Fringe | |
---|---|
Fringe's intertitle |
|
Genre | |
Created by |
|
Starring |
|
Theme music composer | J. J. Abrams |
Composer(s) |
|
Country of origin |
|
Language(s) | English |
No. of seasons | 2 |
No. of episodes | 43 (List of episodes) |
Production | |
Executive producer(s) |
|
Running time |
|
Production company(s) |
|
Broadcast | |
Original channel | Fox |
Original run | September 9, 2008 | – present
External links | |
Official website |
Fringe is an American science fiction television series created by J. J. Abrams, Alex Kurtzman and Roberto Orci. The series follows a Federal Bureau of Investigation "Fringe Division" team based in Boston, Massachusetts under the supervision of Homeland Security. The team uses unorthodox "fringe" science and FBI investigative techniques to investigate "the Pattern", a series of unexplained, often ghastly occurrences that are happening all over the world. The show has been described as a hybrid of The X-Files, Altered States, The Twilight Zone, and Dark Angel.[1][2]
The series premiered in North America on August 19, 2008, on the Fox network. Fringe was part of a Fox initiative known as "Remote-Free TV". Episodes of Fringe were longer than standard dramas on current network television. The show ran with half the commercials during the first season, adding about six minutes to the show's runtime.[3] When the show went to a commercial, a short bumper aired informing the viewer of roughly how much time commercials will consume before the program resumed. On October 1, 2008, Fringe's first season was extended to 22 episodes.[4] This was then cut back to 20 episodes with the season finale airing May 12.[5] The series was renewed for a second season.[6] Season 2 premiered September 18, 2009.[7] However, Fox's "Remote-Free TV" trial did not continue past the first season.
On March 6, 2010, Entertainment Weekly and Variety reported that Fox had renewed Fringe for a third season.[8] It was later reported that it will be a full season of 22 episodes.[9] The third season is set to premiere September 23, 2010.[10]
Contents |
Fringe follows the exploits of special agent Olivia Dunham, mad scientist Walter Bishop, and his son, jack-of-all-trades Peter Bishop, as they investigate aspects of fringe science (rare diseases, chimeras, mutants, psychic abilities, teleportation, and so forth). Unlike his other series, Lost, J.J. Abrams promises the series' story arc will be easier to follow and more accessible for those who skip an occasional episode. In an interview first published in September 2008, Abrams said: "Lost has garnered a certain reputation for being a very complicated show and one that you have to watch every episode. Fringe is in many ways an experiment for us, which is, we believe it is possible to do a show that does have an overall story and end game, which Fringe absolutely does… We can do a show that has that, so that there's a direction the show is going and there's an ultimate story that's being told, but also a show that you don't have to watch episodes one, two and three to tune into episode four."[11] Roberto Orci, a co-creator, commented that Fringe "took its inspiration from The X-Files", but will “differentiate through the characters," and be a whole new take on the genre.[12]
All over the world, a series of apparent experiments collectively referred to as "The Pattern" (e.g., a newborn baby who rapidly ages and dies within a few minutes; a bus full of passengers trapped in a strange resin, like mosquitoes trapped in amber) are occurring for reasons unknown. Olivia, Peter, and Walter are in charge of investigating these strange events to determine their source. Connected to the Pattern is 'Massive Dynamic', a megacorporation which is a leading global technology company, holding the patents for a diverse number of new and significant technologies. Their enemy is ZFT (Zerstörung durch Fortschritte der Technologie, or in English, Destruction through advances in technology), a bioterrorist organization which is orchestrating all of the strange occurrences in order to prepare for a destructive technological singularity. Tying both sides together is a nootropic drug, called Cortexiphan, that was developed by Walter and his partner, William Bell (now chairman of Massive Dynamic), which Olivia and a number of others were treated with as children. Events also reveal to the viewer that a tragedy had occurred to Peter, and only Walter has knowledge of this. The first season closes with Olivia meeting William in a parallel universe where, among other differences, the World Trade Center has not been destroyed.
