you interested, but i think they knew that and didn't want to use their best or most complicated plotline for this one.

I don't get how the wasp man turned over the police car in the teaser. Still a good teaser.

The gay couple are funny, especially with his picture on the wall if you spot that.

Ultimately very clever and a good way to self depricate without being too pretentious.

8/10

[Little_Stewie]

Man, I am old enough to remember the real, silly 'cops' show....that was such a smart crossover. Completely insane, when it first aired. Now it feels like a museum piece.

[X Fool]

True about the museum piece, but not when you ask how many other shows analyse themselves in this way. CC insisted on one of the season documentaries that he preferred seeing less of the monster than more and there is no better example than in X Cops as the camera struggles to catch up and is always one or two steps behind the action. Very good use of the viewer's imagination. Spielberg stumbled on it in Jaws and was lucky but made the most of it. Not seeing the monster can create a better atmosphere than a shiny bright rubber man in a suit

Next...........


I can finally say that after 151 episodes i have found where The X Files started to decline.

First Person Shooter

Had the episode lived up to the teaser i would not be saying this. What ruined this for me was the fact that the Pheobe character was found to be responsible for bringing the murderess into the real world, ok up to this point but once its resolved she gets away with it and is seen cosily laughing with M&S and the Lone Gunmen as though its some kind of farce or an episode of Birds of a Feather.

It's visually very impressive but the whole story is so badly resolved and so cosy at the end it made me feel cheated. The endless shooting of cowgirls was just boring by the end. No real resolution and a very poor use of characters that should have developed and made this a top 10 classic. This had so much potential but seemed to descend into lazy writing because they ran out of people to kill. Even the police station scenes (though massively sexist) added to the plot building, it was relevant, but then it just bizarrely ran out of puff

I apologise if i have missed something but i had high hopes for this one and remembered it to be better.

3/10

[reason to believe]

Scully avoiding and glaring at the cameras in X-Cops, always cracks me up!

I just watched First Person Shooter not too long ago and thought, it wasn’t that bad.

I haven’t seen the Kathy Griffin “Fight Club” episode so I’m assuming that’s the worst one

[Little_Stewie]

Oh man, people hated both of these episodes soooo much.

[X Fool]

I like Lone Gunmen episodes. I just thought this was taking the humour a bit far. It didn't take itself seriously but mainly the poor ending and the lack of consequences for Pheobe. It's almost as if Scully agreed with her.

I can't see it fitting in to s5 or even 6

[reason to believe]

I remember the Lone Gunmen spin-off but I never really watched it.

[X Fool]

Yeah i never saw it either. I might look it up.

Theef

The One with the Voodoo doll in the microwave

What a contrast. This was one of my favourites of s7. It rings a bell from seeing it nearly 20 years ago. I'm starting to see the trend in the Kim Manners episodes, good serious atmosphere.

Some shocking imagery in this one. Classic X Files with a variety of different imaginative deaths and a seemingly unstoppable villain. Billy Drago's portayal of Peattie is notable. The characters had depth, the back story on the death of his daughter was detailed enough to be believed.

His inability to take any responsibility for his part in her gradual downfall leaves you with the major injustice of his actions against the family. Dr Weider, though flawed and arrogant with a hint of God complex actually did his best for her by making her final 20 minutes painless. I suppose that's the argument, who is he to choose, play God. Then to be fair, her father probably could have saved her had he been there.

It was a tale of two fathers.

Microwave scene is quality. You know he's going to do it but i felt myself saying 'oh no he's actually going to do it.....'

You may or may not know that this story was cobbled together to replace another which was dropped. Water tight. Makes the outcome even better. Maybe they should have done more to these time constraints this season.

Scully is good blind. Reminded me of Clarice Starling when the lights go out.

The body in the bed was pretty sick, especially when they talked about the smell prior to that.

Some good shocks. Well acted. Pretty flawless. Decent resolution. Show it to a friend

9/10

[reason to believe]

Gotta rewatch this one. I like the “dark” episodes of the X-Files like “Home” I wanted more to be like that!

[Little_Stewie]

I always loved Theef. Just like Drive or Hunger, it has a great male villain.

[X Fool]

It was a winning formula that, as you say, they repeated well. Not out of place in any other season. Apart from maybe 7?!?

It certainly is a rose between two thorns. Which is why it surprised me the fact it was cobbled together quickly. It certainly didn't seem like that.

Is it the fact it's written by Vince Gilligan, John Shiban and Frank Spotnitz, directed by Kim Manners something to do with it?

Not a cast member or creator to be seen......

En Ami

The One written by the Smoking Man........

Overall
This should be great. I liked watching it again, remembered small bits but not enough to spoil the outcome. The problem for me was that Scully went with it, lied to Mulder, didn't have any kind of safety net, was reckless and irresponsible and totally out of character, almost as if the writer just didn't know her.

W.B. Davis

I'm a big fan of CSM. He carries some of the mythology episodes and his puppeteering of plenty of the show's best characters puts him in a different league because he always has the last word. He deserves his own episode.
However, someone should have taken this script and said 'Scully wouldn't do this'.

It's too easily resolved in 45 minutes and thank goodness it wasn't a two parter.

Again, the mysterious operation is mentioned where CSM now has celebral inflammation. Why do it? I am still none the wiser. I may be corrected soon as i have just watched the penultimate episode of this season and Requiem is on record for tomorrow night. I can't remember a thing about it so it's quite exciting to have new old X Files episodes to watch as I near my marathon's end.

The wire in the bra close up is just totally unnecessary and shallow. Good though.

Gillian is on top form. Plenty of action for her. Some good dialogue and I think one of her better performances without Mulder despite the character weakness.

Lone Gunmen used for what they do best again. This is a strong core main cast with good actors and characters with depth. Shame it's the last few with LG CSM
Skinner all in the same episode.

Not bad, but it was all over too quickly and easily and I can't have Dana Catherine being so un-Dana Catherine.

Beware of cast member scripts......

6/10