#scully too in fact. vince gilligan i know what you are

[oldbutchdaniel]

there is a type of character that i feel was made specifically in a lab just for me and it’s female characters who have fallen in love with the worst possible dude to fall in love with. and they’re aware of this fact. they’re also aware that they could do so much better. but they don’t want to? so despite their better judgement and often in direct conflict with their other ideals and ambitions they show a remarkable amount of tenderness to a man who by all accounts does not deserve it. but who worships her for it anyway (and rightfully so)

[scullysflannel]

maybe obscure but what are some of your favourite moments of script spareness in tv, whether it's no words at all or arrestingly simple straightforward dialogue

really love this, especially because it's what I'm drawn to in tv in general. it's a visual medium! vince gilligan caught flack for being completely right when he said dialogue "often carries too much weight in writing." some favorites:

for silent episodes, buffy's "hush" and evil's "s is for silence." I'm so interested in fact that robert king said "s is for silence" was so hard to write and edit because they couldn't use dialogue or adr to bridge the gap if they cut a scene or used a different shot. everything had to be deliberate.

buffy's "the body" also uses silence dizzyingly well, and there's no music at all in it. it really captures the disorientation of sudden loss.

likely thing for me to bring up, but there's an alias scene where sloane tells his wife that he's a bad guy. the dialogue was scripted (ron rifkin talks about it in the dvd commentary), but it's drowned out by music, like the show is taking his voice away when he tries to justify himself. I don't know if they always planned to cover the dialogue or if it was an editing decision, but it's exquisite to me. plus it keeps the focus on amy irving giving it everything she's got (!). perfect song choice too.

the end of "never again," mulder trailing off as he finds his words inadequate. I know the shooting script says scully knows what he was going to say, but it doesn't remotely play as a moment of unspoken understanding. it plays like a moment of realizing the impossibility of complete understanding, which I love. it's a paradoxical sign of respect and an admission of defeat. it sticks with you.

better call saul as a show is a testament to spare, deliberate dialogue, but especially "but so what." the powerlessness in that line, especially for two characters whose job depends on the power of a good speech — I still can't even think about it. no further comment.

kim and jimmy throwing bottles off the balcony in "the guy for this." that's unspoken understanding. but it's so sad and dangerous.

"we fucked up with nora" on the leftovers. yeah you sure did!! that whole big surreal action movie of an episode all boils down to this one basic truth. I especially love "we"; kevin's only company is himself.

"not penny's boat" on lost. a classic for a reason.

so many halt and catch fire scenes fit this mold, but for pure silent revelation, joe recognizing that haley is gay in season 4. gorgeous.

the americans tooth pulling scene!! we all see it!! just like in evil's silent episode, silence is erotic.

I also love the choice to stage the most decisive moment in the americans finale — paige getting off the train — in a way that makes it impossible for them all to talk about it (ever).

the last scene of the sopranos. obviously.

[benoitblanc]

hey arwen, long time no see!! hope you're doing well! 💜

i know nothing about txf besides what i've gleaned from this hellsite which is a) mulder is a lovable idiot, b) scully both loves him (almost against her will??), and c) they literally invented shipping BUT tell me about your top 5 txf episodes!!!

hi mitali i have been EXTREMELY patchy on here lately haven't i lol. local woman appears on tumblr to write ten meta posts about the x files and then disappears again! i'm doing okay; my real life has been kind of chaotic (had to last-minute cancel a trip i have been desperate to go on for years so :/ but! on the bright side it means i get to see my flatmates sooner than i thought and i miss them even though i've been gone from my flat for like a week and a half lol). how have you been???

those are very accurate txf vibes but i will say that scully is a very active and willing participant in being in love with mulder even though he can be very very stupid at times lol. i hope you watch it someday- i think it would be right up your alley! kind of similar doctor who ecological niche of being weird, heartfelt, politically relevant sci-fi with no consistent quality or tone.

ANYWAY. top 5 txf episodes, bearing in mind that i've technically only watched up until the end of the fourth season so far; i'm just a ho for spoilers:

pusher (3.17)... what can i say about pusher that i haven't said already. a lot, probably, because every single day i log on here and i see someone's written new meta about pusher that makes the entire show make more sense. it's just... it's txf distilled to its barest elements. it's about trust and codependency and a supernatural force that is made all the more unsettling by the fact that at its core it is just some guy. it's funny and terrifying and heartfelt all at once. the russian roulette scene changed television

clyde bruckman's final repose (3.04) is also just so txf. darin morgan (the writer) tended to write episodes that were so absurdist they wrapped back around to satirical, but this is far and away my favorite of his because it's not too bonkers. i love coprophages and from outer space especially, but clyde bruckman is a little more grounded, and it manages to be sarcastic and sincere in equal measure. and i love when scully gets to solve the mystery

