Okay, I'll clarify. Maybe it wasn't Gish per se, but Monica Reyes that was the problem. She just came off as a second or third rate Mulder. It seemed she was ready to believe anything quicker than Mulder. She could make Mulder look like a skeptic by comparison. I haven't seen it in a while, but I don't recall much in the way of chemistry with Patrick, and I thought at the time her acting wasn't up to snuff.

But yeah, if the show had gone off in a new direction w/o Mulder & Scully, then Gish / Reyes certainly would have had more time to grow and improve. Robert Patrick really hit it out of the park on Day 1 though. Amazing considering the shoes he had to fill.

I rarely disagree with your opinions, but you're wrong about this one.

I don't disagree, but I just think that's one of the few weaknesses of the show from the beginning.

Most in this thread agree seasons 1-5 are must, but if you go back and re-watch those 5 seasons it's still maddening how often Scully DOESN'T believe there isn't a scientific explanation despite having seen things that would make ANYONE believe in aliens and the supernatural.

So, Reyes believing anything was kind of silly in the same way and I guess that I let it pass. Patrick was brilliant, though, but I've seen him in smaller roles in movies and think he's just a much better actor than he's probably gotten credit for. I only really remember Gish from Beautiful Girls.

I was going to post the same thing. Just thinking about him has me missing the Unit. I think he's a very underrated actor.

I do not agree with this at all. In Season 6 alone, you weren't a fan of Field Trip, The Unnatural, How The Ghosts Stole Christmas, Two Fathers, One Son, or Triangle? I agree Seasons 1-5 are the best, and Season 6 & 7 had a lot of light episodes, but I still think there are more good episodes than bad.

As to the OP, if I were gonna invest all that time in a series, I would feel like I'm cheating myself if I don't watch it all the way through, whether you like the end of the series or not.

I like Season 6's stand alone episodes a lot, especially Dreamland 1 & 2. I found the mythology to be a mess by Season 5.

good post

Definitely stick with The X-Files until the end, it's worth it. I'm not one of those people who thought Agent Doggett was terrible either; I actually really enjoyed the character and thought Robert Patrick was just phenomenal. He was no Mulder, but again, he wasn't meant to be. I thought he was a fine replacement and I enjoyed seeing Scully take on the role of believer. There are some clunker episodes throughout, but once you start (if you enjoy it) you should see it through to the end, otherwise you'll be missing out on a lot of great stories and arc resolution.

I would also highly recommend watching The Lone Gunmen and Millennium. I think all three shows work well together; Millennium, especially, is a masterpiece (Frank Black is just so awesome). Just make sure you watch all of The Lone Gunmen episodes before The X-Files episode "Jump The Shark" and all of the Millennium episodes before the X-Files episode "Millennium."

Obviously, the 'forget what others say' answers are correct.

If you hate it after an episode or two, no reason to continue.

Personally, I enjoyed 1-5 a lot more than the rest, but still very much enjoyed every season and film.

This. I own all three series and wouldn't ever get rid of them. That said, I would also make sure you throw in the two movies. The final film is a nice reprise/send off for the characters.

And Buffy? Watch the whole thing. By the time you start to get annoyed, you will realize you're almost done anyway so finish it. The finale is definitely worth the trip. And Angel will probably be in you future as well (there is a way to coordinate the episode watching between the series via cross-over episodes that you can find in this forum somewhere).

Question for those that re-watch the entire series...is it normal for the episodes start to get tiring around season 5? It seems that seasons 1-4...we blew right past those episodes..now season 5 kind of feels like a chore.

S5 leads into the movie. Have you met Agent Diana Fowley (Mimi Rogers) yet? There's a bunch of stuff that is really great in S5 - Krycek for instance.

Regarding Buffy:

s1-s3: Essential
s4-s6: Not as good but if you loved 1-3 this is still essential
s7: Pretty bad, but might be worth it just to finish the series

Buffy season 7 always gets a bad rap in my opinion. While it wasn't as great as season's two or three I still find it enjoyable. Now if every episode had a potential slayer dying a slow and agonizing death if would be on par with the best of them.

I remember people being really pissed off at the last episode of the X-Files. Kind of like how I imagine people are going to be when the last episode of Lost airs.

I just finished the series, watched the last season on Netflix watch instantly. Yeah the show dips in quality in its overall story arc, but even in the last season theres some very good stand alone episodes So I would say watch till the end, theres some great epsiodes in the later season even if the main story arc kind of went to shit.

I really wish that the X-Files had just used the seventh season to end the series. Finish off the alien conspiracy once and for all, and then, if DD wanted to come back, move onto a new conspiracy like the Freemasons or something.

It's simply not possible for the LOST finale to be worse than the X-Files finale (not even close). I suppose people might complain, but I'd ask them to watch the finale of the XF and then calm the f*ck down.

i agree, The X-files finale was a letdown.

No, the Seinfeld finale was a letdown. The X-files finale was a travesty.