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La Brea Review and Analysis Father and Son Serious Situations!
Welcome Back La Brea and Wormhole Time Travel Science Fiction Drama Lovers,

Videos and images are courtesy of NBC Entertainment.

This superb science fiction drama is coming to the season one finale with what really is a two part episode that begins with the ninth episode “Father and Son”, and concludes with the tenth episode appropriately named “Topanga” where we learn that another wormhole time portal is about to close that if not acted upon in a timely manner, the future may be changed, and with it, all history could be altered forever!

This two part drama is where we learn all the answers to many questions that have made La Brea such a wonderful series to watch, as well as tweet along with fans for fabulous fun each week during the first season!

The critical pivot character is the appearance of the Doctor Rebecca Aldridge (Ming-Zhu Hii), who, in a chat with Eve (Natalie Zea) in the last episode, brought the young Isiah (Diesel La Torraca) and Gavin (Eoin Macken) characters to the center of the story arc when it was revealed that young Isiah in prehistoric La Brea is Gavin in the future.

The story arc is greatly reinforced when we learn in “Father and Son” who the twelve year old young lady is that came through the wormhole time portal with Isiah on the mysterious date of November 16, 1988.

This revelation in the “Father and Son” episode is coupled with several other “Easter Eggs” that set up the season one finale next week in the tenth episode “Topanga” airing on the NBC Network on November 30, 2021.

The City On The Edge Of Forever image courtesy Star Trek

Science fiction time travel movie and television series admirers enjoy this type of drama that, long ago in Star Trek The Original Series episode “The City On The Edge of Forever” (1967), written by Harlan Ellison, a legend in the science fiction community, laid a fabulous foundation for La Brea.

In “The City On The Edge of Forever”, Ellison depicted time as a circular series of events, much like a river with “eddies, currents and backwash” as Spock (Leonard Nimoy) stated, where the future can be changed if certain events do, or do not take place. Viewers of this number one top rated episode recall that Doctor McCoy (DeForest Kelley) went to the 1930’s and changed all history by saving Edith Keeler (Joan Collins) from dying in a traffic accident. At the end of the episode, “The Guardian of Forever” stated “Time has resumed it’s normal shape, many such journey’s are possible” whereby Captain Kirk (William Shatner) said “Let’s get the hell out of here!” after he had allowed his love in the past, Edith Keeler, to be killed as she was meant to be.

The Final Countdown. Image courtesy United Artists

This theme regarding circular time anomalies was further embodied in the classic movie “The Final Countdown” (1980) where the events of Pearl Harbor in 1941 were almost changed when a modern day nuclear powered United States Aircraft Carrier was transported to December 7, 1941 just before the infamous “A Date That Will Live In Infamy” attack on the United States Fleet berthed in Hawaii.

Admirers of the movie will recall that the Commander Owens character portrayed by James Farentino was trapped in the past, where he worked until 1980 to ensure that the future remained consistent by making certain that the Warren Lasky character portrayed by Martin Sheen, actually got aboard the USS Nimitz in 1980 in order to complete the time loop and ensure that the future timeline from December 1941 onward was protected.

Biffs Pleasure Paradise. Image courtesy Back to the Future

Perhaps the epic epitome of all circular time travel adventures is delineated with the three part “Back To The Future” series, in specific, part two (1989), when Marty McFly (Michael J. Fox) and Doc Emmett Brown (Christopher Lloyd) came back to 1985 from 2015 after Marty had purchased the Grey’s Sports Almanac in the future in order to place a few winning bets in 1985.

To their shock they found that the book had fallen into the hands of the 2015 version of Biff Tannen (Thomas F. Wilson) who went back to 1955 to give the book to his younger self. Old Biff changed all history when young Biff made a fortune on making bets documented in the almanac that resulted in the “Biff Tannen Museum and Pleasure Paradise Casino” in 1985, with his mother Lorraine (Lea Thompson), now an alcoholic, married to evil future Biff!

Only by going back to the past in 1955, and taking the book back from young Biff, was the shape of timeline in 1985 able to be returned to what it was supposed to be.

Much like Rebecca in La Brea, only by going back to the past in 10,000 BC could she make certain that events unfolded as they are meant to be, guaranteeing that timeline hopefully resumes its original shape. This type of terrific time travel adventure is what drove strong ratings for this science fiction drama series on NBC, always a tough network to survive on, ultimately ensuring the renewal for a second season of La Brea as Team WHR had projected several weeks ago.

Help save Eve’s family #TeamWHR! Stunning revelations put Josh & Izzy’s lives on the line as we desperately search for young Isiah, key for Gavin & Izzy who rely on Ella to reunite their family & we already know the who!
See you tonight for all new #LaBrea pic.twitter.com/X4d2xT8ZLp

— WormholeRiders (@WormholeRiders) November 23, 2021

Father and Son:

Eve learns about Isiah and Gavin. Image courtesy NBC

This episode was written by Arika Lisanne Mitman and directed by Thor Freudenthal, both of whom do a fabulous job with this episode!

“Father and Son” opens where we left off with Eve tending to Rebecca who was stabbed by Silas the Pelt Man (Mark Lee) when he kidnapped Isiah. La Brea lovers clearly recall that Silas and Rebecca know each other, proving our theory that Rebecca has visited prehistoric La Brea, likely more than once in the past, to transport Isiah to November 16, 1988 where he grew up to become the adult Gavin.

Eve asks Rebecca “What do you mean Isiah needs my help?” , “Everything depends on it, you have to get him to Topanga (Canyon)” replies Rebecca.

Gavin, Izzy and Sophia. Image courtesy NBC

At this point it is now clear that Rebecca had indeed intended to bring Isiah to the future to ensure that no time paradox is created, because if Gavin does not exist in the future, the entire interwoven Harris family of characters would never have become a central part of the La Brea story arc.

No Gavin to marry Eve, so no Josh (Jack Martin) or Izzy (Zyra Gorecki), since neither would ever have been born!

More critical, Gavin would never have seen the memory images of prehistoric La Brea, never have met Rebecca or Sophia (Virginie Laverdure).

All of whom investigated the wormhole time portals with Rebecca that have been opening doorways from the present to the past and visa-versa as we learn in “Father and Son”.

Riley and Sam help Rebecca. Image courtesy NBC

This is not to say the portals would not have happened that caused sinkholes in Los Angeles, the Mojave Desert, and other places. It simply means that the central characters surrounding Gavin would likely never have met or even existed since all off future history would be impacted by time paradox manifestations.

Rebecca begins convulsions with blood spurting from her mouth. Levi rushes to get medical help from the survivors camp. Eve runs to get help from Riley (Veronica St. Claire) and her father doctor Sam (John Seda) as soon as they arrive at The Fort after sending Levi back in the Jeep.

Levi (Nicholas Gonzalez), who is with Paara (Tonatzin Carmelo) and Ty (Chiké Okonkwo), asks Eve what Rebecca said. “We need to find Isiah” says Eve with a look of panic on her face.

