X-Files help

[4th Horseman]

I've been watching the X-Files again from S1 on Fox's FX channel here in the UK. They show an episode per weekday and I enjoy putting them on and catching up. S2 is halfway through and I think its great. So many good episodes. My son and I recently watched the host again which is great fun!

Watching it from the beginning is the way to go as the alien conspiracy is more appreciated as it unfolds. I ran through the X-Files Wikipedia entries which have given me a far better understanding of the complex mythology than I had when I first saw the X-Files 'live' years ago.

The X-Files box sets are now so cheap, at around £11 I'm very tempted but for now FX's daily offering is fine.

Thanks Moriarty....

4th Horseman...

[Guest MillenniumIsBliss]

MIB.....where did that avatar come from??? You havent questioned my fandom, i was never really into X-Files that much until recently when i started watching it on vacation...there was an episode where a mother takes her son into the bathroom with her, ties him to something just outside the stall, yet, when she comes out, he is gone...outside there is a birthday party going on, and we then see the child chasing a balloon onto the railroad tracks were he then gets ran over by a train...then a little bit later there is something weird about the grandmother or something...i had to go at that moment and never got to see the entire episode...anyone know the name?...

in regards to this post, i thank each and every one of you for your help. I can always come here for advice and Erin, MIB, Joe, Moriarity, you guys rock...lately, i have bought the first two seasons of "The Deadliest Catch" and the first season of CSI-Miami....i am seriously considering my next investment to be either a season of either X-Files or Dark Shadows.....drives my wife crazy, but i get like this from time to time...i also have the first season of "The Andy Griffith Show" on my radar (yes, i will admit to loving that show as well)...she just doesnt understand why a person would need to have the entire archive of a television show. Well, that all changed when she missed a couple episodes of Lost and ran out and bought the 2nd season the first day it came out...LOL....

4th Horseman...

Well, I'm still stuck on my Happy Rhodes kick, and that is the cover art from her CD "Ecto", which I kind of like. I am also longing to find the CD sense it is one of the two I don't have from her.... OK, I'm glad to hear I didn't insult your fandom regarding the X-files. It must have been someone else who I remember discussing the show in depth, Zeus Faber per haps. I remember the episode you speak of, although it is not a big favorite. If you haven't really seen a lot of X-files and if there are episodes that you haven't seen, I truly envy you, and season one is the place to start for sure. The Pilot is actually not one of the great episodes in my book, but the second episode, Deep Throat (which happens to be the first episode I ever saw) turned me into an instant fanatic. in my opinion the series really maintains a pretty high level, with seasons 6 and 7 sliding a bit but still being better than most anything on TV (besides Millennium). If you haven't seen much of it, don't let me, or any other negative reviews deter you from watching seasons 8 and 9, although they were not nearly at the level of the previous seasons. Both seasons are definitely worth watching and have some high points.... PS, as mentioned before, I really love Deadliest Catch. The show is aired in a way where they go from showing it several times a week on TDC, to not running it at all for months. For those months where you never run across it, I would also love to have the DVDs. I'll have to look into that.

[Guest Frank L.]

For me it's very hard to choose 'the best season', but when forced I'd have to go with season 1. After seeing many movies and many television series, the first season of The X-Files is (still) something special.

I love all the seasons, and season 8 is one of my very favorites. The most important reason for that is the fact they restarted The X-Files. No more comedy episodes, but science-fiction/horror, that really could scare somebody. The other reason is Robert Patrick. He´s perfect as Doggett.

A long time ago I started to watch the X-Files again from the beginning. I´m still stuck at the sixth season. One of my least favorite seasons as a whole. There are some brilliant episodes, but the comedy episodes just don´t do it for me. Perhaps I have to skip some episodes and get to season 7 and especially 8.

[Guest MillenniumIsBliss]

For me it's very hard to choose 'the best season', but when forced I'd have to go with season 1. After seeing many movies and many television series, the first season of The X-Files is (still) something special.

