The eighth season of the American science fiction television series The X-Files commenced airing in the United States on November 5, 2000, concluded on May 20, 2001, and consisted of twenty-one episodes.

In addition to the cast change, series creator Chris Carter updated the opening credits, which had remained unchanged since the first season.

[1] Dana Scully (Gillian Anderson) meets Special Agent John Doggett (Robert Patrick), the leader of an FBI taskforce organized to conduct a search for Mulder.

[3] When Scully learns that several women have reportedly been abducted and impregnated with alien babies, she begins to question her own pregnancy and fears for her unborn child.

[4] Doggett introduces Scully to Special Agent Monica Reyes (Annabeth Gish), an FBI specialist in ritualistic crime, shortly before Mulder's deceased body suddenly appears in a forest at night.

[5] Following Mulder's funeral, Assistant Director Walter Skinner (Mitch Pileggi) is threatened by Alex Krycek (Nicholas Lea) that he must kill Scully's baby before it is born.

Billy Miles (Zachary Ansley), a multiple abductee who disappeared on the same night as Mulder, is returned deceased but his dead body is resurrected and restored to full health.

[8] When Miles arrives at the FBI Headquarters, Mulder, Doggett, Skinner and Krycek help Scully to escape along with Reyes, who drives her to a remote farm.

Shortly after Skinner kills Krycek, Scully delivers an apparently normal baby, while the alien super soldiers surround her.

While Doggett and Reyes report to the FBI Headquarters, Mulder takes Scully and their newborn son, William, back to her apartment.

[10] "Per Manum" included basic themes common in the series, such as "dark, foreboding terror", an "overriding sense of paranoia", and "the fear of the unknown", among others.

The opening sequence now included new images, updated FBI badge photos for Duchovny and Anderson, and the addition of Patrick to the main cast.

The opening contains images of Scully's pregnancy and, according to Frank Spotnitz, shows an "abstract" explanation for Mulder's absence in this season, with him falling into an eye.

[14][15] According to Tom Kessenich in his book Examinations, Anderson reportedly "wasn't thrilled" with the lack of attention her character was getting; instead, the writers were crafting episodes solely for Doggett because he was the show's new "voice".

Reportedly, Duchovny offered to write and direct an episode based around the concept of Mulder being trapped in the alien spaceship, as seen in the season opener "Within" and "Without".

[19] Due to this change, the producers found it difficult to write Duchovny's character out of the script, but also eventually explain Mulder's absence if there were to be an upcoming season.

[nb 1] Reportedly, Patrick was cast due to the hopes that his featured role in Terminator 2: Judgment Day (1991) would attract a great 18- to 35-year-old male demographic to the show.

Anita Gates of The New York Times said that most fans had "accepted" the introduction of the character and further stated that he actually looked "Like a Secret Service Agent.

[59] Dave Golder of SFX called Patrick "superb" and noted that his entrance in the series "inject[ed] a sense of pragmatism and good old-fashioned plain-speaking in to the show which we didn't realise was missing until we got it.

Jesse Hassenger from PopMatters gave a negative review to the season, claiming that Patrick was mis-cast and calling David Duchovny's appearances as Fox Mulder shallow.

[63] Golder criticized the season for "recycling plots with gusto" and for featuring Mulder falling into Scully's eye in the opening credits, noting that it "gives Duchovny too much of a lingering presence on the show, reinforcing prejudices against Patrick as some kind of 'imposter'.