irresistible (2.13), which is famous for being pretty much the only txf episode where there isn't actually an x-file. and it's SO fucked up. it is hands-down the most fucked up episode of the entire sh- well. besides the episode that they banned from reruns for like a decade for being so fucked up, it's hands-down the most fucked up episode of the entire show

beyond the sea (1.13) and paper hearts (4.10) are thematic sisters so i'm keeping them together. they're both about choosing to move past grief instead of wallowing in it and choosing the future over the past. so what if a criminal says they can give you the answers you've spent your whole life chasing? what matters is that you're at your partner's hospital bedside when he wakes up from an injury, or that you save a little girl's life

right now? probably ice (1.08), because i just rewatched it with my flatmate (who is going through s1 for the first time and is almost as obsessed as i am). it's like if midnight doctor who and the thing had a baby. normally i think this slot would go to duane barry/ascension/one breath (2.05/2.06/2.08) or nisei/731 (3.09/3.10), which are the tightest, tensest episodes relating to the show's overarching mythology

honorable mention goes to elegy (4.22) because the a-plot is a very 90s depiction of neurodivergence and it's not the best-handled thing i've ever seen, but the character showcase of scully in the b-plot gave me fucking brain worms. i cannot stop thinking about it. it's haunting.

also, memento mori (4.14). vince gilligan and gillian anderson you're splitting my therapy bill

ask my top 5/10 anything!!!

[therealsaintscully]

My list of X-Files inspired BBC Sherlock fic prompts

 I recently finished reading @88thparallel​‘s fabulous “Written in Ashes”, a BBC Sherlock fic inspired by the X-Files episode Demons. I’m a huge X-Files fan myself, and the idea of adapting an XF story into a Sherlock one sent me down a rabbit hole. I decided to compose a list of ideas, all up for grabs, for X-Files plots that can be adapted in interesting ways to a BBC Sherlock casefics.

Below you’ll find a list of X-Files episode with their original description, and some suggestions based on my knowledge of the two shows of what makes the plot an interesting one to write. As I mentioned, these ideas are PROMPTS, suggestions - feel free to write them. In fact it’ll be my honor! Let me know if and when you do (I might even create a collection for them in AO3).

Ice (1x07) - Mulder and Scully  investigate the death of an Alaskan research team. Isolated and alone, the agents and their accompanying team discover the existence of extraterrestrial parasitic organisms that drive their hosts into impulsive fits of rage.  Cool plot points you might enjoy writing: extreme nature adventures (mountains, snow, remote research facilities); isolated together with strangers in a distant location (Ice was supposed to be a bottle episode); a lot of suspense as Mulder and Scully’s trust in each other is put to the test (a handgun showdown), physical inspections rife with sexual tension, ooo! 

Darkness Falls (1x19) - Mulder and Scully are called in to investigate when a team of loggers disappear without a trace. Initially suspecting eco-terrorism, the agents find themselves trapped by a seemingly ancient menace lurking in the woods. According to Wikipedia, “Chris Carter was inspired to write this episode based on an interest in dendrochronology (sic? that’s how it’s spelled in wikipedia), a subject that involves analyzing annual growth rings found in non-tropical tree species.”  An interesting topic to develop!  Cool plot points you might enjoy writing: Just like in Ice, opportunity to write magnificent nature descriptions; also like in Ice, Mulder and Scully have to fend to themselves against the ‘others’; wonderful quotes such as “Rugged manly-men. In the full bloom of their manhood.” and “Come on, Scully. It'll be a nice trip to the forest." A Three Garridebs moment could work here!

Pusher (3x17) - Ah, Pusher. An early Vince Gilligan classic! Mulder and Scully’s assistance is requested for a case involving a man, who goes by the pseudonym "Pusher", seemingly capable of bending people to his will. The suspect uses his mysterious abilities to manipulate Mulder into a dangerous end game.  Cool plot points you might enjoy writing: Many parallels can be found between Modell and Eurus and or Moriarty; the game of cat and mouse in hopes of luring Mulder as the end game is quite similar to the TFP/TGG; the final game of Russian roulette with Mulder at the end is a classic MSR scene which could be lovely to write for John and Sherlock (Gillian is amazing with that One Tear™  while she threatens Modell); an opportunity to instill a fear of a very specific shade of blue in your readers; a chance of a sequel, since Modell returns with a vengeance in Kitsunegari.

Jose Chung's From Outer Space (3X20) - Mulder and Scully hear, and promptly investigate, a story about an alien abduction of two teenagers. Each witness provides a different version of the same facts. Within the episode, a thriller novelist, Jose Chung, writes a book about the incident.  Cool plot points you might enjoy writing: Humor! Lots and lots self-aware, meta-type inner-jokes humor as an observant book writer describes Mulder/Sherlock’s many weird traits.

