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Archive for the ‘News’ Category

Social media archive: 2018 (part 3)

Archived from the Eat The Corn Facebook page.


Mar 03, 2018 00:00

Case File X314159. Forwarded from FBI Section Chief Bowman, elements of the investigation examined by Special Agents Garrett Dale and Casey Winter. Findings relate to happenings in Lexington, KY. Reports on the death of Dr. Hidetaka Mori, who conducted research financed by the Department of Homeland Security. But about what? A funding request for a significant amount of tax-payers’ money refers to “Substance X derivatives”, even “shapeshifting abilities” (this is where they lost me…what is this, the ridiculous Fringe division?). Yet that budget line in NSF documents is labelled as “agricultural infrastructure”. There’s something fishy here, and I don’t just mean the smell coming off that not-so-hermetically-sealed evidence bag… #DeepState


Mar 02, 2018 20:05

For those States-side: X-Fest opens with a #DeepState event

https://www.facebook.com/events/409876866115467/


Mar 02, 2018 23:52

#Rm9: entertaining and enjoyable to watch, some interesting shots of weirdness and cinematography. Lack of dialogue a bowl of fresh air! But little content apart from the scares. Technology-focused episodes don’t tend to age well despite other qualities; with its interesting ideas treated with little inspiration, at least Rm9sbG93ZXJz will be remembered for its pure entertainment value.

11X07: Rm9sbG93ZXJz


Mar 06, 2018 17:24

March 6, 1992. 26 years ago. Scully meets Mulder. (Or 1993 – depending on whether you think that was a glitch!)

https://danasculhy.tumblr.com/post/171580372934/march-6-1992-agent-mulder-im-dana-scully


Mar 06, 2018 22:36

Thank you @[206594356443493:274:The X-Files\: Deep State] for this great case file! The level of care and attention to detail is amazing and a good indication as to the love they have put in producing the #DeepState game! I wish them success in their ongoing updates – the 6th investigation of their season 1 just got released!


Mar 08, 2018 12:08

The “This Man” website acknowledges that is referencing it this season! Another fourth wall broken!

http://www.thisman.org/this-man-in-the-x-files-serie/


Mar 11, 2018 23:16

Benjamin Van Allen / Holly Dale’s “Familiar” does not tackle a big current societal concern, it does not cover completely original ground for , but it works — finally, for this revival! Excellent directing and use of that trademark Vancouver atmosphere, strong guests acting. Includes some musings about continuity and mythology.

11X08: Familiar


Mar 13, 2018 10:22

@Rever is back! finale D-8 and Jackson/William is spooked he is a spook!…

https://ghouli.net/2018/03/09/spook/


Mar 14, 2018 1:10

finale D-7. On when to do and when not to do a finale, by Vince Gilligan.

Digital Spy: Vince Gilligan ended Breaking Bad after five years because he thought The X-Files went on too long


Mar 14, 2018 17:11

Happy Pi Day at the @[852939188082255:274:Ovaltine Cafe]… “Wait, what?”


Mar 17, 2018 21:06

Nielsen/Wong “Nothing Lasts Forever” review: the Gore-Files and some surprisingly satisfying Mulder-Scully scenes + looking back at the season 11 stand-alones! “It is interesting that only one of the old gang, Wong, and two new writers, Van Allen and Nielsen, are the ones that seem to understand what works in The X-Files and give episodes that feel satisfying as “scary stories” and as emotional stories. It has been an uneven run of episodes, which shows that The X-Files still has life in it left when it is handled well, but that it should really think about the stories it wants to tell in an environment where so many quality shows out there make viewers less forgiving of missteps.”

11X09: Nothing Lasts Forever


Mar 19, 2018 20:53

finale D-2: anticipation builds up! And where is the big marketing campaign? Where are the interviews?…

https://twitter.com/Annealiz1/status/975549831413366784


Mar 20, 2018 19:02

finale D-1!!! We look back at the show’s previous finales that could have been series finales… First: season 1 The Erlenmeyer Flask! Deep Throat killed, XF closed.

 


Mar 20, 2018 19:37

finales: Season 5 The End : CSM back from the dead, XF closed! Although a bit of a cheat, they knew they were coming back for season 6 at the time.

 


Mar 20, 2018 19:48

finales: Season 7 Requiem: CSM dead, Mulder abducted, Scully pregnant!

 


Mar 20, 2018 19:51

finales: Season 8 Existence: Scully and Mulder’s son is born!

 


Mar 20, 2018 19:57

finales: Season 9 The Truth: CSM dies, Mulder and Scully find each other!

 


Mar 20, 2018 20:02

finales: I Want To Believe bonus: Scully/Anderson and Mulder/Duchovny wave us goodbye!

 


Mar 20, 2018 20:05

finales: My Struggle II: the world ends! (because season 11 could never have happened!)

 


Mar 21, 2018 14:52

finale D-DAY! The media and Carter are already on the post-finale world, already thinking that this franchise still has more life in it and, more specifically, has life in it without Anderson/Scully. If there is more, I would rather prefer a more in-depth overhaul and lose both M&S.
“Does Carter have an idea of who could replace Anderson? “I don’t, but I’ve been working on this for a year. I’m tired and I don’t want to think about it right now,” Carter said with a laugh.”

Den of Geek: Will X-Files Season 12 Happen? Chris Carter Thinks So (EXCLUSIVE)


Mar 22, 2018 4:35

#XFMyStruggle4 was more closure than I expected – Chris Carter clearly wants to do away with all the mythology baggage and start anew. With the mess he has made I don’t blame him. 1993-2000 is still my personal canon. Short review coming soon.


Mar 25, 2018 18:03

#MyStruggle4 verdict: boom!

