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|DirectedBy=[[R.W. Goodwin]]
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Revision as of 12:19, 21 September 2011

The X-Files Season 1
Season 1
Region 1 DVD cover art
No. of episodes24
Release
Original networkFox
Original releaseSeptember 10, 1993 –
May 13, 1994
Season chronology
Next →
Season 2
List of episodes

The first season of the science fiction television series The X-Files commenced airing on the Fox network in the United States on September 10, 1993 and concluded on the same channel on May 13, 1994 after airing all 24 episodes.

The first season introduced main characters of the series, including Fox Mulder and Dana Scully who were portrayed by David Duchovny and Gillian Anderson respectively, and recurring characters Deep Throat Walter Skinner and The Smoking Man. The season introduced the series' main concept, revolving around the investigation of paranormal or supernatural cases, known as X-Files, by the Federal Bureau of Investigation; it also began to lay the groundwork for the series' overarching mythology.

Initially influenced by Kolchak: The Night Stalker and The Twilight Zone, series creator Chris Carter pitched the idea for the series to Fox twice before it was accepted for production. The season saw the series quickly gaining popularity, with ratings rising steadily throughout its run; and garnered generally positive reviews from critics and the media. It helped to make stars of its two lead roles, and several of its taglines and catchphrases have since become cultural staples.

Production

Development

California native Chris Carter was given the opportunity to produce new shows for the Fox network in the early 1990s. Tired of the comedies he had been working on for Walt Disney Pictures,[1] inspired by a report that 3.7 million Americans may have been abducted by aliens,[2] and recalling memories of Watergate and the 1970s horror series Kolchak: The Night Stalker, Carter came up with the idea for The X-Files and wrote the pilot episode himself in 1992. He initially struggled over the untested concept—executives wanted a love interest for Scully—and casting. The network wanted either a more established or a "taller, leggier, blonder and breastier"[3] actress for Scully than the 24-year-old Gillian Anderson, a theater veteran with minor film experience, who Carter felt was the only choice after auditions.[4][5]

Carter's initial pitch for The X-Files was rejected by Fox executives. He fleshed out the concept and returned a few weeks later, leading to the commission of the pilot. Carter worked with NYPD Blue producer Daniel Sackheim in further developing the pilot, drawing stylistic inspiration from the 1988 documentary The Thin Blue Line, and the English television series Prime Suspect.[6] Inspiration was also taken from Carter's memories of watching Kolchak: The Night Stalker and The Twilight Zone in his youth; as well as from the then-recently released film The Silence of the Lambs, which was the impetus for framing the series around agents from the FBI, in order to provide the characters with a more plausible reason for being involved in each case than Carter believed was present in Kolchak.[7] Carter was also keen on keeping the relationship between the two lead roles strictly platonic, basing their interactions on the characters of Emma Peel (Dianna Rigg) and John Steed (Patrick Macnee) in the series The Avengers.[8][9]

During the early stages of production for the series, Carter founded Ten Thirteen Productions, and began to plan for filming the pilot in Los Angeles. However, unable to find suitable locations for many of the scenes, Ten Thirteen Productions made the decision to "go where the good forests are", and moved production to Vancouver,[10] where the series would remain for the next five seasons, although production would eventually shift to Los Angeles beginning with the sixth season.[11] It was soon realized by the production crew that since so much of the first season would require filming on location, rather than on sound stages, two location managers would be needed, rather than the usual one.[12]

Casting

David Duchovny had worked in Los Angeles three years prior to The X-Files, and at first had wanted to base his acting career around films. But in 1993 his manager, Melanie Green, gave him a script for the pilot episode of series. Green and Duchovny were both convinced it was a good script, so Duchovny auditioned for the lead.[13] When Duchovny was auditioning for the part of Fox Mulder, he made a "terrific" audition, but spoke rather slowly. Chris Carter thought at the beginning of the auditioning for the character, he was a "good judge of character", and thought that Duchovny wasn't rather "bright". So he went and talked to Duchovny and asked him if he could "please" imagine himself as an FBI agent for the "future" week. The casting director of the show was very positive towards him. According to Carter, Duchovny turned out to be one of the best-read people he knew.[14] carter recalls being contractually obliged to provide Fox with a choice of two actors for the role; however, he was confident Duchovny was the right choice from the outset.[15] After getting the role, Duchovny thought the show wouldn't last for long or that it wouldn't make much impact.[16]

