1x17 E.B.E.

These are not the best episodes, but the ones most important for catching up with the X-Files mythology.

With The X-Files revival, I figure people are going to start watching the series to catch up. It's a long series with a complicated plot, and only some of the episodes are about that plot. So for those wanting to rewatch the show but not sift through the entire series, these are the essential episodes of The X-Files.

The first movie takes place between seasons five and six is and important. The second movie takes place after the series.

All episodes of The X-Files listed as "Alien Mythology"

This is a list of the "Law & Order" and "Chicago" franchises, which frequently crossover with each other, as well as other TV shows and movies they crossover with, or at least share the same universe.

Shows & Movies I watched in the year 2021

The Mytharc is the overarching story developed in a series of episodes of The X-Files where Mulder and Scully investigate and expose an international conspiracy by an organization known as the Syndicate to develop a human/alien hybrid and suppress knowledge of the existence of extraterrestrials who plan to colonize Earth.

It should be noted that some key mythology characters also appear in Monster of the Week episodes; notably, Deep Throat, X and the Cigarette Smoking Man each appear in episodes which involve government activities.

Furthermore, as his role expanded, Walter Skinner appears in more Monster of the Week episodes.

A selection of the best episodes. Includes all the mythology episodes.

A roadmap of episodes to follow the conspiracy storyline arc of the X Files listed by Den of Geek!

starting off strong

With all credit to reddit user /u/ragan651 via their post here: https://www.reddit.com/r/XFiles/comments/33zhcr/the_essential_xfiles_episode_list/

Summarizing their commentary on this curated list:

These are not the best episodes, but the ones most important for catching up with the X-Files mythology.

It's a long series with a complicated plot, and only some of the episodes are about that plot. So for those wanting to rewatch the show but not sift through the entire series, these are the essential episodes of The X-Files.

This list contains two types of shows:
- ones that are not essential mythology episodes, but connect to the mythology
- ones that are the best episodes of the series, but not part of the mythology.

The first movie takes place between seasons five and six, and is important.

The second movie takes place after season 9, and addresses the ending of the original finale, and has some small connections to season 10.

Episodes that serve to advance the main narrative. Either partially or completely

Volume 1 of The X-Files Mythology collection is a DVD release containing selected episodes from the first to the third seasons of the American science fiction television series The X-Files. The episodes collected in the release form the beginning of the series' mythology, and are centred on alien abduction at the hands of "colonists". Several of the elements introduced in the collected episodes arose through necessity during production, as working around the pregnancy of lead actress Gillian Anderson led to both the creation of unifying plot thread and the introduction of several recurring characters.

The episodes in the collection follow the investigations of paranormal-related cases, or X-Files, by FBI Special Agents Fox Mulder (David Duchovny) and Dana Scully (Anderson). Mulder is a believer in the paranormal, while the skeptical Scully has been assigned to debunk his work. Events covered in the episodes include the meeting of Mulder and Scully, the introduction and assassination of a secretive informant, the apparent return of Mulder's lost sister, and the abduction and return of Scully.

The collection contains the first episodes in the series' mythology, or fictional story arcs. When the series began, Chris Carter did not think of creating a "mythology" for the episodes focusing on extraterrestrial life, because he felt that "they were just stories we wanted to tell". Eventually, however, the writers saw that the most "personal" episodes were those based on the government conspiracy, and, as such, developed more stories based around the conceit. Jerry Hardin, William B. Davis, Mitch Pileggi, Tom Braidwood, Dean Haglund and Bruce Harwood all play supporting roles in the collection. Released on June 7, 2005, the collection received generally positive reviews from critics.

Yearly Stats

Episode plays: 867
Episodes per Month: 72.3
Episodes per Week: 16.7
Episodes per Day: 2.4

Monthly Stats
Jan: 93 Episodes
Feb: 103 Episodes
Mar: 111 Episodes
Apr: 71 Episodes
May: 52 Episodes
Jun: 21 Episodes
Jul: 42 Episodes
Aug: 49 Episodes
Sep: 72 Episodes
Oct: 86 Episodes
Nov: 82 Episodes
Dec: 85 Episodes

New Shows Started: 34
American Horror Story, Angie Tribeca, Bates Motel, Bella Block, Better Call Saul, Broadchurch, Cagney & Lacey, Captain Future, Chuck, Diese Drombuschs, Elfen Lied, Gotham, The IT Crowd, Kommissarin Lucas, Lewis, The Librarians, Lie to Me, Life on Mars, Lucifer, Marvel's Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D., Marvel's Jessica Jones, Mozart in the Jungle, The Polar Bear Family & Me, Preacher, Pushing Daisies, ReGenesis, Rosewood, Torchwood, Veronica Mars, Vikings, Wayward Pines, Welcome to Sweden, Wilsberg, The X-Files

