List of The X-Files episodes

Episodes marked by an asterisk are part of the X-Files "Mythology" and are included in the Mytharc DVDs

Season 1: 1993-1994

List of epsiodes from the television show The X-Files, with plot synopses for each episode.

Season one ran from 1993–1994.

Image	Title	Writer(s)	Director	Original Airdate	Episode
File:X-Pilot.jpg	"Pilot"	Chris Carter	Robert Mendel	September 10 1993	1x79
	Agent Dana Scully is assigned to work with Agent Fox Mulder on the X-Files in an attempt to debunk his left-field work. Their first case has them travelling to Oregon to investigate a series of deaths within a single high-school class. Guest starring: Zachary Ansley as Billy Miles
File:Deep Throat2.jpg	"Deep Throat"	Chris Carter	Daniel Sackheim	September 17 1993	1x01
	Mulder & Scully travel to Maryland in order to investigate the disappearance of a military test pilot. They observe unusual aircraft activity, prompting Mulder to proclaim the existence of a government conspiracy. He acquires an informant, Deep Throat of the episode's title. Guest starring: Gabrielle Rose as Anita Budahas, and Andrew Johnson as Colonel Robert Budahas.
	"Squeeze"	Glen Morgan & James Wong	Harry Longstreet	September 24 1993	1x02
	Mulder & Scully investigate a series of murders where there appears to be no tangible method for the murderer's entrance and escape. Eugene Tooms, a seemingly normal janitor is suspected by Mulder to be a mutant who kills his victims and extracts their livers in order to prolong his existence.
File:Conduit-X.jpg	"Conduit"	Howard Gordon	Daniel Sackheim	October 1 1993	1x03
	As Section Chief Blevins expresses his concern with the direction of the X-Files department, Mulder becomes obsessed with solving a case that closely parallels an 'encounter' he experienced as a child... the abduction of his kid sister, Samantha.
File:Jersey Devil.jpg	"The Jersey Devil"	Chris Carter	Chris Carter	October 8 1993	1x04
	The murder of a homeless man which is very similar in detail to a murder committed in 1947 leads Mulder and Scully to a legendary man-beast roaming in the forest near Atlantic City.
File:Shadows-X.jpg	"Shadows"	Paul Brown	Michael Lange	October 22 1993	1x05
	When an unseen force commits several murders where a young woman is present, Mulder suspects that it is the spirit of the woman's former boss who was believed to have committed suicide but was actually murdered and he is protecting her from his business partner.
File:X-Files intro.jpg	"Ghost In The Machine"	Chris Ruppenthal & Glen Morgan & James Wong	David Nutter	October 29 1993	1x06
	A computer with highly advanced Artificial Intelligence begins to kill in order to preserve its existence when it is deemed inefficient to continue controlling the workings of an office building.
File:X-Files intro.jpg	"Ice"	Glen Morgan & James Wong	David Nutter	November 5 1993	1x07
	When an Arctic research team mysteriously kill each other and themselves only days after drilling deeper into the ice than ever before, Mulder and Scully accompany a team of doctors and scientists to investigate. They discover an organism which infects living creatures and amplifies the host's feeling of anger and paranoia, and the new team starts to deteriorate as they wonder who among them are killers.
File:X-Files intro.jpg	"Space"	Chris Carter	William Graham	November 12 1993	1x08
	A mysterious force is sabotaging a space launch program which leads directly back to the commander of the team, who once claimed to have seen an alien in space while witnessing Mars from Earth orbit.
File:X-Files intro.jpg	"Fallen Angel"	Howard Gordon & Alex Gansa	Larry Shaw	November 12 1993	1x09
	Mulder puts the future of the X-Files in jeopardy when he heads to a UFO crash site being rapidly covered up by the military. He is arrested and while in jail he meets Max Fenig, a UFO nut whose NICAP group has followed Mulder's work on the X-Files. When Mulder is released, Scully urges him to return to Washington to face his superiors and try and save his job but Mulder finds out that Max is more than meets the eye and ignores Scully to try and save him instead.
File:X-Files intro.jpg	"Eve"	Kenneth Biller & Chris Brancato	Fred Gerber	December 10 1993	1x10
	When two fathers on opposite sides of the country are unexplainably murdered at the exact same time in the exact same way, Mulder and Scully find that their eight-year-old daughters are perfect twins and were created in order to continue The Litchfield Experiment, a eugenics project of the 1950's which produced several identical sets of twin boys named Adam and girls named Eve who have heightened strength and intelligence, but are prone to psychotic behavior. The band Eve 6 got their name from this episode
File:X-Files intro.jpg	"Fire"	Chris Carter	Larry Shaw	December 17 1993	1x11
	An old Oxford girlfriend of Mulder's asks for his help in an international case concerning the unexplainable execution of several British dignitaries and they encounter an assassin who can produce fire from his bare hands.
File:X-Files intro.jpg	"Beyond The Sea"	Glen Morgan & James Wong	David Nutter	January 7 1994	1x12
	When death row inmate Luther Lee Boggs claims to be psychic and can lead Mulder to a serial killer in return for a lesser sentence of life in prison, Scully becomes an unwilling believer when Boggs tells her that she can communicate through him with her recently deceased father Guest starring: Brad Dourif as Luther Lee Boggs
File:X-Files intro.jpg	"Gender Bender"	Larry Barber & Paul Barber	Rob Bowman	January 21 1994	1x13
	A series of sexually-oriented murders which are identical except that the killer appears to be both male and female, draws Scully and Mulder to an Amish-type community of people who may be alien in origin.
File:X-Files intro.jpg	"Lazarus"	Alex Gansa & Howard Gordon	David Nutter	February 4 1994	1x14
	When FBI Agent Jack Willis and bank robber Warren Dupre are both shot at the same time during a robbery attempt, Dupre dies when Willis is brought back to life. When Willis rushes out of the hospital and begins acting strangely, Mulder concludes that Dupre has come back to life in Willis' body.
File:X-Files intro.jpg	"Young At Heart"	Scott Kaufer & Chris Carter	Michael Lange	February 11 1994	1x15
	A psychotic criminal from one of Mulder's past cases - John Barnett - is back to get revenge on Mulder for incarcerating him. Before Barnett's release, a renegade doctor had found a way to reverse the aging process - using Barnett as his test subject. Mulder and Scully rush to catch the now-unrecognisable youthful Barnett before he carries out his threat to kill all of Mulder's loved ones.
File:X-Files intro.jpg	"E.B.E"	Glen Morgan & James Wong	William Graham	February 18 1994	1x16
	Mulder and Scully receive information from Deep Throat about a UFO that was shot down over Iraq and has been secretly transported to the US. However, Deep Throat then intentionally misleads the agents to prevent them from discovering the truth.
File:X-Files intro.jpg	"Miracle Man"	Howard Gordon & Chris Carter	Michael Lange	March 18 1994	1x17
	Mulder and Scully travel to Tennessee to investigate the "Miracle Ministry" and it's star attraction - a young man with the ability to heal people with his touch - when a person dies shortly after being healed. As more people start dying, the agents must unravel the earthly from the divine.
File:X-Files intro.jpg	"Shapes"	Marilyn Osborne	David Nutter	April 1 1994	1x18
	The agents are called in when a boatload of survivors are found from a Norwegian freighter. What particularly catches Mulder's inquisitive eye is that all of these sailors appear to have aged many decades in the course of days.
File:X-Files intro.jpg	"Darkness Falls"	Chris Carter	Joe Napolitano	April 15 1994	1x19
	Mulder and Scully travel to the remote Washington State National Forest when an entire group of loggers goes missing. Tensions run high when the agents find themselves trapped in the forest with the loggers' security officer and an environmentalist saboteur - all surrounded by the culprit: a huge swarm of green, flesh-eating insects which only attack at night.
File:X-Files intro.jpg	"Tooms"	Glen Morgan & James Wong	David Nutter	April 22 1994	1x20
	Eugene Victor Tooms (see episode 1x03 "Squeeze") is released from the psychiatric sanatorium in which he was incarcerated for assaulting Scully - and he needs to kill once more to get the final liver which will allow him to hibernate for another 30 years. Mulder and Scully race against time to find evidence of his involvement in the past string of murders before Tooms disappears again.
File:X-Files intro.jpg	"Born Again"	Howard Gordon & Alex Gansa	Jerrold Freedman	April 29 1994	1x21
	Mulder and Scully find themselves sent to a penitentiary in order to participate in the retrieval of two escaped convicts. Confused as to the reason for FBI involvement, they soon discover an highly contagious and deadly disease has infected many of the inmates, and possibly the two escapees as well.
File:X-Files intro.jpg	"Roland"	WRIT	DIR	MODAY YEAR	#
	An ex-student of Scully's asks the agents to help her with her first investigation concerning a number of disappearances with very few clues. Mulder ponders the idea of spontaneous human combustion but rethinks it when they find a man who is afraid of his own shadow. Guest starring: Tony Shalhoub as Dr. Chester Ray Banton
File:X-Files intro.jpg	"The Erlenmeyer Flask"	Chris Carter	R.W Goodwin	May 13 1994	1x23
	A seemingly unrelated car chase leads Mulder & Scully to a scientific lab encompassing a secret which could provide proof of a government conspiracy. However, individuals involved with the scientific experiment are being murdered, and the two agents must ensure their own safety.

Season 2: 1994-1995

This article contains episode information and plot summaries from the television show The X-Files.

Season two ran from 1994-1995.

• Main and recurring cast can be found at the main X-Files page.

