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The X-Files - Worth Watching?

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I never really watched The X-Files when it was on...maybe an episode here or there. I'm considering getting the dvd sets, but wanted to solicit opinions. Do you think it's worth it? I remember a lot of people being torqued off because the ending still left some loose ends and such. Is it worth my time & money to get involved in the show?

Thanks for any info.
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Whenever the box sets go on sale, I think about getting them.

I was completely enraptured with the series for several years in college. It has its fair share of average episodes, but when it shines, it shines.

I didn't watch too much after Mulder disappeared, so the show was always an open end to me. I'd love to sit down and watch the whole series from start to finish someday.
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For somebody that's never seen the series, the best way to do it may very well be to get the DVD sets and watch the whole series pretty quickly. That way you'll avoid the frustration and confusion that many viewers felt as the mythology unfolded, a few episodes at a time, over several years. For most of the time it was on, it was one of my 2 or 3 favorite shows.

I could never justify the prices for the first releases, but the new ThinPaks-in-a-sleeve sets are decent enough that I'm probably gonna start collecting them soon.
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Originally posted by: Darth Enzo
For somebody that's never seen the series, the best way to do it may very well be to get the DVD sets and watch the whole series pretty quickly. That way you'll avoid the frustration and confusion that many viewers felt as the mythology unfolded, a few episodes at a time, over several years. For most of the time it was on, it was one of my 2 or 3 favorite shows.

I could never justify the prices for the first releases, but the new ThinPaks-in-a-sleeve sets are decent enough that I'm probably gonna start collecting them soon.


Yeah, I noticed on Amazon the thin ones are going for between $25 & $30 used, which I won't feel too guilty about.

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Recommend it highly. Not sure how dated the show will look now, many aspects of the show have been encorporated into much of the current tv landscape. But if your into tv history it's completely worth it. (X-Files itself was sprung from Kolchak the NightStalker) Whenever I come across an episode on tv, i'll stick with. Still engrossing. Krychek is one of the best characters ever. Tons of memorable moments, especially from the whole mythology arc, and many of the MotW (Monster of the Week) episodes are/were better then a majority of tv. I wouldn't be surprised if another movie is made in the next 5 years, so starting to watch it now, would get you up to speed.
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"Jose Chung's 'From Outer Space' " (Season 3) may be the best episode of any sci-fi TV show produced in history.
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Originally posted by: ADigitalMan
"Jose Chung's 'From Outer Space' " (Season 3) may be the best episode of any sci-fi TV show produced in history.


I've heard this is a good episode. NetFlix has the dvd sets. May get a couple discs like that before I buy and give it a shot that way.

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1st and 2nd series was the best imo
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Originally posted by: ADigitalMan
"Jose Chung's 'From Outer Space' " (Season 3) may be the best episode of any sci-fi TV show produced in history.


That's definitely one of the classic episodes. How the hell can you go wrong with Jesse Ventura and Alex Trebek as Men in Black?
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Second to that: War of the Coprophages (1/5/96)

From the same twisted mind that wrote "Jose Chung's From Outer Space" (Darin Morgan, whose first gig on the X-Files was dressing up as Flukeman in "The Host"), this hilarious spoof of B-movies is over-the-top. A town suffers from mass hysteria when it is believed that killer cockroaches have invaded. Leave it to Mulder and a comely entomologist named Bambi ("Her name is Bambi?" an incredulous Scully asks Mulder over the phone) to try and save the day. Fortunately, Scully does show up in time to help Mulder, because "this is no place for an entomologist". And I bet on that night in January, a lot of people got off their chairs to see what it was that had run across their television screens halfway through the episode.

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Originally posted by: Jay
Whenever the box sets go on sale, I think about getting them.

I was completely enraptured with the series for several years in college. It has its fair share of average episodes, but when it shines, it shines.

I didn't watch too much after Mulder disappeared, so the show was always an open end to me. I'd love to sit down and watch the whole series from start to finish someday.


As I understand it, that was a downhill ride from there. I've only seen a few episodes, but I can say that it is definately worth watch if you are and SF fan.

“What Orwell feared were those who would ban books. What Huxley feared was that there would be no reason to ban a book, for there would be no one who wanted to read one.”

