The X-Files - Season 4

Season 4 of The X-Files premiered on October 4, 1996. Like all previous seasons of the show, the fourth season was filmed in and around Vancouver, British Columbia. Season 4 would bring several new elements, both off-screen and on, to the series. New characters and actors were introduced, including Laurie Holden, who would play Mulder's new informant Marita Covarrubias, and Chris Owens, who would play the younger version of 'The Cigarette-Smoking Man'. Both of these actors would make additional appearances throughout the rest of the show. In addition, the background alien conspiracy mythology was expanded considerably with several new elements, including the revelation of the use of altered Africanized Honey Bees (an aspect that would be a paramount plot point for the 1998 feature film), while several 'Monster of the Week' episodes would continue touching on dark and light tones alike, and would feature several noted guest actors, including Tom Noonan and Paul McCrane.
Off-screen, writing duo Glen Morgan and James Wong, following the cancellation of their own series Space: Above and Beyond, returned to write episodes for the X-Files' fourth season; several actors from their show would also be featured in S4. Many episodes in Season 4 would prove to be considerably remarkable - Among these would be "Home", the first episode in the season written by Morgan and Wong, which would be the first episode in the show to be given an explicit 'viewer discretion advisory' for content; "Unruhe", which marked the change in the show's previous airtime slot from Friday evening to Sunday evening (where the show would continue to air for the remainder of it's original run on FOX); and "Leonard Betts", chosen as the lead-out for Super Bowl XXXI, and, as a result, would subsequently be the highest-rated episode in the entire show's run. The series' previous Friday evening timeslot would be taken by showrunner Chris Carter's next series, Millennium, which would also debut in October 1996.
Season 4 of The X-Files would conclude in May 1997 with 24 episodes. Notable in regard to the season's conclusion would be the upcoming feature film; Specifically that its' main production and filming would begin immediately afterward, during the hiatus between the fourth and fifth seasons.
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=Pistols=
==SIG-Sauer P226==
After carrying a Smith & Wesson 5906 in Season 3, FBI Special Agent Fox Mulder (David Duchovny) returns to carrying a SIG-Sauer P226 as his sidearm, which he carried in Season 2. Mulder would carry the P226 from Season 4 onwards. FBI Assistant Director Walter Skinner (Mitch Pileggi) is also seen at times with a SIG P226.
==SIG-Sauer P228==
After carrying a Smith & Wesson 5906 in Season 3, FBI Special Agent Dana Scully (Gillian Anderson) returns to carrying a SIG-Sauer P228 as her sidearm, which she carried in Season 2. Scully would carry the P228 from Season 4 onwards, except for several episodes in Season 4 (as well as Season 5) when she used a SIG-Sauer P225 instead (see below). FBI Assistant Director Walter Skinner (Mitch Pileggi) also carries a P228. Alex Krycek (Nicholas Lea) is seen surrendering a SIG P228 with suppressor in "Tunguska" (S4E08). Other FBI and government agents on the show are also seen using P228s. 
Note that many (but not all) appearances of the SIG P228 in Season 4 show the weapon being handled roughly or during stunts, indicating those P228s are likely the rubber stunt version. It is possible that during Seasons 4 and 5 (the latter especially) the P228 was used more for stunt work while the P225 (mentioned below) was used more for firing sequences.
==SIG-Sauer P225==
In several episodes in Season 4, Dana Scully used a SIG-Sauer P225 rather than the P228. This might have occurred because the show's armorer was unable to bring a live P228 on-set for those particular episodes/sequences (At times the weapons interchange during the same episode). Scully first used the P225 in "Home" (S4E02), and would be seen using the weapon in numerous interspersed episodes throughout Season 4 and Season 5. Assistant Director Walter Skinner (Mitch Pileggi) is also seen (albeit rarely) with a SIG P225.
thumb|none|300px|SIG-Sauer P225 - 9x19mm, 8 round magazine
==Walther PPK==
Fox Mulder carries a Walther PPK as a back-up weapon, carried in an ankle holster as first seen in Season 3. He is notably seen using it when he loses his SIG-Sauer P226 in "Paper Hearts" (S4E10). 
==Smith & Wesson 5906==
Special Agent Dana Scully (Gillian Anderson) is seen wielding the Smith & Wesson 5906 handgun that she carries in Season 3 in the Season 4 premiere episode "Herrenvolk" (S4E01). Special Agent Fox Mulder (David Duchovny) and Assistant Director Walter Skinner (Mitch Pileggi) are also seen with their S&W 5906s from Season 3 in "Herrenvolk" (S4E01). These are the same weapons from the previous season, with their particular features - Rounded trigger guard, adjustable sights, and black (blued-steel) triggers and hammers. A Syndicate operative is briefly seen holstering a 5906, also in "Herrenvolk".
