This Week in Fringe - 5/6/11

After many hiatuses and thoughts of cancellation, we've finally made it to the season (yes, not series!) finale.

Episode 22 - "The Day We Died"

Zach says: It picks up right where the last episode left things, with Peter in the future, 2026. However, he doesn't really remember he's from the past, so things progress in this future time period as they normally would, and while some things are nice, like Peter and Olivia being happily married, other things aren't looking too bright.

As it turns out, when Peter got in that machine all those years ago, or last episode, he ended up destroying the other universe; oopsies. Walter was blamed and sent to prison, and basically everything else stayed the same; Broyles became a senator and Olivia became the head of Fringe and everyone is happy, except for the Walters. Apparently, Walternate escaped from the other universe and has plans to do to this universe what Peter did to his; namely destroy it.

Needless to say, bad things happen, but, we learn one new, crucial, crazy, piece of information, in that Walter was the one to create the machine. Through some research, Walter learns that he was the one to send the pieces of the machine back through time, and he tells Peter that this has already been done and cannot be undone, but Peter can change his past decisions and the outcome of the future and the universes.

It's a bit of a crazy idea, but sure, why not. Then come the end of the episode, Peter is sent back to the past, to when he entered the machine, now with the knowledge of the future and what needs to be done. He uses the machine to combine the two universes, or at least a part of it, bringing together both labs were the machines are held, along with the Walters and Olivias. Peter explains the future and tells them they need to cooperate to change the future and fix the world.

Waltnerate is still pretty pissed, so I don't know how things are going to turn out, but this seems like it will be the premise of the next season. Will they be able to work together? Will they be able to fix the universes? I guess we'll have to wait and see. Oh, and Peter might be gone forever. Kind of hard to say, but yeah. He "served his purpose," bringing the two groups together, and that may be all there is to it for him.
Zach's Score: 8/10

JDW says: I'm a fan of time travel. I enjoy the Terminator films, Doctor Who, Quantum Leap, and many of my favorite Star Trek episodes and films deal with time travel. So to say I was excited where Fringe was going after last week's cliffhanger would be an understatement. The seemingly post-apocalyptic setting, the possibility that Peter could return to the past knowing what he see's in the future, the possibilities made me tingle. But then the episode started...

At first it was confusing, because it was as if Peter had no recollection of the past at all, he was just back to what his 2026 self would call normal. And much like seeing the alternate universe for the first time, I liked analyzing everything in the frame, picking out little details about what made this world different. I enjoyed seeing the parallels of future Walter and Walter from when we first saw him in the series opener. Or how Walternate goes from bitter, to bitterer murderer. Or how Olivia was never killed by that guy she said she knew was going to kill her (seriously, now that just makes that semi-waful LSD episode a complete waste), you know, till Walternate shot her in the head...

Nice to see the Observers again though; and I can swear I saw one that wasn't white, so that's cool. But who knows what this all means. If this actually turned out to be the series finale (i.e. the show was not renewed for a fourth season) it would've probably been more interesting to watch, as we'd be left to speculate what it all meant. Of course we can still speculate, but at least we can hope that the next season makes it all clear. I can wait till then I suppose...
JDW's Score: 9/10

Overall Score: 8.5/10

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This Week in Fringe - 4/29/11

Last episode before the season finale, and while it starts a bit slow, the ending makes for quite a finale to come. MEGASPOILERS

Episode 21 - "The Last Sam Weiss"

Zach says: More crazy events occur due to the machine, and Walter unwillingly pulls himself away from Peter to investigate and find a way to stop the events. Naturally, his cleverness does allow him to figure out a pattern to the events and find a solution.

Peter does wake up as well, although his mind is a bit fuzzy....I'm not surprised something was off about him after what had happened with the machine, so we'll see if that has any major impact in the future.

Sam and Olivia go to figure out how to turn off the machine and get Peter inside. They learn that not only is Peter attached to the machine, but so is Olivia; go figure. Apparently, she can use her telekinesis to turn the machine off. Naturally. We also learn that Sam's family have long been researching "The First People" and learning about the manuscripts of the machine, etc.

By the end of the episode, Peter gets in the machine, and then!!!!! He wakes up in the streets of New York and there are fires and the city is rioting or something and it doesn't look good. Peter also looks hurt, and some police officer recognizes him, because I guess he is an important person? And he might be in the future? I don't know, but the finale should be exciting.
Zach's Score: 8/10

JDW says: So I actually really liked this episode. I didn't like it at first, but when it finally got running and the use of the machine was reveal, I was giddy. For real. I mean, some of it bothers me; why is it called "The Last Sam Weiss"? It's not like he dies in the episode, and unlike my theory, that the machine opened a third universe where we then learn that Sam Weiss is some crazy universe hopper and is the last of his kind or some crap. But yeah, aside from that, the fact that in this crazy mystic box from a race of people we never even knew existed, theres a drawing of Olivia. I know this is a fictional show, but give me a break.

However, when Olivia gave Peter the go to enter the machine at the end, and it turned on, the sequence was kind of magical. And when he awoke in some post apocalyptic version of New York City (soon revealed to be sometime after September 11, 2021; where a new building has been erected at Ground Zero), I was really excited. In a way, it reminded me a lot of the cliffhanger ending from the Season 2 (and series) finale of Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles, where John Connor transport to the future, and no one knows who he is. Yeah, thanks for cancelling the show after that one, Fox!

