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HERC Reviews Tonight's X-FILES!!
SPOILER ALERT !!
X-FILES 8.16 FAQ
WHAT’S IT CALLED?
“Three Words.”
WHO’S REPSONSIBLE?
Teleplay is credited to series creator Chris Carter and series executive producer Frank Spotnitz.
NOW THAT MULDER’S BACK, DOES HE STILL PLUMMET IN SLOW MOTION DURING THE OPENING CREDITS?
Yes.
WHAT DOES TV GUIDE SAY?
”Mulder's first meeting with Doggett is far from a cordial one in a tense episode that broadens the scope of the word conspiracy. The installment opens with a man hopping a fence and running toward the White House. Tackled by guards, he yells that aliens are taking over America; then he's shot, apparently with his own gun. Kersh (James Pickens Jr.) dismisses the incident as he tells Doggett and Skinner that he wants no more of Mulder on the X-files. But the event prompts action by Absalom (Judson Scott), the alleged UFO cultist arrested in Montana during Mulder's return. It's Mulder who spots a link between the two, and, with Scully, he risks prison to investigate further.”
WHAT ARE THE THREE WORDS?
“Fight the future.”
WHY ARE THEY IMPORTANT?
They're said to serve as a passcode to a 10-gigabite file identifying extraterrestrials being tracked via the U.S. census.
WHAT ELSE ISN’T TV GUIDE TELLING US?
That the man who was shot was a disciple of Absalom. Doggett is captured by Absalom and used to infiltrate the Federal Statistics Center, which houses the census data. It proves, says Absalom, “that they’re already among us.” But before Doggett and Absalom can get to the data, Absalom takes a bullet to the brain.
WHEN DOES MULDER MEET DOGGETT?
More than halfway in.
WHERE DOES THIS MEETING TAKE PLACE?
Skinner’s office.
HOW NOT-CORDIAL IS THE FIRST MEETING?
When Doggett reaches to shake Mulder’s hand, Mulder angrily pushes Doggett back into his chair.
WHY?
Mulder thinks Doggett got Absalom killed – “because of what he knew!”
WHEN DO THE LONE GUNMEN SHOW UP?
Right after the Mulder-Doggett meeting.
DO THEY BRING THE HOT BRITISH GIRL FROM THEIR OWN SHOW?
No.
THEN WHAT ARE THEY DOING THERE?
They help Mulder compromise the facility where Absalom was shot.
ANY SIGN OF SPECIAL AGENT MONICA REYES?
Nope.
HOW DOES IT END? (MAJOR SPOIILER HERE.)
Doggett’s friend, the one played by Adam “Animal Mother” Baldwin, is revealed by a lump in his neck to be possessed by an alien.
HERC’S RATING FOR “X-FILES” 8.16?
**1/2
The Hercules T. Strong Rating System:
**** better than most motion pictures
*** actually worth your valuable time
** as horrible as most stuff on TV
* makes you quietly pray for bulletins
Ah, sweet TiVo kickbacks!
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...Since it shows no sign whatsoever of abating, why doesn't Harry offer prizes to the nimrods who think it's so frickin' important. Some kind of non-award like Marvel's "No-Prize." (Can't you just see Harry as a tinted-glasses-wearing, faux-hip, Stan Lee-esque huckster, anyway?) ..."Excelsior, true believers, face front, for Irving Forbush's sake!" As for X-Files...ehhh... who gives a rip anymore?
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rewarding being first is like rewarding someone for getting their hand stuck in a can of pringles. it's something thats happened to everybody once but it's really no cause for hooplah.
As for the x-files, if you look quite close you can see the thing mulder is falling backwards into is the toilet.... yes the toilet the one this whole show has been flushed down. -
Usually I get a kick out of reading you Hercules but all you did here is give us an idea of what the show is about. Why not explain why it only get's 2 and a half stars? Otherwise don't advertise it as a review on the front page, because it certainly is not.
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A new Horatio Hornblower movie premieres tonight on A&E. Why don't you review that? The first four movies were great fun.
