A Gen X writer of poetry in English, of prose in Italian and German.
I love literature, art, music, cinema, and the spaces in between.
Also, The X-Files, Twin Peaks, and Versailles no bara.
Dreamland. Scully arrives at Mulder’s place and finds Kersh’s dishevelled secretary leaving his apartment. It’s apparent that she just had a tête-à-tête of whichever kind with Mulder.
I was always very surprised that Scully wasn’t more visibly devastated in that situation. After all, this is right after Triangle, and Mulder had recently told her that he loved her. Although she pretended not to take it seriously, decided to blame it on the drugs, I think she VERY well knew that he meant it. She just couldn’t cope with it, being utterly unprepared for it; not in this kind of situation, not so spontaneously – at least that’s my take on it. So why was she more annoyed than hurt to find that Mulder most likely had just fucked someone else in a completely casual way?
I think that Scully knows an awful lot of things instinctively long before she admits to them. And I’m convinced she already knew a 100% that there was no way this was her Mulder. As good and necessary as her strict rationalism is for him and his flights of fancy, as much a hindrance it can be to Scully herself. But this deep knowledge of things is also the reason why the blond secretary exiting Mulder’s door does not cause her real suffering. If indeed they just had sexual intercourse in there, at least her Mulder did certainly not participate in it. (Remember that if Scully is good at hiding her feelings, jealousy is the one thing she can’t control properly.)
Which brings me to the next question: Did they, fuck? I find the thought quite disturbing, because it would mean that Fletcher exploited Mulder, actually violated his body (hey, it was HIS body); that despite the fact that Mulder hadn’t had sex in so-and-so-many years because (I believe) he wanted to do it with Scully and no one else, Fletcher ruined that.
You could argue that a body is just a body, but I would reply that no, it is never ONLY a body, Mulder for Scully certainly is both, mind and matter indivisible, or she could later just have stayed with Mulder-as-Fletcher instead of telling him “I’d kiss you if you weren’t so damn ugly”. Was that a completely superficial thing of her to say, should she have loved his soul no matter what? Not without a huge effort (there is an excellent fanfic out there which explores just that path). The thing is, we might love a soul first, but that soul then starts to extend to the body, manifest in a face, we begin to love the shape of a nose, find ourselves surprised at adoring the curve of a lip we’d never found attractive in anyone else but the beloved person. Mulder’s body for Scully is holy, as lovers’ bodies are, and it was for her to have, not some horny secretary, not for horny Fletcher to just use as he pleased.
(I could go on and explain how I think that Dreamland shouldn’t be a comedy, that Mulder, as crazy curious as he is, might perhaps have found the experience interesting to a degree, but everyone finding themselves in a body not belonging to them would probably panic, be desperate.) And yes, time is rewinded after Dreamland, but not entirely. The parallel experience left traces and perhaps it would also have left traces on Mulder’s body.
Summa summarum: I headcanon that Fletcher did NOT sleep with Kersh’s secretary but that they only fooled around (bad enough) and that Mulder’s body indeed had the pleasure to be used to pleasure Scully later, after so many years.
it seems to me—and maybe I'm reading it wrong—that we are told by the show (i.e. the way people react to it, the fact that Scully, whom we trust, follows him) that Mulder's brand of belief is courageous and interesting and admirably precocious; he believes in things that other people can't see or understand but which he knows to be real, and about which he is proven, again and again, to be right. Scully gives him the time of day, going along in part because of her affection for him but in part, also, because she makes space for the possibility that even if what he believes to be true is not, there is something valid in the act of searching.
paradoxically, the show tells us that Melissa's brand of belief is silly and dismissible. Scully won't give her an inch; she only goes to see Pomerantz in S03E01: The Blessing Way in order to placate Melissa, not because she believes in its possible validity—and she leaves almost as soon as she begins. it tells us this in the way that Mulder reacts to her energy-crystal work at Scully's bedside, and how angry Scully gets at Melissa's foolishness in 3x1 TBW.
don't get me wrong—i'm not a saint. if these people were real and I encountered them, I would undoubtedly think they're both nuts.
i'm just watching S03E01: The Blessing Way and thinking about the difference in how these two "believers" are portrayed.
