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sesamestreep · 3 months ago

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“requiem for methuselah” crazy ass episode for many reasons. Kirk is being fully insane, like I don’t actually think, even controlling for how quickly and easily and readily he seems to fall in love with anybody at the slightest encouragement, that he’d go that bonkers for that android woman he just met while everyone on the ship was this close to dying, but that’s neither here nor there, because in the background you’ve got an equally but much more subtly insane episode for Spock, who extremely uncharacteristically admits to experiencing an emotion (or nearly experiencing, whatever) and that emotion is ENVY of all things. And then spends the rest of the episode warning Kirk away from this new love interest (something that doesn’t usually happen, even when Kirk has very inadvisable love interests) and is, in the end, the person who accurately identifies that Rayna’s competing love for Kirk and Flint is ultimately what overwhelms and destroys her with the most killer line in maybe history???

And then to wrap it up we get an equally uncharacteristic sort of denouement scene (TOS loooves to cut an episode off right after the actual climax, leaving little time for falling action or character reflection, or to stick a sitcom-y button on the end where the gang all smiles and laughs at their misadventures and everything resets to zero, which is not a criticism, it’s just the style of that era of tv, honestly) where Kirk is literally miserable over Rayna’s death (again, kind of unusual for a lot of his love interests, he tends to be able to move on pretty quickly) and Spock goes to see him and he falls asleep right in front of Spock (also odd) and then when Bones comes in to give the final word on Flint, Spock waves him off from waking the Captain (tender) and Bones gives him that awful speech about how it’s sadder that Spock can’t even imagine the love Kirk felt for this random android woman than it is that Kirk lost her in the first place (debatable but also rude) and how his great tragedy is that he can’t love at all like they can and how all he wishes is that Kirk could forget about all of this and move on. AND THEN, to have Bones leave and Spock go over to Kirk and very gently, tenderly, reluctantly touch him and put his hand to his forehead and tell him to forget and HAVE THAT BE THE END OF THE EPISODE??? What am I supposed to do with that??

#‘the joys of love made her human. the agonies of love destroyed her’ hUH. What a cool line.#hope it doesn’t become some sort of…thesis statement for you or something SPOCK #listen my number one beef with the way they write bones is that they just make him completely mischaracterize everything to suit the plot #this man is not an idiot he KNOWS Spock has emotions and just suppresses them #you’re going to tell me he’s been on that ship with Spock for years and thinks he feels no love whatsoever for anyone???#like even after what happened in the empath and in that episode where McCoy thought he was dying #he knows Spock loves people!!! COME ON #does he really just mean romantic love?? that’s so boring WRITE HIM BETTER #also they’re banking a lot on people remembering what the Vulcan mind meld is for that last bit #like I know it comes up a lot but…this is 1968 or whatever. They don’t have this shit on dvd to rewatch #you’re counting on really dedicated fan memory here or on people catching reruns #because otherwise it just looks like Spock waiting to be alone to touch Kirk as tenderly as possible and pray he forgets this woman #truly what’s going on #anyway I kind of hated this episode #like quite frankly there was too much going on #are androids people? would Kirk fall in love that hard that quickly and choose it over the safety of his crew?#why wasnt the illness ravaging the crew a bigger deal??#they didn’t even get into WHY flint was immortal #he was just a regular human and apparently the ONLY one who was granted immortality by the earth’s atmosphere #leaving aside the very creepy and very early born sexy yesterday trope going on throughout #but it was a really good Spock episode if you just….dont look at anything else….#the writer for this one also did Day of the Dove and Mirror Mirror which explains a LOT #two other episodes that are interesting for the character dynamics but really chaotic plot wise #anyway imagine saying to Spock’s face that he has no idea what love can drive a man to do #one has to laugh #tos #star trek #as always…. I’m sorry that I’m Like This

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mulders-too-large-shirt · 7 days ago

