10 Criminally Underrated X-Files Episodes

Season nine's Improbable was an improbable success for any number of reasons. For one, the show managed to secure Burt Reynolds in a rather quirky role as a Hawaiian-shirt wearing, Three Card Monty dealing maverick of sorts, who also happens to be God. Yes, God. Beyond that, between the use of upbeat Italian tunes in place of the usual Mark Snow score and the absolutely zany, light-hearted plot (despite a serial killer on the loose, offing victims based on, it appears at first, numerology, though it is later discovered that the link is their hair colour), there was almost nothing X-Files-ish about the episode. Even in comparison to the humourous fare of the seventh season (the show's most light-hearted), Improbable seems out of place.

That's exactly the reason it gets overlooked by fans, sadly. Yet however out of place the episode may seem, it is thoroughly entertaining, and you cannot help but smile any time Reynolds is on-screen, which makes this episode being criminally underrated doubly disheartening: the actor recently let slip that he doesn't even remember appearing on the show, possibly because he was imbibing at the time.

Put aside the mythology and drama behind the scenes, and go back and take another look at this episode. It's well worth your time.