Ella does not believe Gavin. Image courtesy NBC

This brings us back to Topanga Canyon in the future where Gavin, Izzy and Sophia are still examining the mini wormhole time portal sinkhole in Ella’s (Michelle Vergara Moore) backyard. Izzy says “I don’t understand how you can be from that world (prehistoric La Brea)”.

Gavin explains that he must have come through another wormhole time portal with Ella who he was separated from in 1988 when both could not be adopted by the same family. Since both came through the wormhole time portal together, Ella must be from the past also. Could it be that Ella is the older version of Lily (Chloe De Los Santos) who would be the same twelve year age in prehistoric La Brea as Isiah because Ella looks an awful lot like an older Lily? The icing on the cake is when Lily is playing tic-tac-toe with dark and light colored rocks with Marybeth (Karina Logue). We will learn more about this shortly. Ella, who had been running away from Gavin, shows up at her home and decides to confront the trio, threatening to call the police. Gavin explains who they are and that she (Ella) may be the key to saving his family trapped in prehistoric La Brea. However, Ella does not yet believe she came through the wormhole time portal.

Scott, marijuana and the cow. Image courtesy NBC

After the introduction credits we are with Scott (Rohan Mirchandaney) who is dream like state smoking some marijuana, when a mooing cow suddenly shows up. Scott runs to the survivors camp to share his discovery with Josh, Riley, Lily, Veronica (Lily Santiago), Marybeth, Lucas (Josh McKenzie), and the whining crybaby Billy (Stephen Lopez) who is complaining about having to eat more wild mushrooms. Of note, the character of ever whining Billy is a masterpiece of acting by Lopez. Riley and the others think Scott is possibly experiencing marijuana hallucinations.

Subsequent to helping Rebecca, Ty, and Paara have just been told by Eve that Isiah will grow up in to become her husband Gavin. Ty is in disbelief. However, Paara shares that Silas and Isiah showed up only three years ago, approximately the same time as the disastrous Mojave Expedition. Silas told Paara at that time Isiah’s parents had been killed in the crash, and that The Fort people had no reason to not believe Silas at that time. Now Paara shares “It seems there is more to him (Silas) than we knew”. This brings the story arc full circle. Silas, who speaks perfect English, must have been a member of the Mojave Expedition, which is how he knows Rebecca. The questions then become; is Isiah really Silas’ adopted son, someone Silas found and adopted in prehistoric La Brea? And why is Silas trying to stop Isiah from going back to the future? Does Silas believe that if he stops Isiah from becoming Gavin, that his own participation in the Mojave Expedition mission three years earlier would never have occurred? Or is there more to it than anyone else knows he about Rebecca and Silas? We shall see,

Natalie Zea as Eve, Jack Martin as Josh. Image by Sarah Enticknap, courtesy NBC

Josh thinks his Mom is talking crazy stuff. Eve explains that Isiah has Gavin’s eyes, that Isiah is about the same age as when Gavin was found in 1988, and that Gavin had visions of prehistoric La Brea.

Note: Only the viewers know that Gavin had no clear memories from his childhood until recently.

All go inside to get more answers from Rebecca who shares the entire story of another wormhole time portal on the highest mountain near Topanga Canyon that is now open, but will close tomorrow. Rebecca confirms that if Isiah doesn’t go back to the future in 1988, Izzy and Josh will never exist.

Worse, the longer they take to get Isiah there, both Izzy and Josh will become deathly ill and die because they will never have existed! Josh becomes a believer after hearing the truth from Rebecca that may result in his death. A search party is formed to find Isiah and Silas before the wormhole time portal to 1988 closes, sealing all their fates.

Gavin tries to explain everything to Ella. Image courtesy NBC

In the present at Ella’s home, Gavin, Izzy and Sophia are desperately trying to explain everything to a still disbelieving Ella. When Gavin shares about his visions, he asks Ella if she has experienced them as well?

Ella reluctantly admits that she has had her own visions that began about the time when the Los Angeles La Brea wormhole time portal sinkhole opened. This clearly ties Ella to the how and when for an image came into her mind of her recent sculpture of the hand that viewers have seen in several places in prehistoric La Brea.

However, Ella says she has a new life now and simply wants to be left alone. Gavin, Izzy and Sophia leave Ella’s home for the time being.

Jon Seda as Sam, Veroncia St. Clair as Riley. Image by Sarah Enticknap, courtesy NBC

At The Fort, Sam and Riley decide to stay behind to ensure that Rebecca survives the wounds she suffered from Silas.

In a tender moment between two young prehistoric lovers, Riley tells Josh “You’re not going to die, not when you’re finally starting to grow on me”.

The search party splits up into groups with Ty and Paara on foot and Levi, Eve and Josh in the Jeep to find Isiah and Silas who are now hiding out in a cave.

Isiah questions Silas about why Rebecca told him his name is Gavin? Silas says that Isiah is the only family he has and that Rebecca is not telling the truth. Isiah obviously thinks otherwise because when Silas goes to forage for some blueberries to feed himself and Isiah, it offers Isiah a chance to escape.

Chloe De Los Santos as Lilly, Lily Santiago as Veronica. Image by Sarah Enticknap, courtesy NBC

In another part of the La Brea drama, Lily and Veronica have a chance to chat together alone, but under the watchful eyes of Marybeth. Veronica says they must leave the survivors camp because everyone knows what she did.

Lily tells Veronica that she will not leave because the others understand that they were both kidnapped and have forgiven Veronica.

Scott the stoner tries to convince everyone that he did see a cow, but no one believes him, thinking that Scott was having marijuana hallucinations.

Veronica gets a sparkle in her eyes thinking this may be a chance for her to gain favor with the survivor’s in the prehistoric La Brea camp.

Rohan Mirchandaney as Scott, Lily Santiago as Veronica. Image by Sarah Enticknap, courtesy NBC

Veronica follows Scott helping him find the cow which has a barcode embedded on it’s neck.

This means that the cow came from the future since they never existed in that are in 10,000 BC.

The source of the cow is from yet another wormhole time portal, most likely from the Topanga area which is not too far away from the survivor’s camp.

We are finally pleased that Veronica was being sincere with Scott and has changed her ways after talking with Lily. It appears that Veronica and Scott may become another romantic couple in La Brea after both agree they have been judged too quickly by people in the survivor’s camp.

Later Veronica opens up to Scott, and as the two strike up a friendship, they find the cow, bringing it back to the survivor’s camp.

Yay! Looks like fresh milk and cheese will soon be on the menu soon in prehistoric La Brea for the survivors!

Jack Martin as Josh Harris, Diesel La Torraca as Isiah. Image by Sarah Enticknap, courtesy NBC

In the meantime, Levi and Eve decide to follow tracks left by Silas into rough mountainous terrain while Josh takes the Jeep to search the flat lands.

Josh finds Isiah, but a dangerous Saber-Toothed Tiger is prowling nearby that is stalking Isiah for a quick and easy lunch. Josh rams the giant cat, saving Isiah, but wrecks the Jeep in the process.

This set of scenes is where the episode name “Father and Son” comes from when we observe Josh and Isiah walking and talking together after Josh rescues Isiah.

Levi and Eve rush to the scene when both Eve and Josh recognize that the scar on Isiah’s hand is exactly like Gavin’s. Both become absolute believers in Rebecca’s knowledge that Gavin is Isiah! The four set off on foot unaware that Silas has been observing them.

