The X-Files Revival: All Speculation Leads to the Truth

[AntiBeeSpray]

It's for real you guys!!! Skinner is officially coming back! *dances around like Kermit*

 

the good news is from here

 

Source: his twitter feed

[M.F. Luder]

Yay! It wouldn't be the same without him. I hope he has a bigger role than the one he had in IWTB. 

[AntiBeeSpray]

Yay! It wouldn't be the same without him. I hope he has a bigger role than the one he had in IWTB. 

 

Yea it wouldn't. I hope so too. And hopefully the writing and scripts will be good.

[HalcyonDays]

It's for real you guys!!! Skinner is officially coming back! *dances around like Kermit*

 

the good news is from here

 

Source: his twitter feed

 

YEAH!!! His tweet is HILARIOUS!

 

Apparently William B. Davis is coming back too...based on the text in this link.

[Bastet]

Ha!  I hadn't clicked on the link to read his actual tweet, but after your post I did.  Hilarious:

 

Very happy to announce that Walter Skinner will once again be getting all grumpy and bitchy with his two wayward kids. Very happy.

[AntiBeeSpray]

Ha!  I hadn't clicked on the link to read his actual tweet, but after your post I did.  Hilarious:

 

Yea it's priceless :P :). So cute.

YEAH!!! His tweet is HILARIOUS!

 

Apparently William B. Davis is coming back too...based on the text in this link.

 

I can't read it :(. The link isn't loading. And neither is Livejournal as a whole right now. It's timing out.

 

What's the gist?

[M.F. Luder]

 

 

I can't read it :(. The link isn't loading.

What's the gist?

 

It's just a link to Mitch's tweet and then one sentence that says "William B. Davis has also closed his deal to return." No official source given, but it's probably true.

[AntiBeeSpray]

It's just a link to Mitch's tweet and then one sentence that says "William B. Davis has also closed his deal to return." No official source given, but it's probably true.

 

Oh I see.

 

Dang. I was hoping that wasn't the case. :\

[M.F. Luder]

 

Dang. I was hoping that wasn't the case. :\

 

Me too. But I hope it's just flashback scenes or something. I can't think of a good reason why he would still be alive today. If they were going to resurrect dead characters, I wish they had chosen Krycek. 

[AntiBeeSpray]

Me too. But I hope it's just flashback scenes or something. I can't think of a good reason why he would still be alive today. If they were going to resurrect dead characters, I wish they had chosen Krycek. 

 

That's where I'm at as well. If they go any other route it wouldn't really be all that believable.

[Bastet]

I'd love to see CSM in a flashback or in some other way that makes sense (given the fact he, like Howard Graves, is very dead) because William B. Davis made a terrific villain who was a huge part of the show.  But if he's alive, or a clone, or a twin, or something like that - no thanks.  If they're resurrecting characters, my vote is for the Gunmen.

[AntiBeeSpray]

I'd love to see CSM in a flashback or in some other way that makes sense (given the fact he, like Howard Graves, is very dead) because William B. Davis made a terrific villain who was a huge part of the show.  But if he's alive, or a clone, or a twin, or something like that - no thanks.  If they're resurrecting characters, my vote is for the Gunmen.

 

I don't mind a clone too much as long as it doesn't take over the show.

 

Same. I'd rather see the Lone Gunmen again.

[M.F. Luder]

I agree, the Gunmen would be the best characters to bring back. Their deaths were so unnecessary! I'll miss Frohike the most :(

[sinkwriter]

In my head, they never died.  (*GRIN*)

[AntiBeeSpray]

Nothing like watching The Unnatural, love this ep. Hope we get one like it. The flirting was superb ;).

 

And rather awkward :P. Damn, I didn't realize just how uncomfortable/awkward she looked during parts of that end scene (only at the beginning of the scene -- it was too cute :P) lol. It really stands out by comparison to the bed scene in IWTB. It's like night and day. 

 

They both did a REALLY good job in that one. Not that The Unnatural is bad in any way. Still love it, but they've really gotten better at their acting. And it shows :). 

[M.F. Luder]

I didn't really see anything awkward in the Mulder/Scully scenes in The Unnatural. Those scenes are the only thing I like about the episode. Otherwise, the episode is really boring to me. Let's hope that David has some influence on how Mulder and Scully interact in the new season, because he really nails it. His MSR scenes are very sweet, funny, and appropriate to where they are in their relationship. He's so much better at writing the MSR relationship than CC has ever been. I REALLY hope we don't have to see a repeat of all the unnecessary and uncharacteristic relationship tension that we saw in IWTB. Just let Mulder and Scully be happy together! 

[AntiBeeSpray]

I didn't really see anything awkward in the Mulder/Scully scenes in The Unnatural. Those scenes are the only thing I like about the episode. Otherwise, the episode is really boring to me. Let's hope that David has some influence on how Mulder and Scully interact in the new season, because he really nails it. His MSR scenes are very sweet, funny, and appropriate to where they are in their relationship. He's so much better at writing the MSR relationship than CC has ever been. I REALLY hope we don't have to see a repeat of all the unnecessary and uncharacteristic relationship tension that we saw in IWTB. Just let Mulder and Scully be happy together! 

 

I didn't either, in regards to the early one. It was just the very beginning of the second one that seemed a little off (when he was going to teach her how to use a bat), it wasn't for that long either. Very minor tbh. Definitely. He has a good ear for it. But I'll give Chris a little bit of a benefit of a doubt in that regard. He did a good job with the MSR in the Truth and in IWTB. Just not in regards to any of the tension. That was one of the issues I had with it.

 

I'm more concerned with how Darren Morgan and James Wong will handle it, along with Glen Morgan, helping to executive produce it. Given the history there, they're kind of wild cards imo. We don't know how things will go and how much their views have changed in regards to M & S.

[sinkwriter]

I like The Unnatural, but every time I watch it, I do think that what we're seeing is more "David and Gillian" than "Mulder and Scully." Maybe David is too close to the characters and couldn't see where he was injecting more of himself and Gillian instead of Mulder and Scully, but I do feel a little disconnect whenever I watch that episode. It's just not quite "them," if that makes any sense.

[AntiBeeSpray]

I like The Unnatural, but every time I watch it, I do think that what we're seeing is more "David and Gillian" than "Mulder and Scully." Maybe David is too close to the characters and couldn't see where he was injecting more of himself and Gillian instead of Mulder and Scully, but I do feel a little disconnect whenever I watch that episode. It's just not quite "them," if that makes any sense.

 

Maybe. Good catch. It does seem that way a little bit. I kind of viewed the ice cream bit as more brother and sister like vibe wise, aside from any of the flirting. It's still cute though :P. And the last bit does seem more like them in a way. Still nice though. Kind of view it as a mix. Best way to view the ep for what it's worth.

 

I think it's mainly the acting imo more than the writing. It came across more as them there than the characters at times. Had a similar feeling with 'All Things' in regards to Gillian. I kind of viewed that episode as her more, and more so in regards to the writing.

