A long list of great The X-Files episodes and its reputation as one of the most memorable shows of the 1990s has since spawned spin-off movies and a questionable 2016 revival.
But given that the series ran for a grand total of 218 episodes since its 1993 debut, it’s unsurprising that some of these dipped in quality. In some cases in The X-Files, it was necessary to ignore certain details and facts in order to make sense of its plot. The overarching mythology running alongside The X-Files’ monster-of-the-week format is notoriously convoluted. These especially bizarre episodes made audiences wonder what the writers were thinking.
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10 “Space”
Season 1, Episode 9
The variable quality of episodes in the inaugural X-Files series can be put down to the show still being in its infancy. The X-Files was still finding its footing in 1993, spending most of its time establishing its premise while introducing Mulder and Scully’s dynamic. “Space” is a season 1 episode that feels especially bizarre. The story involving astronauts plagued by a mysterious extraterrestrial spirit fit the early X-Files theme of the unknowable universe. Unfortunately, “Space” didn’t pull off its interesting premise.
The attempt to combine the extra-terrestrial and the supernatural made for a confusing storyline in the episode. The episode closes without explaining why this space spirit is bent on revenge. Equally confusing is the role that Mulder and Scully play in resolving this mystery. The agents act as bystanders to the chaos that unfolds. The fact that the possessed astronaut happens to be a childhood hero of Mulder’s is the only justification for their involvement. The laughable early 90s special effects only make it harder to buy into the weirdness that is “Space.”
9 “Teso Dos Bichos”
Season 3, Episode 18
The X-Files had found its stride by its third season, widely regarded as its best overall. Besides delving deeper into the overarching conspiracy at the show’s core, season 3 also had some fantastic standalone episodes – which is why “Teso Dos Bichos” feels particularly egregious. The episode is derided by both X-Files fans and people who worked on the series. Even its stars believe "Teso Dos Bichos” is the worst X-Files episode ever to air. As the famous anecdote goes, director Kim Manners hated it so much that he had t-shirts made for the crew reading: “Teso Dos Bichos Survivor”.
The X-Files rarely fares well when it draws its monster-of-the-week from a specific culture. This episode centered around a possessed Ecuadorian artifact is no exception. Cultural appropriation aside, “Teso Dos Bichos” is just poorly written. The villain is initially depicted as a terrifying jaguar spirit that attacks looting archeologists. The plot descends into a farce with an attack led by feral cats. The writers could have brought the monster for the final showdown, but inexplicably, the jaguar never appeared again.
8 “The Field Where I Died”
Season 4, Episode 5
This standalone episode has one of The X-Files’ strangest premises. An investigation into a cult group takes an odd metaphysical turn when the leader's wife turns out to be Mulder’s soulmate from various past lives. The idea that Mulder and Scully have been connected in several incarnations is a nice touch, but “The Field Where I Died” gives an odd presentation of their relationship. Mulder recounts one past life in which Scully was his deceased father. In another, she was his field sergeant during the Civil War.
It didn’t really make sense for Melissa to be Mulder’s soulmate. Neither he nor the audience have any emotional connection to the character, who ends up dead by the end of the episode. As it stands, “The Field Where I Died” offers an interesting and emotional depiction of grief, but it should have used its premise to stress the enduring partnership between the lead characters. Any X-Files viewer would protest that Mulder’s true soulmate is Agent Scully.
7 “Redux”
Season 5, Episodes 1-2
This two-part season premiere comes at a key point in The X-Files overarching mythos. While it deserves praise overall for introducing a bombshell revelation about Mulder informants who revealed government secrets to the agent. His shocking revelation that the extra-terrestrial proof Mulder has devoted his life to seeking is nothing more than a government hoax sent the agent into an existential crisis, with Mulder’s apparent suicide making real-world headlines in the hiatus.
Continuing in “Redux”, Mulder’s crisis of belief becomes harder to believe. The agents have witnessed more than enough supernatural phenomena firsthand to the existence of alien lifeforms. “Redux I” has several plotholes, including Mulder’s miraculous ability to infiltrate the Department of Defense. The episode contains some touching MSR moments, but the cancer cure turning out to be a decoy is an irritating cliffhanger.
6 “All Souls”
Season 5, Episode 18
“All Souls” is another X-Files episode that offers fantastic character development, but it detracts somewhat from the series worldbuilding. The episode was praised for the clever role reversal that sees Scully become the believer and Mulder the skeptic. Its subject matter nonetheless proved divisive, casting Christian angels as the episode's antagonists. Adding theology to The X-Files’ mix of supernatural and science-fiction made the episode feel out of place.
As the unofficial conclusion to the Emily saga, “All Souls” put Scully in the spotlight. Anderson’s powerful acting carries this episode, but the show’s sudden turn to religiosity didn’t make sense. It didn’t depict faith particularly well, either. Viewers have rightly criticized the angels’ motivations for killing the four girls, all of whom had disabilities, as the storyline appeared to suggest this was the reason they were chosen to die and return to heaven.
5 “Triangle”
Season 6, Episode 3
The third episode of X-Files season 6 may be one that only a fan could love. Many count it among their all-time favorites. Its bizarre storyline certainly makes it one of The X-Files’ most memorable. Finds himself trapped in a luxury liner in 1939 after time-traveling through the Bermuda Triangle, Mulder encounters engers who inexplicably resemble his friends and colleagues. The decision to have actors from the main cast play dual roles in this episode gave “Triangle” a dream-like feel. A coma-induced dream is indeed the device used at the end of the episode to write off its events.