Image	Title	Writer(s)	Director	Original Airdate	Episode
File:X-Files intro.jpg	"Little Green Men"	Glen Morgan & James Wong	Chris Carter	September 16 1994	2x01
	With the X-Files shut down, Mulder finds his own belief in the truth waning. So when an old political ally gives him a new reason to believe, he goes alone to an abandoned SETI program site in Arecibo, Puerto Rico. Concerned for his safety, Scully has to track down his whereabouts before someone or something else does. Guest starring: Raymond J. Barry as Senator Richard Matheson
File:X-Files intro.jpg	"The Host"	Chris Carter	Daniel Sackheim	September 23 1994	2x02
	When a man's decomposed body is found in the sewers of Newark, Mulder is given the supposed "grunt" work. But after Scully's autopsy turns up a parasite living inside the body and a sewer worker is attacked and bitten by something, it opens up a whole new can of worms. Guest starring: Darin Morgan as Flukeman
File:X-Files intro.jpg	"Blood"	Glen Morgan & James Wong	David Nutter	September 30 1994	2x03
	A recent rash of killings in the small town of Franklin, Pennsylvania brings Mulder to profile the murderers — a task made more difficult by the fact that none of them had any previous history of violence and all died at the end of their berserk rages. The only clues he has are some destroyed electronics and an unknown organic substance.
File:X-Files intro.jpg	"Sleepless"	Howard Gordon	Robert Bowman	October 7 1994	2x04
	An audio cassette hidden in his morning paper brings Mulder to request the case of a scientist's death consistent with burning, despite the lack of any evidence of any flames or burns. He is given his request...along with a new partner, Agent Alex Krycek.
File:X-Files intro.jpg	"Duane Barry"	Chris Carter	Chris Carter	October 14 1994	2x05
	An ex-FBI agent escapes from a mental hospital and holds several people hostage in a travel agency. Mulder and Krycek are sent in to help with the negotiations since the man claims to have been a UFO abductee. Guest starring: Steve Railsback as Duane Barry & CCH Pounder as Agent Lucy Kazdin
File:X-Files intro.jpg	"Ascension"	Paul Brown	Michael Lange	October 21 1994	2x06
	Discovering that Duane Barry has abducted Scully, Mulder and Krycek set out to locate her and find themselves at Skyland Mountain retreat, where alliances are revealed, and Scully's life is threatened. Locations used for the fictional Skyland Mountain include Vancouver's Grouse Mountain and Mount Seymour.
File:X-Files intro.jpg	"3"	Chris Ruppenthal & Glen Morgan & James Wong	David Nutter	Nov. 4 1994	2X07
	A.D. Skinner reopens the X-Files, but Mulder is finding it difficult to work without the missing Scully. When he recognises a Los Angeles killing as the work of the Trinity murderers, a trio of killers with a fetish for drinking blood, it gives him work in which to immerse himself.
File:X-Files intro.jpg	"One Breath"	Glen Morgan and James Wong	R.W. Goodwin	November 11 1994	2X08
	Washington, DC hospital, Scully kept alive almost entirely by machines. Frustrated by his inability to help her, Mulder drives himself crazy trying to find the people responsible, though his quest for vengeance could make him exactly like those whom he despises.
File:X-Files intro.jpg	"Firewalker"	Howard Gordon	David Nutter	November 18 1994	2x09
	A malfunction in a robot designed for volcanic exploration yields evidence of a lifeform living in the caves. When this lifeform seemingly causes the death of a member of the research team, Mulder and a newly returned Scully are flown out to the site to investigate before anyone else dies. Guest starring: Bradley Whitford as Dr. Daniel Trepkos & Shawnee Smith as Jesse O'Neill
File:X-Files intro.jpg	"Red Museum"	Chris Carter	Win Phelps	December 9 1994	2x10
	Several Wisconsin teens are found wandering in the woods in their underwear with "He is one" scrawled on their backs. Mulder and Scully travel to investigate this aberrant behaviour, though the strangest thing in this meat-producing area is a cult of vegetarian "walk-ins." Several relics from the mythology like Purity Control and Deep Throat are revisited here.
File:X-Files intro.jpg	"Excelsus Dei"	WRIT	DIR	MODAY YEAR	2x11
	Mulder and Scully's latest case begins with the rape and battery of a nurse in a Massachusetts convalescent home. What makes it an X-File is her claim that her attacker was invisible. But upon their arrival, they discover that the unrest is not limited only to the live–in residents. Guest starring: Frances Bay as Dorothy & Teryl Rothery as Nurse Michelle Charters
File:X-Files intro.jpg	"Aubrey"	WRIT	DIR	MODAY YEAR	2x12
	The body of an old FBI agent is unearthed Aubrey, Missouri. A serial killer is also on the loose in Aubrey. Mulder and Scully must determine the killer's identity with Lt. Tillman, a pregnant detective. Guest starring: Terry O'Quinn as Lt. Tillman A copy of the 1939 World's Fair emblem figures prominently in the episode.
File:X-Files intro.jpg	"Irresistible"	WRIT	DIR	MODAY YEAR	2x13
	A female corpse, dug-up and mutilated, is brought to Mulder's attention by a Minnesota agent claiming it as the work of aliens. Mulder believes otherwise and is vindicated when a similarly mutilated prostitute is found. But while he gets down to business, the case begins having a disturbing effect on Scully. Guest starring: Nick Chinlund as Donnie Pfaster This is a fan favorite, and contains one of only 3 recurring serial killers, the others being Eugene Victor Tooms and "Pusher."
File:X-Files intro.jpg	"Die Hand Die Verletzt"	WRIT	DIR	MODAY YEAR	2x14
	Some teenagers feign an occult ritual in an attempt to score and inadvertently cause the murder of one of their group. When Mulder and Scully are called to look into the matter, the town's real worshippers attempt to hide their tracks, though they fear that the boys' attempt to "get some" got them more than they thought. Guest starring: Dan Butler as Jim Ausbury
File:X-Files intro.jpg	"Fresh Bones"	WRIT	DIR	MODAY YEAR	2x15
	When a soldier stationed at a resettlement camp for Haitians drives himself into a tree, Mulder and Scully are called by the grieving and fearful wife. Her fears of a voodoo curse seem only to be reinforced by the beliefs and actions of many of the local residents, including a few of the other soldiers. Guest starring: Daniel Benzali as Colonel Jacob Wharton
File:X-Files intro.jpg	"Colony"	WRIT	DIR	MODAY YEAR	2x16
	A newspaper ad placed to locate a certain doctor sets off the murder of several people with the same face. When Scully and Mulder locate another look–alike, they work to find him before the killer does. Coming to Mulder's aid is another familiar face, but one he wasn't expecting. Samantha, Fox's lost sister, and his father, William Mulder, appear in this episode.
File:X-Files intro.jpg	"End Game"	WRIT	DIR	MODAY YEAR	2x17
	Reeling from the reunion with his sister, Mulder is thrown into a quandary when Scully is taken captive by the bounty hunter. However, when a trap set for him goes awry, the agents must head far north in order to attempt to unravel the mystery.
File:X-Files intro.jpg	"Fearful Symmetry"	WRIT	DIR	MODAY YEAR	2x18
	The death of a federal construction worker and the destruction of various property can only be tied to an escaped elephant, yet the witnesses claim to have seen no animals which might have caused the turmoil. Soon, Mulder and Scully discover the local zoo whose claim to fame is that they've never had a successful animal birth.
File:X-Files intro.jpg	"Død Kalm"	WRIT	DIR	MODAY YEAR	2x19
	The agents are called in when a boatload of survivors are found from a Norwegian freighter. What particularly catches Mulder's inquisitive eye is that all of these sailors appear to have aged many decades in the course of days.
File:X-Files intro.jpg	"Humbug"	WRIT	DIR	MODAY YEAR	2x20
	Mulder and Scully must find the paranormal among the abnormal when they are sent to investigate a long standing series of ritualistic killings which match no known patterns. The latest of which was the death of the "Alligator Man," just one of many sideshow acts around which the town of Gibsontown, Florida is built. Guest starring: Michael J. Anderson as Mr. Nutt & Vincent Schiavelli as Lanny
File:X-Files intro.jpg	"The Căluşari"	WRIT	DIR	MODAY YEAR	2x21
	A photograph taken just before the death of a two year–old boy yields evidence of some supernatural intervention which piques Mulder's curiosity. When another death in the family occurs, the grandmother of the remaining child requests the aid of some Romanian ritualists (called Căluşari, "horsemen") in order to cleanse the home of evil.
File:X-Files intro.jpg	"F. Emasculata"	WRIT	DIR	MODAY YEAR	2x22
	Mulder and Scully find themselves sent to a penitentiary in order to participate in the retrieval of two escaped convicts. Confused as to the reason for FBI involvement, they soon discover an highly contagious and deadly disease has infected many of the inmates, and possibly the two escapees as well.
File:X-Files intro.jpg	"Soft Light"	WRIT	DIR	MODAY YEAR	2x23
	An ex-student of Scully's asks the agents to help her with her first investigation concerning a number of disappearances with very few clues. Mulder ponders the idea of spontaneous human combustion but rethinks it when they find a man who is afraid of his own shadow. Guest starring: Tony Shalhoub as Dr. Chester Ray Banton
File:X-Files intro.jpg	"Our Town"	WRIT	DIR	MODAY YEAR	2x24
	Dudley, Arkansas is the site of the latest investigation for Mulder and Scully, who are sent to find a missing poultry inspector. The case takes a twist when another poultry worker is shot after she goes insane, giving Mulder a hunch that the townsfolk really are what they eat.
File:X-Files intro.jpg	"Anasazi"	WRIT	DIR	MODAY YEAR	2x25
	The trust that Mulder and Scully have is sorely tested when Mulder begins acting strangely. His aberrant behavior is compounded when the Lone Gunmen direct him to a hacker who managed to break into some very closely guarded files. While Mulder's investigation leads him to long-awaited answers, Scully finds her career on the line, and the Cigarette Smoking Man decides to take some action himself.

