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Remember last season on The X-Files, when Mulder took out his frustrations by destroying his iconic “I Want to Believe” poster? As a longtime X-Phile, what I’m about to argue feels like a betrayal of equal magnitude, but here goes:

If Fox’s long-running sci-fi drama is to continue, it’s time for series creator Chris Carter to take a giant step back from the show.

I say this not in reaction to the polarizing twist — Cigarette Smoking Man, and not Mulder, was the father of Scully’s son! — that Carter wrote into the Season 11 premiere and doubled down on in the finale.

X-Files Recap is a weekly column by Keith Uhlich covering Chris Carter's 10-episode continuation of the X-Files television series.Shafts of light outlined by drizzly mist. A soon-to-be massacred boy (Sebastian Billingsley-Rodriguez) separated from his mother. A shape-shifting monster lurking in the woods. Business as usual on The X-Files, though there’s something about the adeptly creepy teaser sequence of “Familiar” (the eighth episode of Season 11, penned by former Xf writer’s assistant Benjamin Van Allen, and beautifully, atmospherically directed by series newcomer Holly Dale) that feels provocatively off and strange. It’s a sensation that extends over the entirety of an installment sure to be categorized as “old school,” though it more accurately blends the freshly peculiar with the staunchly, yes, familiar. “Thanks for backing me up out there,” says FBI Special Agent Dana Scully (Gillian Anderson) to her partner Fox Mulder (David Duchovny) after they mutually spar...

[Editor’s note: Spoilers for “The X-Files” Season 11 Episode 8, “Familiar,” follow.]

Previously, on “The X-Files”…

Mulder and Scully investigate weird crimes for the FBI. Sometimes, those crimes don’t have anything to do with government conspiracies — sometimes, they feature evils both supernatural and all-too-human.

This Week’s Dossier

Mulder and Scully arrive in a small Connecticut town to investigate the strange and violent death of a police officer’s son, who was found mutilated in the woods. But Scully suspects that what might seem like an animal attack could actually be the work of an adult in the community, while Mulder’s got his theories about hybrid wolves and, eventually, witchcraft.

Unfortunately, while they investigate, the police chief’s daughter is also killed in a similar fashion — supporting Mulder’s theory that a witch’s “familiar” is luring those children into the woods using their favorite TV show characters. However, the grieving father of the first victim,...

The conversation is changing. With each passing week, more and more female stars have shared their experiences with rampant Hollywood sexism, from horrifying stories about giving “blowjob eyes” at auditions to tales of pay inequality and pushing for more female-led stories. While the sheer scale of the stories is upsetting — it seems like every actress has their own tale to tell — that these stars feel comfortable speaking out on the subject is heartening, one step closer to an industry that doesn’t have this kind of discrimination seemingly baked into its everyday operations.

While there have certainly been misfires along the way — actress and director Elizabeth Banks was recently taken to task for (incorrectly) calling out Steven Spielberg for never directing films with female leads, and “Game of Thrones” star Emilia Clarke compared sexism to racism in an ill-concieved statement to Rolling Stone — the recent uptick in discussion is proof that the,...

“The X-Files” fans have a great reason to be excited since Season 11 is officially on the way, but this week news hit that should make every fan somewhat disappointed in the franchise. Earlier this week, the Season 11 writers’ room was revealed to be made up of only men — Darin Morgan, Glen Morgan, James Wong, Gabe Rotter, Benjamin Van Allen and Brad Follmer — prompting industry backlash and a call to diversify the voices behind-the-scenes. Now star Gillian Anderson has weighed in, and she’s not happy about the lack of women either.

Read More: ‘The X-Files’ Season 11 Fills Its Writers’ Room With All-Male Staff

In a tweet published earlier today, Anderson quoted a story about the all-male writers’ room and responded by also revealing only two of the series’ 207 episodes have been directed by women. That already-abysmal statistic is even worse when you consider Anderson herself directed one of the episodes.

When Fox revealed this week who exactly would be writing the next season of “The X-Files,” the reaction was relatively polarized: excitement over the return of fan favorites versus dismay that creator Chris Carter had passed up the opportunity to bring new voices into the mix. The creator brought in three former assistants to join returning Season 10 writers Glen Morgan, Darin Morgan and James Wong.

Read More: ‘The X-Files’ Season 11 Fills Its Writers’ Room With All-Male Staff

For anyone who believes a variety of diverse voices can do a lot to improve the quality of a show’s writing, this move came as a real blow. But it wasn’t really anything new for “The X-Files.” As noted by Carly Lane at Nerdist, over the course of the show’s original nine seasons, only six women in 202 episodes ever received a writing credit:

Marilyn Osborn (“Shapes”) Sara B. Charno (“Aubrey,...

Chris Carter has assembled a new writers’ room for the next season of “The X-Files,” TheWrap has confirmed. In addition to bringing back series veterans Darin Morgan, Glen Morgan, and James Wong, Carter has also added former series assistants Gabe Rotter, Benjamin Van Allen and Brad Follmer to Season 11. The internet quickly noticed that Carter had once again assembled an all-male group of writers to tell the next installment in the story of supernatural-chasing FBI agents Mulder (David Duchovny) and Scully (Gillian Anderson). Read More See Gillian Anderson's latest Power Move. PowerRank: 3505 ...

“The X-Files” was always a show where the quality depended largely on the writing, so paying attention to who would sign up for the upcoming Season 11 has been a high priority for fans.

And now we know: TV Line is reporting that creator Chris Carter has re-enlisted writers Darin Morgan, Glen Morgan, and James Wong (who all worked on Season 10) for the new season, which is shooting this summer for a early 2018 release.

Read More: ‘The X-Files’ Deal Finally Done; Revival Set to Return For Second 10-Episode Season

In addition, three new writers have been selected to help complete the 10 episodes ordered by Fox earlier this year. And the new kids in town are Gabe Rotter, Benjamin Van Allen, and Brad Follmer — the first two were writers’ assistants on Seasons 9 and 10, while Follmer was Carter’s personal assistant during the show’s original run.

That’s right: In the year...

The gang’s (almost all) back together.

X-Files creator Chris Carter has finalized the writers room for the series’ forthcoming 10-episode 11th season, and, like last year’s revival (aka Season 10), it’s stacked with franchise vets.

RelatedX-Files: 7 Tweaks That Must Be Made in Season 11 (Paging Vince Gilligan…)

Most notably, Carter will once again reunite with former producers Glen Morgan, Darin Morgan and James Wong, each of whom were responsible for writing and directing one of Season 10’s six episodes. (Darin Morgan’s installment, “Mulder & Scully Meet the Were-Monster,” was widely viewed as the revival’s strongest outing.)

The quartet...