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FRINGE |
Olivia Dunham - Anna Torv Peter Bishop - Joshua Jackson Walter Bishop - John Noble Phillip Broyles - Lance Reddick Astrid Farnsworth - Jasika Nicole Nina Sharp - Blair Brown Lincoln Lee - Seth Gabel 
OTHER FRINGE SEASONS Season 1 Season 2 Season 3 Season 5 OTHER JJ ABRAMS SHOWS Lost OTHER PARANORMAL INVESTIGATIONS Eleventh Hour Millennium 
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Neither Here Nor ThereMurders are being carried out that turn the victims' skins transparent. When an agent is killed chasing down one of these killers, his partner finds himself inducted into the mysterious Fringe Division. The introduction of Lincoln Lee into the cast on both sides of the divide would suggest that he is now to become part of the permanent team. The rest are wondering why something is missing from their lives and none of them remember that it's Peter. It's all down to the rebellious Observer. These are all hints about the future direction that the show is going to take this season, all of which are far more important than the dull rerun of other cases as the team track down someone who's not normal. It's very much a case of 'been there and done that' and so not the best way to start a new season. Written by JH Wyman & Jeff PinknerDirected by Joe Chappelle Top One Night In OctoberOlivia escorts a clinical psychologist over to the other universe where his counterpart is a serial killer living on people's good memories. The man escapes and tries to help his other self, with bloody results. Most of the time you can never tell where FRINGE is going to go, but this episode does prove to be somewhat predictable, though it is nicely played. The use of the high-tech brain scanning equipment does sort of get in the way of the human drama, though. Anna Torv does quite a good job of being on screen with herself and keeping the two characters noticeably different. Written by Monica Owusa-Breen & Alison SchapkerDirected by Brad Anderson Top Alone In The WorldTwo bullies are killed when they attack a young lad. Their bodies decompose at an incredible rate. The mould that killed them is acting like a superbrain and the question is how to kill it without killing the boy, who shares a empathic link with it. For the most part this is standard FRINGE stuff with a killer mould, exploding bodies, telepathic links and the like, but it also marks the point where Walter and Olivia come to realise that there is something that is missing from their lives, something that is haunting them. The dead bodies and mould are all a bit gooey, but beyond that this is too straightforward to be anything other than mildly entertaining. Written by David FuryDirected by Migel Sapochnik Top Subject 9Olivia is being stalked by a ball of blue energy. Walter, fearing that he may be taken back to the mental institution that Olivia got him out of, leaves the lab to try and help. Could it be linked to the experiments that he carried out on her in the past? This is the episode that brings Peter back. Everything that goes before it is a prelude to the final scene and is fairly standard and not very exciting FRINGE fare. John Noble really gets to let rip as the terrified Walter out in the big world, but until that final scene it really is average stuff. Written by Jeff Pinker, JH Wyman and Akiva GoldsmanDirected by Joe Chappelle Top NovationThe imperfect human shapeshifters take action to locate an ex-employee of Global Dynamics to gain his help in making their condition more stable. The newly-returned Peter tries to help in order to gain enough trust to get to talk to Walter. The story of the shapeshifters is the weak link in this episode and shows how FRINGE can sometimes get it so very wrong. There is something the matter with their conditions and yet this scientist can diagnose the problem, work up a solution and synthesise it all in just a few short hours. Even with the best lab in the world that seems a little fast. More interesting is Peter's return. Nobody remembers him. There is no place for him in this new world and yet there he is. It's a nice spin on the show and gives it somewhere new to go, putting the romance with Olivia back in the balance and giving it some new impetus. It's also nice that the relationship with Walter is allowed to be so much more complex and problematic than might have been expected. Written by JR Orci and Graham RolandDirected by Paul Holahan Top And Those We've Left BehindA series of time distortions that might be linked to Peter's return to the world bring him back into contact with a Walter who refuses to even talk to him. The mystery story of who's causing the time distortions here is secondary to the ongoing tale of Peter's relationship, or lack of it, with the people he loves, but who no longer even remember him. Walter's childish reaction is fun, but sad at the same time. It is Joshua Jackson's understated performance as Peter that sells the story, his sad acceptance of what has happened to those around him and what has been taken from him speaks volumes for the pain that must be churning around inside him. Peter's situation and the performance behind it make this one of the most human episodes of the show, despite the thunking clumsy metaphor of the ‘villain' having lost his wife to Alzheimer's. Written by JR Orci and Graham RolandDirected by Paul Holahan Top WallflowerSomething invisible is killing people and taking their skin colour. The Fringe division believe they know who's doing it, except that he's dead. This is a 'monster of the week' standalone tale that tries to recycle an old theme of a villain who is really a victim themselves and were created by the very forces that are now trying