Reopening THE X-FILES

Article originally published as THE X-FILES Review on Seat42F.

WARNING: Yes, this post contains spoilers. It does not ruin any huge surprises, but if you’d rather go in ignorant, why are you even looking at a review?

Television reboots and resurrections are on the rise right now, with Fuller House coming to Netflix soon, and new episodes of Prison Break scheduled for filming this summer. For millions of fans, though, no series is more exciting to see return than THE X-FILES, which begins a run of six brand-new episodes this weekend.

A bit of background: THE X-FILES was a series that ran from 1993 until 2002 on FOX, and helped popularize geek culture as it exists today. The program spawned two relatively short-lived spin-off shows, and two moderately successful films, as well as plenty of merchandise. Starring David Duchovny (Californication) and Gillian Anderson (Hannibal) as FBI agents Fox Mulder and Dana Scully, it supposed alien life might actually exist, and government conspiracies have kept it out of the public eye.

And that is almost all I know about it. As a child with younger siblings, my parents deemed it “not appropriate” viewing in our house, and while it has topped my list of shows I really need to binge for years, I’ve yet to get to it. I have seen a few episodes (probably six-ish) in isolated events, just enough to know I want to see more, not enough to really get a picture of the series. That means that this review of THE X-FILES really stems from what I think of the first episode back, “My Struggle,” alone, not from a position as a fan boy from years back.

“My Struggle” is absolutely fantastic. It is creepy, it is intriguing, it is exciting, and it has some great performers. I *think* (again, I didn’t watch the show) it will completely redefine what the series was about, and pay off in big ways to those who are fans. Yet, if you’re coming in fresh, it’s also easy to follow and immediately addictive.

The new run begins with Tad O’Malley (Joel McHale, Community), a Bill O’Reilly-type who thinks he has uncovered something huge he plans to reveal to the world. To be certain, he wants to bring in Mulder (Duchovny), but unable to reach Mulder directly, he goes through Walter Skinner (Mitch Pileggi), who gets in touch with Scully (Anderson). The couple is split, but Scully can still find Mulder when the need arises, and they both get drawn into the plot.

What Tad has is a young woman, Sveta (Annet Mahendru, The Americans), who has a history of abduction and experimentation. Interspersed with scenes of Roswell, a trip to a Faraday cage, and numerous 9/11 references, it may take Scully a little while to figure out what’s happening, but “My Struggle” finds Mulder having his mind blown. In what way, well, you’ll have to watch to see.

I assume that this hour is full of references to past episodes. I know one notable recurring character makes an appearance (yes, that one), and a visit back to the agents’ old office seems particularly nostalgia-inducing. It’s hard for me to judge how many references to previous events actually occurred on screen, but there are enough of them that I feel like long-time viewers are being served, which makes sense, considering creator Chris Carter is back in the writer’s seat.

In conclusion, whether you’ve been anxiously waiting on pins and needles or have only heard of the program in passing, as long as you are into UFOs, conspiracy theories, and/or good TV, you should definitely check out THE X-FILES airing this Sunday and Monday, and then for four weeks thereafter on FOX.

After THE AFTER

Article first published as After THE AFTER on TheTVKing.

Nearly a year after releasing its first batch of comedy pilots, Amazon.com finally posted two dramas free to stream on their website. One of these pilots is The After, which is from Chris Carter (The X-Files), a suspenseful series send after a post-apocalyptic event. Eight strangers, bound by fate, not coincidence, must come together to survive, fleeing from the rest of the world.

The X-Files was a seminal show for science fiction television, and some of the creepy mystery that seeped through that program is repeated here. There is a creature (Sam Littlefield) with weird tattoos in the woods, and no one can explain to our protagonists what is happening. Even after viewing the entire "Pilot," the long-term plot still seems murky.

But the mistake comes by making The After about a "random" group of strangers thrust together by circumstance. This concept has been done to death, and with much better ensembles. Those that make up the cast are mostly familiar faces, and none of them are bad actors. But neither is this the next Lost, and the layers that begin to peel away in the "Pilot" are predictable and formulaic.

Our central heroine is Gigi Generau (Louise Monot, The Avignon Prophecy), an aspiring actress with a thick French accent, currently stuck far away from her beloved (Jason Lewis, Sex and the City) and their child. She is joined by an 'innocent' ex-con (Aldis Hodge, Leverage), an asshole lawyer (Adrian Pasdar, Heroes), a likely prostitute (Arielle Kebbel, The Vampire Diaries), a gay clown (Jamie Kennedy, Ghost Whisperer), a senile millionaire (Sharon Lawrence, NYPD Blue), a foul-mouthed drunk (Andrew Howard, Hatfields & McCoys), and a cop (Jaina Lee Ortiz, The Shop).

This grouping is a lot like that assembled by broadcast network series with a similar format, such as The Nine and Lucky Seven. There isn't any single actor who stands out as amazing, and though they play their parts well enough, we're taught not to take the characters at face value, which makes it hard to trust any of the players. None of these other shows lasted, so why should The After?

What will set it apart from that category is the gratuitous nudity and frequent dropping of the F-bomb. But don't mistake The After as being HBO or Showtime level quality, as the writing is far less smart. There are some intriguing elements, to be sure, but it's not looking like the next must-see serial drama.

This is evidenced by the other people we see. While the cast is escaping from a parking garage to a mansion to the forest, the general public riots, tries to flip their vehicle, offers no assistance, even from law-enforcement, and tries to rob Lawrence's character's home with guns. The rest of the world's population is shown as a two-dimensional menace, with only the main players getting any development at all. This doesn't bode well for sustainability.

While I do have very mixed feelings on The After, enjoying it but not really respecting it, I probably will watch if it goes to series. After all, at least it's not another police procedural, and it's trying a few new things. Plus Carter's involvement gives me hope there are some bigger, well-thought out arcs that could be brought into the fold down the road. But as a "Pilot," it lacked authenticity and any real, lasting draw. Very disappointing, considering Amazon has only ordered two drama offerings versus eleven comedies so far.

The After is available now on Amazon.com.