To further stoke fan speculation about what's going to happen in The X-Files: I Want to Believe, which opens July 25 — and to reintroduce the series to those who may not have been X-philes when it was on the air — a "new" X-Files DVD is being released today. The compilation of eight episodes is called "Revelations," and as the cover itself proclaims, this is the "Essential Guide to the X-Files movie," with "8 critical episodes handpicked by the series creator."

Does it deliver? Yes and no.

The DVD's eight episodes span the first six seasons of the television series, skipping (wisely) the last three seasons entirely. At first this seemed a little odd, because if this DVD is supposed to be the essential guide to the movie, and the movie takes place after Season 9, don't we need to know what happens in those last three seasons? A short "series trailer" included on the first disc does give a rundown of the entire nine seasons, but I'm going to guess that what happened in the last three seasons just isn't that important. (Sorry, Annabeth Gish fans, but I never could get into the character of Agent Reyes.)

Each episode is certainly a classic — "Pilot," "Beyond the Sea," "The Host," "Clyde Bruckman's Final Repose," "Memento Mori," "Post-Modern Prometheus," "Bad Blood" and "Milagro" — and each one is introduced by series creator Chris Carter and executive producer Frank Spotnitz. Their commentary, though, is limited to a couple of minutes each time, so they don't provide a lot of new information.

It is amusing to see Gillian Anderson stick her head over Chris Carter's shoulder in the commentary before "Milagro," and she is wearing the tan trench coat you've seen in preview photos for the X-Files movie, but very little is revealed about what's going to happen in the film. It does seem that Carter is shooting these intros on the set of the movie, though, because at one point a man in full surgical scrubs (an actor, I'm guessing) walks right behind him. I can't believe that wasn't entirely orchestrated, so, uh, spoiler alert? Man in scrubs will be in movie!

In this week's Lo-Down, Sarah P. and I give you our review of the new Angelina Jolie movie Wanted, which just opened last Friday. In the movie, Angie plays a deadly assassin with some fantastic tattoos and extremely large guns. These assassins used to be weavers. Yeah, like people who made carpets.

If you just said "Huh?" then you're right with us. We won't give away the ending of the movie or any of the key plot points, but we do have a lot of fun poking fun at this strange and comedic backstory.

But before we get into the movie, we have an exciting edition of the Crock P.O.C. in which we give advice on whether or not you should go topless at your local Dyke March, among other things. We hope you enjoy it, and please leave your Crock P.O.C. topic suggestions in the comments!

Last Sunday, much fun was had by all who attended the AfterEllen.com Meet-Up in San Francisco. Karman Kregloe, Bridget McManus, Malinda Lo and Sarah Pecora were in attendance, and a guest appearance was made by She Got Me Pregnant vloggers Dana and Helen. Here are some of the pictures from the meet-up to give you a taste of what went on (I'm leaving out photos of what happened after the Jell-O shots arrived!).

Apologies in advance if you were there and you don't see yourself. I tried to include as many different folks as possible but I know I missed a lot of you. Thanks so much for coming out and meeting up!

Sarah, AE reader AJ, and Malinda

Malinda's Asian posse! (non-Asians welcome)

Bridget, an AE reader, and her personalized autographs

This week on The Lo-Down, Sarah P. and I discuss a serious topic: race. We didn't exactly expect to get into such a heavy discussion, but in retrospect it seems inevitable since we talked about the low number of women of color on the Hot 100, as well as the use of labels in our lesbian community (suggested by Lo-Down viewer Ms. Ghana).

In the second half, we talk about the Australian documentary Searching 4 Sandeep, which follows Poppy Stockwell (a lesbian living in Sydney) and Sandeep Virdi (a closeted lesbian living in England), as they meet online and develop a long-distance relationship. Along the way, Sandeep comes out to her South Asian family, who is not entirely pleased with finding out that their daughter is gay.

I know that most of you probably have not seen the documentary (it has screened at several international film festivals and will be screening at Newfest in New York this Saturday; Poppy Stockwell will be there for a post-screening Q&A), but it raises a lot of issues that you've often asked me and Sarah to talk about. In particular, internet dating, interracial dating and coming out to your families. Sarah, in fact, talks about her own coming-out experience, which again touches on race.