Gillian Anderson was cast due to insistence from Carter that she would fit the role perfectly; however, Fox executives had wanted a more glamorous "bombshell" for the part, hoping that this would lead to the series involving a romantic element. This led Carter to insist that he did not want the roles of Mulder and Scully to become romantically involved, citing the relationship between the lead roles in Moonlighting as an example to avoid.[17] Anderson called her early work on the show "a complete learning experience for me – the pilot was only the second time I'd been in front of a camera".[18]

The series also introduced the character of Walter Skinner, played by Mitch Pileggi, who would go on to become a recurring, and later, main character in the show. The character had been conceived as playing against the stereotypical bureaucratic "paper-pusher", being instead someone more "quietly dynamic".[19] Actor Mitch Pileggi had auditioned unsuccessfully for several other parts on the series before being cast as Skinner. At first, the fact that he was asked back to audition for the role had puzzled him, until he discovered the reason he had not cast for the previous parts—Chris Carter had been unable to imagine Pileggi as any of those characters, due to the fact that the actor had been shaving his head. When Pileggi attended the audition for Walter Skinner, he had been in a grumpy mood and had allowed his small amount of hair to grow back. Pileggi's attitude fit well with the character of Skinner, causing Carter to assume that the actor was only pretending to be grumpy. After successfully auditioning for the role, Pileggi thought he had been lucky that he had not been cast in one of the earlier roles, as he believed he would have appeared in only a single episode and would have missed the opportunity to play the recurring role of Walter Skinner.[20]

Glen Morgan and James Wong's early influence on The X-Files mythology led to their introduction of popular secondary characters who would continue for years in episodes written by others, such as the Scully family—Dana's father William (Don S. Davis), mother Margaret (Sheila Larken) and sister Melissa (Melinda McGraw)—as well as conspiracy-buff trio The Lone Gunmen.[21]

Writing

Initially, there was no certainty as to how long the series would go on for,[22] and as a result there was no long-term plan in the beginning to guide its writers.[23] Although the initial impetus for the show was based on alien abduction lore,[24] the crew believed that the series would not be able to maintain its momentum for long if it did not branch out into different plot ideas.[25] The show's first season thus featured numerous standalone stories involving monsters, and also diverse alien or governmental cover-ups, often with no apparent connection to each other—such as the Arctic space worms in "Ice", and the conspiracy of genetically engineered twins in "Eve." Carter himself wrote "Space", an intended bottle episode about the manifestation of an alien "ghost" in the NASA space shuttle program, which was subject to cost overruns and became the most expensive of the first season.[26]

By the end of the first season, Carter and his staff had come up with many of the general concepts of the mythology that would last throughout all nine seasons. The first season introduced the series' primary antagonist, The Smoking Man,[27] and gave early insight into the disappearance of Mulder's sister Samantha, whose abduction provided one of the main plot threads of the series as a whole.[28] The emergent mythology was further solidifed in the Carter-penned, Edgar Award-nominated season finale "The Erlenmeyer Flask".[29] The episode was written in early 1994 before it was known whether or not the series would be renewed for a second season, and featured the closure of the X-Files unit and the reassignment of Fox Mulder and Dana Scully to new jobs within the FBI. The finale was the first episode directed by R. W. Goodwin, who had served as producer for the series.[23]

Broadcast and reception

From the outset, viewing figures for the series were good, with the initial broadcast of "Pilot" being watched by 7.4 million households, which constituted 15 percent of the viewing audience at the time.[30] The series was broadcast directly after episodes of The Adventures of Brisco County, Jr., and saw a decline in viewing figures when that series began to falter; however, the numbers began to rise steadily again, reaching a peak for the season with "The Erlenmeyer Flask",[31] which was viewed by 8.3 million households, which was 16 percent of the available audience.[30]

Reviews for the first season were mostly positive,[32] with the series being described as "the most paranoid, subversive show on TV",[33] and the writing being called "fresh without being self-conscious, and the characters are involving. Series kicks off with drive and imagination, both innovative in recent TV".[34] The season as a whole currently holds a 100% rating on review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, based on eleven reviews.[35] Several episodes were widely praised, including "Squeeze", which has been called "profoundly creepy";[36] the "taut and briskly paced" Arctic-set "Ice";[36] and the "remarkably chilling" Scully-centred episode "Beyond the Sea".[37]

