The End (The X-Files)

"The End" is the 20th and final episode of the fifth season, and 117th overall of the science fiction television series The X-Files. The episode first aired in the United States and Canada on May 17, 1998. "The End" subsequently aired in the United Kingdom on March 17, 1999, on BBC One. The episode was written by executive producer Chris Carter, and directed by R. W. Goodwin. "The End" earned a Nielsen household rating of 11.9, being watched by 18.76 million people in its initial broadcast. The episode received mixed to positive reviews from television 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. Mulder is a believer in the paranormal, while the skeptical Scully has been assigned to debunk his work. In this episode, the assassination of a chess grandmaster leads Mulder and Scully to learn that the real target was a telepathic boy named Gibson Praise. The two agents soon learn that Praise may hold the secrets to all the mysteries that they have been seeking answers to in the X-Files.

The episode was originally supposed to be the series finale for the show, allowing the series to evolve into a film franchise following the release of the 1998 movie. However, the series proved too profitable for Fox and a sixth season was ordered. "The End" would be the last episode of the original run to be filmed in Vancouver until the show's tenth season, as production for the subsequent four seasons moved to Los Angeles, California. "The End" features the first appearance of Diana Fowley, portrayed by Mimi Rogers, who would become a recurring character. As a season finale, it created loose ends for both the feature film and the subsequent season opener, "The Beginning".

In Vancouver, an international chess tournament is held at an arena between Anatole Klebanow, a Russian grandmaster, and Gibson Praise (Jeff Gulka), a young American prodigy. In the rafters, the Shooter, an assassin, prepares to fire at Gibson. However, Gibson senses the Shooter's presence and manages to discreetly dodge the shot, which kills Klebanow instead.

Elsewhere in Canada, the Smoking Man (William B. Davis) is found by Alex Krycek (Nicholas Lea). At FBI Headquarters, Walter Skinner (Mitch Pileggi) reveals to Fox Mulder (David Duchovny) that Jeffrey Spender (Chris Owens) is leading the case investigating the shooting. Despite Spender's request that Mulder not be involved, he bursts into the briefing and offers the explanation that the assassin was firing at Gibson, not Klebanow. Attending the meeting is Diana Fowley (Mimi Rogers), an acquaintance from Mulder's past. The Smoking Man is reunited with members of the Syndicate, including the First Elder and the Well-Manicured Man, who want him to help them with the situation concerning Gibson. Fowley accompanies Mulder and Dana Scully (Gillian Anderson) when they visit Gibson in Gaithersburg, Maryland. Mulder believes that Gibson can read minds, hence his expertise at chess. Scully learns that Mulder and Fowley know each other from long ago.

Mulder visits the Shooter, despite Spender's objections, offering immunity in exchange for testimony; the Shooter refuses. Gibson proves his abilities to a group of clinicians while Scully and Fowley watch. Meanwhile, a prison guard hands the Shooter a flattened Morley cigarette box, which conveys he's a dead man. Scully visits the Lone Gunmen, wanting them to analyze the data from Gibson. She asks them who Fowley is, and they tell her she worked closely with Mulder when he first discovered the X-files. The Smoking Man meets with Spender in the FBI parking lot but disappears when Mulder spots them talking. Scully and Mulder present to Skinner on Gibson, who displays extraordinary brain activities. Mulder believes that Gibson can unlock all the mysteries in the X-Files and wants to make a deal with the Shooter. Skinner and Fowley think this may result in adverse attention from the Attorney General, and that the X-Files could be closed down if things go wrong. Mulder dismisses the risk.

Mulder meets with the Shooter again, who tells him that Gibson is a missing link. Mulder believes that Gibson has genes that are dormant in most humans. The Smoking Man dismisses the Well-Manicured Man's concerns about Mulder's actions. At the prison, the guard kills the Shooter. Fowley, protecting Gibson in a hotel room, is shot shortly afterwards, and Gibson is captured by the Men in Black. Skinner tells Mulder of the Shooter's death, and that a flattened Morley cigarette box was found in his cell. Mulder confronts Spender, accusing him of working with the Smoking Man. The Smoking Man turns Gibson over to the Well-Manicured Man. Scully is informed by Skinner that the Justice Department is seeking to have the X-files shut down. Mulder realizes that this was all part of a plan. The Smoking Man takes Samantha Mulder's X-file from Mulder's office, which sets on fire. As he leaves, he meets Spender and tells him that he's his father. By the time Mulder and Scully arrive, the X-files are completely destroyed.

Originally, the fifth season of The X-Files was supposed to be its last, and "The End" would have segued the series into a movie franchise. David Duchovny explained, "We were saying, 'Okay, we're going to do five. We'll get out of here at five.' And then five came around, and no one was going anywhere." This is largely because the series was so lucrative for Fox that two additional seasons were ordered. Thus, "The End" had to segue into both The X-Files movie, as well as the sixth-season premiere, "The Beginning".