- The X-Files (season 5)
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The X-Files Season 5
Region 1 DVD cover artCountry of origin United States No. of episodes 20 Broadcast Original channel Fox Original run November 2, 1997 – May 17, 1998 Season chronology ← Previous
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Season 6Season five of the television show The X-Files began airing on the Fox Broadcasting Network from November 2, 1997, concluding on May 17, 1998, with a total of 20 episodes.
Contents
Reception
During this season, The X-Files was FOX's highest rated program. It finished the season at #11 with an average of 17.1 million viewers per episode. It was one of three FOX network shows to rank in the Nielsen Top 20 (the other two being King of the Hill and The Simpsons, all three of which aired on FOX's Sunday night line-up).
Production
Although the X-Files feature film was primarily shot in the hiatus between seasons 4 and 5, the need for several reshoots led to both Gillian Anderson and David Duchovny being absent in places throughout the season - for instance, the episodes "Unusual Suspects" and "Travelers" do not feature Anderson's character Dana Scully at all; while the episodes "Chinga" and "Christmas Carol" feature minimal appearances by Duchovny's character Fox Mulder.[1]
This was also the last season of The X-Files to be filmed in Vancouver, British Columbia - after this, production was shifted to Los Angeles for the sixth season and beyond, although The X-Files: I Want to Believe was once more filmed in Vancouver.
Cast
Main cast
- David Duchovny as Special Agent Fox Mulder
- Gillian Anderson as Special Agent Dana Scully (Does not appear in "Unusual Suspects" and "Travelers")
Recurring cast
Also Starring
- Mitch Pileggi as Deputy Director Walter Skinner (8 episodes)
- Nicholas Lea as Alex Krycek (3 episodes)
- William B. Davis as Cigarette Smoking Man (4 episodes)
Guest Starring
- Tom Braidwood as Melvin Frohike (6 episodes)
- Bruce Harwood as John Fitzgerald Byers (5 episodes)
- Dean Haglund as Richard Langly (5 episodes)
- Chris Owens as Jeffrey Spender (3 episodes)
- John Neville as Well-Manicured Man (3 episodes)
- Don S. Williams as First Elder (3 episodes)
- John Moore as Third Elder (3 episodes)
- Laurie Holden as Marita Covarrubias (2 episodes)
- Veronica Cartwright as Cassandra Spender (2 episodes)
- Sheila Larken as Margaret Scully (2 episodes)
- Pat Skipper as Bill Scully (2 episodes)
- John Finn as Michael Kritschgau (2 episodes)
- George Murdock as Second Elder (2 episodes)
- Charles Cioffi as Scott Blevins (2 episodes)
- Mimi Rogers as Diana Fowley (1 episode)
- Brian Thompson as The Bounty Hunter (1 episode)
- Dean Aylesworth as Bill Mulder (1 episode)
- Jeff Gulka as Gibson Praise (1 episode)
- Glenn Morshower as Aaron Starkey (1 episode)
Episodes
Episodes marked with an asterisk (*) are part of the series' mytharc. Episodes with a double asterisk (**) are part of the series' Alien Mythology.
See also: List of The X-Files episodes№ # Title Directed by Written by Original air date Production
codeU.S. viewers
(millions)98 1 "Redux"** R. W. Goodwin Chris Carter November 2, 1997 5X02 27.34[2] Scully helps Mulder fake his death, but comes under intense scrutiny; Skinner is suspected as the traitor inside the FBI; and Mulder breaks into the Department of Defense in a desperate bid to save Scully, but while doing so he finds himself facing the truth about the aliens he has been chasing. 99 2 "Redux II"** Kim Manners Chris Carter November 9, 1997 5X03 24.80[2] While Scully lies on her deathbed; the Smoking Man makes an important decision in helping Mulder. But even as events come to a climax, Mulder finds his belief in his crusade has all but collapsed. 100 3 "Unusual Suspects"* Kim Manners Vince Gilligan November 16, 1997 5X01 21.72[2] The origins of the Lone Gunmen are explored. In 1989, two salesmen and a federal employee join forces when they meet Susanne Modeski, a woman who claims that she is being pursued by her violent ex-boyfriend, an FBI agent named Fox Mulder. We learn how agent Mulder came to meet three friendly and familiar faces. 101 4 "Detour" Brett Dowler Frank Spotnitz November 23, 1997 5X04 22.88[2] On the way to an FBI convention in Florida, Mulder and Scully stop to help in the investigation of the mysterious disappearance of three people in the woods, where a pair of invisible humanoids lurk. 102 5 "The Post-Modern Prometheus" Chris Carter Chris Carter November 30, 1997 5X06 18.68[2] Filmed in black-and-white, The Post-Modern Prometheus chronicles Mulder and Scully’s investigation when a letter from a single mother leads them to a small mid-Western town where a modern-day version of Frankenstein's monster lurks, Jerry Springer is an obsession, and Cher plays a significant part. 103 6 "Christmas Carol"* Peter Markle Vince Gilligan & John Shiban & Frank Spotnitz December 7, 1997 5X05 20.91[2] Home for the holidays, Scully is haunted by dreams which hint at a strange connection to a murdered woman’s daughter. 