==Beretta 92FS==
Beretta 92FS pistols are seen numerous times throughout the series, carried and used by police officers and government agents, as well as soldiers and military personnel as a Beretta M9 substitute.
==M1911A1==
Standard M1911A1 pistols are seen occasionally throughout the series. Vietnam veteran Nathaniel Teager (Peter LaCroix) uses one with blued finish to assassinate several US Army generals in "Unrequited" (S4E16). Asst. Director Skinner (Mitch Pileggi) also briefly uses a blued M1911A1 in "Zero Sum" (S4E21).
==Jericho 941 R (Nickel)==
The 'Gray-Haired Man' (Morris Panych) uses a nickel-plated Jericho 941 R to shoot at a pane of reinforced glass between him and Fox Mulder during a scene in "Memento Mori" (S4E14), reloading several times. 
==Smith & Wesson 3904==
Gerry Schnauz (Pruitt Taylor Vince) disarms a police officer of his Smith & Wesson 3904 and holds it on him in "Unruhe" (S4E04). This particular S&W semiauto had been seen earlier in Seasons 1 and 2 of the show.
 
==Ruger KP89==
'Deep Throat' (Jerry Hardin) uses a Ruger KP89 to shoot a recovered alien in "Musings of a Cigarette-Smoking Man" (S4E07).
thumb|none|325px|Ruger KP89, Stainless version of P89 with stainless steel slide and alloy frame - 9x19mm
==Taurus PT92AFS (Nickel)==
A nickel-plated Taurus PT92AFS is used by US Air Force Staff Sergeant Armando Gonzales (Rick Dobran), a potential witness, to commit suicide in "Tempus Fugit" (S4E17).
==Makarov PM==
In "Terma" (S4E09), a number of Russian guards are seen armed with what appear to be Makarov PM handguns. Several of these guards use these from horseback as they pursue Mulder as he escapes the Tunguska gulag.
==CZ 75==
Syndicate operative Scott Garrett AKA the 'Mustache Man' (Greg Michaels) uses a CZ 75 pistol in an attempt to shoot USAF Staff Sergeant Louis Frish (Tom O'Brien), a military witness, near the conclusion of "Tempus Fugit" (S4E17), repeated near the beginning of the following episode "Max" (S4E18).
==Unknown Pistols==
=Revolvers=
==Taurus Model 66==
Various Taurus Model 66 revolvers appear occasionally throughout the earlier seasons of the series. INS Agent Conrad Lozano (Rubén Blades) carries a 4" barreled stainless Taurus Model 66 as his sidearm in "El Mundo Gira" (S4E11). Soledad Buente (Jose Yenque) is also seen wielding the revolver at one point. This is almost surely the same Taurus revolver which previously appeared in Season 3.
==Smith & Wesson Model 10==
During a dream sequence in "Paper Hearts" (S4E10), Fox Mulder retrieves and attempts to use his father's Smith & Wesson Model 10 revolver. This is the same revolver he attempted to use to save his sister Samantha from alien abduction as a child, seen briefly in a flashback in the Season 2 premiere episode "Little Green Men" (S2E01). This is fitting, as the dream in "Paper Hearts" is partly a retelling of Samantha's abduction.
==Ruger Speed Six Snub==
A snub-nose Ruger Speed Six is taken and wielded by Soledad Buente (Jose Yenque) during his search for his brother in "El Mundo Gira" (S4E11). What appears to be another Speed Six snub is seen used in "Kaddish" (S4E15).
==Smith & Wesson Model 15==
A Smith & Wesson Model 15 is seen being retrieved and checked by Sheriff Andy Taylor (Tucker Smallwood) in "Home" (S4E02).
==Colt Detective Special==
Lee Harvey Oswald (Morgan Weisser) uses a Colt Detective Special in "Musings of a Cigarette-Smoking Man" (S4E07).
==Smith & Wesson Military & Police==
Early-version Smith & Wesson Model 10 revolvers (Then known as 'Military & Police' models) are seen wielded by Dallas police officers during the first flashback story involving John F. Kennedy's assassination in "Musings of a Cigarette-Smoking Man" (S4E07)
==Smith & Wesson Model 28==
Babcock (James Sutorius), a researcher on an expedition, appears to carry an N-Frame Smith & Wesson Model 28 revolver in the season finale "Gethsemane" (S4E24).
==Unknown Snub-Nose Revolver==
Curt Brunjes (Jonathan Whittaker), a Neo-Nazi publisher, is very briefly seen retrieving a small snub-nose revolver in "Kaddish" (S4E15).
