Hard-core freaks of “The X-Files” are sifting through old episodes, looking for patterns and comparing conspiracy theories as the 20-year-old series enjoys a revival.
“The X-Files” returned Sunday on Fox (8 p.m. on KDVR-Channel 31) for a six-episode run. Agent Dana Scully ( ) and Agent Fox Mulder ( ) are still at odds, though respectful of their shared past. And they’ve aged well.
While it’s great to see several of the original cast members again, it’s probably smart to Trust No One.
The truth is still out there, as are the new threads of a vast conspiracy. Affection for the old series may count for more than the new story line. Remember, it was always cheesy.
No spoilers, but suffice to say a possible takeover by “multinational elites” is going to be a more pressing concern in these hours than mere UFOs.
The story gets wilder and further afield as the writers bring it back to Earth. By drawing on actual government actions and reported trends in technology and law enforcement, the scripts add gravity to the old flying-saucer conspiracy theories.
So much was packed into Sunday’s installment, it felt as if creator had been taking notes for 20 years and poured it all in, unfiltered. It gets increasingly goofy, paranoid and close to the headlines.
Militarized police, 9/11, runaway consumerism, global warming, government phone tapping, a plot by a United Nations-like organization to rule the world and Edward Snowden — it’s all stitched together with strong threads of paranoia.
Is it all “fear-mongering claptrap,” as the science-minded Scully maintains? Or is Mulder correct when he argues that “all these years we’ve been deceived”?
The six episodes are a mix of stand-alone stories investigating some suspicious activity or another, and other episodes that deepen the series’ mythology. The season includes guest appearances by Joel McHale (“Community”) as a Bill O’Reilly-type conservative talker, Robbier Amell (“The Flash”), Lauren Ambrose (“Six Feet Under”), Annet Mahendru (“The Americans”) and superfan Kumail Nanjiani (“Silicon Valley”). Annabeth Gish (“The Bridge”) and reprise their roles as FBI Agent Monica Reyes and the Cigarette Smoking Man, respectively.
Serious fans will want to explore every inch of every episode via podcast, in which he dissects the show’s strange turns since 1993.
Newcomers can join in, too. The first installment offered enough background that first-time viewers can join the perpetual argument — skeptic vs. true believer — without knowing nine seasons’ worth of history.
Joanne Ostrow: 303-954-1830, jostrow@denverpost.com or @ostrowdp
