7.8 /10 1 Votes7.8
8/10 TV Original language(s) English First episode date 4 March 2001 | 7.5/10 IMDb No. of seasons 1 Final episode date 1 June 2001 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Genre Conspiracy fictionScience fictionThrillerDramaComedy Created by Chris CarterVince GilliganJohn ShibanFrank SpotnitzBased on characters created by Glen Morgan and James Wong Starring Bruce HarwoodTom BraidwoodDean HaglundStephen SneddenZuleikha Robinson Cast | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The Lone Gunmen is an American conspiracy fiction thriller drama television series created by Chris Carter, Vince Gilligan, John Shiban, and Frank Spotnitz. The program originally aired from March 4, 2001 (2001-03-04), to June 1, 2001 (2001-06-01), on Fox. It is a spin-off of Carter's science fiction television series The X-Files and a part of The X-Files franchise, starring several of the show's characters. Despite positive reviews, its ratings dropped. The show was canceled after thirteen episodes. The last episode ended on a cliffhanger which was partially resolved in a ninth season episode of The X-Files entitled "Jump the Shark".
Contents
- Series overview
- Cast and characters
- Filming
- Episodes
- Nielsen ratings
- Home video release
- Reviews
- Awards
- References
The series revolves around the three characters of The Lone Gunmen: Melvin Frohike, John Fitzgerald Byers, and Richard Langly, a group of investigators who run a conspiracy theory magazine. They had often helped FBI Special Agent Fox Mulder on The X-Files.
Series overview
Whereas The X-Files deals mainly with paranormal events and conspiracies to cover up extraterrestrial contact, The Lone Gunmen draws on secret activity of other kinds, such as government-sponsored terrorism, the development of a surveillance society, corporate crime, and escaped Nazis. The show has a light mood and elements of slapstick comedy. The trio are alternately aided and hindered by a mysterious thief named Yves Adele Harlow.
In the premiere episode, which aired March 4, 2001, members of the U.S. government conspire to hijack an airliner, fly it into the World Trade Center, and blame the act on terrorists to gain support for a new profit-making war. The episode aired six months prior to the September 11 attacks.
Cast and characters
Filming
The series was filmed in Vancouver, Canada and in New York, United States.
Episodes
Episodes are approximately 43 minutes in length.
Nielsen ratings
Although the debut episode garnered 13.23 million viewers, its ratings began to steadily drop.
Home video release
Fox Home Entertainment officially released the series (along with the episode of The X-Files titled "Jump the Shark" which finishes the cliffhanger that ended The Lone Gunmen as an additional episode) on a three-disc Region 1 DVD set in the United States on March 29, 2005. In the UK, it was released on January 31, 2006.
Reviews
The Lone Gunmen received mixed to positive reviews from critics. Julie Salamon of The New York Times gave it a favorable review, stating it is "well done: shrewdly filmed, edited and written". Los Angeles Times writer Howard Rosenberg gave the series a moderately positive review, saying a "bit of it is pretty funny". Aaron Beierle, writing for DVD Talk, awarded the show 4 stars out of 5. Beierle considered the stories "enjoyable, intelligent and well-written" and described the characters as "terrifically memorable". Eric Profancik, writing for DVD Verdict, stated the material is "pretty good" and described the plots as "strong and unusual stories".
Awards
The pilot episode earned a CSC Award by the Canadian Society of Cinematographers for Best Cinematography - TV Drama.