Mulder offers a wry smile to the camera before the credits roll, revealing that he still bears a bruise on his cheek where he was punched by 1939 “Scully” – so, whether the episode actually happened or not is left for the audience to decide. However you interpret it,“Triangle” is a fun watch. The writers even threw in a kiss between Mulder and the Scully look-alike. For viewers at the time, this was the closest the show had gotten to confirming their relationship.
4 “First Person Shooter”
Season 7, Episode 13
The seventh season of the X-Files marks a sharp decline for the series. The show had been running for so long that its storylines became increasingly ridiculous. The X-Files writer’s room running out of solid new ideas is the best explanation for an episode like “First Person Shooter”. Gillian Anderson reportedly loved shooting the sequences where Mulder and Scully were trapped inside the deadly virtual-reality game. Viewers and critics didn’t find the fun in this episode, though.
The trope of intelligent technology turning on humankind was popular at the turn of the millennium. The X-Files’ take on the concept is ridden with plotholes. It is never explained how the computer program Maitreya gains self-awareness, nor how she escapes from Phoebe’s computer. No plausible hypothesis is offered for how she inflicts harm on people in the real world, either. Whether this monster is supernatural in origin or purely technological is left up to the audience to decide.
3 “Fight Club”
Season 7, Episode 20
The X-Files continued its downward spiral with another episode that frequently appears on reviewers’ all-time worst lists. Season 7, episode 20 renews Chris Carter’s apparent obsession with twins and doppelgängers, more successfully explored in prior episodes like “Syzygy”. In “Fight Club”, identical women Betty and Lulu (both played by Kathy Griffin) cause chaos whenever they stand near each other. Why this occurs is never explained.
The episode suggests it may have something to do with them sharing the same biological father. The same can’t be said for the doppelgänger of their boyfriend, Bert, nor the Mulder and Scully lookalikes who appear in the cold open. Nonsensical episodes like “Fight Club” spelled what the show’s future had in store. It’s no wonder many believe that The X-Files should’ve ended with season 7. It only became more confusing from here.
2 “William”
Season 9, Episode 16
Most of the episodes from X-Files’ ninth season deserve a place on this list. The overarching mythology took a ridiculous turn with the introduction of super-soldier arc. While Robert Patrick and Annabeth Gish made great additions to the cast as Agents Doggett and Reyes, they couldn’t restore The X-Files to its former glory. The show also suffered from David Duchovny’s absence, and subsequent poor ratings saw The X-Files canceled after season 9. As the closing episode in Scully’s baby arc, “William” was an especially frustrating episode.
“William” ends with Scully making a choice that feels out of character. Her relationship with motherhood is a theme that the X-Files brings up constantly, from the shots of a pregnant Scully during her season 2 abduction, to the discovery and loss of her daughter, Emily. When she finally gave birth to her and Mulder’s son, it felt like a neat conclusion to her storyline. Her decision to then give William up for adoption made no sense. Equally inexplicable was the reappearance of Jeffrey Spender after being killed off in season 6.
1 “My Struggle III”
Season 11, Episode 1
Viewers hoped the X-Files revival would remedy the issues from season 9. Unfortunately, seasons 10 and 11 failed to meet expectations. Particularly irritating was the three-part storyline that concluded with “My Struggle III”. This episode constituted a double retcon that undermined much of the X-Files lore built over the original 9 seasons. Not only did the planned alien colonization between seasons 9 and 10 never occur, but in “My Struggle II”, the alien rebel plot turned out to be a government hoax to hide the creation of the “Spartan virus.”
“My Struggle III” erased the season 10 cliffhanger that saw the release of the virus, revealing this to be a prophetic dream had by Scully as she lay in hospital. This lazy retcon wasn’t the most ridiculous part of the episode, however. The moment that enraged viewers saw Cigarette Smoking Man reveal that he was the true father of Scully’s son, William. The revolting implication that Scully was impregnated with his DNA against her will also meant that Mulder was not the baby’s father, but rather his half-brother. It was a baffling writing choice.
The manifold issues with seasons 10 and 11 led many viewers to question whether the anticipated X-Files revival was worth making in the first place. The monster-of-the-week format enabled X-Files writers to get experimental. Viewers could write off the episodes that didn’t work, because these never interfered with canon mythology. The revival was such a disappointment because it undermined lore The X-Files had taken years to establish. Still, the early seasons of the show were fantastic enough to secure its enduring popularity. Despite its flaws, The X-Files will always remain one of the most beloved science-fiction series of all time.
The X-Files
- Release Date
- 1993 - 2018-00-00
- Network
- FOX
- Showrunner
- Chris Carter
- Directors
- Chris Carter
Cast
David Duchovny
WHERE TO WATCH
The X-files takes the police procedural formula and applies it to sci-fi mysteries. Conspiracy theorist Fox Mulder and skeptic Dana Scully team up to solve cases surrounding alien invasions and other unexplained, paranormal phenomena.
- Franchise(s)
- The X-Files
- Seasons
- 11
- Streaming Service(s)
- Hulu, Dis
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