[Bastet]

While I want many people other than CC writing these six episodes - and, in fact, would be happy if CC didn't write a word, but simply oversaw scripts - I don't want DD or GA on that list.  I found The Unnatural pretty bad (the M/S scenes were cute in theory, but in reality they were DD/GA instead, and the rest was blah) and Hollywood A.D. and all things just so-so, and would thus rather leave this to actual writers.  GA and DD do much better improving on what's on the page than drafting the action and dialogue themselves.

Edited April 21, 2015 by Bastet

[HalcyonDays]

Yeah, I totally agree. And with only six episodes and a bunch of the talented original writers coming back, they don't need GA or DD to write anything. Darin Morgan, Frank Spotnitz, James Wong/Glen Morgan (they always wrote in tandem), Chris Carter, Vince Gilligan and whoever else else. I just listed 5 of the principle writers - each can devote themselves to one episode and that's almost your six episode season. I can't find the list of writers who are returning for this, but basically that's all they need for the six episodes. One of two or the writers can write two episodes and that's it.

 

CC has written some good mytharc episodes, but keep him away from romance. Darin Morgan is brilliant at the standalone and comedic. They have enough writers right now so don't need DD or GA to "help" out.

[Bastet]

But it will be nice that, unlike IWTB, these scripts can undergo the usual re-writes.  So if GA, DD, or another writer speaks up to say, "Um, this doesn't feel right for M&S," at least there's the opportunity for it to be changed.  And I think the actors have fantastic insight into who M&S are, as individuals and as a couple.  I think they have good ideas.  I just don't think they write entire episodes very well.  With only six of them, I doubt anyone will be inviting them to (or that they'd ask to).

[AntiBeeSpray]

I didn't mind The Unnatural as an episode. Tbh I found it better written than IWTB. At least it made more sense imo.

 

All Things, not so much. It was ok, but just that.

 

 

 

While I want many people other than CC writing these six episodes - and, in fact, would be happy if CC didn't write a word, but simply oversaw scripts - I don't want DD or GA on that list.  I found The Unnatural pretty bad (the M/S scenes were cute in theory, but in reality they were DD/GA instead, and the rest was blah) and Hollywood A.D. and all things just so-so, and would thus rather leave this to actual writers.  GA and DD do much better improving on what's on the page than drafting the action and dialogue themselves.

 

 

Redoing this again, since the dear editor ate my original post :P.

 

Seconded. I don't have a ton of faith in what Chris does writing wise. His last really good ep imo was Improbable,

Agreed for the most part.

[Bastet]

I found it better written than IWTB.

 

Well, most things are, heh.

[AntiBeeSpray]

Well, most things are, heh.

 

Only thing worse imo was the novelization :X. David and Gillian and the other actors saved it imo.

[AntiBeeSpray]

I had always read/heard for the longest time, that CC didn't want any Mulder Scully romance, because he himself really liked Gillian A, and by extension Scully, and wanted her to remain "pure" on the show, in the sense of not being seen having one nights stands and messy romances or even being with Mulder. He wanted Scully to himself, the rumours said.

 

That's why in the episode Never Again, the episode was cut /changed to have Scully wake up alone in bed, while the guy Ed wakes up out on the couch. The episode was supposed to have more "sexual activity" between her and the guy (fooling around more), but CC nixed that completely, because he didn't want to cast any shadows on Scully. Maybe that's why Mulder is such a dick to her at the end of the episode - he's CC mouthpiece for that spot.

 

That's just the rumours I rememebered hearing way back when. Speculation, I know, Either the fandom finally wore CC down, or by season and on, CC didn't care anymore, and with DD half gone, they needed the ratings boost - hence the sudden relationship.

 

Just re quoting, since I came across a little something about 3.

 

link to the info

 

Source: CTP

 

 

 

-- Although Mulder shared a kiss with Phoebe Green in Season 1, "3" was notable for being the first episode in which he presumably had a sexual close encounter. "I thought, 'This guy's a monk. Let's let him be human,'" said Chris Carter. "Especially in [scully's] absence, it seemed like a perfect opportunity to do it." But the writers had to involve the grief-stricken Mulder in the sexual situation without making him callous, and they did it in the only way it made sense: by calling on his sympathy for a victim and his own unacknowledged need for comfort. Mulder was intrigued by the alluring Kristen, but what really undermined his defenses was his own vulnerability. She appealed to Mulder's deep-seated need to protect and defend.

 

The above quote from it made me a little ticked. Seriously, Chris?! You let Mulder get away with something that risque, yet in Never Again (Scully's version), you don't let Scully do so?

 

Man that's just sexist. *shakes head*

[HalcyonDays]

The above quote from it made me a little ticked. Seriously, Chris?! You let Mulder get away with something that risque, yet in Never Again (Scully's version), you don't let Scully do so?

 

Man that's just sexist. *shakes head*

 

Ha! Found some stuff. Here are some really interesting links about the behind the scenes stuff and contentious relationships between the writers on the show.

 

This link is a really long detailed review of Never Again, including all of the behind the scenes contention and disagreements between the writers. Never Again was the last episode James Wong and Glen Morgan wrote for the show before leaving (they later came back)

 

It's a fantastic break down of the episode and the review indicates it was written in 2015.

 

To be fair, Scully’s sexuality has haunted The X-Files from quite early in the show’s run. The show seems to have something of a double-standard when it comes to the two lead characters. While Mulder is allowed any number of hot and heavy scenes with female guest stars (in episodes like 3 or Syzygy), Scully remains pretty much chaste for the entirety of the nine-season run.

The episode is edited in such a way as to make it possible (if far from plausible) that Scully and Ed never quite went to bed together. Never Again is just missing the section where Ed breaks off the kiss to explain which toothbrush is his. It feels like a rather transparent (and awkward) attempt to maintain Scully’s chaste persona.

 

It doesn't mention the rumour that CC wanted to keep Scully chaste because of his own personal reasons, maybe crush on GA, but it does clearly state that he was the one who wanted her kept that way.

 

Part of another quote, itself quoted in the link:

 

Morgan and Wong argued to keep the sex scene in, but to no avail. “I said, ‘Why not film it? Gillian wants to do it. You tell her that if it goes overboard, we’ll cut to the door closing. You’ll have complied with something that she asked for, and who knows, maybe you’ll get something really wild.’ They said, ‘No way, it’s not even in the script.’” Morgan had the unhappy task of telling an understandably upset Anderson that the scene she specifically requested had been cut. As to why it was cut, Morgan said that Carter and the other writers felt that every other woman on television was jumping into bed, and they had worked very hard to differentiate Scully from other female television characters. Morgan’s response: “She’s different, but the way she is now, she’s not human.”

 

From the link above, there are links within that article to other articles they pulled source from, including this one about Morgan and Wong returning to the X-Files. In 1997!! SO they left, then came back.  Another long one and very interesting. This was published in 1997.

 

Crap, I have some reading to do. There is a lot in there.

 

If AntiBeeSpray and I are gone for a while, send a search party.

[Bastet]

“She’s different, but the way she is now, she’s not human.”

 

This quote was famous among my circle of friends at the time, and fantastic for so clearly showing what a sexist double standard that asshat CC inflicted on the characters and the audience (given his quote about Mulder's actions in 3).