Much of Season 2 focuses on the alternate universe. It is established that Peter from the present universe died from a childhood disease; Walter, already with knowledge of the other universe, crossed over hoping to save that Peter, but instead was forced to bring him back to his universe, and kept this knowledge to himself. While Walter was aware that his crossing created "soft spots" in his universe, he is unaware that more significant and dangerous singularities occurred in the alternate universe as ripple effects of his crossing. As a result, the alternate Walter (referred to as "Walternate"),[13] now U.S. Secretary of Defense, leads a more powerful Fringe division in the alternate universe to deal with further breaches led by Walter's alternate, including the development of shapeshifting technology that could travel to the present universe, and the means to communicate with its agents once there. Meanwhile, the Observers warn Walter that he should not let Peter return to the alternate universe as to avert a great disaster to either universe; Bell later describes this "great storm" to Olivia when she arrives.
A shapeshifter from the alternate universe kills Olivia's partner, Charlie, and under his form, finds the location of one of their agents, Thomas Jerome Newton. Newton, using information stored in portions of Walter's brain which Bell had purposely removed at Walter's request, devises a means to connect the two universes in order to allow Walternate across. As the Fringe division attempts to stop Newton, Olivia is forced to recall her Cortexiphan-induced ability to see objects that originated in the other universe, and comes to discover the truth about Peter. Walter urges her not to tell him as he wishes to tell him himself but is struggling in how to approach it. As a result of Newton's actions, Peter learns himself about his past and runs away to think to himself. Peter encounters Walternate who had recently crossed over prior to Peter's aid in a police case eluded with suspicions of paranoia due to explanations concerning a recurring fringe event of his bizarre experiences with the Fringe Division. Walternate offers to bring him back home, and Peter accepts.
Urged on by the Observers, Olivia and Walter manage to travel to the alternate universe, where they encounter Bell while avoiding capture from the alternate Fringe team. While Walter and Bell make peace with each other and prepare for a return trip to the present universe, Olivia is able to intercept and detain the alternate Olivia ("Bolivia")[13] and pose as her to rescue Peter. Peter, realizing that the alternate Walter is seeking to use his personal bio-signature for a strange device, willingly goes with Olivia to return. In the process of preparing for the return trip, the group encounters the alternate Fringe team, and in the midst of the firefight, Bolivia is able to pass herself off as her doppelgänger. Bell sacrifices himself to provide enough power for the three to return, unaware of Bolivia's switch. Peter and Walter reconnect once home, while Bolivia makes contact with the alternate universe, assuring them of her infiltration. In the season cliffhanger, Walternate is shown holding Olivia in a cell in the alternate universe.
Amy Madigan will appear in four episodes as Olivia's mother, starting with the season premiere.[14]
Kevin Corrigan will reprise his role as Sam Weiss for a few episodes this season,[15] as will Sebastian Roche as Thomas Jerome Newton.
On August 27, 2008, a prequel comic book (leading right up to the moment in the pilot where Olivia 'first' meets Walter) written by Zack Whedon for the series was released by DC Comics under its WildStorm imprint.[1][16] This was to be the first issue of a monthly 6-issue limited series but the others were delayed until January 2009, when monthly publication resumed, with the sixth and final issue scheduled for release on June 17.[17] The Vice President of WildStorm, Hank Kanalz, explained the publication hiatus:
The writers of the show want to make sure the comic book is integrated into the mythology of the Fringe world, so we have decided to refocus the direction of the comic book. Unfortunately, this means that we will have some delays, but will be back in January.[18]
On June 23, 2010, the first issue of 'Tales From The Fringe', the second six-part series, was released.
Co-created by J. J. Abrams, Roberto Orci and Alex Kurtzman, Fringe is produced by Bad Robot in association with Warner Bros. Television. Abrams's inspiration for Fringe came from a range of sources, including the writings of Michael Crichton, the Ken Russell film Altered States, and the television series The X-Files and The Twilight Zone.[19] Additionally, Orci stated that it is a combination of a procedural and an "extremely serialized and very culty" series, quoting as examples of each, Law & Order and Lost.[20] Jeff Pinkner was selected to act as the head show runner and executive producer. Abrams noted that he trusts Pinkner after working together with him on Alias and Lost.[21] In season two, J.H. Wyman was brought on as executive producer and showrunner with Jeff Pinkner. Michael Giacchino, Abrams' frequent collaborator, composed the music for the pilot of Fringe, before handing over duties to his assistants Chad Seiter and Chris Tilton;[22] Giacchino retains an on-screen credit. Abrams himself wrote the series theme music.