11X10: My Struggle IV

Social media archive: 2018 (part 2)

Archived from the Eat The Corn Facebook page.


Feb 03, 2018 19:51

Meet Jackson “William” Van de Kamp! Ghouli might be problematic in the way it is part of a larger continuity, but as an episode it is very effective. Analysis of a flawed character, breakdown of a simlified mythology for the revival age, and general review of an episode that albeit good, if this really is the final season, does frustratingly little to advance the story! https://www.eatthecorn.com/2018/02/03/11×05-ghouli/
Meet Jackson “William” Van de Kamp! Ghouli might be problematic in the way it is part of a larger continuity, but as an episode it is very effective. Analysis of a flawed character, breakdown of a simlified mythology for the revival age, and general review of an episode that albeit good, if this really is the final season, does frustratingly little to advance the story!

11X05: Ghouli


Feb 05, 2018 18:11

700 likes at @[413368385523727:274:The X-Files\: Eat The Corn]! Thank you! Our feet finally reach the pedals!

https://78.media.tumblr.com/657c091fbf400de76e040cc6fe1e3a42/tumblr_p351ihAipG1waf0dwo1_500.gif


Feb 05, 2018 23:35

Welcome ex-internet-quarantined UK philes! season 11 premiere review/rant/dissection over here:

11X01: My Struggle III

 


Feb 07, 2018 16:57

Titles & air dates of the remaining episodes of :
11X06 “Kitten”: February 7
11X07 “Rm9sbG93ZXJz”: February 28 [“Followers” in Base64]
11X08 “Nothing Lasts Forever”: March 7
11X09 “Familiar”: March 14
11X10 “My Struggle IV”: March 21


Feb 10, 2018 13:50

Gabe Rotter’s first script does the job, but it is highly derivative of Blood and Sleepless and a repeat of every single previous Skinner-focused episode, along with that frustrating stand-alone/mythology divide. Competent directing, but overall a lack of energy. Also, I do have issues with chemtrails!

11X06: Kitten


Feb 14, 2018 20:35

Descriptions to go with the titles of the remaining 4. Eps 8 & 9 switched. My Stuggle 4 = “*Season* finale”

XFilesNews: Here Are Your TXF Season 11 – Episode Titles: Part Deux


Feb 20, 2018 12:01

An in-depth look at ghouli.net, which might or might not be canon, and what it tells us about Jackson/William’s life:

  • Age 6, 2007: the tarantula incident, which results in him being experimented on, developing mental powers and telekinesis; a traumatic experience; his memory is either erased or he suppresses the memory because of the trauma, possibly both
  • Age 7, 2008: developing a capability for remote viewing, first connection with “mother”/Scully
  • Closer to 2017/2018: starts seeing This Man in dreams, feels that he can connect with others via dreams
  • Has seizures with visions he cannot control, which result in him frequently visiting a hospital
  • More and more specific dreams of the world ending, of a man-made viral disaster and aliens arriving; he connects with Scully by unwillingly sending her his visions, and senses that she is his biological mother (possibly this unlocks his childhood memories that he had compartmentalized or had had erased)
  • Hospital doctors confirm there is something biologically peculiar about him (blood chimera: two genes expressed in a single body, hinting that William has more than two biological parents)
  • William is contacted by a resistance group that could be constituted by a generation of children of William’s age that has some of the same mental powers as him, pointing him to Project Crossroads and to him learning about his nature
  • William creates Ghouli as a way to deal with his confusion, mixing in it his self-hate, his alien nature and his arachnophobia since his childhood trauma; he creates ghouli.net
  • William has a morbid attractiveness to death and the apocalypse; he realizes he is both a weapon and a cure to whatever inevitable future is coming.
  • Armed with that knowledge, after the events of the episode Ghouli, he takes off to travel the country in search of more information about himself, those who created him and those that send him messages or visions.

In essence, ghouli.net does what the series should be doing more of instead of focusing too narrowly on the old show formula: character development. William combines a story of a troubled teen with superpowers and a concentrated version of the seasons 1-6 mythology — the Black Oil/Spartan virus apocalypse-by-design along with Gibson/Cassandra/William, the perfect alien/human hybrid that would bring protection to the chosen few of the Syndicate/elites.

What ghouli.net tells us about William

 


Feb 23, 2018 14:47

We wish D.K.Scully a happy 54th birthday full of fancy autopsies and alien/human hybrid babies!

https://www.facebook.com/permalink.php?story_fbid=878188288972941&id=474053369386437


Feb 24, 2018 14:53

A new case has arrived at basement office… What secrets does it hold? #DeepState


Feb 25, 2018 22:54

New Page!

https://www.facebook.com/dagoo1995/


Feb 27, 2018 17:00

Great news! Coming by the end of 2018 or early 2019: Volume 4 of @[114444205294473:274:Mark Snow]’s music for by @[56031953754:274:La-La Land Records]! Hopefully this and many other cues from our compilation of requests will be in there:

More Music from the X-Files

Social media archive: 2018 (part 1)

Archived from the Eat The Corn Facebook page.


Jan 01, 2018 16:47

#46DaysOfMythX D-2 and Happy New Year! 10X1: My Struggle

The big return is actually a well-executed episode of 21st century television, in terms of flow and pacing. However, it accumulates error after error of continuity and odd decisions that I really struggle to enjoy much of it. The viewer shouldn’t be left to wonder that much if what is shown is to be taken at face value as ’ worldview and what is set up to be subverted for later developments (Mulder & Tad’s conspiracy rants, the Old informant, the lack of explanation of the CSM’s return, what happened with the 2012 colonization date)… At least the motivations of Mulder & Scully to return to the FBI should be provided (e.g. obviously the search for William, as in the comics that preceded the live revival)!