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s6 episode 7 thoughts

life can be so beautiful… but will it be today? that is the essential question.

yesterday’s episode was a contender for greatest of all time. and i enjoyed holding space for that. in fact, i could stand to hold even MORE space than i already have.

but from reading the episode description here, this one sounds… darker! so, we shall see. i will not go into this one expecting to feel holly and jolly. although “terms of endearment” sounds like a sweet title. AGAIN, though. i am not foolish enough to think that it will actually be a sweet episode.

ahh, time to get cozy and see what the evening brings us!

post-episode thoughts: (shrugs) this one didn't do anything for me, really. except get that song stuck in my head. and make me kinda uncomfy. those are pretty much my only thoughts.

wait: mulder befriending those random kids was funny, too. thus concludes my opinion.

the evening brings us a sonogram, it seems. a mystery sonogram? there’s some sort of development on da baby. plates on the skull.

WHY did this wayne guy get up and leave when the doctor said there may be some strange developments?! go be with the woman who also had to hear this news!!!! and the bony plated thing is growing in HER, so like!! don’t make this about you!!!

wayne is getting a sip of water. the woman says that it might be nothing; they need to wait and see. and wayne says he just “wants it to be normal”. "IT"??? "NORMAL"?? bro. i don’t know anything about these matters, but it doesn’t seem like he is very sympathetic to his wife. "normal" is a CRAZY word choice. may i suggest "healthy"? because "normal" sounds like you'll bully the poor little dude if he gets into stuff you consider too nerdy.

they go home to virginia, where he brings his wife a glass of water. her name is laura. good to know.

“i love you, laura. no matter what” <- why does it sound like he is implying that this is somehow her fault with that statement?? or she is lesser for it?? or that he's brave for sticking by her despite it all? that is your job, you utter beast.

what is going on? this man is pissing me off. and he called her “poopydoo”, which pissed me off even worse.

i hate wayne. team laura. look at her freckles as she falls asleep.

EGADS!!! THE DEVIL IS AT THE FOOT OF HER BED???? WITH FLAMES AND SCARY EYES!! see, if i had seen this at age 7, i wouldn’t have slept for weeks. in some ways, it’s so great i’m not 7 anymore.

she’s yelling for wayne,,, and the devil is grabbing her????? THE BABY COMES OUT??? with little horns???

okay, that seemed to have just been a nightmare. WAIT, why is he covered in blood.

OH MY GOD??? OH MY GOD. hold on. hold on. she is very bloody. oh my god.

hey guys. what’s going on?

is wayne the devil?? or a devil??

(pause for momentary cheering as the intro shows us our lead actor’s faces. and the intro is full length… nature is healing)

a cop is presenting the tale of laura’s baby being abducted to… SPENDER?? NO ONE WANTS TO SEE THIS!! literally booing and throwing tomatoes at my screen 🍅🍅🍅

laura is the sister of this cop!! so this is personal.

spender says he will put this in their priority caseload, and i do not believe him. maybe he’ll outsource it.

NO!!! he shredded it right away!!!! SPENDER!!! you dastardly man!!!

so what is he even DOING down in that office if it isn't solving crimes?!?!

MULDER FOUND THE SHREDDED PIECES AND TAPED THEM TOGETHER!! OHHH!!! he is a hero in this way. and he tells the cop not to tell people his name!! LMAO, he is definitely NOT supposed to be there.

he is going to wayne and laura’s beautiful house to ask some questions. she’s talking about the nightmare. the baby was a monster with horns and a tail. she gets up to go cry. leaving him with wayne.

oh, mulder def thinks this guy is the devil.

WHAT IS SCULLY DOING?? interviewing some guy??? asking if he smokes weed? has he consorted with people who have? LMAO, she looks so relieved when the phone rings and she can ask this dude to leave.

