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The Fox science fiction series 鈥淭he X-Files鈥� returns for a six-episode run later this month.

Is a shorter season better? 聽The answer seems to depend on the show and who you ask: The audience, critics, or sponsors.聽

The X-Files six-episode length is part of a trend in broadcast TV of cutting down on season or series lengths. Cable networks and streaming services both air shorter seasons than a traditional broadcast season of, say, 22 episodes. For example, HBO鈥檚 hit show 鈥淕ame of Thrones鈥� airs 10 episodes a season, while Netflix鈥檚 program 鈥淥range Is the New Black鈥� usually airs 13 installments.

And so programs like 鈥淗eroes Reborn,鈥� NBC鈥檚 revival of its mid-2000s superhero show 鈥淗eroes,鈥� and ABC鈥檚 anthology series 鈥淎merican Crime鈥� go on the air with seasons consisting of 13 episodes and 11 episodes, respectively. 鈥淴-Files鈥� is airing for even fewer installments.

It seems reasonable to assume that in the age of the dominance of networks like HBO and Netflix, broadcast networks may have been inspired by their example when ordering episodes.聽

There are other benefits, too. As noted by , networks can get big stars for a new show on board more easily with a shorter run. HBO exemplified this with the first season of "True Detective," which starred Matthew McConaughey and Woody Harrelson and which earned both actors Emmy nominations.

And networks can hopefully hang on to audiences by airing short seasons of original shows rather than airing reruns during traditionally sleepy TV times like the summer.

With shows like 鈥淴-Files鈥� and 鈥淗eroes,鈥� the scheduling move may also be a response to such past hit shows as the ABC mid-2000s hit 鈥淟ost.鈥� 鈥淟ost鈥� aired for six seasons consisting of around 20 episodes, a typical network length. But some viewers complained that those behind the program waited too long into the run to reveal answers to the science fiction show鈥檚 mysteries.聽

In creating short versions of sci-fi shows, such as X-Files, networks are most likely trying to appease viewers wary of investing time in a long-running show that they feel won't provide answers.聽

Has shortening their seasons helped the networks create new hits?聽

鈥淎merican Crime鈥� was a hit with reviewers and was recently nominated for various Golden Globes. Ratings declined as the first season went on and the season two premiere earlier this month was about the same size audience as it had at the end of season one, so we'll see how the new episodes do with viewers.

Meanwhile, 鈥淗eroes Reborn鈥� was not well-received critically and viewership has decreased as the show has gone on. In this case, it seems that the answer is fairly simple: Shorter isn't better if the show isn鈥檛 creatively engaging or tries to do too much. Ken Tucker of wrote of the program, "The problem with 'Heroes Reborn'聽is that it鈥檚 got a lot of subplots... but all of these characters end up doing the same thing."

So does running fewer episodes benefit 鈥淴-Files鈥�?

Judging by early reviews,聽the answer seems to be no. The original 鈥淴-Files鈥� show was known for its detailed universe and some critics say that six episodes may not be enough to answer the questions raised by the new show and that the shortened season means that characters spend a lot of time explaining the story.

聽called the first episode of the show "tedious... Why...聽only give six episodes when the series famously couldn鈥檛 explain its larger mysteries in hundreds of episodes?... [Creator Chris]聽Carter鈥檚 dialogue is prone to exposition (again, partly the result of only having six episodes to work with) and overheated soliloquies."

And 聽wrote of the premiere, "So much is said, so many pieces are put in motion, and so little of it actually holds the meaning for the audience."

However, it's early days yet for "X-Files" and we have yet to see how viewers respond to the new installments.

And as cable and streaming continue to succeed with these short seasons, broadcast networks most likely won't back away from this experiment just yet.