In one of the longestrunning science fiction series in network tv history, fbi special agents investigate unexplained, mindbending cases known as xfiles. The continuation of the xfiles as well as mulders and scullys assignment to the xfiles. Jan 23, 2016 the rebooted, sixepisode version of the xfiles premiering sunday on fox wastes no time acknowledging the obvious. Smoking man each appear in episodes which involve government activities. If it werent for twin peaks, the series would have been the original example of this type of show.
Episodes would drop new details about the government conspiracy, the aliens, and the machinations of both, and fans struggled to piece together the various clues and figure out the truth behind the conspiracy. There were 202 episodes of the xfiles, but for the purposes of this list, i considered twopart episodes a single entry. A recap of the xfiles season 11 episode 4 written and directed by darin morgan. What the xfiles got right, and wrong, about conspiracy. Best xfiles episodes to watch from monsters of the week. Scully was abducted at the hands of the government conspiracy, and her ova were taken for the hybrid experiments. The wider arc of the xfiles focused on a government conspiracy, the existence of a shadowy group within the us government called the syndicate, and. The set also features commentary on selected episodes and part one of chris carter. This list of mythology episodes is taken from official sources, the x files. While the barest whiff of cheese lingers around most xfiles episodes, the pine. On the other hand, maybe the russians did not know that alex was an agent of the consortium, or maybe somebody else. As a people, americans are a crazier bunch and more prone to conspiracy. Although the conspiracy plot spanned the run of the show, the majority of the xfiles episodes were standalone cases whose outcomes did not affect the mythological story arc.
As of march 21, 2018, 218 episodes of the x files have aired, concluding the eleventh season. Not all episodes advanced the mythology plot, but the ones that did were often set. The xfiles just doesnt work like that, and searching for truth and pointing out lies feels more important than ever in 2018. The xfiles couldnt have imagined the conspiracy theories of 2018, but looking back on 25 years reveals some surprising things the series got right. The xfiles, american sciencefiction television series that focused on the professional lives of two fbi special agents, fox mulder played by david duchovny and dana scully gillian anderson, and aired on the fox broadcasting company network 19932002, 2016, 2018. The lost art of forehead sweat is one of the best episodes of the xfiles ever made. Jan 19, 2016 the movie takes place between seasons 5 and 6, during a time when mulder and scully are not working as agents, but fall into investigating you guessed it, a government conspiracy with the. Along with dark, oftenscary episodes about specific creatures or unexplained events, the show revolves around a mythology of government conspiracies and coverups related to extraterrestrials. Running for slightly more than 200 episodes over nine seasons. Foxs upcoming and eagerly awaited revival of the xfiles is updating its conspiracy theories only this time, the scifi series might cause more. The second episode of the xfiles season 11 threw in a smart nod to all the presidents men, a film about a reallife government conspiracy in watergate.
And since the xfiles is actually two shows in one, equal parts conspiracy thriller and spooky procedural, there are two very different. Described as counterculture patriots, they are ardent conspiracy theorists, government watchdogs and computer hackers who frequently assist central xfiles characters mulder and scully, though they sometimes have their own adventures. The metamodern mythology of the xfiles the abstract. The series splits rather cleanly into monster of the week and mythology episodes, with the latter exploring an ever unfolding plot involving a deep government conspiracy, complete with. Its one reason why, for the last 10 years, most movies about government and military conspiracies have sunk like a stone, while audiences flocked to movies about. The lone gunmen is an american conspiracy fiction thriller drama television series created by chris carter, vince gilligan, john shiban, and frank spotnitz. Conspiracy files investigates the previously topsecret files made public by the freedom of information act. Not only did the name jerry jones seem perfect for a government villain straight out of the show he celebrated, it. What the xfiles got right, and wrong, about conspiracy theories. The xfiles as people once knew it seems quite alien to 2016 television.
The xfiles top five alien episodes popular science. The series centers on fbi special agents fox mulder david duchovny and dana scully gillian anderson, who work on cases linked to the paranormal, called xfiles. Fourteen years since leaving the xfiles, mulder and scully are contacted by media host tad omalley who has uncovered possible evidence of the alien abductions being fabricated by the government to cover up their experiments on humans, and mulder has a theory that everything that he and scully were led to believe on the xfiles was made up by a conspiracy of men. The show was best known for the conspiracy episodes that spun an elaborate mythology of alien invasion and government secrecy. Mar 04, 2016 the 10 best xfiles mythology episodes. The x files pilot 1x00 deep throat 1x01 conduit 1x03 fallen angel 1x09 e. Mulder and scully become the focus of a disinformation campaign when they attempt to trace the government s secret transport of an alien life form. Feb 12, 2016 this feature is not available right now. Oct 10, 2015 in honor of the fastapproaching event series this winter, we present our best of the best, the 12 best mythology episodes of the xfiles.