Season 3: 1995-1996

This article contains episode information and plot summaries from the television show The X-Files. Season three ran from 1995-1996.

• Main and recurring cast are listed on the main X-Files page.

Image	Title	Writer(s)	Director	Original Airdate	Episode
File:X-Files intro.jpg	"The Blessing Way"	Chris Carter	R. W. Goodwin	1995-09-22	3x01
	The Cigarette Smoking Man works quickly to recover the stolen computer files, but finds himself thwarted by a man whom he hoped was dead. Meanwhile, Scully finds herself at a loss for her next step and turns to her family for support, since Mulder is otherwise engaged fighting for survival. Guest starring: Walter Gotell as Victor Klemper
File:X-Files intro.jpg	"Paper Clip"	Chris Carter	Rob Bowman	1995-09-29	3x02
	Reunited, Mulder and Scully locate an old scientist from Nazi Germany, pardoned through Operation Paperclip. The information he gives them leads to their discovery of something which could mean their deaths. Guest starring: Walter Gotell as Victor Klemper
File:X-Files intro.jpg	"D.P.O."	Howard Gordon	Kim Manners	1995-10-06	3x03
	Mulder is skeptical over a coroner's report regarding the fifth person to be struck by lightning in a small Oklahoma town. Their investigation into the latest death seems to point to the only person to have survived a lightning strike, an emotionally–charged youth. Guest starring: Jack Black as Bart 'Zero' Liquori Giovanni Ribisi as Darin Peter Oswal
File:X-Files intro.jpg	"Clyde Bruckman's Final Repose"	Darin Morgan	Rob Bowman	1995-10-13	3x04
	Sceptical of a famous psychic's predictions regarding the murder of several prognosticators, Mulder instead finds someone who he believes truly can predict the future. Catching the killer could prove difficult, though, particularly if the murderer can also see into his future. Guest starring: Peter Boyle as Clyde Bruckman This episode sets up an important plot point of the Season Six episode "Tithonus." This episode won two Emmys. One was for the writing, and the other was awarded to Peter Boyle for his guest appearance in this episode. This episode was named by TV Guide as one of the greatest episodes in TV history.
File:X-Files intro.jpg	"The List"	Chris Carter	Chris Carter	1995-10-20	3x05
	A death row inmate makes good on his promise to come back from the dead and kill the five people involved in his death. The fear of his retribution has everyone scrambling to determine if they are on the list, while Mulder and Scully attempt to determine how he has returned to execute his tormentors.
File:X-Files intro.jpg	"2Shy "	Jeff Vlaming	David Nutter	1995-11-03	3x06
	Meeting insecure women through an on-line service, a serial killer seduces his prey with the right words. However, Mulder and Scully determine these killings are far from ordinary by the presence of a strange substance coating the victims, a substance which seems to digest the fatty acids in flesh. Guest starring Timothy Carhart as Virgil Incanto
File:X-Files intro.jpg	"The Walk"	John Shiban	Rob Bowman	1995-11-10	3x07
	Another failed suicide attempt by a patient in a military hospital interests Mulder with the talk of a "phantom soldier" which has prevented the man's death. The general in charge is at first opposed to the FBI's involvement until the invisible killer begins stalking him. But none believe when the primary suspect is a quadriplegic. Guest starring: Willie Garson as "Roach" Freely
File:X-Files intro.jpg	"Oubliette"	Charles Grant Craig	Kim Manners	1995-11-17	3x08
	When a young girl is kidnapped from her home, a fast food worker miles away collapses on the job, apparently experiencing exactly what the child is feeling. When Mulder learns that the woman was kidnapped and held hostage for years as a child, he begins to believe that she may be the key to help find the missing girl. Guest starring: Jewel Staite as Amy Jacobs
File:X-Files intro.jpg	"Nisei"	Chris Carter, Howard Gordon and Frank Spotnitz	David Nutter	1995-11-24	3x09
	A mail order videotape of an alien autopsy blossoms into a much more complicated investigation when Mulder and Scully find the distributor of the tape murdered in his own home apparently by a high—ranking Japanese diplomat. While Mulder's search for the video leads him to a train car, Scully investigates a Mutual UFO Network group and discovers several women who claim to know her. Guest starring: Raymond J. Barry as Senator Richard Matheson Robert Ito as Dr. Ishimaru
File:X-Files intro.jpg	"731"	Frank Spotnitz	Rob Bowman	1995-12-01	3x10
	Scully takes X's advice to heart and investigates more into the implant she removed from her neck. Mulder, having ignored the advice given him, finds himself trapped on the train with a Japanese scientist and the man sent to kill him. Guest starring: Robert Ito as Dr. Ishimaru
File:X-Files intro.jpg	"Revelations"	Kim Newton	David Nutter	1995-12-15	3x11
	Mulder tracks a series of religiously motivated murders. Each of the eleven victims claims to have been stigmatic but all turned out to be frauds. When Mulder and Scully discover a little boy displaying inexplicable wounds of religious significance, they try to protect him from the killer they know will be coming. Guest starring: Kevin Zegers as Kevin Kryder
File:X-Files intro.jpg	"War of the Coprophages"	Darin Morgan	Kim Manners	1996-01-05	3x12
	A small town is plagued by deaths in which the bodies are found covered in cockroaches. Working from home, Scully has scientific explanations for all of them but Mulder — at the crime scene with an attractive bug expert — suspects the insects may not be organic, or earthly. The cockroaches are seen to group together to murder people. The character Dr. Berenbaum (based on the University of Illinois entomologist) suggests that it is actually swarms of flying cockroaches that are responsible for most UFO sightings (they generate an electro-static field which can be illuminated dependent on atmospheric conditions). In one of the scenes, a cockroach that escaped can be seen crawling over the camera, making it appear that the viewer's television has become infested. Though the shot was not planned, the producers decided to leave it in the episode. Guest starring: Bobbie Phillips as Dr. Bambi Berenbaum
File:X-Files intro.jpg	"Syzygy"	Chris Carter	Rob Bowan	1996-01-26	3x13
	Agents Mulder and Scully visit a small town to investigate a series of bizarre deaths, mainly among high school teenagers. Evidence points to a Satanic cult. Moreover, people in this village, including Mulder and Scully, seem to be changed by the events — the weak and aggressive features of a person's character are turned inside out. Mulder drinks, Scully smokes, a peace-loving school director becomes leader of the mob. Eventually Mulder notices some coincidence with strange astrological phenomena, and two teenaged girls turn out to be main suspects as a consequence. Guest starring: Appearance: Ryan Reynolds as "Boom"
File:X-Files intro.jpg	"Grotesque"	Howard Gordon	Kim Manners	1996-02-02	3x14
	Agents Mulder and Scully join Mulder's former mentor (played by guest star Kurtwood Smith) the FBI's chief profiler, on a case involving a serial killer who claims to be possessed by a demonic force. The case gets even more mysterious when the suspect is apprehended and the murders continue. Mulder gets involved more deeply than expected and Scully as well as Skinner are deeply concerned. Guest starring:
File:X-Files intro.jpg	"Piper Maru"	Frank Spotnitz and Chris Carter	Rob Bowan	1996-02-09	3x15
	When a French salvage ship sends a diving crew to recover a mysterious wreckage from World War II, the crew falls prey to a bizarre illness and Agents Mulder and Scully join the investigation. The investigation leads to the discovery of a familiar face, and Skinner's being threatened. Guest starring:
File:X-Files intro.jpg	"Apocrypha"	Frank Spotnitz and Chris Carter	Kim Manners	1996-02-16	3x16
	While Mulder continues to investigate a bizarre illness that originated with the discovery of a mysterious World War II wreckage buried at sea, several government figures try to thwart their efforts. And as Skinner recovers from his shooting, Scully discovers that he is still in danger, from the man who killed her sister. Guest starring:
File:X-Files intro.jpg	"Pusher"	Vince Gilligan	Rob Bowan	1996-02-23	3x17
	Agents Mulder and Scully's assistance is requested for a case involving a man seemingly capable of bending people to his will. The suspect uses his mysterious abilities to manipulate Agent Mulder into a dangerous end game. Guest starring: Robert Wisden as Robert 'Pusher' Modell
File:X-Files intro.jpg	"Teso Dos Bichos"	John Shiban	Kim Manners	1996-03-08	3x18
	A series of deaths occurs immediately after an ancient artifact is brought to Boston from an excavation site in South America. According to Scully, the deaths appear to be the result of political terrorism, but Mulder suspects something more improbable. Guest starring:
File:X-Files intro.jpg	"Hell Money"	Jeff Vlaming	Tucker Gates	1996-03-29	3x19
	A string of mysterious deaths of recent Chinese immigrants brings Agents Mulder and Scully to San Francisco's Chinatown. The Agents team up with a Chinese detective to better understand the language and customs of the Chinese culture, but one thing remains frightening clear — all of the bodies are missing various internal organs. Guest starring: B.D. Wong as Detective Glen Chao James Hong as Hard-Faced Man Lucy Liu as Kim Hsin
File:X-Files intro.jpg	"Jose Chung's From Outer Space"	Darin Morgan	Rob Bowman	1996-04-12	3x20
	When a couple claims to have been abducted by aliens, Agents Mulder and Scully try to get at the truth but everyone has a different version of the story, including the "aliens" themselves. Guest starring: Charles Nelson Reilly as Jose Chung Cameos by Alex Trebek and Jesse Ventura as the "Men in Black"
File:X-Files intro.jpg	"Avatar"	Howard Gordon	James Charleston	1996-04-26	3x21
	During a difficult time in assistant director Skinner's life, he meets a woman in a bar and spends the night with her. The next morning, the woman is dead and he is accused of murder. Agents Mulder and Scully join the investigation to clear their supervisor's name. As they unravel the threads of a conspiracy, they also learn more about Skinner's personal affairs. Guest starring: Amanda Tapping
File:X-Files intro.jpg	"Quagmire"	Kim Newton	Kim Manners	1996-05-03	3x22
	When a series of mysterious deaths and disappearances are reported near a lake in a small town, Agents Mulder and Scully are called in to investigate. With local folklore of a killer sea serpent running rampant amongst the locals, the agents must take their search for the truth to the water. Guest starring:
File:X-Files intro.jpg	"Wetwired"	Mat Beck	Rob Bowan	1996-05-10	3x23
	Agents Mulder and Scully uncover a dark conspiracy behind a bizarre series of seemingly unrelated murders in a small town. As the extent of the conspiracy is revealed, Scully's trust in Mulder is put to the test. Eventually, even Scully shows the symptoms of a severe psychosis leading to paranoia. She believes Mulder has moved to "the other side" and betrayed her and even wants to kill her! In the end, also Mulder is led into a conflict between revealing his "contact" and providing the secret, but keeping the last murder unrevealed. Guest starring:
File:X-Files intro.jpg	"Talitha Cumi"	Chris Carter	R.W. Goodwin	1996-05-17	3x24
	Agents Mulder and Scully search for a man who seems to possess strange powers, which leads to the discovery of dangerous secret from Mulder's past. The secret could bring Mulder and Scully to the brink of exposing the truth about alien existence. Guest starring: Roy Thinnes as Jeremiah Smith