However, not all episodes of the season were as well-received. Despite the costly production of "Space", the episode was derided as "decidedly unscary" and ""a little tasteless" in its treatment of the Challenger disaster.[38] "The Jersey Devil" was described as "pretty silly";[39] whilst the plots for "Shadows", "Born Again" and "Roland" were panned for being much too similar to each other.[40][41]

Cast

Main cast

Recurring characters

2

Crew

Producers

3

Writers

3

Directors

3

Episodes

See also: List of The X-Files episodes
№ # Title Directed by Written by Original air date Production
code 		US viewers
(millions)
11"Pilot"**Robert MandelChris CarterSeptember 10, 1993 (1993-09-10)1X797.41[30]
22"Deep Throat"**Daniel SackheimChris CarterSeptember 17, 1993 (1993-09-17)1X016.87[30]
33"Squeeze"Harry LongstreetGlen Morgan & James WongSeptember 24, 1993 (1993-09-24)1X026.78[30]
44"Conduit"Daniel SackheimAlex Gansa & Howard GordonOctober 1, 1993 (1993-10-01)1X035.93[30]
55"The Jersey Devil"Joe NapolitanoChris CarterOctober 8, 1993 (1993-10-08)1X046.21[30]
66"Shadows"Michael KatlemanGlen Morgan & James WongOctober 22, 1993 (1993-10-22)1X055.55[30]
77"Ghost in the Machine"Jerrold FreedmanAlex Gansa & Howard GordonOctober 29, 1993 (1993-10-29)1X065.55[30]
88"Ice"David NutterGlen Morgan & James WongNovember 5, 1993 (1993-11-05)1X076.21[30]
99"Space"William GrahamChris CarterNovember 12, 1993 (1993-11-12)1X086.12[30]
1010"Fallen Angel"**Larry ShawHoward Gordon & Alex GansaNovember 19, 1993 (1993-11-19)1X095.08[30]
1111"Eve"Fred GerberKenneth Biller & Chris BrancatoDecember 10, 1993 (1993-12-10)1X106.40[30]
1212"Fire"Larry ShawChris CarterDecember 17, 1993 (1993-12-17)1X116.40[30]
1313"Beyond the Sea"David NutterGlen Morgan & James WongJanuary 7, 1994 (1994-01-07)1X126.21[30]
1414"Gender Bender"Rob BowmanLarry Barber & Paul BarberJanuary 21, 1994 (1994-01-21)1X137.78[30]
1515"Lazarus"David NutterAlex Gansa & Howard GordonFebruary 4, 1994 (1994-02-04)1X147.15[30]
1616"Young at Heart"Michael LangeScott Kaufer and Chris CarterFebruary 11, 1994 (1994-02-11)1X156.72[30]
1717"E.B.E."**William GrahamGlen Morgan & James WongFebruary 18, 1994 (1994-02-18)1X165.84[30]
1818"Miracle Man"Michael LangeChris Carter & Howard GordonMarch 18, 1994 (1994-03-18)1X177.06[30]
1919"Shapes"David NutterMarilyn OsbornApril 1, 1994 (1994-04-01)1X187.15[30]
2020"Darkness Falls"Joe NapolitanoChris CarterApril 15, 1994 (1994-04-15)1X197.53[30]
2121"Tooms"David NutterGlen Morgan & James WongApril 22, 1994 (1994-04-22)1X208.10[30]
2222"Born Again"Jerrold FreedmanHoward Gordon & Alex GansaApril 29, 1994 (1994-04-29)1X217.72[30]
2323"Roland"David NutterChris RuppenthalMay 6, 1994 (1994-05-06)1X227.44[30]
2424"The Erlenmeyer Flask"**R.W. GoodwinChris CarterMay 13, 1994 (1994-05-13)1X238.80[30]

