bombs in bottles
I'm rewatching all 201 episodes of The X-Files in the order they're ranked in this Thrillist article:
https://www.thrillist.com/entertainment/nation/the-x-files-episodes-all-201-episodes-ranked
Last time on X-Filesposting, I covered Thrillist's top four:
Jose Chung's From Outer Space, Clyde Bruckman's Final Repose, Beyond the Sea, Paper Hearts
Today I'm hitting #5 and #6, "End Game" and "Via Negativa."
Note: I'm trying to make these as non-spoilery as I can, but (a) sometimes details slip out and (b) there's only so much I can conceal about a show that's old enough to vote. Feel free to watch these before you come back here.
I'll be blunt: I don't think any of the mythology episodes should be in the top twenty. Maybe not the top forty. Yes, that's right: I don't think there's a single mythology episode that makes the top twenty percent of all X-Files episodes.
(For the uninitiated: X-Files episodes can be divided into two broad categories, "mythology" and "monster of the week." "Monster of the week" is what it says on the tin: the agents chase down some particular creature/suspect/case, which we (usually) never hear from again. "Mythology" episodes are lore episodes. They are at best inconsistent and at worst incomprehensible. Both movies were extended mythology episodes.)
Anyway, "End Game" is the second of a two-parter that starts with "Colony" (#12), so I watched both. It's been decades since I've seen either, and even Thrillist's helpful screenshot of the Arctic submarine did not jog my memory.
I'll agree that "End Game" is one of the stronger mythology episodes, but I still don't think it ranks in the top ten. "Colony" got ranked above "Pusher" (#13), which I think is a crime.
"Via Negativa" aired in the eighth season, which was my freshman year of undergrad - a place where I didn't bother to bring a television, since I was never in my dorm room anyway. Suffice it to say I didn't see many episodes from this season, so this was a new-to-me X-Files ep.
"Via Negativa" has a similar vibe to "Beyond the Sea" and "Tooms," both of which are among my favorite terrifying monster of the week episodes. I'd say it holds up. Also it was a Lone Gunmen ep I hadn't seen, and I'm one of the niche losers who actually owns The Lone Gunmen spinoff series on DVD. So there's that.
--