'X-Files' XXVI: X

"The X-Files" is one of the best sci-fi TV shows ever created. XXVI is the roman numeral for 26, as in the 26th episode of "The X-Files," when the character X was introduced. X was created in order to replace the character Deep Throat, who had been killed off in the first season finale, "The Erlenmeyer Flask." He served as an informant to Mulder and Scully.

X was portrayed by Steven Williams, who is a very distinguished-looking actor, with a fantastic voice. He made his debut in the second season episode "The Host" (the 26th episode), although he was off-screen. He first appeared on-screen in the 28th episode (XXVIII), "Sleepless."

And to think that X was almost a woman! The narration and deleted scenes on the DVD for the show indicated that the actress Natalija Nogulich was originally cast for the role. The sad part is that she was not replaced until after shooting her first scenes. She simply didn't have the chemistry with the other characters needed to pull off the role.

On a side note, it's too bad, because I would have liked to see how a woman could have done that role. I don't have to wonder about it too much, however, since X was later replaced by the female character Marita Covarrubias. Unfortunately, the character came off as a bad parody of her predecessors. I'm not sure whether that was the fault of the actress or directors, but I would have loved to have seen a woman who could pull off that role really well.

X was killed in the Season 4 premiere, "Herrenvolk," which was the 74th episode (LXXIV) of the series. Thankfully, he appeared two more times after his death. One of those appearances was very special because it was in the 100th episode (C) of the series: "Unusual Suspects." This episode was all about the origin of The Lone Gunmen, and was set before his death.

The second time X appeared after his death could be considered the most special episode of the series, because it was in the series finale, "The Truth." This time, he appeared as a ghost. It would have been cool if the episode could have been the 200th episode, but it was actually a two-parter, which served as the 201st and 202nd episodes (CCI and CCII, respectively).

I wasn't a fan of the final episode of the series, but it was nice to see X again. Unfortunately, he was only a ghost in the episode. He couldn't really be anything else. He was dead after all.