« Reality is out there » : le néo-réalisme fantastique dans quelques épisodes de The X-Files

Abstract

From the series X-Files, what often stands out is the paranoid structure around which the continuity of the principal storyline is constructed — the conspiracy theory that structures, or at least provides unity, over the course of seasons, beyond the evolution of the relationships between characters. In the deliberately postmodern inflection of a universe anchored in doubt, in the questioning of certainties, and the quest for elsewhere, the series finds a tonality of its own, a mix of epistemological anxiety and schoolboy lightness. The fantasy universe of the politico-scientific-martian conspiracy crystallizes the expression of a generalized suspicion of both the referential universe and the structures that are supposed to organize it, where only a glimpse beyond a misleading “reality” reveals the possibility of an elusive truth. But if the truth might be elsewhere, as almost every episode reaffirms at the end of the credits, is reality necessarily so distorted, from episode to episode? Leaving aside the philosophico-political foundations that clearly underlie the main plot, this article considers how, in certain episodes, the alienating archi-structure of postmodern society fades and the series explores much more immediate political and social issues, such as illegal immigration, communitarianism, foreign relations, work rhythms, social exploitation, re-establishing its link with the tradition of “social realism” of the great stories popular fiction in the 19th century, from which we can consider that television series, following cinema, continue to draw their source.

Keywords

• X-Files (The)
• realism
• fantasy