Somebody at one point said something about the fact that I’ve ended up with, or have chosen, these roles where it’s me. . . not necessarily against, but rivalling these [male] characters: the triptych of Mulder, Hannibal and Spector [the killer from The Fall]. Hurwitz, Matt; Knowles, Chris (2008). The Complete X-Files. San Rafael, CA: Insight Editions. ISBN 9781933784724.

Special Agent Scully is a foil for Mulder in this regard. As a medical doctor and natural skeptic, Scully approaches cases with complete detachment, even when Mulder, despite his considerable training, loses his objectivity. [6] She is partnered with Mulder initially so that she can debunk Mulder's nonconforming theories, often supplying logical, scientific explanations for the cases' apparently unexplainable phenomena. Although she is frequently able to offer scientific alternatives to Mulder's deductions, she is rarely able to refute them completely. Over the course of the series, she becomes increasingly dissatisfied with her own ability to approach the cases scientifically. [7] After Mulder's abduction at the hands of aliens in the seventh season finale " Requiem", Scully becomes a "reluctant believer" who manages to explain the paranormal with science. [8] Brownfield, Paul (August 28, 1999). " Exploring the Unknown: 'X-Files' Future". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved December 1, 2012. The episode time/location stamps and end titles use ITC American Typewriter. This appears to be consistent across SD versions of Season 1–9. Beyond good and evil: Prelude to a philosophy of the future (1886). Trans. Walter Kaufmann. New York: Vintage Books. Greatest Sci-fi TV Shows". Entertainment Weekly. September 30, 2009. Archived from the original on April 2, 2015 . Retrieved October 4, 2009.a b c d e f g h i Manners, Kim (2002). "Audio Commentary for "The Truth" ". The X-Files: The Complete Ninth Season DVD. 20th Century Fox Home Entertainment. Walter Skinner is portrayed by Mitch Pileggi (season 9–11; also starring seasons 3–8; recurring season 2; guest season 1):

Crang, M.A. (2015). Denying the Truth: Revisiting The X-Files after 9/11. Createspace. p.152. ISBN 978-1517009038. Dan Goldwasser (May 30, 2008). "Mark Snow Scores The X-Files: I Want to Believe". ScoringSessions.com . Retrieved July 27, 2009. That I find myself in those situations, those roles. I mean, Mulder’s not really a predator, we’re not in that dance, but there’s tension. Various forms of both intellectual and sexual tension. X' Marks What's Hot: With a Quirky Sense of Humor and a Generous Helping of the Paranormal, Fox's 'X-Files' Slyly Alters the Time-Tested Recipe for Mystery-Solving". Entertainment Weekly. January 21, 1994. Archived from the original on September 24, 2014 . Retrieved April 17, 2020. Fraga, Erica (2010). LAX-Files: Behind the Scenes with the Los Angeles Cast and Crew. CreateSpace. ISBN 978-1451503418.a b c Weinbloom, Elizabeth (June 2, 2002). " 'The X-Files'; A Botched Romance". The New York Times . Retrieved July 27, 2009. Skinner takes Mulder's defense, while Scully, Doggett, Monica Reyes ( Annabeth Gish), Marita Covarrubias ( Laurie Holden), Gibson Praise (Jeff Gulka) and Jeffrey Spender ( Chris Owens) testify on Mulder's behalf. The prosecution presents Rohrer's body as evidence against Mulder. Aware that Rohrer is a seemingly-invincible "Super Soldier", Scully performs a medical examination and proves that the body is not that of Rohrer. Despite this, the evidence is rejected, given that the autopsy was not authorized, and the defense is overruled. Mulder is sentenced to death for the murder of a military officer. Later, Doggett, Skinner, Reyes, and Scully help Mulder escape, with the unexpected help of Kersh who decided he should have let Mulder go in the first place. Despite being advised to immediately leave the continent via Canada, Mulder instead takes Scully to New Mexico. On their way, Mulder receives a visit by three additional ghosts: The Lone Gunmen, who advise him to flee for his life rather than continue his pursuit of the truth. Mulder politely declines. Meanwhile, Doggett and Reyes find their office emptied, suggesting that the X-Files have been closed down for the third time. Mulder is an Oxford-educated FBI Special Agent, a conspiracy theorist, a talented criminal profiler, and an ardent supernaturalist who believes in the existence of extraterrestrials and a government conspiracy to hide the truth regarding them. He works in the X-Files office, which is concerned with cases marked as unsolvable; most involve supernatural/mysterious circumstances. Mulder considers the X-Files so important that he has made their study his life's main purpose. [15] After his abduction by aliens at the end of season seven, his role in the show diminishes and much of his work is taken on by Special Agent John Doggett. [16] He appears in an episode of The Lone Gunmen and in both the 1998 film The X-Files and the 2008 film The X-Files: I Want to Believe. [17] [18] [19]

Goodwin, Liam (August 1, 2008). "David Duchovny Blames Disappointing X-Files Box Office on The Dark Knight". Filmonic.com. Archived from the original on February 23, 2012 . Retrieved December 2, 2012. BARB's multichannel top 10 programmes". Broadcasters' Audience Research Board. Archived from the original on 5 October 2008 . Retrieved 1 August 2009. Note: Information is in the section titled "w/e 23–29 Sept, 2002", listed under Sky1 Dana Scully: Why would I accept defeat? Why would I accept it if you won't? Mulder, you say that you've failed, but you only fail if you give up. And I know you - you can't give up. It's what I saw in you when we first met. It's what made me follow you... why I'd do it all over again.

GIFs

Powers, William (September 17, 1995). " 'X-Files': Signs of Intelligent Life; Cult Favorite Gains a Following Among the Masses". The Washington Post. Archived from the original on November 5, 2013 . Retrieved December 1, 2012. The return of The X-Files to television screens after a 14-year absence was met with justifiable excitement and trepidation. It was an important show, combining Twilight Zone-style fantasy with humour, drama and emotion. The X-Files took its subject matter seriously, and was taken seriously by viewers. Along with Buffy the Vampire Slayer, which aired at roughly the same time, it might well be seen as a precursor to titles like True Blood, Heroes, Game of Thrones or the relaunched Doctor Who. The X-Files was a template for shows that take traditionally wild or outlandish narrative themes and approach them with the kind of sincerity more usually found in “quality” television drama. The very idea that the corrupt and the murky could be centred on something as crazy as a government cover-up of aliens in Area 51 now seems almost quaint. The X-Files is actually a naively optimistic show from a time when America hadn’t been so deeply threatened and could turn its attention inward. Any show that opens every episode by asserting ‘The truth is out there’ is fundamentally pretty optimistic and open-minded. Kim Manners etal. (2006). The X-Files: The Complete Ninth Season (Slim case) (DVD). 20th Century Fox Home Entertainment.

The Cigarette Smoking Man is the series' primary villain. In the ninth-season episodes "William" and "The Truth", it is suggested that he is Mulder's biological father. [31] [32] In the seventh-season episode " Requiem", he is believed to have been killed after being pushed down a flight of stairs by Alex Krycek until the ninth-season finale " The Truth", in which Mulder and Scully travel through remote New Mexico and reach a pueblo where a "wise man" reputedly lives, who is revealed to be Cigarette Smoking Man. [12] [29] He also appears in the 1998 feature film. [33] Meisler, Andy (1999). Resist or Serve: The Official Guide to The X-Files, Vol. 4. New York City: Harper Entertainment. ISBN 9780061073090.Richmond, Alex. "The Lying Game". Television Without Pity. NBCUniversal. Archived from the original on December 6, 2013 . Retrieved December 3, 2012.