The two-hour pilot episode, filmed in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, cost a total of $10 million to create.[23] A cow used in the pilot episode had to be recast when production of Season 1 was moved to New York, due to livestock restrictions preventing it from being brought from Canada to the United States.[24][25]
On February 21, 2009, it was reported that in the event that Fringe would be renewed for a second season, the show would move production to Vancouver from New York City as a cost-cutting measure.[26]
On May 4, 2009, Fringe was officially renewed for a second season.[27] In the US the series airs on Thursday nights at 9 following Bones.[28]
On March 6, 2010, it was reported that Fox officially renewed Fringe for a third season.[29]
The first actors cast were Kirk Acevedo and Mark Valley, who portrayed FBI agents Charlie Francis and John Scott, respectively.[30] John Noble and Lance Reddick, who play Dr. Walter Bishop and Homeland Security agent Phillip Broyles joined the cast later on.[31] Casting of Anna Torv, Blair Brown, and Jasika Nicole, who play Olivia Dunham, Massive Dynamic employee Nina Sharp,[32] and Astrid Farnsworth, a federal agent and assistant to Olivia Dunham, respectively, followed;[33] while Joshua Jackson, who plays Peter Bishop, was the last main character to be cast.[34] Jackson auditioned for James T. Kirk in Abrams' Star Trek and believed this is what impressed the producer to cast him in his television project.[35]
On April 8, 2009, it was announced that Leonard Nimoy would appear as Walter Bishop's former lab partner, Dr. William Bell in the first season's finale, which explores the existence of an ominous parallel universe. Nimoy will return as Dr. Bell for an extended arc, and according to Orci, Bell will be "the beginning of the answers to even bigger questions."[36][37] This choice led one reviewer to question if Fringe's plot might be an homage to the Star Trek episode "Mirror, Mirror", which featured an alternate reality "mirror universe" concept and an evil version of Spock distinguished by a goatee.[38] Nimoy will reprise his role in the second season finale, where his character and Walter will meet for a "showdown".[39] Nimoy's character is apparently dead after the season finale, having used himself to help Walter, Peter and the Alternate Olivia back to our universe. As Nimoy has retired from acting, it is unlikely that his character will return.[40]
Region 1 | Region 2 | Region 3 | Region 4 | Region 5 | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
The Complete First Season | Sep 8, 2009 | Sep 28, 2009 | Sep 30, 2009 | Sep 10, 2009 | Nov 11, 2009 |
The Complete Second Season | Sep 14, 2010 | Sep 27, 2010 | Unknown | Oct 27, 2010[41] | Unknown |
Fringe is set at Harvard University, but was actually filmed at Pratt Institute. Outdoor establishing shots of the "Harvard" campus are actually of Yale University. Typically depicted are scenes of Yale's Old Campus (particularly Phelps Hall and Durfee Hall), Branford College, and the exterior of Yale Law School.
Initially, it was also filmed at the University of Toronto's University College and Bahen Centre for Information Technology. Upon productions moving to Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada for season 2, the University of British Columbia now stands in for Harvard.
The pilot episode was watched by 9.13 million viewers, garnering 3.2/9 Nielsen ratings among adults 18–49, with ratings improving over the course of the episode.[42] Ratings improved greatly for the second episode, "The Same Old Story" which 13.27 million people watched, making it the fifth most watched show of the week.[43] As of October 2008, the show had achieved the first place in the 18–49 demographic among new shows.[44] As a whole, the series was well received by the critics. Barry Garron at Hollywood Reporter found it promising because "it is reminiscent of battle-of-the-sexes charm."[45] Robert Bianco, USA Today, said, "What Abrams brings to Fringe is a director's eye for plot and pace, a fan's love of sci-fi excitement, and a story-teller's gift for investing absurd events with real emotions and relatable characters."[46] Travis Fickett of IGN gave it 7.6 out of 10, calling it "a lackluster pilot that promises to be a pretty good series."[47] While Tim Goodman of the San Francisco Chronicle remarked that it was "boundlessly ambitious",[48] Chicago Sun-Times's Misha Davenport called it an "update of The X-Files with the addition of terrorism and the office of Homeland Security."[49]
The pilot episode was negatively received by the Parents Television Council, who named the show the worst of the week and denounced the "excessive violence and gore".[50] In its 2008 Year in Review, Television Without Pity declared Fringe one of the year's biggest disappointments, commenting that the show is "entertaining" and "the cast is largely strong" but the character development is insufficient. The show's main character, Olivia Dunham is "wooden and distant, and after half a season, we still haven't gotten to know her." The untrustworthy Nina Sharp is well-acted but "one-note and lazily written" and Lance Reddick's character is also "under-developed". [51]