Paara kisses Ty. Image courtesy NBC

Paara and Ty find the tracks of Levi, Eve, Josh and Isiah, and start following them.

Ty suffers a nose bleed and subsequently confesses to Paara that he is seriously ill. Paara, who has been attracted to Ty for some time, expresses genuine sympathy for him.

In a tender moment for these two, Paara kisses Ty cementing their own romance in prehistoric La Brea.

Our theory?

No matter what happens, Ty will choose to stay with Paara to live in the past in prehistoric La Brea, since he has no one that loves him in his old future life in the future.

Natalie Zea as Eve, Diesel La Torraca as Isiah. Image by Sarah Enticknap, courtesy NBC

On their way to the mountain top wormhole time portal located in Topanga Canyon, Eve opens up to Isiah, telling him the truth about his having to leave his home in prehistoric La Brea to go to another “light in the sky” that has opened up and that it is nearby.

Eve, without revealing that he will ultimately become her husband in the future, informs Isiah that he will be living in a different time, in the future, where everything will be okay for him.

Isiah balks about this at this at first, but soon changes his mind when Silas is observed in the distance.

Silas has formed a hunting party of his own with a few people from The Fort that have clearly rejected Paara’s leadership and have instead remained loyal to Silas.

Ella believes Gavin after seeing the ancient artifact. Image courtesy NBC

In the present, Gavin, Izzy and Sophia leave Ella’s home and come up with a plan to convince Ella to help them. They head to the archeological dig site to try and find artifacts that might match Ella’s artwork or sculptures. Sophia gets them in to the artifact tent where Gavin finds a match.

Sophia warns Gavin via cellphone that security guards are coming. Gavin texts back to Sophia to kill the electric power, grabs the correct artifact and they high tail it out if there. Gavin, Izzy and Sophia then go back to Ella’s home with the artifact where Gavin has another vision of Eve learning that Izzy and Josh will die if she is unsuccessful in getting Isiah to the wormhole time portal in Topanga Canyon.

As Ella looks at the rock that has a fossil of a prehistoric mosquito on it that matches her own artwork, she has a vision of when she was playing tic-tac-toe, recalling Marybeth saying that her name was Lily! The time paradox is that young Lily went to prehistoric La Brea from 2021, only to return with Isiah to 1988 in the circular time loop that is self fulfilling.

Riley and Sam bring Rebecca to the survivors camp. Image courtesy NBC

Riley agrees with Sam to let Rebecca out of her sick bed when they discover that Rebecca claims she can find another artifact, a notebook that Silas had hidden.

The notebook is from the future that will help save not only Josh and Izzy, but perhaps everyone who has been trapped in 10,000 BC.

The three head off to share their discovery. Sam and Riley bring Rebecca to the survivor’s camp with a page from the notebook that Silas had stashed.

Once there they share a revealing father and daughter moment while Sam copes with his PTSD anxiety. In a moment of crystal clear thought, Sam shares that if there is a wormhole time portal to 1988, there must be another way to get them back to his son, Riley’s brother Andrew (Ethan Ritchie), and her mother in the present.

Diesel La Torraca as Isiah on his way to become Gavin. Image by Sarah Enticknap, courtesy NBC

Levi, Eve, Josh and Isiah are observed on their way to Topanga Canyon.

Isiah knows of a rope bridge across the canyon. Eve and Isiah get across, but Silas is right behind the. Levi cuts the bridge to allow Eve and Isiah to escape.

Unfortunately, Levi and Josh are captured by Silas who threatens to kill then if Eve doesn’t surrender Isiah at a crossroads four miles from the now useless bridge.

Eve further opens up to Isiah regarding why he must go to a different time; that her children, Josh and Izzy will become sick and die if she is not successful in getting him to the Topanga “light in the mountain”.

Isiah understands just as Ty and Paara link up with them to continue their journey to the open wormhole time portal at the peak near Topanga Canyon.

Nicholas Gonzalez as Levi, Jack Martin as Josh. Image by Sarah Enticknap, courtesy NBC

The episode comes to an exciting conclusion with series of interlocking sequences;

Levi and Josh come to an understanding about Levi’s affair with Eve. Both agree they can discuss details later after they escape from Silas and his gang.

Sam, Riley and Rebecca are at the survivors camp where Rebecca explains that time is not always linear, but is circular in some instances in nature.

Rebecca offers them a path back to the future, but only through 1988, thirty-three years from where they all came from. The survivors must each decide to stay or go, while Rebecca gives Lily a note from Silas’ artifact notebook.

Lily convinces Veronica to take her to the wormhole time portal at Topanga Canyon. Veronica tells Scott she can start a new life there free of her guilt.

Ella remembers the time portal map Rebecca gave her when she was Lily. Image courtesy NBC

In the future Ella then remembers something she had forgotten long ago, the note Rebecca gave her in prehistoric La Brea.

The note is actually a map of wormhole time portals that are scheduled to open and close, listed by date.

In addition to the Topanga Canyon portal, they all discover that a new one is scheduled to open in Seattle Washington the very next day!

The last scene is with Isiah and Eve who are waiting for Ty and Paara near the top of Topanga Canyon near the wormhole time portal. “Whatever happens to me, you get yourself up that mountain okay!”

Eve then takes off to find Silas who is still holding Josh and Levi captive.

And that’s it La Brea lovers. We must wait until next week to find out the answers to the following questions!

Will Silas cooperate with Eve, and just who the heck is Silas in any event?

Does Veronica go back to 1988 herself to start a new life, and who is she in the future?

Will Gavin and Izzy or Levi and Eve use a portal in Seattle Washington to go where it leads?

Will Lily get to the future with Isiah so as to become Ella and Gavin to be able to save Josh and Izzy?

What happens if Lily and Isiah do not make it to the wormhole time portal in time to go back to to 1988?

See you week for the exciting season one finale of La Brea when we will all find out the answers to everything!. In the meantime, below is a fun video courtesy of NBC about how Jack Martin (Josh) would survive in 10,000 BC. Enjoy!
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We will be back in the near future with more of your favorite television series and movie analysis. In the meantime, please feel free to share this article with your friends, co-workers and or family and leave your comments! We look forward to you visiting our dedicated review and analysis web site here in the future! Or as many of our readers and visitors often do, visit WHR on Twitter, or visit me on Twitter by clicking the text links or images avatars in this news story. I and TeamWHR look forward to Seeing You on The Other Side!“

Thank you.

Best Regards,

Kenn of #TeamWHR
November 24, 2021
David DeLuise Stargate Shout Out Through A Shameless Velvet Prozak Wormhole!
Welcome back Stargate SG-1 and David DeLuise admirers!

David DeLuise as Pete Shanahan and Amanda Tapping as Colonel Carter in Stargate SG-1. Image courtesy MGM Studios

When David DeLuise was a teenager, he was a hardcore Deadhead. He saw the Grateful Dead a whopping 50 times in concert. He recognizes something of his own experience in that of Stargate fans – how they fell head over heels for the family of characters on the show and then built a fan family in real life.