So, for that reason alone I was excited, because if the show was canceled this season like we expected (it was thankfully renewed for a third season), I would have hated to have a repeated sequence like that. Thankfully, there's just one more episode, so unlike Terminator, we're at least getting some follow up of Peter's travels in the future before waiting a year for the next season.
JDW's Score: 9/10

Overall Score: 8.5/10

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This Week in Fringe - 4/22/11

Things seem to be winding down for this season of Fringe, which means universes will be destroyed or saved. Let's see which happens first.

Episode 20 - "6:02 AM EST"

Zach says: Olivia is back in her body and everything seems to be progressing nicely for everyone, that is, until the universe starts collapsing. As we saw previously, Walternate got a blood sample from Peter's baby, and it appears he has used that to turn on the machine, which not only caused the standard universe's machine to power up, but also started creating vortexes that are destroying our Earth, similar to what had been happening in the alternate universe since Walter stole Peter.

Now, it is up to Fringe Division and Massive Dynamic to predict and contain these events. Peter however, thinks he can stop it altogether by interacting with the machine to turn it off. Well, that doesn't go over so well, oops.

We see a little bit of the parallel universe this episode, mostly in characters' motives and beliefs. We see that Walternate knows that destroying the other universe is quite tragic and he knows the weight of his decision, however, he is very firm in his choice. We also see that Fauxlivia doesn't agree at all with Walternate's decision, as she tries to cross universes to get Peter and stop the machine.

And the last of the events is with Sam Weiss, the bowling alley owner guy, who knows an invaluable amount about the machine, etc. He looks very concerned about what is happening, and approaches Olivia to get to the machine before it's too late.

So, it's not looking too good for the home team right now, but it seems as though there are forces on both sides working for them, so I'm sure they'll be able to turn it around quickly. Hopefully, next week's episode acts as a continuation from this week, as I would be very let down if the story diverged into some other part of the plot. But, like I said, the season is winding down with only a few episodes left, so I'll keep my fingers crossed that we get some kind of satisfying conclusion before the finale.
Zach' Score: 7.5/10

JDW says: To be specific, there's just TWO episodes left... and it seems like there's a alot to cover besides just "which world survives". My biggest gripe was that for an episode where I'm seeing that the end of our universe is imminent, I was really "feeling" it.

And why suddenly bring Sam Weiss into this with 3 episodes left? Where the hell has he been all season? And if he's that important than why haven't we seen him. I don't like be told a guy is important if I never actually see him doing anything. I know it's a nit-picky thing to complain about, but if a character is going to be central to the plot, at least have him on screen. I don't need another Walt. Hopefully the final 2 episodes have something better to offer.
JDW's Score: 7/10

Overall Score: 7.3/10

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This Week in Fringe - 4/15/11

Fringe is back from its hiatus, and the concern is that William Bell needs to find a new host to embody, as Olivia's mind can't take much more before she is lost forever. So, the premise is that the gang will take some drugs, and enter her mind to find her. I'm ok with the premise, but what happens when they're there is pretty f'ing weird. I'm sure Jared will have much more to say on this topic.

Episode 19 - "Lysergic Acid Diethylamide"

Zach says: Anyways, Olivia's subconscious has fled inside her mind to hide, and it is up to Peter, Walter, and Bell to find her. Luckily, Peter actually cares for her so he has a plan on where she would go to hide. But, the episode gets weird. For SOME crazy reason, the world turns cartoony, and the live action goes away. Now, I would suspect this is due to the fact that Leonard Nimoy, who plays William Bell, has like, retired, so they can't use him, but needed him, and this was the best they could come up with. Ummm, ok. Fine. But then, there are zombies, and when Peter finds Olivia and they don't need Bell, it switches back to live action, but then they go outside where Bell is and it's cartoon again. Shit be crazy. I think the WRITERS were the ones on LSD. Oh, and they totally ripped off Inception.

But, they find Olivia and she escapes, and mostly all is well. Olivia even got to confront her personal demons, and seems to be a stronger person because of it, being completely confident now. She isn't even bothered by the fact that she thinks she knows who will kill her. Not sure how she would know the future, but hey, could be interesting in future episodes to see if this guy makes an appearance.
Zach's Score: 7/10

JDW says: I'm crossed. I want to love this episode, but I really hate this episode. While the Inception like premise was a little... unoriginal? The idea behind it was cool. But.. well the best way I can talk about this would be Pros and Cons.

The Pros: Holy shit, Leonard Nimoy is back! If you're like me, you probably thought Olivia's awful Nimoy impression was a bit overdone and stupid for a show like Fringe, and I'm glad they finally dropped it in order to bring Nimoy out of his retirement just to add his voice. And despite totally ripping off Inception and kind of being out of place, the premise was cool. And lastly, Broyles on LSD was just fantastic! It was great seeing Lance Reddick step out of his usually stern and cold acting style.

The Cons: ... Where do I even start? As Zach said, presumably the reason why they went animated for Nimoy's on-screen appearance was because he retired, and while he may have been willing to phone in his voice, he probably was not willing to come in and do full on acting. But there in lies the problem: do it well or don't do it at all. I get that TV shows can't get a theatrical budget, but there's no excuse that a show from Fox and Warner Bros., companies that spend over $3 Million per episode of their fully animated programming, should look this awful. Seriously, I've seen better TV animation from Xavier: Renegade Angel, and at least that show's fun to watch. But the animation here was just awful, the designs were awful, the actual character animation was awful, and logistically/stylistically it was completely out of place from the rest of the series.