I love your thoughts on this and can't help but share mine. Sorry. ❤️
Interestingly, the series portrays Mulder as a sort of “fool” (in the European tradition of the court jester, who is the only one allowed to tell the king the uncomfortable truth, but only on the condition that everyone pretends he is mad). Thus, he is one of the few who, in a deranged world, is in truth sane; which is why everyone calls him “Spooky” and believes he’s a bit off his rocker. He is like the Greek prophetess Cassandra, who is punished for her gift of prophecy by the fact that nobody believes her. And, of course, Scully realises this; she realises that, whilst he may have crazy ideas, he has essentially grasped something deeper than the others have.
Melissa takes on more of the role of a crackpot New Age type, but what’s still astonishing is that she, too, turns out to be right, precisely where Mulder fails to see the bigger picture. She knew Scully was still alive, inside; she heard her voice speaking; she knew she wasn’t ready to leave yet. And – most importantly, though this is just my headcanon (as is perhaps everything I’ve just written) – she recognises the bond between M&S long before they do themselves.
… and here comes the DD/Fox Mulder hands appreciation post
Not much to say, except that they are infinitely graceful and elegant. I love that they are slightly feminine (really the best feature in male hands: his are the hands of a piano player, an artist, a reader, an intellectual) and, probably made for a heightened haptic perception and capable of tactile memory.
I think the New Spartans breaking his finger was the single most physically painful torture moment of the entire series for me.
Reblogging this to remind myself that it goes 'hand in hand' with the "smut ficlet, chapter 4: fingers" that @thursdayinspace wrote. Is it warm in here?
For everyone who loves haptic experiences, here's the most tactile story ever by @thursdayinspace https://archiveofourown.org/works/73676646/chapters/240269406
Thank you to @xfile999 for bringing it to my/our attention. 😊
Rural NV; Lincoln County, NV; Groom Lake, NV; Rachel, NV
How do you unmake time? That's the answer Mulder needs if he's going to get his life back. He's trying to retain his freedom on the job-front while calming the waves on the home end and just barely squeaking by on both.
In an effort to shake his surveillance, he takes Joanne out to the "Little 'A'Le Inn," a real-world country and western bar. It's perfect for the X-Files. (I want a set of Mulder's alien beer glasses.) For decades, fans wanted to know about the song playing in the background. In 2023, it was revealed on Twitter that "Staring at the Stars" was written for the episode. Glenn Jordan and Dan Marfisi were given plenty of leeway on 'what' to play so long as they did it in 4 hours or less. Surprised by their sudden notoriety all these years later, they finally released the track. I found it on Spotify.
Mulder has a bedroom! Fans had wondered for years, and Morris Fletcher finally reveals it. By furnishing it and enacting his plans, he becomes the second character 'pretending to be Mulder' to attempt to woo Scully. I'll also add the mirrored ceiling shot to the list of times TXF gives shippers the illusion of what they want. Not just the shippers, either. Scully takes a moment to savor the illusion of Mulder beside her in his bed, then surprises Morris by saying, "No, I don't hate it." (Kudos to @volpeantica for pointing out the way GA delivers this line in an earlier post here.)
It's no accident that Mulder's apartment got the Morris overhaul, either. Both Mulder's and Scully's apartments were constructed in LA during filming for Fight the Future, while the Vancouver sets were still being used. As with the fire in the basement office, however, the makeover serves to validate any discrepancies picked up by the attentive viewers. The look of the episode overall is different, too? Welcome, Michael Watkins, the first new director to join the ranks in LA.
Scully is desperately searching for a way to get *her* Mulder back. She is certain about Morris now, and he's driving her crazy. Ironically, by doing all of those things that she's always thought she wanted from Mulder. On the job, he's by the book, staying on Kersh's good side. Personally, he's clean, organized, inviting her over for a home-cooked meal. It seems so normal. (He is also a cheating, sexist pig, but you get the idea.)
MSR: The angst! The scene where Scully tells Mulder they can't reverse the switch is so well done by both actors. The hesitant eye contact and bracing pauses. Scully's kiss line is a reference to Planet of the Apes, which I'm sure Mulder appreciates (but would still prefer the kiss). The sunflower seeds were unscripted, which usually means they were improv added by DD, but it isn't specified. As with all things M&S, that non-verbal message says the most.
