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PLOT: Agent Doggett continues to investigate a conspiracy within the FBI but both Skinner and Scully advise him to drop it. Meanwhile, Agent Reyes is torn between her loyalties and an old flame.
New season. New opening sequence. New mytharc. Which one of these three does not ring true?
After the compelling events in the last two episodes of Season 8, Essence and Existence, respectively, there were concerns by many fans as to how to continue the series with an absent Mulder. Though the final scene of Mulder and Scully holding their child (yes, the whole paternity thing is still confusing) while in a loving kiss was very satisfying for loyal diehard fans like myself, it still doesn't explain how Scully ended up with her bundle of joy or why the alien replicants decided to leave Scully and little William alone after the birth. Considering how convoluted the mytharc plots have been in the last three seasons, chances are more likely that William would grow up to college age before Carter and company would ever truly reveal what happened in the last few seasons. But I wouldn't bet the farm on that one.
The one thing that is for certain is the new opening sequence. Overall, it was a nice refreshing change to further signify that the series is not the one most of us have seen the past eight seasons. Considering that until they added Robert Patrick last season, the opening sequence was untouched for seven years. We saw how much older Mulder and Scully (and David and Gillian for that matter) had aged during all those years of trying to uncover government conspiracies and the paranormal. Their ID pictures were almost eight years old! Now, we don't see David's face anymore, but we see an updated Gillian picture and the addition of Annabeth Gish and Mitch Pileggi (finally!) in the sequence as well. Even the music is somewhat updated. Is all this to make it more contemporary? And what is it with the final sequence showing the eyeball of a young kid in some field with telephone poles all around? It's kind of reminiscent of "Herrenvolk" with all the cloned children.
Ironically, the balance among the many characters in Nothing Important Happened Today (NIHT) is actually well done. We see that guest star Lucy Lawless' limited screen time is compelling enough to keep looking out for her. We see the sexual tension between Gish's Monica Reyes and Cary Elwes' Brad Follmer. We see that Mulder's bags are packed and his apartment is totally empty but no satisfactory reason why. We see little William displaying some very disturbing "talents" that makes Scully wonder if her baby is truly normal. We see that Monica appears to have a nice little apartment that she can sleep comfortably with just her panties, even though she has technically been in D.C. for about three days. We see that John Doggett and Monica Reyes actually do have a nice chemistry with each other though nothing as compelling to watch as Mulder and Scully yet but admittedly better than Scully and Doggett. We see that the Fab Four of Scully, Doggett, Reyes and Skinner actually call each other by (gasp!) their first names. We see the Lone Gunmen in all their geeky charm helping out Doggett and give us some inside jokes on why Langley has a blue face. I'm sure many of you know that was from their last episode of their quickly defunct spin-off series. Er, maybe not...
Through all of this, we DON'T see why Mulder left or what exactly is Lawless' Shannon McMahon's motives truly are. Her appearance in the teaser is eye-catching enough. How often do you sit in a bar and not notice a Warrior Princess? The very next time we see her, she's coming out of a water treatment plant buck naked! Funny how none of the other replicants were shown that way. If Shannon was actually, say a "Shane" instead, would we see him walking around in the buff? I just hope to God that Carter and Spotnitz have a point to her character rather than make her appear to be some kind of ratings boost and eye candy for most of the male viewers and maybe some of her old Xena (predominantly) female fans.
Meanwhile, the mytharc is more confusing than ever. NIHT appears to be a continuation of the events in Essence and Existence. Yet, what does water have to do with anything that went on in those episodes? Shannon, who is most likely one of those "super soldiers" that Knowle Rohr mentioned to Doggett last season, seems to be doing her part to eliminate anyone involved with the local water treatment place and the chemical, chlorimine, being added to the water. Again, what does this have to do with William or Scully or why Mulder had to leave and abandon the only two people he cares about? Even the writers have no real clue. "It makes sense in its own way..." was the cryptic response by Scully to Mulder's whereabouts. I'm sorry, but that's lazy story-telling.
Then, there's the involvement of Assistant Director Brad Follmer. For someone who works in D.C., why was he never mentioned last season? For that matter, it's hard to believe that Monica would not have known that her ex-boyfriend was just a few floors above her in the same building. It would make more sense to have either shown Follmer just transferring in to D.C. with a recent promotion to Assistant Director or show last season that Monica had a mixed reaction to being assigned in D.C. and drop a hint that she had "issues" to being in D.C. Those plot points would have left enough ambiguity to make their reunion a bit more believeable, but I forgot this was the X-Files, where suspension of disbelief takes on a whole new meaning. Maybe Carter and company need to watch other sci-fi shows like Stargate SG-1 or Farscape where continuity and characterization is the key to those shows' brilliance.
Now, before a majority of you think that I'm bashing the show, I readily admit that I was waiting in utter anticipation for this upcoming season. I wanted to know where the show's direction would be. Last season, it was very evident that finding the missing Mulder and coping with Scully's pregnancy should have been the focus. Yet, Carter and gang put those issues in the back of their desk drawer until the final few episodes when David Duchovny was back for full-time duty. They were more content to bring in the latest unoriginal Monster-of-the-week episode. It made a majority of the season appear uneven and very forced. Now, with David ABSOLUTELY gone for this season, the focus appears to be on little William and Doggett's conviction that there is an underlying conspiracy within the Bureau and try to sweep Mulder's disappearance under the rug. I'm sorry, but wouldn't it have made more sense to have Scully and William tag along? It would definitely give the show much more pep and actually have viewers watch.
Yet, NIHT left me a bit puzzled and disappointed. Besides the crime of making Mulder look foolish by not giving a valid reason for his forced disappearance, the writers have made Scully and Skinner shadows of their former selves. Though Skinner is still trying to tread the line between his own responsibilities and his loyalty to the X-Files, he is less defiant and more cautious than normal. While Scully is now a scared single mother who still does not know how to reach out to people who actually care for her, namely Doggett and Reyes. There is no fire and determination in her eyes. There is no true conviction in helping out with an X-File. There is no passion coming from her heart. Yes, all of this can be attributed to her missing half, Mulder. But Scully was always a strong person before she ever met Mulder.
Fortunately, there are many plot points within NIHT that makes it promising for future story elements. Considering that it is the middle part of what is looking like a four-episode arc, the lack of any true "bang for the buck" was understandably missing as is most middle parts of a Carter/Spotnitz X-File. I am curious as to Shannon McMahon's involvement in all of this. Lucy Lawless is a very watchable actress, and I'm always amazed at her smoldering looks that convey much without really explaining anything. I am intrigued with the whole Follmer/Reyes/Doggett triangle. I do like the bonding going on between Scully, Reyes and Doggett. I always love seeing the Lone Gunmen giving us those much-needed light moments, especially now that Mulder is no longer in this season's picture. Of course, it will be interesting to say the least on how Scully copes with her "special" child and her FBI career.
Of course, I'm being very cautious after commenting in last season's premiere, "Within," that Season 8 was shaping up to be something good. Ten Thirteen proved me wrong in so many ways.
By the way, what happened to Billy Miles?
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