How are you getting an overt anti adoption message? It's the story of one character dealing with a decision her hand was forced in by third parties threatening the safety of a child she dearly wanted. It's not saying adoption is a bad idea, it's saying that it's very hard for this woman who loved and would have…

But he was such a misogynistic ass that he blamed Mulder for it rather than give his sister credit for being able to make a decision on her own without the influence of a man. Telling her she was making a mistake is one thing, but he regularly claimed Mulder was somehow persuading her to follow him, when in fact he…

Yeah, it's good to see her call him our child. But it is bizarre that she's refering to our decision. It was her decision. I almost thought they were going to go to a melodramatic confrontation where he bursts out with, "No it was YOUR decision!" and we get to the center of why they ended up apart. That would have…

I've thought that was the direction they would go with that for years. She was said to have had 'branched DNA' after her abduction and clearly they messed about with him to the point where he was supposed to turn into one of those weird creature things after his 'rebirth'. So obviously the "Founder's Mutation" took…

That line was, if you'll excuse the pun, garbage. A teen who gave up her child because she wanted to pursue other things might have that concern, but certainly Scully's choice to give up her longed for 'miracle child' in order to protect him does not have that connotation and even if she feels incredibly guilty that…

Upon a rewatch I have to say this one feels old school if only because it is a vintage example of the Duchovny stare into space with a furrowed brow school of acting. How about some reaction Mulder? Or did the script specifically state, behave like you exist only to be Scully's walking anime body pillow to cry into?

Best thing were the shipper crack scenes, worst were the forced relationship 'drama'. Or maybe the stupid head switching case, both blew.

It's a shame they never met. (They could have, thank you Richard Belzer and John Munch for making so many TV universes connect).

Not seen Scully's relationship with her mother?! They used it a lot even early in the series. After her abduction, her sister's death, the Emily episodes, her cancer arc. Both Mulder and Scully have had more of an onscreen relationship with her mother than any of their other family members. I think Mulder had more…

The writers of fan fiction now mourn the 'cool' Scully brother they fantasized would materialize someday.

You felt that his angst fest episode was to heavy on the comedy? There were a couple of light moments on the case, but that balanced the overload of dying mother, lost child anguish. And there is a tradition of the comedic episodes like the previous one, particularly penned by that beloved writer. Now the next one…

I'm pretty sure we'll see him in the finale episode. Either they'll protect him from afar or something will happen to his adoptive parents so that they'll neatly be able to reclaim him without being huge dicks about it. (I'm looking at you Lady Edith).

Yes, but that aspect of AV Club may well have it's roots in X-files fandom. They actually published Nitpickers guides to the show for just this kind of observation.

Even though the plot device didn't work well in the original run (which I agree with), I think they are using him very effectively in this run to ad a personal immediacy to the characters quest that would be lacking otherwise since the Samantha issue has been resolved/beaten to death.

I agree Mulder seemed underwritten in this episode. They could have sacrificed one of the extended killing scenes to give him a few lines and a viewpoint.

I don't understand this not being engaged with the William thing. Even if you for some reason stopped the show before Duchovny left after season 7 (which only from observation of comments online and real life people I've encountered seems to be when most stopped watching or at least watching full time), saying you…

Although was this the first time we saw her acknowledge that she 'knew' who the father was? I remember they kept Scully really cagey about that for reasons that didn't fully make sense.

I actually loved that line and delivery, it was so Scully but so intensified by the immediacy of the moment. It's like she knew on some level work has given her closure when she's suffered a loss and she was actually looking for it here, which, when I think about it that way makes the disconnect between the case and…

Okay, for all of you who were confused, I'm pretty sure the monster vanished when he did because the artist destroyed the sculpture. We saw he'd just left a happy face. The monster plot was passable but the tie in to the other story wasn't well developed. Perhaps we didn't need to see all four murders and could…

Forrest Gump is enjoyable but a bit saccharine in retrospect. And in hindsight it gets flack for winning best picture over Pulp Fiction, which is a true Hollyweird travesty. I actually appreciated the nod to Muppet Babies as that was a very innovative and Muppety way to give an adult level to a Saturday morning…