“I think what’s happened is the fans have made their own family, so it’s not so much about seeing us; it’s about seeing each other,” says DeLuise. “Every time they come to a convention, they’re seeing their friends. I think you have a lot of very unique people who are individuals and sometimes when you’re an individual, it’s very hard to be in society because they’re expected to conform, and I think a lot of people here have a common interest in a show, and yes, it’s a great show, yes, it’s a lot of fun, but I think they’re interacting with each other – like when I was a kid, I’d follow the Grateful Dead. They were great concerts, but I didn’t go to 50 concerts just because of the music.”

DeLuise’s first experience with science fiction occurred when he was a kid and his big brother Peter (a veteran actor and director in his own right who directed 56 episodes of Stargate SG-1) introduced him to the Original Series Star Trek.

David DeLuise attends Disney and ABC’s “TCA – All Star Party” in Beverly Hills, California. Image by Stephen Shugerman, courtesy Getty Images

Says DeLuise: “Peter is five years older than me, so I’m watching what he’s forcing me to watch, and I just got hooked.”

DeLuise remembers watching blooper reels that his father – comedy icon Dom DeLuise – brought home thanks to connections at Desilu Productions, which produced the original series.

“We got to see all the blooper reels where Leonard Nimoy is saying – remember, it’s the 60s – ‘Hey, baby, don’t worry, I screwed up this one, too,’” he recalls. “You can see how many times the people ran into the doors, because the guys are just pulling the doors, and people would just run into them.”

Watching those early episodes of Star Trek (and the reels) made DeLuise love sci-fi all the more.

On Stargate SG-1, DeLuise’s character, Pete Shanahan, “was not so much in the science fiction world.” Pete appeared for four episodes as Sam Carter’s love interest – and it’s somewhat fitting that his big brother Peter, who’d introduced him to science fiction all those years ago, welcomed him to the set, albeit with some gentle sibling ribbing.

“I came to the area to start the show, and Peter said, ‘You know, you have to act like a grown-up,’ and I go, ‘Yeah, I know,’ and he said, ‘But really, you have to act like a grown-up,’ and I said, ‘I get it, Peter! I have two kids, a mortgage.’” He chuckles. “In his eyes, I wasn’t a grown-up.”

Wizards of Waverly Place on Disney Channel. Image by Adam Rose, courtesy Disney Channel via Getty Images

When it came to the Sam and Jack ship on Stargate, DeLuise added, “You know, I think the thing that is good about the character of Pete Shanahan is he made Jack and Sam really realize that they did want to be together. I think it’s great, I like that, whether people react negatively or positively, they were emotionally connected to it. At another convention, a lot of girls were like: I don’t like Pete Shanahan, but I like you, which was very sweet. And then I told them; they should come to my room. No, I’m just kidding!”

DeLuise, who’s latest television appearances are on the hit Showtime series Shameless and Velvet Prozak on Amazon Prime Video, is also fondly remembered for a beloved series that he co-starred in, and directed, seven episodes of, Disney’s Wizards of Waverly Place now featured on Disney Plus.

David DeLuise has fond memories of working with Amanda Tapping (“She’s just amazing. I’m a big fan of hers. She’s so lovely and talented”) and of his character, Pete Shanahan. “I got to be a grown-up,” he says. “I got to have a romantic thing rather than just being a dad going, ‘What are you crazy kids doing?’”
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Thanks to Kenn for staging images, the featured video, and, many thanks to you for stopping by WormholeRiders News Agency!

Please feel free to leave a comment here, click an icon below to share this interview with your friends, or you can visit and follow me on Twitter by clicking on my avatar to the right.

Regards,

Patricia
May 9, 2021
Debris Review Episode 7 – You Can Call Her Caroline – Only The Strong Survive!
Hello, my fellow Debris fans,

Images and videos courtesy NBC Universal

I hope you enjoyed this episode as much as I did!

Directed by Tim Southam, written by Samantha Corbin-Miller, Tracy Bellomo, and Davia Carter, the Debris “You Can Call Me Caroline” episode is an outstanding work of television entertainment by series creator J.H. Wyman, Legendary Studios, Frequency Films presented in the United States by NBC Entertainment!

For those of you that are Fringe fans, this Debris episode was by far the most inspired by Fringe that I have seen so far. Fringe, produced by Warner Brothers Television from 2008 to 2013 is a series we have long admired here at Team WHR.

We are very pleased to see that many of the creators involved then, are bringing us quality science fiction entertainment entertainment each week!

No secret that J.H. Wyman sprinkles a little bit of that beloved show in everything he does. I was incredibly happy to see the parallels in this particular episode of Debris.

The name of this episode is “You Can Call Her Caroline” starring Caroline Packard (Evelyn Burke) is a little blonde girl who bears a striking resemblance to another little girl from the Fringe universe named “Olive” (Ada Breker) (or Olivia Dunham of the FBI Fringe Division as she was later known in that series).

We meet Caroline Packard later in this weeks episode “You Can Call Me Caroline”. Again the similarities to “Olive” in Fringe will be clear to admirers of both series.
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You Can Call Her Caroline:

Liam Packard (Kynan Foster) waiting in Bar Harbor Maine. Image courtesy NBC

The episode opens with several people waiting for a ferry to arrive in Bar Harbor, Maine. One man, Liam Packard (Kynan Foster) nervously waits along with a couple apparently anxious about their in-laws arrival. A woman approaches Liam and asks for his duffle bag, which he refuses to hand over at first. Next thing we see is his body betray him and it is forced to give the woman the bag and in turn pull out a gun and kill himself.

This leads me to believe that Liam was in possession of some of the Debris and that it has mind control elements embedded within it.

I love that as the viewer with each episode we delve further and further into the debris and all the incredible things (good or bad) that it can do.

Craig Maddox fills Bryan in on the unusual encrypted cell calls from Maine. Image courtesy NBC

When Bryan Beneventi (Jonathan Tucker) goes back to the CIA to talk to Maddox (Norbert Leo Butz) he is told about Anson Ash (Scroobius Pip) and “Influx”. Maddox informs Bryan that Influx is an anti-government ideological movement organized to dismantle all the governments control over the debris. Bryan asks about the money that is used to fund this organization and Maddox tells him that he does not know, he has no clue where it all started.

That scene reminded me that “Influx” is almost being like a James Bond villain, mysterious and extremely rich with resources beyond our wildest dreams. It will be interesting to finally (if ever) we find out who is behind it and why. Maddox says that to him it seems like Influx are these autonomous cells.

Encrypted calls from Maine to Anson Ash. Image courtesy NBC

Maddox shows Bryan the phone he recovered from Anson and there is a weird encryption on it that keeps receiving calls from Bar Harbor, Maine. Maddox asks Bryan to investigate “quietly” and find out what is happening and what are they facing, he does not want to lose anymore lives. Bryan curiously asks Maddox if Anson has told him what Influx needs George Jones for?

Bryan then drops the nugget to Maddox that Finola Jones (Riann Steele) and MI-6 might know that George Jones is alive. Bryan mentions that since he has been spending a lot of time with her lately, he is noticed she has been different (which is a lie). My guess is he told Maddox to gauge his reaction to the news, and as suspected he was almost unfazed.

