Pilot

The X-Files became a cult phenomenom in its first season, gaining a rabid following strong enough to convince FOX to pick up the show for another year, and to sign the cast and producer Chris Carter to long-term deals. Looking beyond the commercial success and fan base rivaled only by Star Trek's "Trekkers", however, you find a serial drama that really was the most revolutionary show of the 1990's, and one of the most daring of all time. It broke all the rules - it was dark, both visually and emotionally. So dark that at times, especially during the first two seasons, the only lighting was that of flashlights held by the lead actors. It avoided stereotyping and the "sex sells" mentality of most mainstream shows (i.e. NYPD Blue). It had an incredibly strong female role model in Gillian Anderson's character of Dana Scully. It found an enemy where Hollywood had failed - instead of looking overseas and creating further false impressions of foreign nations, it pointed the finger at domestic governments. Big Brother, if you will, was back. To steal one of the show's catch phrases, the decade became the "Trust No One 90's", especially not your own government. Given the state of politics today, the show was probably right.

With an eighth season on the way, FOX has decided to issue the entire show on DVD. Season one is really the introductory year. Stars David Duchovney and Gillian Anderson look young, unsure of themselves, yet the chemistry is there. The seeds for future storylines are planted. While seasons two and five (leading up to the first feature film, with a potential of more to come) are probably the best, fans and potential fans alike should consider this boxset despite its somewhat hefty pricetag. It is a true television masterpiece.

The pilot episode is fantastic because it establishes the dynamic between Mulder the believer and Scully the skeptic - plus it has a great plot with an alien abduction mystery. Gillian and David already have great chemistry. They're so young here! And the 90s fashion is kind of hilarious.

It's a very quotable episode too: "Nobody down here but the FBI's most unwanted!" "Do you believe in the existence of extraterrestrials?" "We lost nine minutes!" "Time can't just disappear! It's a universal invariant!" "Not in this zip code!" "Agent Mulder believes we are not alone." and so on.

My only complaint is that the indoor scenes look like they were filmed in the dark. Overall it's one of my favorite episodes.

It's difficult to judge the pilot episode of a TV show, especially if the show is successful in being "picked up" by its producer. Pilot episodes for TV shows such as Buffy the Vampire Slayer aren't exactly great pieces of television, but it's hard to place damning on the episode if it achieves what it sets out to do. Fortunately there's no such confusion with the Pilot of The X-Files; simply put it is great television. Before reaching the complexities of the mythology in seasons 2-6, or the contrived story lines of seasons 8-9, we must remember that there was a time when The X-Files dealt with simple stories about little green men. The very first X-Files episode was one of these instances. The Pilot focuses less on plot and more on developing the show's two main protagonists; the recusant and open-minded Fox Mulder and the grounded and skeptical Dana Scully. Character development in the Pilot is fantastic; the show immediately let's us into the minds of our lead characters. Aside from excellent character work, the episode boasts intelligent dialogue and a storyline that intrigues and disturbs the viewer to the dying moments.

This episode sets the tone for a truly groundbreaking series. Character traits are established from the get-go as well as long-running tropes fans will come to love and immediately associate with the show. So many pilot episodes miss the mark in the long run and become known as subpar in comparison with later episodes -- but not here. This episode stood the test of time for the full run of the show and the time after.

Mulder and Scully meets each other for the first time. Scully is in her own words sent to debunk the X-Files, Mulder's current self-imposed assignment, while he's under the impression that she's sent to spy on him. Their first collaborative assignment is to investigate a series of mystical deaths where the victims have some strange marks on their lower back.

This episode shows exactly what's at the center of the X-Files and was an instant turn on that secured at least seven seasons of intensely viewing. Duchovny and Anderson hit it off from go on and this chemistry coupled with the subject of the series is what makes this series such a great success. This episode is also the first time we see the Cigarette Smoking Man, but it's only a forerunner of what is to come.

This episode gets a 9 out of 10.