“The X-Files Season 10″ continues to emulate the best episodes of the show. Providing excellent pacing, deep mythology, and a sense of mystery this continues the perfect rebirth of the classic science fiction series.
WRITTEN BY: Joe Harris
ART BY: Michael Walsh
PUBLISHER: IDW
PRICE: $3.99
RELEASE: August 14, 2013
Joe Harris is on to something with the way he paces his scripts. He has effectively written them like episodes of television. There are teasers, mini act breaks, and multiple plots that dovetail perfectly in the end. This could all possibly be a coincidence, but I like to think it's by design. The result is an expertly paced dose of “X-Files” every month that refuses to let up.
The issue begins with an innocent enough visit by two FBI agents. We see them questioning William's parents, and the mystery of the child is thickened. We then get back to Scully's dire circumstances, and learn that her captor may not be hostile after all.
Best of all we get the reintroduction of the Cigarette Smoking Man. Mulder and the CSM share the best scenes in the book. There is a certain exposition going here, and while it felt almost forced, you learn in the end it likely is misdirection. The CSM seems to have a good reason to do what he's doing. But how is he alive? And why is he helping?
The Acolytes are developed. It's particularly surprising and intriguing. I believe I have a inkling as to what is going on, but could be so very wrong. They seem nefarious and threatening in all the right ways.
Walsh's art continues to deliver. The small moments here are what really make it. His attention to the details in CSM's face, the little smirk as he lights another cigarette after he's told to put his first out. Even the way Walsh draws Mulder captures his hunched posture. This is the work of someone completely of this world. It is inspired and a total treat.
“X-Files Season 10″ shouldn't be this good. The series has been off the air for years, and these characters have been dormant for far too long. Harris makes the case for keeping these characters around, and manages to push them in new and interesting ways.
What results is a fantastic rebirth of the beloved series on the page. The overarching serialized nature of the story helps to improve on the monster of the week formula that the show relied so heavily on. What results is a product better than the thing that inspired it. Bold claim, I know. Since the show has been off the air storytelling has evolved, for the better.
A couple plot points are resolved, for… well just because. The series has a tendency to allow mystery to do all the work. I would have liked a little more resolution with the CSM, but this is the “X-Files” after all, and resolution isn't always the name of the game.
“Season 10″ is the culmination and evolution of everything before it. As much as I love the show, these issues are better. Walsh's art gives every page a flow that allows the action to move with incredible speed. Harris script is smart, and weaves around the characters like a snake. I'm so incredibly happy that this book exists, and even happier to report that it just keeps getting better.
4/5 Skulls
Reviewed by – Jimbus_Christ
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