104 7 "Emily"* Kim Manners Vince Gilligan & John Shiban & Frank Spotnitz December 14, 1997 5X07 20.94[2] Scully fights to protect her daughter’s life, while Mulder discovers her true origins. 105 8 "Kitsunegari" Daniel Sackheim Vince Gilligan & Tim Minear January 4, 1998 5X08 19.75[2] When ‘Pusher’ Modell escapes from prison, Mulder and Scully race to catch him before he can take revenge against his favorite target — Agent Mulder. 106 9 "Schizogeny" Ralph Hemecker Jessica Scott & Mike Wollaeger January 11, 1998 5X09 21.37[2] When a teenager is suspected of murdering his father, Mulder and Scully become convinced that a greater evil may be lurking in the community. 107 10 "Chinga" Kim Manners Stephen King & Chris Carter February 8, 1998 5X10 21.33[2] Scully takes a vacation to Maine, where she encounters a bizarre case where the victims appear to have inflicted wounds upon themselves — apparently at the behest of a strange young girl. This episode was co-written by famous horror writer Stephen King. It carries the alternate title of "Bunghoney" in some sources. 108 11 "Kill Switch" Rob Bowman William Gibson & Tom Maddox February 15, 1998 5X11 18.04[2] While investigating the strange circumstances of the death of a reclusive computer genius rumored to have been researching artificial intelligence, Mulder and Scully become targets of an unlikely killer capable of the worst kind of torture. The episode was co-written by cyberpunk pioneers William Gibson and Tom Maddox. 109 12 "Bad Blood" Cliff Bole Vince Gilligan February 22, 1998 5X12 19.25[2] While investigating bizarre exsanguinations in Texas, Mulder kills a teenage boy whom he "mistakes" for a vampire. Awaiting a meeting with Skinner, Mulder and Scully attempt to get their stories “straight” by relating to each other their differing versions of what happened during their investigation. Gillian Anderson voted this her favorite episode. 110 13 "Patient X"** Kim Manners Chris Carter & Frank Spotnitz March 1, 1998 5X13 20.21[2] Scully forms a bond with Cassandra Spender, a woman who claims to have been abducted by aliens. While Mulder’s disbelief in the alien conspiracy is now questioned, he finds himself with more personal threats at the FBI. 111 14 "The Red and the Black"** Chris Carter Chris Carter & Frank Spotnitz March 8, 1998 5X14 20.00[2] With Cassandra Spender missing, and her son Jeffrey angrily attempting to push his way up in the FBI, Mulder has Scully put under hypnosis to learn the truth. The Syndicate, meanwhile, quicken their tests for the alien vaccine, sacrificing their own to do so. 112 15 "Travelers" William A. Graham John Shiban & Frank Spotnitz March 29, 1998 5X15 15.06[2] In 1990, a bizarre murder leads young agent Fox Mulder to question a former FBI Agent who investigated one of the first X-Files dating back to the 1950s — a case which may have involved Mulder’s father. 113 16 "Mind's Eye" Kim Manners Tim Minear April 19, 1998 5X16 16.53[2] Agents Mulder and Scully investigate a murder that seems to have been committed by a blind woman, but Mulder suspects that her involvement is not what it seems. Guest starring Lili Taylor and Blu Mankuma. 114 17 "All Souls" Allen Coulter Teleplay by: Frank Spotnitz & John Shiban
Story by: Billy Brown & Dan AngelApril 26, 1998 5X17 13.44[2] The unexplained death of a young handicapped girl prompts Father McCue to ask Scully for her help, but her investigation leads her to a mystery she’s afraid to understand. 115 18 "The Pine Bluff Variant" Rob Bowman John Shiban May 3, 1998 5X18 18.24[2] Scully begins to grow suspicious of Mulder, whose increasingly strange behaviour suggests he may be serving another agenda. Guest starring Daniel von Bargen and Sam Anderson. 116 19 "Folie a Deux" Kim Manners Vince Gilligan May 10, 1998 5X19 17.63[2] Mulder and Scully encounter a delusional man who believes his boss may be a monster — and is willing to pay any price to prove it. 117 20 "The End"** R. W. Goodwin Chris Carter May 17, 1998 5X20 18.80[2] Investigating the murder of a chess player, Mulder and Scully meet a boy who may be the embodiment of everything in the X-Files. This episode marks the first appearance of Diana Fowley (Mimi Rogers) References
- ^ Carter, Chris, Gilligan, Vince, Shiban, John, Haglund, Dean, Manners, Kim, Bowman, Rob, Spotnitz, Frank, Cartwright, Veronica, Rabwin, Paul, Rogers, Mimi and Goodwin, R.W. "Bob" (1998). The Truth Behind Season 5 (DVD). Fox Home Entertainment.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t "The X-Files Compilation: Nielsen Ratings". Compilation. http://x-files.host.sk/nielsens.php. Retrieved February 15, 2011.
External links
- Season 5 on The X-Files Wiki, an external wiki
- Season 5 at Rotten Tomatoes
- Season 5 at AllRovi
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