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I've said this before in talkback but time and again the X-Files has veered so far away from what it originally was. It used to be that Mulder was an idealistic crusader -- at the very beginning it was about the search for "the truth". Now, the show is permeated with a murky cynicism. In the early seasons, the show was kind of like Close Encounters meets JFK which was engaging and compelling. Now, we have muddy plotlines no one understands about evil ET's and viruses and mutant bounty hunters and who the hell knows what else? The show is so damn dry these days that it moves at a snail's pace. I just think of the X-Files as a time killer between The Simpsons and The Practice.
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Apr 08, 2001 2:20:27 PM CDT
Fight the future of this show and cancel it already!
by troublemaker2000
It's become televised crap now, put it and us out of our collective misery. We have grown weary of Chris Carter's shit now. Time to move on.
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There was a time when it pained me to miss even a few minutes of an episode, but that changed a few years ago. Not because Carter stretched out the plotlines till they were razor-thin in order to string us along for another season of false hopes and dashed expectations, but what ended it for me was a comment Carter made a few years ago (I think it was to T.V. Guide) saying, in effect, "The characters' experiences are purely subjective and may not represent a shared reality. That is, if Mulder sees a U.F.O. floating above him, then that is what MULDER sees. It may or may not have a basis in fact." To me, that was the ultimate cop-out and ruined the magic for me. If Carter can put ANYTHING in the show and then claim that it wasn't real, then the plot, characterization, and action have no meaning. Don't get me wrong, I'd love to be excited about this show again, but I just can't. I haven't been truly excited about a series since American Gothic was cancelled. (And if you remember that show you are in a minority) Maybe something will come along.
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First of all, there are 5 more new episodes of the show left in this season. They aren't going to solve everything in one hour. Yes, Carter and Co. have been stringing us along...but you can blame Duchovny for that also. He had to go shoot that pile of shit Evolution (which, will be far worse than this episode). As far as I'm concerned, I'm waiting to see Cancer Man alive and Alex Krycek and (hopefully, given The Majestic) Laurie Holden get some screen time. And where the hell is Armin Mueller-Stahl? Is Carter saving him for the next film (which Duchovny will be happy to do once Evolution grosses $2)? Let's ditch The Monster Of The Week storylines and focus on the mythology episodes. The show could easily be rejuvinated with a little work.
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2 1/2 stars my ass. Tonight was classic X-Files. Remember back when it seemed as though Chris Carter had a story to tell? It was all about secret syndicates, alien abductions, and government conspiracies. And then they had the big revelation 2 part episode after which the show became much too self-mocking and wink-wink funny. well this season, it seems like Carter has finally found his direction again, and tonight's episode was the icing on the cake. If Herc can give 4 stars to every episode of Buffy that airs every week, then speaking as a true X-Files fan, i hereby give tonight's episode 4 fucking stars. Get some new reviewers Harry. I'm not saying you should just dispose of Herc, but i'm tired of hearing only opinions, when he has made it clear what his opinions are several times in the past. Every episode of Buffy and West Wing give him multiple orgasms, every episode of X-Files is so-so entertaining. That's cool, Herc, i respect your opinions, but jesus, can we for once have somebody vomit joy and enthusiasm over X-Files every now and then?
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Seems to me that the show is back on track and actaully heading towards something.
The aliens are already here.
Dogget and Mulder have to find a way to exist in the same world.
And Dogget is becoming paranoid.
Yup, looks like its back on track -
I've followed the X-files over each of its several seasons, and I have to say that I think the show almost single-handedly saved science fiction from the purgatory of Starships and syndication, proving it to be a much more able vehicle for drama and character. There are few shows where characters aren't convincingly complicated, where the cinematography and plot aren't a notch above most science fiction out there, if not the more obviously dramatic shows as well.
Tonight's episode was a great example of this, where the climactic event isn't Mulder recovering the data in the computer, but instead his decision to put aside his suspicions of Dogget.
I think some people have missed that. They think the X-files is about aliens and viruses. They don't see the questions throughout the series about the trustworthiness of our institutions, our perceptions and ultimately of our neighbors, questions that push us to explore why we need them to be reliable, and, well, there in the first place.
