The X Files / Fire / Notes

 I laughed when I read fans were dead set against any other love interest for Mulder other than Scully when his former love from Oxford University, Pheobe (Amanda Pays), pays him a visit while traveling from Scotland Yard to locate a possible arsonist killer targeting members of Parliament. I thought to myself  before reading that, "Why hasn't Phoebe been back on this show except that one time?!" "Fire", for me, is pretty much memorable for the introduced woman from Mulder's past, how she broke his heart, how she plays successful mind games with him and can toy with his emotions, how Scully is clearly bothered by any closeness between them, and Mulder's debilitating fear of fire. I LOVE Amanda Pays, having such a crush on her in the Rob Lowe vehicle, "Oxford Blues" (1984), so I completely understand why her Phoebe would run roughshod over Mulder's emotions. Duchovny has all that vulnerability opened up...you can see Mulder can't escape those feelings for her. I don't think I ever remembered Mulder's mentioning he had a photographic memory but that would explain how he has retained so much information, how so many X files cases remain so readily available to his mind. Most people will desire to let this one sort of fade into the background and out of memory because Scully is the woman that just fits Mulder right. No matter if they are married or "technically" together as a couple by the very end, I think a majority of fans just won't accept anyone connected romantically to either Mulder or Scully except for each other. I get that. When Scully sees Mulder and Phoebe kiss, she can't watch, so uncomfortable with it. Phoebe kissing Sir Malcolm, and Mulder catching them, always felt odd to me. It was always as if written in the script this was an out so that the possibility of a legit romance between Phoebe and Mulder was nixed right there, so their kiss at the hotel in Boston was more or less just a diversionary tactic...to see how Scully is affected by seeing him kissing someone else. And when Mulder refuses to listen to a cassette tape left by Phoebe for him, you can almost see (or maybe I want to see) Scully relieved, her face approving of his decision. 

I'm always honest: my brain just cannot comprehend anyone else coming between these two. Even if it was a possibility, my brain just says, "Nope. Nope. Won't stomach it." Sort of like the politically left college kids sticking their fingers in their ears when Ben Shapiro or Charlie Kirk visit campuses for speeches to young conservatives.