The X-Files comics was a
spin-offA spin-off is a new organization or entity formed by a split from a larger one, such as television series based on a pre-existing one, or a new company formed from a university research group or business incubator...
from the television series
of the same nameThe X-Files is an American cult science fiction television series and a part of The X-Files franchise, created by screenwriter Chris Carter. It first aired in September 1993 and ended in May 2002...
, originally published by
Topps ComicsTopps Comics is a division of the American trading card publisher and gum/candy distributor the Topps Company, Inc. that published comic books from 1993–1998, beginning its existence during a short comics-industry boom that attracted many investors and new companies...
and, most recently,
DC ComicsDC Comics is one of the largest and most popular American comic book and related media companies, along with Marvel Comics. It is the publishing division of DC Entertainment Inc., a subsidiary company of Warner Bros. Entertainment...
imprint
WildstormWildStorm Productions, or simply WildStorm, publishes American comic books. Originally an independent company established by Jim Lee and further expanded upon in subsequent years by other creators, WildStorm became a publishing imprint of DC Comics in 1999...
.
Publication history
The main series was published by
Topps ComicsTopps Comics is a division of the American trading card publisher and gum/candy distributor the Topps Company, Inc. that published comic books from 1993–1998, beginning its existence during a short comics-industry boom that attracted many investors and new companies...
and ran for 41 issues from January
1995-January:*After Xavier: The Age of Apocalypse is launched. All X-titles change to different names for the next four months.* Thor marks his 400th appearance in Marvel Comics with issue #482.-March:...
to September
1998- April :* April 7: Golden Age artist Alex Schomburg dies at age 92.- November :* November 3: Batman creator Bob Kane dies at age 83.* November 17: Torchy creator Bill Ward dies at age 79....
, coinciding with the second through fifth seasons of the television program.
There were also two
limited seriesA limited series is a series with a set number of installments. A limited series differs from an ongoing series in that the number of issues is determined before production and it differs from a one shot in that it is composed of multiple issues....
: Ground Zero
was a four-issue mini-series (December 1997-January:*Avengers #3 - Marvel Comics*Captain America #3 - Marvel Comics*Fantastic Four #3 - Marvel Comics*Iron Man #3 - Marvel Comics-February:...
- March 1998) and Season One
which ran for eight issues (August 1997 - July 1998).
The digest consisted of three issues published at five month intervals beginning December 1995 through September 1996, each featuring separate titles: "Big Foot, Warm Heart," "Dead to the World," and "Scape Goats." All included stories from the Ray Bradbury Comics
.
There were also a number of one-offs like the Hero Illustrated Special (March 1995), and the graphic novelA graphic novel is a narrative work in which the story is conveyed to the reader using the comics form. The term is employed in a broad manner, encompassing non-fiction works and thematically linked short stories as well as fictional stories across a number of genres.Graphic novels are typically...
Afterflight (August 1997).
WildstormWildStorm Productions, or simply WildStorm, publishes American comic books. Originally an independent company established by Jim Lee and further expanded upon in subsequent years by other creators, WildStorm became a publishing imprint of DC Comics in 1999...
published "The X-Files Special" in August
2008-January:*January 9: Teen Titans: The Lost Annual, delayed since 2003, is published.*January 23: Hellblazer #240, marking the 20th anniversary of the series, is released.-February:...
. It was a one-shot timed with the release of the
second filmThe X-Files: I Want to Believe is a 2008 science fiction-horror-crime drama directed by Chris Carter, and written by Carter and Frank Spotnitz. It is the second feature film based on The X-Files franchise created by Carter, following the 1998 film. Three main characters from the television series...
, written by
Frank SpotnitzFrank Spotnitz is an award-winning American television writer and producer, best known for his work on The X-Files television series.-Biography:...
with art by Brian Denham. The deal Spotnitz signed is for another two comics.
Writers
- Stefan Petrucha
Stefan Petrucha is an American writer for adults and young adults. He has written graphic novels in the The X-Files and Nancy Drew series, as well as science fiction and horror....
- Issues 1 - 16
- Annual 1
- Digests 1 and 2
- Afterflight
- John Rozum
John Rozum is an American writer of comic books who is best known for his work for Milestone Comics ; he has also worked for Topps Comics and Marvel Comics...