The Dreamland episodes are lighthearted fun. In the first part, especially, there's an energy that makes me feel like they had a blast while filming it. There are some great moments. If I'm honest, though, I wish there had been more substance in Area 51 for Mulder. Shouldn't he be skulking in a black turtleneck? (Or whatever the Morris equivalent is.) Pull in the Lone Gunmen. (Because ridiculing TLG is like kicking puppies, especially when it's done by a schmuck like Morris.) I mean, MULDER IS IN AREA-FREAKING-51! I enjoyed Mulder and the Fletchers, but in the end, it's all 'like it never happened'. If you're gonna do that, you might as well show him something truly spectacular.
That said, the dream isn't over yet. Morris Fletcher will be back later this season and beyond. Michael McKean specifically asked that his character not be killed off. (You can do that??) This also won't be the last you hear of the waterbed. And that fused dime/penny souvenir not only pops up in Season 8 but somehow manages to jump over into an episode of Fringe a decade later (2008). As for me, I've saved the best for last. Fic recs are coming soon. Thanks for reading.
Dreamland. Scully arrives at Mulder’s place and finds Kersh’s dishevelled secretary leaving his apartment. It’s apparent that she just had a tête-à-tête of whichever kind with Mulder.
I was always very surprised that Scully wasn’t more visibly devastated in that situation. After all, this is right after Triangle, and Mulder had recently told her that he loved her. Although she pretended not to take it seriously, decided to blame it on the drugs, I think she VERY well knew that he meant it. She just couldn’t cope with it, being utterly unprepared for it; not in this kind of situation, not so spontaneously – at least that’s my take on it. So why was she more annoyed than hurt to find that Mulder most likely had just fucked someone else in a completely casual way?
I think that Scully knows an awful lot of things instinctively long before she admits to them. And I’m convinced she already knew a 100% that there was no way this was her Mulder. As good and necessary as her strict rationalism is for him and his flights of fancy, as much a hindrance it can be to Scully herself. But this deep knowledge of things is also the reason why the blond secretary exiting Mulder’s door does not cause her real suffering. If indeed they just had sexual intercourse in there, at least her Mulder did certainly not participate in it. (Remember that if Scully is good at hiding her feelings, jealousy is the one thing she can’t control properly.)
Which brings me to the next question: Did they, fuck? I find the thought quite disturbing, because it would mean that Fletcher exploited Mulder, actually violated his body (hey, it was HIS body); that despite the fact that Mulder hadn’t had sex in so-and-so-many years because (I believe) he wanted to do it with Scully and no one else, Fletcher ruined that.
You could argue that a body is just a body, but I would reply that no, it is never ONLY a body, Mulder for Scully certainly is both, mind and matter indivisible, or she could later just have stayed with Mulder-as-Fletcher instead of telling him “I’d kiss you if you weren’t so damn ugly”. Was that a completely superficial thing of her to say, should she have loved his soul no matter what? Not without a huge effort (there is an excellent fanfic out there which explores just that path). The thing is, we might love a soul first, but that soul then starts to extend to the body, manifest in a face, we begin to love the shape of a nose, find ourselves surprised at adoring the curve of a lip we’d never found attractive in anyone else but the beloved person. Mulder’s body for Scully is holy, as lovers’ bodies are, and it was for her to have, not some horny secretary, not for horny Fletcher to just use as he pleased.
(I could go on and explain how I think that Dreamland shouldn’t be a comedy, that Mulder, as crazy curious as he is, might perhaps have found the experience interesting to a degree, but everyone finding themselves in a body not belonging to them would probably panic, be desperate.) And yes, time is rewinded after Dreamland, but not entirely. The parallel experience left traces and perhaps it would also have left traces on Mulder’s body.