Avatar (3x21) - Assistant Director Walter Skinner  is accused of murdering a prostitute, Mulder and Scully investigate to determine the truth behind what happened. Cool plot points you might enjoy writing: A fine chance to turn Skinner into Sholto or one of John’s other army friends (Skinner discusses trauma from his days in Vietnam in this episode, which could be adapted to Afghanistan). John Asks for Sherlock’s help on behalf of Sholto/said friend and there’s a thrilling prospect of some good old jealousy :) *After writing this I kinda fell in love with this idea and I might attempt writing this, but I’m absolutely not claiming this exclusively! If you like the idea go ahead!

Paper Hearts (4X08) - Another Vince Gilligan episode, my go-to one these days for when I miss the show and need a good dose of Mulder and Scully. I can go on and on about why I love this episode but I’ll spare you from that right now ;) Mulder and Scully find that a child killer who Mulder had helped to apprehend several years earlier had claimed more victims than he had confessed to; and in the resulting investigation, learn that the killer is now claiming to have killed Mulder's sister Samantha. Cool plot points you might enjoy writing: The Alice in Wonderland theme in the episode is somewhat reminiscent of the Hansel and Gretel theme from TRF so Moriarty could be one way to go; another way to go is have Eurus as a villain in a TFP plot fix-it (if you find the Sherrinford plot exaggerated), with Sherlock’s hope of finding Victor’s body by the end of the game.

Zero Sum (4x21) - In the episode, a case Mulder is asked to investigate is covertly covered up by the agents' boss Walter Skinner, who has made a sinister bargain with The Smoking Man. Scully is missing in this episode (Mulder cites her cancer treatments; Gillian Anderson was filming something else at the time). Cool plot points you might enjoy writing: A wonderful opportunity for a Lestrade-as-Skinner story!  (and you’re given a fine chance to write a Lestade naked with nothing but pants situation); Mulder is a bit lost without Scully in this episode so that’s added background Johnlock angst; the story can happen when John is away, either during his honeymoon or after Mary dies.

The Pine Bluff Variant (5x18) - This is an underrated episode which I quite like, personally. Scully grows suspicious of Mulder when she thinks he may be helping a terrorist organization. Scully begins to wonder if he is now a traitor to the FBI. It is eventually revealed that Mulder is working as a mole in the group, and he is trying to stop them before they are able to use a biological weapon—that may have been created by members of the U.S. government—which causes rapid degeneration of human flesh. Cool plot points you might enjoy: alternating POVs between Sherlock and John; a lot of tension between John and Sherlock while John is suspicious; Mycroft recruiting Sherlock to appear as a traitor.

Triangle (6x03) - What can I possibly say about Triangle that hadn’t been said before? Cool plot points you might enjoy: An AU-within-AU opportunity - a chance for John and Sherlock to meet in a WW2 era, saved by rebel-Nazi Lestrade, Sherlock’s irregulars are The Lone Gunmen, a kiss, a punch, “You’re my one in five billion” (remember when there 5 billion people on this planet?) :) If you do write this, please make sure present John and past John pass each other by and get a strange, tingling sensation as a result! It’s one of my favorite scenes in the entire show.

Dreamland I & II (6x04 and 6x05) - Mulder and Scully visit Area 51. But when the agents witness the flight of a mysterious craft, Mulder and a member of the Men in Black switch bodies, unbeknownst to the others. In part two, Scully begins to suspect that her partner's strange behavior is more than it appears to be, while Mulder fights to return his life to normal before it is too late. Cool plot points you might enjoy: Humor, humor and more humor. Mostly Morris Fletcher trying to bed John (=Scully) who promptly pulls a gun on him. That should be an awesome scene to write in and of itself. And let’s not forget “Lately, for lunch, you've been having this six-ounce cup of yogurt, plain yogurt, into which you stir bee pollen because you're on a bee pollen kick even though I tell you you're a doctor and you should know better.“ as well as “I’d kiss you if you weren’t so damn ugly.”

Tithonus (6x09) - Another underrated episode. I think it deals with the theme of death’s inevitability rather beautifully. Scully learns that she, but not Mulder, is being given a chance to prove her worth at the FBI, and—paired with a new partner—she investigates a crime scene photographer with an uncanny knack for arriving just in time to see his victims' final moments. What she does not expect, however, is for Death to play a role himself. Cool plot points you might enjoy writing: John exploring on his own, for one reason or another, attached to another investigator (things happen!); this episode further explores a theory referred throughout the show since Clyde Bruckman’s Final Repose, that Dana Scully is immortal (she seems to avoid death in this episode as well). It’s an Appointment in Samarra sort of story.

