I'm always excited to read anything new about The X-Files, and the recent new graphic novel that has been published under the simple title 'The X-Files' was therefore something I was eager to get my hands on. Consisting of 4 stories, including a couple written by Frank Spotnitz, the book gathers the first few issues of a new X-Files comic that sees Mulder and Scully back at the FBI, investigating unusual and paranormal phenomena, overseen by Skinner, and aided by the Lone Gunmen - even Senator Matheson makes an appearance! 
Clearly, the stories do not follow the 9th season or I Want To Believe, and it's never specified where they fit in the X-Files chronology (I suspect they don't, since date and time stamps put the adventures clearly in the here and now), but that doesn't matter - Mulder and Scully of old are back! To be frank, the stories aren't that exciting or memorable - I'm having to flick through the book to remember what they're about - there's an evil spirit that jumps between people (seen in the TV series already I think), a deadly psychological drug being developed by the government, some sort of cloning thing, and a scary tale of monsters living underground. No new ground is covered really, yet the stories are a welcome addition to the X-Files world. The art work is gorgeous, everyone is recognisable from the series, and my favourite bit of Spotnitz's stories are the myriad in-jokes and series references lurking within the art. The ones I picked out included: the obligatory 10:13 time stamp; a store selling 'Carbo Boost' (Kitsunegari) bars, Great Mutato comics (The Post-Modern Prometheus), and, of course, Morley cigarettes; the Manners motel; Skinner watching Holman Hardt's weather broadcast (The Rain King); Kaplan's coffee shop; an advert for Fried Chaco Chicken (Our Town)... That's probably enough uber-geekery for now.
No comments:
Post a Comment