The X-Files - Series 2 - Complete (M-Lock Packaging) (DVD)

Author's product rating:   

Did you enjoy it?	Loved it
Story	Outstanding
Characters / Performances	Outstanding
Special Effects	Good
How does it compare to similar films?	Not applicable

Advantages:	Complete season, and decent features at an amazing price
Disadvantages:	where's my game?

Recommend to potential buyers:

yes

Full review

The X Files, one of the defining science fiction programmes of my late teens, the series that nurtured my love of all things supernatural, is, on paper a strange mix. As we follow the lives and cases of two FBI agents as they delve into any case that can't be explained (or solved) by conventional means, we learn of a huge government conspiracy involving aliens, of all things. By using a minimum of special effects, and the maximum of creative filming, we are introduced to all manner of monsters some of which are actually human. The whole series is darkly atmospheric, often the only on-screen light comes from a pair of torches being flashed in a pitch black tunnel (silver foil is used so there is just enough reflective light to see our heroes' faces.

Who are the heroes? Well firstly there is Agent Fox Mulder, a man with a quest, which is to discover the truth behind his sister, Samantha's disappearance many years before. Mulder (even his parent's don't call him Fox) is the believer, he believes in Aliens, and all things supernatural. What I like so much about him, is that he is so real, he's not perfect, he has many faults, is pig-headed and has a penchant for filthy videos and magazines. On the other hand, Dana Scully, is the sceptic of the pair, a qualified doctor, who believes that there has to be a scientific solution for each case, even if she can't find it, originally sent to spy on Mulder and de-bunk his work, over the first season we watched the her build a relationship with Mulder based on trust respect and just a touch of sexual chemistry.

---The Season---

This, the second season, begins several months after the final episode of the first. Mulder and Scully have been split up, the X Files closed, and all is looking bleak as Mulder begins to loose that faith that had driven him to solve the unusual cases to which he had previously been assigned. Finding himself being "punished" with cases that he finds boring and irrelevant, will he find the proof he is looking for, and regain the determination to uncover the truth?

While the first season of the X Files introduced the main characters and laid the groundwork, it is in this the second season that the conspiracy theories really come alive. When one of the major characters disappears under suspicious and potentially out of this world circumstances, there are plenty of minor clues for Mulder to uncover in his search for the truth behind his sister's disappearance. This season also sees the introduction of one of the sexiest, double and triple crossing antagonists the show has ever known, that is Alex Krycek, you just never know which side he's going to be on. Along with Krycek's arrival, other characters that have a relatively minor role up until now come into their own, with the mysterious Cigarette Smoking Man (aka Cancer Man) showing his true (rather dark) colours.

I personally found that the 25 episodes in this season were a perfect mix of standalone and mythology (these are the ones that deal with the alien conspiracy theories), with a good combination, of the scary, gruesome and just plain funny storylines. The mythology in this season is only just starting to mature, and is therefore accessible to both the seasoned and new viewer, nothing is too complex and there is still plenty of character development. And the final episode is a brilliant cliff-hanger, which left me determined to watch the next season immediately after finishing this. I do actually remember being very annoyed when this originally aired on the television, that I was left really needing to know what happened, but this was a great way to ensure the series will return for another season, could you imagine the uproar if we hadn't found out what happened.

---The Presentation---

Season two is presented over a total of seven discs, which are stored in a multi DVD case (about the size of a VHS cassette), which is, in turn stored in a cardboard slipcase. This is the newer, cheaper presentation, and is available for all nine seasons. I've never personally owned the older (far more expensive) version, but I can tell you that this looks very nice, when displayed on a shelf with the other boxsets. Each of the separate DVDs is nicely printed, and there is a handy (glossy) episode guide, which contains a listing of the all episodes and special features along with the original airdates and a fairly decent introduction to the season. All in all the physical presentation is far superior to anything I could produce by recording off the television.

This trend continues with the video and audio quality. As I've already mentioned there are many dark scenes, but there is not a sign of pixalation or graininess. It could, possibly be considered a disadvantage that the video is in the full-screen format, but as I tend to watch it on a full-screen LCD television, for me it's perfect. While the audio is not in the superior 5.1 format, the stereo sound is perfectly adequate. Yes there are a few scenes where complete surround sound would have enhanced the viewing experience, but by using a quasi- 5.1 feature there were still jumps galore.

---The Special Features---

As this programme has been shown on the television many, many times, it takes a little more than fancy presentation to persuade me to buy. I like special features on my boxsets, and the more the better, as long as they're of good quality and add something to the overall package. While the discs aren't exactly overflowing with special features, (there are no commentaries) there are a reasonable number, and most of what there are, are enthralling to the more avid viewer. On each disc, there are a number of foreign language clips, which I always find more funny than informative. There are also four deleted scenes, which can be accessed on either the special features disc or incorporated into the actual episodes. Personally I prefer incorporating them on a second viewing. Then there are a couple of special effect clips, that I found a little boring to watch, and finally there is a look behind the scenes, where we get to watch Gillian Anderson eating a bug, yuck.

Right that's the clips out of the way, and now it's time to move onto the features that deal with the background of the season. There's a 15 minute making of, that didn't really go into enough detail for my liking, but was, nevertheless, interesting to watch as were the very short interviews by creator, Chris Carter. There were twelve of these, and they were far more insightful and looked into the thinking behind various episodes. These are the same interviews that appeared in the VHS boxsets, but as I don't own that, I'd never seen them before and found them very interesting.
The final features include a series of micro-features that originally aired on the FX channel, which give a little more insight into the making of the series and a few of the featured characters and a set of TV spots (better known as ads). Now these apart from the nostalgia value, and the amusement at just how programmes like this were promoted, the big thing I noticed about these was just how much of the storyline could be given away in just 10-20 seconds.

All in all the special features strike just about the right balance between information and entertainment and definitely add to the value of the boxset, although I would say that it's not advisable to view them before you've watched the complete season. One thing though, my booklet says I should have a copy of a PC game, but I swear I searched all the discs and I can't find it.

---Tech stuff---

Rating : 18
Feature Running Time : 17 hours (approx)
Region : 2 (PAL)
Picture : 4:3
Sound : 2.0 Surround
Languages : English, French, Italian
Subtitles : English for the hearing impaired, French, Italian, Dutch, Greek

Price : £18.97 from Amazon (delivered)

---Final words---

I was so excited when I received this boxset, the complete second season of one of my favourite programmes on DVD, along with just enough special features to keep me happy. I do however think that this is a programme that you either love or hate, if you liked Buffy or Angel or ever enjoyed The Twilight Zone then it's a pretty good bet that you'll like this. Season Two is not, however the place to start, although the casual viewer will be able to enjoy the mix of genres, they will not really understand some of the background to the conspiracy theories. In actual fact, considering that I've watched this season several times on the television (and own a few of the episodes on special edition VHS), I'm surprised at just how much more I enjoy returning to it, now that I understand far more about the complex relationships that are only just developing. So this is a boxset, that gives so much value for money, that it's almost unbelievable, it could almost be an X File in itself….

Oh one last point, unlike the previous and following season, this is rated 18. From what I can gather this is due to one particular episode that depicts devil worship, but there are some pretty grotesque scenes throughout the season, and I would definitely advise that it's not for viewing by the whole family (or the more squeamish, but more something for adults who have a fairly strong stomach (there are a few scenes that make me gag).