Summa summarum: I headcanon that Fletcher did NOT sleep with Kersh’s secretary but that they only fooled around (bad enough) and that Mulder’s body indeed had the pleasure to be used to pleasure Scully later, after so many years.
omg EVERYONE go watch this edit by @daciliob on TikTok it DESTROYED ME 😭.
p.s i hope (🤞) OP doesn’t mind me reposting it here with credit, i can’t see that they’re on tumblr, but if by chance they are feel free to let me know and I’ll reblog their original post 🙂↕️
At this point it almost feels as if CC originally wanted to make a film that had nothing to do with the X-Files at all but used the characters knowing they would sell. Used them for a purpose, not to develop them or his story. That he could have just as well made up new characters entirely and done without Mulder and Scully, since he killed off their relationship (and, thus, their story) in this cut that obviously mirrors his "vision" more closely.
Okay I don’t usually post stuff like this often, but please, please, pretty please stop using AI when making fandom content. It’s so prevalent in The X Files community and it genuinely disturbs me. Please, for the love of god, stop.
its so funny to me that every time theres a x files myth episode its like 'damn how could this get any worse' and then alex krycek shows up. every fucking time. dire situation? oh yup theres krycek. need help with something? youll never guess who the only one who can help is. someones blackmailing you? yeah haha its just krycek. guess who has the information you need? yeah you know. whos gonna show up and randomly help you? yeah hes gonna betray you seven seconds later too. oh you thought he died? haha nope theres the ghost of krycek. its always krycek. i remember watching the s8 finale and that car runs over someone and i was like 'lmao its probably krycek' AND THEN IT WAS. ITS ALWAYS KRYCEK. you cannot escape him. you can never escape krycek. villain (?) of all time.
Rural NV; Lincoln County, NV; Groom Lake, NV; Rachel, NV
When Mulder and Scully go to meet an informant outside Area 51, Mulder unexpectedly gets access that he never dreamed of having. It comes with a few strings attached, however.
The John Gilnitz writing trio came up with the script for this two-episode tale, the only non-mythology story to extend beyond a single hour. It involves a 'consciousness swap' between Mulder and one of the 'Men in Black', Morris Fletcher, caused by a tear in the space-time continuum.
The implications are that the Air Force has been experimenting with alien/UFO technology, and something went sideways. Dreamland is another name for Area 51, which stands for Data Repository Establishment and Management Land. The official name, however, is the Nevada Test and Training Center. The highway where the warp occurs (Hwy 375) was designated the Extraterrestrial Highway in 1996. Yes, irl.
Initially, DD had hopes that his good friend Garry Shandling would play the part of Morris, but there was a scheduling conflict. Michael McKean was on the short-list and, as a fan, happy to get the role. He and DD had appeared on Saturday Night Live together in 1995 in a sketch where McKean played CSM. His character here is named after his son, Fletcher.
DD and McKean's 'mirror' dance was originally performed by the Marx Brothers in Duck Soup (1933). In 1955, Harpo Marx performed it with Lucille Ball on an episode of I Love Lucy. This time, the actors were given a week and a half to learn it before getting together for filming, using a metronome. It took them 12 takes. The only CGI is Mulder's breath fogging on the 'surface'.
Crazy things they did on the X-Files: It blows me away sometimes reading about the lengths that they went to on this show. I haven't 'researched' other tv shows, but... For this episode, they built the desert gas station from scratch. Inside and out. Just to torch it. Afterward, it was gone. Like it never happened, which seems appropriate for this episode. (Last time, they wrapped up a giant ship and installed a sprinkler system for rain.) Okey-dokey.
Since the production continued for a second episode, the cast and crew were temporarily relocated into motels in Lancaster, CA (about 100 miles away from LA) for an extended period. DD eventually griped, "When is this show moving back to Los Angeles?" and t-shirts were made.
MSR: Dreamland begins with Scully's question of ever wanting to 'live something approaching a normal life.' It's a struggle Scully returns to often in the series. The body swap gives Mulder an up-close experience of what potentially (?) his best-case scenario of that normal life would look like: wife, kids, and access to top-secret alien truths. But, unlike Fletcher, Mulder isn't assimilating to any part of this role. And when Howard answers his question about reversing the effects with, "Who says we can?" he looks utterly lost. (Okay, so if he had the 'right' wife, maybe this experiment has different results.)