I love all the seasons, and season 8 is one of my very favorites. The most important reason for that is the fact they restarted The X-Files. No more comedy episodes, but science-fiction/horror, that really could scare somebody. The other reason is Robert Patrick. He´s perfect as Doggett.

A long time ago I started to watch the X-Files again from the beginning. I´m still stuck at the sixth season. One of my least favorite seasons as a whole. There are some brilliant episodes, but the comedy episodes just don´t do it for me. Perhaps I have to skip some episodes and get to season 7 and especially 8.

Yes, it's tough to argue with season 1. It was definitely something special, and because it was still new, it was probably the most intensely enjoyable season for me. There were some sub par episodes, but it also contained many of the great ones. Seasons 1, 2, and 3 are almost a toss up, but I finally chose 3 in my previous post.

I can also see your point about season 6. Upon reviewing the episodes, I agree with your view. I was not so opposed to the "comedy" episodes in general. Because of my expectations going in to new episodes of Millennium, and because I was longing for that dark gritty mood, it took me a while to get used to the lighter episodes, but this was not the case with X-files, and I enjoyed many of them right from the start. The problem with the comedy episodes in season 6 is not that they went with comedy, but the fact that the episodes simply stunk. The "Rain King", for example, was simply horrendous, and I would just skip it if I were viewing S6. I actually found "Dreamland" to be fairly good and entertaining, but most of the other "departure" episodes, such as "Triangle" and "How the Ghosts..." didn't work for me. In fact, other than "Dreamland", you have to go 10 episodes in to find a great, classic episode in Tithonus. I did, however, find that "Terms of Endearment" was a pretty good "light" episode. After Tithonus, the rest of S6 is up and down, and just a matter of preference as far as what is good and what isn't so good. Agua Mala, for example, is one of the weaker episodes, as is "The Unnatural", which just plain stunk in my opinion. On the positive side, Monday, Milagro, and Field Trip are some excellent stand out episodes, in addition to Tithonus and have some clever writing.

As for season 8, we disagree a little (well, a lot). To me, the good episodes are simply too few and far between and, while they would have been great supporting characters, Dogget and Reyes couldn't carry the show. This could simply be a matter of preference though. For me, the greatness of the show was strongly tied to how much I enjoyed Mulder and Scully's characters (especially Mulder), and the relationship between them. Seasons 8 and 9 just didn't feel like the X-files to me most of the time.

[Guest Frank L.]

I'm not against comedy episodes in general either, but I feel they were doing too much (in season 6/7). It started out with 1 or 2 each season, but there were gradually more each season. Maybe they were just easier to write. That could very well be the case now that I think about it. After so many episodes it is hard to think of something new that is both fascinating and scary.

I agree, Rain King was a terrible episode. I hated Agua Mala too. Although Arcadia was silly, I thought it worked really well. I'll never forget Mulder and his pink flamingo. I loved The Unnatural. I have to say, I don't know why, but maybe because it's not the usual XF story.

I didn't like the Doggett/Reyes episodes much either. Season 9 is my least favorite season. I loved the Scully/Doggett episodes though (season 8). Episodes like Via Negativa and Empedocles are among my all-time-favorites.

[The Old Man]

Moved to X-Files forum!

[Guest MillenniumIsBliss]

I'm not against comedy episodes in general either, but I feel they were doing too much (in season 6/7). It started out with 1 or 2 each season, but there were gradually more each season. Maybe they were just easier to write. That could very well be the case now that I think about it. After so many episodes it is hard to think of something new that is both fascinating and scary.

I agree, Rain King was a terrible episode. I hated Agua Mala too. Although Arcadia was silly, I thought it worked really well. I'll never forget Mulder and his pink flamingo. I loved The Unnatural. I have to say, I don't know why, but maybe because it's not the usual XF story.

I didn't like the Doggett/Reyes episodes much either. Season 9 is my least favorite season. I loved the Scully/Doggett episodes though (season 8). Episodes like Via Negativa and Empedocles are among my all-time-favorites.

