THE BEGINNING

Mulder and Scully act like their angsty season-5 selves and Mulder pretty much implies that he doesn't trust Scully. Scully acts very maternal towards Gibson Praise, calling him "Sweetheart" and stuff. We get to see a glimpse of Mommy!Scully and Daddy!Mulder with the whole Gibson situation, and it's a lovely sight. We are also treated to a lovely bit of continuity, when Scully verbally acknowledges what was said in the Hallway in the movie. But what ruins it for this viewer is the introduction of a teensy bit of speculation on where life on this planet came from. I would prefer that Mr. "I Don't Believe in Anything" Carter and his Scientific American- happy staff refrain from these Star Trekian musings and stick to government conspiracies.

DRIVE

The UberVince is at it again! After the despair that was season 5, and that sucky premiere, Vince renewed my faith in the show by giving us an ep that hearkens back to the days when even BAD eps were worth three or four viewings: season 2. Mulder was in fine former-season form as a headstrong smartass, and Scully was in rare former-season-but- with-a-new-edge form as the KickAssTakeNamesYellAtPeopleAndGoHelpMulder Scully we all know and love. In other words.... MULDER AND SCULLY WERE IN CHARACTER! Oh my stars, it's a sign of the Apocalypse! (no, wait, it's next week's ep "Triangle" that's the sign of the Apocalypse -- a shippy, awesome, TV-Guide-Hits-and- Misses-Gives-it-a-9-out-of-10 ep in wide screen format written by **CC**)

TRIANGLE

Oh my God... how shippy can we get? I am SPEECHLESS. Either Chris Carter has been reading fanfic or he is letting his inner shipper out to play. This was a beautifully filmed episode, and of course shippier than anything before. Mulder ACTUALLY SAID "I LOVE YOU". Of course, Scully's "Oh brother" was a little disconcerting, but never fear, dear shippers, I have it on good authority that she begins to admit to herself that she cares for him later on in the season. Now if she would just admit it to Mulder...

Dreamland 1

This was a great comedy ep... Mulder switches bodies with a Government employee when a UFO flies overhead -- and only they realize what has happened! Morris Fletcher, in Mulder's body, calls Scully "Dana," slaps her on the ass, acts generally obnoxious, and takes Kersh's secretary home for a nooner. The expression of blind rage on Scully's face when she sees the woman leaving Mulder's apartment is PRICELESS. Other classic scenes include Mulder dancing in front of Morris's mirror in his underwear: the reflection in the mirror is of Morris, and the ridiculous dance they do is PERFECTLY in synch; Scully getting peeved because "Mulder" isn't listening to her; Morris's wife demanding to know who this "Scully" is he mumbles about in his sleep; the overjoyed expression on Mulder's face when Scully arrives at Morris's house. A serious moment in the show comes in the very beginning, where Scully talks about wanting a normal life. She even POUTS at Mulder and acts very cute and Fanfic!Scullylike. Great ep; co-written by the Three Stooges, this one seems like Vince had more of a hand in it than his fellow writers.

Dreamland 1

Another good comedy ep... the scene where Morris tries to seduce Scully is a CLASSIC. They're both lying on the waterbed and he says, "Do you hate it?" and she says in this soft, wistful, wishful tone, "No, I don't hate it." She's looking up at the mirror over the bed, seeing her and "Mulder" reflected in it... this is some hard evidence that Scully wants Mulder! Unfortunately, she doesn't remember it now! Also forgotten: the Sunflower Seed Scene, where she utters the famous line "I'd kiss you if you weren't so damn ugly" to the REAL Mulder (in Morris's body) in the same wistful tone. Then as she turns to go, he says, "hey Scully?" She turns. He's holding something out to her in his fist. She opens her palm, and he drops some sunflower seeds into it, then takes one back and puts it in his mouth. On one of my mailing lists I read the GREATEST analysis of this scene... although it IS a little perverted <*g*>: Scully is opening herself [her palm] to Mulder and he is giving her his seed[s]. Rather Freudian, no? I like this explanation! It actually makes sense.

The Ghosts That Stole Christmas [?]

This was a classic Christmas ep with a good bit of gory, scary stuff, as well as the ghosts' psychoanalysis of Mulder and Scully. The shippy stuff was more than enough to balance it though: Scully getting freaked out and screaming and fainting when she sees the ghosts might not be overtly shippy but it does speak to her state of mind -- and the dropping of a lot of defenses. No more Denial!Scully, wooohooooooo!! [ahem. anyway...] The most romantic part of this ep comes at the end. The ghosts of the star-crossed lovers, Lyda and Maurice (played perfectly by Lily Tomlin and Ed Asner), sit in front of the fire in their armchairs, saying that they know the true meaning of Christmas. They reach over and hold hands... the clear message of this scene is that the true meaning of Christmas is to be with the one you love. CUT TO: Mulder's apartment, where he's watching a movie on TV. Knock, knock. It's Scully, who couldn't sleep. She came over to ask, What we saw didn't really happen, did it? [She's admitting that she needs his reassurance, people!] Mulder invites her in and gives her a Christmas present, even though they promised not to give each other anything. As it turns out, she bought something for him, too. They share a look, grinning, and run to the couch, sitting down and tearing into the wrapping, looking like excited little kids, as the camera pulls back... back... back... through the window and we see that it's snowing outside. [happy shipper sigh] You have to see the ep to really appreciate it. The one downside for this viewer came early on, as they're investigating the haunted house: Scully launches into a long-winded explanation of why people want to believe in ghosts. Her dispassionate scientific analysis is discordant, unpleasant, and downright thought-provoking [in a bad way]. In an episode that's supposed to be humorous, Carter and his goons don't need to trot out their little overly-scientific diatribes [see my review of "The Beginning]. Another unpleasant scene is when Mulder and Scully are writhing around the floor in their own blood, each thinking the other has shot them. Of course, it's just an illusion, but it's a very disturbing scene with the eerily appropriate strains of "Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas" [this reviewer's least favorite Christmas song ever] playing in background. Still, disturbing stuff aside, this was an awesome ep!