Scully is having an equally difficult time. She can't understand the change in her partner's behavior. Suddenly, she's become the rogue agent, disregarding the rulebook, chasing answers to the impossible. It gives her the opportunity to experience Mulder's point of view; a role reversal of her own if she could only just believe. It all appears to finally click as Mulder (as Fletcher) is arrested in the end scene, betrayed by her.
To Be Continued...
Thanks for reading! Part II and Fic Recs are still to come.
I wonder why there are posts (perhaps especially fan art posts) that get tons of likes yet relatively few reblogs, while others get a moderate amount of likes but very many reblogs. Any theories on that? Why do you like rather than reblog and vice versa?
Still trying to figure out how tumblr works/tumblr culture.
An Absolute Overanalysis of Religious Symbolism in The X-Files
so this is going to be a really long post that maybe only appeals to a few people (and maybe has all been said before) but i just find it so interesting how much religious symbolism is found in the x files mythology. particularly how often mulder parallels jesus and how that symbolism also gradually shifts toward william and even scully's new unborn child
i'll separate this into different sections so it's easier to follow
mulder as a prophet, scully as an apostle/mother mary
first is the obvious: mulder is a prophet-like figure trying to find and spread the truth sacrificing his career, reputation and personal life while fighting against shadowy, corrupt forces. his whole life is defined by an absolute, unwavering faith in the unseen ("i want to believe"), sparked by a foundational trauma/revelation (samantha's disappearance) that functions like a divine calling
meanwhile, scully often fills the role of his disciple/apostle as she consistently stands by him and defends him through public scrutiny and persecution by the fbi, the syndicate, etc. when mulder goes missing, she is the one teaching agent doggett and passing down mulder's "gospel", showing him how to navigate the x files, and basically acting as the apostle training a new disciple to keep the work alive
scully is also explicitly catholic and always wears her cross as a physical symbol of her faith. most obviously, she heavily mirrors the virgin mary through her 3 "miraculous conceptions" (emily, william and her yet unborn child)
aliens and religion
also very interesting how in the sixth extinction (in s7) they find alien ships inscribed with the writings of every major world religion, suggesting that (within the show's mythology) aliens may be the origin of humanity's religious traditions. if aliens are the root of all religion, then mulder's search for extraterrestrial life is elevated and can actually be seen as an analogy for understanding divine truth itself; he's chasing the literal origin of humanity's idea of god and spirituality
mulder's resurrections
there are also repeated death-and-resurrection motifs surrounding mulder. he effectively "dies" 3 times throughout the series (in one sense or another) and is "resurrected":
the first and most heavy-handed christ parallel happens in anasazi/the blessing way (in s2/s3) when after being in a boxcar that is firebombed mulder is in an in-between state of life and death and is brought back by a navajo ritual led by albert hosteen. he is canonically 33 years old (the exact age jesus was at his crucifixion) and his symbolic resurrection takes place over 3 days (again exactly like jesus). albert hosteen also says that the exact moment when mulder was granted his miracle of coming back to life a white buffalo was born on the northern plains which is a powerful omen amongst several native american nations signifying great changes coming to the world
the second time comes in deadalive (s8) where mulder is returned from his abduction in a state so close to death that he is thought to actually be dead and is consequently buried. after 3 months he's brought back to life and is canonically 39 years old when this happens. very similar to the first resurrection, with the recurring symbolism of the number 3 (9 = 3 × 3) and the christ analogy continues with the death, entombment and rebirth
the third death is not actually mulder's per se but has heavy symbolism relating to him: in my struggle iv (s11) william takes on mulder's appearance to trick csm into shooting him in the head before the reveal that he has actually survived. so although not actually mulder, in a symbolic sense william "dies" in his image while inheriting mulder's christ imagery through the death and resurrection
amor fati and temptation
honorable mention to amor fati (s7) where the jesus symbolism isn't even subtle anymore. mulder is literally strapped to a cross-shaped operating table with a metal headpiece mimicking a crown of thorns while csm harvests his brain tissue and genetic material to steal his immunity. this is like a screwed up, inverted eucharist where the devil (csm) literally consumes the body of the messiah to gain immortality