Season 4: 1996-1997

This article contains episode information and plot summaries from the television show The X-Files.

Season four ran from 1996-1997.

Main and recurring cast can be found on the main X-Files page.

Image	Title	Writer(s)	Director	Original Airdate	Episode
File:X-Files intro.jpg	"Herrenvolk"	Chris Carter	R. W. Goodwin	1996-10-04	4x01
	The traditional opening credits text reads "The Truth is Out There"; however, in this episode, it reads "Everything Dies", a phrase spoken by the Alien Bounty Hunter to Mulder. Later in the episode, Marita Covarrubias, in her first appearance of the season, tells Mulder that "not everything dies". While Mulder and Jeremiah Smith attempt to uncover the truth, the Syndicate realizes that they have a traitor in their midst. The informant known to fans as Mr. X dies in this episode, as he is discovered to be the source of the leak. As he dies, he scrawls the letters SASG on the floor of Mulder's apartment in his own blood. Later, it is implied that these letters stand for Special Assistant to the Secretary General, and lead Mulder to Marita Covarrubias (who is the SASG). Guest Starring Roy Thinnes as Jeremiah Smith and introducing Laurie Holden as Marita Covarrubias Herrenvolk means Master race in German.
File:X-Files intro.jpg	"Home"	Kim Manners	Glen Morgan and James Wong	1996-10-11	4x03
	Mulder and Scully travel to the bucolic small town of Home, Pennsylvania where they find evidence of an unspeakable crime. This episode is considered by many fans to be the most disturbing episode of the series.
File:X-Files intro.jpg	"Teliko"	James Charleston	Howard Gordon	1996-10-18	4x04
	The mysterious deaths of several African-American men whose skin color has turned white sends Mulder on a quest into African folklore. The traditional "The Truth is Out There" text is changed to "Obscure Inveigle Obfuscate". Scully says these words to Mulder during the episode.
File:X-Files intro.jpg	"Unruhe "			1996-10-27	4X02
	Agents Mulder and Scully investigate a group of bizarre abductions in which the only clues are inexplicable photographs. But when Scully is the next intended victim, Mulder must get into the killer's head. Guest Starring Pruitt Taylor Vance as Gerry Schnauz
File:X-Files intro.jpg	"The Field Where I Died "			1996-11-03	4X05
	Agent Mulder's search for an informant inside a cult compound leads Scully and him to one of the cult leader's wives. What they soon discover is an unexpectedly close connection with the woman. Guest Starring Michael Massee as Vernon Ephesian
File:X-Files intro.jpg	"Sanguinarium "			1996-11-10	4X06
	Bizarre murders in a hospital's plastic surgery unit lead Mulder and Scully to suspect a supernatural force may be responsible. Guest Starring Richard Beymer as Dr. Jack Franklin O-Lan Jones as Nurse Rebecca Waiet
File:X-Files intro.jpg	"Musings of a Cigarette Smoking Man "			1996-11-17	4X07
	Taking a page from the Superman comic "Lex Luthor: The Unauthorized Biography," this episode details previous exploits of the Cigarette Smoking Man. Mulder and Scully meet with Frohike, where they uncover what may be his real life.
File:X-Files intro.jpg	"Tunguska"			1996-11-24	4X09
	A diplomatic courier carrying deadly cargo involves Agents Mulder and Scully in a dangerous web of intrigue, which leads Mulder on a trip to Russia. Guest Starring Fritz Weaver as Senator Sorenson
File:X-Files intro.jpg	"Terma"			1996-12-01	4X10
	Scully and Skinner attend a suspicious Senate hearing, while Mulder and Krycek face off in a Russian gulag. Terma [Russian "Тюрьма"] - means Jail in Russian. Guest Starring Fritz Weaver as Senator Sorenson
File:X-Files intro.jpg	"Paper Hearts"			1996-12-15	4X08
	Agent Mulder is haunted by an old case in which young girls were killed and hearts cut from their nightgowns, Soon Mulder becomes suspicious when the killer taunts him with the idea that one of his victims may have been Samantha. Guest Starring
File:X-Files intro.jpg	"El Mundo Gira"			1997-01-12	4X11
	Deadly rain in a migrant workers camp sends Agent Mulder and Scully on the trail of a mythical beast — El Chupacabra. Guest Starring Rubén Blades as Conrad Lozano
File:X-Files intro.jpg	"Leonard Betts"			1997-01-26	4X14
	The disappearance of a man's body from a hospital morgue leads Mulder and Scully to investigate the strange circumstances surrounding the man's death. However, for Scully it will lead to a horrifying revelation. Guest Starring Paul McCrane as Leonard Betts
File:X-Files intro.jpg	"Never Again"			1997-02-02	4X13
	On a solo assignment out of town, Scully meets Mr. Wrong, a man whose tattoo does not want to share him - especially not with Scully. Guest Starring Rodney Rowland as Ed Jerse with Jodie Foster as the voice of Betty.
File:X-Files intro.jpg	"Memento mori"			1997-02-09	4X15
	Fear for Scully's health sends Mulder to investigate the bizarre circumstances that may explain her mysterious abduction two years ago, while Scully takes a more practical course to quell her illness.
File:X-Files intro.jpg	"Kaddish"			1997-02-16	4X12
	A murder in a Jewish community leads to the deaths of the killers, forcing Mulder and Scully to determine whether vengeance or larger forces are at work. Title refers to Kaddish as the part of Jewish mourning ritual.
File:X-Files intro.jpg	"Unrequited"			1997-02-23	4X16
	The mysterious assassination of a high-ranking military official has Mulder and Scully racing against the clock to stop a seemingly unstoppable - and invisible - assassin.
File:X-Files intro.jpg	"Tempus Fugit"			1997-03-16	4X17
	While celebrating Scully's birthday, Mulder learns of Max Fenig's death in a plane crash. What the agents soon discover is that the circumstances surrounding the crash may have been alien. The title means Time flees in Latin. Guest Starring Scott Bellis as Max Fenig
File:X-Files intro.jpg	"Max"			1997-03-23	4X18
	Mulder is arrested for his part in the investigation, while Scully - dealing with Agent Pendrell's shooting — waits anxiously.
File:X-Files intro.jpg	"Synchrony"			1997-04-13	4X19
	Mulder and Scully investigate a murder for which the suspect presents an incredible alibi — that the death was foretold by an old man able to see into the future.
File:X-Files intro.jpg	"Small Potatoes"			1997-04-20	4X20
	A small town is "blessed" by babies being born with tails. Mulder and Scully arrive only to encounter a suspect who proves nearly impossible to identify. This episode was named by TV Guide as one of the greatest episodes in TV history. Guest Starring Darin Morgan as Eddie Van Blundht
File:X-Files intro.jpg	"Zero Sum"			1997-04-27	4X21
	Agent Mulder launches a criminal investigation into a bizarre death which he finds has connections to A.D. Skinner. Meanwhile, Skinner makes his own deal with the devil in a desperate attempt to save Scully from the cancer that is taking over her body.
File:X-Files intro.jpg	"Elegy"			1997-05-04	4X22
	Mulder and Scully track a series of murders that lead to a home for the mentally ill and a clue that makes no sense: each victim had a purported warning from the dead. However, while Mulder makes some surprising discoveries, Scully is reminded of her own mortality.
File:X-Files intro.jpg	"Demons"			1997-05-11	4X23
	Scully is concerned for Mulder's well-being when he suffers from a memory loss while investigating a case — and is the only suspect in a brutal double murder.
File:X-Files intro.jpg	"Gethsemane"			1997-05-18	4X24
	Mulder discovers the ultimate proof of extraterrestrial life while Scully’s cancer gets worse... but she may not be the agent whose life is over.

Season 5: 1997-1998

This article contains episode information and plot summaries from the television show The X-Files.

Season five ran from 1997-1998.

Main and recurring cast are featured on the X-Files main page.

