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Post by Calidore on Nov 11, 2024 13:15:58 GMT -5
Just rewatched the pilot episode of The X-Files last night, as I am pondering another trip through the first five or six seasons of the show for the first time in years. It was one of my favorite shows when it was first aired, at least for a while, but I eventually lost interest as the conspiracy mythology bogged down everything enjoyable about it. I'm currently up to season 7 of my watchthrough. The uber-plot is actually more sporadic than it seemed. It's background in many episodes, but there's only a few each season that bring it to the forefront. |
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Post by driver1980 on Nov 11, 2024 13:27:39 GMT -5
Just rewatched the pilot episode of The X-Files last night, as I am pondering another trip through the first five or six seasons of the show for the first time in years. It was one of my favorite shows when it was first aired, at least for a while, but I eventually lost interest as the conspiracy mythology bogged down everything enjoyable about it. I lost interest for the same reasons. Incidentally I remember seeing this on the FBI website: archives.fbi.gov/archives/news/stories/2008/july/myths_072408 |
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Post by Ish Kabbible on Nov 11, 2024 21:01:28 GMT -5
Finally got around to watching the X-Files for the first time. Viewed Seasons 1 & 2 about 6 months ago. Had to stop for the sake of needing variety but intend to continue
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Post by codystarbuck on Nov 13, 2024 0:53:51 GMT -5
55 (sigh) years ago today, Sesame Street debuted. I was there (well, the year, can't guarantee I watched it on the first day). I hit 58, on Friday. I remember David, the original Gordon, Batman appearing in a couple of cartoon segments (and Superman, in one), the arrival of Snuffulupagus (I can't be bothered to look u the spelling), The Count, and Maria, among others. I still recall a film segment of some urban kid finding money in the street and buying an ice cream bar, from some kind of vending machine I never saw around, where I lived! My garbage can didn't have an Oscar, but I hoped that one would move in! Grover, Ernie and Kermit were my favorites. |
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Post by codystarbuck on Nov 13, 2024 1:00:38 GMT -5
Just rewatched the pilot episode of The X-Files last night, as I am pondering another trip through the first five or six seasons of the show for the first time in years. It was one of my favorite shows when it was first aired, at least for a while, but I eventually lost interest as the conspiracy mythology bogged down everything enjoyable about it. I lost interest for the same reasons. Incidentally I remember seeing this on the FBI website: archives.fbi.gov/archives/news/stories/2008/july/myths_072408Project Bluebook was the US Air Force investigation into UFOs, which largely concluded that there were no credible "visitations." I tried watching it, early on, and tried sampling, later, and just couldn't get into it, both the performances by Duchovny and Anderson and the plots. I'm too much of a sceptic, I think, for the premise. I went to see the film, with friends, and was mostly bored. If the conspiracies had gone somewhere, it might have been a different story. It was just one of those things where I sat on the outside, saying "I don't get the attraction." Same with Seinfeld. Just never did much for me (either his stand-up or the show). I guess I'm just not wired for that. |
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Post by driver1980 on Nov 13, 2024 7:18:01 GMT -5
One pedantic complaint I have now is that the X-Files seemed like a department that would have been shut down because there weren’t really any results.
I’m sure divisions (or whatever they are called) dealing with, say, counter-terrorism or organised crime could show some results, with senior agents saying, “Yes, we arrested a dozen crime figures last week.” Or, “We’ve put that terrorist behind bars.” But Mulder and Scully rarely, if ever, showed results. They didn’t bring an alien body back to Skinner, or say, “We’ve captured Bigfoot.” I imagine the FBI expects results. When you never catch Bigfoot or an alien body, there’s not exactly any results to be had.
I must dig out a copy of the X-Files’ official magazine (published by Titan) as the issue I have features an interview with a real-life FBI agent who debunks a lot of FBI behaviour seen in the show.
