« astor's visit to astoria, seaside, and cannon beach | Main | This is pretty much the best graphic ever »
April 20, 2005
The X-Files: Confessions of an X-Phile
First experience: it's a Friday night, 1995. Everybody's gone, I for some reason am home alone. In the dark. I turn on the TV - and find myself in the middle of an episode of a TV show I'd heard some about but had never seen. The episode, which I later find out is titled Død Kalm, is the freakiest, most atmospherically horrific thing I'd ever seen. I can still remember the way it made my heart beat rapidly and my blood pound in my ears.
The addiction grows: After my first unforgettable experience, I start spending every Friday night at home or with friends, watching the show. Looking at David Duchovny practically makes me swoon. I can barely breathe when I'm watching the man onscreen. Naturally, I'm not such a big fan of Gillian Anderson.
The first time I ever get on a computer that is able to connect to this thing called the "world wide web", which is somehow connected to the "information superhighway" at my local public library, I am at a complete and utter loss as to what to do once I'm connected via the incredible 14,400kbps modem. I do know one thing though: there's a "web site" out there that is dedicated to my favorite show. It's located at www.thex-files.com, I read it in a magazine. But figuring out the http:// part that goes in front of it is a bit beyond my skills at the time..
I become a hardcore X-Phile: I figure out the web addressing thing and start spending my time on the school's internet connected computers, checking out the site in the few minutes I have per day to do so. I just LOVE how it says
YOU ARE BEING WATCHED
in dark grey letters on black background as the site loads. Seriously, none of its post-1996 incarnations were ever as cool or gave me as much of a wicked thrill as that freaky intro. Then I print out black-and-white pictures of David Duchovny and take them home to put on my wall.
My personal obsession probably reached its zenith with the highly anticipated but ultimately overrated 1996 season finale, Talitha Cumi. I remember being stuck doing something and not able to get to my friend's house with the biiig tv to watch it right at 9pm. My bitterness that I missed the first three minutes was poison.
The addiction fades: Increased real-life responsibilities and the show moving to Sundays are two of the reasons I recall my X-Files fandom easing up. I didn't even go see the movie (which was generally inferior to most of the show's episodes anyway) in 1998, and caught it on cable in '99.
Still, it will always hold a special place in my heart. I've not seen anything since that can come close to touching the greatness of the best episodes, not even in movies. I don't know if anything will ever make me feel that way again. I love being scared.
Favorite episodes of all time
My one relief is that I haven't seen 'em all, not even some of the most critically acclaimed ones. I still have episodes left to see. And I will, someday. That said:
Piper Maru (part 1 of 2) and Apocrypha (part 2 of 2) - Without spoiling anything, the ending of Apocrypha is one of the most chilling things I've ever seen, and we're including the ending of Planet of the Apes with that statement. Alex Krycek is one of the most interesting characters ever put on television. No wonder they brought him back later. It's always reminded me of the reason I believe Agent Smith was brought back for the Matrix sequels - they had killed off the best character and granted his death was awesome but it had to be undone. Taken by itself, at original air date, though, what we had to assume would be the way he'd come to his end was freakish indeed. I loved it.
Clyde Bruckman's Final Repose - Not only widely regarded as the best episode in the series and ultimately a multiple Emmy award winner, but it is what I believe to be the single greatest episode of television, ever.
Posted by astor at April 20, 2005 09:14 AM
Comments
.....
Posted by: thedumbintellectual at April 28, 2005 02:48 PM