The rebooted, sixepisode version of the xfiles premiering sunday on fox wastes no time acknowledging the obvious. One of those was, of course, the existence of extraterrestrials which was a primary theme of the series that tied directly into fox mulders duchovny obsessions. The xfiles features fox mulder david duchovny and dana scully gillian anderson as fbi agents charged with investigating cases that involve the paranormal. For years, the mytharc helped make the xfiles into one of the most talkedabout shows on television. Jun 23, 2019 the cultural touchstone of the 1990s, chris carters scifi classic the x files started out as a tense thriller about conspiracies, aliens, and the paranormal, but over the years, the show became increasingly selfaware, especially in a number of highly entertaining comedic episodes. The sixepisode new season brings back a fox mulder david. This list of mythology episodes was originally taken from official sources, the xfiles mythology range of dvds and the book the complete xfiles. On april 23, 2015, netflix began streaming episodes of the x files in high definition, marking the first time that the series has been made available in the high resolution format in north america.
To truly respect the xfiles, it seems only fair to remember and then. Abduction consists of 16 episodes from seasons, and presents the government conspiracy episodes in order, beginning with the series pilot. The xfiles couldnt have imagined the conspiracy theories of 2018, but. The final season of the xfiles opens with the first of a twopart story gueststarring the lithely amazing lucy lawless as a female. The lone gunmen author a news publication called the lone gunman once referred to as the magic bullet newsletter. But the show also provided a cautionary tale, as creator chris carters unwillingness or possible inability to resolve the government alienconspiracy mythology that was a large part of the xfiles popularity buried an initially strong lead under increasingly elaborate and nonsensical twists. You cant have fox mulder without government conspiracy theories. An analysis of the xfiles conspiracy arc, the search for the truth that mulder and scully undertake, as they fight the conspiracy constructed by the majestic consortium and the aliens. Its pilot is a quality episode in itself, as well as doing the introductory job of all pilots, and back in season one the arc plot was still mysterious. Behind the series, the myths and the movies, but someone has changed it since then.
They were also known as the elders, the consortium, and the group. It should be noted that some key mythology characters. Because of their coverup of extraterrestrial life, they were the primary antagonistic force opposing dana scully, fox mulder, john doggett, and monica reyes during the series. The mythology, or mytharc, is the overarching story developed in a series of episodes of the x files where mulder and scully investigate and expose an international conspiracy by an organization known as the syndicate to develop a humanalien hybrid and suppress knowledge of the existence of extraterrestrials who plan to colonize earth. The program originally aired from march 4, 2001, to june 1, 2001, on fox. Mar 08, 2018 about a third of all episodes and the first film make up the longterm mythology arc, focused on the government conspiracy to forestall an alien invasion. The xfiles is an american science fictionsupernatural television series that originally aired on the fox network for 9 seasons from september 10, 1993, to may 19, 2002.
Foxs xfiles revival has controversial new theories. Paper clip is a fastpaced search for answers that has everything an xfiles fan could want. The lone gunmen, a spinoff of the popular series the x files, is a television show that aired on the fox network, featuring the characters of the same name. Ed araquelfox foxs upcoming xfiles revival is taking on some heady issues, including government surveillance and national security, plus a conspiracy theory about 911. Little green men 2x01 sleepless 2x04 duane barry 2x05 part 1. Due to low ratings however, the series was cancelled after thirteen episodes. An analysis of the x files conspiracy arc, the search for the truth that mulder and scully undertake, as they fight the conspiracy constructed by the majestic consortium and the aliens. We get the suggestion of an alltooearthly government conspiracy so bent on maintaining its own militaryindustrial complex that. Nov 28, 2016 from season 4 episode 2 in one of the longestrunning science fiction series in network tv history, fbi special agents investigate unexplained, mindbending cases known as x files. The xfiles was never shy about the fact that at its core, it was a show about conspiracy theories and how the government uses its power to hide secrets. The russian government may have sent alex krycek to america as a mole to infiltrate the conspiracy with the ultimate plan of ending conspiracy black cancer research.