Screenshot	Title	Writer	Director	Original airdate	Production code	#
98	"Redux"	Chris Carter	Kim Manners	1997-11-02	5X02
Scully helps Mulder fake his death, but comes under intense scrutiny; Skinner is suspected as the traitor inside the FBI; and Mulder breaks into the Department of Defense in a desperate bid to save Scully, but while doing so he finds himself facing the truth about the aliens he has been chasing.
99	"Redux II"	Chris Carter	Kim Manners	1997-11-09	5X03
While Scully lies on her deathbed; the Smoking Man makes an important decision in helping Mulder. But even as events come to a climax, Mulder finds his belief in his crusade has all but collapsed.
100	"Unusual Suspects"	Vince Gilligan	Kim Manners	1997-11-16	5X01
Set in 1989, we discover how the Lone Gunmen came together, and where they first met Mulder.
101	"Detour"	Frank Spotnitz	Brett Dowler	1997-11-23	5X04
On the way to an FBI convention, Mulder and Scully take a trip through the woods, where an ancient monster lurks.
102	"The Post-Modern Prometheus"	Chris Carter	Chris Carter	1997-11-30	5X06
Filmed in black-and-white, The Post-Modern Prometheus chronicles Mulder and Scully's investigation when a letter from a single mother leads them to a small mid-Western town where a modern-day Frankenstein lurks, Jerry Springer is an obsession, and Cher plays a significant part.
103	"Christmas Carol"	Vince Gilligan, John Shiban, Frank Spotnitz	Peter Markle	1997-12-07	5X05
Home for the holidays, Scully is haunted by dreams which hint at a strange connection to a murdered woman's daughter.
104	"Emily"	Vince Gilligan, John Shiban, Frank Spotnitz	Kim Manners	1997-12-14	5X07
Scully fights to protect her daughter's life, while Mulder discovers her true origins.
105	"Kitsunegari"	Vince Gilligan, Tim Minear	Daniel Sackheim	1998-01-04	5X08
When 'Pusher' Modell escapes from prison, Mulder and Scully race to catch him before he can take revenge against his favourite target — Agent Mulder.
106	"Schizogeny"	Jessica Scott, Mike Wollaeger	Ralph Hemeckler	1998-01-11	5X09
When a teenager is suspected of murdering his father, Mulder and Scully become convinced that a greater evil may be lurking in the community.
107	"Chinga"	Stephen King, Chris Carter	Kim Manners	1998-02-08	5X10
Scully takes a vacation to Maine, where she encounters a bizarre case where the victims appear to have inflicted wounds upon themselves — apparently at the behest of a strange young girl. The phone conversation is similar to the War of The Coprophages (season 3)
108	"Kill Switch"	William Gibson, Tom Maddox	Rob Bowman	1998-02-15	5X11
Though Scully is sceptical, the agents investigate the strange death of a computer genius, only to become targets of an unlikely killer capable of the worst kind of torture. The episode is filled with references and conventions typical to the cyberpunk genre of Sci Fi.
109	"Bad Blood"	Vince Gilligan	Clifford Bole	1998-02-22	5X12
One of the funniest episodes, Bad Blood shows a case from both Mulder and Scully's point of view, each one twisting reality to make the other look foolish. The town the episode takes place in is called Chaney, and is most likely a reference to Lon Chaney, the famous monster movie actor.
110	"Patient X"	Chris Carter, Frank Spotnitz	Kim Manners	1998-03-01	5X13
Scully forms a bond with Cassandra Spender, a woman who claims to have been abducted by aliens. While Mulder's disbelief in the alien conspiracy is now questioned, he finds himself with more personal threats at the FBI.
111	"The Red and the Black"	Chris Carter, Frank Spotnitz	Chris Carter	1998-03-08	5X14
With Cassandra Spender missing, and her son Jeffrey angrily attempting to push his way up in the FBI, Mulder has Scully put under hypnosis to learn the truth. The Syndicate, meanwhile, quicken their tests for the alien vaccine, sacrificing their own to do so.
112	"Travelers"	John Shiban, Frank Spotnitz	William Graham	1998-03-29	5X15
In 1990, a bizarre murder leads young agent Fox Mulder to question a former FBI Agent who investigated one of the first X-Files dating back to the 1950s — a case which may have involved Mulder's father.
113	"Mind's Eye"	Tim Minear	Kim Manners	1998-04-19	5X16
Agents Mulder and Scully investigate a murder that seems to have been committed by a blind woman, but Mulder suspects that her involvement is not what it seems.
114	"All Souls"	Frank Spotnitz, John Shiban	Allen Coulter	1998-04-26	5X17
The unexplained death of a young handicapped girl prompts Father McCue to ask Scully for her help, but her investigation leads her to a mystery she's afraid to understand.
115	"The Pine Bluff Variant"	Frank Spotnitz, John Shiban	Rob Bowman	1998-05-03	5X18
Scully begins to grow suspicious of Mulder, whose increasingly strange behaviour suggests he may be serving another agenda.
116	"Folie à Deux"	Vince Gilligan	Rob Bowman	1998-05-10	5X19
Mulder and Scully encounter a delusional man who believes his boss may be a monster — and is willing to pay any price to prove it. Folie á Deux literally means "a madness shared by two"
117	"The End"	Chris Carter	R.W. Goodwin	1998-05-17	5X20
The assassination of a chess grand master leads Mulder and Scully into an investigation that they soon discover strikes at the heart of the X-Files when they learn that the real target was a telepathic boy. While Agent Spender attempts to keep the investigation to himself, Mulder and Scully are joined by Agent Diana Fowley, a woman with a history with Mulder, to investigate it. What they discover leads the Smoking Man to strike back at them like never before.

• The fifth season is followed by the movie The X-Files: Fight the Future

Season 6: 1998-1999

This article contains episode information and plot summaries from the television show The X-Files.

Season six ran from 1998-1999.

The events of this season are preceded by the movie The X-Files: Fight the Future.

Main and recurring cast can be found at the main X-Files page.

The beginning

• Guest Starring Wendie Malick as Assistant Director Maslin

With the X-Files reopened, Mulder and Scully eagerly hunt for a deadly creature in the Arizona desert. What they find seems to support Mulder's revived belief in aliens, but is discredited when the agents are not reassigned to the X-Files, with Spender and Fowley taking over instead.

Drive

• Guest Starring Bryan Cranston as Patrick Crump
• Michael O'Neill as Patrol Captain

With Mulder trapped in a car by a seemingly deranged man, Scully races to determine if the man is suffering from a deadly illness — and if Mulder is in danger of becoming the next victim.

Triangle

Mulder goes in search of a ship that disappeared in the Bermuda Triangle in 1939. But when he gets on board, Mulder finds that he — and all the passengers and crew (as well as some strangely familiar ones)— are still stuck in the past.

• Gillian Anderson, William B. Davis, Chris Owens, James Pickens Jr and Mitch Pileggi play characters in 1939 as well as their regular ones.
• The episode was designed by Chris Carter to be similar in style to Alfred Hitchcock's Rope. Through manipulation of the camera, and editing, the episode is designed to look like it was shot in four uninterrupted eleven-minute takes. The second act, however, in which Scully traverses the halls of the FBI, was shot uninterrupted without any editing.
• This episode does not, and is not intended to, follow the story arcs of the series or even its current season. On the contrary, it was created as a stand-alone episode.
• The episode references The Wizard of Oz at the end, with Mulder saying he was on the Queen Anne, and saying to his visitors that they were there.

Dreamland

• Guest starring Michael McKean as Morris Fletcher
• Nora Dunn as Joanne Fletcher

An anonymous tip finally brings Mulder and Scully to the mecca of all UFO lore — Area 51. but when the agents witness the flight of a mysterious craft, their lives are profoundly — and perhaps irrevocably — altered.

Dreamland II

• Guest starring Michael McKean as Morris Fletcher
• Nora Dunn as Joanne Fletcher

Scully begins to suspect that her partner's strange behaviour is more than it appears to be, while Mulder fights to return his life to normal before it's too late.

Terms of Endearment

Guest Starring Bruce Campbell

When a mother is accused of killing her unborn child, Mulder and Scully discover that the father has his own secrets, and he's not the only one.

The Rain King

• Guest Starring Victoria Jackson as Sheila Fontaine

In a small town plagued by drought, Mulder and Scully come upon a man who claims to be able to control the weather — at a hefty profit. Yet the agents discover a force of nature at work even more powerful than the weather, and just as unpredictable.

How the Ghosts Stole Christmas

• Guest Starring Lily Tomlin as Lida
• and Edward Asner as Maurice

On the night before Christmas, Mulder convinces Scully to put aside her gift wrapping and stake out a reputed haunted house. But they discover a pair of lovelorn spectres living inside the house who are determined to prove how lonely the holidays can be.

• The episode with the least cast required. Gillian Anderson, David Duchovny, Tomlin and Asner are the only actors involved.

S.R. 819

• Guest Starring Raymond J. Barry as Senator Richard Matheson

Mulder and Scully have 24 hours to save Assistant Director Skinner from being killed — but in order to do so, they must determine who wants him dead, and why.

Tithonus

• Guest Starring Geoffrey Lewis as Alfred Fellig

Agent Scully learns that she, but not Mulder, is being given a chance to prove her worth at the FBI, and - paired with a new partner - she investigates a crime scene photographer whose subjects may in fact be his victims. What she does not expect is for Death to play a role himself.

Two Fathers

When Cassandra Spender is returned, Mulder, Scully and Agent Spender find themselves facing the exposure of the conspiracy involving extraterrestrials; while the worried Syndicate take evasive measures.

One Son

While Cassandra reveals the truth about the alien conspiracy to Mulder, her ex-husband - the Cigarette Smoking Man - does the same to Agent Spender in an effort to convince him to work with the conspiracy. But even as Mulder is deceived by Agent Fowley, Scully stays true to the investigation, and the two find a surprise ally. Meanwhile, the Syndicate reach the climax of their plans, only to find that the end is not as they expected.

