The X-Files: The Complete Eighth Season (1993) Review

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(More customer reviews)Season 8 (21 episodes airing 2000-2001) was the most atypical of all nine years of THE X FILES for several reasons:
1. Much of the season makes due without the services of David Duchovny.
2. New characters, assuming key roles, are introduced.
3. An unprecedented percentage (nearly half) of the episodes are devoted to the mythology arc.
There is a noticeable, almost "symphonic", symmetry to the season (composer Mark Snow's haunting "Scully theme" functioning as "idee fixe") with the mythology arc divided into several well-defined sections: an opening 2-part prelude, massive 5-part mid season "adagio" and grand 2-part finale.
The loss of David Duchovny's full participation actually had the effect of re-focusing THE X FILES. Chris Carter and company were put to the test in coming up with an interesting and (somewhat) cohesive storyline that would work around the practical ( business related ) realities they faced behind the scenes. Though not without missteps, Season 8 succeeded both in revitalizing the dramatic intensity of the myth arc and maintaining the shows inexorable momentum toward a conclusion revealing much of Chris Carter's longstanding underground project.
In Season 8 Gillian Anderson became the lynchpin of THE X FILES, continuing to summon up her considerable skills in service to the show. The casting of Robert Patrick as Agent John Doggett was a stroke of genius; Doggett was written and acted in complete distinction to Mulder. This well-planned strategy allowed the imaginative landscape of THE X FILES to be viewed through the fresh eyes of a new character; in the process, some of the excitement of the show's early years was regained for longtime aficionados. Additionally, a measure of stability and strength is found in the season-long emphasis of producing truly serious scripts. The result is a consistently "dark" mood, similar to the melancholia found throughout Season 4. In fact, only in a short midseason slump did the show exhibit signs of true weakness.
The "stand alone" scripts, while certainly not the main emphasis of Season 8, were noticeable improvements over the previous season:
Vince Gilligan's ultra-violent "Roadrunners" (his only contribution in Season 8) is the single finest "stand alone" of the year, a savage parody of a religious sect ( barely disguised ) combined with an homage to the sci-fi classic "Invasion of the Body Snatchers". This is the first episode (aired early in the season) in which it is apparent that Gillian Anderson and Robert Patrick really "click" as a team; a most fortunate happenstance as the fate of the remaining two years depend in large part on their convincing onscreen chemistry. THE X FILES would never have maintained its integrity had the (platonic) Scully/Doggett partnership failed onscreen.
David Amann's moving "Invocation" is the first of several episodes over the course of the final 2 seasons that deal with the past event that most shaped Agent Doggett: the kidnapping and murder of his son ("Empedocles" was the other script so featured in Season 8).
Longtime staff writer Frank Spotnitz has a very prominent role in shaping Season 8; in addition to co-writing several episodes with Chris Carter, Spotnitz penned several solo scripts:
The excellent "Via Negativa", in addition to being superior on its own terms, has the additional virtue (shared with "Invocation") of allowing Robert Patrick to flesh out his character (David Lynch style cinematography adds a visually disturbing element to the storyline).
"The Gift" is one of the strangest X FILES episodes ever produced, a hallucinatory combination of "stand alone" and "mythology", all the more bizarre for the flashbacks which (purportedly) explain Mulder's pre-abduction illness.
"Alone" (aired late in the season) is essentially written for the elegiac touches of its final minutes, with Scully and Mulder humorously yet touchingly "passing the torch" on to a young and admiring FBI agent, the latter character symbolic of the legions of loyal (and often demanding) "X-Philes".
Regarding the failures in Season 8:
"Salvage", "Sure kill" and especially the execrable "Baddlea" should never have been aired. One of the most valuable aspects of this complete DVD set will be to allow the viewer to bypass inferior episodes and concentrate on the otherwise laudable unity demonstrated throughout Season 8.
Regarding the mythology arc:
The aforementioned symphonic structure of the season begins with Chris Carter's two-parter ("Within"/"Without"), which has the pregnant Scully searching for an abducted Mulder.
Carter and Spotnitz collaborate on the pivotal mid season block of mythology episodes dealing with the death and resurrection of Fox Mulder. One cannot help but notice the debt owed to the 2nd/3rd season trilogy ("Anasazi" / "The Blessing Way" / "Paper Clip" ).
Chris Carter wrote the season finale ("Essence"/"Existence"), which is the mirror image (in terms of title and plot) of the season opener. The series' philosophical (indeed, theological) underpinnings, while by no means hidden in previous seasons, are laid bare with allusions and typological references to the New Testament (as well as the metaphysics of Aquinas reflected in the episode titles).
While "Essence"/"Existence" was fashioned in such a way as to provide a satisfactory conclusion to both the 8th season and the series as a whole (should it have ended in 2001), it turned out that many of its themes would be carried over into what would in actuality become the final year. THE X FILES would eventually complete its long (9 year) run in artistic and spiritual unity; a testimony to the integrity of cast, writers, crew and (above all) creative vision of Chris Carter.