So we hope you'll stick with us through this difficult subject, and please feel free to add your own thoughts on race, the Hot 100, and coming out in a more traditional family. But let's keep it civil and not take things personally — don't make me discipline you! (Unless you want me to ... )

After an unexpectedly long hiatus, Sarah P. and I have returned with a new episode of The Lo-Down. We're a bit rusty with the vlogging these days, but we hope you enjoy this new episode, in which we offer our review of Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull just in time for you to hit the theaters this weekend. If that's not enough for you, "Ashley" from Shot at Love 1 makes a guest appearance.

Plus, Sarah has a very special announcement! Thanks to all of you who wrote in and asked when we were coming back — we hope it was worth the wait. (But if not, uh, sorry!)

Last week's Battlestar Galactica episode, "Faith," rocked the house. This whole season, though, has been incredible, delving into complex, challenging issues such as religion, mortality and politics. This is not TV lite, therefore I rarely watch it on Friday nights at 10 p.m., since by then my brain is fried from the previous week's work and I can't concentrate with the appropriate amount of attention.

So, after watching "Faith" on DVR delay, I have a few observations to share with you about this most recent episode of BSG. (Please note: No attempt at synopsis has been made; for a synopsis, go here. This post is pure critique and conjecture.)

1. Starbuck has a fan base in the BSG world, too.

When Jean Barolay (Alisen Down) volunteered to go with Starbuck, Anders and Athena to the Cylon base ship to talk to the Hybrid, Starbuck told her she wasn't looking for volunteers. Jean countered that yes, Starbuck had asked for volunteers back on the Galactica, that Starbuck had been a super-hot badass leader since forever, and Jean would like nothing less than to be ordered around by Kara "Lesbian Icon" Thrace. (OK, maybe I'm paraphrasing a little, but didn't Jean seem to have a little crush on Starbuck? Too bad that crush got her killed.)

Jean Barolay (Alisen Down) in Episode 3.11, "Rapture"

Photo credit: Sci Fi/Eike Schroter

2. Six kisses Six.

After the Six who accidentally killed Jean Barolay was shot by Natalie, she confessed to Natalie that she had not been able to deal with the trauma of being killed by Jean on New Caprica. Natalie called her "sister" and kissed her before she died. I saw this as a grand, poetic statement of blood calling to blood, as well as a reflection of the fact that each Cylon model is so closely linked — closer than family, even — to the others of their model. Here's hoping most folks didn't see it as gratuitous girl-on-girl action starring hottie Tricia Helfer in a fantasy twin lesbians scenario.

Last night on the season finale of Survivor: Micronesia - Fans vs. Favorites, we were treated to one of the most dramatic jury panels ever — and I'm not just saying that. For the first time in Survivor history, the final four contestants were all women, and this women's alliance was led not by Ami Cusack, who unfortunately didn't manage to forge a useful alliance this season, but by the unlikeliest of castaways: 25-year-old Parvati Shallow, a "favorite" who previously appeared on Survivor: Cook Islands and was known primarily for being a flirt.

The final four (left to right): Amanda Kimmel, Natalie Bolton, Parvati Shallow and Cirie Field

All photos by Monty Brinton/CBS

This women's alliance held together because, I think, it had an entirely different feel than Ami's back on Survivor: Vanuatu, which ultimately failed. This alliance mostly flew under the radar, even though Parvati, Amanda Kimmel and Cirie Field had talked about it among themselves since the beginning. And they never labeled it as a "women's alliance" at all; this time, it was all about "the girls."

Warning: Spoilers for finale after the jump

Last year, RedEye's "Best Character on TV Tourney" crowned Kara "Starbuck" Thrace the ultimate victor.

Photo credit: Justin Stephens/Sci Fi

The first round of voting for this year's Tourney has just opened, but unfortunately they've decided to make last year's winners ineligible, so I you can't go there and vote repeatedly for Starbuck again this year. But there are some other good possibilities.

The tourney is divided into four regions: the George Costanza Region, the Carmela Soprano Region, the Smoking Man Region, and the Buffy the Vampire Slayer region. Guess where our favorite ladies are to be found? (Well, not in the George Costanza Region.)

In the Smoking Man Region, we've got Battlestar Galactica's Number Six (Tricia Helfer) vs. The Shield's Det. Shane Vendrell (Walter Goggins).

Photo credits: Sci Fi/Justin Stephens (Helfer), Prashant Gupta/FX (Goggins)

Well, Six is a super-powerful Cylon with the ability to seduce and manipulate pretty much anybody she wants — plus she plays for our team (half the time). Det. Vendrell is ... who is he? My money's on Six.

