Pilot

"Agent Mulder. I'm Dana Scully, I've been assigned to work with you." "Oh, really? I was under the impression that you were sent to spy on me." That classic exchange marks the beginning of one of the most intriguing small-screen partnerships of all time, and also of one of the most influential and accomplished genre shows since The Twilight Zone.

The collaboration between Mulder (David Duchovny) and Scully (Gillian Anderson) isn't born out of the best circumstances: as he implies, she has in fact been asked to spy on him. They're both highly qualified FBI agents, but whereas Scully uses her medical abilities to boost her career, Mulder has seemingly thrown away his potential (he's one of the Bureau's best profilers) to pursue his own paranoid projects. He is now in charge of the X-files, i.e. all those unsolved cases which have been dismissed as unexplainable. He, of course, is convinced that there is an explanation for each of them, no matter how extravagant his theories might get. What else to expect from a man whose office (basically an FBI basement) is filled with newspaper articles about the Roswell incident, aliens and whatnot, not to mention a poster with a flying saucer and the phrase "I want to believe" written on it?

The duo's first assignment is classic X-Files: a series of bizarre teenage deaths in a small-town community. All the bodies present two unidentified pink marks, and when the exhumation of one of the corpses reveals there's more to the case than meets the eye, it's no wonder Mulder asks Scully: "Do you believe in the existence of extraterrestrials?" Meanwhile, back in Washington D.C., the mysterious Cigarette-Smoking Man (William B. Davis) might know more about these events than anyone at the Bureau is willing to admit.

This pilot episode is a virtually seamless blend of the two kinds of stories that marked the show over the course of its nine-year run: on the one hand, it's a standalone tale with the main function of introducing the protagonists and the basic structure of the series' narrative - weird case, wild theory, investigation, possible rational solution (or not); on the other, it inserts the first small hints of the program's more complex story lines, the so-called mythology or "mytharc", at the beginning and at the end of the episode (the presence of the Smoking Man is the clearest evidence of this). In doing so, series creator Chris Carter ensures casual viewers might feel compelled to give it another try without the obvious cliffhanger gimmick, while those who pay more attention to details will find enough reasons to follow the slow, gripping unfolding of the conspiracy-style subplot.

Besides, the thriller-like plotting is the only major ongoing story that takes place in the series, or at least in the early seasons: one of the main pleasures of watching Mulder and Scully together, aside from the palpable chemistry between Duchovny and Anderson, has to do with the fact that whatever sexual tension there is between them, they're too busy chasing little green men to respond to those urges. If there has to be a deeper discussion about anything, it will have to do with the everlasting debate: faith or science? This episode, like the show in general, doesn't give a straight answer, and that's just another ingredient that makes The X-Files such an exquisite televised dish.

This episode still stands as one of my favorite TV pilots of all time! Its so good at getting you kntrigued and hooked! I remember watching the entire show after watching this!

What really works in this show is the characters and the premise with the sense of mystery and the exploration of the unknown in search of the truth!

The characters of Mulder and Scully are charesmatic and have great chemistry! The believer and the skeptic! These two are just great characters and the open mind combined with the scientific approach works extremely well!

This show is an all time classic and this pilot really proves it!

Deffinetely worth a watch!

I'll admit, I was late to the party, I must have joined The X Files in about 1997, so I am watching these for the first time.

No wonder this show became the huge, long running hit that it is, the foundations were clearly very strong. This is a fantastic first episode, I can hardly find a single flaw. It explains why Mulder is such a Maverick, why he is the way he is, and why Scully is sceptical, I had no idea she was sent there to throw a spanner in the works.

It's a good story, it's not as wild as some of the later ones, but it has just the right balance of something very strange happening.

Great to see that characters have been there since the start, cigarette smoking man in particular, he's great here, very sinister. Duchovny and Anderson look so young, both look so sweet.

Very enjoyable, it's stood the test of time, 9/10.

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.

Since this is the pilot episode, I'll briefly review the series as a whole.

Before I saw the X-Files, my only exposure to extra-terrestrials was shows like Star Wars and Star Trek. But these were in distant galaxies. It's true that E.T. visited our planet, but he was just a lone visitor who tried to return home as soon as possible. The X-Files dealt with aliens visiting our planet, but with a more sinister purpose in mind. To discover what, how and why they were doing what they were doing was the driving force for this show. What made this show unique though were the characters, especially Mulder and Scully. You knew you were in for something different right from the start when they referred to each other by their last names only. The intelligent and witty dialogue between the two is captivating.

Now, just for the pilot:

It's interesting to note that right away Scully has an uncomfortable reaction to Cigarette Smoking Man(CSM). Maybe she can already sense his evilness.

The music in the pilot is quite different from the rest of the series. It's a little bit corny, actually.

I like how Mulder gets right to work and tests Scully to see what her reaction will be. Mulder continues to challenge her "science" throughout the episode, but she stands firm.

Although she is serious, we see that Scully has a sense of humor when she smiles at Mulder's "plausible" joke. Also, later in the cemetery scene, she smiles and laughs at Mulder at his "outrageous" ideas. Take note, because Scully laughter is quite rare in 'The X-Files'.

In the Pilot, we see the agents for the first and only time on an airplane. Just a little piece of trivia.

Mulder and Scully go to Oregon to investigate some alien abductions. I'll never forget my first impression when I saw that coffin open for the first time. Mulder's excitement for physical evidence of alien existence tempered by Scully's scientific rationalizations for everything they witness help establish the most unique relationship you'll see between two people. The gloomy, rainy surroundings from being shot in the Pacific Northwest make for a unique atmosphere. Put all these things together and you've got a show unlike anything you've ever seen before.

The Pilot is a great start to an unforgettable series.