UNCUT - The X-Files S1E8 - Ice

I don’t know the cold open of the last one was obvious

enjoying the reactions so far

Another good series Fringe

The director of “Ice” is David Nutter. He is known as “The Pilot Whisperer;” the guy you call in if you want an experienced director to make your series get picked up after the pilot. He got his start on the 1980’s live action Superboy series but directed the pilots of Game of Thrones, Smallville, and Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles. He also directed episodes of The Arrow, The Flash, Dark Angel, Roswell, and Band of Brothers among several other sci-fi series.

OMG. I just noticed they put their pictures on the FBI ID's. I love that.

As others have said, I don't think these discussions need all the bells and whistles of the Trek reactions. I like them more casual. As long as you discuss the eps and maybe do a whiteboard segment since it's short, but patron takes for 1 show, let alone 2 in the near future, are enough to stay on top of. The actor I recognized most in that group was Jeff Kober(Bear). That guy was in so much stuff in the 90s and 2000s especially, and still pretty active. Very recognizable face. Always cracks me up when he refers to giving a stool sample as "dropping his cargo"🤣. One thing I love in this episode is how after the one guy's throat is cut, they make it painfully obvious that the other guy is probably the infected one. Sure, you wonder if Mulder might be, but you figure that's the misdirect. But in the end it turns out to be the LEAST likely candidate. She was shown multiple times to have no sign of infection, was the least aggressive of the group, and made a mistake that showed them how to kill the parasites. Of course the fact she was the least likely candidate also means that to those paying attention, she'll be the MOST likely candidate because she's the biggest subversion of expectations. Go for the second least likely and make Scully the one who's infected🤯. Finally, I always laugh at the guy constantly telling Mulder and Scully "shouldn't you know? They're your people". Like dude, do you have any idea how many federal employees there are? There are truck drivers and caterers on the govt payroll, does that mean they have the inside scoop on every secret govt project? Obviously not. The FBI are essentially federal police officers. Sure they tend to deal with higher profile stuff than your local sheriff, but ultimately they're cops. Expecting them to be invited to all the secret meetings with the likes of the CIA, NSA or the military guys involved in top secret stuff shows a fundamental lack of understanding of how government works(or more often doesn't work). Even in the military, is some corporal guarding a gate at a base going to know every secret on that base? Of course not. People with the kind of secrets he's referring to is a pretty exclusive club, and "FBI agent" isn't anywhere near high enough on the totem pole to qualify.

I am pretty sure the compound they show is a stock shot from the compound in The Thing, with snow superimposed,

This was the first episode i ever saw as a kid. its not the best ever episode but it sucked me in.

Love this episode! Probably the best of the season so far. It does have its resemblances to John Carpenter's The Thing, but in 1993 The Thing hadn't yet been rediscovered as the classic that it was. It was still that movie that got negatively reviewed and that no one saw because they were all watching ET instead. And the episode differentiated its story enough. When it comes to atmosphere, production design and direction, X-Files really stands tall for its time. Being shot on film really helps. Also the guest actors continue to be strong. I've seen the whole series more than once and I would call this episode an "S".

As long as we get a little discussion after, I'm in for the more casual vibe for X-Files, but maybe a season discussion after??? :) X-Files a great addition to TA.

Does this mean I’m a cool kid?

When this came out, EVERYONE was watching it and talking about it. Chris Carter was a legend then. Even people who hadn't been into Sci-fi or horror were enjoying it because you didn't know what to expect each week but you just knew it would be a great watch.

You guys are doing great. Keep up the good work.

X-files is like comfort food. lots of good ones still to come this season. Felicity Huffman got into a bit of trouble recently being part of the college admissions scandal a few years ago.

I'll admit that I was a little nervous about whether you'd like this episode or not, just because it's another adaptation of "Who Goes There?" (which was also adapted as The Thing). It's a little tricky when you have an original to compare an adaptation. But this is probably the episode that hooked me in Season 1.

Joined patreon just for the XFiles reactions, this ep. being one of my top 5 of the season. I loved the Thing so of course this episode is a home run for me.

We're not who we are

One of my favourites. No sprawling sets, confining characters to a stressful situation = awesome!