The themes of tonight's episode regard the importance of restraint, the need to get past our own assumptions of what's true. These are expressed in: Kersh's assertions that Mulder's inferior arrest record meant his work on the X-files was worse than Dogget's, Mulder's belief that Dogget was a stooge of the conspiracy, Dogget's trust in his friend and his beliefs about the existence of a conspiracy, among other incidents.
The Mulderisms are back. (God I missed them.) Dogget is entertainingly stalwart, as usual, and Scully gets to take a long deserved vacation from emoting. The Lone Gunmen prove that their newfound fame hasn't gone to their heads.
The action was well planned, the conflicts well worked out. This is a classic X-files episode, and yes, saying that's a complement. -
OK, people. I have to say I am amazed at the number of folks who bothered to read the review and then posted on a show that most of them profess to dislike anyway. Face it, guys, if you aren't even casual fans anymore, why do you care so much to post an opinion? I have to disagree with Herc on this one, to the point where I wonder if he should even be reviewing the show at all. A previous poster stated something pretty similar. I love Buffy and Angel, and I notice that he does show great favoritism to them in his "reviews". If Herc hates the X-Files so much, then why does he watch? I found "Three Words" to be a treat! It hearkened back to the good old days of the show for me, when the conspiracy was still fresh and new information seemed to turn up with almost every episode. The mood was dark, the emotional tension was taut, the acting was excellent. It was wonderful to have Duchovny back after so long, and the interaction between he and Doggett was intense. If people are waiting for that "scene" between Mulder and Scully and the discussion of "The Blessed Event", as Langly so quaintly put it, then just remember that Mulder has just quite literally come back from the dead. Let him process one question at a time, please. Couldn't anybody else tell that Scully's pregnancy was just too sensitive an issue to approach for him just yet? As it seems obvious from the previews for upcoming eps, the pregnancy is about to be addressed in a very big way. I personally thought that we got quite a few answers tonight that addressed the conspiracy head-on, setting the stage for some major confrontations in the near future. This season has been A+ as far as I am concerned, and The X-Files is still #1 in my book. Bring on Season 9!!! I'm ready for whatever they want to show me.
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I enjoyed the ep very much; nice to get back to classic conspiracy, though it would also be nice to start tying some of it together. At any rate, am I the only person in the world who doesn't really want mulder back now? He's whiny and lazy, and it just doesn't work for me. I'm perfectly happy with Doggett.
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Was it a great episode? No. But, c'mon, Mulder is BACK! I missed all those wisecracks ("This is America. Just because you get most of the votes doesn't mean you win the election." Classic Mulder wit. And does this mean he was reading the papers while he was dead?); the Lone Gunmen were back where they belong; and the first meeting between Mulder and Doggett was brilliant. I didn't realize how much I'd grown to like the Doggett character until I saw how much Mulder distrusts him. I was almost shouting at the screen, "You're wrong, Mulder! Wrong!" ***PS, what the HELL is going on with AICN? Postings are ending up at the top, in the middle, anywhere but chronologically. I'll be interested to see where THIS one ends up. . .
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Great episode. I am once again watching the X-Files at 9 and waiting for the replay of the Sopranos at midnight. I cannot wait for each episode and I hope they end this season big and then stop. Duchovney isn't going to be around after this season so just end it and save it for the movies please.
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I enjoyed the hell out of this episode. The vast majority of episdes this season were pretty lacklustre and season 7 sucked bigger than any television show of its previously high calibre should have to endure. But tonight the Lone Gunmen took a much more active role than usual, and the whole episode... it was great. I can finally enjoy this show again, and it's almost over. Ah well. If it were to go on for another season, I'd like them to stop with Mulder and Scully, take that chapter out, and let it be. It SHOULD go out on a high note like this.
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I enjoyed the hell out of this episode. The vast majority of episdes this season were pretty lacklustre and season 7 sucked bigger than any television show of its previously high calibre should have to endure. But tonight the Lone Gunmen took a much more active role than usual, and the whole episode... it was great. I can finally enjoy this show again, and it's almost over. Ah well. If it were to go on for another season, I'd like them to stop with Mulder and Scully, take that chapter out, and let it be. It SHOULD go out on a high note like this.