Monday (6x15) - Mulder and Scully are stuck in a deadly time loop. It’s a story that writes itself! Cool plot points you might enjoy writing: Sherlock or John having a really bad morning, over and over again.

Alpha (6x16) - Mulder and Scully investigate several killings blamed on an Asian dog called the Wanshang Dhole, thought to be extinct. Mulder and Scully join an obstinate Sheriff, a seemingly eccentric hunter, and a reclusive canine expert to find it. However, there is more mystery to the expert than meets the eye. Cool plot points you might enjoy writing: I enjoy this episode because it has some gentle but obvious MSR moments. Scully is suspicious (and low-key jealous) of Karin Berquist’s involvement in the case and it colors her opinion of the investigation. A key quote in this episode, preformed softly and beautifully by Gillian, is: “She's enamored of you Mulder. Don't underestimate a woman. They can be tricksters, too.”

The Unnatural (6x17) - This is a weird ass episode, let’s admit it. This is DD’s love story to baseball and it’s silly and sometimes boring/slow. BUT, it has lovely MRS moments.  Cool plot points you might enjoy writing: The structure of story within a story (Mulder retells his time spent with Arthur Dales who tells him the story of Josh Exley) is interesting enough. The opening and closing scenes are lovely as well of course!

X-Cops (7x12) - Mulder and Scully are interviewed for the Fox reality television program Cops during an X-Files investigation. Mulder, hunting what he believes to be a werewolf, discovers that the monster terrorizing people instead feeds on fear. While Mulder embraces the publicity of Cops, Scully is more uncomfortable about appearing on national television. Cool plot points you might enjoy writing: It’s your chance to write a Sherlock crossver fic about an X-Files crossover episode. If that’s not cool, I don’t no what is.

Hollywood A.D. (7x18) - Let’s admit it, Hollywood A.D is not a good episode, as funny as it is. This episode was one of the first signs the show had lost its edge, possibly because they thought this would be their truly-this-time last season. However, it IS funny and gave rise to fans claims that by this point, Mulder and Scully were Definitely Sleeping Together. Wayne Federman, an entrepreneurial Hollywood producer and college friend of Walter Skinner picks up the idea for a film based on the X-Files, however Mulder and Scully find that the level of realism in their fictional portrayal is somewhat questionable. Meanwhile, during the filming of the movie, Mulder and Scully research the mysterious "Lazarus Bowl", an artifact that supposedly has the exact words that Jesus Christ spoke to raise Lazarus from the dead recorded on its surface. Cool plot points you might enjoy writing: Lots of inner-jokes and crack humor, many fluffy moments, the chance to imagine who’ll play Lestrade, Sherlock and John in a BBC Film, Lazarus could refer to The Fall(!), which could be the plot to said film.

The X-Files: I Want to Believe - Mulder and Scully have both left the FBI, but when an FBI agent is mysteriously kidnapped, and a former priest who has been convicted of being a child molester claims to be experiencing psychic visions of the endangered agent, they reluctantly accept the FBI's request for their paranormal expertise. I know, I know. Don’t look at me like that. I didn’t like it either at first, but a) compared to the revival seasons, it’s not that bad and b) in terms of established relationship angst, it’s a fucking goldmine. Cool plot points you might enjoy writing: A chance to write a post-recent-retirement fic for Sherlock and John, with a lot of tension in their established relationship based around John’s reluctance to return to their lives as investigators. IWTB has quotes like “This isn't my life anymore, Mulder. I'm done chasing monsters in the dark.” and “This stubbornness of yours, it's why I fell in love with you.”  So there! Don’t dismiss the idea so quickly!

Wow, this turned out longer than I expected! I hope you liked them, and even if you don’t write anything - I definitely enjoyed this exercise.

My finished fics are ready to be read on AO3 :)

[scullydubois]

thoughts on Soft Light (2x23)

Written by Vince Gilligan    Directed by James Contner

The description of this episode sounds quite odd, but I guess we’ll see

His shadow just killed someone...okay

Legitimately who wrote this and thought it actually sounded cool

“Heard a lot about you” what does she know

OOP it’s written by Vince Gilligan my bad

Maybe it’ll actually be good, even though the premise seems bad

When are we gonna talk about aliens again huh, I wanna talk about that

Mulder really just goes around being that tall all the time, as if it’s legal

Okay, but the way they have to play with lighting in this episode to make the shadow thing work is interesting

I do appreciate the way Vince Gilligan writes exchanges between Mulder and Scully

Polarity Magnetics...creative name

They just discussed a bunch of fancy science stuff I won’t even try to understand

Chase scene!!

The psychological aspect of the fact that the guy can’t control this and doesn’t want it to happen is interesting too, different from most other episodes

Scully and Mulder are quite mistreated considering they’re literally FBI agents

Dana Scully, feminist icon

Mr. X is back!!