to hunt them down. It's familiar and, as a result, not all that interesting. Written by Matthew Pitts and Justin DobleDirected by Anthony Hemingway Top Back To Where You've Never BeenPeter needs Walter to tell him about the machine that represents his best hope of getting back to his timeline. When he refuses, Peter goes to the alternate universe in an attempt to speak to Walternate and learns of a dangerous conspiracy. This is the first episode after the midseason break and it makes no allowance for anyone who thought that this might be a good time to enter the show. There is no explanation of who people are or what is going on. This is perfectly fine, of course, if you have been following the show. It's an action and plot-based episode that has some action sequences for the sake of it since there really isn't a plot here. Peter wants to see Walternate and someone else wants to stop him, even if it means killing him. There isn't even an ending as the story just stops, although Olivia does get some news that comes as a shock. Written by David Fury and Graham RolandDirected by Jeannot Swarc Top The Enemy Of My EnemyThe force behind the new generation of shapeshifters attacking both universes is shown to be Mr Jones. He is once more ahead of the Fringe Division, but Peter's specialised knowledge brings them closer to his scheme. Once again no quarter is given to anyone who hasn't been watching the show since the early days. The revival of Mr Jones is an unpleasant surprise since it strengthens the idea that nobody can die in this show, but at least he features in a plot that is fast-moving and has far-reaching implications for several members of the cast. The fact that everyone seems to have evil agendas is getting a little old, however. If nobody can be trusted then what's the point? That said, the visit of Peter's mother to Walter to beg for his help is touching and nicely played. Written by Monica Uwusu-Breen and Alison SchapkerDirected by Joe Chappelle Top Forced PerspectiveA girl who can see the future before it happens is tracked down by the team who learn that she has just seen many people killed in some kind of disaster. This standalone episode of the show focuses on Olivia and the warning given that she will have to die in all possible futures. It's an OK plot, though not anything that we haven't seen before. It casts Nina Sharp more even more darkly into shadow as potential villain, but doesn't really add to our knowledge of any of the characters. The special effects in the future vision sequence are excellent and used very effectively and Olivia talking down a bomber is nicely handled despite being an overly familiar setup. Written by Ethan GrossDirected by David Solomon Top Making AngelsThe alternative universe's Astrid comes to our side on the death of her father and helps in an investigation that might involve technology from the Observers. Astrid has been a minor character since the start of the show, but one of the most beloved, Jasika Nicole making far more of the part than was ever on the page. Now she gets her chance to shine as the two versions of her character come together for the first time and it is an interaction that is both fun and ultimately touching thanks to the two central performances. The main plot may have long-reaching effects for the main plot, but it is otherwise another police procedural with a slight techy twist. There is nothing here that we haven't seen many times before. Fortunately, the cast make it work. Written by JH Wyman & Jeff Pinkner & Akiva GoldsmanDirected by Charles Beeson Top Welcome To WestfieldPeter, Olivia and Walter are caught up in a town where the laws of physics no longer apply and they are unable to escape even as the place threatens to tear itself apart. This is a pleasantly fresh episode in which the team don't investigate a situation so much as get caught up in it. As a result, exactly what is going on remains a mystery a bit longer and there are some nice twists and turns in the plot. Getting Walter out of the lab and having Olivia start to feel for Peter also brings a balance that has been missing. The camerawork and direction is fresh and interesting as the weather plays up and gives the unfolding mystery an apocalyptic feel to it. Written by Graham Roland & JR OrciDirected by David Straiton Top A Better Human BeingOlivia has recovered all her memories of Peter, but nobody else is sure that they are really hers. Meanwhile, a young psychiatric patient seems to have a telepathic link to serial killers. The story about the young man and the hive mind is pretty basic FRINGE plotting, but it's not what interesting to the audience anyway. What we need to know about is Peter and Olivia and how the return of her memories affects them and those around them. Anna Torv's Olivia is a warmer person now that she remembers Peter and that gives her more to act with whilst Joshua Jackson has long been the heart of the show. Their relationship powers this episode, and the show proper. Written by Glenn Whitman & Robert ChiappettaDirected by Joe Chappelle Top The End Of All ThingsOlivia and Nina are being tortured by Mr Jones in order to 'activate' Olivia's powers. In the meantime, Peter goes into the mind of a dying Observer to try and locate her. This is the episode when the truth about the Observers is finally revealed - their origin and their purpose. It's less original than we might have hoped and it diminishes them somehow, making them so much less than the potential hinted at. The rest is fairly dull and a repeated storyline with a few obvious twists along the way. Written by David FuryDirected by Jeffrey Hunt Top A Short Story About LoveWhilst the rest of the team track down a serial killer who