Agua Mala

• Guest starring Darren McGavin as Arthur Dales

Having been re-assigned to the X-Files, Mulder and Scully are looking forward to cases again. Instead, Arthur Dales, now living in a Florida trailer park, calls the agents for help when a neighbouring family disappears; and, with a hurricane approaching, Mulder and Scully find themselves trapped with a group of residents in a building where there really is something in the water.

Note that "Agua Mala" translates into "Bad Water" in Spanish.

Monday

Guest starring: Carrie Hamilton

The world is trapped in a time loop, and only one woman seems to know. A bank robbery is committed over and over again until Mulder and Scully make it go right.

Arcadia

Several disappearances at an idyllic planned community lead Mulder and Scully to go undercover as a married couple. However, what they soon discover is that the ruler of this small community enforced his rule with a summoned creature from Tibet.

• Mulder picks the names he and Scully use undercover, Rob and Laura Petri. (Scully insists it's pronounced like "the dish" (Petri Dish.)
• Scully also insists she will be picking the names for their next undercover assignment.

Alpha

• Guest Star Andrew J. Robinson as Dr. Detweiler

An Asian dog, called the Wanshang Dhole, thought to be extinct is blamed for several killings. Mulder and Scully to join an obstinate Sheriff, a seemingly eccentric hunter, and a reclusive canine expert to find it. The hunter, though, is actually turning into the dog at night, and is eventually found out and killed by the canine expert.

Trevor

• Guest Star John Diehl as Wilson "Pinker" Rawls
• Catherine Dent as June Gurwich

After a prison camp is destroyed by a tornado, an escape inmate is suspected of killing the warden. As the inmate hunts down his old girlfriend, he find out where his child is and tried to take him back. Mulder and Scully set out to find him and discover that he has the ability to pass through solid matter.

Milagro

A series of murders takes place where the heart has been removed from the victims. A writer that lives next door to Mulder is writing a novel about the murders before they actually happen. Scully finds herself confused and drawn to the writer, who has a romantic interest in her.

The Unnatural

• Guest Star Jesse L. Martin as Josh Exley
• M. Emmet Walsh as Arthur Dales
• Written and directed by David Duchovny

Young cop Arthur Dales (the brother of the Arthur Dales who started the X-Files) who, while working in Roswell, New Mexico in 1947, stumbles across a "negro" baseball player that is actually an alien with a love of the game hiding among humans.

• Darren McGavin - who played the first Arthur Dales in two previous episodes, filmed two scenes before illness forced him to step down from the project. M. Emmet Walsh was called in, and the script rewritten, to accept the changes. McGavin's scenes are included on the DVD.

Three of a Kind

• Guest Star Michael McKean as Morris Fletcher
• Signy Coleman as Susanne Modeski

While at a conference in Las Vegas, The Lone Gunmen run into the enigmatic Susanne Modeski. After deceiving Scully into joining them the trio soon find out that Susan's new fiancé is planning to use her new brainwashing drug for political assasinations.

Field Trip

The skeletonized remains of a young couple are found in the fields of North Carolina. When Mulder and Scully go to investigate, they find that a giant fungal life form releases an LSD-like drug into the air with spores, and then slowly digests its victims. Mulder and Scully fall into its trap and are not sure of what is reality and what is fantasy. They are rescued by Assistant Director Skinner with a search party.

Biogenesis

A bizarre rock inscribed with Navajo writing is found in Côte d'Ivoire, and it's discovery is closely followed by the death of the African scientist involved. While its appearance in Washington begins to affect Mulder's mental health, leading him to turn to Agent Fowley for help; a disturbed Scully - determined to disprove the theory that life on Earth began with aliens - heads to New Mexico and finds a dying Albert Hosteen - who has discovered that the rock includes passages from the Bible, and a map of the human genome. While Mulder breaks down in a mental institution, Scully journeys unexpectedly to Africa.

Season 7: 1999-2000

This article contains episode information and plot summaries from the television show The X-Files.

Season seven ran from 1999-2000.

• Main and recurring cast can be found on the main X-Files page.

The Sixth Extinction

Skinner and Michael Kritschgau work desperately to attempt to discover what is wrong with Mulder, who is imprisoned by his own frenetic brain activity, but they are unaware of Agent Fowley's duplicity. Meanwhile, in Africa, Scully and a professor unravel the secrets of the spaceship buried on the Ivory Coast, which may prove that life originated elsewhere, and all religion was based on the Navajo contact with alien life.

The Sixth Extinction II: Amor Fati

Returning to Washington to find Mulder gone, Scully joins Kritschgau and Skinner - who is still being forced into betrayal by Krycek - to find her partner. However, the Cigarette-Smoking Man has taken Mulder to a place where all his problems are gone...or so it seems. And Diana Fowley is forced to make a choice about her loyalties.

Hungry

In a unique episode told from the point-of-view of the "monster", a fast-food employee with unusual cravings becomes the focus of an FBI investigation. The victims appear with no brain and a suction hole in the forehead.

Millennium

• Special Guest Stars Lance Henriksen as Frank Black

Brittany Tiplady as Jordan Black

The head of the Millennium Group, which believes the apocalypse will happen on the new year of 2000, creates zombies for use in the destruction of the world, and Mulder and Scully have to ask the help of criminal profiler Frank Black.

• This episode was a form of closure for Chris Carter's other television series Millennium, which was cancelled in 1999.
• This episode marks the first actual kiss between Mulder and Scully. Their first kiss in "Triangle" was only part of a dream sequence.

Rush

When a school student becomes the prime suspect in the bizarre murder of a police officer, Mulder and Scully are sent to investigate. They discover that the boy and a couple of friends have been playing with the ability to accelerate their movements to a frequency the human eye can't perceive.

The Goldberg Variation

• Guest Starring Willie Garson as Henry Weems

Mulder and Scully meet Henry Weems, who appears to be the luckiest man in the world. But - if he's so lucky - why is he on the run from the mob, and why is everyone around him so unlucky?? Features several Rube Goldberg style scenarios.

Orison

Reverend Orison releases Donnie Pfaster, Scully's former kidnapper, from jail in the hopes of passing judgement on him. What he discovers instead is that he has released pure evil, and it's headed for Scully....

The Amazing Maleeni

• Guest Starring Ricky Jay as Herman and Albert Pinchbeck

The Amazing Maleeni, a small-time magician, performs an amazing feat to impress a heckler - he turns his head 360 degrees. So when he is later found without a head at all, Mulder and Scully arrive on the case and discover an angry ex-con, an unimpressed rival, and Maleeni's twin brother all seem to have something to do with the plan to rob a major bank.

Signs and Wonders

When a small town church is the site of a number of ritualistic-like murders, fingers are pointed to the church of God and Signs and Wonders, a church where the Bible is read literally, and punishment is dealt deftly. But soon the agents realise that the difference between the peaceful religious and the fanatics may not be very much at all.

Sein Und Zeit

While investigating the bizarre disappearance of a young girl from her home, Mulder becomes obsessed with the number of children who have vanished in similar ways. Scully's fears that he is emotionally involved due to his sister's disappearance 27 years earlier are heightened when Mulder's mother dies, apparently of suicide.

Closure

As Mulder is forced to accept that his mother's death was by her own hand, he is led by a man whose son disappeared years earlier to another truth - that his sister may be among the souls taken by 'walk-ins', saving the souls of children doomed to live unhappy lives. Together, they embark on a journey that will reveal to Mulder the truth about his sister's disappearance.

• This is the first of two episodes in this series to use non-diegetic music not composed by Mark Snow. The song is My Weakness by Moby, and features several times throughout the episode, including both the first and final sequences. By coincidence (or perhaps intentionally), both 'My Weakness' and 'The Sky Is Broken' appear consecutively on Moby's album Play, although in reversed order to that in which they appear in the series.

X-Cops

A filming of an episode of COPS gets in the way of the investigation by Mulder and Scully of a monster that feeds on fear. While Mulder embraces the publicity, Scully is not so sure...

The entire episode is filmed like an episode of COPS, and was shot by their cameramen.

First Person Shooter

The Lone Gunmen summon Mulder and Scully to a virtual reality firm when the new game they've helped design is thwarted by a bizarre female computer character whose power is much more than virtual.

• This was the second episode written by William Gibson, the first being Killswitch.

Theef

After a prominent doctor discovers his father-in-law dead, the word 'Theef' written on the wall in blood, Mulder suspects hexcraft may be the source of threats against his family.

En Ami

After a young boy with cancer, whose parents don't believe in medical treatment because it is against God's will, recovers miraculously, Scully is intrigued. What she soon discovers is that his cure is not miraculous, but scientific - the work of the Cigarette-Smoking Man. Eager, if wary, to learn of the truth behind his secrets, Scully agrees to travel with him to get the cure to all mankind's diseases... but the catch is that she can't tell Mulder.

• This episode was written by William B. Davis who plays the Cigarette-Smoking Man.

Chimera

On two separate stakeouts, Mulder and Scully search for elusive killers - Scully in an abandoned warehouse in a dirty neighbourhood, and Mulder in cosy suburbia.

all things

While Mulder is away in England, Scully is led by coincidences, chance, fate and possibly a higher power to a married man whom she had an affair with during medical school, and a look at the life she didn't choose, forcing her to make choices about her future.

• This episode was written and directed by Gillian Anderson who plays Scully.
• This episode is the second of only two featuring non-diegetic music not composed by Mark Snow in the entire series. The song is The Sky Is Broken by Moby, although at one point it is diegetic when Mulder plays it on a boombox.
• In the opening of this episode, while Mulder lays on a bed, Scully is shown putting clothes on and leaving the room, possibly after having sex with him.
• The backstory regarding Scully, Dr. Waterson, and why his daughter hates Scully was originally much more involved and complicated, culminating with the suicide of Waterson's wife after Scully had left medical school. The intended story, which had to be cut for time, is detailed in the commentary track by Gillian Anderson on the season 7 DVD extras.