Finola, Bryan and Agent Tom examine Liams body. Image courtesy NBC

When the body of Liam Packard is found, his debris levels are remarkably high. As Bryan examines his body with Agent Tom (Thomas Cadrot) and Finola, she mentions that Liam does not seem like he would be the kind of guy who would be involved with “Influx” or any kind of sleeper cells. Bryan mentions “clear skins” (or clean skins) which is “a person who does not have an existing criminal record or who has not attracted the attention of police or security forces.”

By definition that is exactly why he was chosen, inconspicuous, he would be able to blend in and not even be noticed. That is what those sleeper cells rely on the ability to be unassuming and not draw any attention to themselves.

Benjamin Hollingsworth as Luke Packard, Jonathan Tucker as Bryan Beneventi. Image by: James Dittiger, courtesy NBC

Finola and Bryan find Liam’s brother Luke (Benjamin Hollingsworth) at Liam’s house with Liam’s daughter Caroline. Luke tells the team that Liam found pieces of the debris in the marsh behind his house.

When Liam found it, he had started looking onto UFO websites and even contacted people on the dark web about selling them the alien tech. The debris also altered Liam’s behavior, it made him more intense, like he had “shell shock” something Luke experienced when he was back from Afghanistan.

Bryan had mentioned that he was in Afghanistan as well with the Marines the MARSOC division to which Luke says, “wow you guys are no joke”. I am glad we find out about this regarding Bryan and his military background, it gives us a bit more insight to who he is. Finola asks him about his time in Afghanistan and Bryan shrugs her question off. She is as curious about his time there as we are.

Riann Steele as Finola Jones, Evelyn Burke as frightened Caroline Packard. Image by James Dittiger, courtesy NBC

The Debris that Liam had found was the kind that controlled mind and body, that whoever possessed it could control or manipulate others to their will. Finola notices that Caroline seems frightened by something. That is a powerful weapon indeed and in the wrong hands could be deadly.

As I mentioned before about the James Bond villain, this is exactly why it is imperative that the Debris does not ever fall into the wrong hands, the fall out would be catastrophic.

Once Bryan and Finola head toward the marsh to find the debris, Finola hesitates as a feeling of dread washes over her. Bryan asks her if she is okay, and she responds “the debris does not want us here” that the debris “spoke to her” almost like a whisper.

Anson Ash is about to be interrogated. Image courtesy NBC

Anson Ash is being held in a top-secret location and is currently strapped to a chair and it looks like he may be tortured to find out where George Jones (Tyrone Benskin) is being held. Maddox enters and starts talking to him about where Anson is from in England and his military past. As he is doing this, he injects Novocain into Anson’s head and then a team member makes an incision into what I assume is the memory part of the brain.

With Maddox still talking to Anson about a little church in his hometown of Lancashire and how Maddox wanted to paint it the next time he visited it. He is making sure to describe to Anson everything Maddox remembers, so that Anson can recall it himself and project a mental image of it. Anson resists as best as he can, but the shock treatment is too powerful.

This scene made me audibly gasp because Maddox brings out this device or rather a “window” that will help Anson’s image show up. That moment was a genuine Fringe moment for me, it reminded me of the “window” that was invented by Walter Bishop (John Noble) and William Bell (Leonard Nimoy) that could bend time in order to see the Alternative universe. Maddox talked about the different frequency that the bells of the church were on, the vibration was different, again the reference to Fringe and the different frequencies both universes and Peter Bishop (Joshua Jackson) were on.

Caroline is compelled to find more Debris for Luke. Image courtesy NBC

The last number Liam had called was his ex-wife Gloria Hernandez (Kate Dion-Richard), when asked why she does not have her daughter her answer was “she belongs there”. The way she said it was eerie, like it was not her saying it was as if she was being forced or manipulated to say it.

The similarities to Fringe keep showing up as Caroline enters the marsh and sits down in the water. Again, this reminds me of whenever Olivia (Anna Torv) would enter the “tank” and activate the Cortexiphan in order to travel to the Alt universe. Caroline is connected to the debris and is able to summon it from the depths of the marsh. Water has always been a conductor of energy, so it is no surprise that when Caroline sits in the marsh, she is connected to it. She is the only one that can “communicate” with it.

Caroline tried to warn Finola and Bryan. Image by James Dittiger, courtesy NBC

Caroline warns Finola to stay away from the barn where the Debris is being held. Caroline tells Finola that it was because of the debris that her uncle Luke is acting the way he has and that it was Luke that controlled Liam to kill himself. She has been hiding pieces in order for Luke not to get a large amount, his plans for it are not good. “Mission must be executed” Luke told the team, he wants revenge on the military for what they did to him, Bryan can relate to it but knows better than to do what Luke is planning. Bryan tells Luke that he can help him or at least get him the help he needs for his PTSD.

Next thing we see is Finola and Bryan back at base, no way they just left without the debris or anything from the house. When asked they say nothing was found and that Caroline “she belongs there” was repeated by Bryan. Finola asks how they got back since she did not remember leaving and driving back. Luke had followed them made his presence known by crashing a military plane with the debris mind control. Luke comes towards Finola carrying the bag of debris, she pulls her gun as well as the MP’s that help her and Luke immediately makes one of the MP’s shoot his partner and then turns the gun on Finola.

Luke forces Bryan to point the gun at himself. Image by James Dittiger, courtesy NBC

As Bryan shot the other MP who was ready to shoot Finola, Luke asks Bryan if he is “he’s with them now” and forces Bryan’s hand to point the gun to his own head. Finola fights against the control telling Bryan to fight it as Luke is telling him to pull the trigger. Luke empties the debris on top of a car and just as he is starting to interact with it, we see him fall over and collapse, a sharp piece of debris stuck in his head. Caroline to the rescue, she appears and saves the day. She can communicate with it after all.

Caroline is reunited again with her mother and all is restored at least for now. When Gloria asks Finola what Liam found, she tells Gloria that they are still trying to figure it out. Finola tells Caroline that she was the strongest out of all of them, again just like Olivia who was the strongest and the (if memory serves, it has been a long time since I have seen Fringe) the only one left of the Cortexiphan kids.

The theme of family, connection, love was present and part if the common theme that runs through all of the episodes so far. As the episode draws to a close Finola receives a call from her sister Dee (Gabrielle Ryan). Dee mentions a place “Michelle’s country house” that she wants Finola to visit with her again when Finola comes back to England. Once Finola hangs up, she knows there something not right with her sister, Michelle’s country house was code for when their parents were around and did not want them to hear what the sisters were talking about.

Her suspicions were correct as we see Dee hand the phone to Priya Ferry (Anjali Jay) once the call ends. Maddox also calls Bryan and lets him know that they found out where George Jones is and in turn Bryan tells Finola. Good stuff!

I am hoping that once George Jones is found we may get a few more answers about the Debris, “Influx”, Orbital and all the shady dealings. Well Debris fans, I hope you enjoyed this Fringe heavy episode as much as I have.

As always, please stay safe and happy viewing and make certain you tune in to NBC next week for more Debris!

