The X-Files

Yeah, I was shocked at how well the tone held up 20 some odd years later. It's dark, cynical, occasionally too wry for the era, and generally quite understated (not always, when it's not understated it's a damn mess). That said, there are certain things that can't escape feeling 90's and bog the show down like SFX, hair, and wardrobe. In general, however, I think the narrative choices and more importantly the visual narrative choices really elevated the show to a new quality of television.
 
Shadows
- A regular MOTW episode. I liked how in the beginning it seemed it was to be about telekinesis/psychokinesis, whereas in the end it was just your regular ghost story :D I admit I didn't like the girl - something about the actress rubbed me off the wrong way, but in general it was a decent episode, IMHO. It might have been predictable, but that last scene with the coffee was quite funny :D

Ghost in the Machine
- Oh, dear Lord. I remembered this one as the worst MOTW episode I've ever seen... and it might not be that far from the truth. Suffice to say it's an episode about a killing computer ... with all the early 90's cheese that can be put into that idea :facepalm: I admit, it was very unintentionally funny. Othewise, avoid at all costs (I guess there's really nothing to miss)

- I liked the '59 Chevy Corvette (including the colour scheme). That has to count for something, right?

- That discount Steve Jobs was really unnecessary, now wasn't it?

- Oh yes, another agent... oops, he died. Imagine Gomer Pyle/The Wall: "Suprise, surprise, surprise..."

- Mulder's affinity for wacky ties probably culminates in that horrible one he has for the meeting with Deep Throat :D (I don't remember him doing it later in the series, though)
 
Shadows was a very mediocre early episode. Nothing terrible, but rather forgettable.

GITM...whoa buddy. Really bad on all levels. Any show from the 80's or 90's doing "big computer theme" episodes are always terrible. The first and second season have a lot of these Random Character of the Week that eventually go away. Mulder's wacky ties go away sooner rather than later :)
 
Ice

A cool (and famous) episode with really good atmosphere, even if it copies Carpenter's The Thing a bit too much ... especially considering the fact it simply cannot offer the same atmosphere (too few people + too little time, as it's just one standalone episode + the fact it's in television and so it must be tamer + the budget, partially). Also, I suspected the identity of the infected from very early on.
Since it was reversable, they could have made someone from the Dynamic Duo infected, right?
Still, an amazing television, IMHO. The whole "genuinely angry"/"infected" part was nicely done.

Space

I have read about how this one is widely hated by both critics and Carter alike and I really don't see why. I think it's a rather effective and nicely done "bottle episode" that actually allowed me to take it more seriously than some of the previous episodes (cough cough, Jersey Devil, cough).
People also tend to complain about the special effects, but the transformation of that bloke was quite weird and a bit creepy.
 
- Ice is one of my all-time favorite episodes. It does rip The Thing pretty shamelessly, but in my opinion it really shows how much Mulder and Scully's relationship has evolved in a very short period of time. Both Anderson and Duchovny really bring it in this episode and the guest stars are all pretty well cast. Great tension in the episode overall.

- Space gets a bad rep mostly for one reason: it's boring. It's just godawful boring. I'm not kidding, it took me 3 tries on my last rewatch to get through this episode without falling asleep. Also, Mulder and Scully don't really do anything in the episode.
 
I'd forgotten about Ice. That was good and creepy. Space seemed more like a psychological one than a paranormal one. Wasn't there a Johnny Depp film with a similar plot?
 
Eh, we had a gap. But now we're back on track.

Fallen Angel
I'm not sure how to comment on this one. I'm not even sure what to think about Max - he's either okay or annoying and I can't make up my mind. Liked the fact the existence of the X Files was threatened near the end and it was a solid, serious episode regarding all the alien shenanigans. But I don't know how to comment further.

Eve
Now this one was really cool. I don't know whether we're in the majority, but both me and me wife decided that we were pretty thrilled. Liked both the idea an the execution. The creepy twins worked, they left the "alien" idea pretty early on and the scene with 6 was weirdly disturbing.

Looking forward to Fire, I remember that one being memorable (or is that a pleonasm?).
 
Wow, that is a LONG hiatus from watching!

Fallen Angel was always one of my favorites from the early years, mostly for the light Predator vibes, but it doesn't really do much for me now that I've seen the series so many times. Eve was always underrated, IMO. That actress knocks it out of the park.

"Looking forward to Fire" is not how I'd describe it, but, um, have fun...
 
Saw the new season premiere last night.

Promising but confusing. So this is a prequel and a sequel at the same time to last season finale? What i like is more of the classic characters and less of the newer ones; that is something the previous season should have done. I also like the revisiting at the end of that episode with just Scully & CSM but this time with a big twist (shades of The Empire Strikes Back) from CSM.

We'll see how this plays out...
 
I've now watched the first two episodes of the new season and...

Please God, just let this show die. The premiere is easily the worst episode of the entire series, bar none. It's edited like one giant "Previously-On" segment, at breakneck pace with all the subtlety of "24", and there entire garbage fucking monologues throughout literally had me pulling my hair out. How the fuck did Chris Carter become this terrible? It's not The X-Files, it's not even a good TV show.

Episode 2 was much better, but still felt so very off. I hope the trend continues to get better from here, but I can't help feeling like the writers have simply lost their basic understanding of what made this show so great in the first place.
 
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