Footnotes

  1. ^ Edwards, p.9
  2. ^ Apello, Tim (March 18, 1993). "X Appeal: 'The X-Files' Builds a Cult Following by Following the Occult". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved September 13, 2011.
  3. ^ Maher, Kevin (March 29, 2007). "Interview with Gillian Anderson". The Times. Retrieved September 13, 2011. {{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  4. ^ Lowry, pp.15–16
  5. ^ Ryan, Maureen (January 19, 2006). "Interview with Gillian Anderson". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved June 29, 2009.
  6. ^ Edwards, p.13
  7. ^ Lowry, pp.10–12
  8. ^ Lovece, pp.3–4
  9. ^ Edwards, p.12
  10. ^ Lowry, p.17
  11. ^ Meisler, pp. 18–19
  12. ^ Gradnitzer and Pittson, p.16
  13. ^ Lowry, p.54
  14. ^ Carter, Chris. "Casting Mulder". BBC News. Retrieved July 12, 2009.
  15. ^ Edwards, p.19
  16. ^ Lovece, p.16
  17. ^ Lowry, pp.15–17
  18. ^ "X APPEAL: 'THE X-FILES' BUILDS A CULT FOLLOWING BY FOLLOWING THE OCCULT". Entertainment Weekly. March 18, 1994. Retrieved September 13, 2011.
  19. ^ Lovece, p.26
  20. ^ Lowry, p.71
  21. ^ Stark, Jeff (April 13, 2001). "Interview with Chris Carter". Salon.com. Retrieved June 29, 2009.
  22. ^ Lowry, p.21
  23. ^ a b Mat Beck, Chris Carter, Howard Gordon, Dean Haglund, David Nutter, Paul Rawbin, Daniel Sackheim, Mark Snow. The Truth About Season One (DVD). Fox.
  24. ^ Edwards, pp.11–12
  25. ^ Chris Carter (narrator). Chris Carter Speaks about Season One Episodes: Squeeze (DVD). Fox.
  26. ^ Lowry, pp.120–122
  27. ^ Lowry, pp.267–268
  28. ^ Bush, p.43
  29. ^ Lowry, p.157
  30. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z Lowry, p.248
  31. ^ Lowry, pp.19–21
  32. ^ Lowry, pp.251–252
  33. ^ "Alien Nation: FBI Agents Battle Unearthly Boogeymen in The X-Files". Entertainment Weekly. October 8, 1993. Retrieved September 13, 2011.
  34. ^ Scott, Tony (September 10, 1993). "The X-Files Fri". Variety. Retrieved July 27, 2009. {{cite news}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  35. ^ "X-Files - The Complete First Season". Rotten Tomatoes. Retrieved September 13, 2011.
  36. ^ a b "X Cyclopedia: The Ultimate Episode Guide, Season 1". Entertainment Weekly. November 29, 1996. Retrieved July 7, 2011. {{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  37. ^ "A Look Back on Some of the Best Stand-Alone Episodes From The X-Files Series", The Vancouver Sun, CanWest MediaWorks Publications Inc., July 25, 2008, retrieved September 13, 2011
  38. ^ Phipps, Keith (July 5, 2008). ""Ghost In The Machine" / "Ice" / "Space" | The X-Files/Millennium | TV Club | TV | The A.V. Club". The A.V. Club. Retrieved July 18, 2011. {{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  39. ^ Phipps, Keith (June 27, 2008). ""Conduit" / "The Jersey Devil" / "Shadows" | The X-Files/Millennium | TV Club | TV | The A.V. Club". The A.V. Club. Retrieved July 18, 2011. {{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  40. ^ Handlen, Zack (August 8, 2008). ""Born Again/Roland/The Erlenmeyer Flask" | The X-Files/Millennium | TV Club | TV | The A.V. Club". The A.V. Club. Retrieved August 13, 2011. {{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  41. ^ Handlen, Zack (August 8, 2008). ""Born Again/Roland/The Erlenmeyer Flask" | The X-Files/Millennium | TV Club | TV | The A.V. Club". The A.V. Club. Retrieved August 17, 2011. {{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)

References

  • Bush, Michelle (2008). Myth-X. Lulu. ISBN 1435746880.
  • Edwards, Ted (1996). X-Files Confidential. Little, Brown and Company. ISBN 0316218081.
  • Gradnitzer, Louisa; Pittson, Todd (1999). X Marks the Spot: On Location with The X-Files. Arsenal Pulp Press. ISBN 1551520664.
  • Lovece, Frank (1996). The X-Files Declassified. Citadel Press. ISBN 080651745X.
  • Lowry, Brian (1995). The Truth is Out There: The Official Guide to the X-Files. Harper Prism. ISBN 0061053309.
  • Meisler, Andy (2000). The End and the Beginning: The Official Guide to the X-Files Volume 5. Harper Prism. ISBN 0061075957.
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