- Issues 17 - 19, 22 - 39, and 41
- Annual 2
- Digest 3
- Kevin J. Anderson
Kevin J. Anderson is an American science fiction author. He has written spin-off novels for Star Wars, StarCraft, Titan A.E., and The X-Files, and is the co-author of the Dune prequels. His original works include the Saga of Seven Suns series and the Nebula Award-nominated Assemblers of Infinity...
- Issues 20 and 21
- Ground Zero
- Issue 40
Artist
- Issues 1 - 16, 18, 19, 22, 23, and 27 - 29
- Annual 1
- Digests 1 - 3
Pencillers
- Gordon Purcell
Gordon Purcell is an American comic book artist, perhaps best known for his Star Trek work, in particular his photorealistic renditions of the actors who play that franchise’s characters, as well as those of similarly licensed books, such as X-Files, Xena, Lost in Space, Godzilla, The Young...
- Issues 17, 20, 21, and 24 - 29
- Annual 2
- Ground Zero
- Alex Saviuk
Alex Saviuk is an American comic book artist primarily known for his work on the Marvel Comics character Spider-Man.-Biography:...
- Issues 30 - 41
- Afterflight
- Ground Zero
Inkers
- Issues 17, 20, 21, and 24 - 29
- Annual 2
- Issues 30 - 41
- Afterflight
- Ground Zero
Cover Artists
- Issues 1 - 32 and 34 - 41
- Annuals 1 and 2
- Digests 1 - 3
- Afterflight
- Issue 33
- Ground Zero
Plot
The three digests contained stories on
BigfootBigfoot, also known as Sasquatch, is an alleged ape-like creature purportedly inhabiting forests, mainly in the Pacific Northwest region of North America. Bigfoot is usually described as a large, hairy, bipedal humanoid....
, the Count of St. Germain and the
ChupacabraThe Chupacabra or Chupacabras , also called El Chupacabras in Spanish, is a legendary cryptid rumored to inhabit parts of the Americas...
, respectively.
Afterflight
dealt with elements of the mystery airshipThe Mystery Airships were a class of unidentified flying objects, the best-known series of which were reported in newspapers in western states of the U.S., starting in 1896 and continuing into 1897....
flap.
Fight the Future
was the official filmThe X-Files is a 1998 science fiction-horror-thriller written by Chris Carter and Frank Spotnitz, and directed by Rob Bowman. It is the first feature film based on The X-Files franchise created by Carter. Three main characters from the television series re-appear in the film...
adaptation, "Fight the Future" being the films subtitle used to differentiate it from the television series.
Season One adapted some of the episodes from the first season: "Pilot", "
Deep ThroatDeep Throat is the second episode of the first season and the series of the American science fiction television series The X-Files premiered on the FOX network on September 17, 1993. It was written by series creator Chris Carter, and directed by Daniel Sackheim. The episode received a strong...
", "Squeeze", "
Conduit"Conduit" is a 1993 episode of The X-Files television series. It was the fourth episode broadcast in the show's first season. Conduit dealt with alien abduction and an exploration of Mulder's determination to find his sister, Samantha Mulder.- Plot :...
", "Ice", "Space", "Fire", "Beyond the Sea" and "Shadows". Two others, "
The Jersey Devil"The Jersey Devil" is a 1993 episode of The X-Files television series. It was the fifth episode broadcast in the show's first season. The Jersey Devil dealt with a wild man-beast living in the woods in New Jersey.- Plot :...
" and "Ghost in the Machine", were solicited but never published.
Despite coinciding with the film, "The X-Files Special" will not be an adaptation but is set in what the writer calls "the classic period of the X-Files" - between Season 2 and Season 5. While this is a stand-alone story, he will be writing two more which fit into the broader conspiracy theory that developed, saying "the next ones that I am going to write tie into the mythology of the show not in a way that changes the path but deepens it a little bit."
