(S01E12) This was kind of a freaky episode for anyone who spends hours and hours at the computer (raising hand). I'm probably not the only one who's had nightmares of the computer taking over (my brain) and committing crimes. But in this case, there was a human on the other end. I'm not sure if that makes it better or worse. Anyway, think twice if a window pops up on your computer that says "What's that noise?" Oh, and now I'm a little paranoid about the camera on my computers. Like, who's out there looking at me sort of thing.
I'm glad things didn't go the way I feared from the previews last week – that Ella would be unwittingly plotting something evil. And I'm just as glad that no harm came to her. But I still think there's something weird going on with Olivia's sister. Just not sure what yet. And I'm really not into Peter's little thing he's got going with her. It's just weird.
I don't really have much to say about the woman who wanted to see Walter – the one who lost her daughter in the lab accident years ago. I guess it was nice to see Walter feeling compassion and sympathy for another human being (rather than a cow or a slug).
What is up with Agent Harris? It seems clear that he's somehow working the wrong side of the law. He's so intent on getting Olivia and her "rogue" agents off all the Fringe science stuff. Even though Olivia and her team basically solved this (and every other) case on their own. It kind of makes you wonder just what all those OTHER FBI agents are doing. And Harris commented that this case should fall under the jurisdiction of the CDC, so there's some connection there.
And I really liked it when Agent Broyles stood up for Olivia with Agent Harris. Broyles basically told the old cuss that if he continues to push his personal vendetta, he'll stake his career on her behalf.
But whatever happened to Nina Sharp?! She seems to have disappeared off the face of the earth. Possibly even literally, the way this show goes.
Favorite quotes:
"Can you have the guys go outside? I'm having the coroner send over a body." – Olivia to Astrid on the phone
"Be sure to check his floppy disks, as well." – Walter, on the team checking out a computer
"I wonder if they sell cars here with those seats that warm your ass." – Walter to Peter, while investigating a murder at a car dealership
"Every time that guy opens his mouth, I like him more and more." – Peter, on Agent Harris' inane remarks
"I've never had Walter in my life. and now, thanks to your insane freak show of an operation, I do." – Peter to Olivia
Fringe' Show & Cast Photos
FRINGE Walter (John Noble), Peter (Joshua Jackson), Olivia (Anna Torv) and Broyles (Lance Reddick) enter a governement warehouse to examine a mysterious cylinder found among the debris of a construction site explosion in the episode "The Arrival." Airs Tuesday, September 30, 2008.
Fox
FRINGE Peter (Joshua Jackson), Olivia (Anna Torv), Walter (John Noble) and Broyles (Lance Reddick) return to the lab to gather more information on a mysterious cylinder found among the debris of a construction site explosion in the episode "The Arrival." Airs Tuesday, September 30, 2008.
Fox
FRINGE Olivia (Anna Torv) chases a suspect through the woods in the episode "The Arrival." Airs Tuesday, September 30, 2008.
Fox
FRINGE Walter (John Noble, L) and Peter (Joshua Jackson, R) examine a mysterious cylinder found among the debris of a construction site explosion in the episode "The Arrival." Airs Tuesday, September 30, 2008.
Fox
FRINGE Olivia (Anna Torv) chases a suspect through the woods in the episode "The Arrival". Airs Tuesday, September 30, 2008.
Fox
NEW YORK - SEPTEMBER 13: Actress Jasika Nicole attends FOX's "Fringe" premiere during the 2008 New York Television Festival at New World Stage on September 13, 2008 in New York City. (Photo by Neilson Barnard/Getty Images) *** Local Caption *** Jasika Nicole
Getty Images
Executive Producers John Wirth, Josh Friedman and James Middleton arrive at The Paley Center and TV Guide
Jean Baptiste Lacroix/WireImage.com
Jesse Tyler Ferguson and Molly Stanton arrive at The Paley Center and TV Guide
Jean Baptiste Lacroix/WireImage.com
Jesse Tyler Ferguson arrives at The Paley Center and TV Guide
Jean Baptiste Lacroix/WireImage.com
Mark Valley arrives at The Paley Center and TV Guide
Jean Baptiste Lacroix/WireImage.com
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 2)
1-28-2009 @ 8:52AM
Tony said...
After seeing that, I was so ready to put masking tape over the webcam attached to my notebook screen like the one in the show.
Reply
1-28-2009 @ 11:41AM
Rose said...
Did anyone see the Observer?
1-28-2009 @ 3:11PM
Courtney said...
I tried to keep an eye out for The Observer in this one (as I forget every week) and I didn't see him. Did anyone? My guess is because this one seemed less correlated with the Pattern, so maybe he wasn't around? Or maybe I'm just not sly enough to catch him.
1-28-2009 @ 9:00AM
eric f. said...
Those people all failed internet 101. DO NOT CLICK POP UP WINDOWS!!!!
Great episode.
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1-28-2009 @ 3:11PM
Courtney said...
Agreed. I feel like that little "oops" might've been ok 10 years ago, but now?
1-28-2009 @ 9:35AM
jasahl said...
For people who were on the computer just about 24/7 (the 1st kid and the day trader), they were pretty ignorant about popups - brain boiling aside, that's a great way to invite hoards of viruses & trojans.
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1-28-2009 @ 9:07AM
Jason said...
Brain soup. Gross. I thought the opening scene, with the hand, ... that was pretty sweet.
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1-28-2009 @ 10:01AM
Modwild said...
The only thing I have to say about the woman who wanted to see Walter was - Grams!! How is Jen's baby? Don't you recognize Peter? It' Pacey!!! Pacey I tell ya!