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The X-Files: The Complete Sixth Season (1993) Review

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(More customer reviews)Producer Chris Carter, for various reasons, chief among them being Fox's probable insistence, has moved the entire production to California from Vancouver. This is notable as some of the scenery for the show changes to scenes in various western states and more prominently in the availability of bigger named guest stars. On the whole though, at least for this first season out west, these changes serve as an enhancement to the outstanding experience that is "The X-Files." Season six is another excellent season that fluidly picks up where the movie, "Fight the Future" left off.
The mythology episodes:
"The Beginning" An FBI committee decides that yes, the X-Files will be reopened, they will not however, include Agents Mulder and Scully. Agents Spinder and Fowler will take that role, both with a huge helping of duplicity. AD Skinner is still on their side though and leads them towards a case that involves the Alien/Syndicate conspiracy. Gibson Praise makes a return as well. "SR 819" Krycek makes a new appearance and he targets AD Skinner with alien created nanite technology.
"Two Fathers" & "One Son" Long awaited truths are finally revealed about the fifty year conspiracy between the syndicate and the aliens. The syndicate is all but destroyed by the alien rebels. Simply stated, these are the two episodes that every fan had been waiting five years for. No disappointment whatsoever.
"The Unnatural" I list this as a mythology episode, as it simply does not fit as a stand alone. This episode is singularly the best episode of the season as it contains some great humor and one of the most touching endings of the season. We are treated to meeting Arthur Dale or actually his brother, as he tells Mulder the tale of when he met his first alien.
"Biogenesis" As we learned in "One Son," the Syndicate is gone and with it the Alien/Syndicate conspiracy. Now we're treated to a new track on the mythology, as there still seems to be some sort of conspiracy evidenced by the discovery of an alien ship in Africa and Fox ending up in a loony bin. The conclusion will be on the Season Seven set.
Stand alone episodes:
"Drive" Our heroes run into a man who must continue moving west at a high rate of speed or his head will explode. "Triangle" a true X-Files classic as Mulder goes on a search for a ship that's been missing from the Bermuda Triangle since prior to WWII.
"Dreamland & Dreamland II" Mulder and Scully take a trip to Area 51, where they run into the "Men in Black" and they witness a UFO which literally makes Mulder switch bodies with one of the MIB's. These are simply two of the finest and most hilarious X-Files episodes of the entire nine year run. "How the Ghosts Stole Christmas" a beautifully well written episode guest starring Ed Asner and Lily Tomlin.
"Terms of Endearment" another extremely well written episode as our heroes visit Roanoke, VA and run across a bedraggled demon who is in search of a normal child. This episode has another one of those wonderfully well written ironic endings that only Chris Carter is capable of. "The Rain King" Mulder and Scully take a trip to Kansas to investigate a man who can supposedly make rain at will. This episode is replete with some of the series most hilarious lines.
"Agua Mala" Mulder and Scully take a trip to Florida in the middle of a hurricane to investigate a family's disappearance and discover a sea creature. "Monday" this is an X-Files homage to "Ground Hog Day," that is superbly written and played. "Arcadia" in this beautiful episode our erstwhile heroes pose undercover as husband and wife to discover why three couples have disappeared from a planned community.
"Alpha" Mulder and Scully are summoned by an internet friend of his to find a mysterious wild animal that has been shipped to the US that has killed two merchant marines and then disappears. "Trevor" is an intriguing episode in which Mulder and Scully set off to find a prison escapee who supposedly died in a tornado, yet he's on the loose and exhibiting some interesting abilities.
"Milagro" this is an interesting yet horrifying episode in which a writer, fascinated with Scully moves in next to Mulder and begins spying on her. Meanwhile Mulder and Scully are investigating several deaths where victims' hearts have been removed, but there is no evidence as to how. "Three of a Kind" the quintessential "Lone Gunmen" episode that just shines with a pure brilliance that may well have been the precursor to their short lived spin off series. "Field Trip" our two heroes end up in North Carolina and run into a hallucinogenic fungal mountain. This episode definitely breeches the different barrier, even for this series!
Special features - Included, as with the other season's boxed sets, are some great special features to include my personal favorite - "Character profile on the Cigarette Smoking Man." The cover art for the boxed set and DVD's is fantastic as well. {ssintrepid}
Episode list:
The Beginning {mythology}
Drive
Triangle
Dreamland
Dreamland II
How the Ghosts Stole Christmas
Terms of Endearment
The Rain King
S.R. 819 {mythology}
Tithonus
Two Fathers {mythology}
One Son {mythology}
Agua Mala
Monday
Arcadia
Alpha
Trevor
Milagro
The Unnatural {mythology}
Three of a Kind
Field Trip
Biogenesis {mythology}

