We've not remarked much upon the latest episodes of Fringe. Although we've kept watching and enjoying, there wasn't really much to report in the last few weeks, other than the producers seem intent on hiring everyone who has ever worked with David Simon. We weren't learning anything new about Massive Dynamic or The Pattern, there's been no smoochie-boochie between Olivia and Peter, no substantive revelations about Dr. Bishop... frankly, we were kind of starting to wonder if anything really mattered on this show.
Sure, it's been compelling, creepy stuff at times, but correct us if we're wrong, but when nearly every episode supposedly deals with the overarching conspiracy, you'd really expect a show to start actually, you know, revealing something now and then. Right? Heck, if every episode of The X-Files or Lost had been about Mulder's sister or the Dharma Initiative, they'd have found Samantha by the end of the first season and Jack Shephard would have been home to see the Red Sox win the World Series. But Fringe? No. All that running in place -- however thrilling and littered with trips to the tank -- was starting to bug us.
And then, blammo -- last night we got a couple of really juicy reveals... just in time for Fringe to go away until April?
Reveal Number One: Olivia Is Part Of The Conspiracy
Unbeknownst to her, Olivia was treated with an experimental Massive Dynamic drug as a child, and as a result, Mr. Jones believes her to be capable of some amazing feats, one of which appears to be a kind of telekinesis which he forces her to use to disarm a bomb.
This one should bug us -- we hate that whole messianic "chosen one" horseshit, and this certainly gives us every indication that she show will head in that direction. And yet, we sort of don't care, because it gives Anna Torv reason to break out that quiet little squint (it's one of her cutest looks!) and, more importantly, we were wondering when she was going to actually become interesting. Getting an abusive dad and a sister and a niece wasn't gonna cut it; a creepy past just might.
Reveal Number Two: So Is Dr. Bishop, Probably
Turns out that the multinational group of science buffs that's bringing down all those planes and menacing the world with weird viruses was formed around the principles of an apocalyptic anti-technology manifesto -- which may have been written on Dr. Bishop's old typewriter
This we love. After months of having Walter magically know exactly what's going on pretty much all the time -- "Oh, yes, this reminds me of an experiment I once did..." -- know we have a convenient and compelling reason why: he's actually Tyler Durden. Wait, sorry, our bad; he's the inspiration for all these bad guys. "Oh, yes, this reminds me of a cult of techno-Luddites I once accidentally founded..." Sure, we'll buy that. He's crazy, after all, and John Noble sells even the worst line of dialogue like his family's in hock. What fun to have Walter's forgetfulness actually play into the main story rather than off it. Now, if only we can get the guy to finish his thoughts every time he only partially explains what the heck is going on...
