It's November, and you know what that means - a new season of The X-Files! This is a season of promise, a season of change . . . and a season of worry. This redux was heralded by "The Beginning," the first episode of season six. As far as season premieres go, "The Beginning" was just that - a beginning. Gone were the traits that made so many other season premieres of such high quality. The intensity of "Redux," the intrigue of "Herrenvolk," the artistry of "The Blessing Way," the tense excitement of "Little Green Men," and the thrill of "The Pilot" were lost, and all that was left was a shell. Sure, this episode has its merits - this is "The X-Files" we speak of, after all - but something just seemed lacking. Perhaps I'll feel different upon a second viewing, but to be completely truthful, my initial response was a skeptical-Scully-eyebrow-raise.

Before I continue, I must admit that I'm a little biased toward this new season. Okay, I'm horribly biased. I'm a British Columbian, a semi-Vancouverite (I was there three times in the past month), and I hate the fact that The X-Files moved to Los Angeles. Nevertheless, even a Los Angeles X- Phile must have noticed a change. I couldn't believe how different the show looked. The sunlight and the desert settings gave the backdrop a completely new appearance. Because of this, the mood, the atmosphere, and the feeling of the show were radically altered from that of the first 117 episodes, which were all shot in rainy, dark Vancouver. Though I longed for a light switch during the first half of the show, I was glad to see a darkening trend as the show progressed. The end of the episode was nice and dark, and because of this, I could take the plot more seriously. A dark, creepy atmosphere is The X-Files, and frankly, sunlight isn't. The end.

This change was signaled in many different ways, some intentional, and some not. The most blatant of these nods was the initial shot of the episode - that of a large, blazing sun shining down on a parched desert. When I first heard Chris Carter intended to open the season with such an blinding change, I was wary. However, after actually viewing, I think it worked all right. After five seasons, the grey skies of Vancouver had finally cleared up, and sunshine was spread all over the place (so put on a happy face :). One more clue of the change that I found kind of cute was the little palm tree in the corner of Spender's new office (and weren't those pictures of Bill Clinton and Janet Reno the ones from Skinner's old office? Hmmm . . . ). Another cue that we weren't in Kansas . . . er . . . Vancouver anymore were the guest actors gracing our television screen. Gone were the unknown Canadian actors such as Larry Musser, and Shelley Adam, or even Brendan Beiser and Nick Lea, and in their place were the more recognizable Los Angeles performers such as Wendie Malick, who also plays a fashion editor on the NBC comedy "Just Shoot Me." I'm sure actors in LA are just as good at their job as Canadian ones, but I have a hard time taking the show seriously when I can recognize key players. Somehow, it just doesn't seem real anymore, and this can undermine the believability of an already unbelievable plot. The final indication of the move came from the fact that I could no longer recognize where they were filming. I always loved doing a little Vancouver watching during the show . . . oh well. There's always Millennium for that.

"Grey skies are gonna clear up! Put on a happy face."

I'm so bad. I promised myself I wouldn't rant and rave about the new "LA" look of The X-Files like so many other reviewers have. I wanted to look at the merit of the show, its characters, and its plot. Where it's filmed shouldn't matter, right? :P Anyway, on to the stuff I originally intended to write about, the stuff that is and has always been the backbone of the series - characters and plot. But now that I think of it, it seems the move to LA has even changed that! (Oops! I forgot I'm not supposed to talk about that anymore.) Unfortunately, though, it's true. Now that David Duchovny has been allowed to move back to Los Angeles, he's no longer moody, and an upset David Duchovny always equaled a brooding Mulder. Now that DD's happy, Mulder's happy. That's just not right! How do I take him seriously when he's clad in golf shirts and chinos instead of business suits and trench coats? It's just not right! To top it all off, Mulder seems to have forgotten everything that happened just a few months ago in the movie, and is back to acting like a jerk again. He's bickering with Scully, breaking all the rules regarding crime scenes, and completely ignoring his superiors (though I did feel sorry for him trying to piece together all his carbonized files.) What happened to the sensitive, caring puppy dog we saw just a little while ago who literally went to the bottom of the world to save his partner's life? I miss him.

"Why do I bother?"

More and more it seems Scully ends up with the short end of the stick. First she got abducted by aliens, then she nearly died of cancer, then she had her daughter taken from her, then a bunch of evil government men kidnapped her and stuck her in a giant ice cube, and now she doesn't even get to wear a T-shirt and shorts when it's boiling hot out and even her partner is in casual clothes! Not to mention the fact that every theory she came up with during the course of the show was instantly shot down by Mulder, unless, of course, it agreed with his own beliefs. Nevertheless, this episode didn't constitute a total loss for her. There was always Gibson around for her to use her mothering skills on. Who wouldn't feel sorry for a little boy that had been dragged around after surgery, got an infection, had umpteen tests done on him, and then ended up trapped in a nuclear power plant with a slimy alien and a dead guy for company? However, I was quite shocked when Scully brought him to the hospital and he stated that all he truly was to her was ". . . a very special lab rat." I didn't get that impression at all! Then again, he can read minds, so maybe there was some truth in his statement. After all, she did state she wanted scientific evidence to back up Mulder's claims. I'm glad she hasn't thrown all that science has taught her. I don't want her to believe (for more information, please read my reviews of "Patient X/The Red and the Black"), but at the same time, it seems strange that she doesn't believe. Just how many times can she have her head in the snow as a spaceship zips by before the plot seems just a tad thin?