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Studio: TcfheRelease Date: 12/02/2008Run time: 820 minutesRating: Nr

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The X-Files: The Complete Seventh Season (1993) Review

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(More customer reviews)The new slimpack releases of Seasons 7 through 9-which are essentially the original sets with the extras disc removed as well as many other special features-will complete the entire rerelease of all the X-FILES in affordable editions. I've been disappointed to find many of the special features missing in the first six volumes, but given that I couldn't afford the original editions, I'm all in all delighted to finally own my own copies, instead of relying on video stores and Netflix.
Season Seven is, on the one hand, unquestionably the weakest of the first seven that featured David Duchovny fulltime, and perhaps even weaker than Season Eight when Duchovny was only a part time member of the cast. On the other hand, the series still had more outstanding episodes than the vast majority of shows in TV history. So, my five-star rating reflects the show compared with other series, not with other seasons in its own run. In my opinion, the only season weaker than this one is the unfortunate Season Nine, with the near complete loss of David Duchovny and the weak overall story line.
Why did Season Seven fail to measure up to other X-Files seasons? First, there was the loss of the overall alien colonization story line. The season starts with a carry over of the final episode of Season Six, that seems to be reasserting an alien arc, but in fact this is a false promise, and the story told in that brief arc more or less disappears from the show. The problem, in fact, the show had in its final three seasons was the lack of a consistent and compelling story arc. There are efforts at story arcs, but the "super soldiers" arc that becomes full blown in Season Nine was riffled with inconsistencies, and was definitely not compelling. Still, the loss of Mulder in Season Eight provided a focus for that Season, while Season Nine at least had the opportunity of exploring the new partnership of Doggett and Reyes. Season Seven essentially had memories of the six seasons that preceded it.
Nonetheless, Season Seven still contained many absolutely outstanding individual episodes. From beginning to end of the series, the writers never lost the ability to concoct a killer tale to be told in 43 minutes. "X-Cops" is a classic among the Mulder-Scully parody episodes, with the real-life production crew of the show COPS capturing the duo on videotape as an X-File collides with a police investigation supposedly being covered for the show. Typically, Scully spends most of the episode glaring disdainfully at the cameramen, while Mulder delightfully welcomes their presence. The dramatic highlight might be the heart-rending two-parter of "Sein und Zeit" (with apologies to Martin Heidegger) and "Closure," which features one of the best single-episode guest appearances ever by Anthony Heald (a role so outstanding that a reprisal of the role would have seem necessary, but which sadly never occurred) as a man who claims he has visions of departed children. Images from those episodes are among some of the most haunting in the series of the show. "Millennium" features what is technically Mulder and Scully's first kiss (with Mulder commenting afterwards, technically commenting on the Y2K predictions of disaster, "See, the world didn't end"). The intensely romantic non-romance between Mulder and Scully becomes such a joke that in "Fight Club" Mulder mentions a doppelganger pair of agents who had, believe it or not, been together for seven years but had not had a romantic relationship. "En Ami" is a marvelous swan song for the Cigarette Smoking Man, as he persuades