So remember that TV show about a bunch of quirky but lovable romantics living in Alaska, who approach the ups and downs of life and love with an affable sense of humor? No, I'm not talking about the long-dormant Northern Exposure; I'm talking about ABC's Men in Trees, starring Anne Heche.

Photo credit: ABC/Michael Courtney

Earlier this week, TV Guide's Michael Ausiello reported that ABC has officially canceled the series, which suffered from oft-shifting time slots. It has aired on Wednesdays, Thursdays and Fridays, at various times, over the course of its two seasons since it premiered in September 2006. It was also pulled from ABC's prime-time schedule several times (once to make room for October Road, and more recently due to the WGA strike), leaving large gaps between new episodes.

Not surprisingly, ratings for the show have been uneven. I admit, Men in Trees is not the most revolutionary show on television, but I found myself liking it and liking Anne's character, Marin Frist, a big-city relationship expert (she writes self-help books) who relocates serendipitously to small-town Elmo, Alaska.

Yes, there were some annoying (and sometimes offensive) characters on the show, but overall the episodes that I saw were heart-warming and cozy, and I mean that in the best possible way. I freely admit that I have a big soft spot for romantic comedy, and Men in Trees did it pretty well. The relationship between Marin's biggest fan, Annie (Emily Bergl), and Patrick (Derek Richardson) was a little bit odd and a little bit sweet.

In case you missed it in Friday's BLWE, we're giving you a chance to meet Leisha Hailey and Camila Grey while they're on tour with their band, Uh Huh Her.

Photo credit: Lisa Eisner

Here's how you can get two tickets a private meet-and-greet with Leisha and Camila:

1. Check out the complete list of UHH's shows on their official website.
2. Choose any show from May 7–31. (No other tour dates are eligible.)
3. Send your name, email address, phone number and the show you wish to attend to uhhuhherfans@nettwerk.com by Tuesday, May 6 — that's tomorrow!
4. One lucky contestant will be randomly selected on May 7 and awarded two tickets and a private pre-show meet-and-greet session with the ladies.

We'll announce the winner on AfterEllen.com later this week. We only ask that you give us a post-show update that we can share here on AfterEllen.com. Good luck!

Last week ABC's Lost returned for six new post-strike episodes, and I was certainly ready to get back on the island. Last week's episode (spoiler warning if you haven't watched last week's episode!) revealed that Sayid began working for Ben because someone affiliated with the dastardly Charles Widmore (whose British accent keeps going in and out) had murdered Sayid's long-sought-after true love.

It was interesting to learn a little more about Sayid, and I do like his story lines, but after thinking about what happened, I realized that slowly but surely all of the female characters on Lost have kind of faded into the background. At this point the main plot seems to be about the creepy, manipulative Ben Linus and his mysterious battle with Charles Widmore. All the women on the show are now either pregnant, being a mother, or busy mooning over a man (or two).

Kate (Evangeline Lilly), who was such a kick-ass character in the first season, has become torn between two lovers as if she were in a soap opera (complete with false pregnancy scares!), and honestly, both Jack and Sawyer have become somewhat annoying this season. I still have a fondness for Sawyer (yeah, he's smarmy, but at least he admits it!), but he seems to have been relegated to the role of a buffoon.

All photos by ABC/Mario Perez

What about the other ladies of Lost? Well, Claire (Emilie de Ravin) has been largely missing, and she never really had much to do besides take care of her possibly freaky baby. If the flash forwards are anything to judge by, she won't have much to do in the future, either. Sun (Yunjin Kim) has triumphed over adversity in the past, but now her whole story line involves getting off the island so she can give birth (and possibly fearing for the mortality of her husband).

I have to admit that I've been eagerly awaiting the arrival of Madonna's latest album, Hard Candy, but after downloading it on Tuesday, boy was I disappointed. The reviews have been almost across-the-board positive — or at least thoughtful, referencing Madonna's influence and stature in the pop culture world — but I found myself fast-forwarding through repetitive choruses ("get stupid get stupid get stupid" — argh! — on "Give It 2 Me") and, frankly, not quite getting the album.

Perhaps, as the Houston Chronicle noted: "As a sit-down listen (in the car, through headphones or via a computer), Hard Candy doesn't have the same immediate spark or insightful lyrics as 2005's gorgeous Confessions on a Dance Floor. ... Under the disco ball, however, Hard Candy proves a sparkling after-hours soundtrack."

