X Files review - the Biogenesis/Sixth Extinction three-parter
I do random reviews only when I feel strongly about a random piece of media. I wish Iād kept some kind of X Files diary before this point but oh well too late now.
SPOILERS. Obviously
BIOGENESIS
9/10! Really good episode that made me super excited to see what was coming next. The mystery is cool, I was really curious about what was causing Mulderās weird migraines at first. Poor Albert Hosteen :( And the twist that Mulder ends up completely losing his sanity! Im sorta obsessed with how confident Scully is that Mulder could not hurt her. AND THE FINAL SHOT OF SCULLY FINDING THE SHIP WITH THE MUSIC! Itās just *chefās kiss*
The Sixth Extinction I
10/10
Scully angst. Mulder going absolutely feral. Mulder attacking Skinner (which seems to happen a lot. Like not just with the 3 times Mulder did but with Holly too. Poor Skinner lol) but heās in there and trying to ask for helpā¦
Scullyās investigations in Africa involving 12 plagues of Egypt type drama. Her dynamic with the professor lady who I really love. I just realized Iām not even reviewing the episode, just stating the things I loved about it. I really loved this episode.
The Sixth Extinction II (Amor Fati)
5/10
well shit. This episode really frustrated me more than a usual bad episode. Because (at least in my person, subjective opinion) it was 2 really great episodes and then it finished it off with a mess. Itās like if you were at a restaurant and they gave you a really delicious starter, then an even more delicious main course, and then promised you an amazing desertā¦and it comes and itās a poop on a plate. Ok, thatās mean, itās not that bad. Like, a single hard cookie from the side-of-the-road patrol station (like one of those hard cookies with a really specific unpleasant taste I canāt describe) on a plate.
It just moves in an insanely fast and messy way. āMulder gets kidnapped by CSM. MEANWHILE in his dream he gets a magic injection that cures his illness. THEN heās in love with Diana. Also Deep Throat and Samantha are there. THEN they get married have kids. THEN Mulder gets old and everyone dies and everything. THEN Mulder gets weird Jesus brain surgery (In the real world). Also in his dream thereās an alien invasion thing. THEN Diana gets a random ass redemption arc (convieniently) and gives Scully the key so she saves Mulder. THEN Kritschgau dies. THEN, it turns out, Albert Hosteen AND Diana both died offscreen and this is learned from a random conversation between Mulder and Scully. Also Mulder is like completely fine now after all the insane stuff that happened to himā
In another reiteration of what I said earlier, the first 2 episodeswere promising, well paced, and made me excited. Then it all gets wrapped up in this horrible messy way.
What would I change? Iām not the best writer but I am a writer. (This isnāt the objective āright wayā btw! Just how Iād change it if it were me) A few things Iād do:
-I would say give Duchovny better old age makeup because that job was atrocious BUTā¦Iād just do away with the whole dream with Diana. The only good thing about it is that it leads to the touchstone speech at the end but that could still happen.
-Give Mulder more agency in the ordeal. Just, in any way, however small. Maybe Mulder tries to resist and escape the world in his dream somehow. Idk.
-Have Diana die onscreen
anyway itās late and I must sleep so goodni
EDIT: I woke up and I gotta say this was somewhat late at night and Iād JUST watched Amor Fati when I wrote this so it was still fresh in my mind. Which is why this review is so disjointed, insane and rant-y. Then I eventually decided it was better for me to go get some good sleep than venting online about a show š So I wanna clear up some things after a good nights sleep
-I didnāt want Diana to die onscreen because Iām a psychotic Diana Fowley hater, even if I dislike her. I just thought that having a major characterās death only be learned from a passing conversation like that was just plain bad writing. Same thing with Albert Hosteen
-I think that most of what bothered me about Amor Fati was it was just a āThings happenā episode. And a lot of things happen unceremoniously and offscreen. Part of what I liked so much about the last 2 episodes was the angst but here no character reacts to the things that happen in an interesting way. Mulder is having the agency of a potted plant being unaware of whatās going on throughout his whole ordeal and we never see him actually react to finding out CSM was his father. Kritschgau died and was never brought up again. Diana and Albert Hosteenās offscreen deaths yet again. After Mulder finally wakes up it just cuts to him a week later, completely fine and apparently fully recovered from a straight-up nightmare situation like it never happened. Almost makes me want to write a fanfiction of it somehow and I havenāt written fanfiction in a longggg timeā¦but oh well. I have my own pen. Maybe laterā¦