Summary
I liked this one! Many people didn't and I understood their reasons, but I liked it for the fact that there was all that psycho-babble going on that may or may not have been true at one time or another. It obviously made our twosome do some thinking, which is always good. And yes, it was a bit of a gruesome choice for Christmas, but when it comes to the portrayal of M&S as eternal lovers, we're not likely to get much better from CC! And as a real Christmas present to the viewers, he didn't give just to take away again in this one. :-)
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| A very Merry Christmas ending |
Ringing in at over five minutes, this ep's teaser is one of the longest ones ever. But it was a nice change of pace to see a teaser that was just Mulder and Scully talking, even though it featured CC's sometimes overblown dialogue.
However, Mr. Carter did create these two characters, so he should know them the best. (Should.) Therefore, when he decides to conduct a drive-by psychoanalysis of our two favourite agents (under the guise of a Christmas haunted house adventure that didn't really happen — again), one must pay attention.
But before that happens, we get to witness some entertaining bits as Mulder and Scully run through an odd gamut of emotions ranging from curiosity to exasperation to disappointment to fear. They find a dead version of themselves — in itself freaky enough — under the floorboards of a library that they cannot escape until they get separated. Of course, this is when the ghosts appear and they start providing their insights into the characters of Mulder and Scully. Some of the best parts? "Most people would rather stick their fingers in a wall socket than spend a minute with you." (Not true.) "Running around chasing things you don't even believe in." (Quite true.) "Your only joy in life is proving him wrong." (Hope not.)
As you might expect, Scully is a bit more freaked out than Mulder... she faints when she "realizes" that they are ghosts and is quite rattled throughout most of the ensuing melodrama. The whole "shooting each other" part (which I know is the whole point of the story) was a bit weird though, particularly the exchange that M&S have at the end, right before Mulder realizes that it's not real.
That said, this faux adventure was worth it for final scene that I highlighted as "best moment" below...
Best or Worst Moment
I have to go with the obvious best moment in this one because it is also a unique TXF moment in my mind. To me, the gift exchange scene marks the singular "cannot help but smile while watching" moment in all TXF history. Along with the baseball scene in The Unnatural, it gave us some confirmation that life isn't always serious and painful for these two.
I know there's been all sorts of speculation about the potential "adult nature" of these unknown gifts, but really? Given their relationship (even in my fan-fictionalized take of it at this point in time), I don't think they are comfortably settled into that phase of gift-giving yet. The self-conscious way in which they even admit to having bought presents for each other says it all.
Original Rating: * * *
Revised Rating: * * *
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