Redux (The X-Files)

"Redux"
The X-Files episodes
The so-called "fake" aliens
Episode nos.	Season 5 Episodes 1 & 2
Directed by	R. W. Goodwin ("Redux") Kim Manners ("Redux II")
Written by	Chris Carter
Production codes	5X02 5X03
Original air dates	November 2, 1997 (1997-11-02) November 9, 1997 (1997-11-09)
Running time	44 minutes ("Redux") 46 minutes ("Redux II")
Guest appearances
Mitch Pileggi as Walter Skinner William B. Davis as Cigarette Smoking Man Charles Cioffi as Scott Blevins John Finn as Michael Kritschgau Steve Makaj as Scott Ostelhoff Barry W. Levy as Vitagliano Willy Ross as "Quiet Willy" Ken Camroux as Senior Agent Don S. Williams as First Elder Bruce Harwood as John Fitzgerald Byers Dean Haglund as Richard Langly Tom Braidwood as Melvin Frohike Julia Arkos as Holly John D. Sampson as Sentry Robert Wright as Dr. Zuckerman Arnie Walter as Father McCue Megan Leitch as Samantha Mulder Sheila Larken as Margaret Scully Pat Skipper as Bill Scully Jr.[1][2]
Episode chronology
← Previous "Gethsemane" Next → "Unusual Suspects"
The X-Files season 5
List of episodes

"Redux" is the two-part fifth season premiere of the science fiction television series The X-Files. "Redux" first aired on November 2, 1997, on Fox in the United States, with "Redux II" airing on November 9. Both episodes subsequently aired in the United Kingdom and Ireland. Both episodes were written by series creator Chris Carter, with "Redux" directed by R. W. Goodwin and "Redux II" helmed by Kim Manners. "Redux" became the second-most-watched episode ever broadcast, earning more than 27 million viewers in the United States alone. The first part of the episode received mixed to negative reviews, whereas the second part received mixed to positive reviews from critics.

The show centers on FBI special agents Fox Mulder (David Duchovny) and Dana Scully (Gillian Anderson) who work on cases linked to the paranormal, called X-files. The episodes' story continues on from the fourth season finale "Gethsemane". "Redux" follows Scully, who helps Mulder to fake his own death in an effort to discover which members of the FBI they can trust before the agents individually search for an answer to Scully's cancer. "Redux II" continues immediately afterwards with Scully hospitalized, and Mulder is offered a deal to ally with the Cigarette Smoking Man (William B. Davis).

"Redux", being a part of a three-part episode arc, became a storyline milestone for the series. It marked the first episode in which Fox Mulder loses his belief in extraterrestrial life and the revelation that someone inside the FBI has tried to discredit Mulder and Scully's work on the X-files. When writing the episode, Carter wanted to tie up loose ends from the previous seasons. Despite being the first two episodes of the season that aired, they were the second and third episodes produced, the first being "Unusual Suspects", which explained the origins of The Lone Gunmen.