The X-Files (season 4)

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The X-Files
Season 4
The X-Files Season 4.jpg
DVD cover
Starring
David Duchovny
Gillian Anderson
Country of origin United States
No. of episodes 24
Release
Original network Fox
Original release October 4, 1996 –
May 18, 1997
Season chronology
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Season 3Next →
Season 5
List of episodes
The fourth season of the American science fiction television series The X-Files
commenced airing on the Fox network in the United States on October 4, 1996,
concluding on the same channel on May 18, 1997, and contained 24 episodes.
Following the filming and airing of the season, production began on The X-Files
feature film, which was released in 1998 following the show's fifth season.

The fourth season of the series focuses heavily on FBI federal agents Fox Mulder's
(David Duchovny) and his partner Dana Scully's (Gillian Anderson) investigation of
an alien conspiracy, which is protected by the mysterious Syndicate. Midway through
the season, Scully is diagnosed with terminal cancer, a result of her previous
abduction, and Mulder begins to lose his faith in the idea of extraterrestrials.
Debuting with high viewing figures and ranking as the twentieth most watched
television series during the 1996–97 television year in the United States, the
season was a success, with figures averaging around 20 million viewers an episode.
This made it, at the time, the highest rated season of The X-Files to air. The
season's twelfth episode, "Leonard Betts", was chosen as the Fox lead-out program
following Super Bowl XXXI, and was viewed by 29.1 million viewers, making it the
highest-rated episode in the series' run. Critical reception from television
critics was mostly positive.

Contents
1 Plot overview
2 Production
2.1 Writing
2.2 Filming
2.3 Crew
3 Cast
3.1 Main cast
3.2 Recurring cast
3.2.1 Also starring
3.2.2 Guest starring
4 Episodes
5 Reception
5.1 Ratings
5.2 Reviews
5.3 Accolades
6 DVD release
7 Notes
8 References
9 Bibliography
10 External links
Plot overview
See also: Mythology of The X-Files
The show centers on FBI special agents Fox Mulder (David Duchovny) and Dana Scully
(Gillian Anderson), who work on cases linked to the paranormal called X-Files. When
the Syndicate suspect that one of their members is passing information to Mulder
and Scully, they organize a canary trap to find the leak, using information about
the safety of Mulder's mother as bait. X's (Steven Williams) role as an informant
is discovered, and he is shot dead, although he is able to pass along the name of
another informant who can be of use to Mulder—Marita Covarrubias (Laurie Holden),
the Special Representative to the Secretary-General of the United Nations.[1][2]
Covarrubias' aid is sought when Mulder attempts to reach Tunguska in Russia to
investigate the source of a further black oil contamination. Whilst there, Mulder
is held in a gulag and used as a successful test subject for a black oil vaccine.
He escapes and is able to return to America, having found that Alex Krycek
(Nicholas Lea) is working with the Russians.[3][4][5]

Having been diagnosed with cancer, Scully is unsure of her future with the FBI.
Mulder is convinced that her condition is a result of her earlier abduction
("Ascension"), and is prepared to make a deal with the Syndicate to find a cure. He
is dissuaded by Walter Skinner (Mitch Pileggi), who secretly makes such a deal
instead.[6][7] While being pursued by an assassin responsible for a hoax alien
corpse discovered on a mountaintop, Mulder fakes his own suicide, mutilating the
assassin's face to provide a decoy body. He uses the distraction this offers to
infiltrate The Pentagon to find a cure for Scully's cancer, while Scully is able to
uncover and reveal a Syndicate connection within the FBI.[8][9][10][11]

Production
Writing

The writers for The X-Files decided to give Gillian Anderson's character cancer in
season four.
The season saw drastic changes to the series' alien mythology. In the premiere
episode, "Herrenvolk", Williams—the actor who played Mulder's informant X—was
written out of the show. He said that, "Carter called me up personally [and said]
'Got good news, got bad news. The good news is we're gonna bring you up for another
episode this week. The bad news is you're gonna take a bullet."[12] The writers
created a new character, Marita Covarrubias, to function as Mulder's informant.
Carter felt it would be "more interesting for Mulder's next contact to be a woman",
noting that he "wanted there to be some suspicion about whether Mulder would become
involved with her romantically.[13] "Herrenvolk" also introduced the killer bees,
who would go on to play a larger part in the 1998 film.[12] Carter described the
fourth season as "maybe the most intense and difficult season of the show."[14]