"I'm willing to believe, but not in a lie."

In many ways, the interaction between Mulder and Scully in "The Beginning" was the same as it always was. There was the crime scene visit, complete with we-shouldn't-being-doing-this Scully and look-at-the-alien-claw-I-found Mulder. There was the fervent cell phone interaction, and it was clear both Mulder and Scully are still very passionate about their work. No episode would be complete without a hand hold either, and this episode had that too. Even though Mulder and Scully ended up bickering more than agreeing on anything, the scenes between them were still the best in the episode.

In other ways, however, the exchanges between our intrepid agents were disturbingly hostile. They just couldn't seem to get along, and considering how their relationship had progressed in the movie, this was quite surprising. What could have happened in their lives for "You kept me honest . . . you made me a whole person. I owe you everything Scully, and you owe me nothing," to go to "What do you need, for this thing to bite you on the ass?" Excuse me as I give an exasperated sigh! Actually, that entire conversation disturbed me. I thought it was too rushed to address such an intense moment in the movie. Though that probably had more to do with the forty-three minute limit on the episode than anything else, I'm sure the presence of Diana didn't help their struggling relationship either. She was clearly the cause of Scullyditch number one for season six ("Gee Fox, I need your help at the nuclear power plant."). The fact she took over the X-Files didn't make her any popular either. The thing that surprised me the most, though, was that despite this, Mulder trusted her more than he did Scully. Even after she had stolen his job, even after she wouldn't let Mulder into the crime scene, even after she pointed her gun at him, and even after she had called him "Fox" about five billion times, Mulder still seemed to trust Diana more than Scully. All this just because Diana shared his beliefs and Scully didn't. :P I'm not *too* worried about Mulder and Scully relationship, however. I think Mulder's attitude in "The Beginning" had more to do with his anger over losing the X-Files and the evidence Gibson could provide him than any real grief with Scully. He has stated that Scully's science is what saved him, and I have to believe he meant that.

I hope I haven't been too negative up to this point. I really didn't think "The Beginning" was that bad. It had some good parts in it, really. Plot, for one. Oh sure, there were some plot holes and continuity errors, but there were also some nods to past episodes (Roush Technologies, for one, and an explanation why we'd never seen these green guys before - they're young grey dudes). On the whole, I thought the idea behind "The Beginning" was very intriguing as well. Up to this point, I couldn't really see where the mythology was going. Now, I can almost see how this idea that we all have an alien component to our DNA (those good ‘ol alien astronauts) might fit. It's an age-old belief that the earth is just a giant petri dish cultured by an alien force years ago as an experiment, and we're the bacteria. However, ever the scientist, I'm glad they didn't just deal with this aspect of the plot. There was a good mix of science and belief in this episode, which was, in fact, Chris Carter's original intent for The X-Files. We were presented with two ideas - one, that this virus is just regular, earthly DNA and proteins that attack cells, or two, this virus is alien DNA and proteins, and creates new alien life. We were never told which was right. That was left to us to decide. All we know is, whatever this thing is, Gibson, through some genetic difference, can detect it and we cannot. And though he may not be the "key" to the X-Files, he could at least provide some evidence that Mulder and Scully are not kooks. Too bad he had to go through so much pain in the process. Poor kid. :(

The underlying plot of "The Beginning" was good. The characters were good as well. Then why did it strike me as so . . . lame. Especially in the comedic aspect of the show. Homer? Pulease! There couldn't have been a more blatant reference to the Simpsons. What happened to the intelligent humour of "War of the Coprophages" or "Jose Chung's From Outer Space"? Of course, Chris Carter has never been the best comedian. Either his comedies work, or they don't. And most of the time, it didn't work in "The Beginning." (Well, except for that Men in Black line, which was rather cute. :) The teaser was too predictable (the alien is going to attack him. Oh look! He attacked him. How unpredictable. :P), some of Mulder's entrances into the power plant were a little too easy (how do you break into a high security nuclear plant twice in one evening?), but none of this disturbed me as much as Mulder and Scully's meeting with the panel. It seemed to me an attempt to explain the movie in 24 words or less. Why do we always have to suffer through this gross simplifications? Most people who tuned in on Sunday night were fans, and most fans saw the movie. Those who didn't see the movie can probably figure out what's happening anyway. If they can't, well, that is the nature of "The X-Files." Besides, an unintelligible story demands unintelligible analysis. :)

"I think we're on to something."

So where do we go from here? Will we ever find out what happened to Gibson and the alien, or will that just slip into the continuity garbage can like so many other plot threads? What about Cancerman's new evil plans for his arch nemesis? Will he ever be able to break Mulder's spirit, or will he simply go back to overseeing brain operations? How does Spender fit into all this? Will the show decide to stay in Los Angeles, or will it decide that Vancouver is really a better place to film? Unfortunately, I'm no Clyde Bruckman (heck, I'm not even a Stupendous Yappi!), so I don't have the answers to these questions. One thing is clear, however. Whatever happens, it will all start from "The Beginning."