=Submachine Guns=
==Heckler & Koch MP5A3==
Numerous Heckler & Koch MP5A3s are seen throughout the series. These are wielded by police tactical officers and government agents, as well as military and black-ops personnel. Special Agent Dana Scully (Gillian Anderson) notably uses a Heckler & Koch MP5A3 with Surefire 628 flashlight forearm during the FBI raid on the militia group in "Tunguska" (S4E08). Unlike in previous seasons of The X-Files, the MP5s are no longer fitted with flash hiders in Season 4.
==Heckler & Koch MP5K (Mocked up Kimel AP-9)==
What appear to be Heckler & Koch MP5Ks are seen used by government agents and military/black-ops personnel. In reality, these are not real MP5Ks; but rather mock-ups built on the bolt carrier and magazine well of a Kimel AP-9, because the armorers in British Columbia did not have genuine MP5Ks during the 1990s. The same guns have also appeared in the film Crying Freeman and the series M.A.N.T.I.S. and The Outer Limits. These weapons are notably seen wielded by ATF SRT agents in "The Field Where I Died" (S4E05) and FBI tactical agents in "Tunguska" (S4E08).
==Heckler & Koch MP5A2==
A fixed-stock Heckler & Koch MP5A2 is seen for a mere moment in the hands of one of the FBI tactical agents conducting the raid in "Tunguska" (S4E08).
thumb|none|400px|Heckler & Koch MP5A2 with early "slimline" handguard - 9x19mm
==Spectre M4==
One of the elite black-ops commandos in "Tempus Fugit" (S4E17) carries a Spectre M4 SMG.
=Rifles / Carbines=
==Colt Model 715 / Olympic Arms K4B==
Due to the series' filming in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada for the first five seasons, most of the M16-type rifles seen throughout this period were Colt Model 715s, or, more likely, the Olympic Arms K4B equivalent, which seems to be favored by the Canadian armorers. These weapons generally appeared in the hands of US military personnel as an M16A2 stand-in. Members of the Church of the Seven Stars are very briefly seen with these rifles in "The Field Where I Died" (S4E05), as are black-ops military personnel in "Musings of a Cigarette-Smoking Man" (S4E07). In "Tunguska" (S4E08), Militia gunmen and several FBI tactical agents are notably seen using these rifles fitted with A1 hand guards to pass for M16A1s. Apparently, the armorers had no genuine M16A1s to use when the episode was filmed.
===M16A1 Mockups===
==Colt Model 733 / Olympic Arms K3B 'Commando'==
Several episodes in Season 4 feature appearances of Colt "Commando"-type carbines, usually in the hands of military personnel and SWAT officers. None are seen very closely, but they appear to be the same A1E1-receiver short barrel carbines (Likely shortened Olympic Arms K3B equivalents) seen throughout the first and second seasons.
==XM177 (Mock-ups)==
XM177-style carbines are seen used by military personnel and SWAT officers, notably black ops military personnel in "Musings of a Cigarette-Smoking Man" (S4E07) and FBI tactical agents conducting a raid in "Tunguska" (S4E08). These appear to be the same weapons from Season 3 - All of them seem to be mocked up from other various AR-15 carbines (some have SP1 upper receivers, others have A1-style, and still others have the A1E1 style), as per the norm with XM177s in the vast majority of films and television.
==Colt AR-15 SP1 (Mocked Up as M16A2)==
Throughout the show, especially in earlier seasons, US military personnel are armed with Colt AR-15 SP1 rifles fitted with M16A1-style flash hiders as well as M16A2-style hand guards, standing in for the M16A2 service rifles that the soldiers should be using in real life. You can tell because the receivers of the guns don't have the "fencing" around the magazine release, plus they lack the A2-style rear sights, shell deflectors, and forward assists. These are not seen fired, but they can be full auto conversions since armorers in both Canada and the US picked up many SP1 conversions during the 1970s and 1980s.
==M14==
M14 Rifles are used by members of the Temple of the Seven Stars in "The Field Where I Died" (S4E05). Another M14 is used by a militia gunman in "Tunguska" (S4E08).
==Heckler & Koch HK91A2==
A Heckler & Koch HK91A2 rifle is seen used by a member of the Temple of the Seven Stars in "The Field Where I Died" (S4E05).
thumb|500px|none|Heckler & Koch HK91A2 - 7.62x51mm NATO
==Norinco Type 84S 'Target'==
Two Norinco Type 84S rifles are seen in the episode "Terma" (S4E09), used by guards at the Tunguska gulag (as an AK-74 stand-in). Both rifles appear to be 'Target' variants with long barrels - One has a full stock and the other has an underfolder stock (Norinco Type 84S-1). It is interesting that only two Russian soldiers were seen armed with AK rifles while the rest of the unit were armed with batons/clubs (though several of the guards are later seen with Makarov PM pistols). There is a possibility that there were not many AK rifles available in Vancouver during the mid-1990s, which could explain why only two gulag guards were armed with rifles while the others were armed with clubs.
