#txf 7x11

[unaluv]

my thoughts on x files 7x11: closure!

i've seen lots of opinions online about this episode—especially from those who watched the original run of the series—saying that they found 'closure' to be a really disappointing end to samantha mulder's story BUT

i seriously thought that was a beautiful way to end her arc. honestly i was a bit sick of the red herring clones of her being brought back with no real answers as to what happened to her, and so i think that this ending that mulder got in regards to his sister was almost perfect (at least in the way i interpret it, not that i think CC wrote it intentionally like this)

mulder gaining closure because of his realisation that closure does not exist??? as scully said at one point in the episode, mulder's emotional wound surrounding samantha's disappearance never healed. he never found an answer and his whole life's work had been spurred by his desperate need to discover what happened to his sister, with the distinct lack of answers being the true source of his frustration. he was set free from this torment not because he FOUND closure, but because he finally understood that closure was impossible for him to ever obtain.

i think that the obvious symbolism of this surrounding samantha's final disappearance (ie her physical death, and the lack of physical evidence that this resulted in) is quite simple, but also a really beautiful finish to her story. mulder's acceptance of samantha's fate in a way that—despite his obviously radical beliefs in terms of the paranormal—contradicts his atheism in terms of the more religious aspects of the show was really quiiite lovely to me, although again i don't think chris carter meant to do that. or maybe he did. idk. s7 is kinda all over the place

i don't think a big, groundbreaking finale for samantha's arc would've satisfied me like this did. the fact that it WASN'T some huge ending is a lot more realistic for me (despite the actual context of what happened of course) and mulder's understanding that she wasn't still out there and that she had, in fact, died many years beforehand was a good ending I'd say. like i dont know how else they could've done it especially with everything else that happened up til s7.

anyway the graveyard scene made me cry horrifically ahahahaha

I WILL SAY that the random psychic guy being there was insanely odd because what are u even doing but ANYWAY

[spookytheory]

Thoughts on 7x11 "Closure" aka "Oh, so that's what happened to Samantha!... Or is it?" I have a strange theory about this ending of the Samantha arc, and would love to hear your thoughts, too!

Spoilers and my weird thoughts below the cut!

Well, did Samantha's soul really become one of the stars? Yes... And no?

Watching this ep made me reflect on everything I know about Mulder's relationship with spirituality and souls, especially in the context of religion. In 1x04 "Conduit," we get a first glimpse of how Samantha's abduction and religion intersect for Mulder. He's sitting in a church, sobbing, a photo of Samantha in his hands, head bowed. After this, though, any time religion comes up, be it from Scully or in a case, Mulder is dismissive and presents as an atheist.

My theory is that religion was what his family fell back on when Samantha was taken. When investigations were turning up nothing, I believe they tried to turn to God. Of course, since nothing came of this either, I feel that Mulder associated God and religion with fruitless prayer and wasteful inaction. I'm sure there are quotes from him in many religious-focus eps that would support this view and have overlaps with Samantha being missing (sorry I don't have the spoons to go back and track everything, but maybe on a rewatch...). But despite all of this history with religion, we hear that iconic line for the first time over that church scene: Mulder says, "I want to believe." He wants to believe that his sister is still alive, yes. But on the opposite side of that, in the context of the church scene, it also feels like a prayer, a belief in the opposite direction: "I want to believe her soul is safe, and at peace, if she is dead."

So what does this have to do with "Closure"? A young girl is kidnapped and Mulder's mother dies. Scully is right: he's in an incredibly vulnerable emotional state. And as he says himself, he wants it to end. He wants that wound he's had over Samantha's disappearance to finally close. This is perhaps because he wants to start a new life with Scully or because there's no family left to reunite, with his mom and dad both dead. Perhaps it's simply because he's just so tired of searching.

He was so sceptical of psychics and souls and God. Why, suddenly, does this ep start with him monologuing about God, about him "wanting to believe so badly... Wanting to believe in God's eternal recompense and sadness"? It's because he's done with chasing Samantha or at this point, Samantha's ghost. He knows that she is very likely dead. So when he wanders into the forest in that last scene, and says goodbye to her soul, he's accepting his other belief: the one that she is dead, but her soul is at peace. Personally, I think like the hypnosis tape, Mulder saw what he wanted to see. That's very in character. I'm of the belief that forest scene was imagined by Mulder, but I think it can be interpreted either way. What's important here is when Mulder returns from the forest, the psychic is a perfect example of Mulder pre-acceptance to act as a contrast to this new Mulder.

As a last point, I think we tend to think about Mulder's influence on Scully and how over time, she's become more and more open to answers of aliens and the supernatural. But I think what's less discussed is Scully's effect on Mulder. That night when they were together after his mom died, what did Scully say? I have a feeling her Catholic leanings may have come up. She may have tried to comfort him in a way she knew: her belief that souls end up with God or in a better place. There's no weakness in believing that our loved ones are safe even in death. It's a comfort that many people need in order to heal. Mulder needed this.

Samantha disappeared from a locked room, CSM close at hand. Anything could have happened that night and Mulder must know this. But he doesn't press the matter. Hell, he doesn't even want to go talk to the nurse himself. Because, again, he says it himself that this is "the end of the road." He has come to terms with himself and his wound. He's ready to let go of Samantha. He's ready to place her "in the stars" with his other beliefs.

I think the real closure comes from the gap in Mulder's beliefs finally being sealed alongside his acceptance of Samantha's fate. Mulder internalizing the belief that Samantha is dead and "among the stars" is almost more tragic than confirming that she is actually dead. Because even if she is still alive, he's stopped his search. And he is the only one who continued to look for her.

[fox-mulder-is-trans]

They really did give us seven seasons of buildup just to make Samantha a fucking star spirit huh

[skelavender]

headache and mytharc episodes do notttt mix