FBI Agent Fox Mulder Wants To Believe. Ever since witnessing the abduction of his sister, Fox Mulder has believed in the existence of extraterrestrials. Now an FBI agent, his obsession with finding his sister continues to grow as he examines the unsolved and often unexplainable cases the FBI has labeled X-Files. But as his search continues, he uncovers a series of seemingly interwoven events of which his sister's abduction is but a part. Although Mulder fails time and again to get hard evidence that could prove his theories, mysterious contacts supply him with information which only strengthen his belief that a far-reaching government conspiracy is covering up the truth he so desperately seeks. Yet nothing can prepare him for the ultimate truth that has been kept hidden for over fifty years.

When alien abductees suddenly reappear, the agents uncover a 50-year-old government genetics program designed to breed Super Soldiers who are virtually unstoppable. Fearing her pregnancy is part of the same program, Scully searches for supporting evidence even as the country’s population is being secretly primed to breed a whole generation of these lethal fighters. Then Mulder is put on trial for murdering one of these bioengineered soldiers. Now, after nine years, Mulder finally gets the chance to reveal the truth by calling on a group of witnesses who have all encountered firsthand the government's conspiracy, and seen proof of the existence of extraterrestrial life.

CRITIQUE

The last two seasons of The X-Files certainly didn’t live up to the show’s prime in the earlier seasons, but the mythology episodes in Seasons 8 and 9 are good enough for fans and new viewers to investigate in this fourth release of the mythology collection called “Super Soldiers.” The stories here may not be as intense and suspenseful as previous mythology episodes involving aliens and government cover-ups, but the focus on the circumstances surrounding Scully’s baby and a new threat arising in the form of bioengineered super soldiers with alien DNA who cannot be destroyed makes for good drama.

The addition of Robert Patrick to the cast as Agent John Doggett didn’t go over too well with fans at the time of the show’s broadcast, but he settles in quite nicely into the new character. Doggett becomes the skeptic while Scully is the believer, and while Mulder is missing, Doggett does a good job. In a non-mythology episode (Empedocles), which precedes Vienen, we find out some backstory on his character that involves the mysterious death of his young son connected to a supernatural killer. Also new to the cast, making an appearance later in season 8 and full-time in season 9, is Annabeth Gish as Agent Monica Reyes. Her character’s background and experience with strange cases gives her some credence. In these stories, Scully, Doggett and Reyes work well together, and there is even some chemistry when Mulder returns in Deadalive, but a few times Scully gets a little too dramatic.

In terms of the episodes, the best ones are Deadalive, Three Words, Vienen, Essence, Existence, Provenance, Providence, and The Truth. Watching Mulder return is very satisfying, especially in Three Words, where a disc labeled “Fight the Future” leads him to a government information processing complex where census files contain data proving that aliens are already among us. In Vienen, Mulder and Doggett investigate a mysterious oil worker’s death on an oil rig off the coast of Texas. The two-part eight season finale is really good and features a great last 30 minutes that involves a car chase, a major death, the birth of Scully’s baby, and a sad but sweet goodbye with Mulder and Scully alone in her apartment with baby William.

The two-part ninth season premiere Nothing Important Happened Today revolves around Doggett’s investigation of Deputy Director Kersh (James Pickens, Jr.) and his encounter with a fellow ex-marine (Lucy Lawless) who claims she is a bio-engineered “super soldier” and the product of fifty years of military science. Also standing in Doggett’s way is new Assistant Director Brad Follmer (Cary Elwes) and his long-time, trusted informant Knowle Rohrer (Adam Baldwin). In Trust No 1, Doggett and Reyes are contacted by a mysterious individual with classified military files on super soldiers, but soon things turn out not the way they seem. It’s not the best episode of the set, but features several cool scenes, especially the one at the train yard that offers a clue how a super soldier can be killed.

