I'm presently near halfway through Season 7 of an X-Files rewatch and thoroughly enjoying it. It's only the second complete rewatch I've done of the series since it was originally aired. Even back when the show was in production my viewing of the series was a bit sporadic as I didn't come into the show until a couple of seasons in. Still I'm really enjoying the show again. It really was a great and creative series. It has got me thinking about something I never looked at before: tie-in merchandise such as reference books, original novels, comics, soundtracks and whatever. So I'm asking for some opinions regarding tie-in materiel: things recommended and things to avoid. Thoughts anyone?
I recently watched the xfiles for the 1st time. Blew my mind. Loved it. I picked up one of the scores they released a few years ago: http://www.lalalandrecords.com/XFiles.html sold out now, but im sure you could find it by other means somewhere. Very awesome. Stuff from every season and the best episodes. Other than the score set i haven't gotten anything, I'm curious as well. I do love a good reference book!
The comic company IDW just started a continuation series much in the vein of the Buffy series at Dark Horse and the Smallville comic at DC. Entitled "X-Files Season 10," the series is an in-continuity follow-up to the movie "X-Files: I Want to Believe." Chris Carter is involved in some capacity, but it's actually written by Joe Harris. The second issue came out just this month and so far it is definitely worth tracking down if you like the X-Files. The story is interesting and the characterization is spot-on. So far, the cameos include: Spoiler: Issues 1 + 2 Skinner, Doggett, and Reyes (in flashback). The most note-worthy, though, are undoubtably the Lone Gunmen who have apparently faked their deaths but are actually alive and well and helping Mulder! At the end of the second issue, a package of Morley cigarettes appears but whoever was smoking them hasn't been revealed. Yet. I'm a HUGE X-Files fan and this series -- while not a TV show or movie -- is the next best thing. Hopefully Carter's involvement on this project means that the events of this series won't be swept aside if a third movie is ever made (a slim hope but one I like to hold onto).
I was into the X Files back when I had money to burn on tie-in material... There were some great graphic novels, published in the UK by Manga at first, and then Titan. Dead to the World, Stefan Petrucha & John Rozum Firebird, Stefan Petrucha Project Aquarius, Stefan Petrucha The Haunting, Stefan Petrucha Night Lights, John Rozum & Kevin J. Anderson Internal Affairs, John Rozum Afterflight, Stefan Petrucha Remote Control, John Rozum Skin Deep, John Rozum as for novels, I bought Goblins & Whirlwind, Charles L. Grant Ground Zero, Kevin J. Anderson Ruins, Kevin J. Anderson Antibodies, Kevin J. Anderson Skin, Ben Mezrich I loved Ground Zero as my favourite of the lot, as its story was about the legacy of nuclear testing.
I watched the entire series (and the somewhat releated Milennium, the direct spinoff Lone Gunmen, and both feature films) over the summer for the first time. There were some ups and downs, and the format of the show doesn't lend itself as well to marahton viewing as, say, Lost (a show I watched earlier this year) but generally it's not an experience I regret.
I love X-Files (the first 7 seasons that is, after that I try not to think about it). I was a fan since the end of the first season when I was 11. it was my first "adult" show. Although now adays I try to ignore the mytharc episodes and concentrate on the MOTW which is I think is where the real good writing shines through. As for tie in stuff I think I read a couple of the books, but I can't say I cared for any of them. I actually won Ground Zero when I filled out an application in one of the X-Files magazines (one of the only things I ever won). But my issue with the books is they were more plot than character driven which wasn't my thing. And I still have all the magazine articles and TV guide clippings that I kept as a child. lol
On the non-fiction side, two books I would highly recommend are "Wanting to Believe" and "the Complete X-Files" coffee table book. Wanting to Believe is a book with separate reviews of every episode and movie of the series that also includes reviews of every episode of Millennium and the Lone Gunmen, as well. Organized by broadcast order (with the other two shows mixed in), the author does a nice job analyzing and rating each episode. I don't always agree with him but he nevertheless makes informed opinions that are worth thinking about. As stated above, the Complete X-Files is a gorgeous coffee table book, full of beautiful photos and inside info from behind the scenes. A bit in the pricey side, I still think it earns its value. JJ Abrams writes the intro and it's a genuine testament to his love of the show.