10X1: My Struggle

 


Jan 02, 2018 19:01

#46DaysOfMythX D-1! 10X6: My Struggle II

The last one! A “part 2” that has hardly any relation to part 1. Feature film ambitions with cutting-edge science hampered by a far, far too breakneck speed tempo and some bad dialogue. This could have been a “XF3” resolution to the colonization storyline — but on closer scrutiny it looks like it is incompatible with earlier seasons mythology. Will season 11 be able to salvage something from Carter’s bold bet on ending with such a cliffhanger?

10X6: My Struggle II

 


Jan 02, 2018 20:23

#TheXCastPodwatch: a great achievement in fandom, a herculean effort! Congratulations to @[582102203:2048:AJ] & @[511473157:2048:Carl] & team!

https://www.facebook.com/xfilespod/posts/1604525899616400

#TheXCastPodwatch Ep 107! The last Podwatch! We reflect on the Podwatch journey and talk Season 11!
Thanks to you all for coming with us for the ride!


Jan 03, 2018 23:50

#46DaysOfMythX D-Day! A look back at two years of developments that brought us from season 10 to season 11, and whether this will be the or another end!…

From Season 10 to Season 11

 


Jan 04, 2018 21:57

No panel at this year’s TCA. However, straight from FOX’s CEO:
If Gillian Anderson won’t return to X-Files and Chris Carter won’t do the show without Gillian…“if those are the circumstances, there won’t be any more X-Files,” says Dana Walden. #TCA18

https://twitter.com/jasonlynch/status/948986432718241797

 


Jan 06, 2018 15:29

11X01: My Struggle III review. Brace yourselves, this is a long one!

All in all, a definitive improvement on the confused My Struggle I and II: we are moving towards a definitive direction and characters have agency. The episode manages to raise many plot points and possibilities in a short amount of time, needless to say this review would have been shorter had possible interpretations/plot holes not been so many, which is good in some way. A strong premiere in certain plot points it raises, a sincere attempt at making the mythology coherent again that stumbles in several points (which some would dismiss as details), a horrible premiere in terms of filmic narration, and an open question as to what extent just scattered scenes in the stand-alones and one single episode in the finale can be sufficient time to make these plot points justice.

11X01: My Struggle III

 


Jan 07, 2018 21:46

My Struggle III was planned since 1997! Here’s the proof!
Thanks to 1121susanna

 


Jan 11, 2018 00:49

Hollywood Reporter: Gillian Anderson Confirms She’s Exiting Fox’s ‘The X-Files,’ Starz’s ‘American Gods’


Jan 11, 2018 1:24

GamesRadar: X-Files star David Duchovny thinks Scully’s son should get his own show


Jan 13, 2018 13:31

“This” is more like it! Glen Morgan writes and directs an episode that is light on plot but strong on Mulder-Scully interactions, making full use of that infamous chemistry that gained such a longevity to this show!

11X02: This

 


Jan 15, 2018 12:55

Impressive! – but didn’t accept spec scripts, despite exceptions that might have been invitations (William Gibson, Stephen King). Original script available here: http://img.pathfinder.gr/clubs/files/1856/3337.txt

Dazed: The X-Files script that was too bleak to air


Jan 16, 2018 15:19

Some extreme similarities between My Struggle III and Biogenesis (but no “brain on fire” there!…)

https://www.tumblr.com/youreadarkwizard/169350320630/622-biogenesis-1101-my-struggle-iii

 


Jan 17, 2018 11:39

[SPOILERS for 11X01: My Struggle III]

“So given this trope of forced impregnation and childbearing in the era of #metoo, even in the context of science fiction and dystopian narratives, what constitutes an empathetic and ethically told rape story? The answer cannot be that rape and assault are forbidden subjects for writers and creators. These things exist in the world and are a tragic part of many (women’s, men’s) lives. Well-told stories should deal with them. Similarly, the answer cannot be that men are forbidden from writing about women’s experiences any more than women should be forbidden from writing about men’s.

Much of the outrage over #TheXFiles’ plot point crystallized around the fact that this revelation was clearly intended to more to shock and horrify than anything else. And even if the unreliable narration of CSM turns out wrong, as fans hope and pray, there will be the inexcusable fact that the show raised the specter of assault and rape in such a way that obscures the psychological and emotional ramifications of such deeds for a cheap twist. Because Scully remains in the dark, there is no possibility for wrestling with the implications of her assault”

The Mary Sue: The X-Files and The Handmaid’s Tale: How We Talk When We Talk About Rape


Jan 19, 2018 00:42

11X03: what is canon anyway?


Jan 20, 2018 20:03

Carter back to writing a fresh stand-alone! I liked the “bread and butter” investigation — but I really, really didn’t like the Mulder-Scully bed scenes, and it’s not because I’m not a shipper (at this point these categories don’t make sense). Here is why.

11X03: Plus One

 


Jan 23, 2018 15:40

Keeping tabs on science! No hard results yet but Chinese scientists are one step ahead compared to US/European scientists:

“China is taking the lead in the global race to perfect gene therapies. Scientists have genetically engineered the cells of at least 86 cancer and HIV patients in the country using Crispr-Cas9 technology since 2015. Although no formal scientific papers have been written about these experiments, doctors told journalists at the WSJ that some patients have improved. There have also been at least 15 deaths, although only about half of them were reportedly related to the gene therapy itself. These therapies, which involved taking the immune cells from hospital patients, editing the cells, and transfusing them back into the body, are the first to use Crispr-Cas9 in living humans.”