“mulder, where are you? i waited 45 minutes for you this morning” “i, uh… before i tell you, i-i’m going to ask you to keep an open mind” <-LMAOOO, he is self-conscious

BAHAHA, she looks somehow even more done with his news of a demon baby than she was asking this random guy if he knows people who smoke marijuana

she is doing background checks!!! this is so wrong!!! her talents are being WASTED!!!! she is literally a DOCTOR!!! SHE SAVES LIVES!! AND YOU PUT HER IN AN OFFICE?!?!

she calls him out for rooting through spender’s trash but, like. well! i can’t say i blame him. not saying i would do it, of course. but! you know how he is!

“oh, like that’s any different from the assignment we’re stuck with” “‘we’, mulder? i’m stuck with. you’re not here” <- GET HIM!!

his constant conflation of the words "i" and "we" continues to piss me off. he is NOT beating the selfish allegations.

“scully, this is a classic case of demon fetal harvest-“ ohhhhh right. right. that clears it up. (heavy on the /s)

oh shoot, while she rolls her eyes, it seems something or someone is recording his phone call!!

it’s being picked up over the baby monitor!! wayne hears him saying all of this!! he looks distressed. but: is he guilty of the crime???

laura comes back in the room and wayne is nowhere to be seen. something is on fire….. what is he doing?? laura just wants her nightgown!!

he’s holding something bloody in the leaves. and there’s a flame altar sort of thing???

he’s covered in sweat and claims to be burning leaves in the middle of the night. he claims he wanted everything to look perfect for when she woke up.

see, he seems so obviously evil that maybe i’m supposed to guess that he really is innocent.

it seems like he’s crying as some bones burn in there or something. which is not reassuring.

mulder!! sleeping in his car!!! waking with a pain in his neck from such an awful position!!! what a silly guy!

scully she found something on the charts he sent her… he doodles horns onto wayne as she describes the conditions

but she says the father is not some sort of evil force… and he has to put laura under arrest?? labor was induced? with mandrakes. which can also be a hallucinogen. she says the doctor told her that wayne was very upset, and she seemed not to be.

hmm… she suggests that he proceed very carefully, as it is incredibly emotional territory. he proceeds to very carefully doodle more horns on wayne’s head. while wayne pulls out in his car, watching him.

i feel like any plot point i jump to guess here will be subverted. so perhaps i should just stay silent and sit back and watch.

why does he have to get involved? is it actually his case now? can’t he just be like “damn, maybe this one doesn't look so spooky; i actually have something else to do, bye!”

now where is he going…. and why did he leave his car window open… i am scared it will rain and land in his car...

wayne goes to the house of ANOTHER WOMAN??? who asks where he has been??? he says he has been “on the road” and calls her “poopydoo”!

yeah, this man HAS to be the devil.

this woman has the bluest eyes i have ever seen. and she’s pregnant, too!!!!

A DEVIL AND A TWO-TIMER!!! free my girl laura!!

the cop from before is here with mulder and laura, and he is defending his sister against mandrake accusations. but she does say she took an herbal sleep aid. and wayne was seen bringing her a pill, so i don’t think this is her fault.

oh no… wayne is here now. mulder says he doesn’t want to arrest laura and throws a devil reference in there. HE IS ON TO YOU, WAYNE!! COUNT YOUR DAYS!!

wait, if mulder doesn’t believe in god, how does he think you get rid of devils?? does he keep some emergency holy water in his suit jacket?? just in case??

i need to ponder this.

the cops are searching the premises. they find a lot of jars labeled “fiber”. unless it isn’t fiber. and is instead mandrake. hmm...

oh no, wayne is confessing a secret to laura…. he wasn’t in bed that night… and he says she had the baby in her hands??? she was in some sort of trance?? mumbling stuff?? so he took the baby and wrapped it up and burned the body??

he says he was doing it to protect her. sure enough, they find some bones out there.