"In this episode a new character, Dr. Daniel Waterson plays a character that once was involved with Ms. Scully as a teacher and perhaps a lover. The episode revolves around a religious idea that consciousness and time slices make up our existence. The whole episode falls short of the full spanned idea of free will and determinism, however, does contribute a much needed view of Scully's more spiritual side."

Brand X

While protecting a man due to testify against the Morley cigarette company, Skinner is horrified when the witness dies mysteriously. What the agents soon discover is that a new brand of cigarette has a dangerous secret...

Hollywood A.D.

• Guest Starring Harris Yulin as Cardinal O'Fallin
• Garry Shandling as Himself
• Téa Leoni as Herself
• and cameo by Minnie Driver

An entrepreneurial Hollywood producer picks up the idea for a film based on the X-Files, however the agents find that the level of realism in their fictional portrayal is somewhat questionable.

Written and directed by Mulder's alter-ego David Duchovny.

Fight Club

• Guest Starring Kathy Griffin as Betty Templeton/Lulu Pfeiffer

Mulder and Scully cross paths with a pair of doppelgangers whose close proximity yields unlimited mayhem.

Je Souhaite

In Je Souhaite, French for "I wish", Mulder and Scully find a man (Kevin Weisman) and his brother (Will Sasso) who choose three wishes that backfire. The cause of which is an indifferent genie whose willingness to grant wishes belies a deeper motive.

Requiem

Mulder and Scully return to the site of their first investigation together when a series of abductions take place. However Scully's failing health, and Mulder's concern that she is in danger, cause him to take her off the case. Meanwhile, the Smoking Man - on his deathbed - reunites with Marita and Krycek in an attempt to revive the project, unaware that the tables are about to be turned; Scully is stunned by a medical revelation; and Mulder and Skinner take a trip to the woods in Oregon, which ends in tragedy...

Season 8: 2000-2001

This article contains episode information and plot summaries from the television show The X-Files.

Season eight ran from 2000-2001.

• Main and recurring cast can be found at the main X-Files page.

Within

Newly-promoted Deputy Director Kersh assigns pragmatic Agent John Doggett to head up the task force searching for Mulder. Meanwhile, an increasingly defiant Skinner assists Scully as they search for the alien ship, which is systematically removing evidence of alien existence... and is next headed to the deserts of Arizona, and Gibson Praise.

• For the first time, the credits sequence has been changed, featuring some new images and Robert Patrick's name and badge.

Without

At a remote school in the Arizona desert, Doggett, Scully, Gibson and Skinner - as well as a host of students and agents - don't know who to trust as the bounty hunter works among them; and - in a spaceship close by - Mulder is tested on.

Patience

Having been assigned to the X-Files, Doggett joins Scully on a series of gruesome murders where they learn that their investigative techniques are less than similar.

• David Duchovny no longer appears in the credits and some extra images have been added.

Roadrunners

Working alone, Scully pursues a cult that worship a slug-like organism; but in her efforts to save an injured stranger, she discovers she's in over her head.

Invocation

Having been kidnapped for ten years, a little boy mysteriously reappears but hasn't aged one bit. While the case stirs up painful memories for Doggett, suspicion stirs that the boy isn't all he seems.

Redrum

After his wife is murdered, a lawyer tries to clear his name of the crime but the days regress backwards.

Via Negativa

Doggett and Skinner work to avert the murderous spree of a religious cult leader, while Scully takes time off to deal with the early stages of her pregnancy.

Surekill

The fatal shooting of a realtor while alone in a cinderblock jail cell has Doggett hoping motive will yield more than method, but they soon learn that there is more to this case than meets the eye.

Salvage

Doggett and Scully encounter a dead man who is still living - only somewhat changed. What they discover is a man made of metal, enacting vengeance on those he believes created him.

Doggett: What're you saying? Ray Pearce has become some kind of metal man? 'Cause that only happens in the movies, Agent Scully.

Scully: Does it, Agent Doggett?

Badlaa

When a mystic smuggles himself out of India, Scully and Doggett give chase as his murderous spree starts terrorising two families in suburban Washington, D.C. But Scully soon comes upon a crisis of faith when she realises how dissimilar her techinques are from Mulder, even as she tries to be the believer.

The Gift

Doggett comes upon an old case about a professed 'soul-eater' that Mulder kept secret from Scully, which he hopes will ultimately prove the truth behind Mulder's abduction

• David Duchovny is listed in the main credits and makes appearances in a few scenes.

Medusa

• Guest Starring Penny Johnson Jerald as Dr. Hellura Lyle

A string of bizarre deaths in the tunnels of the Boston subway system sees Doggett join a team of professionals underground to investigate; while Scully has to defy the train authorities above land, who are determined to get the trains up and running within hours.

Per Manum

When a mysterious man claims his wife was fertilised with an alien baby, and then killed and the baby stolen; Doggett is skeptical, while Scully realises that the woman's story is similar to her own. While Doggett attempts to understand the motives of his friend and government contact Knowle Rohrer, Scully questions her own pregnancy and its conception.

• David Duchovny returns to the main credits, and main cast, with this episode.

This is Not Happening

• Guest Starring Roy Thinnes as Jeremiah Smith

Doggett calls on another agent, Agent Monica Reyes, to assist in the Mulder case, but Scully's fears about finding him come to a head with the sudden recovery of abductees seized at the same time.

This episode marks the first appearance of Annabeth Gish as Monica Reyes.

DeadAlive

Three months after Mulder's funeral, a former abductee awakens from the dead and Scully pins her hopes on resurrecting her partner; while Skinner is offered a loathsome deal by Krycek.

Three Words

Mulder secretly conducts his own investigation after a man is gunned down on the White House lawn attempting to inform the President of a planned alien invasion. However, he is soon in over his head as he tries to expose further evidence of colonisation.

• The three words on the note for the President are "Fight the Future"

Empedocles

Agent Reyes enlists Mulder's help investigating a killer's connection to the unsolved murder of Doggett's son but Mulder soon finds himself clashing with Doggett.

Vienen

Mulder and Doggett are asked to investigate several deaths aboard an oil rig, but Mulder is convinced the rig is carrying an alien black oil; meanwhile a very pregnant Scully attempts to protect Mulder in absentia.

Alone

• Guest Starring Jolie Jenkins as Agent Leyla Harrison

With Scully on maternity leave, Doggett is paired with an enthusiastic young agent who knows everything about the X-Files, and her apotheosis of Mulder and Scully leads to him learning a thing or two. But when Harrison and Doggett disappear, Mulder defies orders in an attempt to find them.

Essence

• Guest Starring Frances Fisher as Lizzie Gill

Mulder, Skinner and Doggett come up against the horrible consequences of the Syndicate's pact with the aliens, as a hybrid attempts to erase all evidence of the tests - including Scully's soon-to-be-born baby. The men call on Agent Reyes, and - reluctantly - Alex Krycek to help them.

Existence

Mulder, Doggett and Skinner face off with the alien replicants as they desperately try to expose the conspiracy within the FBI; while Scully goes into labour in a remote location. But Agent Reyes soon learns they may be no safer there.

Season 9: 2001-2002

This article contains episode information and plot summaries from the television show The X-Files.

Season nine ran from 2001-2002.

Main and recurring cast can be found on the main X-Files page.

Nothing Important Happened Today

• Guest Starring Lucy Lawless as Shanon McMahon

Carl Wormus, an EPA official picks up a beautiful woman, Shanon McMahon, in a Baltimore bar. Whilst driving home with her she forces the car off a bridge and then holds Wormus down so he drowns.

Agent Reyes meets up with A.D. Brad Follmer in his office where he hands her two video tapes from the night of the birth of Scully's son, she shows them to Doggett, the evidence has gone. Doggett goes to Mulder's apartment to consult him but finds it empty.

In a water reclamation plant, McMahon drowns a worker there named Roland McFarland.

Doggett goes to Scully to try and find Mulder but she refuses to be drawn into his whereabouts, she urges him to drop the investigation when he refuses she asks him to leave.

Doggett tries to contact some of his old marine friends including McMahon to find out what happened to Knowle Rohrer.

Whilst working in the FBI office someone slips an obituary of Wormus to Reyes, she doesn't see who leaves it.

Meanwhile Scully's baby causes the mobile of his crib to spin of its own accord. This worries her and she contacts Doggett urging him to continue his investigation, he calls her in to an autopsy on Wormus' body. She finds fingerprints from McMahon holding him down on his ankle. After leaving they see McMahon who goes and takes the body before Scully and Reyes are acosted by Follmer who has been ordered to reign in Doggett's investigation by Kersh.

The lone gunmen find that Wormus had been receiving data from Mcfarland the drowned reclamation worker. He breaks into McFarland's office with Skinner finding files on Chloramine but Follmer arrives, Doggett slips into a filtration tank to escape Follmer but is pulled deep under water by McMahon.

Nothing Important Happened Today II

• Guest Starring Lucy Lawless as Sharon McMahon, Cary Elwes at A.D. Brad Follmer and Adam Baldwin as Knowle Rohrer

A captain of a navy ship delivers a communication to Dr. Nordlinger who, upon receipt of the communique orders the captain to return the ship to its base.

Follmer leaves the Water Reclamation facility after failing to spot Doggett, who passes out under water. Sharon McMahon passes air into his lungs keeping him alive.

Back at FBI headquarters Reyes is called into Follmer's office, Follmer warns her to distance herself from Doggett and his investigation of Kersh but Reyes believes Follmer has his own political agenda and walks out.

