The X-Files' first season didn't set the wold on fire in terms of ratings. But it did build a small yet solid cult following, and turned the heads on a number of critics. The eerie Canadian locations, shadowy cinematography and anything-can- happen atmosphere hepled make this one of the best genre shows to hit TV screens ever. The debut year introduced us to agents Mulder and Scully, and the deadly world they exist in, but Carter and company didn't really develop a real mythology until the second season. Although we had recurring figures such as Deep Throat and, briefly, the Cigarette-Smoking Man, the UFO-related episodes were stand alones, and self-contained. Often they didn't really seem to be connected to each other in any way. Alas, some of these shows were less than satisfying, and the series seemed to wobble between that style of story and the monster-of-the-week format.

It may have been a mistake for the producers to have too much attention lavished on aliens in the early part of the season; three of the first four episodes focus on UFOs, yet none of them is as good as the more done-to-Earth filler 'Squeeze'. Viewers may have been put off by the idea that this show was going to be mostly G-Men chasing aliens every week. I certainly wouldn't haven't been very interested in that kind of series. Anyone remember a little waste of time called Dark Skies? Luckily, the weaker UFO shows were counted by such alien-free stunners as 'Ice', 'Tooms', 'Eve' and the Scully-fest 'Beyond The Sea'

One odd aspect is the amount of figures from Mulder and Scully's pasts that popped up in various episodes. Among those were 'Fire', 'Young At Heart' and 'Lazarus'. In fact, a good seven installments used this plot point, as if the producers thought this was the best way to give dimensions to Mulder and Scully. Ultimately, year one stands as one of the weaker seasons, but that's not as such a bad thing. The X-Files was still finding it's feet, developing it's endearing lead characters and setting the stage for the superb second season batch.

Directed by Robert Mandel. Written by Chris Carter.

EPISODE RATING (1 to 4 stars) ***

A young FBI agent with medical training named Dana Scully reports to the office of Section Chief Scott Blevins (Charles Cioffi). Also in the office is a silent, Cigarette Smoking Man (William B. Davis) who seems a little mysterious. Blevins assigns Scully to work alongside the brilliant yet eccentric agent Fox Mulder, dubbed "Spooky" for his beliefs in the supernatural and otherworldly. Mulder, working out of the FBI HQ basement, handles the unusual cases that fall outside the bureau's mainstream...the X-Files. Immediately after they meet, Mulder informs her of a situation in Northwest Oregon in which several teenagers have turned up dead with odd puncture marks on their backs. The agents travel to the town and exhume one of the victim's graves, and discover a mangled body that clearly is not human. They also discover a small object embedded in its nose. After further investigating, Mulder tells Scully he believes the dead, and as well as two survivors, have been abducted by aliens. Scully dismisses such an outrageous idea, but they soon come across things that are not so easy to shrug off.

A successful TV pilot is never an easy thing...they usually spend most of the time introducing the characters to the audience and not developing a decent one episode storyline. But The X-Files only has two leads, so that problem doesn't play a part. In fact, Carter has penned a compelling story that works on both those crucial levels. We get to learn more about Mulder, including the basics about the disappearance of his sister, and how he got so obsessed with the supernatural. Scully isn't quite so developed here, apart from her scene with Blevins. Duchovny and Anderson click really well and make their characters both interesting and endearing. Duchovny's enthusiasm is particuarly winning. Although there are a few minor discrepancies with their characters in following episodes (eg, both Mulder and Scully wear reading glasses here), they more or less hit the nail on the head.

It's interesting looking back at the brief appearances of Cigarette Smoking Man now; none of us could possibly realize how important this seemingly minor character would become. The guest cast includes such familiar faces as Leon (Missing) Russom and Cliff (Glory) DeYoung, along with Zachary Ansley as young Billy Miles. Russom and Ansley would return in the seventh season finale 'Requiem', and Ansley would be a key recurring character in the eighth. The direction is highly effective, which is not surprisingly considering it's provided by a veteran of feature films. Mandel is probably best known for helming the popular flick F/X, which also featured DeYoung. Here, Mandel does some great things with camera setups and character exchanges.