the entire episode is actually a direct homage to the last temptation of christ, with csm playing satan, tempting mulder with a hallucinated vision of a normal, quiet life where he gets to age (with diana fowley of all people) and die peacefully while the world burns outside. the title amor fati ("love of fate") directly echoes jesus in the garden of gethsemane accepting his "cup of suffering" before his crucifixion: mulder has to actively reject the comfortable illusion and choose his destiny to save humanity. to top it off, scully is the one (guided by the spirit of albert hosteen) to reach mulder telepathically like a prayer and pull him out of the temptation
william as christ/antichrist
william actually also has a lot of very heavy jesus symbolism, beginning obviously with his miraculous conception. the whole series is vague about this but it is clear that he was somehow scientifically engineered with alien dna and did not have a normal/natural conception. his birth also notably has really strong parallels with jesus' birth: when scully goes into labour she gives birth in an isolated, rustic location that strongly echoes the stable in bethlehem where mary gave birth. alien super soldiers become the first witnesses to his birth, which feels reminiscent of the shepherds in the fields arriving to witness the birth of christ. meanwhile, mulder says he tracked scully and a newborn william by following a mysterious, brilliant light that appears in the sky which mimics the star of bethlehem that guided travellers to the birthplace of jesus. lastly, byers, langly and frohike visit a newborn william together, acting as the 3 wise men, bearing witness and bringing gifts to the "miraculous child"
also throughout s9, multiple factions compete for custody of william because they believe his existence carries prophetic significance. this again directly mirrors the nativity story, where christ's birth immediately attracts both devoted worshippers and people like king herod desperate to kill him
interesting though that while mulder is originally thought to be william's father (paralleling him to god), we get the reveal that csm (arguably paralleling the devil) is his actual father, or at the very least the one who scientifically engineered william's conception. this maybe hints that william is not supposed to be seen as a true saviour but instead maybe an antichrist figure disguising himself as a christ figure (e.g. believed to be mulder's child, taking on mulder's appearance during his supposed resurrection, etc), especially considering how manipulative and morally ambiguous he becomes as a teenager
the new pregnancy
finally at the end of s11 (in my struggle iv), scully reveals she's once again pregnant with yet another miraculous conception and mulder is the implied father. if william ultimately isn't the promised saviour he was originally thought to be, then perhaps the series is trying to transfer that symbolism onto this new child. with the baby implied to genuinely be mulder and scully's and therefore the child of the god/christ figure and the mary figure respectively, this baby could actually be the true messiah
that also makes the title card salvator mundi ("saviour of the world") at the beginning of the episode really interesting because it could arguably refer to 3 different people at once: it could refer to mulder himself (whose future actions might still save humanity), or it could refer to william seeing as he literally saves mulder's life (thereby saving the saviour), or it could refer to the unborn child as the new messianic figure
anyways this could all be complete overanalysis on my part and i'm not sure if all of it was intended this way, but i find it interesting none the less just how many parallels you can find. i hope one day we get a conclusive ending that wraps all this up in some way (not sure chris carter knows how to do this though so i don't have high hopes). i'm sure there's plenty i've missed as well, so if anyone has other examples of religious symbolism in the series i'd genuinely love to hear it (especially if it's not christian/catholic as that's all i really know)
Another old poem from an out-of-print collection that I rewrote to fit a MSR theme. I can hardly bear anything post-S7, but here we go.
It's on Ao3, too: https://archiveofourown.org/works/85942206
On the Run
There is a photograph of him
asleep on a bed
in a motel room,
his head resting on the pillow
– a dark cloud in the semi-darkness
of a hot July afternoon
(dandelion clock
ticking our time away,
make a wish, make a wish
that will save us before it’s too late).
He’s far away
in his own space,
in this moment
that will not repeat itself
in the years to come.
I can see the boy he once was,
an innocence no one can judge.
In that room in New Mexico,
or Utah, or Colorado,
I still believe we’ll be like this
from now on, one and separate.
And there is one thing this picture
will not reveal to anyone but me
because it happens outside its edges:
in his sleep he has placed
his hand on my leg
both claiming and protecting me --
Love does not diminish with time and age,
with the fear that will follow
nor be altered by pain,
the gaze of others
who cannot see what a photograph
recounts of love, of who we were,
what it discloses,
nor the secrets it keeps to itself.