[SnideAsides]

From the link above, there are links within that article to other articles they pulled source from, including this one about Morgan and Wong returning to the X-Files. In 1997!! SO they left, then came back.  Another long one and very interesting. This was published in 1997.

Yeah, they left the first time after Die Hand Die Verletzt (that goodbye message on the blackboard is subtextually from them to the cast/crew) to go and do their own show, which failed, then came back to do Home, TFWID, Musings, and Never Again.

[HalcyonDays]

Yeah, they left the first time after Die Hand Die Verletzt (that goodbye message on the blackboard is subtextually from them to the cast/crew) to go and do their own show, which failed, then came back to do Home, TFWID, Musings, and Never Again.

 

Duh - that's right. I was scanning the page quickly looking for stuff, copying/pasting, trying to get all of the links in, etc, and therefore forgot episode air orders!

 

Like I said - lots and lots of stuff to read.

 

What an interesting mix - Home is one of the best and most creepy episode, Never Again isn't bad (except for CC meddling), I always liked Musings in a kitchy way and TFWID I just...did not.

[AntiBeeSpray]

Ha! Found some stuff. Here are some really interesting links about the behind the scenes stuff and contentious relationships between the writers on the show.

 

This link is a really long detailed review of Never Again, including all of the behind the scenes contention and disagreements between the writers. Never Again was the last episode James Wong and Glen Morgan wrote for the show before leaving (they later came back)

 

It's a fantastic break down of the episode and the review indicates it was written in 2015.

 

 

It doesn't mention the rumour that CC wanted to keep Scully chaste because of his own personal reasons, maybe crush on GA, but it does clearly state that he was the one who wanted her kept that way.

 

Part of another quote, itself quoted in the link:

 

 

From the link above, there are links within that article to other articles they pulled source from, including this one about Morgan and Wong returning to the X-Files. In 1997!! SO they left, then came back.  Another long one and very interesting. This was published in 1997.

 

Crap, I have some reading to do. There is a lot in there.

 

If AntiBeeSpray and I are gone for a while, send a search party.

 

Thanks for the links, Halcyon! Am checking them out now.

 

Both men and women were doing that back then, doesn't excuse the path (a stereotypical one) they took. Basically they considered women who had sex to be sluts then. *shrug* Wouldn't guys be the same? Oh wait, they get a 'screw out of jail' card free. -_-

 

But to be fair, at least to a point, Chris has come a long way. They at least hinted at a sex life in IWTB. He's still stubborn in some ways about it though. He said something like "It's a chaste relationship with very little physicality." So some of that old stereotypical role remains. Stubborn ass.

 

I think it's a "chased" relationship >:).

 

Come on Chris, she's not 'pure' anymore and neither is Mulder, let them have a LIFE. If they screw, they screw. Don't try to twist/turn it into something it's not.

This quote was famous among my circle of friends at the time, and fantastic for so clearly showing what a sexist double standard that asshat CC inflicted on the characters and the audience (given his quote about Mulder's actions in 3).

 

Yea that line makes it seem like she's a robot. Which she's not. Idiot.

[AntiBeeSpray]

Came across something in one of the articles that was rather interesting.

 

 

 

If Mulder and Melissa are really soulmates, what does that say about Mulder’s relationship with Scully, his best, and only, friend? Would it preclude Mulder and Scully being soulmates too? “Absolutely not,” Morgan declared. “My dad always said that you went through all these different lives and all these different situations, the goal is to reach perfection. So you had a hell of a lot of situations to go through. Ultimately you would want your lover to be your best friend. But what’s so bad if one of your soulmates is just a great friend? And how interesting, although there’s someone else he feels could be his soulmate, that Mulder and Scully have gone through many lives together. I read a post online asking why Scully was always a man in the past, and I hadn’t thought about that. I wish I had altered that; it was a mistake.”

 

Morgan realized he made a mistake when he made all of Scully's past lives male ones.

 

He brings up a point that there's nothing wrong with one of your soulmates being just a great friend. I agree on that, but not in regards to M & S.

 

Well at least M & S went past that and became more. That's what I can appreciate.

 

 

 

To be fair, Scully’s sexuality has haunted The X-Files from quite early in the show’s run. The show seems to have something of a double-standard when it comes to the two lead characters. While Mulder is allowed any number of hot and heavy scenes with female guest stars (in episodes like 3 or Syzygy), Scully remains pretty much chaste for the entirety of the nine-season run.

 

He nailed it there. Scully wasn't allowed to have a sex life. Even though her and Mulder did have sex, it was still kept in the dark in a way with the whole 'who's the daddy?' bs.

 

 

Good for Gillian on this one.

 

Even outside the role, Anderson has rejected the idea that Scully is sexless. At one convention, a fun observed that Scully was “the epitome of womanhood” because “not only can she kick butt, she can work with Mulder without jumping him.” Anderson seemed less than thrilled at the description, replying, “So the epitome of womanhood is sexual restraint? I don’t think so.” Years later, fans asked Carter, Duchovny and Anderson what Mulder and Scully would do on a date. Anderson answered, “Have sex.” In contrast, Duchovny and Carter suggested dinner.

 

Glad she replied in that manner.

 

And the latter one I remember reading about. Priceless :P. Good for her ;).

[HalcyonDays]

Basically they considered women who had sex to be sluts then. *shrug* Wouldn't guys be the same? Oh wait, they get a 'screw out of jail' card free. -_-

 

I am going to use that. "Screw out of Jail Free" Card. I love it.

 

As for woman considered to be sluts if they have sex then?? Hell, society considers that NOW!! Look at the Abortion and Contraceptive controversy in the US right now. How many times have we heard a politician say something that hints at "just tell the woman to close their legs." Yes, because all woman are capable of immaculate conceptions, aren't they? They seem to forget that impregnation also involves a male dick and sperm. Sheesh. (Sorry for the crude)

 

But to be fair, at least to a point, Chris has come a long way. They at least hinted at a sex life in IWTB. He's still stubborn in some ways about it though. He said something like "It's a chaste relationship with very little physicality." So some of that old stereotypical role remains. Stubborn ass.

 

Kinda off this point and the above about the immaculate conception - I always thought that the show was a bit too heavy-handed with that. Like, when the storyline had Scully find out she couldn't get pregnant. What was the terminology she used? "Mulder, I am barren." Who the hell speaks like that? Even Doctor Scully would never say that. It was such a strange and clunky word to use and so old-fashioned. It makes it sound like such a negative thing. (Adoption, Scully...and CC).

 

Then we have Scully suddenly find out she is knocked up and stupid Mulder actually doubting the paternity. But what it totally reminded me of is the Biblical Virgin Mary. Here you have chaste, virginal Scully who is suddenly pregnant out of the blue. Of course Mulder has to be an ass and question Scully on her extracurricular activities. And of course there is never the idea that the man's little swimmers could be the reason why a woman doesn't get pregnant. Anyway, it was just another glaring example of how the show really tried to desexualize Scully into what Morgan said above - not a human.

 

I will be interested to see if the six episodes will cover the baby thing. Honestly, I hope not.

