# The X-Files season 4
Season 4 of *The X-Files* is the fourth run of the American science fiction drama, comprising 24 episodes broadcast on Fox from October 1996 to May 1997, in which FBI agents [Fox Mulder](https://www.edgepedia.org/fox-mulder) and [Dana Scully](https://www.edgepedia.org/dana-scully) investigate paranormal cases while the alien conspiracy storyline and Scully's cancer diagnosis drive the season's continuing arc.[1](https://pluto.tv/us/shows/the-x-files/season/4) • [2](https://thetvdb.com/index.php/series/the-x-files)
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Episode count | 24 episodes[1](https://pluto.tv/us/shows/the-x-files/season/4) |
| Broadcast run | October 1996 to May 1997[2](https://thetvdb.com/index.php/series/the-x-files) |
| Timeslot change | Fridays at 9:00pm through 25 October 1996, then Sundays at 9:00pm from 27 October 1996[3](https://www.cs.cmu.edu/~aarong/from-andrew/fox/titles/xfiles4.html) |
| Premiere / finale | "Herrenvolk" (4 October 1996); "Gethsemane" (18 May 1997), the season finale[3](https://www.cs.cmu.edu/~aarong/from-andrew/fox/titles/xfiles4.html) |
| Critical reception | 100% Tomatometer from 6 reviews; 97% Popcornmeter from 250+ ratings on Rotten Tomatoes[4](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/tv/the_x_files/s04) |
| Central arc | The murder of Mulder's informant X, the return of Alex Krycek and the alien black oil, and Scully's cancer[5](https://watch.plex.tv/en-GB/show/the-x-files/season/4) |
| Principal cast | Gillian Anderson, William B. Davis, David Duchovny, and Mitch Pileggi[6](https://web.playpilot.com/global/show/the-x-files-pptiO7Jr/season-4/) |
## Broadcast and scheduling
The season premiered with "Herrenvolk" on 4 October 1996, continuing the third-season cliffhanger in which Mulder, pursued by the alien Bounty Hunter, encounters puzzling new evidence regarding his sister.[3](https://www.cs.cmu.edu/~aarong/from-andrew/fox/titles/xfiles4.html) • [6](https://web.playpilot.com/global/show/the-x-files-pptiO7Jr/season-4/) An episode log of the series shows the season running in the show's established Friday 9:00pm slot through 25 October 1996, with "Unruhe" opening a Sunday 9:00pm slot on 27 October 1996 that the log records as continuing thereafter.[3](https://www.cs.cmu.edu/~aarong/from-andrew/fox/titles/xfiles4.html) The season included occasional preemptions and repeats in the winter months, including a January 5, 1997 preemption by the series *[Millennium](https://www.edgepedia.org/millennium-tv-series)*.[3](https://www.cs.cmu.edu/~aarong/from-andrew/fox/titles/xfiles4.html)
The finale, "Gethsemane", aired on 18 May 1997 and is marked in the episode log as the season finale.[3](https://www.cs.cmu.edu/~aarong/from-andrew/fox/titles/xfiles4.html)
## Story arc
The season's mythology thread begins with the near death of Mulder's mother and the murder of the mysterious X, Mulder's informant, who is shot and killed by the [Syndicate](https://www.edgepedia.org/syndicate); Mulder then finds a valuable new ally.[5](https://watch.plex.tv/en-GB/show/the-x-files/season/4) • [7](https://www.primevideo.com/-/es_419/detail/0P9CCYTUM6CMN67DO6JTNW0IYE) The two-part episodes "Tunguska" and "Terma" (24 November and 1 December 1996) take Mulder and Krycek to Tunguska, Russia, where Mulder is captured and imprisoned, and Russian researchers infect him with the black oil, a deadly, viscous organism discovered inside a strange rock, only to cure him.[3](https://www.cs.cmu.edu/~aarong/from-andrew/fox/titles/xfiles4.html) • [7](https://www.primevideo.com/-/es_419/detail/0P9CCYTUM6CMN67DO6JTNW0IYE)
**Scully's cancer.** The season's central personal development is Scully's diagnosis with inoperable brain cancer, which Mulder becomes convinced is linked to her earlier alien abduction.[7](https://www.primevideo.com/-/es_419/detail/0P9CCYTUM6CMN67DO6JTNW0IYE) The episode "Memento Mori" (9 February 1997), written by [Vince Gilligan](https://www.edgepedia.org/vince-gilligan), focuses on Scully's cancer; in it Mulder breaks into a lab to find a cure that could save Scully's life.[8](https://www.gamesradar.com/entertainment/sci-fi-shows/sinners-director-ryan-coogler-is-deep-in-to-writing-the-x-files-reboot-and-has-a-notebook-full-of-advice-from-vince-gilligan-that-he-goes-back-to-often/) • [1](https://pluto.tv/us/shows/the-x-files/season/4) According to the season synopsis, a startling truth revealed to Scully plunges Mulder into a crisis of faith that could prove his ultimate undoing.