Thank you for visiting WormholeRiders News Agency. Thanks to Kenn for video embedding and adding images for my feature article. I will be back later this season to provide additional analysis about Debris as we learn more about this fabulous new science fiction series on NBC!

Please feel free to leave a comment here or If you prefer, you may also click the social media icons below to share this news article or as many of our readers and visitors often do, visit me on Twitter by clicking the links or images avatars in this news story.

See You on The Other Side!

Until next time,

Regards,

Lori
April 13, 2021
Fringe Review The Final Episode: “An Enemy of Fate” Master of Destiny!
Well Fringe fans this is it, my very last Fringe review, ever.

Sad, I know, it has been an incredible journey these last five years. We have seen characters come and go and return again. We have seen shapeshifters, parallel universes, things that no human being should ever bear witness to.

We have witnessed what a family is, both on screen and off. Fringe has become, to quote The Sopranos, Family. Redefined.

I hope that you loved this final episode as much as I did. Honestly I did not know what to expect.

Like everyone, I had heard various Fringe rumors about maybe a time reset was going to happen, and if so that means that Peter (Joshua Jackson) may disappear, that Henrietta Bishop (Georgina Haig) may not be able to be restored to Peter and Olivia (Anna Torv), that Walter would make the ultimate sacrifice, or perhaps worst of all that all the events that unfolded in this final season would have been moot.

I always had faith in Joel Wyman and the others involved that when they said they penned a love letter they meant it. To me this last episode was not only a love letter, but a culmination of everything that made Fringe the groundbreaking, brilliant, funny, edgy, suspenseful, etc show that it has become.

There has not been a show like this before and have I have feeling there never will be another one like it. There will also never be a fandom like this again, passionate people that are the lifeblood of this show. Joel and the rest of the cast have always expressed their love and gratitude to us the fans and we whole heartedly accepted it with open arms.

I will warn you now, since this is my last Fringe review, I may get a little emotional, which is warranted considering the epicness of this last episode. I have used that word epic over and over not only in my reviews but on my twitter account as well when describing this show. When I use words like epic or brilliant I do not use them lightly, I really mean them. So please forgive me if I go a little overboard with the usage of both words.
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Enemy of Fate:

Now…on with the last Fringe review…The opening scene with Donald/September (Michael Cerveris) and December (Eugene Lipinski) is interesting, but it sets up what is to come. I also think that it is a set up in a way of possibly a continuation.

When Donald says “If our plan doesn’t succeed they will cease to exist” it makes me think that this has always been planned out. That this already happened before and that due to the reality changes that the Observers are a part of, they need this to go right this time.

When Donald asks December “After all this time, the feelings you had for these people, the feelings we all had, they have not grown in you?” I know he was talking about the original 12 Observers. The ones that had started it all and the ones that were closer to what Michael (Rowan Longworth) is than Windmark (Michael Kopsa). I do believe that is why December and September always had a soft spot for the Bishop Boys and Olivia.

“When we first came here we did not know the true nature of our expedition” September tells him. It freaks me out to see this scene again, because again, it is a sign that this all happened before, that the original 12 were sent back to fix the problem or to make sure this time that the plan went right.

All the things that September has said over the years to Walter (John Noble), Peter (Joshua Jackson) or Olivia (Anna Torv) has all lead up to this. All the ambiguity and little hints have all been in preparation for this…

I am going to be quoting a book that was recommended to me by Kenn (it has since become a favorite of mine) called “The End of Eternity” by Isaac Asimov. This book is chock full of very Fringe like references, including Observers, time shifts, alternate realities, etc.

It is the one book that has allowed me to understand Fringe a bit more. If you have not read this book I highly recommend it. The reason I bring this book up is my previous statement that both December and September knew the consequences of what would happen if their plan did NOT succeed, hence the changes. They need to get it right this time, for humanity sake or it would surely be an invasion all over again, but maybe worse.

“Destiny can be changed” Donald reminds December and it already has been, a few times, why not one more (or a few more) times. I love that September makes the justification that the people of this era are worth saving. That is the nature and reason for the reality changes, the book talks about that, too.

Walter (John Noble) and his comment about a cancer inducing cell phone is hilarious. It must be so frustrating being a genius when everyone else around you is so dumb!

I am certainly going to miss his Walterisms, they are such a part of the Fringe lexicon that I have uttered a few in my everyday life. That is the brilliance of John Noble, he has such a wonderful way of making things his own and putting his signature on them. There will certainly be a void of that kind of wit on TV.

Uh oh Broyles is all I can think when Windmark appears in the garage. I love that Broyles is always walking that fine line between both worlds. Lance Reddick does a great job at making you understand why he is doing what he is doing.

Whether it be his Alt character helping Olivia (Anna Torv) escape from the Alt universe in the Entrada episode while he sacrificed himself, or his trusting Etta (Georgina Haig) and her ability to teach him how to block the thoughts from the Observers. Broyles has always been a moral character; you know how to perceive things by how he perceives them.

The gang returning to the lab with Michael (Rowan Longworth) in tow looks like a family vacation gone awry. When Olivia asks Donald why Michael stepped off the monorail, his answer is short “Apparently there was a reason, there always is” again reminds me of what he said to December about why these people should survive, why time should be reset.

It is sweet to see Michael’s reaction to the static on the computer screen. It is such an innocent one, he is smiling, and it almost makes you think that he sees something that we do not.

Often it has been said, in paranormal studies, that “white noise” actually is living. It has voices and shapes that we normally miss. Leave it to a child to make us aware of such things, their imaginations and emotions are deeper than those of us adults. Deeper and more real because of the purity of them, they have not been corrupted by life and such to warrant bad feelings.

When Donald had said that the initiating reactor core has been deteriorated and enlisted help “from my time” makes me think that this plan has already happened and that the shift is almost in place to make the REAL change. He needs it to make it became THAT reality. Asimov’s book again comes into play here, again, with the time shifts and the changing of realities.

I love hearing Walter explain to the others what the purpose of the device is that Donald is building. It is always great to see him when he gets into his scientist role; it brings out that wondrous part of him, with a side order of mad genius. John Noble always makes science fun and easily accessible. It is no wonder he is also the host of that great TV series Dark Matters on the Science Channel (shameless plug, I know, but worth watching).

As I mentioned in a previous post about Michael being the Archangel, Donald confirms it. He says that when he gets to the year 2167 Michael will change the course of human evolution.

Just as Archangel Michael changed the course of his destiny and that of the chosen ones. Just like Olivia changed the course of her history and timeline, just like Peter did and ultimately just like Walter did.

It comes full circle, like it was always meant to be this way, that Peter (Joshua Jackson) was always supposed to meet Olivia (Anna Torv) that they were always supposed to fight for a greater cause.

This was always supposed to happen, maybe it got a little of track, but these people were always meant to do what they were destined to do; it just needed a little tweaking.

The way that Donald looks at Walter when Astrid (Jasika Nicole) asks how he will know who the scientist is, is again a sign that this plan was always in motion. Walter has a look of knowing a look of acknowledgement like he knows the answer but is not willing to volunteer the answer.

