[{"key":"dc.contributor.author","value":"Payne, Colby Nicole","language":null},{"key":"dc.date.accessioned","value":"2026-04-09T20:31:59Z","language":null},{"key":"dc.date.available","value":"2026-04-09T20:31:59Z","language":null},{"key":"dc.date.issued","value":"2026","language":"en"},{"key":"dc.identifier.uri","value":"http:\/\/hdl.handle.net\/2429\/93962","language":null},{"key":"dc.description.abstract","value":"This thesis considers queer fan readings of the television series The X-Files (1993-2018), arguing that the series\u2019 use of episodic and serialized storytelling both enables and challenges such readings. Rooted in my personal experience with the series\u2019 fandom, I draw upon queer theory, television studies, and film history in my analysis of the show\u2019s form and of its protagonists, FBI agents Mulder and Scully. In my first chapter, I examine the varied forms of queer fan engagement with the series, considering how some read diverse sexual and gender identities onto the characters, while others identify an underlying queerness within Mulder and Scully\u2019s heterosexual relationship. \r\nI take up the latter notion in my second chapter, arguing that the series implicitly queers Mulder and Scully by depicting their relationship as non-normative and emphasizing their lack of interest in heteronormative familial structures. Mulder and Scully\u2019s subversive skeptic-believer dynamic, intellectual sparring, and frequent flirtation align them with the relationships depicted in screwball comedy films of the 1930s and 40s, a parallel which highlights their non-normativity. My analysis considers how the series\u2019 use of episodic storytelling in both conventional and experimental episodes highlights and heightens the queer dynamics in Mulder and Scully\u2019s relationship. \r\nI also consider, however, how The X-Files\u2019 serialized episodes limit the queer potential of its episodic storytelling. In particular, I examine how the series\u2019 overarching mythology becomes increasingly intertwined with narratives of family, heterosexuality, and reproduction. The series demonstrates an obsession with the family, repeatedly reconstituting the nuclear family only to destroy it. I suggest that the series is fundamentally unable to reconcile normative family structures with Mulder and Scully\u2019s queer relationship dynamic, yet persistently attempts to do so. Considering Judith Roof, Lee Edelman, and Gary Needham\u2019s writings on narrative, futurity, and linearity, I ultimately argue that the series\u2019 commitment to serialization\u2014and by extension, commitment to normative familial structures\u2014inhibits the queer potential of its episodic storytelling.","language":"en"},{"key":"dc.language.iso","value":"eng","language":"en"},{"key":"dc.publisher","value":"University of British Columbia","language":"en"},{"key":"dc.rights","value":"Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International","language":"*"},{"key":"dc.rights.uri","value":"http:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by-nc-nd\/4.0\/","language":"*"},{"key":"dc.title","value":"Fighting futurity : episodic queerness and serialized normativity in The X-files","language":"en"},{"key":"dc.type","value":"Text","language":"en"},{"key":"dc.degree.name","value":"Master of Arts - MA","language":"en"},{"key":"dc.degree.discipline","value":"English","language":"en"},{"key":"dc.degree.grantor","value":"University of British Columbia","language":"en"},{"key":"dc.contributor.supervisor","value":"Frank, Adam J., 1967-","language":null},{"key":"dc.date.graduation","value":"2026-05","language":"en"},{"key":"dc.type.text","value":"Thesis\/Dissertation","language":"en"},{"key":"dc.description.affiliation","value":"Arts, Faculty of","language":"en"},{"key":"dc.description.affiliation","value":"English Language and Literatures, Department of","language":"en"},{"key":"dc.degree.campus","value":"UBCV","language":"en"},{"key":"dc.description.scholarlevel","value":"Graduate","language":"en"}]