When Nimoy signed off in last season's finale, it was a wonderful episode and a really great representation of an actor's finale on-screen appearance before retirement. But all this episode did was undo all of that wonderful experience and leave was presumably is actually Nimoy's last appearance on Fringe as something utterly gross. I think I'd off at least accepted the animation premise if the entire inner-mind world was like that and was in an appealing style, but as the way it was last night was just embarrassing for everyone involved and watching. I wanted to love this episode, because of Nimoy's return and Broyle's LSD moments, but I just can't with the awful animated sequences.
JDW's Score: 6/10

Overall Score: 6.5/10

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This Week in Fringe - 3/25/11

This week's episode takes place in the alternate universe, where we're reminded that Fauxlivia is pregnant with Peter's child. The episode focuses entirely on that fact, with no case-of-the-week. But, Fauxlivia is in danger...

Episode 18 - "Bloodline"

Zach says: From pretty much the start of the episode, we see Olivia get abducted, and soon learn it's because of her baby. But who would do such a thing, and for what purpose? Well, we don't know the exact purpose yet, but we do learn who and what the result is.

Later in the episode, we see a variety of characters, like the return of Henry, the taxi driver, who for some reason will continue to play an important role of some sort. It seems like the Fringe division, now led by Lincoln, are starting to be skeptical of Walternate and his deceit. We also see Walternate put up a seemingly fragile, emotional front, but then see some insidiousness. And another character we see is the main Observer, who proclaimed, "It is happening."

Things definitely have been set into motion. What it all means and how it will play out are to be determined.
Zach's Score: 7.5/10

JDW says: Yeah, i definitely have no idea where this series is going with this whole baby deal and Peter having to choose an Olivia. But it's episode was certainly interesting, it just wasn't keeping my attention as much as the show has been lately.

But hey, at least we got news that the show has been renewed for a fourth season. So, if the rest of the season starts to go downhill, it won't feel as sour as when we thought it was going to be cancelled. But I'd rather not have it suck in general.
JDW's Score: 7/10

Overall Score: 7.3/10

Also, warning! Seems like the show is going on YET ANOTHER hiatus, and won't return for another three weeks (back on April 15th). Which is just stupid, every show just had a two week break. So, yeah, see you in 3 weeks, hopefully we have some 3DS content to hold you over...

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This Week in Fringe - 3/18/11

Hello hello. Sorry for missing last week, but I had my Spring Break and went out to Las Vegas to gamble away all my money. Luckily, I was able to sell everything except for my computer, so I can still make these posts. Because JayRad got to do last week's episode by himself, I'll go ahead and take responsibility for this week.

Episode 17 - "Stowaway"

Zach says: At the end of last week's episode, "Os", we saw William Bell inhabit Olivia's body. This happening remains constant this week, with Bell taking control of Olivia. For obvious reasons, Peter isn't too happy about this, but Walter is quite excited by the reunion. We see Walter and Bell team up on their investigation, making a great pair, cracking jokes, and solving problems.

We are left hanging though from last episode, with decoding the discs from the shape shifters. Bell said the decoder was in his office, but instead of following up on that lead, we learn that Bell must find another suitable host, so Olivia can live her life. We are also distracted with a 'case of the week', with a woman who is apparently unable to die.

This case doesn't really seem that unremarkable to me, but it has a semi-message to deliver about fate and destiny, which ties into Bell and Peter. I wasn't too impressed though.

At the end of the episode, Bell still hasn't found another body, but we see him talking with Peter, at which point a church bell rings, bringing back Olivia's consciousness for a few seconds, after which Bell returns and says that things might be a bit more complicated than he originally thought. I don't see how that alone complicated much, and I would assume Bell's original assumptions would still hold true, but I'm guessing we'll see where this goes next week, perhaps with the ability of switching between Olivia and Bell on command.

Oh, and we also see Lincoln Lee in the normal universe, working with the FBI. We had previously seen him in the alternate universe, apparently in love with Fauxlivia, but had yet to see him here. He had been investigating the woman who couldn't die and joined up with the Fringe gang to solve the mystery. At the end of the case, he basically lets Peter know to call him if they need anymore help, showing his interest in the group. It'll be interesting to see how this develops.
Zach's Score: 8/10

JDW says: Zach basically covered everything, so I guess that's fair. I watched the episode, but I was in a pretty shitty mood so I don't think I'm write to score it. But something tells me that the Lincoln Lee we saw was actually the Other Side's version, spying on Fringe Division, thinking he could just get away with the Clark Kent disguise and the luck that Olivia was taken over by Bell and unable to recognize him at the time. But that's just my guess.
No Score

Overall Score: 8/10

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Last Week in Fringe: 3/11/10

Had to change the title of this post for obvious reasons. As you may have realized, this season of Fringe, both Zach and I have been reviewing the episodes, where as with Season 2, I did it alone. Well, it turns out that Zach has been away for the past week or so, unable to watch the episode, so we decided, last minute obviously, that I'd go solo on this one. Which is a shame because I'd of loved to hear what Zach had to say on this one...

Episode 16 - "Os"

And now for why I'd of loved to hear what Zach had to say, THE EPISODE OPENS WITH HURLEY FROM LOST, who happens to be a security guard at Massive Dynamic and decides to get high with Walter, when Walter realizes no one ever enters William Bell's old office, and starts browsing through his files. Sadly, that's the last we see of Jorge Garcia as well.

Soon after, the "case of the week" kicks in, wall climbing burglars who somehow float when they die... and later become heavier than a truck. What does this mean?! Well, since I'm a week late I'll just tell you. Our universe is collapsing, and elements are changing their properties. So somehow Cameron from Ferris Beuller, now a scientist who has a paraplegic son, is looking for a cure to make his son walk again, and has been experimenting on other paraplegic boys to get it to work just right. Sounds a lot like Walter... in a way. So it was an interesting comparison/parallel.

