Year 8 in Review:An End of an Era

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Season 8 was more difficult to stomach at times than the much more convoluted and uneven Season 7. Though I certainly appreciate some of the character growth in Mulder and Scully, it was not enough to truly salvage what I initially thought would be a great season.

I believe the biggest problem for the creative staff at Ten-Thirteen was trying to come up with some interesting stories without sacrificing the ongoing major plot point of Mulder's abduction as shown in Season 7's finale, "Requiem." However, instead of reinventing the series with Mulder's abduction very much at the core of the season when David Duchovny was not available, the writers decided to revert back to the self-contained scenario of the series' first season, the unoriginal, uninspiring and even less scary Monster-of-the-Week (MOTW) episodes. Instead of some tie-in to aliens and Mulder's disappearance or at least some semblance that Scully was grappling with his loss as well as keeping her pregnancy secret, the stories were mostly self-contained bores with very little character growth or direction.

The casting of Robert Patrick as a new agent was a good idea. One of the chief complaints that David has had over the years is that the focus was *too* much on Mulder and Scully. Thus, the actors had grueling 14-hour days of shooting with nary a break in sight. David wanted some of the supporting characters, such as Skinner, The Lone Gunmen, Krycek, etc, to have much more exposure on the show so that the exhausting shooting schedule would be able to accommodate more breaks for the main actors. It's funny that it took David missing half of the season for the producers at Ten-Thirteen to finally incorporate that idea. Even then, they decide to introduce another character rather than beef up the ones that are already established.

Though Patrick does bring a nice enthusiasm to the aging series, his presence only alludes to the fact that the chemistry with the other characters was not exactly right. He would definitely shine in late season episodes, but in some of the earlier ones, he seemed confused. Though he was partnered with Scully, they acted more like strangers to each other at times. In fact, Gillian looked as enthusiastic as someone waiting to have a root canal.

Nevertheless, Agent Doggett is a good, solid character. Though it seemed as though only Carter and Spotnitz were the only writers who understood what drives Doggett to be the devout skeptic he is and not make himself look silly with intellectuals such as Mulder and Scully. For most of the season, he was almost a caricature of a skeptic, totally blind to *any* possibility of the paranormal even if he blatantly witnessed an event. His stubbornness and tunnel vision was a cause of irritation in some episodes, particularly "Invocation," "Via Negativa, "DeadAlive," and "Vienen."

Another puzzling trend in Season 8 was the bizarre attitude change in Assistant Director Skinner. This is the same strong and noble man who looked at the devil himself (Smoking Man) and told him to kiss his ass. Yet, he appeared to have very little backbone when confronting his newly appointed bureaucratic jerk of a superior, Deputy Director Alvin Kersh. Not to mention that he acted more subordinate at times to Doggett than he ever did to Mulder and Scully. I still cringe at viewing the scene in "Three Words" when Doggett and Kersh were exchanging heated looks as Skinner quietly sat in his chair like a dog who was just whipped by his master. His killing of Krycek in the finale was a high point, but for a main recurring character, Skinner didn't come off very well this past season.

Though it was definitely a difficult situation for the creative team at Ten-Thirteen to come up with fresh, interesting stories when their main actor was missing for half of the season, they did not work with what they were given. The Season 7 finale set up some incredible dramatic plot points for the following season. Getting away from the Mulder abduction, there was still the incredible plot point of Scully's pregnancy. How did it happen? Who is the father? How will she tell her mother? What impact does it have on her emotionally? Not to mention that they could have explored Scully's emotional pain of losing Mulder in at least one episode if not spread out through a few episodes.

Also, Krycek and Marita Covarrubias had a hand in the season finale, particularly in killing Smoking Man. Yet, that was never explored. Skinner should have been shown in more episodes than he was in as well as having an episode focusing on him. We really don't know how he coped with Mulder's loss, since it was his responsibility to watch out for him. Not only that, but he has to keep Scully's pregnancy a secret, and later episodes show that he was more than curious as to who fathered her child. These were all seeds of plot points shown in "Requiem." Instead, we had to endure episodes like "Surekill," "Salvage," "Badlaa," "Medusa," and "Patience."

Way back in Season 2, everyone knew that Gillian Anderson would be limited in the early part of the season due to her real-life pregnancy. Yet, Ten-Thirteen came up with some of their best stories ("Little Green Men," "Blood," "Sleepless," "Duane Barry"), and they were able to delve deeper into the conspiracy while also introducing a memorable recurring character in Alex Krycek. When Scully was abducted, Mulder was deeply affected and felt responsible for not coming to her aid in time. To some, he seemed to move heaven and earth to find Scully. The audience was truly moved with his emotions and obvious personal loss. Until "This Is Not Happening," I didn't feel Mulder's absence as affecting Scully in the same way through most of this season. Yes, we did get glimpses of it in "Badlaa" and "Per Manum," but it was too little, too late by the time David returned. TINH proved just how much Mulder meant to Scully, and also shows the neglect of the writers to showcase that.

I understand that the writers had to have the required plotlines that did not involve Mulder's search or Scully's baby. Yet, would we have really been upset if they showcased more of those types of plots as well as more Doggett character growth than watching unoriginal MOTW episodes like "Surekill" or "Salvage"? The lack of continuity in Season 7 was atrocious at times. Also, it wasn't a great idea to have Scully's pregnancy kept on the backburner for most of the season. Fans actually paid attention as to how many months it took for Scully to finally show her pregnancy. I've read more than my share of other reviews skewering her pregnancy as a last ditch effort by Fox and Ten-Thirteen to keep viewer interest while David was missing. I still think her pregnancy was a great plot point, but very poorly handled by the writing staff.