[joelene]

As for woman considered to be sluts if they have sex then?? Hell, society considers that NOW!! Look at the Abortion and Contraceptive controversy in the US right now. How many times have we heard a politician say something that hints at "just tell the woman to close their legs."

And now I just have to quote Selina Meyer from Veep:

"If men got pregnant you could get an abortion at the ATM. Let's state the obvious."

Edited April 22, 2015 by joelene

[AntiBeeSpray]

I am going to use that. "Screw out of Jail Free" Card. I love it.

 

As for woman considered to be sluts if they have sex then?? Hell, society considers that NOW!! Look at the Abortion and Contraceptive controversy in the US right now. How many times have we heard a politician say something that hints at "just tell the woman to close their legs." Yes, because all woman are capable of immaculate conceptions, aren't they? They seem to forget that impregnation also involves a male dick and sperm. Sheesh. (Sorry for the crude)

 

 

Kinda off this point and the above about the immaculate conception - I always thought that the show was a bit too heavy-handed with that. Like, when the storyline had Scully find out she couldn't get pregnant. What was the terminology she used? "Mulder, I am barren." Who the hell speaks like that? Even Doctor Scully would never say that. It was such a strange and clunky word to use and so old-fashioned. It makes it sound like such a negative thing. (Adoption, Scully...and CC).

 

Then we have Scully suddenly find out she is knocked up and stupid Mulder actually doubting the paternity. But what it totally reminded me of is the Biblical Virgin Mary. Here you have chaste, virginal Scully who is suddenly pregnant out of the blue. Of course Mulder has to be an ass and question Scully on her extracurricular activities. And of course there is never the idea that the man's little swimmers could be the reason why a woman doesn't get pregnant. Anyway, it was just another glaring example of how the show really tried to desexualize Scully into what Morgan said above - not a human.

 

I will be interested to see if the six episodes will cover the baby thing. Honestly, I hope not.

 

Exactly. The same old still goes on. The guy gets a free pass on it. While the woman gets the blame. No problem on that! Guys need to be held accountable for their role in that matter. Funny to see that a lot out there lets the guy off the hook, "spreading their seed", being one example and "sowing their wild oats" being another. Enough's enough.

 

It's getting pretty bad out there. Downright scary, moving back toward back door abortions. All because some people view women as chattel and not as human beings.

 

Word. That made no real sense, it seemed like they were trying to strip her of any sexuality in a way. 

 

How the heck would he doubt it? He helped her out in more way than one ;). There shouldn't have been any doubt. Damn you writers! :P

 

Very, very good point. Goes into the whole, Mulder being Jesus and their son being the savior. As bad as it sounds. Frankly just thinking about it makes me want to barf.

And now I just have to quote Selina Meyer from Veep:

"If men got pregnant you could get an abortion at the ATM. Let's state the obvious."

 

Yea that's men for you. If they had to go through one iota of what a woman goes through, they'd find a cure for it right away.

[M.F. Luder]

 

Even outside the role, Anderson has rejected the idea that Scully is sexless. At one convention, a fun observed that Scully was “the epitome of womanhood” because “not only can she kick butt, she can work with Mulder without jumping him.” Anderson seemed less than thrilled at the description, replying, “So the epitome of womanhood is sexual restraint? I don’t think so.” Years later, fans asked Carter, Duchovny and Anderson what Mulder and Scully would do on a date. Anderson answered, “Have sex.” In contrast, Duchovny and Carter suggested dinner.

 

Have you guys seen the Paley convention interview that's on youtube? A fan asks David and Gillian what the presents were in How the Ghosts Stole Christmas and Gillian says "I know what I needed" and makes rabbit ears, referring to the vibrator. HAHA! 

 

I'm loving this discussion about Scully's sexuality. I admit that when I watched Never Again when it first aired, I was offended by the thought that Scully would have sex with some strange guy she just met. I was a kid and definitely bought into the whole idea of women being 'sluts' if they had casual sex. Now as a grown up, I'm happy to think that she got a little action for once in her life and I wish it didn't end up with her being "punished" for it by having the guy turn out to be a murderous psycho.

 

Same thing with Milagro. Someone actually notices that Scully is an attractive woman, but he's a weirdo stalker who ends up almost causing her death. And poor Pendrell dies because he was trying to get her a drink for her birthday! Seems like showing a sexual interest in Scully gets you killed.

[HalcyonDays]

And now I just have to quote Selina Meyer from Veep:

"If men got pregnant you could get an abortion at the ATM. Let's state the obvious."

 

This one is dead on. And it's more than that in my view. If men could get pregnant, rape would be punishable by death, all birth control would be free, there would be even more options and it would be all 100% effective. Abortion would be accessible to all men and free. The state would subsidize maternity leave completely and if a man wanted to get their (vas deferens) tubes tied, it would be completely free and also reversable.

 

When you have countries where the government subsidizes Viagara, but doesn't subsidize the birth control pill, that is messed up.

 

Have you guys seen the Paley convention interview that's on youtube? A fan asks David and Gillian what the presents were in How the Ghosts Stole Christmas and Gillian says "I know what I needed" and makes rabbit ears, referring to the vibrator. HAHA!

 

Ha! So true. I love this. Maybe Scully's gift to Mulder was some sample Viagara or a box of condoms?

 

Very, very good point. Goes into the whole, Mulder being Jesus and their son being the savior. As bad as it sounds. Frankly just thinking about it makes me want to barf.

 

That's what I remember too from that whole story line. The son was like Jesus too, because he was supposed to be the savior of mankind or whatever (I half tuned out on all that mess). I think that's where all of the rumours about CC refusing to sexualize Scully. Because he held her (or GA) on a pedestal, he wouldn't allow normal human factors to be written for their character. In the case here, it's her being a sexual being and actually wanting to act on her "baser" instincts.

 

It's semi-reflected in IWTB. Here is Scully continuing her work as the saviour doctor/angel fighting to save the life of an innocent child, and Mulder is all lumberjack man grungy mess hiding away in his cabin dealing with crap and his own personal issues. Scully doesn't get the break, because she has to sacrifice herself for humanity (or however I'm spinning it!)

[sinkwriter]

 

I admit that when I watched Never Again when it first aired, I was offended by the thought that Scully would have sex with some strange guy she just met.

 

I never thought she was a slut because she had sex with a strange guy. I just remember thinking it was dangerous, because she didn't know him at all. (And you know, this is The X-Files, and no one is ever safe. LOL.)

 

But yeah, I do wish they would have given her more development in that regard. The Milagro episode fascinated me (and I loved that he was a writer and noticed how wonderful Scully was), but I wish he hadn't been such a stalker.

 

I suppose you could say that they tried to present the overall show as it's "Mulder and Scully against the world" (or vice versa), where they're in it together and it's just them, there's no one else they can trust. Which is an interesting take that I liked watching. But they didn't keep to their own rule because they let Mulder have casual encounters but Scully wasn't allowed.

 

Then again, even Mulder's encounters ended in disaster. Phoebe ditched him, the vampire woman was killed (wasn't she? I don't love that episode so I usually skip rewatching it), Diana Fowler was evil (and then killed).