I agree, I liked Arcadia. As for seasons 8 and 9, I kind of keep contradicting myself in a way. On one hand I want to convey that they weren't nearly as good as previous seasons, but on the other hand, they weren't poorly done or terrible. There was some good stuff in both season 8 and 9, they just didn't live up to the standards set earlier in the series. I often wonder what I would have thought of seasons 8 and 9 if the series had started there and there was no season 1 though 7.

[Guest Laurent.]

Well, I think everyone should at least agree that season 8 was more similar to the original X-Files atmosphere than season 7. They knew they had to be darker and scarier because Mulder was gone and people had to believe that it was still the same show. The standalones were great and the mythology was exciting and more fast-paced than ever. Personally, I loved season 8 and I thought that season 9 was good but the mythology episodes sucked (exception being The Truth).

Btw, I liked The Rain King as much (if not more) than Arcadia. I thought The Rain King was wonderfully directed (by Kim Manners I think). And even though Arcadia was well-written, they should have tried to push more on the scary side at the end of the episode, to contrast even more with the first half. I always thought that the end felt weird.

[Guest Moriarty]

Well, I think everyone should at least agree that season 8 was more similar to the original X-Files atmosphere than season 7. They knew they had to be darker and scarier because Mulder was gone and people had to believe that it was still the same show. The standalones were great and the mythology was exciting and more fast-paced than ever. Personally, I loved season 8 and I thought that season 9 was good but the mythology episodes sucked (exception being The Truth).

Btw, I liked The Rain King as much (if not more) than Arcadia. I thought The Rain King was wonderfully directed (by Kim Manners I think). And even though Arcadia was well-written, they should have tried to push more on the scary side at the end of the episode, to contrast even more with the first half. I always thought that the end felt weird.

I see that more and more people tend to give positive reactions to season 8. I really need to rewatch this season as, in my mind, it was not so good and did not feel like the X-files from the previous seasons. Okay, I will admit that the comedy episodes from season 7 were, well, unlike the show used to be but unlike Laran and others I do not feel that season 8 returned to the original XF atsosphere. The mythology did not work for me and regarding the standalones I feel that there was not a lot of continuity in the writing of the "known" characters, especially Scully. A lot has to do with Mulder being absent in the first half of the season I feel. Maybe I should give that season another chance and be more open to characters like Dodgett and Reyes.

[Guest MillenniumIsBliss]

I see that more and more people tend to give positive reactions to season 8. I really need to rewatch this season as, in my mind, it was not so good and did not feel like the X-files from the previous seasons. Okay, I will admit that the comedy episodes from season 7 were, well, unlike the show used to be but unlike Laran and others I do not feel that season 8 returned to the original XF atsosphere. The mythology did not work for me and regarding the standalones I feel that there was not a lot of continuity in the writing of the "known" characters, especially Scully. A lot has to do with Mulder being absent in the first half of the season I feel. Maybe I should give that season another chance and be more open to characters like Dodgett and Reyes.

I need to watch the later seasons again too. The problem is, whenever I run across X-files reruns, it is always from one of the first 5 or 6 seasons. I don't know if it's coincidence, or if maybe the channels showing the reruns have agreements where they can only show certain seasons or what, but I can't remember the last time I ran across a Dogget or Reyes episode. It really gets confusing when you talk about recapturing the atmosphere of the original seasons, because that will mean different things to different people. Seasons 8 and 9 felt like an entirely different show to me, but I think that is mostly due to Mulder's sporadic appearances, Scully's role being smaller, Dogget and/or Reyes being the feature characters so often, and then a bunch of new main characters being thrown into the mix, such as Kersh, Follmer, and a slew of other characters. Maybe the stories went back to the kind of stories we saw the first few years, but it still didn't feel like the original early X-files to me. It just felt scattered. One episode you have Doggett and Scully, then you have Doggett and Reyes and no Scully, then you have Mulder pop up once in a while. To me, it felt like Duchnovney and Anderson were not committed to the show anymore, and they were just trying to squeeze them in here and there to make the fans happy. I don't know, maybe I would change my mind if I watched with a fresh perspective, but to me it felt like everyone had too much going on outside the show and the X-files was something to squeeze in between gigs.