Terms of Endearment

The only good part of this episode, in my opinion, is the very last scene. Of course, that's more because of the song "Only Happy When it Rains" than anything else. One creepy thing for me is that Betsy looked exactly like my school's yearbook editor -- also named Betsy. And I had a REAL problem with Scully digging up the dead babies and not even reacting AT ALL... "Emily" anyone? Hellooo? Continuity???????

Rain King

This was a heartwarming ep... I liked it. But I went into it with expectations of a major 'ship-fest, and was disappointed. I did like Scully stroking Mulder's hair and asking in that sweet little voice about head trauma. I loved the cow scene and Mulder's OH SHIT look when he realized what was happening. What angered me was that Mulder seemed totally honest and serious when he said he is perfectly happy with his friendship with Scully... if he was in love with her, he would've sounded hesitant and like he was lying... because if he loved her he WOULDN'T be satisfied just being friends with her.

S.R. 819

This was a classic X-File, very interesting and suspenseful... "D.O.A." X-Files style, as it has been called by some. The return of Senator Matheson was a nice bit of continuity.

Tithonus

This episode was beautifully filmed and wonderfully written. Vince Gilligan really outdid himself. If he was going for a really scary, disturbing episode that totally freaked viewers out, he succeeded. That's why this episode rates three stars on a quality scale... I didn't particularly like it, I thought the shooting scene was ENTIRELY too disturbing, Felig's perspective too negative, and Mulder's last line EXTREMELY terrifying. X-Files are supposed to be scary, yes, but this was scary in a SUBSTANTIAL way. I'll thank Chris Carter and his pals to stop making us think about the big unanswerable questions of life.

Two Fathers

Marginal mytharc episode revolving around the return of Cassandra Spender and Jeff Spender's involvement with the Cancer Man. The highlight is when Mulder's playing basketball and Scully shows up - his face lights up and he starts showing off for her. He also CHECKS HER OUT. No, seriously, he does.

One Son

This one gets no rating because it pissed me off ROYALLY. First of all, Diana Fowley has Mulder and Scully decontaminated, and they're showering, and they DON'T EVEN CHECK EACH OTHER OUT. Mulder glances at Scully and she gives him a look and turns away. Then later on Scully gets jealous as hell and pissed off at Mulder because he defends Fowley. But the TOTAL BETRAYAL BY CC AND HIS BOYS comes when Scully shows Mulder HARD EVIDENCE that Diana is dirty and HE DEFENDS THE BITCH. He does go to her apartment to check things out, but she KISSES HIM AND HE DOESN'T PUSH HER AWAY - HE PULLS HER INTO A HUG. DAMN CHRIS CARTER. The mythology stuff sucked too. I WANT SPENDER AND WELL FED MAN BACK!!!!!!!!

Arcadia

Chris Carter and Co.'s treachery continues. I liked this episode a lot, it was entertaining, funny, and NOT thought-provoking. Mulder and Scully as a married couple were just hilarious to watch... Mulder's "Go into the kitchen, woman, and make me a sammich!" is probably the funniest Mulderism I've heard in a long time. Scully's bitching about the toothpaste tube and the toilet seat, then emerging from the bathroom in a green face mask and flannel pajamas was classic also. The best part was when Mulder patted the bed, inviting Scully to lie beside him and saying "We ARE married now." She sends him packing though, and as he walks away with his pillow in hand he says, "The thrill is gone." However, this episode depressed me because while Mulder wholeheartedly enjoyed playing house with Scully [even as he accused her of just wanting to play house], hugging her and touching her constantly and having a GREAT time of it as though wishing they really were married, Scully was extremely uncomfortable and looked as though she was about to push him away most of the time. I can't really blame the writer too much because he was a freelancer/new staffer and wrote this episode as though he had never watched the show, then watched a few old episodes when his agent finagled him an interview. I blame Chris Carter, who is backpedaling fast. It was a good bit of continuity after One Son to have Scully be so impatient with Mulder, but Carter seems to want to play it out to its conclusion, which I'll bet money includes Mulder going back to Diana. Hopefully they'll get some real evidence that she's dirty in the season finale/premiere. But I digress. This was a FUN episode despite the hints of Scully's displeasure with Mulder... you can tell the actors thoroughly enjoyed making this one, and it's always nice to see the actors having fun.

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