Review of MILLENNIUM for PAXFL I thought this was a successful episode, bringing in elements of the Millennium series, some suspenseful moments (I really didn't realize that the four men had committed suicide or were supposed to represent the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse), Frank's eventual assistance in the matter, but for different reasons than one might have suspected, and of course, the final shippiness. The teaser went on a bit too long for me, but it made sense in the larger sense, as the necromancer was trying to make the connection between himself and the dead Millennium man. When I saw a cemetary and rain, I thought, WOW, it's ba-ack, and was glad, though we also realize it's a plot point, in its erasing most of the marks made. I almost expected to see the yellow house, or *a* house, and was kind of sad that we didn't see Jordan and Frank go home in the end, though I was glad that they *were* going home. I was disappointed that we never found out what happened to Peter Watts or Emma Hollis, but not surprised. "Well, go ahead and naysay me," Mulder says, but later Mulder not only gets it right (vis a vis the resurrection) but has it supported by Scully, of all people. Meanwhile, Scully (not to mention that other agent, and who was that odd looking female agent, anyway?) was giving Mulder *all* kinds of looks during the meeting in Skinner's office. It felt like old times! I thought someone might shout out Spooky Mulder, but a brief muttering was all we got. What's changed is that Skinner had more information that at least partially supported Mulder's theory. Merry Christmas. Notice how *Mulder* says that to Scully and she barely responds. Quite different than HTGSC, and that's all I will say. When Skinner asks Mulder whether he had heard of the Millennium group, I expected him to say, Sure, Millennium used to be on Friday nights, in the timeslot *we* once occupied! But I guess The X-Files isn't ready to break the fourth wall yet. Somehow, I guessed that Mulder might have known the Millennium Group and Frank Black, and of course he knew about what the ouroubouros represented, though he didn't seem to know that it was the Millennium Group's symbol, as Skinner di. I just always figured they would have run into each other sooner. I also didn't expect Frank Black to be watching Boston College and Notre Dame, but as an Eagles fan, I was pleasantly surprised (and of course, you have two Catholic schools fighting, though I expected the Owls and the Squirrels, rather than the Fighting Irish and the Golden Eagles. I was really surprised that M&S didn't catch Frank's "first and 18" comment, though they wouldn't have immediately have known that it was from the Book of Revelations. Perhaps they thought that Frank was slightly insane, or just confused, but I still would have expected Mulder to have paid more attention. I certainly knew it was significant, though I didn't know why at that point. Did you catch the 11:21 time stamp? It's been awhile. I think Vince and Frank Spotnitz got Frank Black down well (Spotzy had written at least a few season three MM eps, so I'm not surprised), and Thomas J. Wright, a producer/director on MM, directed this ep, so it seemed accurate. It didn't feel like a Millennium ep to me, but then again, it wasn't supposed to. Though Scully looked quite annoyed w/ Mulder regarding the profile and the necromancer, she *did* call the coroner, although just a few minutes too late. Skinner always looks so relieved when Scully is okay, and he certainly did this time. I hope you noticed he briefly stroked her hair. I always wonder *exactly* how he feels about her. One of the most effective scenes was when one of the dead men came back in the coroner's office to attack Scully (though not that badly, apparently--she was barely wounded. Mulder got it a lot worse from the dead men, though still not as badly as I might have thought.). "He was dead, and then somehow he wasn't," Scully says, and haven't we been waiting YEARS for her to say something like that?! "Three rounds into his chest. No effect," she notes. Sort of the opposite of Bad Blood. This time, Scully tells the tale and believes. This time, we *know* this version happened. Mulder looks *fine* in his shades, but still needs more hair. No justice in this world, the necromancer says, but it was actually the Millennium Group that killed Catherine, so this isn't really accurate. I never, EVER thought Frank would go to the other side (ie., become one of the Horsemen), and thankfully, he didn't, b/c they had me for a minute (or five). He was just volatile enough to do it. An aside: Mulder climbs the fence to the necromancer's house, but Scully picks the lock. Frank saving Mulder. Then Scully saving both of them. Such perfection. Why did the risen men need to be shot in the head? Because that's where knowledge rests? Jordan is getting so big! I was hoping Brittany might be in the ep more than 30 seconds, however. Oh, well. I always wonder if Scully is thinking of Emily when she sees a mother or father w/ her/his child. She certainly seemed touched by Frank's devotion. Okay...onto the the kiss. Well, first it's prefaced by the all important Dick Clark words: "Hug your friends and loved ones tight. Heck, whoever that person is next to you. There's no time like the present." This is supposed to throw some ambiguity into what is about to happen, IMHO, though it doesn't work for me (naturally). Scully smiles, then looks intently at the screen, as we see a couple passionately kissing. Then Mulder smiles, hesitates, and finally (!) reaches over and kisses Scully. They liplock for at least 15 seconds. Finally, the kiss ends and they both smile. The world didn't end, says Mulder. No it didn't, says Scully. They both look a bit uncomfortable, but not regretful. The obligatory Happy New Year, Scully and Happy New Year, Mulder's are exchanged. But then, in a promising conclusion, Mulder puts his arm around Scully (the one that *isnt* broken, which seemed fitting, somehow--always need some Mulder!angst mixed in) as they walk out the door (and he's wearing the grey t-shirt...very nice touch. Not surprisingly, the kiss is initiated by Mulder (sometime, I would like *Scully* to initiate this, but she still seems too inhibited to this Shipper) but was completely reciprocated by Scully. And they weren't drunk, this wasn't a hallucination, they were in their correct bodies, and they didn't write it off. I'm satisfied. As for the comment, The world didn't end, obviously that is open to interpretation. You can say that it's b/c the world *didn't* end (and I think Mulder might have had his doubts). And of course it's a double entendre, b/c it means that M&S kissed and the world didn't end. So that means they can kiss again, and even go further and the sun would rise and the sun would set and life could go on. Anyway...we can all rest easily. The Millennium arrives (even if it's not *really* the Millennium til 1 January 2001, and yay for Scully for pointing that out) and we're still here. The champagne flowed and I didn't see any power outages or looting. *whew* I am looking forward to more eps w/ cemetaries and rain, and thinking that more cops on The X-Files should call for backup when they sense something fishy...