Review - FRINGE 4.16: 'Nothing As It Seems'

Lincoln: I really have to drink that?
Walter: Only if you wanna live.

Now that Pacey Poof has his Olivia back, the show is now ready to tackle the grander story arcs we all love (except those of you who don't love them).

Olivia Dunham, having now become the Olivia Dunham from season 3, is no longer someone the FBI trusts, exactly. So she is essentially put on the bench while they or she figure things out. It seems that Peter has decided to not tell anyone that he is in the right place and that the problem is rooted in what he did in the other timeline.

Why hasn't he told anyone? I guess he likes secrets.

At least we get to revisit something from a previous season, namely the porcupine man who died on that plane way back when. Except this time, he makes it off the plane before morphing into the monster and taking out some TSA agents. So the gang has to figure out what's going on and why things are different.

It's an okay storyline. If you are into this kind of thing. I'm not. And the monster's flying. Somewhere out there, a FRINGE fan is fapping away at this. Whatever is happening with this plot line relates to the grander story arc of this season, but the episode only hints at bigger things to come.

Tossed into the mix is Walter's gradual warming up to Peter, Lincoln's pining for Olivia while transforming into an eating machine after being infected by the monster virus or something, and the FBI's eventual acceptance of Olivia as a capable agent.

What's good about it? Well, the relationships we actually loved last season (and by "we" I mean me, because that's all that matters) are getting closer to existing again. Walter and Peter seem to be acting like father and son again (who is the genius in the writers room who thought stripping the most enjoyable portion of the show away was a good idea anyway?). Peter and Olivia are back together and being a super boring couple again. That's a good thing simply because we've stopped with the ridiculous "oh nos is Peter in da right place and is she the realzies Olivia?!?!?!". Lincoln is still a bitch. His alternate universe half is so much cooler.

If I had to rate this one, I'd give it:

75 out of 100

I am sure there are those of you who love this kind of episode because this is why you watch FRINGE. I need more. Sure, the Walter and Peter getting closer stuff I love. BUT I NEED MORE! There are just a few episodes left. They'd better get their shit together and make torture worth it or I will punch a puppy!

Man, this review sucks.

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Review - FRINGE 4.14: ‘The End of All Things’

"The End of All Things" brings us some answers that we maybe don't need and creates questions that still seem to have obvious answers. I really want to be wrong but the writers keep making me right.

First of all, as I said last week, the whole falling-in-love and Peter going to rescue his dearest love story line was happening way too early in the season and so of course they pulled back on that last night, as if operating straight out of the will-they-won't-they playbook.

Peter's logic is so forced that it feels unnatural. He has never been told he's in the wrong timeline by the Observers, so why is he so confident that he needs to get back there? In fact, in the show's biggest reveal, we find out that the Observers are human scientists from the future (and some timeline or another). Outside of not really needing that much information (I prefer not knowing the details of mysteries like this) it revealed something that should have made Peter think about his in-the-wrong-timeline theory.

September reveals to Peter that Fauxlivia gave birth to Peter's son, Henry, and that it was a product of the Observer's mistake. Apparently Peter was never supposed to have a child with Fauxlivia, but by trying to fix his error, September put into motion a series of events that resulted in the wrong girl giving birth to Peter's love child. It was a nice touch to call back to something most fans thought had been brushed under the rug, but will it have any impact on the grand story line? Unfortunately, it seems to have been only introduced to further confuse Peter's perception that he has to remain loyal to what he believes is his Olivia.

So if September has been trying to correct a mistake and that mistake is the death of Peter, and by correcting that he created the past and present situations, then logically Peter IS THE TIMELINE. He is the constant. If Peter exists, then everyone around him exists. He's not in the wrong timeline. Everyone else is in HIS timeline. And September tells him that the reason he tried to correct things is because Peter is special. So why does Peter jump to conclusions? Why doesn't he just ask September "Am I in the right timeline but everyone else just forgot me when I got erased but I am so important to the future of mankind that time simply keeps reinserting me back in?" Instead he inserts his own theory into what he's being told, even though September has never acknowledged it as being accurate.

