MovieChat Forums > The X Files (1993) Discussion > Anyone else dislike the main plot line, ...

Anyone else dislike the main plot line, super serious episodes?

posted 8 years ago by boonjj
30 replies | jump to latest

First time viewer here, up to around season 7. Im finding the super serious episodes with the big conspiracies, like smoking man, scullys disease, mulders sister, the two parters, skinner, to be the absolute worst. Theyre so high strung and serious and its kinda grating.

I really just like when scully and mulder are on some interesting case or even the comedic episodes have been a joy to watch. But yeah ive been struggling with the super serious, main plot line ones,

Any one feel the same?

[–] Zillajay23 8 years ago

I wouldn't say it's not for you since you've watched this far but if you don't enjoy any of the mythology episodes it is surprising that you've kept up with it this long. There are those that prefer the Monster of the Week episodes but the Mythology is still at the heart of the show and even a lot of those episodes.

[–] boonjj 8 years ago

The mythology episodes tend to mostly pop up at the beginning and end of the seasons, so while they provide a throughline throughout the series, they are still the minority and pretty easy to avoid, if one were so inclined.

[–] panzermeyer44 8 years ago

I agree with this.

Chris Carter flatly said in one of the interviews on the DVD's that he could not make a show where every episode was about the mythology so hence we have the majority of episodes that are stand-alone and/or MOTW. There are plenty of the stand alone episodes that I love but I still would not consider them to be the real core of what the show was about.

And as we can see from current day running dramas, the serialized long story arc type of storytelling has definitely won out over the "press the reset button every episode" format.

[–] Stratego (31048) 7 years ago

You could argue that the mythology was the core of the show, but it was pretty obvious that after a few seasons they had no idea where to take it.

[–] WhoToTrust 8 years ago

If nothing else, for now just consider the grand mytharcs and conspiracies as research and knowledge gathering about how some things and people operate in real life...then apply accordingly TO real life.

If going through real life thinking that people deceiving, inveigling, and obfuscating only happens on tv, you're going to find yourself being cheated and/or disappointed more often than necessary.

When you understand that's just how some people operate in an effort to try to control things though, it's easier to spot occurences when they're happening, call the people out on their BS who are attempting it, and maybe even have a little fun with them along the way. 

As a result, I personally like both the mytharcs and the MOTW's because in my opinion there is something to be learned from each and every one of them.

[–] AngularTurnip (3338) 8 years ago

The conspiracy episodes are channeling '70s paranoia touchstones like "Three Days of The Condor," "The Parallax View," "All The President's Men" and "The Conversation" whereas the MOTWs are more akin to "The Twilight Zone" and "The Outer Limits." Both have their merits though I prefer "The X Files" channeling the likes of "TZ" more.

[–] [deleted] 8 years ago

[deleted]

[–] Prelude (1443) 8 years ago

When I watched the original run of the show, I enjoyed all of it -- the mythology arc as well as the standalone 'monster of the week' episodes.

I felt it was a good mix. All mythology would have felt too heavy, all standalone would have felt like there was a depth lacking. The mythology arc got us closer to the characters and allowed for deep character development that standalones alone wouldn't have given us the opportunity for.

However, years down the line and now that I've done multiple rewatches of the entire show, I actually find the mythology arc grating on me now, while the standalones have better rewatch value.

[–] Stratego (31048) 7 years ago

Never been too fond of the mythology episodes, but they were much more bearable in the early seasons. The main story arc becoming more convoluted and uninteresting actually made me turn away from the show. But I was never a fan of the too comedic episodes either. The normal MOTW ones were my favourites.

[–] lennonforever (2453) 7 years ago

I love the super serious plots, the alien mythology. Those episodes are my absolute favorites.

[–] TheLovelyAnomaly (619) 7 years ago

I disagree, I find the serious episodes to be some of the most intense, thought-provoking, and emotional. While I do like several of the more lighthearted, comedic ones, I think the show wouldn't have nearly as much "umph" if it were just a series of independent standalone episodes. The plot lines are, in my opinion, what tie the show together and make it a *story*.

(And that's coming from a lover of anthologies, by the way.)

[–] lennonforever (2453) 7 years ago

Oh I agree wholeheartedly. The mytharc bound together the entire series. It's what drove Mulder and Scully to seek "the truth."
I did like some of the humorous ones too, Jose Chung was amazing, as was Clyde Bruckman. Classic stuff!