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Showing posts with label aliens. Show all posts
Showing posts with label aliens. Show all posts
Friday, October 21, 2016
Saturday, September 10, 2016
The X-Files: An Introduction
September 10th, 1993: The first episode of The X-Files airs on Fox.
Twenty three years later, the show now has nine seasons, two movies, and a mini tenth series under its belt. I'm pretty sure that nobody expected a show about a believer, a skeptic, aliens, and government conspiracies to become an occult favorite and one of the longest running Science Fiction shows out there [Stargate SG-1, Doctor Who, and Supernatural are among the shows that have managed to last longer].
But here we are.
So What Are The X-Files?
I could seriously go on for hours on The X-Files, but I’ll do my best to just give a summary of the show and some of the characters.
For the first seven seasons, The X-Files focuses on Fox Mulder and Dana Scully as they go through some of the FBI’s strangest cases...known as X-Files, obviously. While some people in the government want Scully and Mulder to uncover the truth, most of them don’t. This, paired with Mulder’s insistence that his sister Samantha was kidnapped by aliens when she was a kid, is the running plot line for the show. After season seven, Mulder leaves [Why? Spoilers!], and agents John Doggett and Monica Reyes join Scully in continuing to solve the supernatural mysteries. Since I'm going to mainly be doing episode recaps, I won’t introduce their characters on here until I’ve gotten to the season where they join.
Fox Mulder
[David Duchovny]
[David Duchovny]
Fox “Spooky” Mulder - the believer, the starry-eyed puppy always chasing after the supernatural and paranormal, a precious cinnamon roll who has an unfortunate tendency to make idiotic choices that often results in Scully having to pull strings to save him - from the government, the monsters, and sometimes even himself.
But he's not stupid; in fact, this spooky child has a Bachelor of Arts degree in Psychology, which he got at Oxford, and also graduated with honors from the Quantico FBI Training Academy.
He's also slightly colorblind and has a photographic memory.
We can all relate to Mulder [don't call him Fox!] at one point or another.
Dana Scully
[Gillian Anderson]
[Gillian Anderson]
(via GIPHY)
Dana Scully - the skeptic, the "strong independent woman who don't need no man," a character that revolutionized the way the Science Fiction genre viewed women, who is also a precious cinnamon roll that can kick your butt while rescuing herself and Mulder and throwing logical facts and doing autopsies...all at the same time.
That gif, right there, that’s the show. Yeah. (via GIPHY)
I love that Scully is not your typical damsel in distress. There's a great balance of her needing help and Mulder needing help. She makes dumb decisions sometimes. She's human.
And she's always there for Mulder, even if she thinks he's crazy [which is fairly often].
Walter Skinner
[Mitch Pileggi]
[Mitch Pileggi]
(via GIPHY)
Walter Skinner - the government, the voice of reason, the skeptical believer at times, the "dad" to Mulder and Scully. Honestly, somebody give this man some chocolate for putting up with Mulder.
I mean, really. Skinner deserves better. (via GIPHY)
[You might also recognize Mitch Pileggi from another show that DEFINITELY has an occult following: Supernatural.]
Monster of The Week
Monster of The Week episodes, also known as MOTW, are the episodes that are generally separate from the “conspiracy” episodes. MOTW episodes largely deal with the paranormal/supernatural, but sometimes it’s as simple as someone with a unique gift or ability, whereas the “conspiracy” episodes focus more on the plot line of aliens and the government and/or Samantha’s disappearance.
There are some actors and actresses that you may recognize from other shows that appear in MOTW episodes.
Like this guy.
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That’s right. Mark Sheppard, the King of Fandoms, has an episode.
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You might recognize him as Crowley in Supernatural, Canton Delaware in Doctor Who, Curtis Hagen in White Collar...seriously, is Sheppard in EVERYTHING?
Other notable appearances are a very young Jewel Staite [Firefly, Serenity, Stargate: Atlantis...] and Cary Elwes [The Princess Bride, Psych, Saw…] is a small recurring character in season 9.
In Conclusion…
I’ll be joining you all bi-weekly with recaps on the episodes, starting with episode one. Since we do have nine seasons to go through, I’ll occasionally lump episodes together if they’re boring [because, I’ll be honest with you, some of them are pretty lame or boring. Not everything about this show is absolute perfection, okay??]
Every once in awhile, I’ll take a break from recaps and have fangirly posts [because who doesn’t need a “Mulder Appreciation Post” in their lives?]
Meanwhile, I’ll leave you with this.
Look at that pose. Mulder is CONFIDENT in his sexy 90s style over-sized coat and ill-fitting suit. My precious child.