Did you catch the all the presidents men easter egg on. Jan 03, 2018 you cant have fox mulder without government conspiracy theories. The program spanned nine seasons, with 202 episodes. Following the ratings success of this revival, fox. Jan 11, 2016 the truth has never been more out there. The shows final seasons saw mulder take a minor role, with scully becoming the main protagonist, working alongside newly introduced characters. Deep throat is killed, however, when he helps the agents uncover details of a government human cloning program, and the xfiles unit is closed. Jan 20, 2016 scully was abducted at the hands of the government conspiracy, and her ova were taken for the hybrid experiments.
As far as the mythology of the series, the alien rebels kill the entire syndicate, so youd think the government conspiracy is over, and we dont. The xfiles pilot 1x00 deep throat 1x01 conduit 1x03 fallen angel 1x09 e. Differences between the dvds and the book were shown, where appropriate, but they are not anymore, and in any case entries have been added and removed at. Many mythology collections of the x files episodes have. It is a spinoff of carters science fiction television series the xfiles and a part of the xfiles franchise, starring several of the shows characters. Little green men 2x01 sleepless 2x04 duane barry 2x05 part 1 of 2 ascension 2x06 2 of 2 one breath. Jun 25, 20 the series splits rather cleanly into monster of the week and mythology episodes, with the latter exploring an ever unfolding plot involving a deep government conspiracy, complete with. Eventually, however, the writers saw that the most personal episodes were those based on the government conspiracy, and, as such.
Over its nine year run, the xfiles covered a lot of ground. The xfiles mythology, volume 1 abduction wikipedia. In october 2015, it was confirmed that the complete series would be reissued on bluray, and the full set was released on december 8, 2015. From season 4 episode 2 in one of the longestrunning science fiction series in network tv history, fbi special agents investigate unexplained, mindbending cases known as xfiles. Foxs upcoming and eagerly awaited revival of the xfiles is updating its conspiracy theories. A short tenth season consisting of six episodes premiered on january 24, 2016, and concluded on february 22, 2016. This is because the xfiles was ultimately based on pretend fear, and pretend fear is what most tv viewers had of the government in 1993, and they dont have that anymore. Though many episodes deal with such things as monsters, vampires, psychic phenomena, telekinesis, ghosts, mutations, etc. In 2001, vince gilligan cocreated the lone gunmen with chris carter, john shiban and frank spotnitz, an xfiles spinoff series focused on the popular government conspiracy theorist trio of the same name. The syndicate is a shadow government group featured in the xfiles television show and feature film created by chris carter. Based on the new information discovered, the show reexamines faulty assumptions and searches for inconsistencies.
Like many, i was put off by the unrelieved intricacy of the yearsspanning mythology episodes the ones about the overarching theory that there is a government conspiracy to cover up the. The new xfiles will take on a notorious 911 conspiracy theory. For 218 episodes, scully gillian anderson and mulder david duchovny investigated the unexplained, from widespread government conspiracies to. The mythology, or mytharc, is the overarching story developed in a series of episodes. On the other hand, maybe the russians did not know that alex was an agent of. Her biological daughter, emily, was an alien hybrid who died prematurely. Jan 12, 2016 the xfiles as people once knew it seems quite alien to 2016 television. Its a fun episode, but in hindsight musings of a cigarette smoking man is where the grand, overarching conspiracy of the xfiles jumps the shark, inserting the smoking man william b. Every xfiles season 11 episode you must watch before. It is a spinoff of carters science fiction television series the x files and a part of the x files franchise. But mulder soon discovers the militia is riddled with government.
On april 20, 2017, fox officially announced the x files would be returning for an eleventh season of ten episodes, which premiered on january 3, 2018. The xfiles is one of the most important, influential drama series ever made, but its often written off as just another sciencefiction series that had an overly complicated mythology and fell apart toward the end of its run. Though the government is convinced that the outlandish reports are false, conspiracy theorist fox mulder david duchovny and realist dana scully gillian anderson, for most of the. Both also push the recurring theme of government experimentation on. Jan 21, 2016 like many, i was put off by the unrelieved intricacy of the yearsspanning mythology episodes the ones about the overarching theory that there is a government conspiracy to cover up the. Xfiles 25th anniversary best episodes hollywood reporter. Weve all seen a lot since chris carters quirky little series first appeared on television.
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