Season 11 of X-files, which was frankly not very expected after a 10thseason more than average, began this week…And one wonders if this return was really necessary.
The bet is always risky when a series returns after several years of hiatus. In the case of The X-Files, it was a decade between Season 9 and Season 10 released two years ago. This revival had received mixed criticism; Some were so happy to find the mythical duo that they were ready to forgive the plots "a little" weak.
Two years after the Revival, season 11 makes its debut and the least we can say is that it was disappointing. Very disappointing… Review on this season premiere – spoilers alert.
Remember the season 10 finale where the world was hit by a disease destined to destroy the population, Mulder was so sick that he only had a few days left to live and ended with a UFO landing above Scully? In the trash all that, this episode was actually just a dream of Scully. Even film students know that using the excuse "it was a dream" should NEVER be used. This is especially true since in this case, the result was absolutely delusional and disturbing. We find Scully in her office, fainted, when she was supposed to have been kidnapped by the aliens. It will take several minutes to understand that the writers have actually decided to delete just one episode that was probably too restrictive for the sequel.
But that's not where the problem lies. The exchanges are weary, the twists boring, the acting is not at its best …In short, it's certainly not the best episode. Too much chatter, way too much… The episode begins with a monologue of the Cigarette Smoking Man CSM and will be punctuated by voice-over monologues by Mulder.
Scully spends the entire episode in the hospital, trying to convince Mulder that the world is in danger, that the man with the cigarette is alive and that they are in danger. Mulder, on the other hand, unwittingly leaves at first, in search of the man with the cigarette and will come across another man who is part of the Syndicate. The latter will tell him that he also wants to kill the Cigarette Man and gives him lots of other information. We learn that the aliens will not colonize the earth because they no longer find it interesting (global warming?); that they had come to Earth decades ago and that the Syndicate was working with them. The man with the cigarette had then completely derailed by destroying this partnership and deciding that he could control the destiny of the planet…This explains his various actions and his propensity to want to destroy the planet.
This twist was the most interesting and consistent with the past and probably the future. Nevertheless, this new man remains very suspicious and the reasons given for helping Mulder are more than dubious – colonizing space, seriously?
The big pet peeve of this episode? The end. An absolutely horrible revelation made by the man with the cigarette. Scully's son, William, is actually not Mulder's son but the Cigarette Man. The latter made Scully pregnant "by alien science" when they went on a trip in the episode "As a friend".In addition to being ridiculous, this revelation is detestable. Pregnant "by science" means NOTHING! CSM claims to be the father but at the same time claims to have inserted in a "scientific" way a fetus with developed abilities, a super-human …At best, this does not make him the father. At worst, it means he raped Scully after drugging him. In both cases, this is unacceptable. Scully having suffered enough, this twist is one too many. Especially when you know that CSM is Mulder's father…Does that mean William is Mulder's FRERE? Or is it his son…? Anything that does not please at all so we will stick to Scully's version: William is HER son as well as Mulder's.After all, CSM is known for its lies so nothing says that this one is not another!
The only positive? Many characters reappear during this episode. Monica Reyes reappears and as in the season 10 finale, his role is not very clear. What is certain is that it is in cahoots with CSM. Skinner also returns and, again, we do not really understand his role. He seems to have allied himself with CSM and pledged to betray Scully/Mulder by seeking William for him in exchange for an antidote. It is very difficult to believe in this betrayal and we prefer to believe that Skinner has another plan. We also find Jeffrey Spender, Mulder's half-brother who is completely disfigured and tries to warn Scully and Mulder that people are looking for William. It was the latter who had taken care of hiding it when Scully had decided to put him up for adoption and he is therefore the one with the most information about him. Finally, we find the agents Einstein and Miller but only for a few seconds…Which suggests that we will see the new duo later.
We also see for a few mini-seconds William who has grown up well and who seems to communicate with Scully through visions. This arc is by far the most important since it connects William to the two agents and it is at the center of all theories. We can't wait to have more details about this storyline and this character because the mystery has been going on for a very long time. The writers manage to make William very important despite the fact that we have never seen him!
Despite a very average episode, critics give better hopes for the next episodes which will be more "classic" episodes, that is to say episodes with monsters and paranormal affairs…What X-files does best!
Finally, know that this season will be the last for Gillian Anderson, aka Scully, who recently said that she will not return for a next season. The 11thseems to be the last and we can only hope that it will be better than its season premiere!