“He believes the government is out to get him” “It’s tax season, so do most Americans”- okay that was funny

I like how Mr. X got mad at Mulder for contacting him yet still helped him out

He kinda fucked it up though

As a short girl I HATE how short this shot makes Gillian look

RIP Scully’s academy student

Mr. X really offed this guy huh

But he claims he didn’t...hmm

If Scully at this funeral cries it’s over for me

So shadow guy isn’t dead and Mr. X is studying him...Mulder and Scully be fooled again

Consensus: This episode did a good job overcoming how ridiculous I initially thought its premise was. While I didn’t love this episode, I’m excited to see Gilligan’s future episodes because he showed a lot of promise.

3.5 out of 5 stars

[thegottabe]

*So I just finished season 11 of The X-files...*

I didn’t watch any of the revival episodes until recently (for several reasons, the simplest of which is that watching week to week is the worst and I feel much more frustrated by a bad episode if I have to wait a week for the next one), but since they announced they aren’t renewing the show for the time being, I felt like now was the time to rewatch the entire series, from beginning to end. I wasn’t sure how I’d feel about the new seasons, mainly because - as usually happens on the internet - the haters are the loudest when expressing their opinions and everything I saw about them was negative. However, after watching them for myself, I have to say I kind of loved them. Not the mythology episodes, mind you.

The whole conspiracy mythology should have been wrapped up and dropped a long time ago, long before season 9, let alone 10 and 11. The fact that Chris brought it back after all these years only to make it even more convoluted and silly was a terrible call. Really terrible. Not that it wasn’t a pleasure to see William B. Davis on my screen again, but CSM should never have come back. It made no sense whatsoever, considering the last time we saw him he got blown to smithereens. I mean, yeah, I know Chris has always said “no one on The X-Files is ever really dead” but the man took a freaking missile to the face. He was very dead and should have stayed that way. And don’t even get me started on how stupid Reyes’ storyline was. Besides not making any sense character-wise, it was badly written and well... just stupid. And the final episode was beyond ridiculous. Skinner, Scully, Mulder... these characters I have loved and carried with me for over 20 years deserved so much better. Especially Scully. It was devastating to watch, honestly. It certainly goes on my list of Worst Finales Ever of All Time. As I do with HIMYM and a few other shows, in future re-watches, I’ll pretend the last episode doesn’t exist. The last ten minutes, especially. That said, the rest of the revival episodes were super enjoyable to me. I was never bored, often amused and my love for Darin Morgan was rekindled immediately. He is brilliant. I only wish Vince Gilligan could have written as well. His episodes were always wonderful to watch. As for the little critiques, I know a lot of people really disliked Einstein and Miller, but I found them pretty entertaining myself. They’re no Scully and Mulder, but I enjoyed them and their bickering. I also loved seeing Mulder’s inevitable evolution into a Grumpy Old Man who hates new-fangled electronics and grumbles about “kids today.” And Gillian, as always, nailed all the emotional notes of Scully (after the first episode of season 10, anyway, which was rough for everyone). Nothing could possibly have saved the end of the season 11 finale, but if anything came close, it was David and Gillian’s acting. The lines were terrible, the plot was terrible and the overall episode was terrible, but despite that, the emotion felt real. They took one of the silliest, most overly-dramatic scenes written since the daytime soap Passions and managed to make it moving despite it’s idiocy. So yes, I have to say that overall, I was pleasantly surprised by the revival and I’m glad it happened. There were several times while watching I felt the same magic I felt as a kid watching the OS. Mulder and Scully’s bantering and bickering were as beautiful as ever and the poignant moments were just as bittersweet as they used to be. I went into it expecting to hate it and fell in love all over again instead, and that was a great experience. As far as Chris Carter goes, I’m not going to hate on him too much. Yes, I think his episodes were by far the least enjoyable and most frustrating, but - as long as I ignore that last episode - I can truly say he didn’t ruin the series for me at all. I’ve always had great respect for him as a show runner for several reasons, the first of which goes all the way back to season 2, when he flat-out refused to fire Gillian because of her pregnancy, despite pressure from the higher-ups. Not only was he excited for her, but he found a way to tie it into the show and created some very interesting plotlines as a result. Very few show-runners are so kind to pregnant actresses (see: faux-feminist Joss Whedon’s treatment of Charisma Carpenter). Beyond that, Chris Carter created in Scully one of the first well-rounded female characters I ever saw on television. She was tough yet vulnerable, kind yet assertive, sentimental yet reserved, scientific yet religious, ambitious yet maternal.  Though she struggled between her love for Mulder and her loyalty to her own identity, she was never written as just a love interest or sacrificed on the altar of man-pain like so many other female leads. She felt like a real person I’d want to have lunch with. She was wonderful, and Chris Carter made that happen and I will always be appreciative of that. I also appreciate Chris because of his openness of mind to let other writers take the characters places he didn’t personally want them to go. He was always for a platonic relationship between Mulder and Scully, yet he still listened to feedback from both the actors and writers and let them do what they felt was right. That’s not a common thing. As a writer myself, I know how threatening it feels when someone takes characters you’ve created and feel you know so well and tries to convince you that you’re wrong about them. For Chris to allow his writers the freedom to do that really earns some respect for me, because that’s extremely hard to do. I’m not saying I’m happy with Chris. I’m furious, honestly. I was horrified at the end of the finale and I hated it. Scully’s attitude at the end shows that Chris, at best, has absolutely no understanding of how the female mind works when it comes to maternal feelings. Why he wanted so badly to screw those incredible characters he created over will be forever beyond me and I’m sad that it happened. But even so, his present choices, however horrible, aren’t enough to make me any less thankful for the joy he bought to my life by creating The X-files. For that, I’ll always respect him, though I can’t say I still trust him as a writer. I guess I’m just writing this because, overall, the revival was a positive experience for me. I got to spend several more enjoyable hours with characters I’ve loved all my life and I adored seeing the older versions of Scully and Mulder together. I got all kinds of new shippy moments that made me flail in fangirlish rapture :D Trivial critiques aside, most of the revival was just as fun to watch as the original series once was, and that’s something I truly treasure and didn’t expect at all. ♥

