Fringe 4.01
Sep. 26th, 2011 01:36 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
ziparumpazooThe non-spoilery:
If you've never watched Fringe before, this is an excellent jumping in spot. The episode was structured so that it's still enjoyable even without knowing any of the backstory. It's even better if when you have caught up and do know what's going on, but the writers leave just enough loose threads dangling to pique the curiosity of the uninitiated.
The visual theme of this season seems to be 'vibrance'. The colors are beautifully saturated (as opposed to last year's red tinted and blue tinted episodes), and there was a distinct lack of lens flare. I think this is a visual cue that while this is still a JJ Abrams creation, Fringe is now very much a Pinkner/Wyman production and they are firmly in control of the boat.
(also, fellow SG1 fans... that warehouse look familiar to anyone? ;)never mind - I'm getting my sci-fi confused.
The spoilery:
One of my biggest fears after last season's cliffhangers, was not that Peter Bishop wouldn't be back, but that every moment of hard-earned character growth and all their relationship building would be forgotten or disregarded. Happily, this was not the case. Sort of. In a roundabout way.
The story opens in media res, following a very innocent Lincoln Lee. And by innocent, I mean, he has no idea that Fringe Division even exists. So last season's viewers are already clued into at least one event that hasn't happened without Peter Bishop. I think it's a smart move on the writer's point to let first time viewers learn about Fringe Division through an outsider's eyes and not overload them with too much backstory at once. It's also satisfying for long time viewers to get a better taste for a character we only saw in one episode, even though we know his redverse counterpart fairly well. I only hope that the whole season is not shown from his pov, because while I love this very confused Lincoln, to me, the heart of this show is the Olivia/Peter/Walter trifecta.
Olivia is very much the Olivia we saw in latter half of the second season. She's still searching for answers, still ready to rush into something headlong without backup (and probably even more so, since we learn she's been partner-less for the last three years), still willing to bully people into giving her the information she needs. But there's a harder edge to her too. Stuff has clearly happened to her in the missing three years, stuff which we're not told explicitly, but which is heavily alluded to, like the death of her former partner, like AltLiv stealing her life, like Walternate causing trouble... so some things haven't changed as that much at all. She's so much sadder though, and that alone makes me really want those missing three years of backstory.
Then there's her relationship with Walter. I really feel now that the writers were laying the groundwork for this late in season 3 because Olivia's firm gentleness with this Walter feels like a natural extension of that. There's an understanding and patience there that we didn't see when earlier on, when Peter was Walter's primary social link. I wonder how many 3am calls Olivia's gotten from Timmy to come calm Walter down?
(and if you haven’t read![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
rainer76’s The Missing yet, do it now - lovely piece about Walter’s first few weeks out of St. Claire’s that slots nicely into this new canon.)
Astrid, on the other hand, is not as patient, which is nice to see. I loved seeing her in full field agent mode. She has more of a partnership with Walter, rather than being an un-official subordinate, and I'm hoping for a little more snark from her.
And Walter...I think he is the one most overtly impacted by Peter's absence, however we learn that it's possible that Peter and the fallout of his abduction isn't the root of all Walter's misery, after all. What's most interesting to me, judging from this first episode, is that certain events happen, regardless. It's the context and results that change. And I think the purpose of the Observers to keep track of these hallmark events.
I’m glad that we only got a few glimpses of Peter, and not a single direct reference from the characters, September aside. If he’d been brought back right away, it would have been cheating and it would have felt cheap after the setup they left us with after last season’s finale. I know I’m not alone is not wanting to rush Peter’s return. There’s too much here to explore.
Also, I want to see more of the redverse and how events have played out there, like now.
Is it next Friday yet?
If you've never watched Fringe before, this is an excellent jumping in spot. The episode was structured so that it's still enjoyable even without knowing any of the backstory. It's even better if when you have caught up and do know what's going on, but the writers leave just enough loose threads dangling to pique the curiosity of the uninitiated.
