The X-Files Premiere Dropped the Mother of All Twists

Wednesday
Jan 3, 2018 at 9:00 PM

TV Guide

[Warning: The following contains spoilers from The X-Files' Season 11 premiere. Read at your own risk!]

If you're one of the many fans who didn't like The X-Files' 10th season, you're in luck because it turns out none of it ever happened! As the Season 11 premiere revealed, the events of Season 10 - which included a fatal virus being unleashed upon the world in order to wipe out all but the chosen few - haven't actually occurred... at least not yet.

Rather than picking up with a dying Mulder (David Duchovny) and worried Scully (Gillian Anderson) on the grid-locked bridge with a UFO hovering overhead, the second installment of the revival kicks off with a completely healthy Mulder hovering over a catatonic Scully, who has just suffered a seizure in the X-Files office. As she lays unconscious in the hospital, scans of her brain flash a message in Morse code: "Find him," a clear instruction that she and Mulder need to find their son, William. But why?

The X-Files: Everything to Know About Season 11

Well, as it turns out, the events of Season 10 weren't complete fantasy. The events are very, very real, but they just haven't happened yet. As part of her seizure, Scully has visions of the entire Spartan Virus saga, which she tells Mulder are being sent from William and will come to fruition unless they stop the Cigarette Smoking Man (William B. Davis) before it's too late.

But this St. Elsewhere moment wasn't the only bomb The X-Files premiere dropped -- not by a long shot. The episode ended with mother of all twists when the Cigarette Smoking Man told Skinner (Mitch Pileggi) that he, not Mulder, is the father of Scully's child.

You see, 16 years ago, the Cigarette Smoking Man drugged and impregnated an unconscious Scully through alien science "to create the first superhuman child," as he oh-so-creepily put it. Therefore, Mulder's son is actually his younger brother. That also means that if Scully were to ever marry Mulder, her own son would also be her brother-in-law. This is some serious Game of Thrones sh--, basically.

So now that The X-Files has completely retconned the events of Season 10 and William's origin story, you're probably wondering where the season goes from here. And you can rest easy knowing that yes, these twists are bonkers, but also that they don't hamper this season all that much.

With the stage set for the main mythology of these 10 episodes, Mulder and Scully get to go back to doing what they've always done best: investigating interesting standalone cases with the perfect balance of humor and horror intertwined throughout. So if you loved those twists, good for you! And if you didn't, don't let that be a reason to tune out. There's a seriously great Darin Morgan episode up ahead that you won't want to miss.

The X-Files airs Wednesdays at 8/7c on Fox.



Other Links From TVGuide.com The X-FilesGillian AndersonDavid DuchovnyWilliam B. Davis

Wednesday
Jan 3, 2018 at 9:00 PM

TV Guide

[Warning: The following contains spoilers from The X-Files' Season 11 premiere. Read at your own risk!]

If you're one of the many fans who didn't like The X-Files' 10th season, you're in luck because it turns out none of it ever happened! As the Season 11 premiere revealed, the events of Season 10 - which included a fatal virus being unleashed upon the world in order to wipe out all but the chosen few - haven't actually occurred... at least not yet.

Rather than picking up with a dying Mulder (David Duchovny) and worried Scully (Gillian Anderson) on the grid-locked bridge with a UFO hovering overhead, the second installment of the revival kicks off with a completely healthy Mulder hovering over a catatonic Scully, who has just suffered a seizure in the X-Files office. As she lays unconscious in the hospital, scans of her brain flash a message in Morse code: "Find him," a clear instruction that she and Mulder need to find their son, William. But why?

The X-Files: Everything to Know About Season 11

Well, as it turns out, the events of Season 10 weren't complete fantasy. The events are very, very real, but they just haven't happened yet. As part of her seizure, Scully has visions of the entire Spartan Virus saga, which she tells Mulder are being sent from William and will come to fruition unless they stop the Cigarette Smoking Man (William B. Davis) before it's too late.

But this St. Elsewhere moment wasn't the only bomb The X-Files premiere dropped -- not by a long shot. The episode ended with mother of all twists when the Cigarette Smoking Man told Skinner (Mitch Pileggi) that he, not Mulder, is the father of Scully's child.

You see, 16 years ago, the Cigarette Smoking Man drugged and impregnated an unconscious Scully through alien science "to create the first superhuman child," as he oh-so-creepily put it. Therefore, Mulder's son is actually his younger brother. That also means that if Scully were to ever marry Mulder, her own son would also be her brother-in-law. This is some serious Game of Thrones sh--, basically.

So now that The X-Files has completely retconned the events of Season 10 and William's origin story, you're probably wondering where the season goes from here. And you can rest easy knowing that yes, these twists are bonkers, but also that they don't hamper this season all that much.

With the stage set for the main mythology of these 10 episodes, Mulder and Scully get to go back to doing what they've always done best: investigating interesting standalone cases with the perfect balance of humor and horror intertwined throughout. So if you loved those twists, good for you! And if you didn't, don't let that be a reason to tune out. There's a seriously great Darin Morgan episode up ahead that you won't want to miss.

The X-Files airs Wednesdays at 8/7c on Fox.



Other Links From TVGuide.com The X-FilesGillian AndersonDavid DuchovnyWilliam B. Davis

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