In other news, everyone's encouraging Peter to get with Olivia. So we'll see where that goes... All in all, I enjoyed this episode. Seeing Hurley on TV, albeit briefly totally made the episode for me; but the case of the week and how it related to Walter was really cool for once. Plus, it was Cameron, CMAAAAN!

But then there's the twist ending... without Leonard Nimoy. And Olivia makes the dumbest voice ever... See you again tonight!

Overall Score: 8.8/10

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This Week in Fringe - 2/25/11

This week's episode is a bit different than normal, and takes us back to 1985, after Peter was taken by Walter. It shows us the lives of both parents after these events, and shows us how it effected them. It's like the back-story of Lost, in season 6, except this episode didn't suck super balls.

Episode 15 - "Subject 13"

Zach says: The episode opens with a scene of young Peter at Reiden Lake, the place where Walter crossed over to the other universe to take him. Peter knows he is not at home, and believes that this lake will be where he can get back. The entire episode, we can see that Peter is completely aware of the fact that he is not from this place, and that Walter and his wife are not his real parents. I find it interesting that Peter, at a relatively old age, somewhere around 8-10 perhaps, is so sure of himself that this place is foreign to him, yet in his adult life, from what we've seen of previous episodes, he doesn't remember this at all. So basically, it seems like a big contradiction the show has shown. How could adult Peter not remember this stuff? Don't make no sense.

Anyways, aside from this drama that is presented through most of the episode, with his mother trying to affirm that he was simply sick, and everything is ok, lies of which take their toll on her, we see Walter trying to discover, through his children test subjects, a way for them to transport to the other universe to take Peter home. So, we can see that Walter has good intentions here, or so we think. Olivia is the one, of course, who exceeds expectations, and actually went to the other universe.

As the episode progresses, she does it multiple times, and even warms up to Walter and confesses that her step father has been abusive. However, it was actually Walternate who she spoke to. We also see what has happened to the alternate universe in this episode. Here, Walternate is the one breaking down over the loss of his son, which leads to issues with the marriage, over his obsessive behavior. However, he has a breakthrough when he meets young Olivia from the regular universe, and he realizes what has truly happened to his son. A breakthrough that assuredly leads to events in the present.

I really enjoyed this episode. It was definitely different than regular episodes of Fringe, and showed how certain events effected everyone involved, and how things became the way they are. There were a discrepancy or two I think, like how Peter doesn't remember this, but overall, there was a lot to learn and I liked the emotionally driven episode.
Zach's Score: 9/10

JDW says: It's hard to say anything Zach already hasn't, but here's a nifty bit of trivia: the back story episode of Lost Zach mentioned in the opening of this post was the 15th episode of Lost's 6th Season. The original 80's episode of Fringe from Season 2, "Peter," was the 15th episode of that season. And now this 80's episode is also a 15th episode... 4 8 15 16 23 42 What are you up to Mr. Abrams?!

But, back to the episode, the last time Fringe went to the 80s, in "Peter," I gave it a VFH Seal of Approval, and rightfully so, I still think that it's the shows finest hour. "Subject 13" follows in that tradition of making the 80s episodes the best thing this show has to offer. I think this further proves my theory that the further away Fringe is from its formula, the better it is. I already prefer Other Side "case of the week" episodes over our own side's case, and the 2 80s episodes (which awesome 80s opening) are even better than those. Sure, it was more of a surprise when "Peter" did it, thus making the episode a bit more special and original, but "Subject 13" is still a really strong episode, even if they didn't get around to explaining why Peter and Olivia at their current age don't remember any of this... And last week's standard case of the week sucked, so I think my theory is fact...
JDW's Score: 9/10

Overall Score: 9/10

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This Week in Fringe - 2/18/11

This week's episode deals with mysterious happenings at an apartment building in Brooklyn, where it appears the very fabric of the universe is coming apart! Sounds exciting, right? Yeah, well, it's lame.

Episode 14 - "6B"

Zach says: Sure, the idea that the regular universe is starting to crumble and have weak spots like the alternate universe is interesting, and it's some what revealing how they intend to solve the issue, just like the other side, but the story used to present this stuff was pretty boring, overstated, and wasteful.

There might not be too many more episodes of Fringe left, and to see the entire episode spent on some old lady and her grieving was pretty disappointing, and not very entertaining.

Nothing very exciting happens throughout the entire episode, except that Walter starts to question whether or not Walternate is a bad guy, and Olivia finally stops being such a bitch and starts giving Peter a second chance.
Zach's Score: 6/10

JDW says: I missed the episode last night because I went to see Unknown, but caught it on the DVR tonight. Let's just say, I enjoyed Unknown more, and I didn't really like that movie...

There really isn't anything I can say that Zach already didn't say. A bulk of the episode takes place in one room, and its a generally uninteresting room where an old man just stands there, staring. The parts of Walter becoming more like Walternate were neat, but there really just wasn't enough going on here to make me comfortable with the fact that if Fringe really is on its last lengths, they're not using their time well. ... Next week's episode might be cool though.
JDW's Score: 5/10

Overall Score: 5.5/10

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This Week in Fringe - 2/11/11

This week's episode finally takes place in the alternate universe, and while we don't really see what they've been up to this whole time, we are getting reintroduced to characters and happenings.