I love that Broyles knows he has been compromised by how he notices the gloves on his dash. He does the right thing by leading them on a wild goose chase. It is unfortunate that he cannot be there to help them, but he also does the right thing by sacrificing himself again for the greater good. “The most important thing is the plan” is what Broyles stresses to Olivia, no matter how much she protests. That is one of the many things I love about Broyles, moral to the end.

This next scene with Peter (Joshua Jackson) and Walter (John Noble) is by far the best scene ever filmed in Fringe history…in my opinion. There was a picture if this scene posted on Facebook and twitter and now we know what it was a part of. The emotion in this scene is outstanding, John Noble has never been better and I do not think he will ever be able to top this scene.

Watching this again it make me realize that this is not only a scene between a father and a son, but two men, two actors who have grown to love and respect each other as a real father and son. The love and respect that they both have for one another in unquestionable, them saying goodbye was for real and I am sure that both Josh and John will never again experience anything quite like it.

Watching John Noble in this scene is astonishing; again a word I don’t use often but when I do its meaning is perfect in this scene. There are a few times in my life as a director when I have been rendered speechless by an actor, whether I was working with them or watching them on screen, this is truly one of those times.

The raw depth and immense power of John and his emotion is so powerful that he floored me, literally. I was so moved that my floor was littered with used tissue after tissue.

THAT Ladies and gentlemen is what acting is…living in the moment, feeling it from your toes to your head and extending out to everyone around you. The fact that John has been snubbed time and time again by the major awards is a tragedy, but also a blessing. A blessing to us fans who can selfishly hog him and his talent all to ourselves. We can say “I have witnessed perfection and his name is John Noble.”

Josh is fantastic in this scene as well, his love for this man is evident, not only in real life but on the show. Josh truly did find a father figure in John as did the rest of the younger cast. He was saying goodbye to Walter and to John at the same time; his emotion has never been more real than in this scene.

This is the purest Josh has ever gotten, not even when Olivia (Anna Torv) was shot and killed or shot again, not even when Etta (Georgina Haig) died or his upon seeing his mother Elizabeth (Orla Brady) again. This is what real love, respect and friendship is folks and Josh and John are showing us in spades.

It is hard for me to really expound on this scene any further, watching it is the only explanation needed. That alone will give you the answers to the question of what is brilliance and talent and I say to you…this, this scene is.

There are some scenes that are so beyond any words when you watch them, to describe them using primitive language is futile, feeling is the only way you can experience the powerful meaning. This is that scene, if no other scene is ever filmed again in regards to Fringe, let this be the beacon, the guide, the shining light of what Fringe is, has been and ever shall be…

Okay, now that I have sufficiently cried myself silly again watching this scene, let’s talk about the paradox that Walter mentions. Again I must go back to Asimov and what he says about paradox “in every apparent paradox of time travel, reality always changes to avoid the paradox and we come to the conclusion that there are no paradoxes in time travel and that there can be none”.

Reality has to be reset and Walter knows this, hence what happens at the end of this episode and why it is so significant that we are hearing this now. Walter mentions how nature abhors a paradox; it has to heal itself (reset itself if you will). It is so brilliant that Joel had picked up on this; I suspect that he has read Asimov and incorporated the paradox and reality changes because of him.

Asimov also writes about reality “With an infinite number of Realities there can be no such thing as determinism”. Sound familiar? September said something similar to Walter about why he cannot know the absolute outcome because nothing is determined. The mere definition of determinism is what has been a thought line in Fringe from the beginning. Real is just a perception, as has been mentioned time and time again and has always been in the background somewhere.

It is so sad when you see the final fate of our friend and fellow Observer December (Eugene Lipinski). His death was not in vain, he died to help the team. This may be a weird coincidence, but it seems that every death of a significant character in this season has served as a reminder of what is at stake, what the team is fighting for. No death has been in vain, it has been the catalyst and what will finally drive the fate of the team.

When Windmark gets his hands on the reactor it is not a good sign, but then you know that fate has another chance to rear its head. Never count out our team; they are never down for the count. With all the references to realities, time travel and the shifting of realities, I cannot quote all of the time Asimov uses these to make my point in Fringe, so I will ask that you read the book and understand what I mean.

When you see Broyles get caught by the Observers that is when the episode shifts. The stakes have now become higher and things are at the most dire. It’s getting real people!

Leave it to Olivia to go to Michael to figure out the plan. Maybe they do really have a connection after all. They are basically the same, in some weird way, both anomalies, both children that possessed something far greater than ever imagined, both children that essentially changed the realities and timelines.

“Because it’s cool”…oh Walter, how we are going to miss your little Walterisms. I suspect that Fringe fans all over the world are uttering this as I type this!

It is another one of the many, many cool ways that Fringe has become part of our everyday lives.

I absolutely love love love the scene with Jasika and John when she shows him Gene. It again is a true testament to the friendship and special bond John and Jasika have formed over the five year run of the show. It is also so incredibly beautiful that he FINALLY acknowledges her real name and how beautiful it always has been. John, you kill me, literally kill me!

I love that Windmark tells Broyles about the original twelve that arrived and that there assignment was to observe. Something strange happened…Hmm, I wonder what could that have been? “They succumbed to irrational emotions,”…no Windmark, they were just being human!

It is such a great scene, because Windmark thinks he is superior to Broyles when as Nina (Blair Brown) pointed out in the Anomaly episode that the Observers are the primitive ones and we are the advanced ones, well we eventually learn to be more advanced thanks to Michael. “I believe you call it hate” states Windmark, “the feeling is mutual” Broyles retorts! Match point to Broyles!

The beautiful scene in the car between Peter and Olivia is what Anna and Josh do best. They have always had an uncanny ability to be perfectly intimate with the world watching. They are great at dropping the fourth wall and making the private public, which is why they are one of the most epic couples in TV history.

Their hope (that word!) of seeing Etta again is closer than before. It makes me happy that their fight was not futile, that the hope Olivia had that she would be able to finally be the mother she ultimately wanted to be. It is such a sweet thing that Peter gave her the bullet that truly did save the world!

Now we are at the part that for me becomes the locomotion to the end. It is so fraking cool what happens to the Observers that enable Peter and Olivia to conquer. Again the old school Fringe is harkened back to. It was so great to see some of the past cases come back to life, albeit a bit gruesomely, but still neat to see again.

I love that Donald volunteers to go to the future in Walter’s place. It is a very noble thing to do. I love that throughout the run of the show Michael Cerveris has always been a favorite of mine. This multi talented man has shown us his true colors and I for one love it. You always knew there was something different about September and that is one of the reasons he became one of my favorite characters.

So when September told Peter “It must be difficult to be a father” all those years ago, he knew in some weird way that feeling. Now as Donald he knows it with every emotion he has, he knows what Walter felt about Peter. “It’s about changing fate, it’s about hope” well said Donald! That word again is the theme, sometimes it is all you have to hold on to, that is what gives you strength to carry on.

Let the Fringe freak fest begin! The floodgates are now open! Here comes the pain! I was cheering loudly when the plethora of old Fringe events started spreading like wildfire. It was so great because it reminded me of all the past episodes and seasons and how extraordinary this show is and will always be.