The season is notable in that it introduced a story arc about Scully developing
terminal cancer, which would not be resolved until the beginning of the fifth
season. The show's producers decided to give Gillian Anderson's character Dana
Scully cancer early in the season. Carter initially discussed giving Scully's
mother cancer but decided to have Scully suffer from it instead. Carter felt the
move would give the show an interesting platform on which to discuss things such as
faith, science, health care and a certain element of the paranormal.[15] Some of
the writing staff felt that the decision was a poor one to make, citing it as "a
cheap TV thing". However, Frank Spotnitz felt that, given the appearances of
cancer-stricken abductees in previous episodes, it was an "obligatory" move to have
Scully follow suit.[16]
Following the cancellation of the Fox television series Space: Above and Beyond,
Carter called the series' creators Glen Morgan and Wong—who had previously been
writers for the first two seasons of The X-Files—and asked if they wanted to rejoin
the series. Morgan told Carter that the two of them would rejoin, but only for four
episodes, and only if they could use members from the cast of Space: Above and
Beyond, so that "the world can finally see them".[12] Carter accepted this
condition, and the two dutifully provided four of the seasons episodes.[12]

Filming
The season finale, "Gethsemane", was notable in that an entire set created to
emulate icy caverns was constructed inside a warehouse which had previously been
used for cold storage;[17] and required the use of truckloads of lumber and 10,000
square feet (930 m2) of Styrofoam. The set would become one of the most expensive
and elaborate built during the series' history.[18] The set required a constant
temperature of −21 °F (−29 °C) in order to maintain the real snow and ice used to
decorate it. This refrigeration allowed the actors' breath to visibly fog up, and
allowed the cast to "have a place that feels real" to aid their acting.[17] The
outdoor scenes for the episode were filmed around Vancouver's Mount Seymour, with
weather conditions making shooting difficult enough to require an extra day of
work.[18]

Although the series' 1998 movie would take place after the events of the fifth
season, the movie was actually filmed in the hiatus between the show's fourth and
fifth season and re-shoots were conducted during the filming of the show's fifth
season.[19]

Crew
Series creator Chris Carter also served as executive producer and showrunner and
wrote eight episodes. Howard Gordon continued as executive producer and wrote five
episodes for his final season on the series. Spotnitz was promoted to co-producer
and wrote seven episodes. Vince Gilligan was promoted to co-producer and wrote five
episodes. Former X-Files writers Glen Morgan and James Wong returned after a one-
season absence from the series as consulting producers and wrote three episodes
together, with Morgan writing an additional episode solo that Wong directed. John
Shiban was promoted to story editor and wrote four episodes. David Greenwalt joined
mid-season as co-executive producer and wrote one episode for his only season on
the series. Writing team Valerie and Vivian Mayhew wrote one freelance episode.
Executive producer and frequent series director R. W. Goodwin wrote his first and
only episode for the series. Other producers included producer Joseph Patrick Finn,
co-producer Paul Rabwin, and consulting producer Ken Horton, who joined the series
with this season.[20]

Producing-directors for the show included Rob Bowman and Kim Manners, who directed
the bulk of the episodes for the season. Manners directed eight episodes, while
Bowman directed seven. Executive producer R. W. Goodwin again directed the season
premiere and finale. James Charleston directed three episodes, while Tucker Gates,
Michael Lange, Cliff Bole, and series writer James Wong each directed one episode.
[20]

Cast
Main cast
David Duchovny as Special Agent Fox Mulder
Gillian Anderson as Special Agent Dana Scullya
a ^ She does not appear in "Zero Sum".

Recurring cast
Also starring
Mitch Pileggi as Assistant Director Walter Skinner
William B. Davis as Cigarette Smoking Man
Guest starring
Laurie Holden as Marita Covarrubias
Brendan Beiser as Pendrell
Tom Braidwood as Melvin Frohike
Rebecca Toolan as Teena Mulder
Don S. Williams as First Elder
Dean Aylesworth as Young Bill Mulder
Scott Bellis as Max Fenig
Bruce Harwood as John Fitzgerald Byers
Dean Haglund as Richard Langly
Sheila Larken as Margaret Scully
Nicholas Lea as Alex Krycek
Greg Michaels as Scott Garrett
John Neville as Well-Manicured Man
Chris Owens as Young Cigarette Smoking Man
Morris Panych as Grey-Haired Man
Charles Cioffi as Scott Blevins
John Finn as Michael Kritschgau
Jerry Hardin as Deep Throat
Steve Makaj as Scott Ostelhoff
John Moore as Third Elder
Pat Skipper as Bill Scully
Roy Thinnes as Jeremiah Smith
Brian Thompson as Alien Bounty Hunter
Arnie Walters as Father McCue
Steven Williams as X
Episodes
Episodes marked with a double dagger (double-dagger) are episodes in the Mythology
of The X-Files Alien story arc.[nb 1]