Episode 13 - "Immortality"

Zach says: The episode follows the standard formula of presenting a bizarre case to follow along with, while there are bits and pieces from the main story. The case this time deals with a scientist looking for a cure for the avian flu, and a page in the history books for such an achievement. Unfortunately, to finalize his immunization, he must extract an enzyme from a long extinct species of beetle. Luckily, he can just plant them in humans and they can crawl their little ways out. Lovely.

On the more important side of things, we learn that Walter and the Department of Defense are researching the machine part they retrieved from the other side, and are planning on installing it into the machine. We also learn that they've been testing that synthesized Cortexiphan sample from Olivia on patients, with them dying. The scientist dude thinks testing on children is the key, as they are young and their brains possess limitless potential. However, here we see a gentler, caring side of Walternate, in his refusal to test with children, probably due to losing his own child, Peter.

It's definitely nice to see Walternate not being completely maniacal, and having some sort of conscious. It also makes you think about the real Walter and the experiments he did on children... who is the REAL bad guy?

Anyways, we also learn a little something about Fauxlivia, who got proposed to by her long time boyfriend who has just returned from his trip. A lot has happened since he left, and while Olivia did accept the proposal, something happens to kind of break that up. Ooops. Should've had that Trojan Man there, brah.
Zach's Score: 8/10

JDW says: I'll be honest, this episode actually caught me by surprise. I mean, after what, five episodes away from the Other Side, not to mention that long winter hiatus, I kind of completely forgot that things may have been going on over there; cause they sure as hell didn't say anything about it till now. So, nice surprise to have another Other Side episode, because I'll say it again, their "case of the week" episodes are just better.

But aside from the interesting case, there's some interesting developments that better not get cut short if the show is done after this season... i.e. Fauxlivia's pregnancy. I don't want to have to have that lingering around unanswered. I mean, there's no way they're going to time skip from her being six weeks pregnant to birth, and still answer everything on both sides with just 9 episodes left in the season. But regardless, this episode was good, I just hope it all pans out well by season's end.
JDW's Score: 8.5/10

Overall Score: 8.3/10

Missed the episode? Watch it on Hulu

This Week in Fringe - 2/4/11

This week's episode diverges from the main story arc, and goes back to the classic "case of the week" style, however, there are still a few important tidbits to gain. Sorry for the delay!

Episode 12 - "Concentrate and Ask Again"

Zach says: The bulk of the story deals with revenge by ex-military men who want to murder people who approved a deadly weapons project which resulted in their inability to have children. Not too incredible in itself, but the weapon was some chemical compound which caused people's bones to disintegrate, so that's pretty cool. Fortunately, Olivia was able to squash the main attack, with the help of a Cortexiphan study patient, like herself. However, this man was able to read people's minds, so thusly, could identify the attackers. Fun.

The story here itself was decent enough, and relatively entertaining, but nothing too special. While all of this was going on, Olivia was still struggling with how Peter and Folivia were together, and whether or not Peter loved her, etc. Also, Nina was doing some research on "The First People" and discovered who the author might be.

As it turns out, it's that bowling alley guy, Sam Weiss; the one who helped Olivia after that bizarre car accident in Season Two. Yeah, that doesn't make a whole lot of sense, but sure, why not. This Sam fellow seems to know a lot, and says that Peter will decide on which universe is saved and destroyed, based on which Olivia he choices. You would think, like everyone else, that the real Olivia is the obvious choice, but Peter still thinks about Fauxlivia, according to the man who can read minds....
Zach's Score: 7.7/10

JDW says: While I was a bit bothered at first that after a good string of main-plot based episodes we were suddenly back in "case of the week" mode, overall I was pleased with this episode. It's a bit formulaic, not just in the case format, but the fact that this isn't the first time we've been introduced to a new Cortexiphan who ultimately is the only way to solve the case, and just so happens to come across the Fringe division at the most convenient time. Granted the last time we had Cortexiphan patients help out the Fringe crew they came aboard like the Super Friends and then all died in the Season Two finale... so, lt's just say this probably isn't the last we'll see of the mind reader.

But all in all the case was cool, the presentation of showing the guy's struggle with mind reading and hearing voices what pretty neat, and it was nice to see them actually have an interesting plan to catching the criminals as opposed to the normal, shoot guy and have Walter look at his body method.... though some of that was still there. Also, if Sam Weiss was such a big player in this whole scheme, why is it that we haven't even see him until 12 episodes into this season, despite seeing him all of last season?
JDW's Score: 8/10

Overall Score: 7.8/10

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This Week In Fringe - 1/28/11

Sorry for the delay, we both somehow forgot about Fringe last night! We blame the new time slot...

Episode 11 - " Reciprocity"

Zach says: Everyone is in their right universe, and the investigation is heating up. They've cracked Fauxlivia's computer encryption and are reading her files, and they've also assembled the deadly machine, minus a part or two that Fauxlivia made off with. However, they can't get the machine to work or figure out what it's supposed to do. Go figure. But, when Peter walks in the room, gears start moving and things start happening, but why?!!?

Also, shape shifters start getting murdered. Turns out, fairly expectantly, that Peter is behind the murders, and while he's been a bad guy in his past, seen in very early episodes, apparently he wouldn't be one to go out offing this bad guys. I don't know if that's quite accurate of his true character, but let's just assume it is. Walter says that perhaps when he interacted with the machine, it changed him in some way, turning him into an angry, dangerous person, which could lead him further into wanting to use the machine to destroy the other universe.