Scully to help him in a caper (he would reappear later in the season to die, but would thereafter tragically be missing from the show, another problem the show had in its final two seasons). "all things" (lower cap) is my personal favorite of the season, an absolutely astonishing tour de force by Gillian Anderson that reveals depths of talent in a host of directions that no one could have anticipated. She wrote, directed, and acted in the episode (with Mulder largely absent) as Scully unexpectedly reencounters a former professor/mentor, a man who was married at the time she and he had what was evidently a torrid love affair, revealing more about Scully's past than we had ever learned before. The show is outstanding on multiple levels, including visually and narratively (as well as musically, helped not merely by Mark Snow's usually brilliant score but by contributions by Moby). It also features the best teaser in the history of the show, with Scully at the beginning dressing in what turns out to be Mulder's bathroom, and leaving the apartment with a naked Mulder in his bed. The episode is so outstanding the viewer is only left to wonder why Gillian Anderson wrote and directed only this one. Probably my favorite Scully episode since the one where she learned that she had, inexplicably, a genetic daughter.
There were also some disappointing moments. "Hollywood A.D." simultaneously was one of the funniest and worse episodes, a weak X-file with a funny backstory of a Hollywood producer (a friend of Skinner) following Mulder and Scully in order to gather background for a Hollywood film. Though much in the episode is wooden, there are some precious moments, such as the producer talking in the phone to studio execs: "No, its an optical illusion. She is actually quite tall" (obviously referring to Scully--I have always been extremely sceptical about the 5'3 or 5'2 that is often given as Gillian Anderson's height). Also wonderful is the exquisite pairing the wildly improbable Gary Shandling as Fox Mulder with Tea Leoni (in real life Mrs. David Duchovny) as Scully. Anyone who saw Gary Shandling's THE LARRY SANDERS SHOW knows that David Duchovny was one of "Larry Sanders's" more frequent guests, with many jokes about Duchovny having a cursh on Sanders, so that Shandling's playing Mulder is a fairly complex in-joke. Another perfect moment in the episode is Leoni asking Scully to show her how she is able to run in heels. We then see while Shandling and Mulder talk in the foreground, Scully in the distant background sprinting from one side of the stage to the other while Leoni looks on.
But for me the biggest disappointment is the final episode, "Requiem," which is more or less Mulder's exit from the show. Although he would reappear in a few episodes in the final two seasons, this episode ends the seven-season partnership between Mulder and Scully. The episode, despite some fine moments, just didn't seem to have the "gravitas" that such a key episode would seem to require. It did nicely take place in the same town in Oregon that saw Mulder and Scully have their first adventure together in Season One, but all in all it was not one of the more remarkable episodes.
In the end, the ending of the greatest partnership in TV history is what creates an indescribable sadness at the end of the season. There would be two final seasons, with many great new episodes, but if you had to point to the single thing that made THE X-FILES such an amazing phenomena, it was--along with the great writing--the exquisite pairing of Gillian Anderson and David Duchovny as Mulder and Scully. Many of us remain hopeful that there will be a future movie. We know that the key figures have discussed it and have all expressed a willingness. But so far we have had no definite indications that Mulder and Scully will get together again. Hopefully the truth is out there.