See also: List of The X-Files episodes

No.
overall No. in
season Title Directed by Written by Original air date Prod.
code [20] U.S. viewers
(millions)
74 1 "Herrenvolk"double-dagger R. W. Goodwin Chris Carter
October 4, 1996 4X01 21.11[21]
Pursued by an Alien Bounty Hunter, Jeremiah Smith takes Mulder to a farm where he
finds several girls who are clones of his sister.
75 2 "Home" Kim Manners Glen Morgan & James Wong October 11, 1996
4X03 18.85[21]
In a small, otherwise peaceful town, the agents investigate the death of an infant
with disturbing birth defects, and the trail leads to a clan of inbred, genetic
mutants.
76 3 "Teliko" James Charleston Howard Gordon October 18, 1996 4X04
18.01[21]
Mulder and Scully are called in to investigate the unexplained deaths of several
African and African-American people whose skin color has turned white as the result
of either a rare medical disorder or a bizarre curse.
77 4 "Unruhe" Rob Bowman Vince Gilligan October 27, 1996 4X02
19.10[21]
Agents Mulder and Scully investigate a group of bizarre kidnappings in which the
only clues are inexplicable photographs. But when Scully is the next intended
victim, Mulder must get into the killer's head.
78 5 "The Field Where I Died" Rob Bowman Glen Morgan & James Wong
November 3, 1996 4X05 19.85[21]
FBI Agent Mulder's search for an informant inside a cult compound leads Scully and
him to one of the cult leader's wives. What they soon discover is an unexpectedly
close connection with the woman.
79 6 "Sanguinarium" Kim Manners Valerie Mayhew & Vivian Mayhew
November 10, 1996 4X06 18.85[21]
Bizarre homicides in a hospital's plastic surgery unit lead Mulder and Scully to
suspect a supernatural force may be responsible.
80 7 "Musings of a Cigarette Smoking Man"double-dagger James Wong Glen
Morgan November 17, 1996 4X07 17.09[21]
Mulder, Scully and Byers meet with Frohike, where he details what may have been
Cigarette Smoking Man's real life.
81 8 "Tunguska"double-dagger Kim Manners Frank Spotnitz & Chris Carter
November 24, 1996 4X09 18.85[21]
A diplomatic courier carrying deadly cargo involves Agents Mulder and Scully in a
dangerous web of intrigue, which leads Mulder on a trip to Russia.
82 9 "Terma"double-dagger Rob Bowman Frank Spotnitz & Chris Carter
December 1, 1996 4X10 17.34[21]
Scully and Skinner attend a suspicious Senate hearing, while Mulder and Krycek face
off in a Russian gulag.
83 10 "Paper Hearts" Rob Bowman Vince Gilligan December 15, 1996 4X08
16.59[21]
Agent Mulder is haunted by an old case in which young girls were killed and hearts
cut from their nightgowns. Soon Mulder becomes suspicious when the killer taunts
him with the idea that one of his victims may have been Samantha.
84 11 "El Mundo Gira" Tucker Gates John Shiban January 12, 1997 4X11
22.37[21]
Deadly rain in a migrant workers camp sends Agent Mulder and Scully on the trail of
a mythical beast—El Chupacabra.
85 12 "Leonard Betts" Kim Manners Vince Gilligan & John Shiban & Frank
Spotnitz January 26, 1997 4X14 29.15[21]
The disappearance of a man's body from a hospital morgue leads Mulder and Scully to
investigate the strange circumstances surrounding the man's death. However, for
Scully it will lead to a horrifying revelation.
86 13 "Never Again" Rob Bowman Glen Morgan & James Wong February 2,
1997 4X13 21.36[21]
On a solo assignment out of town, Scully meets a man whose tattoo does not want to
share him—especially not with Scully.
87 14 "Memento Mori"double-dagger Rob Bowman Chris Carter & Vince Gilligan
& John Shiban & Frank Spotnitz February 9, 1997 4X15 19.10[21]
Fear for Scully's health sends Mulder to investigate the bizarre circumstances that
may explain her mysterious abduction two years ago, while Scully takes a more
practical course to quell her illness.
88 15 "Kaddish" Kim Manners Howard Gordon February 16, 1997 4X12
16.56[21]
A homicide in a Jewish community leads to the deaths of the killers, forcing Mulder
and Scully to determine whether vengeance or larger forces are at work.
89 16 "Unrequited" Michael Lange Story by : Howard Gordon
Teleplay by : Howard Gordon & Chris Carter February 23, 1997 4X16 16.56[21]
