The X-Files

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Season 9
  • Network: FOX
  • Series Premiere Date: Sep 10, 1993
Season #: 11, 10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1
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User Score
6.8

Generally favorable reviews- based on 70 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 38 out of 70
  2. Mixed: 27 out of 70
  3. Negative: 5 out of 70
  1. drlowdon
    Aug 22, 2018
    6
    There were a number of points from the fifth season onwards that The X-Files could have come to a logical conclusion but, with ratings stillThere were a number of points from the fifth season onwards that The X-Files could have come to a logical conclusion but, with ratings still holding high, Fox were reluctant to let one of their most successful shows of the 90’s come to an end. Despite all the late renewals and uncertainty as to when exactly the show was going to end the cast and crew managed to keep up the high standards the show had managed since its inception, until this ninth and final season that is....

    With David Duchovny now completely absent from the show until the final couple of episodes the Mulder and Scully partnership, which had arguably grown to become the main drawer of the show for a lot of fans, was obviously lost. Worse still was the fact that the writers didn’t seem to know what to do with Scully’s character. Doggett and Reyes had been introduced to apparently take over the lead roles with Gillian Anderson only agreeing to appear in ninth season with a reduced workload but the majority of her appearances are inconsequential and more devoted to reminding us that Mulder is still around somewhere. The result is a show that, while still capable of the odd moment of excellence, just feels like it is spinning its wheels waiting for the end to come and after this dissapointing season it did (well, until the second movie and reboot of course!).    … Full Review »
  2. ForReals13
    Apr 7, 2018
    8
    Nothing Important Happened Today B-.
    Nothing Important Happened Today II B-. Daemonicus B-.
    4 D B+. Lord Of The Flies C+. Trust No 1 B. John    Nothing Important Happened Today B-.
    Nothing Important Happened Today II B-. Daemonicus B-.
    4 D B+. Lord Of The Flies C+. Trust No 1 B. John Doe B.
    Hellbound C+. Provenance B. Providence B-. Audrey Pauley B.
    Underneath C+. Improbable B-. Scary Monsters B-.
    Jump The Shark B-. William B. Release B+. Sunshine Days B.
    The Truth A-.    … Full Review »
  3. MovieMasterEd
    Mar 22, 2016
    5
    Very few television shows end when they should.

    As much as television might be an artistic medium, it has generally been governed by    Very few television shows end when they should.

    As much as television might be an artistic medium, it has generally been governed by commercial realities. The length of a television episode is not determined by the volume of the story that needs to be told, but is dictated by the slot allocated it with room left over for advertising. The length of a season is typically negotiated between the demands of the creative team and the needs of the network. Popular shows are seldom allowed to retire at a natural end point, but are instead extended until they reach viable syndication figures or the audience loses interest.

    Things are changing, to a certain extent. The emergence of cable television has allowed creators a greater degree of freedom in how they want to tell their stories. Television series are allowed to wrap up on their own terms, even when they are at the height of their popularity. There is even a bit more give-and-take when it comes to scheduling shows that do not fit comfortably within the standard hour-long block. This allows shows like Breaking Bad, The Sopranos and Mad Men the chance to conclude at a point where it is organic to do so.

    However, this was not the television landscape in which The X-Files emerged. Although it helped shape and define television in the nineties, The X-Files was very much a product of the network television system. That meant extended season runs, but it also meant that the show was sustained as long as it remained popular. Due to the fact that television audiences tend to drain rather than spontaneously disappear, this meant that the show was arguably extended years past an organic end point. Indeed, The X-Files had several logical end points.

    The plan was to wrap things up after five seasons, meaning that The End might have been the end, and that the show might never have moved from Vancouver to Los Angeles. However, the show was extended for two seasons as ratings declined from their peak. At the end of the seventh season, Requiem was written and filmed before anybody knew there would be an eighth season. A disastrous television season forced Fox to renew the show. The eighth season ended with Mulder and Scully in a happy place in Existence, but was such a success that Fox greenlit a ninth season.

    It is interesting to wonder what might have become of The X-Files had the show ended at any of those three logical end points. Would the show be more fondly remembered? Would the general consensus be that the series had ended in a reasonable place? Would fans be relatively satisfied with what had been offered? Would recommendations of the show be a lot less guarded than they would become in the years ahead? There is no way to know the answers to any of these questions. However, there is no getting around the fact that the ninth season is a disaster.

    In hindsight, it was a minor miracle that the eighth season worked at all. David Duchovny had grown tired of the demands and restrictions imposed by the show, and had decided to move on to pastures new. At the last minute, he agreed to appear in approximately half of the twenty-one episode season. While this was a significant improvement upon the idea of an eighth season without Duchovny, it still posed a whole host of challenges. Given that Mulder was an iconic and recognisable part of The X-Files, trying to do the show without Mulder was a risky proposition.

    Somehow, it worked. It worked for a number of reasons. Robert Patrick was phenomenal and the character of Doggett was compelling in his own right. David Duchovny’s schedule imposed a clear structure on the season, forcing the writers to plot and plan ahead of time. The production team seemed invigorated by the challenge posed by the absence of Mulder. The hunt for Mulder, his inevitable return, and the lingering questions around Scully’s pregnancy created an intriguing narrative framework with clear resolutions.

    The eighth season is genuinely underrated. There is an argument to be made that it is one of the best seasons of the show, with a consistency that was only ever matched by the third season. There is a breathtaking energy and ambition to the eighth season that helped to shore up the declining ratings and even win back lost viewers as television ratings were declining across the board. The eighth season also seemed to push the show forward, embracing the idea of the season arc and serialised storytelling in a way the show had never attempted before.

    The ninth season was just as risky. David Duchovny was gone, completely. Duchovny had made it clear that he was not coming back in any capacity, even for a cameo or a guest spot. Gillian Anderson had one foot out the door, signalling that she expected a reduced workload across the ninth season and that she would most likely not be back for a hypothetical tenth season. The show’s mythology had largely unravelled, and Doggett and Reyes had been assigned to work the X-files.    … Full Review »
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