It is infuriating. Sure, most people probably won't even think about it while watching the show, but we are now 10 or so episodes into this Peter-needs-to-get-back-home bullshit even though it seemed obvious when it was first introduced that he's IN THE RIGHT PLACE. I would love to be wrong and I will eat crow if I am, but I'm not. And by making it so obvious, the writers make potentially really good episodes, like last night's, into something that ends up irritating me the more I think about it.

Should I even mention how badly they telegraphed that the Nina with Olivia was not the real one? Nah. Let's just let it live on its own.

Look, the episode was enjoyable at times and could have been great, but by giving us an answer about the Observers that isn't all that interesting (much like what the Final Five were in BSG, or what the numbers meant in LOST, no spoilers) and then returning us emotionally back to where we were two episodes ago, isn't something I want to applaud much.

The only real positive movement, if you can call it positive, is that Olivia is now going to be in full pursuit mode to convince her dearest love that she's his. But I don't know how exciting it will be to watch Peter shoot her down over and over while guiltily pining for her as he thinks he's supposed to be with someone else. It feels like something that could wear thin pretty quickly unless you are a 13-year old girl.

I didn't really touch on the rest of the episode because, until we get a clearer picture of what David Robert Jones is up to, there isn't much to discuss. He obviously has a plan and it's probably sinister as hell but this episode didn't leave much meat on that bone. The only thing his involvement did was reveal how much Olivia is affected by Peter and how his presence motivates her power. It's kind of romantic and all but in the end is just part of the general stalling tactic to bring us to Peter's eventual realization that she is his Olivia.

The really big question the episode left out there is: if Peter was so important to his universe that September had to save him, and that his having a child with Fauxlivia was so wrong, then if he wasn't meant to cross over, why is this Olivia his dearest love? Unless Olivia was always meant to cross over to the other universe, meet Peter, and have his babies there. I guess time will tell.

If I had to rate this episode, I'd give it:

78 out of 100

Yes, I did a lot of complaining about this one but there were moments when I enjoyed it. Unfortunately, it loses points for Peter's continued refusal to just ask simple and obvious questions either of himself or September. And I wouldn't even mind his idiocy if his behavior was better, more believably, written. Plus, the one step forward two steps back mentality is used like a crutch by every writers room on this planet when running out of good ideas. That worries me that the eventual payoff will fall flat by the time we get to it.

Season 4 has had some good episodes and may end up having a great payoff, but it has been one long stalling tactic and that's rarely a good sign on any show.

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FRINGE 4.10: 'Forced Perspective'

This review is going to be very short because I couldn't give any less shit about cases-of-the-week.

Some girl can see the future and draw it (sounds like HEROES) and it involves people dying. She eventually sees a big explosion and saves the day before her brain explodes or some shit, blahblah.

Now, let's get to the only important thing in this episode. An Observer told Olivia that she has to die. Olivia is a tad concerned about this. When she is able to talk a suicide bomber down and stop what the drawing-girl saw in her vision, she feels it is perhaps possible to change her own fate.

She then talks to Peter who tells her what the Observers are and also that he doesn't believe they can be wrong when they tell you something about the future since they've lived it. Obviously this is a setup to the end of the season when we find out that you CAN IN FACT CHANGE THE FUTURE! OMG!

Actually, I would rather the season/series end on someone having to sacrifice themselves for the other (like we would have gotten at the end of season 3) but I doubt they will do it.

Oh, there's a scene between Nina and Olivia where Olivia confesses her true love for her mother-figure. Then talks about her headaches. Nina tells her she has some new medicine for her. Ruhroh.

Anyway, though I am bored to mostly death by these cases-of-the-week, this one wasn't terrible and the hunt for the bomb and bomber had some interesting elements. However, there was so little actual advancement to the plot that I could have just skipped it and not lost out on much of anything.

If I had to rate this one, I'd give it:

79 out of 100

It could have been worse. It could have been better. This is my "I didn't want to delete it from my DVR right away" score. At least there was some Walter and Peter interaction. Though, nowhere near enough.

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FRINGE Spoiler: Pacey Poof

A source of mine from the old CHUCK days (so... 3 months ago), has come across a pretty huge spoiler about another WB geek show that loves living on the bubble of renewal or cancellation.