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1) 2.5 stars for this IS total BS. Then again, maybe if Herc would actually provide some critical insight, we'd know WHY this is 2.5 stars and why almost every episode of the Buffster and her ex-boyfriend is 3.5 or better. Really, you should have to justify your rating A LITTLE. 2) My lingering suspicion is that the ratings are skewed by Herc's personal closeness to Whedon, et al, given his piece a few weeks back about GETTING TO SPEND THE NIGHT WITH WHEDON AND CO!!! Didja have a sleepover and stuff? 3) Look, just because C. Carter is basically a hack (who apparently doesn't invite Herc to sleepovers) doesn't mean everything he does is junk...the same applies to Whedon, just because he writes a few good things (for the sake of argument, I'll be willing to consider Buffy / Angel "good"...er, well, at least not "bad") doesn't mean he can't write crap ("Alien: Resurrection," anyone?). Point being, you shouldn't knock something that's good just because you don't like the people doing it. 4) People who worry about who was paying Mulder's rent while he was gone need to go outside more. 5) This is still a very good show. Not always dramatically coherent, but still well above most other programs, if only for production values and acting. 6) That said, I am getting a wee bit weary of all the Mulder - Christ parallels (the surgery thing where he looked crucified, the "Last Supper" bit, rising from the dead, etc).
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What HAPPENED to the former coolest show on television?????????? =(
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I love the X-Files. I gotta admit, I haven't watched it since the beginning, I picked up around season four or maybe five and filled in most of the missing episodes on video or in rerun on FX, so maybe that's why I'm not as tired of this show as other people. But I gotta say, the introduction of Doggitt to the mix was awesome and I think this show has no place to go but up from here. Someone says in talkbacks that Mulder is whiny, and I'm pretty confident that if Duchovny stays with the show, that won't last long. They just need to spend a couple episodes getting back into the groove.
Someone else comments on Chris Carter saying that everything seen in the show is subjective to each character, and I gotta say, I have little problem with that. It keeps everything mysterious and that's what I like about the show. -
...of the X-files have had this plot: Someone we've never seen before gets killed, but passes something along to someone else. The information gets to Mulder. He comes oh-so-close to breaking the whole thing wide open, but doesn't quite. During the episode, someone is told 'you're so close' or 'you've never been this close before' or 'you don't even know what you have.' Credits roll, and you don't understand anything more than you did when the show started.
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Someone said above, Remember back when it seemed as though Chris Carter had a story to tell? I must add, Remember when Chris Carter said the show was only going to last 5 seasons? Remeber when things made some sort of sense?
Yeah, last nights episode was pretty good but not as good as they used to be. Its been so long since the episodes were consistently good and memorable that I think people are just praising the show for being better than last seasons crappy humorous episodes.
Yeah, these last few episodes are leading to something but what scares me is that good ol' Chris is going to set it up for Yet Another season. Please dont Chris. End it with some dignity and take that crappy Lone Gunman show with you. -
I'm amused over the amount of anger and fanaticism still present over the X-Files (it's still often entertaining--mostly this season due to the efforts of Robert Patrick--but it's long past its prime). If that quote of Chris Carter saying everything on the show is subjective is accurate, that's BS. Case in point: "Three Words" had the flavor of the early conspiracy episodes. The scenes between Doggett and Adam Baldwin was reminiscent of the first Mulder/Deep Throat encounters, where the conspiracy began to unfold for an agent unprepared for what that would entail. The first time, it was Mulder; this time, Doggett. The big difference? This time there is no ambiguity. We know Adam Baldwin's an alien because we see it--and whose "subjective" POV was that final shot supposed to be? In the early seasons you never knew which side those informants like Deep Throat and Mr. X were on. So now, instead of being about the outer limits of paranoia, the show is a shallower alien invasion thriller. Carter long ago abandoned the idea that Mulder may, indeed, be delusional, in favor of his tired Christ parallel, which I also agree we've seen way too much of--and it's still not convincing.
