Stolen Lives (The X-files, #2)

by Joe Harris

[jamiereadthis]

Can my rating just apply to the last chapter of this book? (Oops, I mean episode.) If so, 4 stars it is. 1–2 for the rest.

Take for example: there’s case of the week, and then there’s “Monica and John.” What was the point of that episode? There’s no payoff. They drop a quick bomb about William but nothing comes of it. It might work as fan service if Robert Patrick and Annabeth Gish had done the voices, and if Doggett and Reyes had diehard fans. Otherwise, that story does need a point.

And don’t get me started on the G-23 episode. What is it with sending Mulder on drug trips? “Kill Switch”… okay. “Field Trip”… yes. But the one in season 10 was the single worst part of the miniseries. At least this one has 1) Langly and 2) no visuals to go along with it.

But that last episode, i.e. the 1 1/2 hour bulk of this production. There’s a big reveal in the mythology that’s WHOA. I love it. [Mild spoilers to follow that still don’t give it away.] They start hitting heavy on the father/son stuff with Mulder and Smokey (he will never be “Spender,” I’m sorry), and I thought, oh shit, William grew up to be…? But the math didn’t work. Then my next thought was, oh SHIT. The surrogate son. A few minutes later Mulder’s going, oh SHIT.

It’s— dare I say?— brilliant. Makes so much sense and I did NOT see it coming. That’s how I like my X-Files mythology.

Stray observations:

• I have no idea why all non-essential personnel sound like Foghorn Leghorn.

• FOWLEY? Uh, no. At least it’s only in the mind trip episode and quickly dismissed as ridiculous, but no.

• The start of that G-23 episode was so promising. Sign me up for the CSM/Bill Mulder flashback hour.

• Ditto for CSM: The Clone Wars. Outside of the David/Gillian chemistry, the luckiest break this show ever got was William B. Davis. He holds this audiobook together.

• “What I did to protect Fox Mulder all that time has been yours to either recognize or deny for years now, Agent Scully.” Heh heh heh.

• I had wondered if the fact that my name begins with a “J” and ends with a “Harris” meant that I was eligible alongside Joe Harris to write this series. But no. Because if they give me the prompt “Mulder and Scully play hooky at the county fair,” I’m spending an hour on that, and it’s going in a whole different direction. See: fifteen years of my fanfic.

• “You left him to his own devices while the pair of you were playing house behind a white picket fence. Can you doubt he would grow up to bear grudges?” I tell you, that last episode. It’s hit or miss like the rest, but when it hits, it hits big.