johnnyc-1

This classic "monster of the week" is one of the best of the series. Shocking to see it rated as 7.5 at the time of writing. I almost rated it a 10, but just can't put it up there with "Clyde Bruckman's Final Repose" as the best ever X-Files episode.

Scully his hardly in this episode, but Robert Patrick shines as John Doggett in his 7th episode of the series. This is *his* episode, with Pileggi playing an important supporting role throughout. As things go from weird to weirder to weird as it gets, Doggett is on the scariest ride of his life.

It's captivating stuff and at this point I'm missing Mulder less and less.

Not just the worst sci-fi series I've ever seen, but the worst of any genre I've seen in years. In fact, it's probably a stretch to call it sci-fi at all since the writers didn't really seem to care about having an actual sci-fi story - it was 90% "messaging". What was ostensibly the main story arch - the story of a race called "homo sensoriam" - was incidental to preachy messaging that went on and on and on. It just doesn't stop. In the first season it took them 10 episodes just to get to the plot. The pacing is glacial!

At times it feels like this was produced by teenagers with a huge budget and no adult supervision.

Many will say the acting was pretty terrible as well, and some of the acting was definitely really bad, but the dialogue is just awful. Not sure good actors would change that.

I'm giving 1 star for production values and 1 star for the premise.

I haven't seen the original film or read the novel, so there's that, but I just can't see how one can compare the 60s film adaptation to a 2022 mini-series. So I'll just get that out of the way...I'm reviewing this on its own merits.

The series is as good a spy thriller as I've seen in years. And there's a bonus - it's also a 60s period piece and really *feels* like the 60s. The story is part mystery, part spy thriller and moves along quickly as we try to keep up with all the bits they leave to keep us wondering "what is going on here?". All is revealed after a few unexpected twists and turns. What spy movie doesn't have plenty of those?

Cole and Boynton play characters who aren't what they seem and as the series unfolds our first impressions are turned upside-down. There's a restrained but definite chemistry between these two. Another reviewer described Boynton as a "revelation". I have to agree.

This was a pleasure to watch!