So, the plot thickens some more. Interestingly, we haven't seen anything in the past two episodes of the other universe. What are they working on? How is Fauxolivia doing? What about Walternate? What is he planning?!?!?!?
Zach's Score: 7.5/10

JDW says: Well because this is late, Zach's review is spoilertastic and doesnt leave me with much to say... But, I enjoyed this episode; I like that the scientist guy sounded just like Samuel L. Jackson (but wasn't T.C. Carson, the guy who usually replaced Jackson for the Clone Wars and Star Wars games, and is Kratos), and i liked that it wasn't another 'case of the week' again. But something seemed off...

The last and first time we heard of these 'First People' our Fringe Division only found one piece of this fantastical universe destroying machine. Now, all the sudden, they've found all the parts (which were supposedly scattered all over the world), and they knew exactly how to put it all together but somehow weren't aware of the whole deal about Peter being the key to its operation. Like, it doesn't feel like THAT much time passed since that episode, for everything to already be in place, but at least we didn't have to see 10 episodes of them just finding the parts. Win some, lose some I suppose...
JDW's Score: 8/10

Overall Score: 7.7/10

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This Week In Fringe - 1/21/11

Fringe has returned, but at its new time, Fridays at 9/8 Central, and it continues just where it left off, I think. I don't really remember....but, we have the real Olivia in the right place, and the whole gang is doing what they do. First review of 2011!

Episode 10 - "The Firefly"

Zach says: This week doesn't mess with any random case files, but sticks to the point, more or less, which is winding down to the end game. Fringe's future is uncertain, and this could possibly be its last season, and if that is the case, then the writers will want to have some sort of conclusion to wrap things up, so they can't afford to waste time.

The Observers are back, and aim to set things right, which Walter messed up so many years ago taking Peter from the alternate universe to save his life, with unforeseen consequences abound.

Luckily, Walter realizes that he did indeed mess up things and turned the worlds on their heads, and knows he might have to make sacrifices to fix them, however, he may not be willing to lose Peter again, although he did give in this time. Will he be able to in the future, with real stakes at hand? I'm thinking we'll find out soon enough.
Zach's Score: 8/10

JDW says: Usually Zach writes the review review and I just have a rebuttal, but... whatever. Cause while this episode did more or less stick to the main story, there was actually a 'case of the week' it was just a bit more light-hearted and didn't involve inspecting dead corpses. Christopher Lloyd (Doc Brown!) guest stars as Walter's washed-up musical idol, who claims to have seen his son, who died in the 80s. Spoiler: The Observer let him come back.

There didn't seem to be any like crazy plot twists or gruesome mystery death and drama. It was a fun episode, and for what was essentially a 'case of the week' episode, it was one of the better ones.

But I'm really bugged by the Friday night time slot. It just doesn't work; sure Bones might be the work show on TV but when it played before Fringe on Thursdays it just made sense. But what the hell is Fringe doing on a Friday night after Kitchen Nightmares? It's like I'm watching the show in a completely different setting and it's throwing off the way I look at it. Zach said it right though, especially with this new timeslot and an episode titled, "The Firefly" (WTF Fox?!), they really need to get this show into gear, because there's basically just 10 episodes left and I'm not sure where they plan on going with this...
JDW's Score: 8.2/10

Overall Score: 8.1/10 (Yup.)

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This Week in Fringe - 12/9/10

Olivia has returned to the right universe and goes back to her job, but will being a woman have any effect on her work? You betcha.

Episode 9 - "Marionette"

Zach says: Taking place in the regular universe, this episode follows the trek of a crazy, brilliant doctor-man who steals a bunch of transplanted organs to put them back into an underage girl who committed suicide. Very romantic. Then, before bringing her back to life, he makes her dance ala marionette. Again, touching.

Unfortunately though, Olivia feels for this crazy dude, and after Peter told Olivia about what happened with faux-Olivia, she's none too happy. Hopefully, Walter can create some miracle potion to make her forget or something.

But on a very interesting note, we see that original Observer walking about. And now, from what we've all seen, this brings up an interesting theory, that perhaps the Observers hail from the same lineage as those original pre-dinosaur people who created the death machine!!! What could it mean?? Hopefully, we'll find out.
Zach's Score: 7.5/10

JDW says: I'll be honest, I watched the episode last night, and I didn't catch any of what Zach's talking about regarding the Observers. I did see the main Observer, watching Walter, but the rest I didn't pick up on. I assume that because I was grossed out and traumatized at the site of the man with NO EYES, and Frankenstien-esque dead-girl marionette dance recital. No really, for the first time in a long time, I was terrified to watch something on television, so ... good job I guess.

As for the rest, I get where Olivia is coming from, but really how was Peter to know? She fit right into the other world, so why can't faux-Olivia just fit into her place? I mean it's not like some gross mutant was sleeping in her house/clothes, just her.. from another universe... chin up kid!
JDW's Score: 8/10

Overall Score: 7.7/10

Missed the episode? Watch it on Hulu

NOTE! Sadly, yet again, Fringe is going on hiatus, this time until January 21st, 2010. And if you happen to be looking at a calendar, you'll notice that Fringe is moving from its current Thursday slot to ... Fridays, also known as Fox's infamous "death slot". What does this mean for the future of the show? Who knows, but if it's been getting good, it would be a shame to get the axe now.

This Week in Fringe - 12/2/10

And things are heating up. Which side will come out on top? Who will win? Or are we just gonna forget about the war and go back to work? I guess we'll find out next week.

However, this week's episode was pretty good. Both Olivias got put back in their proper universes, but not without a fight on either side. SPOILERS BELOW

Episode 8 - "Entrada"

Zach says: The story remain focused on the main arc, and didn't divert to talking about some random case file, thankfully. The other side is still talking of war and fixing their universe at the cost of destroying the other, while the "real" side is hoping to find a better solution and keep both.