Neil Postman, Amusing Ourselves to Death

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When you're not sure about a watching a movie, or a TV series, or playing a game, it's not always a good idea to ask for opinions, because everyone's gonna have their own tastes. I personally dislike the X-Files, but I still would recomend it because I know how other people enjoy it. You might like it or not like it, regardless of our opinions...
“Voice or no voice, the people can always be brought to the bidding of the leaders. That is easy. All you have to do is tell them they are being attacked and denounce the pacifists for lack of patriotism and exposing the country to danger. It works the same in any country.” — Nazi Reich Marshal Hermann Goering
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Have to agree with the comments about the Jose Chung episode. No one mentioned that Charles Nelson Reily plays the Jose Chung character, or the spoof on Fox's own 'Alien Autopsy' show, hosted by The Stupendous Yappi.

I also enjoy early episodes like the one with Peter Boyle (which also had Yappi) as a psychic insurance salesman and there was one where Mulder and Scully visited a trailer park of side-show freaks.
One later episode that I found amusing was the one with Gary Schandling, where they were "making a movie" about the X-Files.
"I have a confession Mulder, I'm in love with assistant director Skinner."

The show did trail off when Duchovny left, and things never good as good as they were even after he returned. I followed through to the end as best as I could. ******* in the final episode completely threw me.

Edited for spoilers

- Jay
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Originally posted by: JediSage
Is it worth my time & money to get involved in the show?
Hell Yes!! The X-Files is my all time favorite show. I admit it did get kind of hard to follow when it was on TV, and a lot of people were put off, but DVD makes it a lot easier to watch at your leisure and keep track of what's going on.

And don't be put off by the first season either - what starts off as basically a monster of the week show gets A LOT better in the later seasons. Sure there are a few dud episodes here and there, but all in all the X-Files was a great show that never jumped the shark IMO.

War does not make one great.

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It jumped the shark for me the season that featured a operative in a nuclear power plant called Homer, and a sequence with Mulder - occupying someone else's body - doing some stupid dance in front of a mirror.

But the early seasons are essential sci-fi viewing.

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Originally posted by: Moth3r
It jumped the shark for me the season that featured a operative in a nuclear power plant called Homer, and a sequence with Mulder - occupying someone else's body - doing some stupid dance in front of a mirror.

But the early seasons are essential sci-fi viewing.
The Michael McKean episode. Mildly amusing.

BTW: Thanks Jay, probably a good thing to call a spoiler.
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The X-files is probably my favorite show ever. Like Jay said, when it shines, it is entirely compelling (at least to me). However, the show really jumped the shark starting with season 7, and got steadily worse. Season 6 really was the height of mythology, and the episode(s) "Two Fathers/One Son" really is some of the best tv I've ever seen.

I don't own seasons 7-9 and pretend they don't exist
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Yup, awesome show. Now I think I'll dig out Jose Chung and watch it again.

My favorite part of the show was that one of the bad guys had the same name as I do. So at the end of the show, Scully says, "Mark Johnson's being held for psychatric evaluation. We've got him under suicide watch, just as you asked." I put it on my answering machine.
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Amazing show, my absolute favorite of all time. For me, it only exists until the end of season 7. While season 7 wasn't particularly good, and the show had really lost its way since the mythology was basically finished in season 6, season 7's finale gave a satisfying (if open) end to the series. 8&9 never happened.
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The X-Files RULES! It's my favorite show of all time. Just avoid seasons 7-9. They kind of suck. The other seasons are pretty solid most of the way through. Seasons 3 and 4 you can't go wrong.

I totally agree with you guys about Jose Chung's From Outer Space. That's my favorite episode, or at least probably favorite. War of the Coprophages is good too.
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HEY!
Season seven was good! Thats how the show should have ended! No season 8 or 9!
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I just watched the "Pusher" episode. Man, I miss that show.
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Anyone watch the other show by Chris Carter called "Millenium"? That show was AWESOME for the first two years, then they jumped the shark when they brought him to Washington and paired him with a partner. Lance Henriksen was great in it.
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BTW: Thank you all for your opinions. Sounds great and the concensus seems to be to avoid seasons 8 & 9, so I probably will. Looking forward to something new.
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"Millennium," at least for the first two seasons, was outstanding. The development of the mythology during season 2 was so compelling that I looked forward to new episodes even more than I did for "X-Files." But when a plague killed one of the main characters in the last episode of S2, the thing that gave the foundation for all the mystical, monstery stuff to stand on was destroyed and I never bothered to watch season 3. I should probably rent it.