At the end of season 3 of FRINGE, Pacey Poof, aka Peter Bishop, was apparently erased from history. Or that is what the Observers standing outside of the Liberty Island location said. However, this source says that isn't accurate.

Peter existed until he died as a child from the sickness the show revealed in season 2. And while this may be a spoiler on its own, what the source said next is the juicier bit.

"To all these characters, an adult Peter never existed and so they are going through their lives without him having been in it. Or so the audience is meant to believe. See, when Peter departed the world he left behind a trigger of sorts. This trigger will start the ball rolling as the characters begin to realize that something isn't right."

So what do you think it means? How will Walter and Olivia get Peter back? And what is this "trigger"? Discuss! If this generates enough interest, maybe this source will feed the spoiler beast some more.

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FRINGE - Was It Worth My Time?

Pacey Bishop is Sexy, Like a Meow Meow

After my run with X-FILES back in the day, and my general distaste for all things sci-fi gore/horror, I decided, after one episode, that I had no interest in watching FRINGE. I found the lead female actor to be dull and poorly executed, and the story uninteresting. So I simply discarded it as a show that I would ever watch.

As the summer of 2011 closed in and I started contemplating doing this site, I realized that I couldn't possibly avoid the show, since it had become the new big geek/nerd deal. Also, a couple of friends who were fans of other shows I watched were often talking about it so I decided to just bite the bullet and catch up on all three seasons.

What follows are my general feelings as I watched the seasons. Note that there will be spoilers for those who have not seen the show. I do not recommend you read this if you want to know nothing. So stop right here if you don't want to be spoiled.  You should also stop right here if you are fragile.  Finally, you can scroll to the bottom to see my grades for the different seasons, if that helps your decision to watch or not:

SEASON 1

Right away I find this Australia Dumbham (played by Anna Torv), or whatever her name is, to be the most wooden, uninteresting, blank sheet of papery character.  I can't even be bothered to learn her correct name.  I mostly just call her "FBI b***h."  As in "that FBI b***h needs to die so I can almost enjoy this show."  Plus, her American accent is terrible.  This one is what I call the marble-mouth American accent where the actor sounds like she is rolling a marble under her tongue when trying to say certain words. I had recognized it when I watched one episode at some point during the live run of the show, but this is nearly every episode of me not caring about her character and hating her accent. I just want the writers to set her on fire. Is that possible? She seems like a main character/actor. I can't believe I have to watch this talentless hack for TWO MORE SEASONS!

Thankfully, Walter Bishop is addictive, awesome, brilliant, adorable, and superbly acted (by John Noble)! Also, Walter's relationship with his son, Pacey Bishop (played by Joshua Jackson), is very interesting and often wildly entertaining. I am happy about this because the snoozefest that is Australia Dumbham would have made this show a torture to watch. Granted, I really, really, super really, HATE the whole sci-fi horror/gore genre. I don't like zombies, I don't like goblins or monsters or bubbling masses of cancer cells. I don't dig it, I don't get the interest, and I piss in the mouths of people who masturbate while watching that crap. So I am already predisposed to disliking this show.

But I watch and I suffer through the case-of-the-week boredom, while enjoying Walter and his relationship/exchanges with his son. Thank the gods for Walter and Pacey. I can almost cancel out the insufferable FBI b***h and the storylines. I sometimes fast forward through the episodes. It is the first time I have ever fast forwarded through episodes. That is how much I dislike the genre and Dumbham (I laugh outloud every time she answers her phone: "DUMBHAM!").

Dumbham needs to poop.

I survive season 1 but barely. Oh no... are there more episodes in season 2? This is not good.  Also, I think I just realized Walter's son's name is Peter.  Goodbye Pacey Bishop.

SEASON 2

Man... this show isn't getting any better. Walter and Peter are still great but FBI b***h is just as bad as ever. Correction, Anna Torv's American accent has improved (she has a smaller marble in her mouth now). But from a story telling perspective, this season doesn't improve much, if at all. UNTIL... the final few episodes when there is a sudden rush on a real story arc.  Oh and I should mention that there is an episode in the middle of the season left over from season 1.  Featuring a character who is dead.  Yeah.  That just happened.