==Muzzelite MZ14 Bullpup==
A Muzzelite MZ14 Bullpup is one of the weapons carried out of Denny Markham's (Larry Musser) compound in "Unrequited" (S4E16).
==The Cigarette-Smoking Man's Rifles==
The 'Cigarette-Smoking Man' is seen wielding three rifles during "Musings of a Cigarette-Smoking Man" (S4E07) - The first two in flashback sequences, and the final one in the present.
===Remington 742===
The first rifle used by the younger Cigarette-Smoking Man (Chris Owens) is a short-barreled semi-automatic Remington 742. The rifle has a 'take-down' type of folding stock, and is fitted with a brass catcher. He uses it to assassinate President John F. Kennedy. 
===Remington 760===
The second rifle wielded by the younger Cigarette-Smoking Man (Chris Owens) is a pump-action Remington Model 760 fitted with a scope. He uses this rifle to assassinate Martin Luther King Jr.
thumb|none|500px|Remington 760 w/ scope, first introduced in 1952 - Various calibers.
===Ruger Super Redhawk (mocked up to resemble the KAC Revolver Rifle)===
The third rifle, used by the present-day Cigarette-Smoking Man (William B. Davis), is what appears to be a Knight's Armament Revolver Rifle. This rifle is actually a mock-up built on a Ruger Super Redhawk revolver that was fitted with a carbine length bull barrel, scope, bipod, and a black synthetic buttstock. The weapon was originally built by Felcan Enterprises for the film Another Stakeout, but would subsequently be re-used on countless other productions filmed in Vancouver, including The Sentinel, Supernatural and Psych, in addition to The X-Files. Since the real Knight's Revolver Rifle also used a Ruger Super Redhawk as a base gun, this method for creating the mockup approximated the production method for the original weapon.
=Shotguns=
==Remington 870==
Remington 870s are wielded by police officers and and government agents throughout the series. 870s are also seen rarely in the hands of black ops soldiers. Both standard variants and variants with mounted forend weaponlights are seen. Special Agent Fox Mulder (David Duchovny) notably uses a Remington 870 with Surefire forend flashlight during the FBI raid on the militia group in "Tunguska" (S4E08).
==Ithaca 37 "Stakeout" (Custom)==
A custom Ithaca 37 "Stakeout" with a chrome finish on the barrel and magazine tube and an MP5K style pump-grip is used by Syndicate assassin Scott Ostelhoff (Steve Makaj) in the season finale "Gethsemane" (S4E24). This gun can also be seen in several episodes of the television series Supernatural, Human Target, Painkiller Jane, and several other TV shows filmed in British Columbia.
==Franchi SPAS-15==
One of the weapons carried out of Denny Markham's (Larry Musser) compound in "Unrequited" (S4E16) is a Franchi SPAS-15 combat shotgun.
=Machine Guns=
==Daewoo K3 Paratrooper==
In "Max" (S4E18), an elite black-ops commando from the recovery team is briefly seen at the UFO crash site armed with a Daewoo K3 Paratrooper.
==GE M134 Minigun==
In "Max" (S4E18), a military jeep is briefly seen driving through the UFO crash site armed with a GE M134 Minigun.
==Browning M2HB==
In "Max" (S4E18), a military jeep is briefly seen driving through the UFO crash site armed with a Browning M2HB with flash-hider.
=Other=
==M47 Dragon==
One of the FBI tactical agents exiting Denny Markham's (Larry Musser) compound in "Unrequited" (S4E16) appears to be carrying an M47 Dragon launcher.
==M136 AT4==
One of the FBI tactical agents exiting Denny Markham's (Larry Musser) compound in "Unrequited" (S4E16) appears to be carrying an M136 AT4 rocket launcher.
==M203 Grenade Launcher==
Briefly seen in the hands of one of the black-ops recovery commandos in "Max" (S4E18) is what appears to be a Colt Carbine (possibly one of the aforementioned XM177 mockups) with an M203 grenade launcher mounted. It could also be a Cobray CM203 Launcher, or possibly even an airsoft weapon or other prop. Given the angle that the weapon is seen at (briefly, and mostly obscured by a soldier being filmed from the rear) a more definitive ID is not possible.
==Composite Pistol==
In "Tempus Fugit" (S4E17) and "Max" (S4E18), Syndicate assassins use dual-barrel Composite Pistols. These seem to take considerably after the weapon featured in In the Line of Fire, but have a somewhat different physical look and color tone than the weapon from that film. 
=See Also=
Category:Television
Category:Science-Fiction
Category:Mystery
Category:Detective