X-Files Writer Harris Wants to Take the Series Back to A Big Mythology

Joe Harris, writer of IDW Publishing's The X-Files Season 10 (which begins this week) told PreviewsWorld in an interview today that he wants to delve back into the overarching mythology of the cult-hit TV series in a way that previous comic book interpretations and the most recent movie have not. "I really approached this gig as both a fan and a creator, honestly," said Harris. "I kind of feverishly pecked out an outline and pitch for the first couple of years, really detailing an opening arc that would re-establish what The X-Files fans refer to as the 'mytharc' — the overarching storyline involving extra-terrestrials and the conspiracy within the government to cover up their existence, the collaboration of certain powerful figures seeking to influence and steer things along, Mulder's quest to discover the truth, Scully's ordeal as both an abductee and miracle mother, and all that stuff. I watched that all again, from beginning to end. And I'm always going back and checking out some of my favorite 'Monster of the Week' episodes as we're going to be doing some direct sequels to some of those."

One such Monster of the Week seems likely to be Eugene Tooms, star of two MoW episodes--"Squeeze" and "Tooms"--and whose name appears on one of the variant covers for this week's first issue (see above). In the PreviewsWorld interview, series artist Michael Walsh specifically cites another episode--Season Three's "Grotesque," which he calls "The Gargoyle Episode." "When the show originally aired, I was pretty young, and it was a show that I wanted to watch but my parents wouldn't let me," said Walsh. "So I had to sneak out of my room and watch it while they weren't paying attention. Then I would have fantastic nightmares, especially about the gargoyle episode. When I was offered the gig by IDW, I was ecstatic. It gave me a reason to go back and rewatch everything from the beginning."