Back at Doggett's house when he wakes up he finds McMahon there who tells him that she and Knowle Rohrer are products of 50 years of military science to create super-soldiers who cannot be killed. Scully is called to Doggett's house and she tells him the program is to be expanded by adding chloramine a mutation inducing chemical to the water supply.

Back on the ship, the Captain leaves the ship and unsuccessfully attempts to call Carl Wormus the EPA official drowned by McMahon. Back on board the ship he is approached by Knowle Rohrer who informs him he is the new second in command. Rohrer later queries the captain about the vessel's mission. The body of the original second-in-command is then found floating in the water nearby.

Scully examines McMahon and finds he to be physically normal. Reyes is untrusting and tries to find out more about her history, learning she is a DOJ employee and had been contacted by Wormus and McFarland to expose the plans to contaminate the water supply. The lone gunmen intercept a call from the Captain to Wormus telling him to contact the FBI. Rohrer is nearby eavesdropping on the call. The Captain then pulls a gun on the Navy Seals neck demanding that Nordlinger hand over the project's data, he doesn't notice Rohrer creeping up behind him ...

Scully, Reyes and Doggett go to the ship after hearing Reyes' findings. The expect to meet the captain but instead find Rohrer who Doggett shoots repeatedly to no effect. Just as Rohrer is about to kill Doggett he is decapitated by McMahon. Just as McMahon helps Doggett up she is stabbed through the stomach by Rohrer's headless body and they both tumble into the water.

The Agents then go on the ship to find it empty, Reyes and Scully find the decapitated body of the Captain before finding a secret lab where human ova is being altered. Doggett finds a bomb and urges his fellow agents to leave, they narrowly escape the explosion.

Back at FBI headquarters, Dogeet confronts Kersh who was not implicated in the conspiricy. Kersh explains to Doggett he left the piece of evidence that helped Doggett find what he did and it was him who persuaded Mulder to flee.

Under Water we see McMahon's and Rohrer's lifeless bodies, suddenly McMahon's eyes snap open. Scully wakes up suddenly persumabley having this nightmare, she goes back to sleep as the mobile above William's crib starts to move of it's own accord.

Dæmonicus

• Guest Starring James Remar as Josef Kobold

With Scully reassigned to the Quantico Training Academy, Doggett and Reyes investigate their first X-File together — a series of satanic ritual murders - which sees their different investigative techniques working together.

4-D

A vicious murderer threatens Doggett and Reyes and then vanishes, or does he? Doggett is shot and Follmer discovers that Reyes was the shooter, or was she? The only thing certain is that someone is one step ahead of everyone else.

Lord of the Flies

Scully, Reyes and Doggett investigate when a teenager dies while performing a daredevil feat for a cable access show, but his death is soon revealed to be caused by a disturbing family secret. This show includes several references to former Pink Floyd frontman Syd Barrett.

Trust No 1

• Guest Starring Terry O'Quinn as Shadow Man
• Allison Smith as Patti
• Kathryn Joosten as Agent Edie Boal

Scully is hopeful about reuniting with Mulder when a complete stranger offers new information about what drove him into hiding. Yet her trust in the stranger may place Mulder in even more danger.

John Doe

With no knowledge of his identity or his past, Doggett is found wandering a dusty Mexican town. While he struggles to piece together his memory, he finds himself embroiled in a smuggling plot, and - across the border - Reyes and Scully attempt to find him.

Hellbound

Agent Reyes takes the lead while investigating an X-file case, surrounding a man found skinned alive. When she discovers that he had visions of a similar thing, she calls on Scully's expertise to help on the investigation, which pays off when they find a link to 1960 - a link which may be deeper than it seems.

Provenance

• Guest Starring Neal McDonough as Agent Robert Comer
• Alan Dale as Toothpick Man

When rubbings from the spaceship resurface, the FBI hides its investigation from the X-Files. Meanwhile, Scully is forced to take drastic measures when she discovers a threat to William.

Providence

• Guest Starring Neal McDonough as Agent Robert Comer
• Alan Dale as Toothpick Man

Distrustful of both Skinner and Follmer, Scully circumvents the FBI's investigation into the kidnapping and does her own, assisted by Reyes and the Lone Gunmen. Her fears are heightened when she learns Mulder may be dead, and William is kidnapped by the alien cult.

Audrey Pauley

Awakening in a surreal hospital (which a companion believes to be Death's Waiting Room) after being hit by a car, a comatose Agent Reyes struggles to wake herself up before her organ donor card is acted upon. Her only link with the outside world is a possibly autistic woman named Audrey Pauley. Outside, Doggett and Scully begin to suspect that outside forces are conspiring to end her life.

Quotes

Doggett: I was thinking about getting a cat.

Reyes: (laughs) There are cat people, and there are dog people. You're a dog person, John.

Underneath

Doggett is determined to find an error in the DNA evidence that freed the convicted "Screwdriver Killer" who he nearly caught in the act 13 years earlier. But as the case takes several twists, Doggett finds himself at odds with Reyes and Scully as he attempts to prove his theory.

Improbable

• Guest Starring Burt Reynolds as... God

In the race to catch a serial killer, Scully and Reyes find themselves relying on numerology, their powers of deduction, and a mysterious and god-like card-playing stranger. Meanwhile Doggett attempts to liaise with the police on the case, and finds that his time on the X-Files has somewhat changed his opinions.

Scary Monsters

• Guest Starring Jolie Jenkins as Agent Leyla Harrison Leyla Harrison was named after an X-Files fanfic writer, who sadly lost her battle to cancer close to a decade ago.

Agent Harrison takes Reyes and Doggett on a drive into the mountains, after a woman stabs herself repeatedly and her widowed husband refuses to let anyone see their son. When Harrison's young admirer shows up at Scully's door and convinces her to come with him and save them, they discover that monsters under the bed may be more than just the product of a young boy's vivid imagination.

Jump the Shark

• Guest Starring Michael McKean as Morris Fletcher, who was featured in the two part episodes Dreamland I & II.

When Morris Fletcher approaches the agents with information related to the supersoldiers, they turn to the Lone Gunmen. But the Gunmen and Jimmy are already knee-deep in a bio-terrorist's plot to release a deadly toxin, and his links to the mysterious Yves.

• This episode featured Stephen Snedden and Zuleikha Robinson in their roles from the X-Files spin-off The Lone Gunmen, as the idea was to tie up the storylines of that cancelled series, thus killing the popular Lone Gunmen characters.

William

• Guest starring Dan Shor as 2nd ER nurse

Doggett finds a strange disfigured man in the X-Files office, and - on a whim of Scully's - they test his DNA. But the surprising answers they find become even more surprising when William's life is put on the line.

Release

When one of Scully's students displays an inordinate ability to profile serial killers, his insights reopen the murder case of Doggett's son.

Sunshine Days

Doggett, Reyes, Skinner and Scully stumble on to a bizarre murder case where the main suspect is a man with an unusual obsession for The Brady Bunch. Despite their initial differences - both in investigative style and love of The Brady Bunch - the four of them soon learn that the man's telekinetic ability is the ultimate, undeniable proof of an X-File.

The Truth (I and II)

• Guest Starring Alan Dale as Toothpick Man
• William Devane as General Frank Suveg

When Fox Mulder is placed under military arrest, Scully and Skinner immediately travel to Virginia to see him. Mulder has been placed under arrest for breaking into a military bunker - where he accessed information on alien technology - and allegedly killing Knowle Rohrer, Doggett's former army friend-turned-supersoldier.

While Mulder receives mysterious visits from phantoms of his past, Scully and Skinner go to great lengths to get him released, but he is ultimately put on trial - a trial with an outcome seemingly set from the start.

Skinner takes Mulder's defense, while Scully, Reyes, Doggett, Marita Covarrubias, Gibson Praise and Jeffrey Spender take the stand. Although they ultimately prove his case - when Scully discovers that the body is not that of Knowle Rohrer - their testimony is overruled and Mulder is sentenced to death.

With the surprising help of Deputy Director Kersh, the group break him free and Mulder and Scully drive off. Despite being told to get out of the country, Mulder drives instead south to New Mexico. Doggett and Reyes return to find their office emptied, suggesting that the X-Files have been closed down for a third time. Skinner finds himself being called in for a meeting with Kersh and the Toothpick Man and we see him for the last time as the door closes behind him. Gibson warns Doggett and Reyes that Mulder is in danger.

In New Mexico, Scully and Mulder arrive at a pueblo where a dying Cigarette-Smoking Man is hiding out to survive the colonization - an event that will happen on December 22 2012, this corresponds to a significant date in the Mayan Calendar perhaps the end of the world. Outside, Reyes and Doggett face off against Knowle Rohrer, who has been sent to kill Mulder and the Smoking Man. The pueblo is filled with magnetite, which kills Rohrer as he advances on Doggett and Reyes. Switching cars with Mulder and Scully, the agents drive off. The helicopters destroy the pueblo - and the Smoking Man - before giving chase to the wrong car and we last see Doggett and Reyes driving off with them in pursuit.

In a hotel room in New Mexico, Mulder and Scully prepare for bed and talk. Their final words:

SCULLY: You've always said that you want to believe. But believe in what Mulder? If this is the truth that you've been looking for then what is left to believe in?

MULDER: I want to believe that the dead are not lost to us. That they speak to us as part of something greater than us-- greater than any alien force. And if you and I are powerless now, I want to believe that if we listen to what's speaking, it can give us the power to save ourselves.

SCULLY: Then we believe the same thing.

MULDER: Maybe there's hope.

• The last scene mirrors a scene in the pilot where Mulder first opens up to Scully.
• During his testimony, Gibson Praise "outs" The Toothpick Man (Alan Dale) as "not human".

External links

• Inside the X
• X-Files 101