Although not a highlight of the season (in fact, it's easily topped a couple of weeks later), this pilot is undoubtedly a successful kick off to one of the most popular shows in TV history. This is also the only installment to feature the tag line 'The Following Story Is Inspired By Actual Documented Accounts'.

Chris Carter on the pilot: "The first dilemma was creating the whirling vortex of leaves. We needed real leaves, whipping around in a whirlwind, that we had to merge with digital leaves, and then we needed a special light rig that ended up taking about eight hours to construct. Then there was the weather. It rains all the time in Vancouver. But during the shooting, it never, ever rained when we wanted it to...only when we didn't need it. The graveyard scene was supposed to be shot in the pouring rain. So we turned on the rain birds, and the actors were having trouble with the lines because it was freezing. They were both so amazingly cold that they couldn't even speak afterwards and we didn't know if we'd captured the scene. That same night, we had these empty graves that we'd dug up, and in the pitch black several crew members fell in and had to be carted off to the hospital. So it was like a war of attrition trying to get the scene...which ended up one of the better ones in the pilot."

Directed by Daniel Sackheim. Written by Chris Carter.

RATING: **

Mulder tells Scully about no less than six air force pilots stationed at an Ellens, Idaho airforce base have gone missing over a span of thirty years. And recently, one pilot, Colonel Robert Budahas, was found insane and frightened, before being hidden by his superiors. Mulder is soon approached by a mysterious man (Jerry Hardin) who warns him to stay away from this case, yet also claims to want to help. The agents begin investigating in Ellens, which also happens to be the location of many UFO sightings. As they attempt to get into the Ellens air force base, they're stopped in their tracks by less than helpful soldiers and red tape. But the tight security is understandable, if Mulder's theory is correct...the base holds alien technology left over from the infamous 1947 Roswell crash.

Here's an episode that suffers from a nearly fatal flaw: it's exceedingly uneven. It's flat for the first fifteen minutes, and the established premise just does not click at all. Luckily, the listlessness fades just before the half way point as our heroes stumble across a pair of UFOs on a military base, which are done with subtle yet effective FX. Then we get to see a pair of stoned teens (Seth Green and Lalainia Lindbjerg) who also witnessed the strange occurrence. The characters aren't exactly out of Henry V, but they're very funny, particularly the one played by the gifted Green, who went on to great success as laid back werewolf Oz on Buffy The Vampire Slayer. Mulder has a second close encounter that works very well, and it also helps give a bit more juice to the proceedings following another lag.

For me, the best element of the show is Anderson and Duchovny themselves. There's a shit load of Mulder quips early on, and both performers have some great exchanges and expressions. Duchovny especially looks to be having fun. Of course, this one is important for the introduction of Hardin as soon-to-be-dubbed Deep Throat. Unfortunately, he only appears very briefly and doesn't make much of an impact. However, he does get the show's ominous and telling final line.

Despite a few strong set pieces and amusing character quirks, 'Deep Throat' just doesn't really quite click.

SQUEEZE

Directed by Harry Longstreet. Written by Glen Morgan and Wong.

RATING: ***1/2

Scully has lunch with her former FBI training classmate, agent Tom Colton (Donal Logue) who asks for her help with a case currently on his plate: Three Baltimore citizens have been found murdered inside locked rooms, with their livers removed, and no signs of forced entry. Although Colton doesn't want Mulder involved because of his "spooky" reputation, she says he would be a useful ally. Mulder examines a vent in the office of the latest victim, and notices a slimy fingerprint. He informs Scully that he has the same finger prints on similar murders possibly dating back to 1903, and that they occur every thirty years and come in fives. Mulder and Scully return to the crime scene of the latest murder, and happen to find a suspect messing around in an air vent. The suspect, Eugene Tooms (Doug Hutchinson) passes a lie detector test and is released, but the agents think they still have the right man. The investigate further, and get some assistance from the retired cop who worked the previous string of murders in 1963.