Quartz: Chinese scientists used Crispr gene editing on 86 human patients


Jan 24, 2018 15:39

The mystery of what @[8473603278:274:IDW Publishing] was going to do with comics after their monthly series wrapped up last August has been solved: from April, “Case Files” is coming, with a format well-adapted to the comics world, but without @[506008038:2048:Joe Harris]’s on-going storyline format.

“The Case Files banner will be made up of numerous micro-series featuring X-Files stories taking place across the show’s timeline. Unlike their previous ongoing X-Files series, Case Files will not have a dedicated creative team, but will instead feature stories and artwork from a number of different writers and artists.”

XFilesNews: IDW Launching New X-Files Comic Series in April


Jan 25, 2018 22:18

A dive into the past of the internet all the way to the present fandom, by @[383602778393543:274:Den of Geek US] & XF Lexicon – including an EatTheCorn mention!

Den of Geek: The X-Files: A History of the Fandom


Jan 28, 2018 2:49

“The world’s gone mad!” Darin Morgan strikes a sensible chord and goes much further than just the obvious @[153080620724:274:Donald J. Trump] post-truth mess. An episode that manages to make its own existence and that of the revival irrelevant with “It’s time to face the facts, guys. This is the end of ”! We go meta on the nostalgia in our review.

11X04: The Lost Art of Forehead Sweat

 


Jan 29, 2018 22:54

The end of the world is set for March 21. Air dates for the remaining episodes.

XFilesNews: X-Files Season 11 Pauses for Olympics


Jan 31, 2018 15:25

?
ghouli.net @rever, 23 January 2018

Sometimes, it’s the bright lights that start as tiny specs in the distance. I try to evade them, because they frighten me the most. But they rush me and overtake me. They hover above as one, like the lights of a spaceship, and then they swirl and embrace me and take me to darkness. Weightless, it feels like the void of death — non-existence. Fear overtakes. I seize again.

When I seize, I transmit. I don’t know why or how. I don’t always know the message. But I know it’s important. And it’s important that she be the receiver. But transmission means pain for both.

Do we bare the same scars? Slashed forehead and chin. Broken wrist and arm. Two or three concussions. I’ve fallen when there’s been no one to catch me. Does she have someone to hold her hand, to break her fall? I hope she’s safe and cared for. She shouldn’t suffer more pain than I’ve endured myself. I want her to hear me, but I don’t want her to hurt, not because of my uncontrollable screaming skull.

Ghouli.net: This Screaming Skull

From Season 10 to Season 11

The unofficially designated X-Files season 11 — or rather, as it is officially known for contractual and budgetary reasons, “Event Series 2” — was announced on April 20 2017 as the “next chapter” in the adventures of Mulder and Scully! But as the season kicks off, the question on everybody’s mind is: is it the “last chapter”?

Photo(shop) art!

The chronology of two years of negotiations

The revival did exceptionally well in terms of ratings for Fox, it ended up being Fox’s second-highest hit for the 2015-2016 season. There was a downwards slide in the second half of the short run that can be attributed to a usual drop after the premiere, but also to nostalgia wearing off, to the episodes being perceived as less good than expected, or to lukewarm professional reviews (and there was not the usual audience increase for the finale). The episodes “My Struggle” and “Babylon“, both by Carter, were even sent by Fox for Emmy Awards consideration.

Overall, the revival received a very mitigated reception by professional reviewers and amongst the fandom, if it is possible to express an objective view of such a diverse bunch, ranging from being absolutely enamored to absolute rejection. The revival found its way in many critics’ year-end “worst of 2016” lists, with the singular exception of Darin Morgan’s episode. Many voices were raised to remove Carter as a showrunner — an incredibly harsh criticism, but one that shows the level of strong feelings surrounding the revival. As often happens, Duchovny was the first from the people behind the series to reflect upon it with something else than formatted public relations praise (interview: Duchovny says he had mixed feelings).

Yet for a series with such a ratings success, the renewal process was unexpectedly long: two years! For the previous revival series it only lasted five months (presumably November 2014 to March 2015).

Among the first promotional behind the scenes photos posted by @GillianA

The January premiere and February finale did not directly result in a renewal; already in May it was not expected to return for the 2016-2017 season (May); over the summer, Fox said that everyone had been approached (June) and floated around the figure of 10 episodes (August); Anderson said that actually she hadn’t been approached yet (to be fair, in an interview that was conducted earlier than when it was published, in June); the start of production is continuously pushed back from early spring 2017 (Carter, October) to October 2017 (Carter, October); in November 2016, right after the US elections, the negotiations seemed to stop completely, with Anderson saying “Probably not. I think it is finished.” See also science advisor/Carter friend Anne Simon tweets (“Glitch caused negotiations to stop. Last heard it was “definite maybe”.” “s11 looked very positive for long time.Then day after election, heard about problems.” “Probably no one wants to offend, in hopes that resumption is possible. My guess.“). More episodes were not announced for the 2017-2018 season at the January 2017 TCA (negotiations for season 10 were announced in the 2015 TCA). What seemed like a sure thing is now only “a bet” (Duchovny, February 2017) and new episodes were more likely to happen for the 2018-2019 season, 3 years after season 10.

The April 20 2017 announcement with a mid-season 2017-2018 air date came as a surprise after a news blackout that lasted several months, two full years after the announcement of season 10 on March 25 2015! The January 3 premiere was announced on November 15, which is a short advance notice and a premiere date oddly close to New Year’s Day — perhaps to prevent an awkward press tour involving Anderson or too many questions around the premiere episode My Struggle III.

