badassscully

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We were robbed of seeing Mulder see her like this.

THE X-FILES — 06x20

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I love them so much and look at their faces and they are just so in love, that's it (also, Mulder's lips).

"Do you think it's at all possible that Hoffman is really Jesus Christ?" // "Are you making fun of me? [No.] Well, no, I don't. But crazy people can be very persuasive." // "Well, yes, I know that."

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Cinematic as 🛸 f u c k 🛸

I mean— look at her

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ik a good suit hates to see her coming

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Anonymous ask reply

Hi anonymous Summer friend!!

I lost your message, so I hope you see this and that I remember the questions correctly.

An original song sounds AMAZING, and analogue fanart too -- I already have a relatively long playlist and don't use gifs that much, but everything else sounds great ♡ of course, you should do what works according to how much time and resources are available to you, so I'll be grateful for any "genre" of gift 😊😊

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Summer exchange Questionnaire

I tried to answer, maybe wrote too much!

1. Tell us about your relationship to The X-Files:  I got into it thinking it was one of those series you have in the background while doing other things. But after 3 episodes I was like HOLD ON, THIS IS AMAZING. I even started rewatching while still on S8, dedicating my full attention to it this time around! TXF came into my life during a very rough period, and helped me get through it; it got me into reading and writing fanfiction, new friends, and now going back to drawing.

2. Favourite things: MSR! Not into them having a sexual relationship before S3 or 4. Favourite “stereotypical” scenes are the one in Pusher, motel scene in the Pilot and The Truth II; the scene in Piper Maru where Scully tells Skinner how incredulous it is that they are not investigating Melissa’s death. Emotional Mulder, Mulder being sweet towards Scully, iconic scene of Mulder running down the street yelling “Scullaaay”, Scully yelling at Luther Lee Boggs and calling him a son of a bitch (unhinged Scully in general), the scene in Terma where Mulder walks into the courtroom like hero. FTF. Aliens. Cryptids from local lore. Comedy, serious, romantic, or sexy things are all good. I actually like Doggett as a character, and when he and Skinner are around too. I love pretty environments, lighting and interesting visuals, as well as the practical effects.

3. Least favorite things? Unecessary torture, especially Scully torture, Emily dying, giving up William. Mulder and Scully being separated forever, or ending up with other people. I dislike Mulder’s parents but I don’t like bashing them or Bill. Using Scully’s daddy issues to explain all of her behaviour.

4. SPICE SCALE - Habanero

ANGST SCALE - Cascade ocean wave.

5. What’s on your X-Files playlist? Soundtracks from the series: Materia Primordis (The X-Files theme, full-length version) Home Again, from IWTB. Wish I had Scully’s Ballad from S8 but I can only find it on YouTube. Walking in Memphis (Cher) Walking After You (Foo Fighters) If I had $1,000,000 (Barenaked Ladies) Chemtrails Over the Country Club (Lana Del Rey), Down Bad (Taylor Swift) David Duchovny, Why Won’t You Love Me – the upbeat version The Night We Met (Lord Huron) Chinese Satellite (Phoebe Bridgers) AND SO MANY MORE

6. Quotes and/or lyrics that you associate with TXF? Off the top of my head, from Work Song by Hozier: “When my time comes around/lay me gently in the cold dark earth/no grave can hold my body down/I’ll crawl home to her From Gone, Gone, Gone by Philip Philips: “Your hope dangling by a string/I’ll share in your suffering” and “You give me reason to believe” “Never give up on a miracle” “The truth is out there but so are lies”

7. Tropes I like/dislike: Not sure this is a trope, but I like them in the forest in general, not a fan of high school AU, but I’m open to read new things!

8. Colours: I like colours in general, the context is what is important for me. Not a big fan of too many colours that “pop” a lot together (like bright pink, turquoise, bright purple, all in the same image). Maybe sunset to sunrise colours, so quite a few different hues and some darker and some lighter, purple, deep blue, orange, etc.

9. Edits, gifs, etc  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HiU56Eafd_c&list=RDHiU56Eafd_c&start_radio=1 I like the choice of song and clips, how they span many seasons and it’s a mix of friendship and romance capturing the naivité and lightness of their friendship in the early seasons before all the tragedy hit them. I can’t find particular edits or gifs but I don’t like images which are too busy/crowded with visuals, especially moving ones.

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I love them so much 😭

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The little drawing of them making out is killing me 🤣

or something

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things you DO NOT need to be a man

a dick

he/him pronouns

XY chromosomes

things you DO need to be a man

the swiftness of a coursing river

the force of a great typhoon

the strength of a raging fire

the mysteriousness of the dark side of the moon

^this post was brought to you by LGBT^

Let's

Get down to

Business

To defeat the huns

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coffee and sunlight

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''Taking Her Little Notes''

I tried and I didn't entirely fail. Don't judge, I decided to try and paint a person in watercolour. I've barely used watercolours before. Stupid? Yes. Brave? Also yes.

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Fox "my girlfriend is the funniest" Mulder

He is so openly smitten with her in S7

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Scully was calling Mulder for phone sex in Hollywood A.D.

