Hey, I Remember This Show: UFO

Believe it or not, 1980 was not actually like this. Not even in Great Britain.

However, I will give this British show from the 1970s credit for being one of the few shows on this subject which did not rip off Chris Carter.

Pensamientos Acerca de Televisión

The X-Files: “Space”

The eeriest thing about watching first season X-Files episodes: seeing how young Gillian Anderson looked back then. Granted, she looks a bit older toward the end of the season when her hair was longer. But still... Where does the time go?

This episode is hardly one of the better episodes if for no other reason that it solves its main problem (a heroic astronaut is possessed by an alien who is intent on sabotaging the U.S. space program) way too easily. After all, the episode spends half its time establishing that the alien has superhuman abilities yet it is destroyed in a surprisingly simple fashion -- almost as if writer Chris Carter could not think of anything else to do. Plus there is a rather tasteless attempt to connect this episode's fictional plot with real-life space disasters like the Challenger explosion. Granted, conspiracy theories are always fun, but it is hard to imagine today's viewers being all that patient with a show that depicted, say, the 9/11 attack as being the work of alien saboteurs.

But David Duchovny (the guy who plays FBI agent Fox Mulder) has a cool way with a line and Ms. Anderson (the woman who plays his partner Dana Scully) is always nice to look at. Plus there are far better episodes yet to come -- which is why the show lasted as long as it did.

R.I.P. Darren McGavin

Actor Darren McGavin passed away this weekend. His most famous role was that of Carl Kolchak, investigative reporter and monster hunter, who first appeared in the popular made-for-TV movie, The Night Stalker. Later on, McGavin would play the same character in the TV series Kolchak: The Night Stalker, a show which would later inspire X-Files creator Chris Carter.

He will be missed.