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Post by codystarbuck on Nov 13, 2024 11:58:10 GMT -5
One pedantic complaint I have now is that the X-Files seemed like a department that would have been shut down because there weren’t really any results. I’m sure divisions (or whatever they are called) dealing with, say, counter-terrorism or organised crime could show some results, with senior agents saying, “Yes, we arrested a dozen crime figures last week.” Or, “We’ve put that terrorist behind bars.” But Mulder and Scully rarely, if ever, showed results. They didn’t bring an alien body back to Skinner, or say, “We’ve captured Bigfoot.” I imagine the FBI expects results. When you never catch Bigfoot or an alien body, there’s not exactly any results to be had. I must dig out a copy of the X-Files’ official magazine (published by Titan) as the issue I have features an interview with a real-life FBI agent who debunks a lot of FBI behaviour seen in the show. You can pretty much say that about anything from Hollywood, dealing with law enforcement. Drama always trumps procedure. I have to say, though, some of the UK detective shows are far better about it than US productions, like Prime Suspect. It seemed like Lynda La Plante listened closely to DCI Jackie Malton, who was an advisor to the series and then added her expertise to shows like Life on Mars and Ashes to Ashes, The Bill and some others. Here in the US, even things like Joseph Wambaughs dramas, like Police Story, played things more for effect than truth. Dragnet was sort of realistic by showing the slog of detective work, from questioning witnesses to following up leads and Adam-12 was a relatively realistic portrayal of beat cops in a squad car, for the period. It has been said by many detectives and police officers that Barney Miller was probably more like a real police station than stuff like Hill Street Blues. |
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Post by Slam_Bradley on Nov 13, 2024 12:04:24 GMT -5
One pedantic complaint I have now is that the X-Files seemed like a department that would have been shut down because there weren’t really any results. I’m sure divisions (or whatever they are called) dealing with, say, counter-terrorism or organised crime could show some results, with senior agents saying, “Yes, we arrested a dozen crime figures last week.” Or, “We’ve put that terrorist behind bars.” But Mulder and Scully rarely, if ever, showed results. They didn’t bring an alien body back to Skinner, or say, “We’ve captured Bigfoot.” I imagine the FBI expects results. When you never catch Bigfoot or an alien body, there’s not exactly any results to be had. I must dig out a copy of the X-Files’ official magazine (published by Titan) as the issue I have features an interview with a real-life FBI agent who debunks a lot of FBI behaviour seen in the show. You can pretty much say that about anything from Hollywood, dealing with law enforcement. Drama always trumps procedure. I have to say, though, some of the UK detective shows are far better about it than US productions, like Prime Suspect. It seemed like Lynda La Plante listened closely to DCI Jackie Malton, who was an advisor to the series and then added her expertise to shows like Life on Mars and Ashes to Ashes, The Bill and some others. Here in the US, even things like Joseph Wambaughs dramas, like Police Story, played things more for effect than truth. Dragnet was sort of realistic by showing the slog of detective work, from questioning witnesses to following up leads and Adam-12 was a relatively realistic portrayal of beat cops in a squad car, for the period. It has been said by many detectives and police officers that Barney Miller was probably more like a real police station than stuff like Hill Street Blues. Barney Miller is by far the most realistic U.S. police show I've ever seen. And I've dealt with cops my entire career. The biggest problem with Dragnet is it didn't show that the LAPD was probably the most corrupt police department in the U.S. |
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Post by driver1980 on Nov 13, 2024 12:18:11 GMT -5
One pedantic complaint I have now is that the X-Files seemed like a department that would have been shut down because there weren’t really any results. I’m sure divisions (or whatever they are called) dealing with, say, counter-terrorism or organised crime could show some results, with senior agents saying, “Yes, we arrested a dozen crime figures last week.” Or, “We’ve put that terrorist behind bars.” But Mulder and Scully rarely, if ever, showed results. They didn’t bring an alien body back to Skinner, or say, “We’ve captured Bigfoot.” I imagine the FBI expects results. When you never catch Bigfoot or an alien body, there’s not exactly any results to be had. I must dig out a copy of the X-Files’ official magazine (published by Titan) as the issue I have features an interview with a real-life FBI agent who debunks a lot of FBI behaviour seen in the show. You can pretty much say that about anything from Hollywood, dealing with law enforcement. Drama always trumps procedure. I have to say, though, some of the UK detective shows are far better about it than US productions, like Prime Suspect. It seemed like Lynda La Plante listened closely to DCI Jackie Malton, who was an advisor to the series and then added her expertise to shows like Life on Mars and Ashes to Ashes, The Bill and some others. Here in the US, even things like Joseph Wambaughs dramas, like Police Story, played things more for effect than truth. Dragnet was sort of realistic by showing the slog of detective work, from questioning witnesses to following up leads and Adam-12 was a relatively realistic portrayal of beat cops in a squad car, for the period. It has been said by many detectives and police officers that Barney Miller was probably more like a real police station than stuff like Hill Street Blues. Used to make me smile how a character such as Inspector Morse (a DCI) would seemingly work on only one case at a time, and almost always with just one other detective, DS Lewis. And do US Navy JAG lawyers really keep going on action-packed missions?  Incidentally, Ultimate Force was an SAS drama over here, and in one episode, the SAS were called out to deal with a bank robbery. I’d have presumed that bank robberies would have fallen under the purview of the armed response unit of whichever police force was responsible for that area. I guess we can’t expect too much reality in police and military shows. |
