The New X-Files

Having watched four of the six episodes now, my opinion is more or less the same as it was after the first one: it's pretty good, not great, and therefore a bit of a disappointment. It depends partly on what kind of X-Files fan you are. Did you like the continuing UFO story, or did you prefer the standalone "monster of the week" episodes? I liked the latter but I thought the former was where the show's real strength and promise were. But they blew it–for whatever reasons, including not knowing whether they would be renewed from one year to the next or which actors would bail out, the story fell apart.

So I was kind of hoping that in the new one they would have in mind a complete and coherent story that would have something similar to the vibe of the UFO story, maybe be related to it. But it appears that they're going in the other direction. At least they have so far. I won't go into any detail in case you plan to see it but haven't yet. Also, it has something of a going-through-the-motions feel to me. And I think they're spending too much time making wry ironic references to the original.

Still, I think any fan of the original would probably find it worth watching.

Very wisely, they are using the original opening credits (as far as I can tell), even though Mulder and Scully look a lot older now (because they are).

 

 


24 responses to “The New X-Files”

  1. I guess I’m gonna have to watch them.
    AMDG

  2. I never watched it regularly. I really enjoyed the “monster of the week” episodes, but felt I’d missed too much to follow the longer story arc.

  3. It tended toward incoherence, and eventually got there. But the atmosphere was very effective.

  4. I really like the funny ones because they were really funny.
    AMDG

  5. I would say that your post is a pretty accurate assessment of what I saw this evening.
    I had completely forgotten Skinner, and I think he was my favorite character in the show.
    AMDG

  6. Did you watch the first one? I always liked the funny ones, too. There’s definitely some of that in the new series.

  7. I’ve always felt like going back and watching just the alien ‘arc’ episodes. I’ve seen a few of the stand-alones off and on over the years and enjoyed them, but I’ve never rewatched any of the arc ones.

  8. Yes, I’m only doing one at a time. It says something about the new show that I didn’t have a hard time not watching the second one.
    I’m willing to bet, Rob, that somewhere online you could find a list of the shows in the arc. That would be interesting.
    AMDG

  9. Yes, there is a list like that Janet. I think it may be on the show’s wikipedia entry.

  10. I was about to say you wouldn’t have a good way of knowing which episodes were in that arc. Should have known somebody would have made a list. Yes, that could be interesting. You could see just where it comes unglued.:-)

  11. That second one was rather disturbing, but I have to say that this time I really did have trouble not watching a second one.
    I see that Scully and Mulder still do not know how to flip on a light switch.
    AMDG

  12. I wasn’t keen on that one and almost didn’t watch the third. It ended up being kind of interesting, though.
    They actually make a joke about the flashlights in the fourth episode. One of the references to the original series.

  13. Well, of course, there was the required propaganda, and it was awful in many ways, but I’m curious about the last event and what will follow.
    If there was ever a better way to let your enemy know right where you are, I’m not sure what it would be.
    AMDG

  14. What do you mean?

  15. About letting your enemy know where you are? You’re in a pitch dark room and you have a flash light.
    AMDG

  16. Oh, of course. Duh.

  17. See, you would have been dead. I may have saved your life.
    AMDG

  18. I appreciate it.

  19. Three was pretty good.
    AMDG

  20. Yeah. I didn’t think it was going to be and after the intro almost decided not to watch it, but it took an interesting twist.

  21. It would have been too bad if you had turned it off just when it was about to get good.
    AMDG

  22. Yes. I think I might actually watch it again, because a lot of it went by so quickly that I don’t think I got it. Actually the point where I did turn it off was way before that–in the opening scene. My wife and I were watching it and neither of us felt like watching yet another monster of the week, and one that didn’t seem particularly distinctive. But I didn’t delete it from the dvr and later decided to give it a try.

  23. Watched 5 last night and got the impression that the writers just didn’t have much to write about.
    AMDG

  24. Yes, pretty…[shrug]…

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