Unfortunately, it appears that soon the other side will have all, or most of the necessary components of the machine, but it would seem that they would still need Peter to make it work, and who knows what it even does.

Hopefully, these answers will be revealed in the weeks to come, but looking at the "next week" clip, it seems like things may go back to the "case of the week" style, moving away from the main story arc, which would be very disappointing.
Zach's Score: 8/10

JDW says: Aside from the on-coming universe war, there was something more interesting about this episode; it was the first episode since the season opener to not have any sort of case going on, and it was the first episode this season to take place in both universes (as opposed to the back and forth pattern they've been doing with every other episode). And despite that being a disgusting to look at, run-on sentence, the episode was actually pretty good.

For once, things actually happened, and get this ... there were permanent changes that will affect the dynamic of both worlds! OMGPLOTDEVELOPEMENT AMIRIGHT?! But seriously, after weeks of 'good other side episode / bad our side episode' I'm glad this one managed to pull through. But I agree with Zach, the preview for next week does look like more of the same, and with our Olivia back in our world, and other Broyles dead, I can't imagine we'll be seeing any more cool other-side cases... which is kind of a shame.
JDW's Score: 8.5/10

Overall Score: 8.3/10

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This Week in Fringe - 11/18/10

What's that? A reused scenario from a previous season? We must be in the alternate universe this week!

Episode 7 - "The Abducted"

So yeah, it appears some old guy wants to stay young, and Olivia knows how to solve the crime, more or less, from her past experience with the same thing. Through her help in solving the crime, she gains Broyles' allegiance, which will undoubtedly come in handy in the fight to come. Obviously, Walternate doesn't like her very much, and she went ahead and got herself captured. You know, because it would be hard to find another big thing of water to transport from ............ yeah. But with Broyles on her side, perhaps she can escape.

Also on the plus side, she managed to get a message out to Peter, so it'll be interesting to see what he does with it, and how he deals with faux-Olivia. Other than that though, the story was okay. Creepy old man abducting kids, because some clergyman went crazy with power after his wife died. I don't know. Engaging enough.
Zach's Score: 8/10

JDW says: Agreed, the episode was certainly engaging. I'd actually say that about all of the Other Side episodes, they're much more interesting and engaging. I'm glad that there's actually some character developement, with the increased dickishnes of Walternate, Broyle's every changing thoughts on his position and who he really trusts, and bringing back that cab driver whose name I don't remember, but he's a nice guy so I guess that's redeeming.... (I'll be honest, I keep putting of the review, so I'm phoning it in, but I really did enjoy this episode.)

And maybe I'm alone on this, but I totally hate the Peter/Olivia in-love thing going on, so I'm really curious to see how next week's episode pans out.... oh wait... the show is on another hiatus for two weeks because of Thanksgiving. THANKS AMERICAN TRADITIONS!
JDW's Score: 8/10

Overall Score: 8/10

Missed the episode? Watch it on Hulu

This Week in Fringe - 11/11/10

Another episode in the standard universe, and they are one step closer to solving the mystery of the universe!

Episode 6 - "6955 kHz"

Zach says: After some strange occurrences, and the mystery of the number stations, Astrid comes to a terrifying conclusion: the murderous machine that Walternate is trying to build might be on their side as well.

Apparently, a group of humans lived millions of years ago, and they were technologically advanced and so forth, and built/destroyed/hid the device. Through these number stations, the locations of the pieces of the machine can be found, which doesn't make all that much sense, but hey, why not.

What also doesn't make sense is that a shapeshifter was giving people amnesia, whom had cracked the code. But why? At the end of the episode, evil Olivia reported to the other side that they have found the pieces, which apparently was a good thing. Then why give everyone amnesia, stopping them from finding it? Shiz don't make no sense.

Anyways, it seems interesting, and who knows what building the machine will do. Then both sides will have it, so the fight for Peter will rage on, I guess. Could get interesting, and bloody in the future. A war is coming.
Zach's Score: 7/10

JDW says: Agreed, this shit didn't make any sense and was indeed a mess. What was the purpose of giving amnesia? Why did we need to see those people if they didn't do anything in the end? How the hell does this machine exist in 37 different places from a time before modern man and science? And how the hell does Walternate even know of its existence?

This isn't even a Lost type question barrage, asking about mysterious that won't be answers for seasons on end... No, these are serious, logical questions of episode structure and storytelling, there was a lot about this episode that just plan doesn't make sense. Even if the next few episodes try and explain just how these machine parts came to be, there's still a lot of logic issues wrong with this episode.
JDW's Score: 5/10

Overall Score: 6/10

Missed the episode? Watch it on Hulu

This Week in Fringe - 11/4/10

Fringe is back! After some crazy hiatus due to ... baseball? Fringe returns. This week takes place in the alternate universe, with Olivia gearing up to perform some tests with Walternate to try to unlock her universe-traveling abilities, and wouldn't you know it, they are successful.

Episode 5 - "Amber 31422"

Zach says: And a completely unrelated note, the main plot of the episode focuses on twins, one of whom was stuck in amber in one of the quarantine zones. After years stuck there, he is freed by his brother, and we learn that people stuck in such a situation, are actually still alive and can be resuscitated.

Anyways, the big news is that Olivia is seeing Peter more and more, who is trying to convince her that she is the "real" Olivia, and that she needs to remember the truth! By the end of the episode, she starts to believe it in fact, with the truth being basically validated during one of those experiments with the Defense Minister.

