-------------------------------------------------------------------------------- POSTED AT 3:54 AM EST Thursday, January 17
Fox closing X-Files in May
Reuters News Agency
Los Angeles — The truth will soon no longer be out there.
The X-Files, the Emmy-winning sci-fi drama that thrust two federal agents into spooky paranormal situations, will end its nine-season run on the Fox television network in May, Daily Variety reported in its Thursday edition.
Series creator Chris Carter decided to pull the plug on the show, whose ratings have been hurt this season by the departure of star David Duchovny and by tougher competition.
"It's the ninth inning. We want to go out on top," the trade paper quoted Carter as saying. "We wanted to go out as a strong show."
Carter hoped Duchovny would return as Special Agent Fox Mulder for the two-part series finale opposite Gillian Anderson's Agent Dana Scully. Both actors, whose mutual off-screen antipathy was well documented, are on board for a sequel to the 1998 X-Files feature.
Duchovny phased out his involvement in the series last season, and former Terminator 2 co-star Robert Patrick was drafted in as Agent John Doggett.
The X-Files premiered in September 1993 on the Fox network, which is part of News Corp's Fox Entertainment Group unit. Its cult hit status soon snowballed into mainstream success, and the show won 15 Emmy Awards over the years, including an acting prize for Anderson.
Although ratings were off this season, with the show ranking No. 72 out of 162, it remains a strong performer in syndication.
Posted by Dukhat (Member # 341) on :
Plus the fact that the writing has been crappy, the stories are so wierd that not even the die-hard fans can understand what's going on, and the colonization story arc has never been satisfactorily explained or concluded.
Posted by OnToMars (Member # 621) on :
It's about time. Sorry to say, it just want cuttin' it anymore.
I remember watching the first episode. Normally I would watch my shows in a room in a different part of the house than my mom. But that night I watched in a room adjacent to where she watched TV just in case I was scared out of my wits.
Antipathy? They didn't like each other? Huh. Learn something new everyday.
Posted by Vogon Poet (Member # 393) on :
Actually, it wasn't so much antipathy as, while they worked well together, they didn't feel the need to hang out very much offscreen.
Thank God it's over, it had long since jumped the shark. I didn't even bother to watch 8th season.
Posted by CaptainMike (Member # 709) on :
I gotta say, i loved the addition of Doggett.. but as that dragged on i realized that there really wasnt anything going on. Havent even tuned in this year..
Posted by G.K Nimrod (Member # 205) on :
"jumped the shark"? Origin of this saying???
Posted by Grokca (Member # 722) on :
Jumped the shark, refers to "Happy Days" when they did an episode where Fonzie jumped a shark in a tank on his motorcycle. By this point in the show the show had become old, stale and there was nothing left to say, hence once you reach the point of nothing left to say you are Jumping the Shark.
Posted by Veers (Member # 661) on :
Even though the show is getting less scarier and less with the conspiracy stuff, it's still one of my favorite shows. I hope it goes out with a bang. Maybe the next movie will be good too.
Posted by thoughtcriminal84 (Member # 480) on :
damn, you really do learn something new everyday
Posted by Vogon Poet (Member # 393) on :
Wow. I thought that "Happy Days" explanation was a joke...
Posted by Vogon Poet (Member # 393) on :
Yes, Timothy, but your idea of what consitutes a joke is a bit weird. 8)
Nope, this is apparently a genuine term that's come into use. It's also a very personal one, really, since except in a very few instances everyone has their own opinion of when a show reaches its peak, starts to go downhill, or whatever else might fit the definition of "jumping the shark."
Posted by Sol System (Member # 30) on :
Somewhere a FOX executive is worried.
Posted by Dukhat (Member # 341) on :
A few examples of "jumping the shark":
Married With Children
Night Court
Beverly Hills, 90210 (I personally did not watch this show, but several friends have told me that that's what happened.)
Can anyone think of any others?
Posted by The_Tom (Member # 38) on :
Some would argue the Simpsons have. There certainly hasn't been a cusp point where the show went into a slide, but most would agree there's been a consistent decline usually cited as beginning with the Lisa-becoming-a-vegetarian show.
seaQuest DSV is IMHO, a textbook case of shark-jumping. Season 1 = on par with TNG. Seasons 2 and 3 = on par with "Threshold."
Posted by TLE (Member # 280) on :
I'm glad it's over personally. I think X-Files jumped the shark shortly before David left the show.
Posted by Omega (Member # 91) on :
"Earth: Final Conflict" is the archetype of shark-jumping. Season one was some of the best stuff I've ever seen. Their best ep in the last four years wasn't anywhere close to the worst of S1.
Posted by Krenim (Member # 22) on :
In that case, E:FC has "jumped the shark" twice, if such a thing is possible. Once after Season 1, and again after Season 4. This Atavus junk is just plain awful...
![[Frown]](frown.gif)