Maybe my problem is that I've been listening to it while at the office rather than out at a club. If that's the case, it's gonna be a long time before I "get" this album, since my club-going days have dwindled down to, oh, a couple of times a year. I suspect that most of Madonna's die-hard fans also long ago stopped loving the night life (Madonna, after all, is turning 50 this year), and I'm not sure if those longtime fans will get this album, either.

I do like a few songs on the album, including "Dance 2night," which is way more of a disco track than a hip-hop one, and "Miles Away," a melancholy song that sounds like it belongs on Confessions on a Dance Floor.

Yesterday marked the first day of this year's TV Turnoff Week, which runs April 21-27. If you weren't aware of this, well, I didn't know either until Monday night, and by then I'd already made plans to watch Gossip Girl and my DVR-ed recording of last week's Battlestar Galactica. But I think that Tuesday, April 22, is a much better day to start TV Turnoff Week, because tonight is the premiere of a huge turn-off: A Shot at Love 2.

So instead of tuning in to whatever disasters await Tila Tequila during her second quest for "true love," here are a few suggestions for what you can do instead.

1. Go out to dinner with your girlfriend(s) and have some lively conversation. There are so many lesbian chefs these days that you can surely find a restaurant headed by one of them. If you're in Miami Beach, stop by Tantra to taste the cuisine of executive chef Sandee Birdsong. If you're in San Francisco, how about Elizabeth Falkner's newest restaurant, Orson? She was a guest judge on Top Chef last season and has been a contestant on Iron Chef, and she rocks some platinum blond hair.

If you're in Chicago, stop by Avec, where head chef (and recent Top Chef guest judge) Koren Grieveson presides. No, Grieveson hasn't come out to us officially, but as Dorothy Snarker noted in her recap, she's sports all the requisite lesbian paraphernalia; her Food & Wine profile notes that she was a soldier in the U.S. Army for nine years; and in this Time Out Chicago article she says that her place of inspiration is "My girl Frog's studio. ... We bounce ideas off each other, but really, just working next to her keeps me inspired." Hey, Koren: How about an interview with AfterEllen.com?

It's official: The new X-Files movie, which lands in theaters July 25, will be called I Want to Believe. As many people remember, the phrase was imprinted on a poster that Mulder (David Duchovny) had in his basement office.

Series creator Chris Carter told the AP that "It's a natural title. It's a story that involves the difficulties in mediating faith and science. 'I Want to Believe.' It really does suggest Mulder's struggle with his faith."

The movie will not deal with the series' mythology — the often convoluted plot involving a government conspiracy, little green men and alien babies — but rather will resemble the standalone episodes in which Mulder and Scully investigate a paranormal event or crime. Carter said that this movie aims to bring in both new fans (who were probably too young to watch the scary show in the '90s) and satisfy X-Philes. "The reason we're even making the movie is for the rabid fans, so we don't want to insult them by having to take them back through the concept again," he said.

Photo credit: Diyah Pera

In the past, episode titles have given clues to an episode's story line, but in keeping with the tight security surrounding leaks from this new movie (the select few who were allowed to read the script had to read it in a locked room fitted with surveillance cameras), even the title is vague. And while the phrase "I want to believe" brings back fond memories (of basking in the glow of my computer screen reading tons of fanfic — I admit it!), I'm not sure it's a title I entirely love.

Tonight at 11 p.m. ET, Work Out returns to Bravo for its third season — as you may know if you've read our Season 3 feature on the show. (And if you haven't read it yet, why not? Jackie Warner and Rebecca Cardon both reveal some really interesting tidbits about how they feel they were portrayed last season.)

Photo credit: Vivian Zink

I must admit I've always liked Work Out, because it's totally escapist melodrama that doesn't sink to the level of Flavor of Love (or even A Shot at Love), and also because Jackie's, well, hot. Apparently Jackie's so hot that she's a magnet for straight women, too, and the New York Times recently wrote about this phenomenon in their Style section. OK, full disclosure: They interviewed me for the article, too.

The reporter and I talked about a lot of stuff, including gender, and I explained that I thought that straight women have often been attacted to lesbians who fall more on the butch scale of the gender spectrum. Jackie's not your stereotypical old-school butch, but she has the same swagger and hint of masculinity. (I give her some wiggle room for being an L.A. lesbian who's on TV, where makeup is required, unfortunately.)