TV Review: The X-Files revival! My Struggle & Founder’s Mutation!

Last Updated on August 2, 2021

INTRO: To say that THE X-FILES was a huge part of my life during its initial run (1993-2002) would be an understatement. It was a weekend ritual (that included crazy plates of nachos) for JoBlo (aka Berge Garabedian) and I and we hung in there till the bitter end, yup, the late (and underrated) Doggett (Robert Patrick) and Reyes (Annabeth Gish) seasons (I hear the latter will appear in this new season – no Doggett though…darn it). We’d revel in the show's mythology driven and its stand alone episodes (many of our modern TV shows owe a lot to The X-Files structure wise IMO). That eventually led to us playing the PC video game, tapping the two movies and in my case, reading countless The X-Files related books.

Although the second The X-Files flick was misguided (it deserved a much more ambitious and original story) I still liked it and I was holding my breath for a third instalment (which Carter has written). It never came. Instead, we're getting a 6 part revival miseries (which may lead to more if the ratings are solid) with show creator Chris Carter, actors David Duchovny, Gillian Anderson, Mitch Pileggi and writers Glen Morgan, James Wong, and Darin Morgan back for another go at it! I managed to watch the first two episodes early (which will air on Sunday January 24, 2016 and on Monday January 25, 2016) and here are my thoughts!

EPISODES 1: MY STRUGGLE
Written and Directed by Chris Carter

PLOT: Mulder (David Duchovny) and Scully (Gillian Anderson) are pulled back into "UFO and ALIENS" land when a flamboyant internet conspiracy nut (Joel McHale) uncovers… "something".

REVIEW: Being such a huge fan of the show, I of course watched this revival “mythology” episode with nostalgia goggles firmly on (I love that they kept the original opening credits). On that, I feel that I was still able to see the show for what it was. The first episode had its up and downs. It smartly stuck to the THE X-FILES basics: aliens, UFO’s and abductions, sported some solid visual effects (loved that old school spaceship) and cool-cat David Duchovny and sexy Gillian Anderson still had that SWEEET chemistry going for them.

Our current social climate also served the episode well being that some of the “conspiracies” here are actually happening! For example, YES Big Brother is watching us (street cameras, camera on our computers, smart phones) and our Government has become sloppier in terms of lying to us. So in a way a show like The X-Files is even more relevant today than it was in the 90’s; cause we’re all the wiser for how we're being played by the powers that be. I personally could relate with Mulder’s paranoia more today than I did in the 90’s and I thought that the direction the story took was fairly bold. A cover up within a cover up? SOLD! Finally, the old cast members (like Mitch Pileggi and… “I won’t tell”…) rocked it while the new cast members (a colourful Joel McHale and an intense Annet Mahendru) were welcomed presences as well!

On the flip-side, being that this show needed to QUICKLY introduce its sordid game to new viewers who missed out on the 9 previous seasons, the expository monologues were (too) ample and worst yet, the story felt over-stuffed and it unravelled in a rushed demeanour. Too much to cover in such little time. They should have taken two episodes to tell the story MY STRUGGLE, it would have given the narrative room to breathe and wouldn’t have felt so hurried. I also didn’t fully buy Mulder going against all that he “believed” LIKE THAT based on ONE thing; too convenient to serve the plot. Lastly, the random cheesy lines were "nade-dropped" my way here and there (nothing worse than using taglines in dialogue). Nothing I couldn’t live with though.

All in all; I was happy to be back in The X-Files land and to reconnect with characters that used to mean so much for me. The vibe was the same as it was in the 90’s hence, even though everybody looked older, it was like the show was never cancelled! So this one gets Rating: 6/10.

EPISODE 2: FOUNDER’S MUTATION
Written and Directed by James Wong

PLOT: A mysterious death leads Mulder and Scully to investigate a Doctor (Doug Savant) who runs an odd Hospital filled with even odder patients.

REVIEW: After the hurried, over-stuffed and exposition heavy MY STRUGGLE which would qualify as a “mythology” episode, it was refreshing to dig into FOUNDER’S MUTATION, which acted as a “Monster of the Week” i.e. "stand alone episode"  type of opus while at the same time fitting into the whole of the mythology. It also helped that it was written and directed by ace in the sleeve writer/director JAMES WONG who of course helmed FINAL DESTINATION and WILLARD and peened (along with GLEN MORGAN) some of the best THE X-FILES episodes like SQUEEZE, BEYOND THE SEA and the infamous HOME.

FOUNDER’S MUTATION stuck to what worked in these types of episodes; it started off with a grisly kill and then charged forward whilst putting out a potent mystery in need of unraveling. I dug how the episode related to Scully’s own past abduction and her son with Mulder "William" who was last mentioned (if memory serves me right) in the Season 9 episode named “William”. Hence for a long time fan like me, this episode provided a continuation to plot threads that have been left dangling for eons. No worries, much like with MY STRUGGLE new viewers were brought to speed fairly quickly. Another killer asset in terms of this episode was Wong’s kinetic visual style which added a layer of edge to the proceedings and the gory goods which made me wince a couple of times.

The episode had enough red grub and human anomalies to satisfy the direr of gore hounds. Finally, Skinner’s gruff presence was appreciated (already fully back to the Skinner we all know and love), the supporting cast was aces (An unrecognizable Doug Savant owned it!) and the tale even managed to tug at my heart strings a couple of times being that it was so personal in terms of our two lead characters. If I had any complaint, I guess I’d have to say that the episode was a maybe a PINCH too busy for its own good, and that would pretty much it for me. I was smiling throughout FOUNDER’S MUTATION. Why? Because it fully came off as THE X-FILES I know so well and love so much. My Rating: 8/10

That's it for me in terms of covering THE X-FILES revival! Don't get me wrong, I will watch the whole mini series, but in terms of reviews – tap JoBlo.com, as they'll be covering the entire run of the show. The Truth is still out there and I'm happier than a Kardashian in shit!