X-Files: Season 2

Details

Following the closure of the X-Files, Fox "Spooky" Mulder finds himself reassigned to routine surveillance work whilst Dana Scully returns to teaching at the FBI Academy. However, Mulder's obsession with the paranormal and unexplained hasn't disappeared simply because somebody has taken away his office, and it isn't long before he's once again investigating cases that suggest the truth is still being deliberately concealed.

Mulder remains a firm believer in the existence of extraterrestrials, driven by the childhood disappearance of his younger sister Samantha, whom he believes was abducted by aliens. With the X-Files officially closed, his investigations now take place under considerably greater scrutiny and with an increasing suspicion that powerful people within the government are determined to stop him discovering exactly what's going on.

Dana Scully remains the scientific counterbalance to Mulder's theories. A medical doctor and committed sceptic, she continues searching for rational explanations for the seemingly impossible events they encounter. However, Season Two is about to make the investigation considerably more personal when Scully herself mysteriously disappears.

Her subsequent return raises more questions than answers. With no memory of what happened during her disappearance and little evidence to explain where she's been, Scully is forced to confront the possibility that some of Mulder's seemingly outlandish theories may contain more truth than she'd previously been prepared to admit.

Meanwhile, the mysterious Cigarette-Smoking Man begins to emerge from the shadows and takes a far more active role in events surrounding Mulder and Scully. His exact position and motives remain unclear, but his presence increasingly suggests that the conspiracy reaches far beyond a few unexplained cases hidden away in an FBI filing cabinet.

Alongside the developing conspiracy, Mulder and Scully continue to encounter an assortment of rather unpleasant standalone cases. Demon possession, killer parasites, genetic experiments, voodoo, invisible creatures and a town whose residents have some particularly disturbing dietary habits ensure that investigating the paranormal remains a decidedly hazardous occupation.

Picture & Sound

With the phenomenal success of the first season, the increase in budget for both the special effects and post-production is clearly visible. Picture quality is vastly improved over Season One, which at times was little better than VHS quality. What we have here is rather good for what is essentially still a television series from the early 1990s.

Presented in the original 4:3 television aspect ratio, the image is generally cleaner and more detailed than the previous season. Naturally, with The X-Files there are plenty of dark and gloomy scenes and these can still suffer from a degree of graininess, but colours are rich and vibrant with only occasional signs of washout.

The deliberately murky Vancouver photography continues to give the programme its distinctive atmosphere, with gloomy forests, dark warehouses and dimly lit rooms providing the perfect surroundings for Mulder and Scully's investigations. Black levels are generally acceptable, although shadow detail can occasionally disappear during the darker sequences.

Considering the sheer amount of material squeezed onto the seven discs, compression is handled reasonably well. There are occasional imperfections, but nothing serious enough to distract from the episodes themselves. Overall, it's a noticeable improvement over the first season and another substantial step up from watching the programme on VHS.

The sound is functional rather than exciting, although feeding the stereo soundtrack through a Pro Logic decoder makes a reasonable attempt at creating a suitably spooky ambience. Dialogue is clear and precise throughout, whilst Mark Snow's distinctive score once again adds enormously to the atmosphere.

Compared with the increasingly elaborate Dolby Digital soundtracks appearing on feature-film DVDs it's hardly spectacular, but that's an unfair comparison for a television programme of this age. It does the job perfectly adequately and the important creaks, bumps and things going squelch in the night come across nicely enough.

Menu & Extras

As with the Season One box set, most of the supplementary material is gathered together on Disc Seven. Unfortunately, the extras still aren't really up to much and remain far too orientated towards the programme's American audience.

The main attraction is The Truth About Season Two, which provides a useful retrospective look at the making of the season. Chris Carter also discusses Season Two and some of its more significant moments, whilst the FX: Behind the Truth material offers a glimpse at how several of the programme's effects were created.

Unfortunately, after the Season Two documentary much of the remaining material begins to feel like variations on the same thing. Even Chris Carter's commentary over some of the effects and deleted material is rather poorly implemented and never becomes as interesting as it really ought to be.

The collection of Deleted Scenes and Behind-the-Scenes Clips is worth investigating, although once again there's nothing here that I'd describe as essential. They're interesting curiosities for established fans rather than something likely to tempt anybody into buying the box set on their own.

