I sort of liked the going back over old plotlines and summarizing, since I have missed a LOT of episodes for the past few years. I did think that the last 10 minutes were 100% pure shlock, though they did look sweet all snuggled up once they shut the hell up.
I’m still wondering how the Smoking Man got his cartons of cigs when he was hiding in the desert. Perhaps the old Indian lady brought them to him.
Speaking of The Smoking Man, let me tell you what pisses me off.
The X-Files would have been 1000 times more interesting, as a series, if CSM’s motives were left more ambiguous. When he’s first introduced in Season 1, we see that he’s some dark, mysterious bigshot. But we don’t know if he is really a good guy committing attrocities to serve some sort of greater good, and in fact Mulder’s work is detrimental to the survival of mankind, or if CSM is simply evil.
Way too early it was made clear that CSM was just a dickhead, and there was no room for the type of character speculation that makes mysteries like this interesting.
Speaking as someone who never really followed the show, I was pleased that they spent the first three hours of this two hour show rehashing the plot from the last nine years. Sure saved me a lot of time! Although I imagine it would have been intensely frustrating to people who had been following it for the entire run.
That being said, what amazing waste of a final episode. Instead of actually, you know, finishing things up, they introduce a bunch of stuff that makes the show sound even more interesting, then they kill it. They bring the cancer guy back (apparently for the second time) just so they can kill him again. And literally, just so they can kill him again. When they first introduced him (back when I actually watched the show) he was all mysterious and creepy. Now he’s Kenny. The whole trial thing was excruciatingly stupid, since it was obvious from the start that the fix was in, and that everyone involved (including Mulder) knew the fix was in, and they act all surprised when, hey, the bad guys are cheating! Why even bother with the trial? Take Mulder out in an alley and shoot him, tell anyone who complains that they better keep quiet if they don’t want the aliens to come and surgically attach a third arm in the center of their forehead.
I’m with Number Six. I’d always tune in to the show long enough to find out if it was a conspiracy episode or a stand alone. The stand alones were usually pretty good. The conspiracy episodes were just silly.
I did not hate it with the white-hot intensity of a thousand suns, but I was disappointed. The first hour and a half was just a clip show. And Eve: I didn’t interpret Mulder’s looking at Scully’s cross as an indication that he thought Christianity was the “answer”, I think he was acknowledging her belief in a higher power. Or something. I’m not really sure what he meant, but I didn’t see it as a sign of his “conversion”. (And I say this as a Christian, mind.)
I’m just disappointed that they didn’t bring back the alien bounty hunter. He would have livened up that sorry excuse for a court martial in a heartbeat.
I especially liked the part where all the alien spaceships landed and Mulder was able to point at them and scream “Ha! Look at that, people! I told you so! Aliens coming to plant their seed in your women! And you called me crazy!” That’s really what I was looking forward to for the entire run of the show, and I’m so glad that we loyal fans finally got the payoff we deserved!
The ending was lame but it did show a lot of characters from previous shows. But yeah it was worth it to see Mulder and Scully really kiss and the ending scene was so tender and so sweet.
How did the Lone Gunmen die? I missed that one.
I’m told the Lone Gunmen took the Spock way out and had to sacrifice themselves to save all of humanity from something or other. I heard that second-hand so I don’t have any other details.
I kinda wish I saw this now, even though I get the feeling it wasn’t that great. I would have liked to see the very end with Scully and Mulder. Wasn’t there another episode where they actually did kiss?
But you know… When you lay the whole conspiracy theory out like that and describe it all together, it doesn’t sound so crazy any more!
BWAHAHAHAHAHAHA!
The thing that really cheesed me off was that the big horrifying secret that sent Mulder into paroxysms of fear, for which he was willing to die, leaving Scully and the baby alone and ignorant, was that - are you ready? - the aliens had set a date. Wooooohhhh!!! SO THE HELL WHAT??? That was really stupid. It was like one last feeble gasp of an attempt at a surprise. Bah.
The Lone Gunmen were trying to stop a man with a deadly virus implanted in some sort of container inside of him. The container was set to go off at a certain time, and when it did the virus would affect a large number of people if not contained immediately. So any way towards the end, the Lone Gunmen have him cornered, but there’s not enough time to disable to virus capsule so instead one of them hits a fire alarm which triggers those doors that form an air-tight seal around a small area (I can’t remember what they’re called). So basically they end up in an airtight room with this guy vomitting some sort of liquid which contains the virus. Of course the next shot is three coffins in Arlington National Cemetary.
