Rating: 
Summary: Finally--A Collection Well-Suited for DVD!
Review: "The X-Files" is an excellent fit for DVD---beautifully shot, a mythology deep enough to keep teenagers buying background material, and a rabid fan following noted for their penchant to purchase anything "X". Having collected several of the collector's sets on VHS, like many I was frustrated by the lack of completeness in each release, with a season represented by only 25% of its episodes. While this is acceptable for the casual fans, it proved exruciating for the true X-phile, as invariably favorite episodes were left out of the mix. This situation has been rectified with the release of the entire first season of the show on DVD in a seven-disc collection. It is now possible to watch each episode commercial-free and in sequence in a digital-quality medium. In addition, an extras disc has been added (details are listed above), including a DVD-ROM computer game. Having completed my viewing of the entire 1st set, several observations came to mind: - The "X-Files", almost unique in episodic television, hit the airwaves fully-formed. There is precious little difference in tone or execution between the pilot and subsequent episodes. - Whereas some of the 3rd and 4th season episodes saw a noticeable decline in quality (due to the loss of key writers and Chris Carter's focus elsewhere), the 1st season episodes are generally superbly-written. Unfortunately, my cut of this collection did suffer from noticeable editing problems. Nothing major, typically just a couple of misaligned frames at chapter cuts, but let's face it--for this kind of money, it should be flawless. Nonetheless, I highly recommend this collection.
Rating:
Summary: Episodes deserve 5 starts, but the "extras" sub par
Review: If you are considering spending over $... getting the entire season on DVD, I figure that you're already a big fan of the episodes... so I won't bore you with details about how engrossing, intelligent, and unique the series is and how great it is to have the entire season in your home library. Besides having the entire season, in order, at your disposal, the DVD's allow you to have great, crisp picture quality. I, like many X-Files fans, have many episodes either recorded off the T.V. or on the X-Files VHS series. The improved quality (and let's face it, the lack of commercials) made it worth the money to get the DVDs.
The extras, however, were very disappointing compared to the extra features added to other DVDs. There were only two or three deleted scenes and the behind the scenes stuff was routine. I was also shocked at the absence of the major actors in the featurettes. Duchovny, Anderson, and Pileggi barely appear. There is quite a bit from Chris Carter, however, so if you like to listen to him talk, you'll be happy. It was annoying that each episode has a "special feature" tab, but all you usually found there were "international clips". I don't know about you, but I'm not all that excited hearing an X-File clip dubbed in German or Italian. If you're interested in having all the episodes, this is a great investment. But, don't buy it if you think you're going to get loads of great special features.
Rating: 
Summary: Buy It!
Review: Buy It, Watch It, Live It, Love It, Buy all the way up to season seven, Watch em, Live em, Love em, Kill em,
Buy season eight and Nine and bin them.
Buy season eight, you'll kill yourself
Buy season nine, you'll kill someone else.
(Probobaly Chris Carter) This is truly an amazing show. Arguably IT WAS the best show ever. So if you've never seen it then buy it and see for yourself. If you have seen it, then what are you reading this for? You already know how good this season is.
Rating:
Summary: The start of something great
Review: This is the season that started it all: The X-Files Season One. I watched this show from day one. For the most part, I never missed an episode of the entire series. And when I did miss it, I'd catch it some other time on a re-run or something. When they started re-running them on the FX channel, I decided to tape every episode they aired, since they were aired in order. Then, once I got caught up with where they were at on FOX, I started taping those every Sunday night. I have every episode on tape, and every DVD set that's available. This season was great. It was designed to stand on its own, since the series' future was uncertain at the time. But it had such great writing that the alien mythology stories could still be taken to another level if future seasons were to happen. And boy did they ever! We got eight more years after this! This one is great to look back on what Mulder and Scully were like back then, and what the show was like back then. Comparing that to say season 6, there's an amazing difference. The characters and story really came a long way! The special features are also a treat as well, since you get to look into where it all began and what it was like for the creators of the show to make a show like this. Great season, great DVD!