Then we have the seemingly endless American Fox television promotional spots. As with the first season, they're initially quite interesting as a piece of promotional history but rapidly become extremely annoying when watched one after another. There are only so many excitable American voice-overs you can take before reaching for the remote control.

The DVD-ROM features, website links, episode guide and Unholy Alliances game round things off. There's certainly plenty here in numerical terms, but quantity doesn't necessarily equal quality and I can't help feeling Fox could have produced something considerably more imaginative for such a successful series. Let's hope they come up with something a little more original for the following seasons.

The seven discs are once again presented in a pleasant fold-out box set. It certainly looks impressive, although I still suspect that those paper case spines could become damaged over time with repeated use. Considering how often fans are likely to revisit favourite episodes, something slightly more robust might have been advisable.

The accompanying booklet is considerably more useful, providing episode and chapter listings that make navigating such a large collection relatively straightforward. The subsequent episode listings for later seasons are rather less useful, although they do serve as a convenient reminder of just how many more expensive box sets Fox are preparing to sell us.

Overall

Season Two is probably The X-Files at its best, with several classic and defining moments that helped turn the programme into the phenomenon it is today. The first season established the characters and basic formula, but this is where the mythology really begins to gather momentum and the relationship between Mulder, Scully and the conspiracy becomes considerably more personal.

Scully's abduction is obviously one of the major turning points. Up until now she's been able to stand alongside Mulder and challenge his theories from a largely scientific perspective. Suddenly she's no longer simply investigating unexplained phenomena - she's become part of the mystery herself. It's a development that changes both the character and her relationship with Mulder.

The Cigarette-Smoking Man also begins to emerge as something more than the sinister bloke lurking silently in the background. His increased involvement gives the conspiracy a recognisable face, even if we're still a long way from understanding exactly who he is, who he works for or what he's trying to achieve.

Thankfully, the conspiracy hasn't yet completely taken over the programme either. Season Two still provides an excellent selection of standalone stories and some of them are amongst my favourite episodes of the series. The Host, with its wonderfully disgusting Flukeman, is a perfect example of how effectively The X-Files can combine science fiction and horror without needing an enormous budget.

Then there's Die Hand Die Verletzt, my personal favourite amongst the scarier episodes, with its tale of demon worship and possession. Add a killer plague, voodoo, parasites and the cannibalistic residents of one particularly unpleasant town and there's enough here to make you wonder why Mulder and Scully don't simply ask for a transfer to something safer - organised crime perhaps.

In fact, one of the discs has been rated 18, which unfortunately means the entire package carries an 18 certificate. I'm not sure exactly which episode on Disc Six caused the BBFC the problem, but with demon possession, killer plagues and cannibalistic towns amongst the delights on offer you can probably take your pick!

The combination of stronger standalone episodes and a developing conspiracy is what makes this season work so well for me. There's enough mythology to keep the larger story moving without it becoming so convoluted that the programme starts disappearing up its own alien-infested backside.

Unfortunately, knowing where the programme subsequently goes also makes some of these episodes rather bittersweet. Compared with the latter series, where increasingly ridiculous comedy episodes and the seemingly endless government conspiracy begin to make things feel rather stale, Season Two demonstrates just how effective the original formula could be when everything was firing on all cylinders.

Perhaps that's why, at this point, I'd probably call Season Two the best of the bunch. Season One may have the slightly rougher atmosphere I particularly enjoy, but Season Two takes everything that worked there and gives it more confidence, a larger budget and a stronger developing mythology without losing those wonderfully creepy standalone stories.

Putting my criticism of the extras aside, this is still a superb package and a must-purchase for any serious X-Files fan. The only real problem is that anyone with a DVD player and an established interest in the series has probably already spent a small fortune buying the individual videos or those expensive VHS season box sets.

For those of us who haven't, however, this is definitely worth the expense. Seven discs and more than seventeen hours of The X-Files certainly don't come cheap, particularly when there are plenty more seasons waiting in the wings, but it's difficult to argue with the amount of entertainment on offer.

Collecting the entire series on DVD is going to be expensive. Very expensive. But on the evidence of Season Two, it's also going to be extremely difficult to resist.

Special features

• Extras on Disc Seven
• The Truth About Season Two Documentary
• Chris Carter Talks About Season Two
• FX: Behind the Truth
• Behind-the-Scenes Clips
• Deleted Scenes
• Promo Spots
• DVD-ROM Features
• Website and Links
• Unholy Alliances Game
• Episode Guide