Oh man, that moment when they pull their guns on each other -- "Put it down!" "YOU PUT IT DOWN FIRST!" -- is such an early iconic Mulder/Scully moment to me. This was always one of the great Season One episodes to me. I don't mind that it's a "Thing" episode, it's different enough to feel like its own thing. Xander Berkeley and Felicity Huffman really elevate the material, and are good examples of the next-level casting the X-Files did for guest characters.

I don't need whiteboards or tier ranking, but I NEED your discussion about each episode, actors, storylines, what-if's and such. It is SO amusing to listen to your musings.

You guys may be a little bummed that TNG is over, you have seen all the episodes, alas, don't fret, you still have 210 episodes of the X-Files to keep going....and 2 movies. "It was it's own 'THING', no pun intended." -Josh

These episodes compared to later seasons are average at best.....the bangers which I assure you are coming....you will know you watched a great episode...i wish I could say more but I can't....oh theres going to be an episode about?????....I'm pretty sure you will do the whole series so I will say nothing.....thank you for pushing forward on X-Files

Fun fact: -30 C isn't as bad as you think, it's -22 F. -40 is the same in both forms of measurement.

The chemistry between Duchovny and Andersen was why X-Files worked as well as it did. Both brought their A-game from the begining and in the hands of lesser actors would not have elevated the material the way it was. What makes it great is no matter how silly the plotline might sound on paper, its executed to perfection that allows you to overlook the flaws in the storytelling. I'm so glad you guys are going ahead with the rest of the season, because the best is yet to come. Some of the finest story telling ever put to small screen appeared on this show. Btw, am really enjoying you guys just watching the show and loving it, without any of the usual bells and whistles that go with the Trek reactions. Don't feel the need to mix it up on our account unless you're ready to.

When it first aired I was hoping for someone to say, "we're gonna find out who's The Thing" or Mulder to tell Scully, haven't you ever seen the Thing? lol. It was a very cool homage to the Thing. You know my vote keep going

Felicity Huffman also the wife of actor William H. Macy.

Probably my favorite episode of the season. Definitely was looking forward to this reaction.

Love the reaction guys but said it once but please stop looking up guest actors because it's going to be a big spoiler for your future Star Trek reactions bro's

I'm also fine if things stay informal with X-Files. It feels more like casually watching and just enjoying it and so far that works well for it. I saw this episode before ever seeing The Thing, so it stands as one of my first favorites of the season.

I for one am fine if you guys stay informal with The X-Files and don't give it the full Star Trek treatment. There's something relaxing about just watching you dip into this and enjoy it on the side. Although when this show finds its throughline a little later, you might feel the need to do more. We will see.

This show is going to deliver everything that you said that you want and some stuff that you don't even know that you want.

The opening scene was the first exposure I had to the X-Files. I was on my way out the door when I saw the two guys shoot themselves. I decided right then I've got to see more of this. I taped a rerun of the premise episode and went from there.

This is one of my season favorites. Great reaction and great to see that you two got invested in this episode, too. Happy you started a new batch. Thank you for addressing the patreon takes and whiteboard reactions. I suggested these in a comment to an earlier episode. Great you picked that up and let us know. Also thank you for the info that you will continue at least till e13 throughout the reminder of the year.

So glad you're continuing with The X-Files! (for now - stop teasing. I'm here for the long haul!) Thanks for referring to us as the cool kids here. I was never one of those in school ;) Super episode!

This (and a future episode which we will get to) are my favorite episodes of the season. S Tier for me.

I just got done watching Vince Gilligan’s new show this morning plurabus. I’ve only seen the first two episodes and it’s mind blowing and perhaps one of the best premier episodes of any TV show I’ve ever seen but the pilot really is the first two episodes. If you watch the first episode thinking it’s a pilot. You’ve only seen the first half. Vince Gill Again, X-Files, breaking bad, better call Saul, plurabus. That’s quite a good track record

Hmm, what movie inspired this episode...lol. Good stuff, keep going brothers.

So we got sleet and snow last night and I woke up to a field of ice over snow all around my house. Seems like a good time to watch Ice An episode where we put Moulder and Scully in the bottle and we see who all can survive being trapped in the bottle