This is one of the most popular X-Files episodes of the early seasons, and it's remarkable how well it all clicks considerable this is just the third episode. It's also even more impressive if you believe the behind the scenes problems: Morgan and Wong disliked the director, who didn't film the whole episode, and it need tweaking and additional shots after principal filming was completed. It's very surprising how well the finished product is...there's no signs of tinkering, and everything flows excellently. There's tremendous atmosphere and suspense from the get go, and it builds to a spectacular climax (one of the season's most thrilling) in which Tooms invades Scully's apartment.

One of the biggest reasons for the success of 'Squeeze' is the presence of Hutchinson; who's incredibly unnerving as the long-lived and highly flexible liver-muncher. He's at his creepiest hiding in the shadows silently and his eyes take on an incredibly eerie yellow tint. Logue, known for his work in The Patriot, has a good first scene with Anderson, but for the rest of the show, he comes across as a narrow minded, grade-A jerk...although his attitude does allow for some snappy come backs from Mulder.

Scary and riveting, 'Squeeze' is a terrific piece of work. Great news for those who enjoyed it...a sequel comes later in the season.

CHECK OUT MY BEHIND THE SCENES PAGE OF BOTH 'SQUEEZE' AND ITS SEQUEL 'TOOMS'

Directed by Daniel Sackheim. Written by Alex Gansa and Howard Gordon.

RATING: **

Scully is told by Section Chief Blevins that Mulder has a personal motive for taking interest in an alien abduction rumor in Sioux City. He also believes it has something to do with Mulder's sister, Samantha, going missing from their home 21 years ago. Scully and Mulder travel to Sioux City and meet up with Darlene Morris (Carrie Snodgress), whose daughter Ruby was allegedly abducted days ago. In addition, her son Kevin has started writing binary ones and zeroes. Darlene herself saw a UFO back in 1967. As Mulder's obsession with the case increases, it seems as if young Kevin is somehow picking up transmissions from a defense satellite. And the key to finding out the truth about the alien abductions may lay with local girl Tessa (Shelly Owens).

Yet another early alien-related case file, and, like 'Deep Throat', it's fairly average. There's never really any sense of urgency of menace from the outset, and things don't get moving until the half way point. And unlike 'Deep Throat', there's no witty dialogue to gloss over the slow patches. Thankfully, the revelations about Kevin are intriguing, which gives the show are kick in the pants There's also a cool, odd scene about the boys binary handiwork which reminds one of a key moment in Indiana Jones And The Last Crusade. Duchovny is the central figure here, and he delivers the goods as Mulder's personal feelings and beliefs come to the surface during what becomes a seemingly conventional murder case. There's a creepy, dreamlike outdoor scene towards the conclusion that shows some visual flair...but it's quickly revealed to be a cop out tease. The fade out is quiet good though.

Alas, this is the second mediocre show in a series still in it's infancy, but it does score points for shedding some light on the past of Mulder.

THE JERSEY DEVIL

Directed by Joe Napolitano. Written by Chris Carter.

RATING: **1/2

A homeless man's half-eaten corpse has turned up in a cave outside Atlantic City. A similar death occurred back in 1947, which resulted with the cops killing what appeared to be a naked cannibal. Mulder, working the case by himself for a while, thinks that the most recent death could be the work of 'The Jersey Devil', a legendary, Bigfoot-ist creature which was suppose to roam the area. Mulder attempts to track it down, but meets resistance from law enforcement, who want to keep it hush-hush.

Despite a rather routine concept, this is actually a pretty solid show. It's to the producers credit that they don't tip their hand too early and reveal just what the alleged creature actually is. When we do ultimately get to so see it, it's not exactly terrifying...yet it does give actress Claire Stansfield a rather wild role. Mark Snow's exotic score adds some impact to the climatic hunt sequence. This episode surprisingly lets us take a look at Scully's life away from the bureau, as she attends her godson's birthday party, talks about her lack of love life and eventually goes on a date with a solo father (Andrew Airlie). This stuff could have been just padding for the main story, but instead works nicely. It's interesting watching the comparison of how Mulder and Scully spend their time, which also shows how sad Fox's life really is. In addition, we get to meet one of Scully's mentors, Dr. Diamond (the extremely short-lived cop boss on Miami Vice), a professor who aids them in the hunt.

Though no classic, 'The Jersey Devil' is still a good show, thanks primarily to warm characterizations.