Californication may be one of my favorite ‘writer’ shows of all time. I dig the vibe of the flawed character that Duchovny conjured, in part from his own jacked up morality and life. Unfortunately I’ve come to identify him as Hank Moody and less so as Fox Mulder of the X-Files. This, bad scripting, too much CGI, and a very strange looking Scully led me down the road to disappointment.
The X-Files should’ve stayed over. Duchovny’s Moody impersonation of a failed FBI agent seems more fun than fib, as if doing this show again is some joke and he knows the punchline. Scully, forever the straight one in the pair, is overly collagened and unable to deliver on the promise of a long-coming emotional teardown. This show is not what it once was or could have been. It feels contrived, rushed, and very limited. Ultimately, it was a disappointment.
On the road to disappointment I came to a crossroads. At that place I met the devil. He was charming and interesting and well cast and brought a frenetic energy to a show and a script that was not much better than the X-Files. Two stories in one night that failed to meet my low expectations.
Such is the way of Fox. At least they still have new girl.