Problems
Tony IsabellaTony Isabella is an American comic book writer and commentator, best known as the creator and writer of Marvel Comics' Black Goliath, as well as Black Lightning, DC Comics' first major African American superhero.-Marvel Comics:...
reported difficulties with
The X-FilesThe X-Files is an American cult science fiction television series and a part of The X-Files franchise, created by screenwriter Chris Carter. It first aired in September 1993 and ended in May 2002...
creator Chris CarterChris Carter may refer to:* Cris Carter, former American football player at the wide receiver position* Chris Carter , American television screenwriter and producer who created The X-Files...
over the Topps Comics' series:
"[W]hoever was approving the comics over in Chris Carter Land were the poster kids for anal retentiveness. Although it's possible that they were so picky because they never wanted the comics out there in the first place. The main reason the comics fell behind schedule was because it took so long to satisfy the
X-Files
people. They went over everything
with a fine-tooth comb, including the letters columns. ... I rarely ran negative letters in these columns because the [Topps] editors were afraid that the X-Files
people would want even more changes in the material. Almost from the start, there were never enough usable letters for our needs. That's why I started including the "Deep Postage" news items — and making up letters completely. I also wrote the Xena
letters columns, but those were a lot easier to produce."
Collected editions
The series has been collected into trade paperbacksIn comics, a trade paperback is a collection of stories originally published in comic books, reprinted in book format, usually capturing one story arc from a single title or a series of stories with a connected story arc or common theme from one or more titles...
. In the UK, Titan BooksTitan Publishing Group is an independently owned publishing company, established in 1981. It is based at offices in London's Bankside area, close to Tate Modern...
did a near complete run but in the US Topps stopped at #12, but recently Checker Book Publishing started publishing the rest (although they restarted the numbering again).
The X-Files Collection
(Topps Comics):
Volume 1
(collects The X-Files
#1-6 and The X-Files Heroes Illustrated Special
, Berkley Publishing Group, February 1996, ISBN 1883313104)
Volume 2
(collects The X-Files
#7-12 and Annual #1
, 180 pages, February 1997, ISBN 1883313236)
Volume 1
(collects #13-17, Squeeze and #0 Pilot Episode, May 2005, ISBN 1-933160-02-0, Titan Books, July 2008, ISBN 1848561288)
Volume 2
(collects #18-22, #1/2 and Digest #1, May 2005, ISBN 1-933160-03-9, Titan Books, July 2008, ISBN 1848561296)
Volume 3
(collects #23-26, Fire, Ice and Hero Illustrated Special "Trick of the light", December 2005, ISBN 1-933160-39-X)
- Titan Books
Titan Publishing Group is an independently owned publishing company, established in 1981. It is based at offices in London's Bankside area, close to Tate Modern...
:
Firebird
(by Stefan Petrucha, with art by Charlie Adlard, collects The X-Files
#1-6, and The X-Files/Hero Illustrated Special, 1995 Trick of the Light, 160 pages, November 1995, ISBN 1900097087)
Project Aquarius
(by Stefan Petrucha, with art by Charlie Adlard, collects The X-Files
#7-12, 151 pages, August 1996, ISBN 1900097176)
The Haunting
(by Stefan Petrucha, with art by Charlie Adlard, collects The X-Files
#12-16, 160 pages, March 1997, ISBN 1900097230)
Night Light
(by Kevin J. Anderson and John Rozum, with art by Charlie Adlard and Gordon Purcell, collects The X-Files
#17- 21, 128 pages, March 1997, ISBN 1852868082)
Internal Affairs
(by John Rozum, with art by Charlie Adlard, collects The X-Files
#22-23, 128 pages, August 1997, ISBN 1852868090)
Remote Control
(by John Rozum, with art by Charlie Adlard, collects The X-Files
#24-29, 160 pages, November 1997, ISBN 1852868406)
Skin Deep
(by John Rozum, with art by Alex Saviuk, collects The X-Files
#30-33, 128 pages, April 1998, ISBN 1852869518)
Other volumes include:
Dead to the World
(by Stefan Petrucha with Charlie Adlard, collects Digests 1-3, 208 pages, Titan Books, April 1996, ISBN 1900097249)
Afterflight
(by Stefan Petrucha, with art by Jill Thompson, Alexander Saviuk and Rick Magyar, graphic novel, Topps, August 1997, Titan Books, October 1997, ISBN 1852868600)
The Wildstorm comics are also being collected:
The X-Files (176 pages, Wildstorm, November 2009, ISBN 1-4012-2527-6)
Reception
A review of the first Checker Book volume is complimentary about the writing and art but scathing about the production values of the book itself, stating that "this collection from Checker reflects a lack of editorial control, poor workmanship, and generally shoddy values".
External links