[myassbrokethefall]

X-Files Orientation Programming: Season 11

August, 2017

Welcome back to Vancouver, everyone! It feels like we just did this two years ago. Haha! Listen, I know this feels a little more old hat this time, but we still want to get you back into the swing of things, so we’ve planned a comprehensive two-day program that we hope you will all find interesting, informative -- and fun! The truth is out there, everybody!

Please enjoy your official orientation tote bag with David Duchovny's 5th-grade school picture on it and no other information, which includes:

Dog costumes of varying sizes for all your dog costuming needs

Unmarked baggie of (probably) granola

Single flip-flop once worn by Gillian Anderson (signed)

Copy of that book WBD wrote where he complains about everybody

Piece of gum that was in someone's mouth but is still perfectly good

Anonymous note reading "Are you good at resolving cliffhangers? Can you write really fast? Meet behind the dumpster at dawn"

Stunt bee that will lurk in the bag until you open it and then sting you and then receive a hefty union salary because it has a great agent

DVD of The Crown

Coupon for one (1) personal acoustic concert by David Duchovny ($30,000 value)

Brownie

DAY 1

Breakfast: The old crepe truck

Morning Warm-Up! Presenter: Mitch Pileggi Hey, everyone!!! Welcome back to set! I don't know about you, but I am PUMPED to be here doing another season of X-Files! Too bad Skinner can't get promoted, haha! You can blame Mulder and Scully for that one. This program will get your heart pumping and your toes tapping with excitement for getting the season underway! Expect lots of icebreaker games. Do you see several cartons of pipe cleaners? Evil chuckle! Get psyched!

I'm Not Touching This Presenter: Frank Spotnitz Sorry, guys. I'm not touching this. Sorry. I just wanted to let you know. I brought a movie we can watch though. It's The Karate Kid! Let's all watch it together.

Mid-morning snack: Apple that was thrown into someone’s boob

Is This A Meme? Presenter: David Duchovny "Zeitgeist Icon" David "Jazz Panda" Duchovny, star of Fox Television's monster hit "THE X-FILES," plays the brilliant and sullen FBI agent Fox Mulder, hero to millions and millions of self-proclaimed "X-Philes," who still spend their Sunday nights wide-eyed in anticipation just in case. He will look at things and tell you whether it is a meme. It probably is. Bonus content: If there's time at the end, he will tell you whether something is a podcast.

Workshop: Remedial Driving Topics covered in this lightly mandatory “refresher" course will include parallel parking, reaching the trunk hatch when it's very high, and how to recognize obvious, huge poles when they are literally right in front of your face. Neck braces recommended for all participants.

Lunch: Hot dogs (Not so fast, Michael Bublé)

I HAVE SO MANY GREAT IDEAS OMG I HAVE SO MANY Presenter: Bryan Fuller The presentation will cover whatever Bryan Fuller is extremely enthusiastic about at that moment, he just loves life, okay

Please Don't Call Me A Hero, I Just Wanted To Eat The Peanut Butter, Anyone Would Have Done The Same Presenter: Brick Duchovny, noted philanthropist

Mid-afternoon snack: Lozenges. Take as many as you need.

Jesus, We Tried Presenters: The people who made the Season 10 Scully wig That thing took a lot of work. Just saying.