The mysterious assassination of a high-ranking military official has Mulder and
Scully racing against the clock to stop a seemingly unstoppable—and invisible—
assassin.
90 17 "Tempus Fugit"double-dagger Rob Bowman Chris Carter & Frank Spotnitz
March 16, 1997 4X17 18.85[21]
While celebrating Scully's birthday, Mulder learns of Max Fenig's death in a plane
crash. What the agents soon discover is that the circumstances surrounding the
crash may have been alien.
91 18 "Max"double-dagger Kim Manners Chris Carter & Frank Spotnitz March
23, 1997 4X18 18.34[21]
The investigation continues for agents Mulder and Scully of the apparent downing of
Flight 549 by a UFO. They encounter deadly opposition from the military, which
continues to cover up the truth of incident.
92 19 "Synchrony" James Charleston Howard Gordon & David Greenwalt April
13, 1997 4X19 18.09[21]
Mulder and Scully investigate a homicide for which the suspect presents an
incredible alibi — that the death was foretold by an old man able to see into the
future.
93 20 "Small Potatoes" Cliff Bole Vince Gilligan April 20, 1997 4X20
20.86[21]
A small town is "blessed" by babies being born with tails. Mulder and Scully arrive
only to encounter a suspect who proves nearly impossible to identify.
94 21 "Zero Sum"double-dagger Kim Manners Howard Gordon & Frank Spotnitz
April 27, 1997 4X21 18.60[21]
Agent Mulder launches a criminal investigation into a bizarre death which he finds
has connections to A.D. Skinner. Meanwhile, Skinner makes his own deal with the
devil in a desperate attempt to save Scully from the cancer that is taking over her
body.
95 22 "Elegy" James Charleston John Shiban May 4, 1997 4X22 17.10[21]
Mulder and Scully track a series of homicides that lead to a home for the mentally
ill and a clue that makes no sense: each victim had a purported warning from the
dead. However, while Mulder makes some surprising discoveries, Scully is reminded
of her own mortality.
96 23 "Demons"double-dagger Kim Manners R. W. Goodwin May 11, 1997
4X23 19.10[21]
Scully is concerned for Mulder's well-being when he suffers from a memory loss
while investigating a case — and is the only suspect in a brutal double homicide.
97 24 "Gethsemane"double-dagger R. W. Goodwin Chris Carter May
18, 1997 4X24 19.85[21]
Researchers in northern Canada discover what may finally be irrefutable proof of
alien existence, but even Mulder is skeptical until sinister agents begin to kill
to prevent its revelation, leading to a shocking conclusion.
Reception
Ratings
The fourth season of The X-Files debuted with "Herrenvolk" on October 4, 1996. This
episode earned a Nielsen rating of 13.2, with a 23 share, meaning that roughly 13.2
percent of all television-equipped households, and 23 percent of households
watching television, were tuned in to the episode.[21] The episode was viewed by
21.11 million people, a marked increase from the third season's finale, "Talitha
Cumi", which was viewed by 17.86 million viewers.[21][22] "Herrenvolk" was, at the
time, the highest-rated episode of The X-Files to air, as well as the first episode
of the series to be watched by over 20 million viewers.[21] As the season
continued, however, ratings began to drop slightly, stabilizing around
approximately less than 20 million viewers-per-episode.[21] The season hit a high
with its twelfth episode, "Leonard Betts", which had been chosen as the Fox lead-
out program following Super Bowl XXXI. The episode was viewed by 29.1 million
viewers, making it the highest-rated episode in the series' run.[21] The season hit
a low with the fifteenth and sixteenth episodes, "Kaddish" and "Unrequited",
respectively, which were both viewed by 16.56 million viewers.[21] The season
finale, "Gethsemane", earned a Nielsen rating of 13.2, with a 19 share, and was
viewed by 19.85 million viewers,[21] marking a 5.9 percent drop in viewers when
compared to the season premiere,[nb 2] but a 10 percent increase in viewers when
compared to the previous season finale.[nb 3] The season ranked as the twelfth most
watched television series during the 1996–97 year, with an average of 19.2 million
viewers, making it, at the time, the highest-rated season of The X-Files to air.
[21][23]

