Towards the end of the X-Files season 3 I could really see the show morphing into the style it would be recognized for today. There was much more of a narrative on the individual character and their relationships, both with main characters and non-main characters. Episode 20 also really latched on to the theme of extra-terrestrial, and made the the main conflict of the show very clear. It was almost like the show finally focused and made a decision of what it wanted to be. Before, the show created show much confusion will all the different types of sci fi, there was a few episodes dealing with religion, ghosts, mutated disease, fortune tellers, and even horoscopes, it was a bit overwhelming.
I haven't watched season 1 or 2, but I do know it was even more monster of the week and very well could have ended with Mulder's death at the the end. It seems like season 3 was literally and figuratively a Lazarus season. So I am impressed with how they eventually decided to direct the show.
I read a few summaries and I can see how some of the seemingly unconnected aspects of the show connect, so maybe it's a matter of marathoning through the seasons. It was pretty clever how they make it so the men from that secret government society and the aliens that use the "black sludge" to sort of be working together but also not. It 's hard to place blame on either group because they both did very terrible things, the circumstances of the relations are also very reminiscent of the cold-war. Either way, Mulder did have the right to investigate and be suspicious, the way they were conducting this whole ordeal was pretty unethical.
Also reading into Mulder's backstory I can understand why he almost intuitively knows if there is some paranormal or extraterrestrial happenings. His biggest flaw though is that he can let his emotions, bias, and paranoia get in the way of his reasoning. He can also be selective with what evidence he pays attention to, even if it confirms supernatural intervention, if it could change the perception of someone he cares about. Like when Skinner is accused of murder for example. I like to see vulnerability in characters, so I like this character development.