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The X-Files: The Complete Fourth Season (1993) Review

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(More customer reviews)In the fourth season of The X-Files, X is killed, we find out a little of CSM's background, Scully comes down with brain cancer, Skinner confronts CMS and Krycek is back (he was entombed in a Silo in the 3rd season).
All 24 episodes are on 7 discs, with documentaries, deleted scenes, etc.
Episodes:
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1) Herrenvolk - Continuing from the cliffhanger of season three, Mulder and Jeremiah Smith escape the alien's assassin. They go to a farming community, Mulder sees a clone of his sister, Scully finds a number of Jeremiah look-alikes, and X is killed.
2) Home - Mulder and Scully investigate the Peacocks that practice inbreeding.
3) Teliko - Mulder and Scully investigate a Teliko that must consume the fluid of the human pituitary gland.
4) Unruhe - Mulder and Scully investigate Gerry Schnauz who has the ability to imprint images on film he is near.
5) The Field Where I Died - The FBI investigate a cult called the Temple of the Seven Stars after allegations of child abuse.
6) Sanguinarium - Mulder and Scully investigate doctors that go "crazy" and murder their patients.
7) Musings of a Cigarette Smoking Man - In this episode, we find out a little background of CSM as told by the Lone Gunmen. Who killed President John F. Kennedy? Who killed Martin Luther King?
8) Tunguska - Krycek is back! Mulder again retrains from killing him. Krycek and Mulder travel to Russia and Black worms are released from a "Space Rock" and Mulder is injected with the "Back Cancer."
9) Terma - Mulder and Krycek escape from Russia. A KBG assassin is sent to the U.S. to kill people that know about the Black Cancer.
10) Paper Hearts - Mulder has a dream that leads him to the body of a murdered child and believes that the killer is John Lee Roche who he arrested and put in jail years ago.
11) El Mundo Gira - Mulder and Scully find corpses infested with a strange fungus.
12) Leonard Betts - Mulder and Scully investigate Leonard Betts, who has the ability to "re-grow" body parts (e.g., he grows a new head).
13) Never Again - In this episode Scully is investigating a man, Ed, with a tattoo that has the words "Never Again." Ed hears voices from his tattoo.
14) Memento Mori - Scully learns that she has brain cancer.
15) Kaddish - Isaac Luria is killed in his store by a few teenager boys. One by one the boys turn up dead.
16) Unrequited - Mulder and Scully investigate the killing of Lt. General MacDougal. The strange part is it is done in the back of his limo and no one saw it happen, not even his driver.
17) Tempus Fugit (part 1) - Mulder is informed that Max Fening (from "Fallen Angel" episode) has died in a plane crash. Fox goes to the crash site and discovers that the wristwatches stopped 9 minutes before the crash.
18) Max (part 2) - Mulder is taken into custody and bailed out by Scully. They find a videotape with evidence that the government is using alien technology.
19) Synchrony - Mulder and Scully investigate a man who seems to have the ability to predict when someone is going to die. The man is actually from the future.
20) Small Potatoes - Mulder and Scully are called to investigate a town where babies are being born with tails.
21) Zero Sum - Mulder investigates a mailman that was killed by bees and Skinner makes a deal with CMS to save Scully's life.
22) Elegy - Scully investigates the murder at a bowling alley but the strange part is that a number of people see the same woman at the same time in different places.
23) Demons - Mulder wakes up in a motel, he has no idea how he got there, where he has blood on his shirt that belongs to a couple that were murdered.
24) Gethsemane - Mulder travels to the north with someone that believes they have found an alien. When they arrive at the camp, they find everyone dead except for one person.

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Now you can own the entire fourth season of THE X-FILES?. ALL 24 classic episodes are availale for the first time in this exclusive 6-disc collector's edition. From "Herrenvolk," "Home," "Tunguska," and "Terma" to "Memento Mori," "Max," "Small Potatoes," and "Gethsemane," these Season Four episodes are a must for every X-Files fan.

