The biggest success of science fiction television in the 1990s may be The X-Files. This conspiracy-laden show followed the efforts of two FBI agents trying to explain the unexplainable, and has tapped into a vein of distrust and suspicion that ran far beyond the SF audience.
With consistently strong stories, a complex story arc, and one of the most fascinating platonic relationships ever explored on TV, The X-Files became a runaway hit. It blurred the lines between SF and mainstream drama, a technique several programs have now adopted.
Thanks to an avalanche of praise and publicity from critics and the entertainment media, The X-Files was granted a prominent place in '90s pop culture that brought new attention and interest to science fiction.
Babylon 5 showed that innovative SF could be done on a budget outside the Star Trek umbrella. The X-Files proved that there is a potential mass audience that makes SF worth doing.
The biggest question facing The X-Files in 2000 and beyond is: what next?
Series creator Chris Carter and star David Duchovny have made it clear that seven or, at the most, eight years on the show is enough for them, and it's hard to imagine an X-Files that isn't centered on the chemistry between Agents Fox Mulder and Dana Scully.
Meanwhile, nobody has been able to create a similar hit. When The X-Files closes shop around 2001, the mass audience may leave with it.
advertisement