So yeah, pretty slow episode, the main story wasn't all that interesting and definitely not relevant, aside from relating to a Season One episode, and nothing much happened. Sure, Olivia will definitely start doing some stuff come two weeks from now, but that'll have to wait.
Zach's Score: 6.9/10

JDW says: I'll just say outright, 6.9 is an annoying score. Just saying. Anyways, I'll agree, the episode was extremely slow paced and was more of the same 'case of the week' type of thing we've come to expect from Fringe. But, like the previous case set in the other side, I liked it more than the typical 'case of the week' episodes. It's hard to explain, but the fact that the typical formula is broken up by a different setting and characters somehow makes it slightly more enjoyable and/or interesting.

Not to mention that we both disapproved of the episode from a weeks ago, set on our side, I'm going to just go out on a limb and say there's actually something to my theory that Other Side episodes are just better in general. We'll see if that's the case at the end of this season, but for now I think there's really something here. But I'll agree, despite a semi-interesting case, nothing happened in this episode for the most part, and I'm going to consider it a throw-away.
JDW's Score: 7.5/10

Overall Score: 7.2/10

Missed the episode? Watch it on Hulu

This Week in Fringe - 10/14/10

This week's episode takes place back in our world, where the fake Olivia currently resides. Just about nothing happens in this episode, so that was fun, but a key event or two occur.

Episode 4 - "Do Shapshifters Dream of Electric Sheep?"

Zach says: The main focus of the episode was a senator, a very powerful person, gets in a wreck, and as it turns out, he happens to be a shapeshifter from the other universe. So, this means that ANYBODY, even the president, could theoretically be a shape shifter. Unfortunately for Newton and Olivia, this senator happens to still be functioning a bit and has data pertinent to who/what he knows, and Walter and the gang are trying to extract it. It also comes to light that these shape shifters have feelings and emotions, just like Olivia; very touching.

By the end of the episode, nobody learns anything from this shape shifter, but after a super chase scene, Newton is captured, and subsequently commits probable suicide so he can't be detained/interrogated. This is basically the biggest news of the episode. Newton, who is basically the leader of these shape shifters and the entire movement, is now gone. This leaves Olivia to fend for herself, so it may be interesting to see exactly how she does that. Her first move is to have sex with Peter... makes sense. Lets see what comes next...
Zach's Score: 6/10

JDW says: I have to agree, nothing happens in this episode. Sure, there's a couple key things: Peter suspects Olivia is "different" (because.. she is!), there's more shapeshifters than we thought, Walter has basically moved his whole lab into Massive Dynamic (and I personally don't like the new setting), and Newton finally kicks the bucket. But really, a lot of these moments are brief and the rest of the episode just deals with standing around and everyone being suspicious.

As much as I love the chemistry between our Walter and everyone he interacts with, I have to stick with what I said last week, the "other side" is just far more interesting right now, and I'd love to see more of that instead of just more of the old stuff. Plus, Fauxlivia is just an incredibly unlikeable character, and we really have to get our Olivia back ASAP.
JDW's Score: 6.4/10

Overall Score: 6.2/10

Annoying news, seems it's baseball season somewhere, and because of that, Fringe won't be returning until November 4th. Hopefully we'll post some other reviews in the meantime.

Missed the episode? Watch it on Hulu

This Week in Fringe - 10/7/10

This week's episode takes place in the alternate universe, and follows the exploits of a completely irrelevant autistic dude who doesn't want to be reverted to his previous state, while Olivia struggles with her identity.

Episode 3 - "The Plateau"

Zach says: As last seen, Olivia has almost wholey taken on faux Olivia's identity, traits, and personality. She believes she is the alternate Olivia, however, deep in her brain, she knows this isn't true. She imagines seeing Peter and Walter, and by the end of the episode, Peter even talks to her, through her own subconscious, to remind her that things are not right and about who she really is. It also played another plot point in the episode, which I totally called, but is basically irrelevant, except for its effect on Charlie. Charlie voiced some concerns and thoughts about Olivia and thinking about the possibility that perhaps she wasn't crazy, but really IS who she said she was two weeks ago. It looks like Olivia will have an ally in the coming weeks.

Another interesting quote was from Broyles after Walternate said why Olivia was so important, due to the fact that she could cross universes freely. Broyles said something to the effect that using Olivia and gaining that tech could "help us to defend ourselves". To me, this means that Broyles, and via him, the Fringe division, aren't really nefarious or the bad guys. It seems that Walternate is quite the dastardly figure, so we'll see how his alliances work out in the end.

Other than that though, I didn't think too much of the episode. It was OK, and delivered both some major plot points, while mostly giving an "entertaining" story that doesn't have much to do with the major arc. It works.
Zach's Score: 7/10

JDW says: Unlike Zach, I felt this "case of the week" from the other side was actually an improvement over the Fringe norm. Sure, it is technically a return to the formula, where the case subject doesn't really have much to do with anything, but unlike all the other formula episodes from seasons 1 and 2, this was on the other side, with the other Fringe, and I honestly found the change in setting, characters, and tone to be quite refreshing.

Not to mention, I found the whole viewing inside the mind, seeing alternate reality... within an alternate universe scenes to be really interesting, and made the episode much more suspenseful than usual. But that's just me, and from the look of next week's preview all of the 'our side' episodes will be for progressing the story and all the 'other side' episodes will be for using the formula style, but different. We'll see.
JDW's Score: 8/10

Overall Score: 7.5/10

Missed the episode? Watch it on Hulu