Yes, he is a scientist, but he's also trippin' balls!

Now, before I tackle what leads us into season three, I want to say that there are some original elements in this show that pop up every now and then. One of those is the "Observers." This is one of those story devices that made me fall for LOST and BSG. That something much bigger and unexplainable is at work. If done right, this type of story telling device can propel an otherwise mediocre show to greatness because it invests the audience in the bigger picture, not just what happens in individual episodes.

OK, so jumping back into where season two goes at the end, I am suddenly interested starting with the end of episode 15. However, it isn't until episodes 21 to 23 where I start looking forward to what comes next. Sure, Peter's decision to leave seems out of character, since he is such a deep thinker and with such a strong will, but I suppose I can also see that he feels disconnected from the things around him and decides to see what is on the other side. Also, there has been a slow build-up of possible romantic feelings between Peter and Australia. This begins to actually reveal itself here as Peter meets the other world FBI b***h. When she asks him what the other her is like, Peter's response is very honest and likely a revelation to himself. It is probably my favorite acting moment for Joshua Jackson, up to this point, and the point where shipper hearts likely took off like I do when one of my relationships gets serious.

The season ends on a very predictable but interesting note as one Australia takes the place of the other, and FBI b***h is left behind (good, I hope they kill her). I am finally interested in where they may take this.

SEASON 3

Anna Torv is a revelation! What the hell happened here? I can't remember an actor going from a talentless hack to the one-to-watch three seasons into a show. Were the writers just giving her so little to do that it underwhelmed the actor? Is she like one of those geniuses who, if you don't challenge them, they deliver a half-assed job? Whatever it is, someone was screwing with me for two seasons.  I am just happy to see that the writers have given Torv two new characters to play.  Olivia Dunham and Olivia Dunham (the other world version who we shall call Fauxlivia to make things easier).  I know, not very original seeing as she played Australia Dumbham for two seasons, but I guess it is easier for the actor to remember her character's name if it is so similar.  After all, she is blond and you know things get really difficult for them.

Suddenly Olivia/Fauxlivia are the most interesting characters on the show. The arcs are deep. The emotions are complex. Both characters are similar but also noticeably different. Body language, facial expressions, even the way they speak is different. When Olivia smiles, it is the smile of someone who doesn't take happiness for granted. When Fauxlivia smiles, it is the smile of someone who is very happy to be who she is. But these stark differences also create a problem for Peter's character.

Someone's got some 'splainin' to do!

Peter Bishop is so smart, so aware, so detail oriented that it becomes increasingly difficult to believe that he wouldn't notice the difference. Sure, they have him note some differences but he seems to dismiss them too easily. This does his character a disservice. And this is a common issue for writers. The idea to change things up adds a new level to the show but often at the expense of another strong element. To work, Peter has to be dumbed down and I am sure fans of his character must have been livid over it.

Thankfully, once Peter begins to piece things together and, more importantly, when he is confronted by the real Olivia about it, the writers give Peter a believable (or close enough to it) explanation. Should he have known right away? Maybe. Did he? Maybe. But he wasn't thinking clearly because he wanted to make things work, even if he knew something wasn't right. Is it a bit tough to swallow? Yeah. But it also makes for an interesting dynamic between the three characters since... dundundun... Peter and Fauxlivia kind of fell for each other realzies like. Oh, and she is preggers! But Peter is in love with Olivia, or so it would seem, so this could get interesting.

Meanwhile, we have been dealing with a weapon that can destroy worlds and Peter's quest to discover what it is all about and his place in all of it. It seems that Peter is the juice the machine needs to work. At this point I begin to make bets with people that Peter will step into the machine in the finale and destroy one of the worlds, then scramble to take it back in season 4. The writers pull a CHUCK on this one and accelerate the storyline instead of using it for another season. But before I go there, the show deals with the Peter and Olivia romance, as well as the Fauxlivia pregnancy.