Edited April 22, 2015 by sinkwriter

[AntiBeeSpray]

This one is dead on. And it's more than that in my view. If men could get pregnant, rape would be punishable by death, all birth control would be free, there would be even more options and it would be all 100% effective. Abortion would be accessible to all men and free. The state would subsidize maternity leave completely and if a man wanted to get their (vas deferens) tubes tied, it would be completely free and also reversable.

 

When you have countries where the government subsidizes Viagara, but doesn't subsidize the birth control pill, that is messed up.

 

 

Ha! So true. I love this. Maybe Scully's gift to Mulder was some sample Viagara or a box of condoms?

 

 

That's what I remember too from that whole story line. The son was like Jesus too, because he was supposed to be the savior of mankind or whatever (I half tuned out on all that mess). I think that's where all of the rumours about CC refusing to sexualize Scully. Because he held her (or GA) on a pedestal, he wouldn't allow normal human factors to be written for their character. In the case here, it's her being a sexual being and actually wanting to act on her "baser" instincts.

 

It's semi-reflected in IWTB. Here is Scully continuing her work as the saviour doctor/angel fighting to save the life of an innocent child, and Mulder is all lumberjack man grungy mess hiding away in his cabin dealing with crap and his own personal issues. Scully doesn't get the break, because she has to sacrifice herself for humanity (or however I'm spinning it!)

 

Yep. Exactly.

 

Sadly, it makes any country look really bad :(.

 

Maybe ;). And maybe she wanted to make Chris blush :P. But to be fair, he did mention Cialis in an interview during the 20th anniversary of the show lol. 

 

Here's the quote:

 

Thanks for taking the time to celebrate with us. What will you be getting Mulder and Scully as an anniversary gift?

[Laughs.] Let me see, twenty years out ... [Long pause.] I don’t know, I see them in a Cialis commercial. One of those vacations where they sit in bathtubs together.

 

Source: http://www.vulture.com/2013/08/chris-carter-x-files-anniversary-interview-transcript.html

 

For Chris, that's a huge step.

 

But I did poke fun at it via a motivational poster saying that they didn't need Cialis :P.

 

Yep and in a way it's kind of sick imo. At least in the way it was handled on the show. "Milagro" sealed it for me, iirc there was a sex scene in it that the writer thought up between him and Scully. That to me is just selfish. I think it took place in a church. So it was even more messed up O_o.

 

Fair point. I just viewed it as her working and trying to earn money, while Mulder keeps his head down to stay safe.

I never thought she was a slut because she had sex with a strange guy. I just remember thinking it was dangerous, because she didn't know him at all. (And you know, this is The X-Files, and no one is ever safe. LOL.)

 

But yeah, I do wish they would have given her more development in that regard. The Milagro episode fascinated me (and I loved that he was a writer and noticed how wonderful Scully was), but I wish he hadn't been such a stalker.

 

I suppose you could say that they tried to present the overall show as it's "Mulder and Scully against the world" (or vice versa), where they're in it together and it's just them, there's no one else they can trust. Which is an interesting take that I liked watching. But they didn't keep to their own rule because they let Mulder have casual encounters but Scully wasn't allowed.

 

Then again, even Mulder's encounters ended in disaster. Phoebe ditched him, the vampire woman was killed (wasn't she? I don't love that episode so I usually skip rewatching it), Diana Fowler was evil (and then killed).

 

Yea, but the way that they presented it wasn't fair to her.

 

That episode didn't fascinate me. It creeped me out tbh. That the writer was so obsessed with her was just O_o. I vaguely remember back during the promotion of IWTB that they had said that "Milagro" represented the obsessed fan. Which imo, is bull. I think it represented Chris. And frankly it's sad.

 

Exactly. There wasn't a lot of balance in that area.

 

Good point.

[Bastet]

I think that's where all of the rumours about CC refusing to sexualize Scully. Because he held her (or GA) on a pedestal, he wouldn't allow normal human factors to be written for their character.

 

I say this with no judgment against GA, just acknowledgment of reality:  She’s a pretty odd choice to put up on a sexually chaste pedestal.

 

I think CC’s issues run deep, and don’t have anything to do with GA specifically.  He has a twisted notion that sex sullies a romantic relationship.  It’s terrific that M&S (especially Scully, given how women on television are usually portrayed) always had interests and ambitions beyond getting laid/finding a mate, and that sex is but one of many facets of their relationship.  But CC being so incredibly freaked out by Scully as a sexual being meant going through a lot of nonsense to get there.

 

It’s one of the reasons why I don’t want him trying to write to the relationship this time around.  It exists, it’s not going anywhere – I want him to just let it be, and let the other writers (and GA and DD) take care of actually presenting it.  That way, no crap like “Dearest Dana.”

[smrou]

I say this with no judgment against GA, just acknowledgment of reality:  She’s a pretty odd choice to put up on a sexually chaste pedestal.

Yeah, I've long thought one of the oddest things about the sexlessness of the Mulder/Scully relationship and Mulder's and Scully's lives outside of that relationship is that both Duchovny and Anderson are such openly sexual people. They are no shrinking violets, those two, when it comes to sex. 

 

I think CC’s issues run deep, and don’t have anything to do with GA specifically.  He has a twisted notion that sex sullies a romantic relationship.

Yeah, that's what it seems like to me. 

[AntiBeeSpray]

I say this with no judgment against GA, just acknowledgment of reality:  She’s a pretty odd choice to put up on a sexually chaste pedestal.

 

I think CC’s issues run deep, and don’t have anything to do with GA specifically.  He has a twisted notion that sex sullies a romantic relationship.  It’s terrific that M&S (especially Scully, given how women on television are usually portrayed) always had interests and ambitions beyond getting laid/finding a mate, and that sex is but one of many facets of their relationship.  But CC being so incredibly freaked out by Scully as a sexual being meant going through a lot of nonsense to get there.

 

It’s one of the reasons why I don’t want him trying to write to the relationship this time around.  It exists, it’s not going anywhere – I want him to just let it be, and let the other writers (and GA and DD) take care of actually presenting it.  That way, no crap like “Dearest Dana.”

 

Exactly. She never shied away from it. Except once during the promotion of IWTB lol. She got tired of fans talking about it iirc. Priceless, considering :P.

 

Word. They had lives (or as much as they could have). Tbh, it isn't just that. It's one twisted view of it overall. We have 3 with the vampire sex and the even more messed up script that even Fox thought went too far O_O, and we have First Person Shooter with it's dream woman named Jade Blue Afterglow. WTF?! 

 

Talk about objectifying and being on opposite sides of the spectrum. That's really messed up.

 

Good old Chris, XF's special snowflake. I have no other way of putting it.

Yeah, I've long thought one of the oddest things about the sexlessness of the Mulder/Scully relationship and Mulder's and Scully's lives outside of that relationship is that both Duchovny and Anderson are such openly sexual people. They are no shrinking violets, those two, when it comes to sex. 

 

 

 

Yeah, that's what it seems like to me. 

 

Definitely. It never really made all that much sense.