is trying to synthesise pheromones, Peter follows a clue that might lead to information about the Observers. Forget the case of the week because it's just a ham-fisted attempt to run along the main story of Peter and Olivia's relationship. Michael Massee is barely recognisable under a mass of makeup as the disfigured killer who just wants to be loved. It's really that hackneyed. It can all be forgiven, though, as Peter goes on a personal odyssey that will take him where he has been trying to go all season - home. Written by JH Wyman & Graham RolandDirected by JH Wyman Top Nothing As It SeemsThe team are faced with a case that both Olivia and Peter remember from years before, except that it's not quite as it was then. This episode goes back to the Season 1 episode The Transformation, which isn't necessarily a good thing since the creature in that episode is one of the least convincing that the show has come up with. It remains unconvincing now, especially as it is shown more clearly and in more detail. The rest of the episode is well-played and as slick as usual. Written by Akiva Goldsman & Jeff PinknerDirected by Frederick E.O. Toye Top Everything In Its Right PlaceAgent Lincoln's been having problems dealing with Olivia and Peter's renewed relationship. He goes to the other universe to take on a job involving shapeshifters. The new organic shapeshifting process is pretty gross and the corpses involved are pretty gruesome as well, but that aside this is a fairly standard FRINGE storyline with a single tortured individual killing to deal with an affliction that he did not ask for. The focus on Agent Lee gives Seth Gabel a chance to shine more than usual, but it does take away from the main story arc. This is a standalone filler episode, even though it is an entertaining one in its own right. It is, however, nothing more. Written by David Fury & JR OrciDirected by David Moxness Top The ConsultantPeople in both universes are suffering from incidents that happen in only one. Walter goes to the alternate universe to help investigate and a traitor in the ranks is unmasked. This a bog-standard FRINGE investigation story that sets up David Robert Jones as a bad, bad man. Then again, we already knew that. Who the mole in the organisation is and how they are smoked out is the more interesting side of the episode. The show continues to obsess over the things that fathers will do for their sons and the nature of nobility is examined through the excellent playing of Lance Reddick as the undervalued Broyles. Written by Christine LavafDirected by Jeannot Swarc Top Letters Of TransitThe year is 2036 and the Earth has been taken over by the Observers. A pair of Fringe agents find hope when a member of the old Fringe team is discovered preserved in amber. For no reason at all the show leaps to the future, but it's hard to complain when it produces one of the best episodes for quite some time. The change of locale and situation is fascinating as we deal with different characters and a new world order. The plot zips along at a good pace and it's a refreshing change from the usual weekly investigations. There are tantalising hints at what the future holds and obvious relationships to savour. Waiting a week to find out whether this story continues or we drop back to the present will be delightful torture. Written by JH Wyman, Jeff Pinkner & Akiva GoldsmanDirected by Joe Chappelle Top Worlds ApartCortexiphan patients are creating holes in the linked universes. When they have done enough damage two universes will collapse to create a new one in Mr Jones' image. The bridge between worlds must be severed. After last week's future episode, it is almost a shame to come back to the present plot, but the story forges ahead and proves to be stronger than the silliness around Jones' new advanced human evolution creatures suggested. The strength, though, really lies in how difficult it is for the audience to let go of the alternative universe characters. The linked worlds have become so important to the show that the potential loss of them is felt deeply. Written by Matt Pitts & Nicole PhillipsDirected by Charles Beeson Top EndgamePeople suddenly burning up from the inside out and a the sun focused into a deadly beam lead Walter to the conclusion that the team should be looking for someone more important that Mr Jones. This episode exists for one purpose only and that is to introduce us to another returning character that we thought we had seen the last of. The investigations are standard FRINGE fare, if nicely done, but they are done solely to service that twist return and set up a deadly cliffhanger for one of the principals. It's the penultimate episode and it's a set up for the big finale, so it's not meant to stand up on its own merits, but as these things go, it does a pretty fine job of it. Written by JH Wyman, Jeff Pinkner & Akiva GoldsmanDirected by Joe Chappelle Top Brave New WorldThe truth about William Bell's plans for the two universes and Olivia are revealed and the Observer returns to remind her that in all foreseeable futures she must die. The big finale sees William Bell's attempt at godhood brought to its conclusion, but the manner in which it is brought down is both predictable and more than a step beyond the believable. Being revived is one thing, but growing back a brain in the exact copy of the damaged one is a bit much. The finale is focused rather than big, concentrated on Olivia and about personal sacrifice rather than big special effects. A conclusion to this story is provided, but the promise of a new one is introduced. Written by JH Wyman, Jeff Pinkner & Akiva GoldsmanDirected by Joe Chappelle Top |
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