:-)
Reply
1-28-2009 @ 11:01AM
Steve said...
I forget the exact quote but after astrid told the guys to wait outside for a body a loved walters line which went something like " I love this part of the day", made me laugh
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1-28-2009 @ 11:35AM
Iambored said...
Forget nina sharp, what about olivias ex! He has been dead since the pilot and is still a main character. Hasn't he only been in two since? ( the one where she sees him at the end in her kitchen and the next full episode)
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1-28-2009 @ 12:34PM
Josh said...
It was a Wire reunion: Frank Sobotka, Lt Daniels and Chris Partlow. Do you think they discussed where the bodies really are?
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1-28-2009 @ 1:27PM
Pasha said...
Was it necessary to play that annoying Beyonce song at the beginning of the episode? If I hear that damn thing again I might have to liquefy my own brain.
"I hope she doesn't notice the $2000 for the baboon seminal fluid I ordered....if I can recall why I ordered it."
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1-28-2009 @ 2:56PM
MrC said...
My favorite line (Walter-ism?) of the week was his hoping Olivia wouldn't notice the $2000 he's spent on crocodile(?) semenal fluid, and how he wished he could remember why he'd ordered it.
Reply
1-28-2009 @ 3:45PM
La-Di-Dah said...
I believe there was a line Peter said to Olivia in the car, which I can't recall.
Reply
1-28-2009 @ 8:30PM
Eludium-Q36 said...
Yeh, he said "you're right, it's none of your business."
1-28-2009 @ 9:58PM
Blackie said...
Everyone is in the lab talking and the wall phone rings... They look at each other and try to figure out what the noise is. "I didn't think that even worked."
Fun-knee
Reply
1-28-2009 @ 8:47PM
Eludium-Q36 said...
This show is running very uneven, hot and cold. This one was cold ... was the old washout guy behind the popup a lone wolf or connected to MassDyn ? Why didn't our guys slo-mo the video to analyze its images ? Ditto with the audio ? Sanford Harris is just a joke of a character, an obvious plot device just to hassle Olivia, and continues to draw this show closer to "The X-Files" than differentiate itself from it. Introducing the Jessica Warren character just seemed like an add-on, didn't develop organically. I'm missing Nina, MassDyn, Mr Jones, and the whole underlying conspiracy thing -- yet another jerk-the-viewers-around thing that X-Files used to do.
This poor ep was written by Goodman and Kane who had (separately) done prior brain/head explosion episodes. But John Polson didn't help the cause as a first time director to this series. With 12 eps under our belt now, I think we can see what's happening with this series and I'm VERY disappointed with its '90s-era X-Files formula.
Reply
1-29-2009 @ 2:22AM
Tom said...
I don't understand why everyone is so upset that this show is totally ripping off the x-files week in and week out. I personally loved this episode of The Ring/Saw.
But seriously, why does everyone think this show is X-Files redux? Just because it has a male/female FBI agent team working for a "rogue division" within the agency, with superiors breathing down their necks, threatening to shut them down, and all the while they are investigating a vast conspiracy by some form of shadow government or corporation, except for the occasional off-the-beaten-path episode which has absolutely nothing to do with the show's mythology, and each week features some paranormal or pseudoscientific subject matter while it tries to create some sort of romantic or sexual tension between its lead characters? I mean, what basis would anyone have to connect the two?
This show did something that I really liked this week, and I thought it was really cool. Did anyone notice it? The murderer's MO was to get back at people who had wronged him. He killed the son of the man that fired him, the man who married his ex-wife.....and a CAR SALESMAN!!! That's f*@king hilarious! I loved how they kind of tongue-and-cheeked it, never revealing any connection with the car salesman. That's great! Death to all car salesmen as far as I'm concerned.
But again, seriously, this show is so poorly written. This Harris guy has no reason to be there except to be a thorn in their sides, why a murderer with such expertise would go to such great lengths to make hiimself untraceable, and then go after two people so easily traceable back to him that Frank Drebin could have caught him (and then to immediately attack the investigative team after him), and this woman, Jessica Warren who writes letters and shows up, but doesn't tell anyone that her motive is just to find out a little more about her daughter. Instead she's all mysterious about it. These things just repeatedly don't make any sense!
The worst of all is that bit at the end where Peter says, "I don't get it. Why would he protect a murderer like that?" and Olivia says, "It's because its his father."
Peter doesn't get it??!!! You mean he doesn't see the irony of the situation and has to have Olivia explain it to him in some sort of gotcha moment? These are supposed to be intelligent people, right?
Or how about this. Did anyone notice how long it took Olivia to react to the child on the computer when she burst through the door at her home? They have a computer program that is turning people's brains to mush, but she stands there and barks out orders. Seriously, it takes her 30 seconds after she sees the little girl ON THE COMPUTER to go over and check on her!!!
Anyway, kudos for killing the car salesman. This show sucks, as always. At least its consistent. Olivia's sister is hot--way cuter than Olivia. I get Peter's attraction.
1-28-2009 @ 9:07PM
Eludium-Q36 said...
(Posted this at TvGuide.com in reply to an interview with the "Mr Jones" character)
Fringe has revealed itself as "X-Files: Next Generation". This show is following the same formula and it's pissing alot of us off, especially with these one-off eps like "No Brainer" which does nothing to address The Pattern and its players like Nina, Massive Dynamics, and Mr Jones. This is a pathetic waste of creative talent and fan involvement to just rehash the X-Files.
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1-28-2009 @ 9:23PM
Canadianfoodiegirl said...
Why didn't they question if Rachel knew Dempsey? He was killing people against whom he had a grudge.
We already know that she's up to something.
Reply