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The X-Files: The Complete First Season (1993) Review

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(More customer reviews)"The X-Files" is an excellent fit for DVD---beautifully shot, a mythology deep enough to keep teenagers buying background material, and a rabid fan following noted for their penchant to purchase anything "X".
Having collected several of the collector's sets on VHS, like many I was frustrated by the lack of completeness in each release, with a season represented by only 25% of its episodes. While this is acceptable for the casual fans, it proved exruciating for the true X-phile, as invariably favorite episodes were left out of the mix.
This situation has been rectified with the release of the entire first season of the show on DVD in a seven-disc collection. It is now possible to watch each episode commercial-free and in sequence in a digital-quality medium. In addition, an extras disc has been added (details are listed above), including a DVD-ROM computer game.
Having completed my viewing of the entire 1st set, several observations came to mind: - The "X-Files", almost unique in episodic television, hit the airwaves fully-formed. There is precious little difference in tone or execution between the pilot and subsequent episodes. - Whereas some of the 3rd and 4th season episodes saw a noticeable decline in quality (due to the loss of key writers and Chris Carter's focus elsewhere), the 1st season episodes are generally superbly-written.
Unfortunately, my cut of this collection did suffer from noticeable editing problems. Nothing major, typically just a couple of misaligned frames at chapter cuts, but let's face it--for this kind of money, it should be flawless.
Nonetheless, I highly recommend this collection.

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Get reacquainted with Dana Scully (Gillian Anderson), Fox Mulder (David Duchovny), and all the clever plots dealing with the occult, monsters, urban legends, conspiracy theories, and the rest that made this show an uncanny hit.

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Bleak House (2009) Review

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(More customer reviews)For once, I am happy to find a remake of a fine old Masterpiece Theatre offering that is as good as the original. "Bleak House" is currently available on an DVD with Diana Rigg as the most familiar name; and except for some incomprehensible line readings by a young character named Joe, it is a very good account of the Dickens novel. Having already appeared on Public Television, the remake has Gillian Anderson (yes, the one from "X-Files") as Lady Dedlock, and a cast of 80 speaking roles, many of which are played by actors that will send you searching the cast listings that go by too quickly at the end of each episode.The eight parts will be shown so that the first and last will run two hours and the four in between an hour each. I found the complex plot actually easier to follow in this version than I did in the earlier one. And while I prefer Rigg to Anderson, I think I can easily recommend this new adaptation over the other.The story--lawyers will hate it--involves the infamous Court of Chancery in which disputes over estates can be buried for years until the lawyers' fees make further legalizing unnecessary. Against this background, the case of Jarndyce vs. Jarndyce being a major part of it, we have the story of John Jarndyce (Denis Lawson), his ward Ada (Carey Mulligan), her companion Esther (Anna Maxwell Martin), and Ada's beloved Richard (Patrick Kennedy).The latter becomes obsessed with the case, while Esther becomes involved in the mysterious past of Lady Dedlock, who happens to recognize the handwriting on some legal documents delivered by the utterly immoral family solicitor Tulkinghorn (Charles Dance). I will not reveal any more of the plot, lest it spoil your enjoyment. You will wind up guessing much of it, but it is a lot of fun--unless you are a lawyer.Peripheral to the plot are the usual cast of Dickens "characters": Krook the junkman (Johnny Vegas) who finds some incriminating letters (and dies the strangest death in all fiction), Smallweed the moneylender (Phil Davis) who cannot walk by himself and must be "shaken up" by his weird niece every few minutes and who gets the letters, and Miss Flite ( Pauline Collins) who looks forward to "judgment day" when her case will finally be settled and she can set her birds free.Most interesting of all is the policeman Bucket (Alun Armstong), the first real detective in English fiction. Although he looks like a toady for the rich, he does his job and does it well, solving a murder case and being considerate to a certain lady who would suffer if her connection with the case should come out.Of course, the arm of coincidence in Dickens is a long one; and while a good deal of the plot does strain credulity, the acting and period ambience are of the highest level. The only thing that annoyed me was the director segmenting his "establishing shots" (exterior views of buildings to let us know where we are) into two or three rapid cuts with some electronic "whoosh" for each one. Pretentious and irritating after the first dozen or so.


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