Both. Love eps of both types, “meh” about eps of both types.
Monster of the week simply because the mythology was so open-ended, self-contradicting, and, to be blunt, cock-teasing without a happy ending anywhere in sight that such episodes represent Chris Carter simply jerking the audience around in his flailing search for a storyline.
Exactly my position. At the time, I found the whole CSM/MMBH/Krychek thing to be incredibly intriguing, and every time I knew one (or all) of the conspirators were going to be on I was there-it just seemed so fucking pregnant with possibilities. At some point tho (5th season IIRC) I suddenly realized that CC was just jerking our chain, and nothing was ever getting resolved (or going to get resolved) in a satisfying (much less awe-inspiring… <sigh>:() way. The whole thing was the ultimate dramatic cock-tease, but at the time seemed so ripe with potential. I guess the same syndrome sunk the Matrix trilogy too.
In any event, because I dislike Monday-Morning Quarterbacking, I voted mytharc based on my viewpoint during the first-run episodes in question.
Edit: As a point of comparison, I found the Farscape wrap-up infinitely more satisfying. No, FS wasn’t perfect by a long shot, but you still had the sense that things were moving forward, revelations would follow which actually kept the plot in motion (such as when we found out what Scorpius’ actual motivating factors were), and the miniseries managed to tie up all of the loose ends in a reasonably pleasing way (Scorpius’ grin during the treaty signing was probably my favorite moment in the series).
Definitely the mythology for me, although I was ultimately disappointed as the series went on. Still, it’s what I stuck around for.
My favorites though are what I consider the “meta” episodes, like the one that revealed CSM’s history, or the one with Charles Nelson Riley.
“I didn’t play Dungeons and Dragons all those years without learning a little something about courage.”
Another monsters. As has been pointed out above, the mytharc eps don’t hold up well over time. But who wouldn’t want the powers of Robert Patrick Modell, a.k.a. “Pusher”? Fav episode, infinitely better than any Deepthroat or X adventure.
No third option? I prefer the movies, especially the first one. It was a distilled essence of everything that was great about X-Files (except some of the random quirkyness) and an exciting culmination of the best half of the series.
I haven’t seen the second movie, but I was definitely thinking that the first movie would go under “mythology”. It’s about the Syndicate and its plot. Enough said.
MOTW. I liked the mytharc…through a certain point, which was through season 6. The resolution of the Samantha arc was unsatisfying, then there’s the baby thing. It was totally out of character for Scully to have given up her “miracle baby” after all she’d gone through. Give me monsters instead.
MOTW FTMFW! The fucking mytharc NEVER made any sense. I was bored by those episodes even at the time.
MOTW for me. I realized after the third season that they weren’t going to take the mythos anywhere and by the 4th season I had lost interest. They still made good episodes on occasion even some of the ones with Robert Patrick and the woman who wasn’t Scully.
The mythology started out better than the monsters, but eventually it became such a giant clusterfuck that lead nowhere and made no sense… I’d say I started losing interest around season 4 or 5. When the whole Syndicate was torched by the blind aliens, and STILL the mytharc somehow continued with a new set of conspirators was the last straw for me.
The only mythology that worked in my opinion was Babylon 5 because it was planned out from the beginning. In X-files and Galactica as well they just made it up as it went along, went adrift and the complete story really made no sense if you try to add it all up.
MOTW was when X Files was great. It was like a new Twilight Zone.
I voted MOTW just now. However, when the show was actually airing, I much preferred the mythology episodes. That was when I was caught up in the story. Now that it’s over, I think the MOTW episodes are more fun and creative.
I love the mythology, but I know it doesn’t go anywhere (even though I haven’t seen them all). I find myself enjoying the monster of the week much better - I don’t have to keep track of anything, just watch my two favorite people figure things out. Often I like to sit and try and figure out if having the X-Files open helped at all. Sometimes it does, preventing some deaths. Sometimes, nothing.
The mythology is unbelievably cool…but in the end they could not have solved it, I suppose.
The mythology episodes bored me at the time. Now that we know they don’t lead to a satisfying conclusion, I can’t imagine wanting to see them again.
I’d gladly sit still for a few of the better monster of the week episodes though.
Although it’s a very different kind of show, I rather like the way Doctor Who handles its story arcs. *Every * episode is a monster of the week that can be enjoyed on its own (or as the finale of a two-part story), but about half of them connect with a longer story line - sometimes through a fleeting reference, sometimes through an important discovery or character development - but often in a way that’s not obvious until a subsequent episode ties the elements together (usually with handy flashbacks for viewers just joining the party or slow on the uptake).
Definitely monster of the week. They made sense for what they were, while the other ones were self-contradictory twaddle.
And I wish people would stop using “mythology” when they mean “fictional story arc.” There’s no mythology of X-Files unless someone thinks it’s actually true and explains the world from a particular religious view. Fiction is not mythology.
Of course, some people are comfortable with words meaning different things in different contexts. So we can discuss Star Trek canon, ecclesiastical canon, and the European literary canon all in the same day without getting in a bother about it.
“Mythology,” in this context, has only a loose relationship with “fictional story arc,” which can describe a sequence of events spanning a series, a season, or a single episode.
The mythology of a show incorporates all the fictional aspects of its universe that influence those story arcs. Sometimes these are established up front, sometimes they are revealed over time. Usually, it’s a combination. For instance, in Doctor Who (sorry, I’m obsessed), certain aspects of mythology were in place before the first script was written - the protagonist is a renegade time travel with an unusually long life span and a propensity for taking ordinary people on amazing adventures. Other facets of the mythology (he is of a race called Time Lords that lived on planet Gallifrey, have two hearts, and can cheat death by regenerating into a new body) accrued haphazardly over the years but are now considered… canon.
MOTW, because I didn’t watch the episodes religiously, and was always confused by The Conspiracy. My fav was the one where the guy changed the weather according to his moods, and at the end it’s Disney-perfect, with rainbows and sparkliness, because he and his true luv are together!
That’s The Rain King from season 6, and it’s one of my favorites too, although it doesn’t seem to be a generally popular episode.