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My god, has it really been
nearly seven years since "The X-Files" first debuted on television? Being a
relative latecomer to the series starting with the 1994-95 season , I was taken
aback when I first popped in the pilot episode to catch up. Having no exposure
to the early seasons, I was startled by a baby-faced Fox Mulder and a rather
plump Dana Scully. While in many ways nothing had changed (creepy atmosphere,
scary monsters and the same opening credits), in others it felt all so
different.
While I can't say I watched all
24 episodes contained on this Season One mega-set in a row, I did watch enough
to quickly discover that the basic hallmarks of the series began with episode
one. "The Pilot" introduces us first to FBI Agent Dana Scully, assigned to the
mysterious "X-Files', so named due to their otherworldly subject matter. But her
not-so-secret real purpose is to debunk the more outlandish theories and beliefs
of her new partner, Fox "Spooky" Mulder, who unlike Scully is a firm believer in
the paranormal.
It is to the series great
credit that it has never wavered from this core dynamic that has made the series
so successful, that of the interplay between the skeptic and the believer. While
the plots of some episodes certainly work better than others, regardless of how
ludicrous a story may become, the chemistry between leads Gillian Anderson and
David Duchovny makes it work. Anderson and Duchovny are always fun to watch,
especially in this first season, long before they started going through the
motions and the "conspiracy" became derivative and tiresome. Another fascinating
aspect of this first season is that it provides the uninitiated like myself to
go back and unravel some of the mysterious of the series' mythology episodes,
which have been going on for so long now that one wonders if it will ever be
solved to anyone's satisfaction.
While the show may not be for
everyone, and the some of these early episodes can some clunky moments and weak
special effects, the chance for fans to watch the birth of the series in
chronological order and full digital splendor is certainly an event for DVD.
Because even if you are not a fan, while the success of movies on the format is
now established, there hasn't been that much television programming released
thus far. Fox has now released this very elaborate box set, which bodes well for
more television programming on DVD (provided it sells, of course). Now newcomers
can enjoy the ability to watch the show from the beginning, while diehards can
also dissect these episodes again for clues to the big picture.
The episodes included
are:
Disc One: "Pilot", "Deep
Throat", "Squeeze" and "Conduit". Disc Two: "The Jersey Devil", "Shadows",
"Ghost in the Machine" and "Ice". Disc Three: "Space", "Fallen Angel", "Eve" and
"Fire". Disc Four: "Beyond the Sea", "Gender Bender", "Lazarus" and "Young At
Heart". Disc Five: "E.B.E.", "Miracle Man", "Shapes" and "Darkness Falls". Disc
Six: "Tooms", "Born Again", "Roland" and "The Erlenmeyer Flask".
The
Video: How Does The Disc Look?
Since this first season of "The
X-Files" was shot in the standard NTSC aspect ratio of 4:3, widescreen and
anamorphic are not an issue (at least not until Season Six, when the series
began to be shot in 16x9 for HDTV broadcasts). I was a bit worried at first
about what the video quality would end up being, but I was pleasantly surprised.
Each dual-layer disc features 4
episodes, and all look very good. While "The X-Files" is of course a very dark show, colors are very
vibrant and well-saturated, but not overly strong so there is little if any
color bleeding or smearing. There is a bit of edge enhancement, but far less
than I expected, and shadow detail is also quite good. There are some shots that
are soft, but less so than some movies I've seen, and grain is also surprisingly
minimal. I did notice some artifacting here or there, but again less that I
anticipated. Fleshtones are accurate though occasionally there seems to be a
bluish tint in some sequences, though to be fair the show has always played with
various effects to heighten the mood, so I felt these transfers were appropriate
to the material. In the end, I was very pleased with these discs, the occasional
artifact and soft shots aside.
The
Audio: How Does The Disc Sound?