The Daily Herald comments that Fringe is promising and "it may yet develop into a worthwhile program" but has "largely been spinning its wheels".[52]
Meanwhile, in other articles recounting the best and worst of 2008, The New York Times stated that Fringe "is the best of a rash of new series that toy with the paranormal." The author goes on to praise the cast saying that "Much credit belongs to Anna Torv who stars as an F.B.I. agent investigating bizarre murders that all appear to be linked to a powerful and mysterious multinational corporation" and "Ms. Torv is backed up ably by John Noble as a crazy but brilliant fringe scientist and his level-headed but skeptical son, played by Joshua Jackson."[53]
Additional praise came from Entertainment Weekly, which stated "The best new show of the year took a few weeks to grow on me, but now it's a full-blown addiction",[54] from iF Magazine, stating that "the new X-Files is fun, weird and has just enough questions that we aren’t re-creating LOST all over again just with new people in a new setting"[55] and from the LA Times, calling Walter Bishop one of the best characters of 2008, saying that "the role of the modern-day mad scientist could so easily have been a disaster, but the 'Fringe' writers and the masterful John Noble have conspired to create a character that seems, as trite as it sounds, more Shakespearean than sci-fi."[56] Chicago Tribune states that some episodes are "distressingly predictable and formulaic" but adds that there have also been some excellent episodes.[57]
A version of the show (edited for time) premiered on the Nine Network in Australia on September 17, 2008. In the season one episode "In Which We Meet Mr. Jones", the scene in the introduction where the doctors discover a parasite on Detective Loeb's heart was censored and just went straight to the opening credits.[58] The following month, Fringe also premiered on Ireland's TV3 (October 1), Sweden's Kanal 5 (October 2), and the United Kingdom's Sky1 (October 5).[59] Nine Network later dropped the show from its primetime schedule temporarily;[60] the show returned during the December to January non-ratings period. Fringe now airs on Nine's second digital channel GO! and is one of the most popular shows aired on GO!. Fringe airs in Australia on Wednesday nights at 8:30 pm. In 2009, Fringe made additional debuts on Norway's TVNorge (January 1), Finland's MTV3 (January 5), South Africa's M-Net (January 8), Italy's Mediaset Premium (January 31), Canada's CTV (February 3), Portugal's RTP2 (February 5) and Germany's Pro Sieben (March 16). It will be also broadcast on TVN in Poland.
Fringe has been nominated for a 2008 Writers Guild of America Award in the category of New Series.[61] Also, the pilot episode has been nominated in the category of "Long Form - Original", for which television programs longer than one hour are eligible.[62]
The following is a table of seasonal USA rankings (based on total viewers per episode including reruns) of Fringe on Fox.
Season | Timeslot (EST) | Season Premiere | Season Finale | TV Season | Rank | Viewers (in millions) |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Tuesday 9/8c | September 9, 2008 | May 12, 2009 | 2008–2009 | #43 | 9.96[63] |
2 | Thursday 9/8c[64] | September 17, 2009 | May 20, 2010 | 2009–2010 | #58 | 7.34[65] |
3 | September 23, 2010 [66] | May 2011 | 2010–2011 | TBA | TBA |
The pilot episode was leaked via BitTorrent, three months before the series premiere similar to leaked fellow Fox series Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles.[67]
An alternate reality game, centered around the fictional Massive Dynamic corporation, was introduced during the pilot and featured "strange symbols paired with glowing dots" appearing throughout the episode and an "advertisement" for the company shown at the end with a web address for the game.[68]
The majority of mysteries in Fringe deal with a parallel universe. Abrams revealed in an interview that the glyphs in the show had a hidden meaning. "It's something that we're doing for people who care to figure it out and follow it, but it's not something that a viewer has to consider when they watch the show."[69] Abrams also revealed that the seemingly unrelated frogs which have the Greek letter Phi (Φ) imprinted on their back appeared in promos for the show have significance within the context of the series, saying "it's part of the code of the show."[69] The glyph code was cracked by an editor at the technology site Ars Technica, who discovered it to be a simple substitution cypher used to spell out a single thematic word for each episode.[70] Whether there is a further second-order code to be solved remains to be seen.
Additionally, the Glyphs are representative of some of the means by which Walter solves a case (the Moth/Butterfly from "Johari Window", the Seahorse strain of DNA from "Bishop Revival"). In "Jacksonville", behind Walter as he speaks to Olivia about her treatment is the daycare wall where the nootropic Cortexiphan was used as a trial, each of the Glyphs are clearly visible.
