"Max" | |
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The X-Files episode | |
Episode no. | Season 4 Episode 18 |
Directed by | Kim Manners |
Written by |
Chris Carter Frank Spotnitz |
Production code | 4X18 |
Original air date | March 23, 1997 |
Running time | 44 minutes |
Guest appearance(s) | |
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"Max" is the eighteenth episode of the fourth season of the American science fiction television series The X-Files. It premiered on the Fox network on March 23, 1997. It was directed by Kim Manners, and written by Frank Spotnitz and series creator Chris Carter. "Max" featured guest appearances by Joe Spano, Tom O'Brien and Scott Bellis, and saw the final appearance of Brendan Beiser as special agent Pendrell. The episode helped to explore the overarching mythology, or fictional history of The X-Files. "Max" earned a Nielsen household rating of 11.6, being watched by 18.34 million people in its initial broadcast. The episode received mixed to positive reviews from critics.
The show centers on FBI special agents Fox Mulder (David Duchovny) and Dana Scully (Gillian Anderson) who work on cases linked to the paranormal, called X-Files. Following the airplane crash that killed alien abductee Max Fenig, Mulder is pursued by an assassin looking to recover an alien artifact. "Max" is a two-part episode, with the plot continuing from the previous episode, "Tempus Fugit".
Manners praised the large cast of extras used during production, concluding that they were the best he had worked with. "Max" featured scenes filmed at Vancouver International Airport and in a studio water tank, as well as using the custom-built Boeing 737 set constructed for "Tempus Fugit". Dialogue in the episode was inspired by the 1949 film The Third Man.