And nobody can convince me otherwise

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This is Ursula K. Le Guin's writing schedule

Replace the one after 8:00 p.m. for "obsessing over X-Files", and I've got a new timetable

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always here for an "all things" discussion and other people are too, yay!

To be honest, it’s Saturday, which means it’s time for an All Things essay.

This episode is usually overlooked and only discussed with regards to the off-screen consummation of Mulder and Scully’s relationship. When people do talk about it, they add the obligatory “well it’s not perfect, but-” which is ironic, considering that “perfect” x files episodes are a rarity as it is. It’s certainly an unusual episode, in the sense that there is no x file, Scully is not tortured, and Mulder isn’t compared to Jesus. But let’s dive a little deeper.

First of all, Scully centric episodes (especially ones that don't involve any of the following: 1) christianity 2) punishment for experiencing desire 3) grief 4) violation of her body) are incredibly rare. Scully, for once, is not robbed off her agency, and neither is she tied to Mulder. Here, she is not simply one half of the iconic skeptic/believer duo, she is her own person, free to make her own choices, free to say no. And, unlike in Never Again, her refusal doesn’t cause a scene (I’ve talked about my issues with Never Again here). 

When I was doing my research for Aletheia, I did some reading on the heart chakra. First of all, it doesn’t look like this

but rather like this

But, as Mulder said, the crop circle images were computer generated, so I’m choosing to interpret this as a commentary on AI fuckery lol. But other than an incorrect depiction of it, the rest pretty much checks out: this chakra allows you to love yourself, to develop your capacity to love others and to receive their love. We know this is something Scully struggled with. “I’ve never allowed myself to get too close to people. I’ve avoided emotional attachment,” she says in Christmas Carol. In En Ami, cancer man says something along the lines of “you would die for Mulder, but won’t let yourself love him”. Which is bullshit, of course, like everything in that episode, but I do think Gillian took that into account while writing All Things.  Apparently, an open heart chakra helps restore balance to the body and mind, and allows you to feel relaxed, connected and safe. I’d say this is an accurate description of Scully at the end of the episode. Also, the anahata chakra is associated with the color green, and we all remember Scully’s famous green sweater. I’ve seen posts making fun of Scully’s turn to Buddhism, but is this really more ridiculous than her being catholic, or were you just taught that one is better and more true than the other?

I also appreciate Gillian making references to some of the previous episodes. Her opening lines sound almost like Melissa’s in Christmas Carol:

And "forks in the road" sounds like a nod to Mulder and Scully’s conversation in Monday:

I think it's a nice touch, Scully finally being able to see things from her loved ones' perspective.

Now, let’s discuss something that the x files usually shies away from: queer themes. In All Things, we’re introduced to the first (and, if I’m not mistaken, the last) lesbian character on the show: Coleen. Well, and her girlfriend Carol.

Seeing Scully talk to and heed advice of a woman who isn’t related to her (though even that option was reduced to only her mother early on) is very refreshing. Scully, who at first dismissed Coleen as a New Age weirdo, comes to recognize herself in this woman and feel kinship with her. She feels much more comfortable in Coleen's presence than in the presence of Daniel, who still sees her as a lovestruck twenty-something. This episode is about Scully trying to find herself. Does she really want to spend her weekends, her life, in a basement with Mr Spooky? Wouldn’t she feel more secure working as a doctor, with a man like Daniel by her side? “I want everything I should want at this time in my life,” she tells Daniel. It’s a strange turn of phrase, which sounds like “I try to conform to societal expectations.” Now let’s get back to Coleen, who suppressed her whole identity so much that she became ill. This woman who Scully just met makes her feel seen, which I’m sure is a deliberate parallel with another crop circle-obsessed weirdo who saw right through her on their first meeting, especially considering this scene from the original script:

A lot has been said about the subversion of gender roles on the x files, but I’ll add my two cents too. In the hospital, Scully is forced into this stereotypically feminine role of a homewrecker. The two worlds – before and after she joined the FBI – collide. There are two choices: to continue being a deviant, being in a relationship that isn’t very conventional by societal standards, or to quit and become a doctor, while carrying guilt for something that wasn’t fully her fault. 

The resolution is beautiful, despite the silly montage. Just like Scully’s strict rationality saved Mulder, his crop circle mission saved Scully. Well, and Daniel, I suppose. And while I still have my queer goggles on, this (unfortunately cut) scene reads as Scully coming out:  

Remember Coleen, who was only able to heal once she stopped caring what her colleagues would think about her relationship with Carol? Pair this with Scully chasing that mysterious woman who turns out to be Mulder, and you have canon confirmation of Mulder and Scully being a lesbian couple.

Their conversation at the end feels like another nod to Monday:

This brings me back to Never Again: Scully rebelling against Mulder yet returning to him, feeling like she doesn't have a choice. Here, she chooses him. She's presented with a different path, and not only does she reject it, she dismisses it as "wrong". Never Again is about trauma, All Things is about healing.

It's an excellent episode in an otherwise pretty bleak season, with good pacing and beautiful visuals. The soundtrack works well too, props to Gillian Anderson for having a great taste in music. Weaving her favorite song into the story is a bold choice and I respect it, 10/10.