Upon David's return to full-time status, his stories sadly show how much the writers wasted their time with the overabundance of MOTW episodes. In the flashback episode, "Per Manum," all the magic and charm that Mulder brought to the series was in full view. Gillian showed life in Scully for the first time all season, and the relationship between Mulder and Scully was actually explored. Though the plot was a bit contrived, the flashback sequences were excellently done and definitely display the strong contrast between Scully's relationship with Mulder and the current one she has with Doggett. They were like night and day.

Besides the tender and moving scenes between Mulder and Scully in "Per Manum," there were several other plot points that are inexplicably crammed into this one episode. The conspiracy of women giving birth to alien/human babies is reintroduced along with an introduction of a new character, Knowle Rohr, as a kind of "Deep Throat" for Doggett. All of these plot points were certainly much more interesting to see than most of the previous episodes before it. Yet, except for Knowle Rohr, not much of the rest of that episodes plot was ever really explored or mentioned again.

It's difficult to understand some of the continuity in Season 8. I will be the first to admit that I wouldn't have wanted to see Scully crying in every episode because she missed Mulder all the time, but that was rarely even hinted through much of the first part of the season! It's difficult to believe that Scully would want to pursue monster cases when some that hit closer to home seem better suited to her focus. On top of which, I'm surprised that nary any mention of the task force assigned to find Mulder that was shown in the very first episode was not even mentioned again until TINH. How is that possible?

Even though the majority of the writers did not fully grasp the character of John Doggett, Carter and gang decided to add a new character to the fold: Special Agent Monica Reyes. Her initial introduction was a bit odd as her explanation of what she believes and not believe were vague and tied up in double entendres. However, Reyes shows that her lively spirit adds some color to the dark series even if her strange behavior at times left something to be desired. Yet, the series was gearing up for another possible season, and her presence was very much needed as a kind of buffer for Doggett and Scully. As we saw more of Reyes, she proves that there is more to her odd behavior and an obvious integrity, much more than her initial appearance would suggest.

Yes, Reyes does show a similarity to Scully's own new wave sister, Melissa. I found that Scully's own mention of it in "Existence" was more than a coincidence. It undoubtedly is a way to show a connection to the past seen through a new character. Will Reyes show more depth than what we've seen? Only the boys at Ten-Thirteen can answer that next season. I certainly hope that Doggett feels comfortable enough with Reyes to finally open his eyes to possibilities. Otherwise, Season 9 will be an incredible waste of time to watch.

The finale itself was good entertainment but anticlimactic in a way. I just don't see eight years of the show's mythology being wrapped up in this episode. If anything, more questions (as usual) were asked than answers given. Beyond all that, the one true payoff was the final scene with Mulder and Scully.

Whether you are a casual fan, obsessed fan or somewhere in between, there is no denying that the chemistry between Mulder and Scully has been a staple of the show from the very beginning. As many viewers can attest, that chemistry is so magical that Scully's rather glum and understated behavior through most of the first half of the season was directly influenced by the absence of her partner. When we finally saw an episode with them together ("Per Manum"), the closeness shown between them was obviously missing in the partnership of Scully and Doggett. I didn't see the kind of openness she so easily displays with Mulder in her interactions with Doggett. To further confirm that, the episode cleverly contrasts the partnerships in a way that shows where Scully's heart truly lies.

Thus, it was very strange that after all those months of not having Mulder around, Scully reverts back to their old ways when he returns. Save for her emotional outbursts in TINH and "DeadAlive," Scully acted awkward and unsettled when she was with Mulder. It was as if she felt that her emotions would not be appropriate to show to her one true partner. Then, there was the interesting issue of her pregnancy not being a prime topic in their conversations.

So the final scene in "Existence" was interesting to any long-time fan. Without even going into all the religious symbolism and the inexplicable reason the alien replicants even bothered to show up for the birth of Scully's baby, the touching scene with Mulder and Scully certainly wrapped up eight years of their trademark non-verbal communication by the most romantic touch of all: a kiss. I certainly did not expect such a scenario after Carter and the gang has mercilessly teased all of us for so many years.

The paternity of the baby is not very clear even if I believe that it is Mulder's. Don't feel bad if you weren't sure about it. A recent interview with David revealed that he was not sure if Mulder is the father, either. So that whole issue is not truly resolved for anyone's satisfaction. On that note, David also stated in that same interview that he is not returning to the series next season, even for a cameo. That is very sad to note, because the last scene only opens up more options for the Mulder-Scully relationship that we won't ever see on the small tube. Will it be highlighted on the big screen? Again, that is something only Ten-Thirteen knows for sure.

So where does the show go from here? The stage is set for further X-Files' cases with a new team: Doggett and Reyes. Though Gillian is under contract for Season 9, I truly believe her situation next season will be very similar to David's this past season. I remember reading the Fox network stating that Gillian will be in *every* episode next season. Will she be very involved in each episode? Highly unlikely, since the only episode where they showed all four agents interacting with each other was "Empedocles," and the writers made Scully lay in a hospital bed for most of the episode. In other words, the writers are again focusing on two central characters. Besides, her character will be busy with little William to be traipsing around the world of the paranormal. As far as Gillian is concerned, I don't think she will mind.

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