The Fauxlivia pregnancy is dealt with very quickly but with some fun dramatic beats (I am of course leaving out a ton of episodes between all of this just to get to the main points) and I get the feeling that the birth of her and Peter's son will have a greater deal of importance in season 4 than it did in season 3 (as nothing more than a tool for DNA). Meanwhile, after roughly 20 dramatic conversations (exhausting but sometimes believable and well written) about their relationship, Peter and Olivia finally become a couple and now I am sure one of them is going to die!

Somewhere along the way Peter has become my favorite character. Now, I am a heterosexual male with no bisexual tendencies but I am willing to go back to college to experiment.  Peter is dreamy.  I don't care how that makes me sound. It is the truth. I want him to snuggle me and tell me everything will be alright. Is that wrong? If it is, then I am prepared to wage a war against right. That man is just intoxicating. I want to go watch reruns of his other show, Richard Dawson's Creep.  Stop looking at me like that, guys!  Oh... Pacey.  Peter!  I meant Peter!  I wish I was a woman right now.... I sure hope that doesn't come back to haunt me some day when I run for president.  But I digress.

Peter tries to clone himself the lazy way. If only...

And so that brings us to the finale. The series finally pays off this Peter and Olivia connection that has been threatening to save or destroy worlds. I love it.  I also love the fake-out future where Olivia is murdered by other world Walter.  Sure, they do away with it quickly but the drama and emotions Jackson and Noble deliver in their sit-down confrontation is intense.  But I am beyond furious the moment Peter winks out of existence after "saving" both worlds. I throw things at my TV. I kick my PS3 across the room. I swing my arms around in the air like a monkey. But then I start thinking about the meaning of what I just watched.

I am sure that even though Peter went poof, he exists somewhere. He just doesn't exist to these characters at this time. But will they begin to remember him over time? Will they feel a loss, even if they can't remember why they feel it? Peter made an enormous impression on two worlds, he can't just be wiped away for eternity. And does Peter exist on a different plane? Can he now travel between worlds? Is he invisible? Is he a god? Can he remember everything and see everyone? Is he suddenly all-knowing? Does he go back in time and return to his body as a child but with all the memories of a man who just saved two worlds? Does he become Neo?  Can he appear in my bed right now?  Arrrgh!  Damn you, Peter! Why must thou be so full of wonderful?

This is why I am interested in seeing FRINGE season 4. Because the writers didn't play it safe. They elevated the game. And while I never had much interest in watching this show, I am glad I did. I am not glad to have suffered through about 36 episodes in seasons 1 and 2, but more than happy that the show creators figured out how to take what was working and to keep it interesting. And to take elements that weren't working and make them work. And most importantly, for realizing that the show they had been writing for two seasons was nothing more than an X-FILES wannabe with X-FILES homages. So, instead, they created a unique show out of the best material. Oh and I am sure fanboys and fangirls of this show will tell me how nearly two useless seasons of snail-paced exposition was necessary, but I will counter with season 3. This show never needed the long setup or the case of the week focus. It just needed to tell an exciting and well constructed story.

SERIES GRADE
(Non-Americans: A = awesome, B = good, C = ok, D = not good, F = failure)

SEASON 1
C : If not for Walter and Pacey, I would not have made it through this one.  The case of the week rarely interests me and the show focuses too much on my least favorite character, Australia.

SEASON 2
B- : Walter and Peter help me get through to the final three episodes where the show really takes off.  Also, there are a couple of pretty good episodes scattered throughout the season that set up the grander arc.

SEASON 3
A : The lame case-of-the-week structure is diluted into backwash.  Almost every character is interesting. I really enjoy Olivia (that's what he said).  Most of the stories rule.  The acting and writing is top notch.  On par with a very good season of LOST or BSG.  And the final few minutes of the finale had my heart pumping in ways only the best shows ever do.  I would have given it an A+ but there is at least one season left.  If all three seasons had been this good, FRINGE would be my favorite show on TV.

SEASON 4
TBD : As long as the writers pay off characters arcs, this one should be on the level of season 3.

What say you?  Comment below.  Anonymous posting is enabled.  Internet Explorer users, sometimes you have to hit "Post Comment" a few times.  I don't know why.

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