Directing Seminar/Fun Rap Session Presenter: Todd Johnson Todd Johnson is an accomplished television writer and director who exists and has a lot of convincingly documented experience writing and directing television, specifically television very much like The X-Files. He is definitely not Matthew Rhys in a wig and mustache who has been planted by the fandom to secretly film fanfiction after Chris Carter has been lured away by a spirit. He will discuss his non-frightening, normal ideas for directing an X-Files episode, in which he will not rock the boat or upset anyone or disturb the perfectly orchestrated clockwork masterpiece that is the show’s continuing plot. Come to be reassured that nothing will change; stay for Todd Johnson's cool, relatable, spontaneous stories about being a regular Joe that you will find all check out if you care to look into it at all for any reason.

Dinner: That place, what was the name of it again? You know! The place with that fish thing! That guy Roger worked there? With the tattoos? Oh, it closed in 2002? Oh well.

Evening Activity: Group Episode Commentary Everyone gets mic'd up and then sits together and watches the episode in silence. ...Is that a gold car?? HAHA! A gold car! Now I've seen everything.

PUBLIC PROGRAMMING

Offered concurrently on Day 1. Tickets: $600

Things That You Want From A New Season Of The X-Files (Surprise: It’s Not What You Think!) Presenters: 1013 staff

How To Lure Someone Into the Woods Using Your Mystical Powers In Order To Accomplish Your Elaborate, Nefarious Agenda Presenter: The Spirit Nimue

You Are All Awful, And They Can Never Know About Any Of This Presenters: David and Gillian's social media people

DAY 2

Breakfast: Edible arrangement sent by Vince Gilligan. Accompanying note: Hi, guys!!!!! I hope you have a terrific season! I wish so much I could be there with you all. Unfortunately I have an emergency months-long business conference in Guam. Bummer!!! But I know you will all do great and I hope you enjoy this fun, tasty, nutritious fruit bouquet. You all have a standing invitation to come visit the Better Call Saul set anytime! Love always, Vince

How To Make Millions When Your Celebrity Friend Expresses A Vague Wish To Maybe Do Something Presenter: Brad Davidson

Salary Negotiation: Tips and Tricks Presenter: Gillian Anderson Such as: how to wait until they offer your male co-star something non-insulting and then say you’ll have whatever they’re giving him. Because, like, they’re not going to make the show without you, are they? Honestly. It’s 2017, folks. If time and progress towards the frustratingly torpid but necessary reshaping of societal norms permit, there will also be a survey of the fuzziest, softest caterpillars of the Pacific Northwest and also inchworms. Caterpillar assistant: Nelson Anderson

Mid-morning snack: Chili chocolate

Abject Panicking: When You Have To Write Another Whole Episode And You Don't Have Any More Old Drafts Of Things, Shit Shit Shit Presenter: Darin Morgan

Workshop: Physical Performance For The Infirm Are you over 45? Injury-prone? Tend to overdo it on the sports? Not good at checking how deep the pool is before you jump into it? Come to this required (for some attendees) session that will cover the basics of not hurting yourself while going down stairs and tips for running through a forest with various limb injuries. Don't forget your glasses! (Seriously, if you do not complete this course, insurance will not let us film.)

Lunch: Juice

Multitasking: How To Write A Script While Directing A Different Script At The Same Time Presenter: Chris Carter Did you know that it's perfectly possible to write an episode script in 5 hours while simultaneously directing another episode? Even a complicated cliffhanger that serves as the capstone to the triumphant, hard-won and much-heralded return of your iconic sci-fi series upon which the hopes and expectations of every major critic, an entire network, and millions and millions of self-proclaimed "X-Philes" ride? Well, it is! In fact, it's the only way to do things. Really, it's the only way and you should never try doing it any other way because why would you? Presentation details TK

I Did Not Fuck Mrs. Butterworth: A Rebuttal Presenter: The guy that fucked Mrs. Butterworth Arcadia garbage monster

Mid-afternoon snack: Ham sandwiches, served by someone dressed as a ham sandwich. Hilarious!!! Don't forget to take a picture and post it on Tumblr!

PowerPoint Presentation That Consists Of Nothing But Slide After Slide Of The Closed-Eyes Emoji Presenter: Gennifer Hutchison

Dealing With Vancouver Moistness Presenters: Original X-Files hair designers An instructive seminar about blowdrying the frizz out of people's hair as efficiently as possible so other people on set don't emotionally freeze them out for 6 years. 

Dinner: Whoever will deliver at 2:30 in the morning

Evening Activity: Sleep Enjoy it while you can!

Quick reminder: Brad is a WRITER now. Please don’t ask him to get you a coffee.

