When my future wife and I started living together, the first appointment TV series in our lives was ABC’s daytime soap, “All My Children.” Her addiction, not mine, but it was silly fun. We always watched TV together after work – as we do even now -- and the next series I remember us committing to in the 1990s was Fox’s long-running bit of alien abduction weirdness, “The X-Files.” We watched every episode with bated breath, sometimes amused and awed, sometimes left scratching our heads in total confusion. JOHN KENNETH MUIR podcast excerpt: "Every week, 'The X-Files' brought up these mysteries. There was an episode about the Loch Ness Monster, many episodes about UFOs. They also talked about religion, about faith and, in general, what is belief. I think that really connected with people. The writing was extremely intelligent." But – and this is important – we were always eager for the next installment. We watched all nine seasons together, worrying about Mulder’s porn addiction, his sister Samantha’s abduction, Sculley’s pregnancy, and Smoking Man’s ever impending doom. We even watched the spinoff series “Millenium” and “The Lone Gunmen” and the first feature film, Fight the Future. (We never did get around to the second, I Want to Believe.) Oh, and we followed Fox Mulder – I mean actor David Duchovny – through his uncomfortably pornographic Showtime series “Californication,” wondering when Dana Sculley – I mean actress Gillian Anderson – would star in the ultimate seductive story arc. JOHN KENNETH MUIR podcast excerpt: "Chris Carter's work ('The X-Files,' 'Millennium,' 'The Lone Gunmen,' 'Harsh Realm,' 'The After') leads itself to participation by creative people. They take his work and they create art from his art." And now “The X-Files” is returning to the small screen for a 2016 limited series that creator Chris Carter promises will give fans everything we loved about the original and more. Who better than to prepare us for the show’s return than John Kenneth Muir, author of The X-Files FAQ: All That’s Left to Know About Global Conspiracy, Aliens, Lazurus Species, and Monsters of the Week. Key interview moments: • 4:10 The appeal of "The X-Files" is no mystery at all, according to FAQ author John Kenneth Muir; • 18:30 If you really think about it, Muir says, "X-Files" creator Chris Carter's work is art; • 39:05 On a completely different subject, Muir explains why his massive collection of sci-fi, fantasy and genre toys are available for his little boy to play with to his heart's content, rather than keeping them boxed up. John Kenneth Muir  • • •  • •  •  • •  Horror Films FAQ by John Kenneth Muir. Click on the book cover above to order your copy now! Science Fiction and Fantasy Films of the 1970s by John Kenneth Muir. Click on the book cover above to order your copy today! Order Will Eisner: A Spirited Life (2nd Edition) by Bob Andelman, available from Amazon.com by clicking on the book cover above!