BTW I don’t think this is not the same virus around which the conspiracy is based.
Thank God that I wasn’t the only one who thought this. I came into work on Monday morning and one of my co-workers asked me my opinion of the show, and my response pretty much mirrored that of Charmian.
“MAS*H was retired with more dignity than this…”
-Steve Dallas
Hosayf, if it was a small room, why couldn’t just one of them pushed the button?
And they got buried in ANC? I thought you had to be a little more important than outlaw computer nerds to rate that. Or did the government recognize their sacrifice?
BTW, if I sound incredulous, it’s not at your explanation–I just didn’t see it and I’m trying to piece it together in my head.
Good point ElwoodCuse I wonder why none of them ran. I guess it was so the dude would not notice what they were doing maybe. Also it was more of a hallway that became a small room once they hit the fire alarm.
At the end of the episode in ANC I think Scully says to Skinner something like, “You must have pulled some major strings to get them in here.” Maybe someone else ought to take a stab at it. I’m not that good at describing things visually, especially when I have to type the description out.
I think is was BECAUSE they “saved” all those people by killing themselves.
I’m just saying what I think… I understand the veiws of others on this board.
I am surprised they would WANT to be buried their.
But then again… they didn’t hate everyone.
“Shoulda, Coulda, Woulda”… if it was written by other types of people. You also can’t rule out that thing don’t alway turn out the way you want them to. It’s not difficult to see things in your head “screwed up” due to time/ production problems/ editing/ actors sqedualing/ budget and other poop.
I think CC is more deppressed than fan will ever be. Fans get over this stuff (it’s not their whole life). I think Carter will try to save himself or the show, and I really hope he can. It’s just a downward spiral right now (at least for some… not necessarily me).
You just don’t get it son, do you?
[/DoctorEvil]
I can understand wanting to offer up a nice “Conspiracy for Dummies” episode so all the slow kids can figure it out and maybe get excited about the movie. I just wish they would have chosen the second or third to last episodes to do it. The fans KNOW what is going on (at least this one does) and I would have preferred something have actually happened instead of just a rehash for the finale. A date? Big whoop. How about a little action? A little forward motion with the story? At least smoking man is really dead this time (unless it was a clone - I wouldn’t be a bit surprised)
Even if you are going to do a rehash - The tuth on trial? Ech. And WTF is with Mulder talking to dead people? “Dead people have messages for us” is a theme in the show where Dogget finds out who killed his son too. Wierd. I liked it better when Mulder’s sixth sense was so subtle that you could barely tell if he had it. It was more like good luck then magic. When it’s in your face like this it’s kind of silly. Monica has the same bullshit sometimes. I actually liked her speech. One of the only moments I’ve liked her in the series.
Ohh, and his sister became a happy beam of light that travels around the universe, so he knows she is at peace.
I know. Maybe the movie will be better.
DaLovin’ Dj
I just felt like this final episode showed a real lack of respect for the fans more than it did anything else. They’ve been leading us on for years and finally it’s the last episode… and they lead us on to a movie sequel. It’s selfish of the creators of the X-Files to pull a stunt like that! Give us some closure. Give us something to reward us for sticking to a show (and a single storyline) for nine years! We’ve been investing hours of our lives into these characters and these stories and when it’s finally all over, you tell us to wait for another movie?!? Bullshit, I say. As of right now, I’m not sure if I’ll even see a new X-Files movie and I was once a big fan.
And also, the conspiracy was digestible in small pieces. Looking at it in the 2-hour condensed form, one just has to wonder if the writers EVER thought about the big picture. This show was not only a weak episode, but it weakened the entire series.
They’re up to “Season Five” on the DVD boxed sets. Does anyone think they’ll ever release a “Season Nine?”
It will have to be several years away, once the pain of this season has dissipated.
Well, no. Chris Carter has pretty much admitted that for a while they made it up as they went along. Someone in a different thread mentioned Babylon 5 as the only show that had its entire story arc determined from the beginning.
A few years ago, I was a huge Phile. I wrote fan fiction and everything. I stopped watching over a year ago when Duchovny left (which was the last straw after a long decline). Sorry – a show can’t lose its protagonist and take on two new main characters and still be the same damn show.
I tuned in for the finale. It wasn’t great. I think it was a bit more true to the series (for better or for worse) than the last two seasons, though.
Chris Carter has certainly earned my ire. X-Files jumped the shark at Season 3, and shortly thereafter the conspiracy/mythology episodes went from interesting to tiresome. Like a lot of former die-hards, I’m just glad it’s finally over. Ye gods.