After last weeks merely 'good' episode, Fringe returned this week with another great hour of television. I'll have to admit that my anticipation of this episode was pretty damned high, and I wasn't disappointed even if the previews lied a bit about what was going to happen. And, after last week's exposition dump, this episode features a good, creepy, investigation and some great character interaction. And, like ever good episode, it leaves you longing for the next episode...which with the Thanksgiving break we have 2 weeks to wait for. Bastards!
Interestingly, Olivia's quest to return home took a back seat to the Fringe investigation of a young man by the Candy Man...a man who would kidnap and destroy the lives of young children for some unknown purpose. It's an investigation that hits home for the Fringe Division, as Broyles son was a previous victim, leaving everyone on edge. And while Henry was back, his role was much smaller this time and didn't have as much opportunity for the character. Too bad, as his character was the highlight of the first episode of the season.
Again, avoiding spoilers it's hard to talk about specific details. But I will say that the investigation was probably one of the most logical that Fringe has done in a while...oftentimes the show relies on 'fringe' tech or science to solve cases which stretch reality. This one was all about solid detective work and following leads. It also showed an opportunity for Olivia to show her chops more than once to Fringe Division, to her partners, and to Broyles.
There is a lot to like about the third season. Everything is more 'dense', and everything has context. This really adds a lot even to the seemingly unrelated cases...but it does have a side effect in that the cases themselves become less important to the plot of the show as a whole. This was noticeably true tonight...don't get me wrong it was great...but it was also a bit more simplistic (something that has become a bit of a trend in the third season). Personally i think it's a good move; the third season shifts the focus to the characters and is better for it. Lets face it, Fringe's greatest strength is located in it's characters and anything that shows them off makes the show better.
So, at this point I'm going to get into some spoiler territory...I want to do some speculation.
OK, so Olivia escaped, but was drawn back just like the last time she tried. I was wondering if that would happen--since both other times she got pulled back quickly after transferring. I was wondering if she would get pulled back, and if not how they would explain that...but now it's obvious that this is something relating to the mechanics of traveling between universes. And this makes her return even more difficult than before.
There are a few precedents for what happened...Walter's discussion about the car on the flag pole. The building of equal mass being forced to the other side to replace one moved to 'our' universe. Even Walternate being able to return home easily after finding Peter...obviously there is something of a rubber band effect happening. And my guess is that Olivia was being forced back because their Olivia is still there. This is probably something she can learn to master, I think, but it's a process that must be overcome when transferring and that is something she hasn't figured out yet.
So, now Peter knows the truth. I was hoping that he had known, but it had become more and more obvious that he was fooled and if there was any doubt left it's gone now. And the previews suggest that events in EP8 will pick up immediately after the end of this episode; with Peter trying to find evidence of the lie that Olivia is not 'his' Olivia.
Interestingly, it suggests that the pattern of alternate-universe shifting isn't complete yet. Will Olivia make it back at the end of the next episode? I'm thinking so...but I'm also becoming more and more convinced that Alt-Olivia will HAVE to get back (or be sent back) for Olivia to even have a shot at returning. And, now that Peter knows the truth, he and Walter will have a common goal.
Past that, there is a possibility that EP 9 will be another 'over there' episode, one with a more continuous string. And there is even the possibility that another switch might occur (though I doubt it). I'm also thinking that Alt-Fringe might have something to do with Olivia's survival there...Walternate certainly has no mercy in him, but they've gone out of their way to show Charlie, Lincoln, and Broyles as good men...and I think Broyles is going to feel obligated to help her out once he figures out what they are planning on doing to Olivia. Which, I assume, will involve a horrible death and a dissection, as they try to figure out just the stuff in her brain is and what effects it had on her.
My other guess is that a large amount of the pieces of the ancient device will have already been recovered either before, or during the next episode...I don't see the show turning into a treasure hunt. But, some idea of what Walternate is planning is almost essential at this point. What his interest in Olivia is made perfect sense in the context of the show, but his plans for Peter are much more murky. It's almost a shame, really, Walternate has always been portrayed as a villain...it's almost a shame that he's not more conflicted like Broyles.
But I did watch the preview...obviously Peter is going to find something early on..and Olivia is going to catch him in the act. But after that it gets more murky. Actually, on second thought...while this is an 'over here' episode, it is clear that Walternate and Alt-Broyles are definitely in it. There seems to be a shot of Bolivia at the typewriter place (which suggests that she doesn't get caught). It almost looks like Broyles may be forced to do something much more drastic to save Olivia. And there is a shot of a character that I don't really recognize (but could be an observer? hell I don't know). And there is another shot that almost looks like Bolivia is holding Olivia at gunpoint. And another that looks like the Fringe Team might finally uncover the typewriter room.
One thing I'm kinda hoping is that Bolivia turns out to be a 'good' guy...she's done some pretty despicable things. And while it's kinda hard to tell, I never got the impression that she was so cold or callous the small times we saw her in the second season. It was nice to see her show some compassion and regret for what is happening; as she is in the best position to know that her alternates are really not 'monsters' she's been told to believe. I'm also hoping that even if Olivia gets home, we'll still continue to see a lot from the other universe...hopefully Olivia will develop the full on ability to transfer by the end of this which allows for stories to continue on both sides. It would be a shame to loose Charlie and Lincoln if nothing else.
Now, will all of this happen in the next episode? Maybe they will spread this out more, honestly I don't know...but I can't wait to find out.
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