Rating:
Summary: X-1
Review: In the first season of The X-Files, we are introduced to the Lone Gunman, Scully's father dies, Deep Throat is killed, and the X-Files are closed. All 24 episodes are on 7 discs, with documentaries, deleted scenes, etc. Episodes:
----------- 1) The X-Files (pilot) - This is the episode where Scully is assigned to be Mulder's partner. Her assignment is to apply a scientific look at Mulder's "discovers." In their 1st assignment they travel to Oregon where it appears several teenagers have been abducted by aliens. 2) Deep Throat - Mulder meets with Deep Throat who is willing to provide information concerning UFOs and government conspiracies. 3) Squeeze - Mulder and Scully meet Eugene Tooms who can squeeze his body through any space. It appears that every 30 years he comes out of hibernation and eats the liver of 5 people. 4) Conduit - Mulder and Scully learn of a teenage girl who apparently been abducted and during the investigation they discover the girl's mother may have also been abducted in her youth. 5) The Jersey Devil - Mulder and Scully travel to New Jersey to investigate the legend of a beast that has been stalking people. 6) Shadows - Mulder and Scully investigate a woman who appears to be under the protection of a ghost. 7) Ghost in the Machine - Mulder is contacted by Deep Throat and informs him that the DoD is seeking a computer whiz. 8) Ice - Mulder and Scully travel to Alaska after all communications are cut off. While there, they discover a worm like "alien." 9) Space - Mulder and Scully are told that sabotage attempts are being made against NASA's Space Shuttles. A former astronaut and head of the program appears to be possessed by an alien ghost. 10) Fallen Angel - Mulder has less than a day to prove that a space ship has crashed. 11) Eve - Mulder and Scully investigate the murder of two men, one in California, and the other in Connecticut. Their daughters appear to be identical twins. 12) Fire - Mulder and an old British girlfriend investigate what appears to be a man that can create fire with his mind. 13) Beyond the Sea - Luther Boggs, claiming to be a psychic, says he will help Mulder and Scully solve a kidnapping crime if he can get his death sentence change to life. Scully is dealing with the death of her father and it appears Boggs has contact with his spirit. 14) Genderbender - Mulder and Scully investigate the Kindred, who appear to have the ability to switch gender and may in fact be aliens. 15) Lazarus - Scully and Jack Willis are involved in a shootout with a bank robber. Jack and the bank robber are shot but at the hospital, Jack dies and the bank robber appears to leap into his body. 16) Young at Heart - Mulder finds himself looking for John Barnett, someone he had put into prison many years ago. Barnett, who supposedly died in prison, was part of a genetic experience to reverse the aging process. 17) E.B.E. - Deep Throat sends Mulder on a wild "UFO" chase. 18) Miracle Man - Mulder and Scully investigate Samuel who appears to have the power to heal people but lately they have been dying. 19) Shapes - Mulder and Scully travel to Montana to investigate what appears to be an Indian Manitou. 20) Darkness Falls - Mulder and Scully travel to the National Forest in Washington and discover tiny green phosphorous insects that are active in the dark and feed on human flesh. 21) Tooms - Tooms, from the Squeeze episode, is release for good behavior but go back to his old ways. 22) Born Again - Mulder and Scully investigate an 8-year-old girl who may be a reincarnated serial killer. 23) Roland - Mulder and Scully investigate Roland, an autistic, being manipulated by his dead brother who is frozen in liquid nitrogen. 24) The Erlenmeyer Flask - Mulder and Scully investigate the terminally ill that are being injected with alien DNA. Deep Throat is killed and the X-Files are closed.
Rating:
Summary: The way TV should be released on DVD
Review: Remember back when The X-Files was still fairly easy to understand? Relive those magic (and sometimes goofy) moments with this new box set. Sure, half of it has already been released on VHS - but this set includes some gems that the first couple waves of home video ignored. Remember the eternally creepy "Young At Heart", or a few unintenionally silly episodes like "Space" or "Ghost in the Machine"? Or Nicholas Lea's first X-Files appearance (although not as Krycek)? How about "Roland" or "Born Again", which represent some of the finest moments from the first season? They're all here, alongside other popular episodes like "The Erlenmeyer Flask", "Deep Throat", "E.B.E.", "Darkness Falls" and "Ice" (which is essentially a remake of John Carpenter's The Thing - but the X-Files does it better)! For the first time in the U.S., you can finally buy a TV program season by season. And plus - these discs give you trailers, interviews and even some cool DVD-ROM content. If only Paramount would do their Star Trek discs this way!