Event Series 2 / Season 11 Behind The Camera

Behind the camera, a similar crew as season 10 — Chris Carter, Glen Morgan, James Wong, Darin Morgan — with some additions, most of which were already Ten Thirteen alumni. The first half of the season will be similar to season 10 (Carter mythology, Glen M stand-alone, Carter stand-alone, Darin M comedy, Wong stand-alone/mythology mix); the second half sees the addition of episodes written by Gabe Rotter (Carter’s assistant since XF season 9), Kristen Cloke (XF/MM actor and Glen’s wife!) & Shannon Hamblin, Karen Nielsen (script coordination since season 10), Benjamin Van Allen (Carter’s assistant since The After), information is incomplete as of this date on these (Morgan & Wong might be involved in several); and Carter’s season finale. In directing, season 11 sees the addition of Kevin Hooks, Carol Banker and Holly Dale.

“Event Series 2”

For season 10, the crew planned, wrote, pre-produced, shot and post-produced 6 episodes by around October (when “My Struggle” was shown in Cannes); shooting was June-September, a little over two weeks per episode: s10 actually happened on a very quick schedule! Season 11 might have benefited from some preparatory pre-production work, however the schedule is similarly tight and typical of network television: April to January to produce 10 episodes, with shooting over July-December (again a little over two weeks per episode), and a premiere on January 3 2018, with post-production of the last episodes overlapping with the airing of the first episodes.

Contrary to season 10, the shooting managed to keep many things secret, to the point where even the most ardent spoiler-seekers have no clue as to the content of most episodes!

Towards an ending?

The official word was that everyone was willing to do more and that it’s just a matter of getting the scheduling right. The main blocking point seemed to be the number of episodes. 6 was too few and that the 1990s season format of 24 episodes is too much. But:

Fox will be willing to continue doing these forever if the audience is there, and XF had a higher audience than the wave of Fox revivals over 2016-2017 like 24: Legacy, Heroes Reborn or Prison Break. It is interesting that Fox was willing to wait for everyone to agree and has not pushed (yet?) for alternatives that don’t involve one or more of the three key players. Alternatives (shooting in London to accommodate Anderson, ensemble show diluting the two leads’ presence, back-door pilot for next-gen series…) might be under consideration, but for now the drawing power of The X-Files is considered by everyone to be Anderson and Duchovny with Carter as orchestra conductor. It is unknown what effect the recent purchase of (most of) Fox by Disney will have on XF; some top-level restructuring/reshuffling is likely to happen, and it is important to note that Dana Walden and Gary Newman (CEOs of Fox TV production and broadcasting since July 2014, previously CEOs of Fox TV production), are in good terms with Carter and were key in launching negotiations for the revival in 2014-2015.

Chris Carter, Dana Walden, Gary Newman, Gillian Anderson and David Duchovny, Season 10 LA premiere

Carter would be fine with anything, probably; his other projects have not had success and he seems willing to channel all his creativity in the brand he will be remembered for. Returning X-Files to television was probably not in his mind as recently as 2013 (see SDCC coverage); he still hasn’t abandoned the idea of doing a third X-Files feature film, although he must know the decision-making people and process of Fox TV and Fox Film are two quite separate things.

Duchovny might have been the initial driving force behind the 2016 revival; he seems to be fine with a format of limited runs every few years (a concept he apparently introduced to Anderson during Kumail Nanjiani’s podcast!).

Anderson vehemently repeated she is not willing to do more episodes and repeatedly described s11 as her last. For both revival seasons, she expected they would give fans closure and close the book for good. This could be just means of pressuring Fox (for the 2016 revival Fox started by offering her again half the pay that Duchovny would get while she is no longer a beginner actor like in 1993), however there seem to be broader issues. In interviews Anderson is much more praising of her other roles and does not particularly seem to be looking forward to return to Scully.

And so for half the duo, this is the last season ever of The X-Files while at the same time the creator wants us to believe we live in an odd time where The X-Files is once more on-going series on television right now, with no end in sight, and which, as any other series, runs the risk of getting cancelled due to low ratings. As the premiere approached, positions became clearer.

Carter: I’m always thinking that this could be it. I don’t know what the future holds. While I try to do my best, and we did well the last time out, this time out could be different. For me, The X-Files can go on, indefinitely. It’s really how long Mulder and Scully, and David and Gillian want to do the show. […] For me, The X-Files is Mulder and Scully. I think if it were without Scully, I wouldn’t do it. That’s not my X-Files.

Anderson: Resolution is good.

Duchovny: Unless Chris came to Gillian and me with an idea for an actual end to the show — which would preclude doing any more movies or any more television (versions) — and the three of us decided, ‘That’s fantastic, that’s really the way to end it,’ everything we do (with the franchise) naturally is going to be somewhat open-ended. I had hoped for the last six episodes to be successful, and whether that meant we were going to do more, I didn’t know. I don’t know how truthfully we could ever end this without ‘killing’ me or Gillian.

Early word was that the season 11 finale would be a cliffhanger; it might be an open-ended ending after all. We will know in the future whether discussions during the making of season 11 influenced how Carter wrote, and also edited the season 11 finale. We might also know more about the show’s future (or lack thereof), by the time the finale airs. A situation not unlike seasons 7 and 8; each series finale is different and The X-Files has had many already!

What is certain is that seasons 10+11 consist in a single entity, and that there has not been anything planned beyond that, which would posit the season 11 finale as a potentially better place to end than My Struggle II.

Carter: The four struggle episodes were all pieces of a whole and [Season 11 Episode 10 completes the whole.

Season 11 kicks off today with 11X01: My Struggle III. Stay tuned for EatTheCorn coverage of the season!

Social media archive: 2017 (part 10)

Archived from the Eat The Corn Facebook page.