THANK YOU ALL AND LET’S HAVE A GREAT SEASON! 👽💋☂️

[nostalgicphile]

Different anon here about Gillian/Scully. The fact that Gillian doesn't campaign to change Scully is nothing new, I believe. I usually watch the show & rarely the bts things so I can't be wrong but what was her opinion about the pregnancy and Scully as a mother? Or Scully giving William for adoption? David - I think - he had more input in his character but again I don't remember what was his contribution in the later seasons except having Diana be Mulder's ex & writing the script in which (conti

.. in which Scully gives up William. (I think FS had issues with that but David and Chris convinced him it was better for Mulder & Scully not to have a baby for the movies) and he refused to return for more s9 episodes  because he felt the show is Mulder’s quest and he didn’t want Mulder to be an Obi- Wan type of character (I totally respect that) & he also wrote some shippy moments in s7. But other than that I don’t know how he feels about Mulder leaving Sculy & his baby or any of the other th            

… or any of the other things. That’s why I don’t get it when people (shippers mostly) start petitions for David & Gillian to write episodes for s11, I’m not sure how in touch they are with the characters and the core of the characters and why people love them and identify with them. I’d rather CC, GM, DM, JW, VG (hopefully), HG, FS and the rest of the writers to write them. (Of course GA & DD had some great observations about the characters (I tend to agree with D’s comments on the DVDs for…          

… especially for the early seasons very much -I love his input on Mulder in Memento Mori & much more but I’m not sure if I trust him to write an episode after “The 6th extinction” / “Amor Fati” & the messiah storyline he wrote. (sorry if you love these episodes but I prefer the more grounded mythology of Morgan & Wong & early Carter) PS. Maybe I’m the minority but I enjoyed s10 more than IWTB and I’m hopeful for s11 because I think the writers understood the criticism, but I miss Rob Bowman & 

 If people believe CC is a stubborn showrunner then they haven’t seen shows with stubborn showrunners. CC writes a certain way, that’s true but he is not the only writer and if you ask Vince Gilligan, or one of the Morgan brothers or James Wong they’ll tell you CC encourages his writers to bring their visions in, to tell their own stories, he doesn’t order a story and they write, they have freedom. James Wong talked about that last year and how it’s different from the way shows are written today.            

********************

Hi anon. First, thank you for all your comments - I appreciate your input in the discussion. There is a lot to unpack here and, unfortunately, I have limited time; but I wanted to post your messages, so I’ll respond to what I can now….maybe others can offer their input too.

From what I recall, David used to chat casually with Chris about story ideas (I know Avatar was his and he has story credit on several other episodes) and sometimes he offered enough meat to get his name in there. David directed ‘William’ and also has a credit on the story, though I really can’t recall specifically who wanted to write William out. (It was such a horrible mistake, imo, I’d hate to put it on David without firm evidence to back it up.)

But to get to the meat of it: I personally don’t necessarily want David and Gillian to write for this next stack - especially since when they do write, they want to direct, and that could mean shortchanging their presence in the episode (s). I personally would rather see them on the screen, together, whenever possible. I also don’t expect David and Gillian to “fix” all that is wrong with TXF. I guess I just want them to lose some of their seeming apathy towards their characters. Whenever anyone questions them about their characters, they either:

- don’t know (see David’s response at a con very shortly after filming S10….he seemed to have little idea what was happening with the MSR);

- don’t care (”Chris knows what he’s doing. We trust him.”)

- don’t seem to regard fan or media concerns about the show/movie quality with any merit (”IWTB didn’t do well and killed the whole movie franchise? That was because of The Dark Knight.”) 

David and Gillian are smart people who are so active in the production of their other shows (Cali, The Fall). Yet, when it comes to TXF, it’s like they’ve totally given up. They don’t seem to really understand why people like it and, at times, they don’t even seem to be fans of their own show. They are just like, “I trust Chris, we show up and do our jobs.” I also strongly believe hardcore fans have lost credibility because we did so much whining in the ‘90s…now that there really are strong issues with the show, they view us as impossible to please.

I guess I find it hard to believe that, given that TXF cannot happen without them:

- David and Gillian can’t influence the show quality i.e., script approval;

- they don’t demand any answers as to where the story is going, what is happening with their characters, and how the FINAL season ever is going to end;

- that, after playing these people for so many years, that they are so ill-equipped to offer any input into their characters.

As for Chris’s style and the freedom he gives writers: with that freedom, there are huge discrepancies in character presentation and development. Do the Mulder and Scully in MASMTWM even remotely resemble the people we see in Home Again? There is zero consistency in how they are written. So, yay for writer freedom, but too bad for people looking for characters they recognize.

Maybe it’s selfish of me to want more. Maybe it’s too much to ask for David and Gillian to act as a form of checks and balances. Maybe I’m just a tired, cranky old fan. ;)