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Post by codystarbuck on Nov 13, 2024 12:34:44 GMT -5
You can pretty much say that about anything from Hollywood, dealing with law enforcement. Drama always trumps procedure. I have to say, though, some of the UK detective shows are far better about it than US productions, like Prime Suspect. It seemed like Lynda La Plante listened closely to DCI Jackie Malton, who was an advisor to the series and then added her expertise to shows like Life on Mars and Ashes to Ashes, The Bill and some others. Here in the US, even things like Joseph Wambaughs dramas, like Police Story, played things more for effect than truth. Dragnet was sort of realistic by showing the slog of detective work, from questioning witnesses to following up leads and Adam-12 was a relatively realistic portrayal of beat cops in a squad car, for the period. It has been said by many detectives and police officers that Barney Miller was probably more like a real police station than stuff like Hill Street Blues. Barney Miller is by far the most realistic U.S. police show I've ever seen. And I've dealt with cops my entire career. The biggest problem with Dragnet is it didn't show that the LAPD was probably the most corrupt police department in the U.S. Well, it was Jack Webb; like he was going to show Authority in a bad light. I liked the Barney Miller episode that spoofed Serpico, with Michael Lembeck as a transfer, who has to shave off his beard and get a haircut and looks like a (Hollywood) teenager! |
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Post by EdoBosnar on Nov 13, 2024 12:49:59 GMT -5
(...) The biggest problem with Dragnet is it didn't show that the LAPD was probably the most corrupt police department in the U.S. Heh, 'was.' |
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Post by Slam_Bradley on Nov 13, 2024 12:51:42 GMT -5
(...) The biggest problem with Dragnet is it didn't show that the LAPD was probably the most corrupt police department in the U.S. Heh, 'was.' I'm not up to date on the current state of corruption among police forces around the country. But in the 50s the LAPD was probably only rivaled by the LA County Sheriff's Office. |
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Post by Rob Allen on Nov 13, 2024 12:57:04 GMT -5
Well, it was Jack Webb; like he was going to show Authority in a bad light. I'm pretty sure you've seen this, Cody, but for everyone else - this piece by the late, much-lamented Greg Hatcher gave me a new perspective on Jack Webb (and one of his contemporaries): atomicjunkshop.com/a-tale-of-two-tv-producers-and-how-they-switched-places/In short, Greg describes Webb as "a forward-thinking, anti-racist and pro-feminist champion of the arts." |
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Post by codystarbuck on Nov 13, 2024 14:39:37 GMT -5
Well, it was Jack Webb; like he was going to show Authority in a bad light. I'm pretty sure you've seen this, Cody, but for everyone else - this piece by the late, much-lamented Greg Hatcher gave me a new perspective on Jack Webb (and one of his contemporaries): atomicjunkshop.com/a-tale-of-two-tv-producers-and-how-they-switched-places/In short, Greg describes Webb as "a forward-thinking, anti-racist and pro-feminist champion of the arts." Yeah, I've seen it and Webb was hardly a crypto-fascist; but, his shows did present the "authorities" is faithful public servants, when the history of some forces, like the LAPD, the Chicago police and even the FBI demonstrated that it wasn't a universal truth. His world was very much like a tv version of the Comics Code, though, I suppose it was not that far off other shows, until you got further into the 70s, when the networks allowed shows to get edgier and reflect what was happening more and more on the streets. Of course, he wasn't above sending up his own program... I grew up watching his shows and they did help shape my views of good citizenship, as much as Superman comics and PSAs (and the examples of my own parents). |
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Post by berkley on Nov 14, 2024 1:08:56 GMT -5
You can pretty much say that about anything from Hollywood, dealing with law enforcement. Drama always trumps procedure. I have to say, though, some of the UK detective shows are far better about it than US productions, like Prime Suspect. It seemed like Lynda La Plante listened closely to DCI Jackie Malton, who was an advisor to the series and then added her expertise to shows like Life on Mars and Ashes to Ashes, The Bill and some others. Here in the US, even things like Joseph Wambaughs dramas, like Police Story, played things more for effect than truth. Dragnet was sort of realistic by showing the slog of detective work, from questioning witnesses to following up leads and Adam-12 was a relatively realistic portrayal of beat cops in a squad car, for the period. It has been said by many detectives and police officers that Barney Miller was probably more like a real police station than stuff like Hill Street Blues. Used to make me smile how a character such as Inspector Morse (a DCI) would seemingly work on only one case at a time, and almost always with just one other detective, DS Lewis. And do US Navy JAG lawyers really keep going on action-packed missions? Incidentally, Ultimate Force was an SAS drama over here, and in one episode, the SAS were called out to deal with a bank robbery. I’d have presumed that bank robberies would have fallen under the purview of the armed response unit of whichever police force was responsible for that area. I guess we can’t expect too much reality in police and military shows.
I think that's probably a matter of taste in general but when you're watching a show about law enforcement agents investigating UFOs or paranormal or supernatural phenomena you definitely shouldn't be looking for too much reality. You might, as a matter of taste, prefer one that at least made an attempt at plausibility - this is how such incidents might be investigated if they really happened and were taken seriously - and I don't think the X-Files did too bad a job with that - for example, there was an in-story explanation for why they weren't shut down altogether instead of just being under-resourced and ignored when not harassed and intimidated into altering reports or dropping cases. But in the end it all depends on that old willing suspension of disbelief.
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