Take Two: THE X-FILES Season 1 (Part 4)

On Friday, September 10, 1993, Fox debuted THE X-FILES. Now, ahead of the show’s 30th anniversary, Give Me My Remote is looking back at all 11 seasons (and the two feature films) in a new daily series Take Two.

If you’ve read About Last Night, this will be formatted in a similar way: Each episode will get its own subsection/reaction, though in this case there may be slight spoilers or alluding to what comes ahead in the series. In the event a major spoiler is discussed, there will be a warning to be extra safe. Each Take Two will cover approximately 5 episodes and will wrap up the Friday before the show’s 30th birthday.

(I’ll also note how I’m watching the episodes, because some of the streaming platforms have utilized syndicated cuts of this show.)

Today, we’re continuing with season 1!

(These were viewed on the original season 1 DVD set—released back in 2000. The episodes are streaming for free on Freevee or with a Hulu subscription.)

“Young at Heart”:

Admittedly, this is the stretch of episodes that might be the most difficult for me to write about in the entire series. Not because they’re the worst, but because they’re episodes—outside of “Darkness Falls”—that I don’t intentionally rewatch. They’re not awful (none of them would make my top 10 worst list), but they’re just…there.

This episode feels like it’s repeating a lot of personal beats as multiple episodes of season 1 so far: A person from Mulder/Scully’s past comes into play with a case. The case is personal for Mulder/Scully. The person from the past gets hurt/dies. (Poor Reggie. Poor Mulder.)

Ouch to the crack about it being the first time Scully played the target, and Mulder saying he hoped it wouldn’t be the last. I know what he meant (he didn’t want her to be taken out, clearly), but given how much she gets tortured in the future…

 “E.B.E.”:

Truly, how these people trust anyone is a miracle.

“The truth is out there, but so are lies.” – Mulder gets mad when Scully tells him this, but this is VERY important. We’ve seen how quick he is to believe everything, which makes him prime to manipulation. It comes into play here and he’s repeatedly shown what he desperately wants to believe, but it’s just a ruse.

Also, Scully blowing their cover after they’ve snuck onto a top-secret facility is so silly and so dangerous. If you’re going to commit to the bit, go all in. They’re both lucky they weren’t killed (or imprisoned) instantly. At least try to keep the con going as long as possible.

• Okay, and Deep Throat casually mentioning he killed an alien is the weirdest, most surreal flex.)
• Hello to the Lone Gunmen!

“Miracle Man”:

I don’t really love episodes about faith healers, and this one felt like it lasted three hours. (Sorry.)



“Shapes”: 

A fairly predictable episode that leans heavily into the “monster of the week” trope. It’s…fine? Families fighting over land is a tale as old as time; it’s interesting this was deemed the case to be related to the first X-File ever.

“Darkness Falls”:

By far my favorite episode of this batch, and an episode I actually enjoy. (In spite of the extremely cheesy bug effects.) Much like “Ice,” this works because Mulder and Scully are trapped with high stakes/a life-threatening situation, a couple of other memorable actors/characters, in a confined space. And then you add in the external tension of Titus Welliver’s Doug (who is part of the group trying to preserve the forest, which includes traps designed to derail cars—a bad thing when you’re trying to escape a dangerous area) and Jason Beghe’s Larry (a U.S. Forest Service employee), it’s messy.

For some reason, though, I always feel like the episode ends with the group being attacked in the car by the bugs…the real end is a lot more chilling, as Mulder and Scully recover in a facility—with Scully still unconscious when the episode ends—as the government tries to kill the rogue bugs. Seriously, how do Mulder and Scully get up and go to work every day? (Okay, Mulder, I get; this is his entire life. Scully went all in so fast.)

• This show gave me an unnatural love for a) Vancouver and b) rainy forests. It took a couple of work trips up to Vancouver before I had my first set visit in a forest—RIP to THE SECRET CIRCLE—but it was worth the wait. (Highly recommend Vancouver, by the way. A fantastic place to visit, rain or shine.)
• Yes, it’s decades before they would inhabit the roles, but it’s a little funny to see Bosch and Voight fight.

What did you think of these THE X-FILES episodes?

RELATED:

• Take Two: THE X-FILES Season 1 (Part 3)
• Take Two: THE X-FILES Season 1 (Part 2)
• Take Two: THE X-FILES Season 1 (Part 1)
• THE X-FILES: Chris Carter Says Ryan Coogler is Developing a New Version with a ‘Diverse Cast’
• Gillian Anderson Plays THE X-FILES Trivia on JIMMY KIMMEL LIVE
• Fox Developing An Animated THE X-FILES Spinoff
• THE X-FILES Cast and Crew Recreate the Theme Song for Charity
• THE X-FILES: Twenty Years Later, ‘How the Ghosts Stole Christmas’ Is Still a Gift
• THE X-FILES’ 20th Anniversary: ALIAS and FRINGE Boss Jeff Pinkner Talks About Its Influence on His Work
• THE X-FILES’ 20th Anniversary: BONES Creator Hart Hanson Talks About Its Influence on His Work

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