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Apr 09, 2001 11:00:03 PM CDT
I dare defy you, Herc! I thought this ep. was pretty damn good!
by pippin's diamond
Definitely still soaring above most crap on TV these days. A while ago I had almost stopped caring about the show and only watched it occasionally, but ever since Mulder left, I think, the show has gone up with each passing episode. I was almost sorry Mulder came back, personally I thought he was better off dead. Yeah yeah, Mulder wit is nice, but ever since Doggett took ol' Mulder's place things have changed for the better. Doggett is very cool in my book, Mulder now seems like something I lost a while ago, had time to realize I didn't really need it, and now that it's back I could care less. Say what you will, the latest eps. at least have *me* considering buying all the eps. I missed on DVD. I thought this episode was exciting and felt like it was actually going somewhere. Regarding the Lone Gunmen, it was a treat to see them so involved in this episode, particularly because I like their own show so much I hate having to wait a whole week to see them again. I know you will defy me. Good night, gentlemen.
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Is it me or is this whole, "Scully might have an alien baby", thing a BIT reminiscent of the '80's "V" miniseries? If Scully has a fuckin' "Starchild" I will be so outta there. Two years of comedic episodes almost destroyed the X-Files. THANK GOD FOR JOHN DOGGET! Mulder? Mulder Who? Take off Duchovny! You don't want us then we don't want YOU! The X-Files can start anew without you. Now without Scully...I don't know. She really has been proven to be the "heart" of the X-Files.
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Carter was also quoted as saying(or maybe it was Spotnitz) that they were making it up as they go. Sometimes I wonder...
The explanation for Mulder's sister's abduction was a BIG mistake. Keep it for the final episode--and have him find her.
And no serious cliffhanger before a movie--that's dirty.
It started on tv let it end on tv.
Save the movie for a monster of the week show.
I happen to think the monster of the week shows were the main attraction of the X files. The Kolchak influence.
I jsut hope the alien invasion story ends with a bang and not a whimper.
Yeah--Hornblower was good.
Cool show. -
Of COURSE Carter is making it up as he goes along. This show has had little or no plot continuity for years, and has tried to make up for it with style. Concepts are introduced and dropped completely, and long, winding storylines are tied up in loose, messy knots that have nothing to do with the rest of the so-called plot. Of course, plot and continuity are for "old fashioned" writers, not for hip New Age people like Carter.
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I didn't mean to imply that I didn't miss Mulder but to me this show HAD to make a drastic change. It was really starting to go nowhere fast. And Mulder's character was getting bland and repetetive. As a matter of fact I was just tuning in to see Scully for a while because she was the only one to add any passion to the show. She became, for lack of a better term, the "meat" of the X-Files. Mulder was starting to get annoying and, yes, whiny. It was sheer brilliance for them to bring in a male character who was COMPLETELY different from Mulder in EVERY way. For me it completely re-invigorated the show. I was THIS close to NOT watching it anymore. My point was that if Duchovny wants to leave, let him! I honestly don't think the show can last much longer but at least give it some driving force. Mulder was just starting to wander off in the woods for so long because they had NO idea where to go after the first five years. At least Dogget has given the X-Files some of its grit back. And as far as Duchovny's performance: No offense the man may be funny and smart but he is not the greatest actor in the world. i used to think he was just being subtle up until I saw him try and get "emotional" a couple of times on the show. I mean compared to Gillian his talent is miniscule. Let him go make bad movie after bad movie if that's what he wants to do. I'm fine with that and he'd be happier anyway. He hasn't been in anything good since Kalifornia. We'll see if Evolution ends up saving him from bad movieland but I doubt it. Peace to you Mr. Shove it up yer arse! What an icredibly witty defense on your part! Did you come up with that all by yourself?
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mulder should go back to his skirt wearing days on northern exposure. He is a nobody withiout the xfiles. as far as i am concerned Fox should cancel the xfiles or put it on daytime tv with the rest of the soap operas.
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