Shows Completed: 4
The Finder, The IT Crowd, The Polar Bear Family & Me, Under the Dome

Total Shows watched: 96
American Horror Story: 1x01 - 1x12
Angie Tribeca: 1x03 - 1x06
Banshee: 2x02 - 2x10
Bates Motel: 1x01 - 1x10, 2x01 - 2x10
Bella Block: 1x26
Better Call Saul: 1x01 - 1x10, 2x01 - 2x10
The Big Bang Theory: 5x12 - 5x14, 6x05, 6x19 - 6x24, 7x01 - 7x24
Blindspot: 1x01, 1x11
Blue Bloods: 4x05
Bones: 10x01 - 10x22
Broadchurch: 1x01 - 1x08
CSI: Crime Scene Investigation: 1x06, 8x06, 9x24, 10x01, 10x08, 11x05, 15x11
CSI: Cyber: 1x02
CSI: Miami: 4x01 - 4x02, 8x09, 8x13 - 8x14, 9x15, 10x01, 10x15
CSI: NY: 5x16 - 5x17
Cagney & Lacey: 6x01 - 6x02
Captain Future: 1x01 - 1x03
Castle: 1x03 - 1x05, 2x08 - 2x24, 3x01 - 3x13
Chuck: 1x01 - 1x13, 2x01 - 2x22, 3x01 - 3x19, 4x01 - 4x02
The Closer: 2x03 - 2x09
Cold Case: 3x03
Columbo: 1x01, 8x01
Criminal Minds: 1x05, 9x09, 10x09
Crossing Jordan: 4x19, 6x09, 6x14
Death in Paradise: 3x01 - 3x08, 4x01 - 4x08, 5x01, 5x05
Die Rosenheim Cops: 8x24, 9x01, 11x09, 11x30, 15x25
Diese Drombuschs: 4x04
Doctor Who: 0x14, 1x21 - 1x33
Doctor Who: 0x06 - 0x07, 0x09, 0x13 - 0x14, 0x16 - 0x17, 0x34 - 0x36, 0x47, 0x66, 0x82 - 0x84, 1x01 - 1x04, 3x10 - 3x13, 4x01 - 4x13, 5x01 - 5x13, 6x01 - 6x13, 7x01 - 7x13, 8x01 - 8x02, 8x05 - 8x06, 8x08
Ein Herz und eine Seele: 1x12
Elementary: 1x12
Elfen Lied: 1x01
Emergency call at the edge of the harbor: 7x18, 8x01
Fargo: 1x03 - 1x10
Father Brown: 3x10 - 3x11, 4x05
The Finder: 1x13
The Glades: 4x03
Gotham: 1x01 - 1x22, 2x01 - 2x22
Grimm: 4x01 - 4x22
Hart to Hart: 2x11
Heroes: 1x23
How I Met Your Mother: 8x02
The IT Crowd: 1x01 - 1x06, 2x01 - 2x06, 3x01 - 3x06, 4x01 - 4x06
King & Maxwell: 1x08
The King of Queens: 1x03, 3x13 - 3x14, 5x05 - 5x07, 5x20 - 5x21, 6x08, 6x11, 9x11
King: 1x02
Kommissarin Lucas: 1x14
Law & Order: Criminal Intent: 5x13, 8x15
Lewis: 1x01, 6x02
The Librarians: 1x01 - 1x10, 2x01 - 2x10
Lie to Me: 3x12 - 3x13
Life on Mars: 1x01
Longmire: 3x03
Lucifer: 1x01
Magnum, P.I.: 3x15, 4x18, 5x08, 7x03
Major Crimes: 1x09, 3x03
Marvel's Agent Carter: 1x01 - 1x06
Marvel's Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.: 1x01 - 1x22
Marvel's Jessica Jones: 1x01
The Mentalist: 1x18, 3x17
Midsomer Murders: 2x03
Miss Fisher's Murder Mysteries: 1x08 - 1x13, 2x01, 3x06
Monk: 1x06 - 1x07, 1x09, 1x13, 2x13, 4x06
Mozart in the Jungle: 1x01
Murder, She Wrote: 2x12, 6x06, 8x14 - 8x15
NCIS: 4x10, 6x09, 8x23 - 8x24, 10x14 - 10x15
NCIS: Los Angeles: 1x20
Once Upon a Time: 4x01 - 4x23
The Outer Limits: 1x02
Outlander: 1x01 - 1x16
The Polar Bear Family & Me: 1x01 - 1x03
Preacher: 1x01
Pushing Daisies: 1x01 - 1x03
ReGenesis: 1x01 - 1x03
Rizzoli & Isles: 4x10
Rosewood: 1x01
Shameless: 3x01 - 3x12
Sherlock: 2x02 - 2x03, 3x01 - 3x02
Simon & Simon: 4x04
The Simpsons: 1x02 - 1x03
Star Trek: 1x05 - 1x06, 1x17, 2x04
Star Trek: Voyager: 6x13
The Streets of San Francisco: 1x14
Torchwood: 1x01 - 1x04
True Blood: 1x03 - 1x12
Two and a Half Men: 3x01, 5x02 - 5x03, 6x08, 6x18, 6x23, 11x01 - 11x22, 12x01 - 12x10
Under the Dome: 3x01 - 3x13
Unforgettable: 1x10, 1x17
Veronica Mars: 1x01 - 1x22, 2x01 - 2x14
Vikings: 1x01 - 1x08
Warehouse 13: 5x01 - 5x06
Wayward Pines: 1x01 - 1x10
Welcome to Sweden: 1x01 - 1x07
Wilsberg: 1x27, 1x29, 1x32, 1x36 - 1x37, 1x39, 1x48, 1x50
Without a Trace: 6x06, 6x17
The X-Files: 1x01 - 1x19, 10x01 - 10x06