Dec 21, 2017 9:49

#46DaysOfMythX D-13 7X15: En Ami

Carter & Spotnitz surely rewrote this William B. Davis script to position this episode as the last character study we will have of the Cigarette-Smoking Man, this being the last season and all. On the verge of death and with his plans destroyed, the CSM contemplates his own post-apocalyptic landscape with contempt for mankind. Also, a last opportunity for director Rob Bowman’s talents to shine on .

7X15: En Ami

 


Dec 21, 2017 15:25

#46DaysOfMythX D-13 and Happy Solstice to all! 7X22: Requiem

The series finale where the closing of the book on character arcs is most clearly defined: Mulder gets to experience firsthand the “truth” he’s been seeking, Scully gets an unexpected miraculous gift that makes her life more than just work in XF, Skinner becomes a believer, CSM meets his fate at the hands of the next generation Syndicate, Krycek & Marita, the existential threat of alien colonization always looms overhead. If there is some novelistic beauty and coherence to be found in , it is with ending it with this season — and with an episode, although imperfect, written, shot and delivered for broadcast as if it were the last one.

7X22: Requiem


Dec 22, 2017 16:05

#46DaysOfMythX D-12 8X01: Within / 8X02: Without

…and at the last minute is renewed! We begin a season that is tightly plotted and serialized, much darker than the previous two L.A. seasons, greatly acted by Anderson & Patrick, leaving behind the human conspiracy for an impersonal alien replicant invasion storyline. The biggest issue with this season is…its mere existence, like a final chapter in a book that is completely different from what came before! In this opening, we feel Scully’s loneliness and isolation, we see Gibson again, but we also have 1 1/2 eps worth of plot extended to 2 episodes, Mulder’s 1-episode brain illness, and an Alien Bounty Hunter morphing clothes and killed by gunshot.

8X01: Within / 8X02: Without


Dec 23, 2017 16:58

#46DaysOfMythX D-11 8X08: Per Manum

As could be expected from , we wonder whether Scully’s baby is normal! Season 8 continues to fill with happenings the rather empty season 7, after Mulder’s brain disease, here with IVF attempts also resurrecting Scully’s frozen ova story thread from season 4. Season 8 tightly planned plotting: Scully & Doggett’s partnership progresses while we meet Doggett’s Deep Throat character.

8X08: Per Manum


Dec 24, 2017 2:53

season 11: it’s a wrap! Series finale? Anderson’s last? Cliffhanger? Movie lead-in? Open-ended?…

https://www.twitter.com/GillianA/status/944350779292385281


Dec 24, 2017 22:24

#46DaysOfX D-10 8X14: This Is Not Happening / 8X15: DeadAlive

The best and the worst of season 8 together! An incredibly powerful and sensational first episode – Jeremiah Smith, Reyes introduced, epic search for Mulder – followed by a strong second episode but plagued by very controversial decisions – far-fetched replicant creation procedure, Mulder without autopsy and not dead after 3 months, hardly justifiable healing, obscure Krycek machinations. We do get an alien replicant that changes skin similar to how the clawed alien matures into the grey and a red vaccine – connecting the Black Oil with this replicant invasion.

8X14: This Is Not Happening / 8X15: DeadAlive


Dec 25, 2017 18:49

#46DaysOfMythX D-9 8X18: Three Words

We shouldn’t only stick to the positives of individual episodes, we should also mention the general direction of the season: season 8 doesn’t make anything out of Mulder’s alien abduction experience and incredible resurrection; it spends the first half of the season building Scully & Doggett’s partnership but just as Duchovny returns Doggett moves more to the background as always had trouble with the ensemble show format; Carter seems to enjoy playing the “who’s the daddy” game when at the time this was the last opportunity for Duchovny & Anderson to be on the screen together. Still, this is a great individual episode in the vein of season 4’s Memento Mori!

8X18: Three Words


Dec 26, 2017 18:10

#46DaysOfMythX D-8 8X16: Vienen

Black oil + oil rig = Mulder + Doggett action adventure! Obviously! The return of the season 3 Black Oil with its radioactive flashes – but also a group of Native Americans immune to it, possibly connecting the Tunguska vaccine (weakened oil) with Gibson Praise (of possible Filipino ancestry) with the Navajo (who were in close contact with the aliens) – a shoestring-thin fan theory which makes some sense…

8X16: Vienen


Dec 27, 2017 18:46

#46DaysOfMythX D-7: one week! 8X20: Essence / 8X21: Existence

Another ending. Somehow along the way the mythology became not just the investigations OF but ABOUT Mulder & Scully, which reduced the scope of that world, while also the stakes inevitably grew to saving the world – signs that it’s time to end this! Also: loads of very explicit Biblical symbolism around the birth of William, an inglorious ending for Krycek, and like for the season openers 1 1/2 worth of story stretched to 2 with all these underground parking chase scenes and conspiring. But it’s a good enough ending!

8X20: Essence / 8X21: Existence


Dec 28, 2017 00:15

The first minutes of 11X01: My Struggle III ! CGB named after Chris Carter’s grandfather, if I recall a Two Fathers-era interview well.

http://www.musingsofacsm.com/


Dec 28, 2017 17:58

#46DaysOfMythX D-6 9X01/02: Nothing Important Happened Today

The sad thing with this season 9 renewal was not the renewal itself but, like with season 8 to a lesser extent, doesn’t want to let go of the past. Each time we return to the mythology, Doggett & Reyes become minor characters in their own show; Scully becomes more and more unlike her self; again we focus on whether William is normal or not. If there were accusations back in Redux the show was becoming too soap operatic, here with an awfully transformed Reyes, and Follmer, and Kersh, it is certainly it! First mention of the awkward word Supersoldiers to describe the alien replicants.