[5](https://watch.plex.tv/en-GB/show/the-x-files/season/4)
## Notable episodes
"Home", the season's second episode, first aired on 11 October 1996 and has the agents coming across a farm in an isolated part of Pennsylvania where three inbred, bestial brothers live; Rotten Tomatoes editors have called it among the most unsettling installments of the whole show.[3](https://www.cs.cmu.edu/~aarong/from-andrew/fox/titles/xfiles4.html) • [9](https://editorial.rottentomatoes.com/franchise/17/) Other stand-alone episodes include "Musings of a Cigarette Smoking Man" (17 November 1996), which explores the truth behind the assassination of JFK and [Area 51](https://www.edgepedia.org/area-51), and "Small Potatoes" (20 April 1997), one of the comedic episodes Gilligan wrote for the show.[3](https://www.cs.cmu.edu/~aarong/from-andrew/fox/titles/xfiles4.html) • [8](https://www.gamesradar.com/entertainment/sci-fi-shows/sinners-director-ryan-coogler-is-deep-in-to-writing-the-x-files-reboot-and-has-a-notebook-full-of-advice-from-vince-gilligan-that-he-goes-back-to-often/) The two-part "Tempus Fugit" and "Max" (16 and 23 March 1997) center on the tragic reappearance of Max Fenig, which leads to the death of a fellow FBI agent.[3](https://www.cs.cmu.edu/~aarong/from-andrew/fox/titles/xfiles4.html) • [5](https://watch.plex.tv/en-GB/show/the-x-files/season/4)
## Reception
On Rotten Tomatoes the season holds a 100% Tomatometer based on 6 reviews and a 97% Popcornmeter score from more than 250 ratings; the site's season listing shows this as a higher Tomatometer score than any other season of the series carries there.[4](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/tv/the_x_files/s04) • [10](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/tv/the_x_files) [Individual](https://www.edgepedia.org/individual) critics were more divided: Ken Tucker of Entertainment Weekly gave the season a B+ and called it "very uneven, with a few superb episodes propping up weak ones", while Steven Horn of IGN gave it 8/10, writing that Season Four has "some pretty spectacular moments and some of the most beloved X-Files shows to date".[4](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/tv/the_x_files/s04)
## Availability
In the United States, the season can be streamed with a subscription on Hulu and Disney+, or watched free with ads on [Pluto TV](https://www.edgepedia.org/pluto-tv); it can also be purchased digitally, for example on Prime Video, where season 4 in HD is listed at USD 14.99.[11](https://www.justwatch.com/us/tv-show/the-x-files) • [7](https://www.primevideo.com/-/es_419/detail/0P9CCYTUM6CMN67DO6JTNW0IYE)
## References
1. [The X-Files Season 4, Pluto TV](https://pluto.tv/us/shows/the-x-files/season/4)
2. [The X-Files, TheTVDB.com](https://thetvdb.com/index.php/series/the-x-files)
3. [Episodes: The X-Files (96-97 Season), CMU](https://www.cs.cmu.edu/~aarong/from-andrew/fox/titles/xfiles4.html)
4. [The X-Files: Season 4, Rotten Tomatoes](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/tv/the_x_files/s04)
5. [Where to Watch The X Files Season 4, Plex](https://watch.plex.tv/en-GB/show/the-x-files/season/4)
6. [The X-Files: Season 4, PlayPilot](https://web.playpilot.com/global/show/the-x-files-pptiO7Jr/season-4/)
7. [Prime Video: The X-Files Season 4](https://www.primevideo.com/-/es_419/detail/0P9CCYTUM6CMN67DO6JTNW0IYE)
8. [Ryan Coogler X-Files reboot article, GamesRadar+](https://www.gamesradar.com/entertainment/sci-fi-shows/sinners-director-ryan-coogler-is-deep-in-to-writing-the-x-files-reboot-and-has-a-notebook-full-of-advice-from-vince-gilligan-that-he-goes-back-to-often/)
9. [Franchises 17, Rotten Tomatoes editorial](https://editorial.rottentomatoes.com/franchise/17/)
10. [The X-Files, Rotten Tomatoes](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/tv/the_x_files)
11. [The X-Files streaming guide, JustWatch](https://www.justwatch.com/us/tv-show/the-x-files)
---
*Topic: Encyclopedia › Arts and culture › Screen and stage › Film and television › Seasons, episodes, and installments › Screen seasons › Science fiction, fantasy, and horror series seasons*
*Initially written Sep 17, 2026 · Reviewed: Oct 25, 2026 · Edited: Oct 15, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Last review: Oct 25, 2026*
*Copyright 2026 EdgeChat AI, a subsidiary of Biostate AI.*
License: Edgepedia Community License 1.0, https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license