 

 

Just found an old article I'd posted on another forum some years back (It was from Haven, but I'm glad to have come across it again):

 

Sorry about the length here... but it's a really good article that explains some things :).

This is from the Haven. There are several other posts concerning this, but I wanted EVERYONE to read it. I feel vindicated at last. I got beat up by so many people cause I thought it was so. Yippee!

Spoilers for, July 12, 2001?

TXF enters the unknown without Duchovny

By Tom Kessenich Krause Publications

It ended, with a kiss. And just like that, a door was closed on the past while another was opened to a future ripe with change and riddled with uncertainty.

When "The X-Files" begins its ninth season this fall, the landscape of the long-running Fox drama will have undergone a massive transformation. David Duchovny, the series’ top-billed star, has departed for good, leaving co-star Gillian Anderson behind, along with Robert Patrick and Annabeth Gish, who joined the show last season as FBI Agents Doggett and Reyes.

Duchovny is not the first TV star to depart the small screen hoping to find more creative opportunities in the film world. But his departure creates a Grand Canyon-sized hole at the center of this series.

"The X-Files" has never been an anthology series or an ensemble show with a rotating cast of stars. It has always been about Mulder’s world as seen through the eyes of Anderson’s skeptical, scientific-minded Scully. Mulder’s quest to find the elusive "truth" was the impetus that drove the series forward, while the Mulder-Scully dynamic provided its heart and soul.

Now Mulder is gone after an emotionally compelling send-off in last season’s finale that saw him with Scully, holding their baby and kissing her passionately as the screen faded to black. That scene has fans wondering what will become of this series now that Duchovny has departed, and what will become of Scully, whose presence will serve as a constant reminder of who is no longer there?

"Mulder and Scully really are the heart and soul of the series," executive producer Frank Spotnitz said in a recent telephone interview. "You can't separate the success of The X-Files from the success of David and Gillian as actors and the characters they play. All you can do really is just rely on all the strengths you've got which is a great idea for a television series and some wonderful actors who are here and have chemistries of their own."

Spotnitz said one thing fans of the series will not have to be concerned about is the paternity of Scully’s baby being revised in the ninth season. Much of the eighth season was spent examining how the baby came to be since it had been previously established that Scully was unable to conceive.

Numerous red herrings were trotted out, including the idea of alien tampering. But in the end, the naming of the baby after Mulder’s father and their tender kiss provided confirmation that the baby was Mulder’s and the product of a sexual relationship between he and Scully that had only been hinted at in the past.

"The final scene was meant to say that Mulder and Scully had consummated their relationship and this child was a result of that," Spotnitz said. <-- God bless you, Frank! Nice and straight forward :).

That final scene would have been significantly different had Duchovny and director Kim Manners not intervened after both were unsatisfied with series creator Chris Carter’s original ending which featured a mundane kiss on the forehead.

"We all sat down with Kim Manners and Chris Carter and said, ‘We’ve been teasing and doing that bull for so long, let’s have a real kiss at this point,’" Duchovny said during his press junket to promote his latest film "Evolution." "I said, ‘I’m pretty sure I’m not coming back at this point so let’s have a romantic kiss.’"

So out went the forehead and in came the lips. And in that final moment, with their child between them, Mulder and Scully were given a rare moment of happiness in their journey into the unknown.

The kiss capped the most controversial season in the show’s storied history. Fans were divided over the introduction of Patrick’s character and many were outraged over the re-writing of history that had Mulder inexplicably being given a fatal brain disease and Scully trying invitro fertilization using Mulder as a donor.

It all resulted in declining ratings and a reinvention of the series so pronounced it left many fans wondering what had become of the show they loved.

"Chris Carter had his chance to go out with a bang, leaving a memorable mark on TV history," said Katherine Ramsey, a fan from Virginia since the first season. "Instead, he squandered it in the pursuit of the almighty dollar. Without Mulder’s wit and humanity, The X-Files has no soul. Everything I saw in Season 8 reinforced that belief."

"Somewhere along the way, the writers managed to get themselves sidetracked by mindless gore, inane and irrelevant plots, timeline blunders, and soap-operatic teasing," said Konrad Frye, a fan from the Canadian province of Manitoba who also has watched the series since its inception. "It's a shame because things didn't have to be that way and as a longtime fan of the show, I'd come to expect more."

These fans weren’t the only ones disappointed. Duchovny also lamented how the series had shifted away from Mulder and the Mulder-Scully dynamic after his full-time return for the final six episodes.

"When I came back, I felt somewhat peripheral," Duchovny said. "Mulder's story was one of three or four stories and it didn't feel like the same show to me."

Spotnitz responds to such complaints by saying 1013’s hands were tied creatively due to Duchovny’s contract, which called for him to be a part-time participant.

Many fans disagree, believing greater care should have been taken to weave Mulder’s absence (he spent half of the season on a spaceship after being abducted by aliens) and Scully’s pregnancy into the framework of the first half of the season, rather than focusing so intently on Doggett. They were also unhappy that, in some instances, Mulder and Scully were reduced to being guest stars on their own show.

The discontent was reflected in the ratings, which were higher for the episodes Duchovny appeared in compared to the ones he did not. The five highest-rated episodes last season all featured Duchovny and there was a steady decline in the ratings in December and January, when Duchovny did not appear in any episode, that ended only after his return in Feburary.

With Duchovny gone, many fans have said they have no interest in Doggett, Reyes or a show called "The X-Files" that does not feature Mulder and Scully together.

"To put it simply, The X-Files is Mulder and Scully," said longtime fan Jan Skinner from Peoria, Ill. "Without them, you have a show that happens to have the same name, but is something else entirely."

Not only is the series at a crossroads with Duchovny gone, it may move forward without its creator.

Planning for the ninth season began in June with Carter absent for the first time since he created the series in 1993. He has yet to reach a deal with Fox to return for the ninth season and there is speculation he will not return or serve only as a "consultant," with Spotnitz assuming the lead role for the show’s creative decisions along with co-executive producers Vince Gilligan and John Shiban.

Carter declined to be interviewed for this story, but Spotnitz said it has been odd going to work without the show’s creative driving force around.

"Obviously, we hope he comes back because it's his show, it's his vision that we've all been serving for all these years and he's an enormously talented writer and producer," said Spotnitz, who has been in charge of the series with Carter gone. "If he doesn't, it's not like we don't know where all the files are."

Spotnitz also said contrary to speculation, Anderson will be in all of the episodes next season. The Emmy-award winning actress is in the final year of her contract and has been vocal about being a reluctant participant, saying - as Duchovny did - that she is tired of the weekly TV series grind.

Despite that, Spotnitz said Scully will be a vital part of the ninth season with one of the central story lines exploring how Scully’s fertility was restored. Another issue to be addressed is how to explain Mulder’s absence given the romantic relationship with Scully that was confirmed in last season’s finale.

"I think we've got a way that's going to be pretty satisfying to people to address that issue that's completely true to the character and completely true to the series," Spotnitz said, declining to reveal anything further. "We were able to plot certain things in (last season’s finale) considering he may not be back."