9X01 / 9X02: Nothing Important Happened Today


Dec 29, 2017 12:42

11X01: My Struggle III tagline: “Accuse Your Enemies Of That Which You are Guilty” (?) C.G.B. inspired by propaganda-master Goebbels?

@cinemovietv instagram


Dec 29, 2017 16:45

#46DaysOfMythX D-5 9X08: Trust No 1

Sappy Mulder-Scully shippiness, a cheesy explosive kryptonite, and always the sceptre of the absent Mulder that weighs down the series. What to save from this episode? Perhaps just a couple of months after 9/11 a premonition of the surveillance state that was going to flood daily life and change the world and the zeitgeist!

9X08: Trust No 1


Dec 29, 2017 20:37

#46DaysOfMythX D-5 9X10: Provenance / 9X11: Providence

Certainly the low point of mythology. A welcome return of the Ships of Origins from Biogenesis — but painful melodrama again around the absent Mulder, more boring FBI shenanigans, the uncharacteristically strong and explicit presence of the divine…and the unsubtly introduced “prophecy” around William, which might be indication of his role in season 11! The series cancellation is decided shortly before these episodes.

9X10: Provenance / 9X11: Providence


Dec 30, 2017 20:02

#46DaysOfMythX D-4 9X17: William

Possibly the series’ most controversial episode! William given up for adoption after Scully’s motherhood is presented as a major aspect of her character since about season 4 is something difficult to fathom, and really feels more like a forced writers’ intervention than a natural character decision. Getting rid of loose ends to clear the way for the movies, or setting up far-future plot developments with teenage William? We will know with season 11. We do get indisputable evidence that the CSM is Mulder’s father, and that William was indeed part of the Supersoldier program (probably via the chloramine program).

9X17: William


Dec 30, 2017 21:25

S11: best we can hope for is an open-ended ending.
Duchovny: “Unless Chris came to Gillian and me with an idea for an actual end to the show — which would preclude doing any more movies or any more television (versions) — and the three of us decided, ‘That’s fantastic, that’s really the way to end it,’ everything we do (with the franchise) naturally is going to be somewhat open-ended.”

Daily Herald: ‘The X-Files’ and Duchovny: Still seeking the truth after 25 years


Dec 31, 2017 15:27

#46DaysOfMythX D-3 9X19/20: The Truth

A third ending. With a name like that, “The Truth”, how to take the big twist in season 10 seriously? The trial that occupies most of the finale is essentially the trial of Carter & Spotnitz before their critics, the display of proof that the mythology makes sense and is a coherent whole. Carter couldn’t envision the end of the series without the presence of the CSM, already quite ridiculous here, but with what was very obviously supposed to be his final death. The status quo at the end is essentially similar to that at Requiem — Syndicate destroyed, alien colonization threat still hanging overhead — with the difference that Mulder & Scully are together + a promise for a 3rd film in the form of a date: Dec-22-2012. Not a very exciting finale for , a series that deeply changed television, but a finale nevertheless.

9X19/20: The Truth


Dec 31, 2017 19:04

#46DaysOfMythX D-3 Non-mythology bonus! Movie 2: I Want To Believe

A first long-awaited return. All in all, a good horror film with supernatural elements and a dark atmosphere, but not much more. A kind of kitchen sink stand-alone investigation that lacks some punch, and a heavy atmosphere with very explicit religious themes more characteristic of Millennium than . In retrospect, we see here a growing distance between Mulder & Scully that will have deepened in season 10.

The X-Files: I Want To Believe

Social media archive: 2017 (part 9)

Archived from the Eat The Corn Facebook page.


Dec 11, 2017 19:29

#46DaysOfMythX D-23 5X01: Unusual Suspects

Between this episode, Travelers and the introduction of Jeffrey Spender and Diana Fowley, season 5 is the season that looks back at the foundation of ! Vince Gilligan has fun with the Lone Gunmen, brewing his concept for the spin-off show that would become reality some 3 years later. Interesting that this episode comes straight after the MKULTRA-heavy “Demons” and could reinforce the perception that Mulder’s belief in aliens is completely constructed from a conspiracy of men, in continuity with the “Redux” trilogy — “My Struggle I” hardly added anything new. And look at that mobile phone!

5X01: Unusual Suspects


Dec 11, 2017 19:46

#46DaysOfMythX D-23 Part 2: 5X15: Travelers

With its never-heard-of-again experiments, this is not the best of episodes, especially given the huge untapped story potential of doing a story set in the 1950s with Mulder’s father and the CSM and J.E.Hoover. But at least after David Vincent in “Talitha Cumi” Mulder got to meet his other ancestor Carl Kolchak, Carter must have felt very vindicated!

5X15: Travelers


Dec 12, 2017 17:31

We interrupt our #46DaysOfMythX to look forward:
Of drafts, cliffhangers, mass-produced vaccines, cut scenes, Trojan viruses and arc (de)coherence: exploring additional info on S10 mythology, mainly based on a post-My Struggle II Q&A discussion with Anne Simon, and theorizing about @[362989843738755:274:The X-Files] S11 in light of recent promotional material. Some spoilers therein, but this is mainly what fans do: theorizing!

Some Complementary Season 10 Mythology Elements


Dec 14, 2017 00:05

#46DaysOfMythX D-21 5X13: Patient X / 5X14: The Red and the Black

This is it! The triptych of Patient X + movie + One Son will essentially explain nearly everything in the mythology of ! Developments are so dense, characters are so many that Mulder & Scully enter the action about mid-way into the first episode, the mythology has become that ever-burgeoning monster, far away from the independent investigations of the early seasons. The story where Mulder finds his faith into searching for alien life is also the one where the alien-as-divine beings metaphor is the strongest. The memorable abduction scene on the bridge, directed by Chris Carter, is echoed in My Struggle II — will we also see a second UFO overpower the first in season 11?