Rating:
Summary: THAT'S HOW A LEGENDARY MYTHOLOGY BEGAN
Review: The x-files season 1 box set is a "must have" not only for the show's hard core fans, but in general for everyone who loves, mystery, adventure, and good acting accompanied by intelligent script-writing and scientific elements.Two FBI agents Mulder and Scully meet for the first time to investigate a teenage alien abduction case in Oregon, which by the way is based on documented facts.Agent Mulder, an Oxford psychology Phd graduate, convinced that his sister was abducted by aliens when he was 12, investigates every case with an eye to the paranormal, while Agent Scully, who left behind a career in medicine, tries to put him back in the FBI mainstream by using her scientific background to explain the apparently unexplainable phenomena. This season contains no double episodes whatsoever except Tooms which is not related to the conspiracy that appears in the later seasons. I think that all the standalone episodes were excellent because Chris Carter used some of the most original, fascinating, and scariest stories. A brilliant combination of science with fantasy to solve the most mysterious murder cases that make every viewer question their beliefs, integrated into a clever, but frightening plot, makes up the first cycle of one of the most successful series in television history. Some of my favorite episodes are: "Pilot", "Deep Throat", "Conduit", "Ice", "Eve", "Darkness Falls", "The Erlenmeyer Flask", etc. Another brilliant character who appears in this season for the first time and dies in the season finale is Deep Throat: The secret government operative who decides to help the 2 agents in uncovering truths meant to be hidden, who in the end pays the price with his own life. The dvd collection contains some interesting special features including a documentary on the whole season.The acting of David and Gillian here is not as good compared to the upcoming seasons, but the bond between the two agents is strengthened by what they experience together and everything they witness in their investigations. I enjoyed watching every single episode, (especially after watching season 9, which transformed the series into I don't know what). This is how it all began. Don't think twice--buy it now.
Rating:
Summary: The Truth Is Here - Season's the best!
Review: Oh yes, this is the very best of The X Files. This is where it all began. Mulder & Scully's endless quest for the truth. It was here that Dana came to know, that maybe the truth really is out there... I remember watching the pilot-episode back in 1994, and thinkin' "Wow, this is really somethin' different". I became so fascinated by the very essence of the show, and how it touched and showed fascinating stories and compelling semi-factual cases concerning UFO's and such. Very unique, and quit new to the tv-industry at the time back in sept. 1993 when it first aired. To the actual release of this first season of The X Files on DVD:
They're all great episodes, but to name the absolutely top notch, it must be these: "The X Files" (pilot), "Deep Throat", "Conduit" (i'll never stop watching this ep!!!), "Space" (yes! I like it), "Ice", "The Jersey Devil", "Darkness Falls", "Fallen Angel", "E.B.E." and "The Erlenmeyer Flask". I'll never forget the first 'oh no!' thrill of seeing Deep Throat bein' shot, and his outlet of the show's theme: "Trust No One", and I recall thinkin', "Oh my God, is the series gonna end now, or...?". I was completely caught up in the storyline, and fantastic new-genre breaking show, when seeing the cliffhanger back in 1994. Now I can revisit those old times, feel those great moments all by viewing the best picture possible w/ this genuies box-set on DVD. It's simply highlights what the show's heart really was, and always were until (sorry to say, but kinda true I think) all the succes and media covering from once a strong cult-following to, by then i 1996-1999 the big popularity boom was at it's highest; - which unfortunatelty made the show more mainstream in both writing and producing. But still, Season 1 - 5 rock every real x-phile, but the first days of Mulder & Scully searching the unkown can't ever be forgotten: This is why we all started watching the show. The very beginning of The X Files...
Rating:
Summary: Incredible.