The mythology of The X-Files, sometimes referred to as its "mytharc" by the show's staff and fans, follows the quest of FBI Special Agents Fox Mulder (David Duchovny), a believer in supernatural phenomena, and Dana Scully (Gillian Anderson), his skeptical partner. Their boss, FBI Assistant Director Walter Skinner, was also often involved. Beginning with season 8, another skeptic named John Doggett, and Monica Reyes, a believer like Mulder, were also introduced. The overarching story, which spans events as early as the 1940s, is built around a government conspiracy to hide the truth about alien existence and their doomsday plan. Not all episodes advanced the mythology plot, but those that did were often set up by Mulder or Scully via an opening monologue.

Most mythological elements in The X-Files relate to extraterrestrial beings, referred to by the writers as "Colonists", whose primary goal is to colonize Earth. Late in the series, this was revealed to have been planned for the year 2012.

A list of episodes I've watched in 2023

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Everything I've seen, in 2018

List of episodes I've watched in 2018.

Shows: 61
New episodes: 813
Rewatched episodes: 185

That '70s Show S8E11→S8E22
The Ranch S1E01→S1E05
It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia S1→S12
The X-Files S1→S8E06
South Park S19E05→S20E04
Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. S3E11→S4E12
Lethal Weapon S1E01→S1E06
The Last Man on Earth S1→S2
Community S1E01→S1E06
Gotham S3
Nailed It! S1→S2
Bates Motel S3E08→S3E09, S4E08→S4E10
Star Trek: Discovery S1E10→S1E15
GLOW S1→S2
DARK S1
Star Trek: The Next Generation S6E03→S6E22
Santa Clarita Diet S1E01→S1E05
Vikings S5E05→S5E10
Legends of Tomorrow S3E10
Barry S1
Ina <3 Porno S1
Silicon Valley S1→S5
The Alienist S1E01
Boardwalk Empire S3E05→S5
Arrow S6E01→S6E07, S6E09→S6E12
Westworld S2
30 Rock S1E01→S1E05
We Bare Bears S1
Room 104 S1E01→S1E04
Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt S4
The Americans S5E12
Peaky Blinders S4
Lovesick S3E01
Queer Eye S1→S2
Evil Genius S1
Archer S9
Once Upon a Time S6
Bob's Burgers S1→S7
Doctor Who S10E08→S10E12, Special 154, S11E01
Prison Break S5E01→S5E03
The Walking Dead S7E11→S7E16
Mayans M.C. S1
Supergirl S3E01→S3E02
Deadwood S1E01→S1E02
Brooklyn Nine-Nine S4
RuPaul's Drag Race S10E01→S10E03
American Horror Story S6
Marvel's Daredevil S3
Easy S1E01
Paradise PD S1
Chilling Adventures of Sabrina S1
House of Cards S6E01
Big Mouth S2
Bodyguard S1
Narcos: Mexico S1E01→S1E02
F is for Family S3
Hannibal S1E01
Nailed It! Holiday! S1
The Staircase S1
A Very Secret Service S1E01→S1E08
American Crime Story S2E01→S2E02

My other two The X-Files lists combined into one.

The complete extraterrestrial story lines and related conspiracies of THE X-FILES per Wikipedia, which combined information from series DVDs with information from the book entitled THE COMPLETE X-FILES: BEHIND THE SERIES, THE MYTHS AND THE MOVIES. Episodes included in only one of the two sources are still included here. Also included is the first feature film.

The X-Files, MillenniuM, The Lone Gunmen

Original from https://web.archive.org/web/20160324160205/http://filmreviews.gemeinschaftsforum.com/akte-x-die-einsamen-schuetzen-millennium-der-reihe-nach/