Country | Broadcaster | Season 1 Premiere | Season 2 Premiere | |
---|---|---|---|---|
Argentina | Warner Channel | March 17, 2009 | ||
Australia | Previously: Nine Now on: GO! |
First-run premiere: September 17, 2008 (9 Episodes) Second-run premiere: August 12, 2009 (Full run) |
December 23, 2009 |
|
Belgium | La Deux | May 28, 2009 | July 7, 2010 |
|
Brazil | SBT HD Warner Channel |
March 17, 2010 August 29, 2009 |
October 27, 2009 |
|
Bulgaria | PRO.BG | December 10, 2009 | ||
Canada | CTV/A (English) V (French) |
August 19, 2008 (English) September 3, 2009 (French) |
||
Chile | Warner Channel | March 17, 2009 | ||
Colombia | Warner Channel | March 17, 2009 | ||
Costa Rica | Warner Channel | March 17, 2009 | ||
Croatia | HRT | TBD | ||
Czech Republic | Nova Cinema | February 5, 2010 | ||
Denmark | 6'eren | September 20, 2009 | ||
Ecuador | Warner Channel | April 7, 2009 | ||
Estonia | Kanal 2 | December 29, 2009 | ||
Finland | MTV3 | January 9, 2009 | ||
France | TF1 | June 10, 2009 | September 15, 2010 | |
Germany | ProSieben | March 16, 2009 | March 8, 2010[71] | |
Greece | Star Channel | October 5, 2009 | ||
Hong Kong | TVB Pearl TVB HD Jade |
March 1, 2009 November 15, 2009 (First Season Rerun in High Definition) |
May 19, 2010 | |
Hungary | RTL Klub | March 13, 2009 | June 14, 2010 | |
India | WB | September 25, 2009 | April 3, 2010 | |
Indonesia | Trans TV | |||
Iran | MBC Persia | February 23, 2010 | ||
Ireland | TV3 3e |
October 1, 2008 |
Sunday at 9pm from October 18, 2009 |
|
Israel | HOT3 HOT3 HD |
March 6, 2010 | ||
Italy | Steel, Italia 1 | January 31, 2009 | April 2, 2010 | |
Japan | Super! drama TV | October 2010[72] | ||
Malaysia | ntv7 | January 2, 2010 (Saturdays, 8.30pm) | July 18, 2010 (Sundays, 8.30pm) | |
Mexico | Warner Channel Televisa |
March 17, 2009 July 14, 2010 |
||
Middle East | MBC Action | April 21, 2009 | ||
Netherlands | Net 5 | September 6, 2009 | March 7, 2010 | |
New Zealand | TV 2 | July 1, 2009 | July 20, 2010 | |
Norway | TVNorge | TBD | ||
Panama | Warner Channel | March 17, 2009 | ||
Peru | Warner Channel | March 17, 2009 | ||
Philippines | CS/9 | February 2009 | ||
Poland | TVN TVN HD |
September 10, 2009 | Fall 2010 | |
Portugal | RTP2 FOX Portugal |
February 26, 2009[73] | December 17, 2009[74] | |
Puerto Rico | WAPA-TV | June 1, 2009 | ||
Russia | TV3 Russia | May 24, 2010 | ||
Singapore | Channel 5 | August 10, 2009 | June 14, 2010 | |
Slovakia | Markíza | October 4, 2009 | ||
Slovenia | POP TV | TBD | ||
South Africa | M-Net | January 8, 2009 | Thur 28 January 2010 at 21h30 | |
South Korea | OCN CatchOn |
September 15, 2009 August, 2009 |
||
Spain | Canal+ | December 28, 2008 | May 24, 2010 | |
Sweden | Kanal 5 | October 2, 2008 | ||
Switzerland | SF zwei TSR |
March 16, 2009 May 30, 2009 (TSR1) |
August 26, 2010 (TSR2) |
|
Thailand | True Series | February 7, 2009 | ||
Turkey | DiziMax | January, 2009 | ||
UK | Sky1 | October 5, 2008 | October 4, 2009 | |
Ukraine | Novyi Kanal | September 14, 2009 | ||
Uruguay | Warner Channel | March 17, 2009 | ||
Venezuela | Warner Channel | March 17, 2009 |
|
|
|