The Sixth Extinction II: Amor Fati - Broadcast and Reception

Broadcast and Reception

"The Sixth Extinction II: Amor Fati" originally aired in the United States on the Fox network on November 14, 1999, and was first broadcast in the United Kingdom on Sky1 on March 26, 2000. In the U.S., the episode was watched by 16.15 million viewers and ranked as the 27th most-watched episode of any series on network TV for the week ending November 14. It earned a Nielsen household rating of 10.1, with a 14 share. Nielsen ratings are audience measurement systems that determine the audience size and composition of television programming in the U.S. This means that roughly 10.1 percent of all television-equipped households, and 14 percent of households watching television, were watching the episode. In the U.K., "The Sixth Extinction II: Amor Fati" was seen by 840,000 viewers, making it the channel's third-most watched program for that week after episodes of The Simpsons and Friends. On May 13, 2003, the episode was released on DVD as part of the complete seventh season. Two years later the episode was included on The X-Files Mythology, Volume 3 – Colonization, a DVD collection that contains episodes involving the alien colonists.

Initial reviews of the episode were mixed. After the episode aired, Silber was disappointed in its resolution, writing, "This episode adeptly combines surrealism and a sense of impending climax—only to sputter out in disappointment when nothing much gets resolved at the end." He dismissed "Mulder's one-week recovery from his horrifying ordeal" as "facile and unconvincing". He did write that Mulder's dream provided "credible insight into the recesses of his troubled personality". The X-Files researcher and independent reviewer Sarah Stegall awarded the episode a three out of five score after the episode aired. She argued that, in the episode, Mulder "is not a martyr but a victim" which makes him "pitiable, not heroic". Tom Kessenich, in his 2002 book Examinations: An Unauthorized Look at Seasons 6–9 of the X-Files, gave the episode a positive review, noting that the "Duchovny-penned final scene is exquisite in showcasing the beauty and power of Mulder and Scully's evolving relationship." He deemed Mulder's dream sequences "inspired television" and felt the episode left itself open to interpretation. In the October 2000 issue of Cinefantastique, writer Paula Vitaris gave the episode a mixed review, awarding it two stars out of four. She criticized the recycling of the "one partner lies comatose while the other runs around trying to find a cure" storyline, but she was more positive towards Mulder's reverie, calling it visually "beautiful".

Later reviews of the episode tended to see the installment in a more positive light. Robert Shearman and Lars Pearson, in their 2009 book Wanting to Believe: A Critical Guide to The X-Files, Millennium & The Lone Gunmen, rated the episode four stars out of five. They stated that the installment "kicks off the seventh season with great style", becoming a "rallying cry for the last leg of the race". The two enjoyed its "real passion", which they felt mythology-heavy episodes usually lacked. In 2012, Todd VanDerWerff of The A.V. Club rated the episode a "B", but criticized the writing, calling it "very purple prose" and Carter's most "overwrought script since the glory days of 'The Blessing Way'." He was also critical of the "absolutely atrocious" make-up used to transform Duchovny into an old man. Notwithstanding his negativity towards the writing, plot, and make-up, VanDerWerff said that he truly "enjoy both halves of 'The Sixth Extinction' all the same" despite calling it "entertainingly bad ludicrously over-the-top". He complimented the scene in which The Smoking Man looked out onto the alien apocalypse, deeming it a "pretty impressive TV effects accomplishment".

Since its original airing, critics have listed "The Sixth Extinction II: Amor Fati" among the best X-Files episodes. Kessenich named the entry thirteenth in his list of the top 25 The X-Files episodes. Den of Geek writer Nina Sordi named the installment—as a trilogy with "Biogenesis" and "The Sixth Extinction"—the fifth best episode of the series, writing that, "it is evident that as progressed, the episodes surrounding those storylines and the breaking points Mulder and Scully endured push them further and further towards total, irreversible defeat. This is especially poignant when viewing this anxiety inducing trio of episodes." Matt Champlin of The Post-Standard named the episode the ninth best of the series. Monica S. Kuebler of Exclaim called "The Sixth Extinction", along with "Biogenesis" and "Amor Fati", one of the best episodes of the show's "colonization" phase. Michael Liedtke and George Avalos, writing for the Contra Costa Times, stated that the final scene with Mulder and Scully was one of the most "tender moments" in which they did not kiss. Entertainment Weekly named the same scene one of 25 "Great TV 'I Love You's'", declaring that it "left with goosebumps".