For the first time in series history, the writers at 1013 do not have the luxury of relying on the strength of the Mulder-Scully relationship to push the show forward. They no longer have the luxury of knowing that when things are in doubt, Duchovny and Anderson’s amazing chemistry can lift the show to greatness.

Like Mulder, that is now part of the show’s past. The present is filled with uncertainty and in many ways, "The X-Files" is embarking on a tenuous high-wire act without a net.

"If I went into the season thinking things were hunky dory and there were no risks associated it, I'd be foolish," Spotnitz said. "Mulder and David Duchovny have been incredibly important to the success of the show and now we're going forward without that character at least physically present. So it's a gamble, there's no doubt about it."

 

Sorry about the spoiler tag, but it's a really long article. Thank you again Frank for having some guts! ;)

 

 

And here's an interesting quote from buzzine.com (sadly the original interview doesn't exist anymore):

 

 

 

I: Was it shocking and/or challenging to read this script and find out that you and Scully will have a love/sexual relationship? DD: Yeah, it was somewhat challenging. But when I first read it, I thought that’s very smart, because what you don’t want to do is do what you always did. I mean, maybe we fail at doing this, but at least we failed trying to take it to another place. We didn’t fail just trying to repeat what we always did. So I thought, yeah, that’s smart. If this is to have life, we have to change…like in life. So that was my feeling. That was a big change. Good, good.

EI: Was it weird shooting it as actors? Or was it fine because you also know each other well now?

DD: It wasn’t weird. I don’t think we actually kissed in this movie. We’re just in bed. We did more kissing in the show than we did in this movie. I think it might have been weird if we did an actual lovemaking scene. Maybe that’s next. But actually, there was less physical contact in this movie — more implied physical intimacy than actual physical intimacy. In the TV show, we were often touching a whole lot more, holding hands or kissing on the forehead or, a couple of times, having a real kiss. I thought it was well-conceived by Chris [Carter] and Frank [spotnitz] in that way.

 

A little tired of some of the implied stuff. But it kind of gives a bit of insight of where Chris and Frank were at in IWTB. He was talking about the bed scene. Not the end scene lol. That was legit ;).

 

Bolded made me grin and chuckle a bit. I think he was kidding, but it was still funny :P. And an actual love scene would probably give Chris a heart attack lol.

[AntiBeeSpray]

Just found this cute vid about what a couple of fans want to see in the new eps :).

 

It's too cute. XD

[M.F. Luder]

I like this one too :)  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iYjG-eiLXCk

[AntiBeeSpray]

I like this one too :)  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iYjG-eiLXCk

 

That one is pretty funny, clever too :). Fan has a good voice.

[queequeg]

Aw crap.   That article you posted, ABS, rehashed all of my buried feelings and anger about Duchovny leaving.

 

 

How could you, Duchovny?!?!

[HalcyonDays]

I'm more irritated by another link from somewhere in the links I actually provided, that had Duchovny complaining about Anderson getting equal pay in the third season. I had heard that she was still fighting for better cash by the 7th season, but apparently no - their salaries were equal after season 3, after she negotiated hard.

 

But here is Duchovny complaining, saying that if she wants equal pay, get better negotiators and it won't be a problem, and then saying how he does lots of the brunt work/fight scenes, implying that he deserves more.

 

What the fuck, DD. What the hell was wrong with him back then? I guess the success of the show went to his head. No wonder he and GA didn't get along for a while. Glad that he seems to have matured or at least mellowed and seems to be better.

 

A lot of interesting reads in there (links that I posted) and commentary of how Darin Morgan was so influential on the show, yet wrote so few episodes. His episode Clyde Bruckmen's Final Repose was the only X-Files episode to ever win an Emmy for writing.

 

Also, as much as we hate CC for desexualizing Scully, he seemed to be a good boss. Allowed a lot of leeway and freedom for each writer, gave them time as needed and allowed them to be part of the entire production process (for the episodes they wrote). The writers have been quoted as saying the environment was hard (they had to pass a 13 week trial), but they learned a lot, and credit CC for that. Many of those writers went off to be hugely successful in other shows (example, V Gilligan in Breaking Bad).

 

CC and his method of leading basically allowing those writers to develop their craft and truly learn everything about TV show production. Awesome. Wish I had a boss like that.

[queequeg]

What the fuck, DD. What the hell was wrong with him back then? I guess the success of the show went to his head. No wonder he and GA didn't get along for a while. Glad that he seems to have matured or at least mellowed and seems to be better.

 

No offense meant to Duchovny, because he seems much more grounded (and likable!) now, but I always thought the success of the show went to his head.   I really don't know how else to explain some of the really terrible interviews he gave back in the day and some of the crap he said.

[AntiBeeSpray]

Aw crap.   That article you posted, ABS, rehashed all of my buried feelings and anger about Duchovny leaving.

 

 

How could you, Duchovny?!?!

 

Sorry. I posted it in regards to the positive in it! Frank's comment :).

 

The other stuff is water under the bridge. I can kind of see where he was coming from there. People do get tired of jobs after awhile and want a break from them (anything else aside). *shrug*

 

No offense meant to Duchovny, because he seems much more grounded (and likable!) now, but I always thought the success of the show went to his head.   I really don't know how else to explain some of the really terrible interviews he gave back in the day and some of the crap he said.

 

Seconded. I thought he was an arrogant you know what back then, same with her tbh back then. Which kind of explains how I felt when Doggett and Reyes were around. They were a nice reprieve. I was going through M & S burnout at the time.

 

I'm more irritated by another link from somewhere in the links I actually provided, that had Duchovny complaining about Anderson getting equal pay in the third season. I had heard that she was still fighting for better cash by the 7th season, but apparently no - their salaries were equal after season 3, after she negotiated hard.

 

But here is Duchovny complaining, saying that if she wants equal pay, get better negotiators and it won't be a problem, and then saying how he does lots of the brunt work/fight scenes, implying that he deserves more.

 

What the fuck, DD. What the hell was wrong with him back then? I guess the success of the show went to his head. No wonder he and GA didn't get along for a while. Glad that he seems to have matured or at least mellowed and seems to be better.

 

A lot of interesting reads in there (links that I posted) and commentary of how Darin Morgan was so influential on the show, yet wrote so few episodes. His episode Clyde Bruckmen's Final Repose was the only X-Files episode to ever win an Emmy for writing.

 

Also, as much as we hate CC for desexualizing Scully, he seemed to be a good boss. Allowed a lot of leeway and freedom for each writer, gave them time as needed and allowed them to be part of the entire production process (for the episodes they wrote). The writers have been quoted as saying the environment was hard (they had to pass a 13 week trial), but they learned a lot, and credit CC for that. Many of those writers went off to be hugely successful in other shows (example, V Gilligan in Breaking Bad).

 

CC and his method of leading basically allowing those writers to develop their craft and truly learn everything about TV show production. Awesome. Wish I had a boss like that.

 

Good point. I just read an article recently which mentioned that 'ghost' again. Saying that she had to fight for equal pay again recently. I didn't buy it since it said that she didn't get fair pay with him until IWTB. Which isn't the case. Didn't know it was so early. Thought it was around FTF.