oh wayne, this is evil. laura is crying. mulder is watching. and he does look terribly handsome which is interrupting the vibe, as laura tells her cop brother that she thinks she did something wrong, and perhaps this was her punishment. and btw, cop brother is named arky. which is not a name i have heard before.

arky tells her not to say anything more and reads her her rights. wayne says she’ll be okay as she walks out. he's still pissing me off.

mulder declares he knows what wayne is as he walks out. bro, be careful getting in a tussle with the devil. or a devil. still not clear on the hierarchy of devils in this show.

wayne is speeding off, blasting his tunes and calling the other woman- betsy! GAG!!!!

he wants to be there for the sonogram, AND they’re married????? “it’s a picture of the expression of our beautiful love” <- oh, i would need holy water for that statement even if the guy wasn’t a demon

MULDER PULLS UP NEXT TO HIM LMAOOOOO AND NOW THEY’RE RACING!!!!!

so wayne goes to a client’s house and takes a woman’s blood instead of going to the sonogram appointment. which is not what i wanted to see. this lady has like 4 kids running out the door.

buhhhhhh, i don’t want to see the blooooooood, not looking at the screen, lalalalalala. wayne says she has fine looking boys and she doesn’t know how lucky she is. but when he bends down he has these weird bumps on his spine. OHHHH LORD!! deliver me!!

and mulder is outside honking and waving LMAOOOOOO

THE KIDS CRAWLED IN WAYNE’S CAR, BAHAHA. but why is mulder’s tactic here to simply annoy a devil until he stops what he’s doing? and the bigger question: will it work??

and he is befriending random children. typical mulder activities.

but scully calls!!! and mulder is busted!!! wayne called kersh and reported mulder for harassment. she warns him to leave him alone.

he says to tell kersh he’s doing a background check on somebody and hangs up.

poor laura is in the jail cell. and wayne comes to see her. she’s afraid!

she’s been thinking about his story, and it doesn’t make any sense.

AUGH, she finds a gash mark on his neck where she scratched the devil… so must be him….

HE BREATHES IN HER SOUL??????

man. what?

they’re trying to do CPR, while wayne is literally RIGHT there, claiming she collapsed.

he’s shocked when there’s a heartbeat on her. and mulder sees this.

wayne races back to betsy. she has had enough of his excuses!!!

and this baby too has bony growths!!! and again he claims to love her no matter what.

NO, DON’T GET HER A GLASS OF ANYTHING!

betsy, you need to kill this guy.

scully is here to take a look at laura!!! she says there is no evidence of the husband being why she is in a coma.

mulder presents her with some new facts. and yes, i did hit rewind to hear scully say “czechoslovakia” once again. what about it?

ohhhh, he tracked down wayne’s aliases!!! he's been a bunch of different people over the years

“mulder, i will accept that a man can be demonic, that he may have demon-like attributes, but why would a demon- if there were such a thing- bother with a 9-5 make room for daddy routine just so he can off his wife and unborn child?” <- AHA! she believes man can be demonic! this isn’t entirely surprising given the catholicism, but still interesting and worth noting.

he says he’s not a psychologist and I THOUGHT HE WAS, THOUGH?? wait. maybe he doesn’t have like a license to practice. maybe he just has that sweet, sweet oxford BA.

let me google some things.

well. i’m actually gonna throw the flag in here and admit defeat. because i feel like i’ve read about this line before back when i was first googling this show to see if i wanted to watch it, and how he says this- or something like it, possibly about not being able to prescribe meds- and it blatantly ignores canon. which probably should have been a warning for what i was getting into and the struggles i would face as someone who NEEDS continuity to stay sane. but here we are.

maybe i can choose to interpret that he’s being a sarcastic little man. or, he just isn’t considered a professional psychologist without the masters or license to practice.

and i will certainly do my best to not lose sleep over such a line.

like i still do over the colorblind thing...

wayne is warming up milk and probably adding some sort of herb. why is the milk glowing? yeah sure, whatever. it glows.

betsy, don’t drink it, NOOO!!! she gulps it all. i was hoping she’d claim to be lactose intolerant and tell him that he needs to go get soy milk now, but no.

scully and mulder arrive to where the cops are searching for the body. and sure enough. baby. in the yard.

mulder demands that the cops put out an APB, saying wayne’s done it to other women.

mulder theory time: OHHHH, wayne actually DOES want a normal child… but he has only made demons so far. well. i think that is how genetics work???

betsy is sleeping. and she also has a demon arrive at the bottom of her bed and spread her legs open.

