Last year's freshmen shows included time travel, motorcycle gangs, strange happenings with normal explanations, a detective with powers of observation, an author running with the police, and science gone crazy.
The cast of Fringe (l – r) : Lance Riddick, John Noble, Blair Brown, Kirk Acevedo, Anna Torv, Mark Valley, Joshua Jackson, and Jasika Nicole.
Fringe is about FBI Agent Olivia Dunham (Anna Torv – Heavenly Sword) on special detail as the handler for scientist Walter Bishop (John Noble – Lord of the Rings: Return of the King) and his son Peter Bishop (Joshua Jackson – Dawson's Creek). The season begins with a commercial airliner that lands with all passengers and crew mysteriously dead. This prompts Olivia to coerce Peter to allow her to check Walter out of the asylum he’s been a guest of for the past 17 years. It seems that one of Walters past experiments is eerily similar to this occurrence, and Olivia thinks that he may be able to help solve the case. Walter is so helpful a special unit is started consisting of Olivia, Walter, Peter, along with Agent Astrid Farnsworth (Jasika Nicole – Take the Lead), and headed up by Agent Phillip Broyles (Lance Riddick – Lost). Add in Agent John Scott (Mark Valley – Boston Legal), lover, traitor, coma victim (?), and Massive Dynamics executive Nina Sharp (Blair Brown – Space Cowboys) who may be involved in the weird science that’s going on.
Fringe has sci-fi, thriller, horror, espionage, mad scientists, covert operations, and conspiracies. Weird science is the main culprit for the group's assignments. Walter had something to do with most of it, and when he didn’t have an active part in it, he knew the person who did. It seems that in his heyday Walter dabbled in many experimental processes, mostly genetic. It also seems that a variety of associates and rivals cannibalized his work after his lab was closed and he was institutionalized. There’s rapid aging, human and animal mutations, killer insects, viruses, computer viruses, matter manipulation, matter teleportation, mind control, alternate dimensions, and conspiracies. And a cow, Gene.
Fringe started the season a bit confusing, as there were so many players that you couldn’t figure out who the bad guys are. Once they settled into their rhythm the plots and subplots sorted themselves out, and by the season finale it all makes sense, for now.
Special features include:
– Commentaries on selected episodes
– Roberto Orci’s Production Diary
– Evolution: The Genesis of Fringe
– The Casting of Fringe
– Gene the Cow
– Behind the Science of Fringe
– Unusual Side Effects: Gag Reel
– Fringe Visual Effects
So why should you be watching Fringe? First, though they may be similar, this is not an X-Files rehash. It would be easy to make comparisons between the two, but Fringe feels as fresh as X-Files did in the beginning. Second, like any above average show it boils down to a balance of writing and casting. Look at his role as Denethor to picture John Noble, as the genius, mad scientist, Walter. Joshua Jackson is believable as Peter, the abandoned son looking for his father's approval and now has a captive subject. The relative newcomer Anna Torv plays Olivia as an authoritarian with an open mind, once she is introduced to the weirdness. And don’t forget Jasika Nicole as the lab assistant, who deals with Walter continually and has some of the best lines in the show. This is why you should be watching Fringe.
ComicsOnline gives Fringe 5 mad scientists out of 5 evil geniuses.