 

Here's the article: http://www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/entertainment/news/gillian-anderson-equal-pay-is-still-an-issue-31108129.html

 

Said quote: 

 

“Yes, it is still a problem. In a very, very big way, including something recent and unconscionable, which I really can’t talk about but yes, it is still alive and well," she sighed to The Big Issue magazine on the topic of gender inequality.

 

 

Reason why I think it's possibly bs: 

 

Throughout the run of the TV show Gillian was paid less than her co-star David Duchovny and their wages only became equal in the second movie.

 

Not true. It happened way earlier than that. They didn't get their facts straight. And since they weren't able to, what even makes the rest of the article remotely true?

 

Wow. That was downright arrogant of him. It should have been equal, since her acting pretty much equals his work and acting imo. 

 

Who knows? I think it went to both of their heads tbh. But at least they've gotten over it for the most part. And that's the good thing. How many actors out there do? It's not an easy thing for anyone to do. To grow up and change. To mature.

 

That's what made IWTB that much more fun (including the press and such leading up to it). The fact that they were on the same page made a big difference. I feel the same way in regards to the new episodes tbh.

 

Fair point. That's one good thing Chris did. He gave the writers space to breath and to write and grow.

 

 

On a separate note: Found a nice article via the Globe and Mail about the XF revival. She brings up some valid points about why she's concerned about bringing the XF up to the present day.

 

And branching off: Came across this soft copy from FTF while looking around at random XF stuff. Talk about finding some history. It'll be an interesting read.

 

I remember one of you guys mentioning about how M & S get hurt in their relationships. I just came across this article that deals with that subject really well. It's an old school one but it's really well researched and worth the read.

 

One quote that stood out: 

 

The theme running through these episodes is clear: sex is horrendous and if you choose to engage in it you will be subject to terrible repercussions. When explicitly seen in The X-Files, sex either results in death, or sex is death.

 

It was dealing with the older episodes, but it seems as if that theme continues somewhat in the series. Not exactly a healthy pov imo.

 

 

Found another interesting tid bit: I'll definitely be looking at Bad Blood with new eyes O_O.

 

A director's "side" is almost always in agreement with the story and the characters. It is used to create mis-en-scène, ambiance, and/or to anchor the story and give it more emotional resonance and coherence. For The X-Files then, the director's "side" is merely the traditional X-Files viewpoint. However, in "Bad Blood" the linear perspective has been fragmented, so there is not just one story or one side--the cohesiveness has been deliberately discarded. Bole is therefore as free to have his own version of the events as the characters are, and he takes advantage of this freedom, like Mulder and Scully, to tell his own separate side of the story, which involves the agents having sex. He does this by manipulating the codes first presented in "3" and "Never Again".

As already noted, when a woman has been on a date and is shown the next morning appearing disheveled and wearing an article of her date's clothing, this signals to the viewer that she has had sex. Scully wakes up following her encounter with Ed Jerse in "Never Again" and is wearing Ed's shirt and is rumpled, so we know they did the deed. In "Bad Blood" Scully suffers from the same exact codes. After a night spent with the Sheriff in his vehicle, we see Scully the next morning, hair mussed and wearing the Sheriff's coat. She and the sheriff had "sex" according to both the general television codes for sex as well as Scully's specific sexual history within the show itself. A man sprawled sleeping and in some state of undress after being seduced is another method for coding for sex-- after Mulder has sex with Kristen in "3" he is shown asleep in a chair. When she wakes him and tells him he has to go, he gets up and puts on/ties his shoes. At the end of "Bad Blood," we see Mulder sprawled in the car asleep. When we last saw him the night before, he was being swallowed up in a crowd of vampires. Scully finds him in the car and wakes him up. He checks his neck for bites, gets out of the car and checks Scully's neck for (love)-bites, and then ties his shoes. So Mulder is also dealing with the metaphorical morning after. According to the sexual coding established both by general television subtext and by his specific sexual past in The X-Files, he has had sex with the entire trailer park community. From Bole's viewpoint, Mulder and Scully wake up from a drugged (albeit forcibly) night of debauchery unsure of what exactly happened, and find their respective one night stands missing, gone without a trace. Not even a phone number left behind.

 

In the director's reality, which is not Mulder's or Scully's, Mulder and Scully had sex, although not with each other. Because the viewpoints have been intentionally forked, the sex did not literally occur within the bounds of the show. It only happened metaphorically. In this way, from this episode, the sexual signs are separated from their physical manifestations. All episodes that follow "Bad Blood" are now free to plunder this separation and delve into the metaphorical possibilities in depth, possibilities that include the heretofore uncharted area of Mulder and Scully having sex with each other.

Very interesting take on that. I'll definitely be rewatching that one soon. Never viewed it that way before.

 

The boundaries and signification of sex in The X-Files preclude Mulder and Scully's relationship from becoming sexual on the literal level because sex is harmful on the show, it has an established history linking it to death and horror. If Mulder and Scully were to have sex, it would have to result in unpleasantries such as violent death, alien abduction, devil children, etc., according to this established history. Depicting the sex as honest, good, and trusting, as the relationship between the two suggest it would be, would severely upset the fundamental formula and structure of the show by allowing intimacy and trust to manifest themselves in the world. The world would therefore be safer, the monsters defanged. Also, sex between the characters would result in a distinct resolution of tension. Once it transpired, it could not be taken back, nor could it be open to interpretation. The agents having sex with one another would therefore not only disrupt the established rules of sex in The X-Files, but also the way the viewers themselves relate to Mulder and Scully's relationship. Literal sexual consummation between the agents would give viewers the immediate satisfaction of a long held desire to see the characters do the deed. But with this act comes a specific and irrevocable resolution by which the viewers must necessarily lose their own interpretations of the act, and by extension, how they translate it to their lives and make it their own. The audience would have a fixed idea of how, when, and where Mulder and Scully had sex for the first time, and it would not be their version of the event. Literal sex between the characters is therefore counter to both its relationship with the show and its relationship with the viewer. Metaphorical sex, however, is not. Like the relationship of the show to the viewer, the metaphor is where the deepest connection is made; it is, in fact, where the definition of the connection between the two is made. So it makes sense that Mulder and Scully's most intimate relationship would occur on this level. Which it does: the seed given by Mulder and received by Scully; the penny and dime fused; the Christmas gifts exchanged; the agents' shared life somewhere over the rainbow. Although in the literal X-Files world the agents may be the most sexually deprived characters on television, in the metaphorical realm for Mulder and Scully, sex abounds.

She couldn't have said it better.

 

But now... things are a lot more complex >:).

 

It's a nice look back to 99' -- before William and All Things, etc. How things have changed...

[supposebly]

 

“She’s different, but the way she is now, she’s not human.”

 

Interesting discussion. I didn't watch the show during its run but I found it rather depressing that they made Scully an interesting character but at the expense of her sexuality. I guess, it's not possible to write women as sexual beings AND competent and layered without falling into the trap to reduce them to their sexuality.

I liked that she wasn't reduced to her sexuality but I didn't realize until much later that they made her the Virgin Mary instead in the end.

 

The whole season 8 question of whether Mulder was the father or not, seriously, is CC Catholic?