Can't Help Thinking That The X-Files Episodes Are More Stephen King Schlock Than Stanley Kubrick Masterpieces For Some Reason?

The X-Files: Unrequited (aired 1997)

Stanley Kubrick died on March 7th, 1999

Room 217/237?-)

I don't know where the makers of 'The X-Files' TV show come up with their ideas for the episodes, although according to the IMDB trivia on the show it appears the writers travel about 6 years into the future and watch TV, then come back and write the episode;-)

The X-Files: Unrequited

A Walk in the Park with the Spirits of the Faithful Departed?

I watched season 4, episode 16 of 'The X-Files' for the first time on Amazon Prime the other day, which was about an ex-Vietnam prisoner of war who was killing higher-ups in the US army with the help of a stealth technique where he hid in people's blind spots to appear invisible to them.

Yeah, pretty lame storyline if you take it as an action drama, but as an analogy it is quite good I suppose in that Bruce Springsteen 'Born in the USA' kind of way.

The Small World Theory?

I couldn't help thinking of Stanley Kubrick's last two movies 'Full Metal Jacket' and 'Eyes Wide Shut' while watching this episode.

And being a fan of Kubrick's work I knew he had passed away on March 7th, 1999, so to see the main villain in 'Unrequited' *SPOILER ALERT* laying dying on the ground and giving his name, rank and serial number, as well as his date of birth of March 7th, 1952 to Scully, really caught my attention, especially because Kubrick didn't pass away for over two years from the airing of that episode.

Cruise as Ron Kovic

But while I find the ideas explored in the TV series of 'The X-Files' interesting in a pop-cultural zeitgeist kind of way, the show reminds me of the crap movies churned out from Stephen King B grade adaptions for the screen like 'Christine', 'Maximum Overdrive' and 'The Lawnmower Man' , as opposed to great films like Stanley Kubrick's 'The Shining';-)

And I know that Chris Carter modeled 'The X-Files' on 'Kolchak: The Night Stalker' but I find the show doesn't rise much higher than that show as far as a TV spectacle goes.

It's no 'Twin Peaks' and I guess that's the standard I was expecting when I heard all these X-File fans raving on about this show.

I find it a slog to watch, like running over a bunch of speed bumps of shit shows to get to the good ones on this viewing road trip of 217 episodes to journey through.

217 episodes?

And I keep thinking am I there yet, as I try to get to the next season of shows?

I'll just be relieved to make it to the end of the 217 episodes, and I can't see myself doing any repeat viewing in the future, unless it happens to be for researching a blog post or some such task.

It won't be for my viewing pleasure that's for sure, as I don't see the attraction this show has for the fans.

Which I guess is why I'm no Trekkie either.

Good TV shows are far and few between, I think.

Don't make me laugh Stephen:-)

But I'll just have to sit down and take my medicine, as I'm determined to get through all 217 episodes now that I've gotten this far.

I just hope they get better from season 5 onward.

2020: A UFO Odyssey?