Have you seen The X-Files before? If so, who’s your favorite character? Do you have a favorite episode?
Saturday, March 28, 2015
V: The 80's Alien Show You Should Watch
When alien Visitors land on earth and declare peace, most people embrace them, excited at the prospect of newcomers from outer space. After all, the only thing they want is a certain chemical only we can manufacture - and they're prepared to trade their vast knowledge to get it. They're friendly, helpful, and they look just like us! What could go wrong?
Everything. Enter Mike Donovan (Marc Singer), a television journalist who makes a living filming wars in other countries. He has his suspicions about the Visitors, and his suspicions grow when scientists begin to disappear. When he discovers that underneath their human prosthetics they're actually reptiles, with a plan to gather water and food (food = humans) for their leader, he enters an underground battle to save the planet. Julie Parrish (Faye Grant), a young scientist, becomes the leader of the underground rebels, and they're joined by Ham Tyler (Michael Ironside), an ex-CIA operative and the star of the show (in my humble opinion.)
What makes this series so great? Well!
- The plot, for one. It rings truer than most alien invasion stories, as it closely parallels the Nazi takeover and gives us a threat that, while sometimes cheesy, feels very real.
- Tyler. He's one of my favorite characters in existence, hands down. If pressed, he would probably make the top 10 - possibly, the top 5.
- Marc Singer's acting. Oh, he's not bad most of the time - but probably once per episode, there's a moment that's so over-acted it will make you laugh out loud. Fortunately, it does nothing to ruin the enjoyment of the show.
- There are just as many women as there are men, and their roles are just as important. (Granted, you'll want to string Robin up by her hair every time she opens her mouth, but other than that.)
- Diana. The real villainess of the show, the alien Diana, is a truly excellent antagonist. You hate everything about her, from her guts to her perfect 80's hair.
- It has everything. Humor? Check. Action? Check. Romance? Check. Aliens? Check. Intrigue? Check. People you hate? Check. People you love? Check. People you ship? Check. Tyler? Check.
I bought this show six months ago, almost as soon as we discovered it and watched the first miniseries. I bought the beginning - 'V: The Miniseries,' - the middle ('V: The Final Battle') and the show which has the same cast ('V').
I'll give you fair warning, though - After the miniseries and episode 12 of the show, Tyler is no longer, um, part of the show. After that, I didn't enjoy the show nearly as much. But I'll say this - I adore this show. (Obviously.) And you should watch it. It's impossible to find online, but it's on Netflix - go forth! (But it's really cheap to buy on Amazon, too, so there's that.)
Everything. Enter Mike Donovan (Marc Singer), a television journalist who makes a living filming wars in other countries. He has his suspicions about the Visitors, and his suspicions grow when scientists begin to disappear. When he discovers that underneath their human prosthetics they're actually reptiles, with a plan to gather water and food (food = humans) for their leader, he enters an underground battle to save the planet. Julie Parrish (Faye Grant), a young scientist, becomes the leader of the underground rebels, and they're joined by Ham Tyler (Michael Ironside), an ex-CIA operative and the star of the show (in my humble opinion.)
What makes this series so great? Well!
- The plot, for one. It rings truer than most alien invasion stories, as it closely parallels the Nazi takeover and gives us a threat that, while sometimes cheesy, feels very real.
- Tyler. He's one of my favorite characters in existence, hands down. If pressed, he would probably make the top 10 - possibly, the top 5.
- Marc Singer's acting. Oh, he's not bad most of the time - but probably once per episode, there's a moment that's so over-acted it will make you laugh out loud. Fortunately, it does nothing to ruin the enjoyment of the show.
- There are just as many women as there are men, and their roles are just as important. (Granted, you'll want to string Robin up by her hair every time she opens her mouth, but other than that.)
- Diana. The real villainess of the show, the alien Diana, is a truly excellent antagonist. You hate everything about her, from her guts to her perfect 80's hair.
- It has everything. Humor? Check. Action? Check. Romance? Check. Aliens? Check. Intrigue? Check. People you hate? Check. People you love? Check. People you ship? Check. Tyler? Check.
I bought this show six months ago, almost as soon as we discovered it and watched the first miniseries. I bought the beginning - 'V: The Miniseries,' - the middle ('V: The Final Battle') and the show which has the same cast ('V').
I'll give you fair warning, though - After the miniseries and episode 12 of the show, Tyler is no longer, um, part of the show. After that, I didn't enjoy the show nearly as much. But I'll say this - I adore this show. (Obviously.) And you should watch it. It's impossible to find online, but it's on Netflix - go forth! (But it's really cheap to buy on Amazon, too, so there's that.)