Unlike later seasons of the
show that began to incorporate Dolby Surround 5.1 aggressively into the mix,
this first season of "The X-Files" is 2.0 Surround and the overall impact is
somewhat subdued. Surrounds are used sporadically and usually only for ambient
effects, though it is a testament to the show that even back in 1993, the
quality of the sounds and music is as good as it is. Dynamic range is solid and
the front and center channels are very expansive. The mix is very well balanced
between dialogue, effects and Mark Snow's eerie score, so while it is not
surround-heavy at times, these episodes boast a very good set of mixes.
 The
Supplements: What Goodies Are There?
In addition to the 6 discs of 4
episodes each, there is also a 7th disc of supplemental material. (Note that
each episode disc also have some extras, such as deleted scenes from the pilot,
but these are also available on the 7th disc as well.) My overall impression
after viewing these is that most of these supplements will have been seen before
by X-Files devotees, so
aside from a few new goodies, newcomers will probably find this the most
interesting.
The main material that
comprises the 7th disc are a series of short video segments, interviews and TV
spots. First up is the only new video supplement produced for the set, The
Truth About Season One. It is a short featurette (11 minutes) that features
interviews with Creator Chris Carter as well as Producers Daniel Sackheim, Paul
Rabwin and Howard Gordon, Director David Nutter, Special Effects Supervisor Matt
Beck, Composer Mark Snow and the only cast member to appear, "Lone Gunmen" Dean
Haglund. Comments provide brief insight into the conceptualization of the show,
pitching it to the network and finding the right tone for Mulder and Scully.
Since this is only the first part of a longer documentary that is being split up
for future season collection sets, I guess we'll have to wait for Season Two to
see what comes next...
Also included are the 12
Interviews With Chris Carter that appeared on the videotape releases.
Each interview features Carter talking about two episodes, and each runs roughly
3 to 5 minutes, for another 45 minutes or so of total footage. Since Carter is
the driving force behind the show, he does have some antecedents of interest to
share, but truth be told the brevity of this material doesn't provide much room
for in-depth analysis.
There are also two sets of
extensive TV spots and material, Behind The Truth Of The X-Files and
TV Spot Promos. The former appeared on the FX network, and were short
little "infomercials" for the show that aired between commercial breaks. Each
one provides more brief "insight" into a various X-File topic (such as an
episode, an effect, etc.). The TV Spot Promos are just that, short 20 to 30
second adverts for each show. Like all the other video footage, these are too
quick to offer much of value, but there there for completists anyway.
Perhaps most interesting are
the two deleted scenes and one special effects behind-the-scene
segment that offer the first glimpse of Scully's first-episode boyfriend, a
subplot that was axed from the final cut (and was only shot in the first place
to appease the studio brass who wanted a romance between Scully and Mulder.) The
special effects bit is funny, revealing how an effect from the episode "Fallen
Angel" was done and is relatively interesting. (Note that you can also access
these three segments on the first disc by waiting for the "X" to appear on the
screen and clicking it, though I found it easier just to access it from the 7th
disc menu.)
Finally, there is the
DVD-ROM portion of the disc, which is an extension of the official
X-Files web site, and is an interactive connection of more episode information
and excerpts from Jane Goldman's "Book Of The Unexplained", as well as more
links to the official web site. I suspect most fans will probably have read all
this already, though the graphics are very nice and this is a nice portal into
the web site.
(Note: Unfortunately, we only
received early screener discs for this review, so the packaging for the set is
not yet available. However, judging by the photo above, it looks pretty spiffy,
and we hope to add our impressions to this review when a final copy
arrives.)
Parting
Thoughts
While the video really shines
and the audio is also good, the supplements mainly consist of material already
available, so overall this is a good package but not exemplary. But for $149.95,
which when you add it up is cheaper than buying all these episodes on videotape,
this is still a strong set. (Amazon.com has it for $89.95) Fans of the show should enjoy having all the first
season episodes in the same place, and the extras will be especially interesting
for newcomers. While this doesn't break any new ground, it delivers on the
bottom line. |
