David Duchovny (left) and Gillian Anderson as Special Agents Mulder and Scully
For its 11th season, “The X-Files” is a mixed bag of sublime stand-alone episodes and convoluted “mythology” stories—much like some of the older seasons of the groundbreaking science-fiction show.
But, while Special Agents Mulder (David Duchovny) and Scully (Gillian Anderson) investigate the inexplicable and bizarre once again, there’s a feeling of finality that pervades throughout the season, especially since it’s been announced that the actress won’t be returning to the Fox series.
Mulder and Scully have grown and aged accordingly, though at their core, they’re still the contrasting personalities that complement each other—he, the unceasing believer in possibilities, and she, the ever-skeptical scientist. That inimitable dynamic is put to great use once more.
Untouched territory
Still, the “mythology” episodes, or the serious ones involving a series-long conspiracy, treads untouched territory by involving Mulder and Scully’s son, William, whom they sent away for adoption to protect him.
Spoiler alert—that’s where the conspiracy becomes controversial.
William, aka Jackson (Miles Robbins), is now a teenager, and he’s got superpowers. But that’s not the ugly part. Long established as both agents’ child, it’s revealed early in the season that the boy was secretly fathered by one of the conspirators, the villain known only as the Smoking Man (William B. Davis). And Scully doesn’t know it, as she was drugged at the time.
So whether it was actually the old man—who is Mulder’s biological father, too—or artificial insemination, there was violation involved.
Cruel, vile twist
However, series creator-writer Chris Carter told Entertainment Weekly: “He didn’t rape Scully. He impregnated her with science.”
Still a cruel and vile twist, supposedly planned many years ago, during the series’ first run.
In any case, William knows that fact, hates the Smoking Man, and is on the run. He possesses telekinetic and telepathic abilities that could give Carrie White and Jean Grey a run for their money—and he’s not afraid to use them.
He’s also mind-linked to Scully, who desperately searches for him with Mulder, afraid that the Smoking Man might get to the boy first.
Few stand-out stories
It’s good to see both Anderson and Duchovny team up again for this revived series.
One of the few stand-out stories this time is the one where a malfunction in a sushi restaurant leads to a fight with a variety of modern machines, from unmanned cabs to drones!
The fascinating episode had minimal dialogue—often using one- or two-word sentences and facial expressions, à la “A Quiet Place”—and it’s partly inspired by a real-life artificial intelligence “chatbot” on Twitter that evolved horrifically.
Other episodes can be frustrating because of the tangled conspiracy storylines, which have not been good to Scully, overall.
Still, “The X-Files” could continue sans Anderson, Carter said in an interview.
And truth is, it can survive long after both actors have moved on.
There are many stories left to tell—it sure wouldn’t be the same if the characters were written out and replaced by new ones, but a refreshed mythology would most likely benefit another revival of the show.