5X13: Patient X / 5X14: The Red and the Black


Dec 14, 2017 00:13

We are at D-21 and here is 11X01: #MyStruggle3 press release! Or, the art of being vague in order to preserve spoilers!
“Picking up after the last event series’ cliffhanger, Mulder and Scully learn that they aren’t the only ones desperately searching for their long-lost son, William. The very fate of the world may depend on it in the all-new “My Struggle III” season premiere episode of THE X-FILES”

SpoilerTV: The X-Files – Episode 11.01 – My Struggle III – Sneak Peek, Promotional Photos & Press Release


Dec 14, 2017 20:32

#46DaysOfMythX D-20 5X20: The End

“Burn it” (again)! Goodbye Vancouver (for now)! Hello “the key of everything in ” (1st iteration)! A mix of a setup of the situation in the movie, with the closure of XF, and an introduction to themes to be developed later, with the alien origin of Gibson Praise’s abilities, peppered with relationship tension that is now part of what the series is, with the introduction of Diana Fowley, a character whose purpose is essentially to delay the consummation of Mulder & Scully’s relationship!

5X20: The End

 


Dec 14, 2017 22:23

Season 11:
11X01: My Struggle III
11X02: This
11X03: Plus One
11X04: The Lost Art Of Forehead Sweat
11X05: Ghouli

Den of Geek: The X-Files Season 11 Episode Descriptions Give Us New Hints


Dec 15, 2017 18:58

#46DaysOfMythX D-19 Movie: Fight the Future

Noir 70s conspiracy film meets summer blockbuster. After one year of buildup, this is the apex of TXF-mania and TXF’s moment of glory in the zeitgeist! Fans were frustrated there were not more answers, but there’s a lot: not only connecting much of mythology threads since season 3 (bees, Black Oil, vaccine) but also having the viewer privy to inside conversations of the Syndicate, where collaboration with aliens and the whole colonization plotline is confirmed. This very explicitly contradicts the turn of events in the season 10 #MyStruggle episodes.

The X-Files Movie: Fight the Future


Dec 16, 2017 17:46

#46DaysOfMythX D-18 6X01: The Beginning

Hello Southern California! are reopened but we don’t follow those assigned to them, Fowley & Spender: the series has become more about Mulder & Scully by now. Soft reboot with Scully remaining a skeptic after the events of the movie, but in exchange we get a great final shot that connects Black Oil, big clawed alien monster, and grey alien. The alien origins of mankind developed in Biogenesis are introduced here.

6X01: The Beginning


Dec 17, 2017 16:52

#46DaysOfMythX D-17 6X11: Two Fathers / 6X12: One Son

This is it! With some mental gymnastics, Carter & Spotnitz manage to do what many (most?) thought impossible: explain the mythology and give a chronology of events! Few scenes with M&S though, CGBS gets the spotlight (too bad more flashbacks didn’t make it to the final edit) and Cassandra is the key to everything (2nd of its name). The Syndicate mythology that essentially started with “Anasazi” is closed here, unexpectedly at mid-season, clearing the way for simpler mythology episodes. The connections made here are so air-tight that later games with the mythology menace for the coherence of the whole to crumble – I’m looking at you, season 10!

6X11: Two Fathers / 6X12: One Son

 

 


Dec 18, 2017 22:07

#46DaysOfMythX D-16 6X10: S.R.819

We back-pedal a bit for this Skinner-centric eepisode, a race against the clock in the vein of F. Emasculata. The story thread introduced here is very interesting – nanotechnology, potentially of alien origin – but it is inexplicably almost not picked up again in the rest of the series! Apart from the return of Krycek and the last appearance of Senator Matheson (unfortunately), the Tunisian connection is probably a hidden reference to Strughold!

6X10: S.R.819


Dec 19, 2017 14:40

#46DaysOfMythX D-15 6X22: Biogenesis / 7X03: The Sixth Extinction / 7X04: The Sixth Extinction II: Amor Fati

After the second-longest analysis at EatTheCorn, here comes the longest one! After the very conspiratorial/political mythology of the earlier seasons, this next chapter is much more philosophical/spiritual and incredibly refreshing despite it being jarringly different. Story threads from seasons 4 (Black Oil) and 5 (alien origins of mankind) converge and as Mulder & Scully’s beliefs grow closer. And so we enter ’s last season!

6X22: Biogenesis / 7X03: The Sixth Extinction / 7X04: The Sixth Extinction II: Amor Fati

 

 


Dec 20, 2017 13:25

[French] X-philes francais! La mythologie expliquee en 3 parties – une video basee sur les articles egalement accessibles chez @[351006395090488:274:LVEI – La Vérité Est Ici] – des articles que j’ai utilise pour ma propre analyse disponible en anglais, espagnol et allemand ici: https://www.eatthecorn.com/mytharc-primer/ A partager! Merci @[100001033573206:2048:Bertrand Keufterian]!

 


Dec 20, 2017 18:24

#46DaysOfMythX D-14 7X10: Sein und Zeit / 7X11: Closure

This being the last season of , it is only normal that the series closes its mysteries chapter after chapter. A stand-alone turning into mythology, many portents accumulate to get Mulder to accept an ironic truth: that Samantha has been dead all along. With Fowley out of the picture too, no burden can come to interrupt Mulder and Scully’s romance anymore. At odds with the rest of the mythology in tone, very spiritual and elegiac, if not in content, with previous promises she’s alive, this is a controversial two-parter of incredible beauty if one is willing to get carried away.

7X10: Sein und Zeit / 7X11: Closure