THE X-CAST X-FILES EPISODE TOURNAMENT - Fight the Future's Journey to the Final

Tomorrow sees the big final of #TheXFilesEpisodeTournament (find the hashtag on Twitter), which sees the first movie, FIGHT THE FUTURE, face Season 5's comedy BAD BLOOD

Before it begins, we thought we'd break down the journey each finalist took to get here, voted by you.

ROUND 1

FIGHT THE FUTURE (82%)
v
THE RED AND THE BLACK (18%)
44 votes

A strong first round win out the gate between two big mythology episodes, ironically 'The Red and the Black' being a major lead-in to Fight the Future itself.

ROUND 2

FIGHT THE FUTURE (92%)
v
END GAME (8%)
75 votes

Possibly the biggest win of the tournament, which is a huge shame for Season 2's excellent 'End Game', which deserved a longer run.

ROUND 3

FIGHT THE FUTURE gets a BYE due to a high-percentage win and balancing the numbers.

ROUND 4

FIGHT THE FUTURE (73%)
v
PAPER CLIP (27%)
105 votes

Again, another great mythology episode taken out powerfully by the magic of the movie. 'Paper Clip' should have gone further.

ROUND 5

FIGHT THE FUTURE (74%)
v
HOW THE GHOSTS STOLE CHRISTMAS (26%)
103 votes

Surprising how heavily Fight the Future defeated this massive Season 6 fan comedy favourite, but just shows the power of the movie.

QUARTER FINAL

FIGHT THE FUTURE (62%)
v
ONE BREATH (38%)
122 votes

Is 'One Breath' better than the movie? Personally, I'd say yes, but it certainly gave the movie it's biggest challenge up to this point.

SEMI FINAL

FIGHT THE FUTURE (60%)
v
CLYDE BRUCKMAN'S FINAL REPOSE (46%)
135 votes

An early favourite to win the tournament, it's no surprise Clyde Bruckman gave FTF the biggest challenge. Sad to see this great episode go though & not reach the final.

FINAL

FIGHT THE FUTURE
v
BAD BLOOD

Who wins? You decide tomorrow. Let us know who should be crowned the greatest X-File of them all!

THE X-CAST X-FILES EPISODE TOURNAMENT - Bad Blood's Journey to the Final

Tomorrow sees the big final of #TheXFilesEpisodeTournament (find the hashtag on Twitter), which sees Season 5's BAD BLOOD face the first movie, FIGHT THE FUTURE.

Before it begins, we thought we'd break down the journey each finalist took to get here, voted by you.

ROUND 1

BAD BLOOD (84%)
v
EN AMI (16%)
49 votes

A decisive first round win for the comedy vampire story against Season 7's Scully/CSM road trip. 'En Ami' probably deserved a longer run, however.

ROUND 2

BAD BLOOD (88%)
v
2SHY (12%)
81 votes

Even stronger second round win against Season 3's creepy, early-internet stranger danger story. No contest on the whole.

ROUND 3

BAD BLOOD gets a BYE due to a high-percentage win and balancing the numbers.

ROUND 4

BAD BLOOD (64%)
v
HOME (36%)
138 votes

One of the tournament's highest-voted matches and in other circumstances this could well have been the final. Still a decent win but 'Home' really should have lasted longer.

ROUND 5

BAD BLOOD (69%)
v
THE UNNATURAL (31%)
122 votes

Slightly bigger win but 'The Unnatural' still gives it a run, being a highly popular Season 6 romantic comedy.

QUARTER FINAL

BAD BLOOD (65%)
v
REDUX II (35%)
113 votes

Did 'Redux II' deserve to get quite this far? Open to debate but nevertheless this Season 5 battle wasn't too much of a 'Bad Blood' rout.

SEMI FINAL

BAD BLOOD (54%)
v
PILOT (46%)
141 votes

The highest scoring match yet and a close one. Many of us at The X-Cast have been stunned by how beloved the 'Pilot' is and how far it got, so the best episode probably won here.

FINAL

BAD BLOOD
v
FIGHT THE FUTURE

Who wins? You decide tomorrow. Let us know who should be crowned the greatest X-File of them all!

X-OBITUARY: Martin Landau RIP

Paige Schector marks the passing of Martin Landau, aka Dr. Alvin Kurtzweil from The X-Files: Fight the Future, who has died aged 89...

Academy Award winner Martin Landau, who became part of The X-Files family in the first feature film, died Saturday in Los Angeles. He was 89 years old. He entered the mainstream as one of the villains in the landmark Hitchcock film, North by Northwest, and won the Oscar for Best Actor in a Supporting Role for Ed Wood in 1995. 

But he’s indelibly tied to The X-Files through 1998’s Fight the Future. I spoke with him at length about the role of Dr. Alvin Kurtzeil at the Chiller Convention in New Jersey, where he admitted that the part was tailor-made for him. Landau said executive producer Chris Carter’s character outline only said Kurtzeil needed to seem sane and insane. “I created a character out of nothing, so it was great fun.”

Landau was nominated for two other Oscars – for Tucker: The Man and His Dream in 1989 and Woody Allen’s Crimes and Misdemeanors in 1990. He also took home Golden Globes for Ed Wood, Tucker and Mission Impossible. He was well known in the sci-fi/fantasy genre for Space 1999, 1979’s Meteor and guest spots on The Twilight Zone.

On a personal note, what I’ll remember most about Landau was his graciousness. He was the most gentlemanly gentleman I’ve ever met. He listened to intently to things I said, squeezed my hand warmly when he received compliments and did so with an open heart and light touch of humor.

Rest in Peace. We hope you find whatever truth is out there.