After the critical and commercial success Chris Carter brought to the Fox network with The X-Files, you'd think that his other projects would deserve something better than the Timeslot of Death, also known as Friday nights at 9pmEST/8pmCST. First it was Millennium - perhaps the most underrated science fiction series of recent memory - which limped along for three years with poor ratings. Then it was Harsh Realm, which didn't last long enough to be underrated. During this past year, the X-Files spin-off The Lone Gunmen was the undeserving lamb led to the slaughter. With credible ratings despite almost constant preemption in key markets, The Lone Gunmen was cancelled after only one season. Despite its premature end, The Lone Gunmen left creator Chris Carter and fellow Executive Producers Vince Gilligan, John Shiban, and Frank Spotnitz with reason to be proud.

The Lone Gunmen first appeared in the first-season X-Files episode "E.B.E.," and enjoyed a cult following and many guest appearances (and two X-Files episodes of their own, "Unusual Suspects" and "Three of a Kind") thereafter. The three conspiracy theorists and co-publishers of a government watchdog paper include the strait-laced idealist John Fitzgerald Byers (portrayed by stage actor Bruce Harwood), the hippie tech geek Richard "Ringo" Langly (portrayed by stand-up comedian Dean Haglund), and the muscle of the group, the dirty old man Melvin Frohike (portrayed by X-Files assistant director Tom Braidwood). Together, the eccentric threesome served as Fox Mulder's "funky poachers," hacking, sneaking, and extrapolating answers to some of The X-Files' most baffling mysteries from the basement office where they worked, slept, practiced their kung fu, and generally had no life.

Byers, Langly, and Frohike took center stage in The Lone Gunmen, in which they were joined by the comely but dense Jimmy Bond (Stephen Snedden) and the mysterious and beautiful rival-ally Yves Adele Harlow (Zuleikha Robinson). In contrast to the dark, morose atmosphere of The X-Files (in one episode of which a fourth Lone Gunmen, "The Thinker," was murdered), The Lone Gunmen dared to laugh at and with the well-meaning and dedicated characters as they navigated - with varying degrees of success - the conspiracies devised by individuals both inside and apart from the government. Standout episodes explored government-sponsored terrorism ("The Pilot"), death row innocents ("Maximum Byers"), illegal arms trades ("Tango de los Pistoleros"), and international spy rings ("The Cap'n Toby Show"). Like Don Quixote, the Gunmen were comic and precious because of their anachronism in a cynical age: they dared to fight for "truth, justice, and the American way," even when they did not expect to win.

The true charm of The Lone Gunmen, aside from the delightful performances of the three leads, was the fact that the underdogs encountered real (and, if one thinks about it, intensely frightening) problems of the 21st-century United States, occasionally emerged unscathed, and always maintained a sense of hope and commitment in the face of overwhelming odds. In some senses, The X-Files' Fox Mulder and Dana Scully are broken people, scrabbling to put their pieces back together; in contrast, the Lone Gunmen are injured and thus unusual people, but they hold themselves - and others - together amazingly well.

To add insult to injury, the cancellation of The Lone Gunmen came on the heels of the cliffhanger season finale (which aired on May 11, 2001). Fortunately, the storyline of "All About Yves" will be revisited and resolved in the ninth season of The X-Files, where the Lone Gunmen will no doubt make many appearances. (Chris Carter and company blended the two almost seamlessly over the past season, bringing in the Gunmen to guest star in several X-Files episodes and working X-Files regulars Fox Mulder, played by David Duchovny, and Assistant Director Skinner, played by Mitch Pileggi, into Lone Gunmen episodes.)

Some fans won't take no for an answer, however. Beyond visiting the official site (http://www.thelonegunmen.com) and registering protests, many have coordinated independent "Save The Lone Gunmen" campaigns (you can find them here and here). Thus far, their efforts have convinced Fox to show one previously unaired episode (on June 1, 2001) and summer reruns. Like the Gunmen themselves, the fans have high hopes of overcoming considerable obstacles and making a difference. Many science fiction programs have died unnatural deaths, but if ever a show deserved a second chance, it's The Lone Gunmen.