The visual theme of this season seems to be 'vibrance'. The colors are beautifully saturated (as opposed to last year's red tinted and blue tinted episodes), and there was a distinct lack of lens flare. I think this is a visual cue that while this is still a JJ Abrams creation, Fringe is now very much a Pinkner/Wyman production and they are firmly in control of the boat.
The spoilery:
One of my biggest fears after last season's cliffhangers, was not that Peter Bishop wouldn't be back, but that every moment of hard-earned character growth and all their relationship building would be forgotten or disregarded. Happily, this was not the case. Sort of. In a roundabout way.
The story opens in media res, following a very innocent Lincoln Lee. And by innocent, I mean, he has no idea that Fringe Division even exists. So last season's viewers are already clued into at least one event that hasn't happened without Peter Bishop. I think it's a smart move on the writer's point to let first time viewers learn about Fringe Division through an outsider's eyes and not overload them with too much backstory at once. It's also satisfying for long time viewers to get a better taste for a character we only saw in one episode, even though we know his redverse counterpart fairly well. I only hope that the whole season is not shown from his pov, because while I love this very confused Lincoln, to me, the heart of this show is the Olivia/Peter/Walter trifecta.
Olivia is very much the Olivia we saw in latter half of the second season. She's still searching for answers, still ready to rush into something headlong without backup (and probably even more so, since we learn she's been partner-less for the last three years), still willing to bully people into giving her the information she needs. But there's a harder edge to her too. Stuff has clearly happened to her in the missing three years, stuff which we're not told explicitly, but which is heavily alluded to, like the death of her former partner, like AltLiv stealing her life, like Walternate causing trouble... so some things haven't changed as that much at all. She's so much sadder though, and that alone makes me really want those missing three years of backstory.
Then there's her relationship with Walter. I really feel now that the writers were laying the groundwork for this late in season 3 because Olivia's firm gentleness with this Walter feels like a natural extension of that. There's an understanding and patience there that we didn't see when earlier on, when Peter was Walter's primary social link. I wonder how many 3am calls Olivia's gotten from Timmy to come calm Walter down?
(and if you haven’t read
rainer76’s The Missing yet, do it now - lovely piece about Walter’s first few weeks out of St. Claire’s that slots nicely into this new canon.)Astrid, on the other hand, is not as patient, which is nice to see. I loved seeing her in full field agent mode. She has more of a partnership with Walter, rather than being an un-official subordinate, and I'm hoping for a little more snark from her.
And Walter...I think he is the one most overtly impacted by Peter's absence, however we learn that it's possible that Peter and the fallout of his abduction isn't the root of all Walter's misery, after all. What's most interesting to me, judging from this first episode, is that certain events happen, regardless. It's the context and results that change. And I think the purpose of the Observers to keep track of these hallmark events.
I’m glad that we only got a few glimpses of Peter, and not a single direct reference from the characters, September aside. If he’d been brought back right away, it would have been cheating and it would have felt cheap after the setup they left us with after last season’s finale. I know I’m not alone is not wanting to rush Peter’s return. There’s too much here to explore.
Also, I want to see more of the redverse and how events have played out there, like now.
Is it next Friday yet?
![[identity profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/openid.png){kind=small}
no subject
Date: 2011-09-26 10:04 pm (UTC)Although, he was in an episode a season or two ago, and I never realized he was the same glasses-less dude that's in the alternate universe. I love the smirk Fauxlivia had when she met him.
like the death of her former partner,
Well, I thought this could've been Charlie (who's in a new series that I wasn't impressed with) or that guy she was engaged to back in the pilot.
My heart broke when Olivia explained he had nothing to anchor him to this world becasue--that moment said more about Peter's absence than anything else. Awww!
Wait, I was supposed to recognize the warehouse?
no subject
Date: 2011-09-26 10:37 pm (UTC)Ah, I hadn't heard about the new series. Too bad. I guess that means we won't see much of red Charlie either. I was taking it that ahe was referring to John, but guess it could have been Charlie too because Walter also saved him....except she didn't need to check him out of the institution.... I want backstory now! Lol.