OH!!! SHE GRABS HIM AND ASKS WHAT THE HELL HE’S DOING!! BAHAHA!!! GET HIS ASS!!!

mulder and scully are off on a mission. and he pulls over and drives somewhere else to find wayne's second wife at his second residence.

betsy stops the agents!!! she’s covered in blood!!! and says he took her baby!!!

scully is trying to comfort her and say it’s okay, but it’s very much not. i still appreciate that she tried.

they’re trying to find wayne with their dramatic guns and flashlights. a creepy film is playing in the living room as wayne digs a hole.

wayne says that all he’s wanted is a wife and a normal family. he’s claiming she took the baby. betsy is…. (gunshots cut him off as arky shoots him)

wayne says “i just wanted what everyone wants”, and when he does this, mulder looks to scully. which surely has no implications!!! /s

arky is freaking out because they’re placing wayne next to laura in the hospital. i respect that. even if you shouldn’t shoot people.

somehow, wayne is recovering. probably from his demon blood. and then HE gets his soul sucked out???? by laura????

did he give himself up to her? or was she actually a demon, too??

shrugs. i truly can't be bothered to work it out.

scully is digging up baby skeletons, seeming pained at this fact. i cannot blame her. there are 4 so far. and all the ones they’ve found are normal.

so betsy was an eviler demon? and she is driving away to the same song he was speeding to with her little demon baby in tow!!!

okay, she has creepy red eyes now.

well!

allow me to file this one under the category “episodes that make you close your laptop and stare at the wall for a bit��

um. diversity win?? this baby killing demon is a woman??

well, from an incredibly practical standpoint, this episode didn’t have enough scully. which is a valid enough reason for me to not like it.

but other than THAT, i was actually pretty interested at first. idk, it kinda lost me though. this show uses women so weirdly. there’s this obsession with breeding. in a decidedly unappealing way.

once again, mulder was the guy who could put together the dastardly plot when no one else could. which is annoying.

man, idk, i don’t consider myself like, sensitive to the topic really, but i find babies being murdered unenjoyable as a plot point. maybe it’s overdone. maybe there’s just no room for humor in it. maybe it’s the theme of reproductive coercion again pissing me off, because how many times are we going to have this beast rear it’s ugly head? even if it’s is now in the opposite direction, when everything in the past on this show has been about women being assaulted into pregnancy, the removal of consent- wayne tricking laura into inducing labor and losing her baby- is STILL reproductive coercion.

tbh, i don’t really have more thoughts on the subject. like, i’m not even going to write a think piece on how i didn’t like it, because it was just eh. which happens. some of the episodes are unremarkable. if there is something to be noted, it’s this weird handling of women characters as a recurring theme. but i’m not fired up enough to write a dissertation because... at this point, i guess i’m kind of used to it in this show??

damn! that wasn’t a raving review. well, i hope you’ll forgive my lack of enthusiasm. maybe you’ll tell me that everyone else hates this episode too, and i’ll be like, okay, cool. but maybe you’ll tell me everyone actually loved it, and then i’ll feel cool and edgy. but i

#mid episode. i can only hope the next is better.#honestly this episode was so boring i didn't even get to editing the notes until now LMAO #well! we shall see what happens next. i got an ask about the next episode so i will be paying very careful attention #and you know i will share all of my thoughts #juni's x files liveblog #6x07 #the x files #txf

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