Provenance and Providence are two pretty good episodes that deal with William’s abilities and his connection to a second spacecraft unearthed by a cult of UFO fanatics. Doggett actively investigates and Scully believes that the symbols on the spacecraft contain important information. The climax is pretty big in scope, but the reasoning behind the story is a bit hard to believe. In William, a horribly disfigured man turns up in the X-Files office, but Doggett apprehends him, and questions are raised as to his identity (which I won’t spoil). Also, Scully makes an important decision concerning the safety of her son. Interestingly, David Duchovny directed the episode, though not a lot happens in it.

The 95-minute series finale The Truth is not what I expected in terms of the direction of the story, but the last twenty minutes are satisfying and interesting to watch. Instead of a full-blown mythology episode and going out with a bang, Chris Carter decides to have Mulder stand trial for the death of a super soldier in the first sixty minutes. The show’s opening is cool, though, as Mulder infiltrates a secret military compound in the mountains for information about alien’s re-colonization of Earth. While Mulder is on trial, the other agents try to prove the super soldier is not dead, and Walter Skinner (Mitch Pilleggi), acting in Mulder’s defense, calls on several witnesses who have all encountered the government’s conspiracy and proof of the existence of extraterrestrial life. This storytelling plot allows for several important and great characters of the past to return. The last few minutes focus intimately on Mulder and Scully in a motel room as they discuss their situation and their future.

The fourth volume of the X-Files Mythology series includes the following episodes from seasons Eight and Nine:

Disc 1:

-8X08: Per Manum
-8X14: This Is Not Happening
-8X15: Deadalive
-8X16: Three Words

Disc 2:
-8X18: Vienen
-8X20: Essence
-8X21: Existence
-9X01: Nothing Important Happened Today

Disc 3:
-9X02: Nothing Important Happened Today II
-9X08: Trust No 1
-9X10: Provenance
-9X11: Providence

Disc 4:
-9X17: William
-9X20/21: The Truth

THE VIDEO

Fox presents The X-Files in 1.78:1 anamorphic widescreen. The video quality isn't all that great as there are a few noticeable flaws in the picture. They don't distract too much but when viewed on a big screen you can catch them rather easily. The episodes remain watchable, however, as colors look pretty decent and saturation is good. Optional subtitles include English, Spanish and French.

The menus are cool and easy to navigate, but there is no “play all” option for the episodes. Also, the images on the episode menus tend to give away a character moment, which should’ve been avoided. Viewers who don’t want the images to spoil the experience should look away and press simply press “play” on their remote.

THE AUDIO

Fox presents The X-Files in English Dolby 2.0 Surround. Dialogue sounds clear and is easy to understand. The sound effects come across well from the front speakers, and the music sounds haunting. A Spanish Dolby track and a French Stereo track are also available.

THE EXTRAS

This time Fox provides only two new audio commentaries: Executive Producer Frank Spotnitz on Deadalive and Director Rob Hardy on Vienen. They’re pretty decent and cover some good information and trivia. It’s too bad Fox didn’t feel like reproducing the commentary track for The Truth, which is available on the Season 9 set.

The fourth disc holds the all-new documentary created exclusively for this set: Chris Carter's "Threads of Mythology: Super Soldiers" (27 minutes) is the last of four documentaries covering the mythology episodes. In this one we find discussions on the episodes included in the set with a few good recollections and explanations from interviews with the show’s producers and writers, actors Robert Patrick, Annabeth Gish, and Tom Braidwood, and a few others. This featurette offers some good closure to the show, and also answers the question why there are more mythology episodes in the last two seasons (primarily the eighth).

The fourth disc has a very brief 24 Season 5 promo. At 30 seconds and without any new footage, this one is just a tease. It's nothing special.

Also included with this 4-disc set is a very neat and informative Exclusive Collectible Mythology Timeline fold-out booklet. The back of the two slimcases look great as each episode listed on it is supported by a synopsis and a small picture from the show.

FINAL THOUGHT