Reviews
The fourth season of The X-Files received largely positive reviews from television
critics, although several critics noted that the season was not as good as its
predecessors. The Contra Costa Times noted that The X-Files during its fourth year
was creatively good and "always fascinating even when it's frustrating."[24] Rick
Kushman Bee of the Sacramento Bee wrote that Fox' Sunday block of The Simpsons,
King of the Hill and The X-Files was televisions "real 'Must See TV'".[25] Matt
Roush of USA Today wrote that the fourth season was not the series' best year, but
"when good, [The X-Files is] still shockingly great".[26] Zack Handlen of The A.V.
Club gave an overall positive review of the season and wrote that many of the
episodes dabbled in existentialism. However, he also contended that many of the
mythology episodes—especially the season finale—began to have "a ring of
familiarity to" them and that "the repetition is getting old".[27]

Episodic reviews were diverse. Some episodes were praised. Robert Shearman and Lars
Pearson, in their book Wanting to Believe: A Critical Guide to The X-Files,
Millennium & The Lone Gunmen, rated the episodes "Home", "Unruhe", "Musings of a
Cigarette Smoking Man", "Paper Hearts", and "Small Potatoes" five stars out of
five.[28] Paula Vitaris of Cinefantastique also awarded "Musings of a Cigarette
Smoking Man", "Paper Hearts", and "Small Potatoes" perfect scores of four out of
four.[29] Tom Kessenich named "Memento Mori" the fourth best episode of the series,
writing that it was the definitive example of Mulder and Scully's devotion for each
other.".[30] He also wrote highly of "Home", "Paper Hearts", Small Potatoes", and
"Never Again", ranking them as the fifth, eleventh, sixteenth, and twenty-fourth
best episodes of The X-Files, respectively.[30] Other episodes were derided.
Shearman and Pearson called "El Mundo Gira" an "aching unambitious take on Latin
American culture" and "rubbish".[28] Vitaris summaried "Unrequited" as a "slight
story that collapses under the weight of its message".[29]

"Gethsemane" created intense media speculation about whether or not Mulder was
actually dead. An article in the Wall Street Journal discussed fan theories behind
Mulder's madness while a cartoon ran in The New Yorker a few weeks later
surrounding Mulder's "death".[31] Series creator Chris Carter noted that "the whole
plot line of 'Gethsemane' revolved around a hoax, but there are actually huge
revelations in this show. And it's an amazing thing that we could get people to
believe that Mulder could actually kill himself because his belief system was
stolen from him".[31] UGO Networks listed the episode at number 21 in a countdown
of "TV's Best Season Finales", noting that it "rocked the core of the series'
entire mythology".[32]

In 2018 and 2019, in a ranking of all eleven seasons, the fourth season received
critical acclaim and was named the second-best season by both Consequence of Sound
and Screen Rant. The episode, "Memento Mori", was singled out as one of the best
episodes of the series by Screen Rant.[33][34]

Accolades
The fourth season earned the series twelve Primetime Emmy Award nominations, with
three wins. Anderson won for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Drama Series, after
being nominated the previous year. The episodes "Memento Mori" and "Tempus Fugit"
won for Outstanding Art Direction for a Series and Outstanding Sound Editing for a
Series, respectively. Notable nominations included its third consecutive nomination
for Outstanding Drama Series, Duchovny's first nomination for Outstanding Lead
Actor in a Drama Series, James Wong nominated for Outstanding Directing for a Drama
Series for "Musings of a Cigarette Smoking Man", and Carter, Gilligan, Shiban, and
Spotnitz being nominated for Outstanding Writing for a Drama Series for "Memento
Mori". Other nominations were Jim Gross and Heather MacDougall each being nominated
for Outstanding Editing for a Series – Single Camera Production for the episodes
"Tempus Fugit" and "Terma", respectively; Outstanding Makeup for a Series for
"Leonard Betts"; Outstanding Sound Mixing for a Drama Series for "Tempus Fugit";
and Mark Snow being nominated for Outstanding Music Composition for a Series
(Dramatic Underscore) for "Paper Hearts".[35] The series also won its second Golden
Globe Award for Best Television Series – Drama, while Gillian Anderson and David
Duchovny won in the television series drama acting categories.[36]