Review: First, I want to thank Chris Carter or Fox or whoever it is that slashed the price of these season sets in half. Getting the entire series will be much easier now, and I'm sure everyone else is thankful as well. I'm not going to bother describing the show for you. Everyone knows the premise by now, and if you don't, then just read one of the many other reviews here that does just that. The bottom line is that The X-Files is one of the best shows ever to air, and I haven't met anyone that hates the show after watching a full episode. I guess no words or rating can do the series justice. You'll just have to watch it for yourself to get the full experience. The X-Files easily has the best characters I've ever seen in any form of entertainment. I can't wait for the next movie coming out sometime next year (from what I've heard), to continue on with Mulder and Scully. The first season is close to becoming my favorite season...it's just barely behind season 4 for me. Every episode is written without flaw, and the writers really took their time putting great detail into everything, even if they didn't know that the show would continue for as long as it did. But, there were 3 boring episodes: The Ghost in the Machine, Space, and Shapes. They weren't -bad-, they were just really slow compared to the other episodes. I almost fell asleep during The Ghost in the Machien adn Space. Shapes just kind of took too long to get things going, but it was good for what it was. Every other episode though, is memorable. My favorites would probably be Pilot, Deep Throat, Ice, Conduit, Fallen Angel, Eve, Fire, Beyond the Sea, E.B.E., Born Again, Roland, and The Erlenmeyer Flask. I ESPECIALLY like Roland. That is by far the most touching episode of the series I've seen. The ending had me in tears because of how sweet it was. The episode wasn't sad, it was just...it had a strange tone to it. And it had a happy ending, so all was good. We also get introduced to the Cigarette Smoking Man and Skinner in a few episodes. While their roles aren't too big, they leave a lasting impression. But as far as regular characters go, The Lone Gunmen steal the show (though they're only in one episode). Watching them here, then in later seasons, they never change one bit, which is a good thing. They're as paranoid as ever. The dvds had great audio quality: I had to end up turning the volume DOWN at some points because it was so clear and loud *thumbs up*. The picture was ok. It's about the same as the tv broadcasts, maybe a little better. Though there are times when things get fuzzy (close-ups of documents in the Pilot episode especially) but it's nothing that'll distract you from this flawless show. Also, there are subtitles/captions for each episode, and they're very accurate. They even pick up some of the background lines from police cars and such. Something you probably couldn't make out otherwise. The dvds are safe in this incredibly sturdy box, which is held in a slipcase. Then, there's the "bonus disc". Seriously, after I finished this thing, I went back and checked to see if there was something I missed...then said "oh you gotta be kidding me" to myself. This thing is pathetic. There's -maybe- an hour's worth of material here. The "behind the truth" segments are a minute each, which is sad considering they give good information in that time, and could've extended them for this dvd release. "The Truth About Season One", oh man...don't even get me started on that. I really don't want to seem like I'm bashing the show, but we need better material than re-hash of what Chris Carter said in the interviews with him. There was more time in all the TV Spots combined than the interviews I'm betting. *snicker* Oh, check out the TV Spots. It's funny how Fox made this show out to be all about UFOs and not to be taken as seriously as it should. I got a kick out of seeing the Eve commercial. That was rich. The DVD-ROM game was kinda cool. I spent more time with that than the actual bonus disc material. On the other discs, there are international clips from some shows (hearing Scully in German is hilarious: she sounds more masculine than Mulder), and 2 deleted scenes on the Pilot episode, and that's it. No commentary on any of them, which is a big shame considering they had more than enough room for it. But what matters is that you're getting all the episodes in great condition here. And that's all that matters to us X-Files fans. Now that the price is this low, you have no excuse to not buy this. Get this box set, and trust no one. *puts out cigarette*
Rating:
Summary: The abc's of the X-Files
Review: The fans of this very missed t.v. series will argue over which season really marked the point where the X-Files "jumped the shark" or reached its peak and went downhill from there. But there is very little doubt among fans that the success of the series began here, with the phenomenal episodes of the first season. Not every episode was great--and no other t.v. show had a perfect first season--but every episode was thrilling and fascinating. Among the best are "Ice", "Born Again", "Tooms", "Eve" and "Fire". Even some of the lesser quality episodes, like "Ghost in the Machine" and "Shadows", were absorbing. In any event, this is the season where you would learn the basics of the show, if you'd never watched an episode before. And while things twisted and changed, the groundrules were established here. Now that Amazon is making this set available at a reasonable price, there is no excuse not to purchase it--unless there's a conspiracy against you.
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