7ABX05 - Millennium [REVISITED]

Summary

For the fact that it was touted to be a wrap-up of the Millennium storyline, I was very happy to see something that was relatively easy to follow and even true to the spirit of TXF. (When I later saw End of Days, I recognized elements from it in this episode but I don't remember if the movie was released early enough for it to have been "ripped off". How original can such stories be, anyway?) It was even mildly comforting to see the weather-worn face of Frank Black again. He just seemed so instantly at home in the X-Files world. I must admit, however, that the pre-ep publicity over the last five minutes was unfortunate. (And this time, I don't know how I could have avoided those spoilers because I heard them on the radio and read them in the newspaper. This was truly one spoiler that you didn't need to be on-line to know about.) It seemed to hang over me as I watched the show, leaving me somewhat distracted to say the least.

Happy New Year!

I didn't find this a particularly impressive episode during the re-watch. Why are so many people interested in bringing about the end of the world? And why do Mulder and Scully seem to believe that it will happen without their intervention? Why do I find zombies uninteresting? It's like on the one hand, I should feel anxious about impending Armageddon (again!) but on the other hand, it's zombies... I was looking for Bruce Campbell to show up.

I never watched the Millennium series, so I don't know how badly represented it was by this crossover. As an x-file, the premise seemed to be fine, but having a non-mythology x-file be so "heavy" in its implications — i.e., the end of the world — felt off, particularly as it had to be wrapped in a one hour timeframe. I was getting concerned for Mulder just sitting there in the basement waiting to be attacked. However, for Mr. Black and then Scully to arrive just in the nick of time seemed unimaginative and less than satisfying.

At best it's average, so there you go: a downgrade to two stars.

Best or Worst Moment

Okay, so they kissed. Nice to get it out of the way so that we can all now say that they've officially done that deed. My personal take on it? It was sweet in the execution but slightly bittersweet in the aftermath...for whatever reasons. All in all, just more of 1013's "we don't give without taking something away."

Original Rating: * * *
Revised Rating: * *