When I saw the six fingered hand, I thought to myself, The Princess Bride, which I have referenced before in my posts. Remember him? Christopher Guest played him well…but I digress.

Let’s fast forward to the last ten minutes of this episode. These scenes are the most crucial to me; it is what we as a fandom have finally been waiting for. It is not only the final battle, but the final chapter in the wonderful love letter that Joel has penned for us the fans. From the gun fight which reminded me of an old western film to the floating Observer (Walter was right, it is cool!), Fringe has always had the makings of epic television.

Watching these scenes again I am filled with the excitement that I was the first time I watched the episode. How edge of my seat I was hoping and praying that the plan goes perfectly. It is such a great treat to watch it again and still feel those emotions surge in my body!

As Peter and Windmark battle, the thoughts that went through my mind were “the plan will work, I know it will,” but there was still a glimmer (yes pun intended) that it may fail. Bite my tongue, I know but then again it’s Fringe, anything can happen.

Ironic that Windmark had Olivia by the throat much like he did Etta? What follows this scene is perhaps my favorite Olivia scene ever. It is what Olivia was meant for, what she was born for, what William Bell (Leonard Nimoy) had said time and time again she was used (I hate to use that word, but it fits) for. She was always the strongest one as Bell mentioned, kept Peter by her side, but Nina reminded her that she always had an incredible capacity for compassion.

It was Olivia’s capacity for feeling that made both Walter and Bell use her…Nina (Blair Brown) said that Bell needs something from her. Just like they need something from Michael, he is the chosen one as well.
It is the reason Michael has always had a strong connection to Olivia.

She is the chosen one as Bell states. She has always been afraid of her abilities, but Nina again pointed out that Olivia always had the most extraordinary gifts, the only thing she denied was knowing, she’s had the power all along…(Wizard of Oz reference again).

Damn I love this show). “Olivia is an uncertainty engine, every breath she takes brings us closer to nirvana, and with every beat of her heart she tears the world from its hinges. She is the redeemer” Bell said, about Olivia and in this scene she proves it.

When she sees the necklace strewn across the ground, I bet Etta flashes through her mind, her baby girl, her “perfect little soul” her second or in this case third chance to get her back. I love this scene, Anna is extraordinary.

It reminds me of a Phoenix rising from the ashes, the power she posses to inflict the final blow. How fitting is it that Windmark is crushed, literally and figuratively, by Olivia. That she was the redeemer; she did have the power the whole time. The fear and love she has always possessed have been her triggers and the cortexiphan her weapon.

When Donald/September got shot I guarantee you there way collective screaming and flailing across Fringe fandom, but remember this is Fringe, everything happens for a reason. It was sad to see Donald meet his fate, but it was also I suspect the way it was always meant to be. The tune that Michael plays is Greensleeves and the significance is perfect in this situation. It is as it always has been how it was fated to be.

It started with Walter and a boy, it will end with Walter and a boy. It is because of the immense love that Walter had for Peter and it ended with the immense love Walter had for Peter.

It came full circle again; Walter saved a boy…again. It was such a beautiful scene with Josh telling John he loved him, I bet that was genuine! As I am watching Walter walk off into the proverbial sunset, I am tearing up, but not from sadness, from joy! He finally became the better man…this time.

Remember Walter is not dead, he is in the future. Something John Noble said in the last Noble intentions that makes me think we will not only see him again, but the cast possibly in a movie.

He had mentioned that because Walter is in the future, for a while, he may miss his family and want to come home for a bit…there is always hope.

And so brings us to the end…or rather the beginning again, of a whole new life. A rebirth of sorts, a chance for all of them to start over. As I watch the end I cannot help but feel a swell of emotion. I write this through blurred vision, because of the tears in my eyes.

The ending is perfection. I had told Kenn that there were two places that the reset would happen, either Etta’s birthday party or the park and I was right on one. I am so glad to see our beloved Bishop family intact again and enjoying their third chance at happiness. How does the saying go, third time is the charm?

Olivia finally has her third chance, she finally feels like the redeemer Bell always said she was. She is at peace, I believe, finally having her life, love and daughter back where they belong. Peter with Etta is so amazing; he has such love for this little girl. Josh is great, so tender and loving!

No comes the conclusion to the longest love letter in history. The shot of Peter (Joshua Jackson) looking through the mail is great. You can see a letter or ad that says “Thanks for the support” which I think Joel put in there as a thanks to all the fans that have supported the show through the five year journey.

What really, though, is the ultimate “We love you” to all the fans is the symbol that has meant so much in the Fringe world and to us fans around the world. The White Tulip, the symbol of solidarity, of forgiveness, or what a son means to his father and what this show has meant to all of us. The look that Peter/Josh has in his eyes leads me to believe that this saga is not over that we may (fingers and toes crossed) see a movie in the future as John Noble hinted at during SDCC 2012.

Well, my fiends I will share this quote from Peter Pan “Never say goodbye, because goodbye means going away and going away means forgetting” so instead of saying goodbye to Fringe, I will bid see you again.

I want to take this opportunity to say thank you to all the fans I have become friends with over the years. I want to say thanks to Kenn, Managing Editor of Team WHR for allowing me to be a part of this amazing team of people that covered this amazing show.

Most of all I want to thank every single person ever involved in Fringe; you have brought me such joy, such happiness, such laughter and such tears. It is because of you that I found my creative life again and that means more to me than you will ever know.

On one final note about the series and the time reset, I will conclude with an Isacc Asimov quote here for the last time:

“Reality has a tendency to flow back it its original position.”

I hope you enjoyed my final Fringe review and my previous news articles about my analysis of Fringe and I thank you for visiting WormholeRiders News Agency.

Please feel free to leave a comment here or If you prefer, you may also click the social media icons below to share this news article or as many of our readers and visitors often do, visit me on Twitter by clicking the links or images avatars in this news story. See You on The Other Side“!

Until next time,

Regards,

Lori
February 3, 2013
Fringe Review: Anomaly XB-6783764 Answers the Question!
Hello Fringe fans!

I hope that you are surviving the hiatus. With the New Year just around the corner, so are the last three episodes of Fringe.

It is bittersweet to know that so few remain, but also great because we will see the final battle unfold as it should be.

It has been an interesting season; we have lost a few beloved characters, gained new ones and finally got back our beloved Polivia.

It was questionable whether or not we would see Peter (Joshua Jackson) and Olivia (Anna Torv) back together, but last week’s episode showed us that their love is as strong as ever.

Come January 11, 2013, the final battle will be waged and we will see what Walter has in store and what his plan has been all along. Hopefully by the end, all will be revealed and everyone will be satisfied. I am glad that we found out that question that had been burning on everyone’s mind…who is Donald?

The answer was shocking to say the least, but a wonderful one at that. What else is in store for our beloved team? Only time and Joel Wyman will tell as he did in this appreciation video from December 13, recently re-tweeted by the great team at Fringe on FoxTV.

We also include the latest promotional trailer courtesy of FOX TV below for your enjoyment.
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Now…on with the review.

Anomaly XB-6783764:

I like the little boy who plays Michael (Rowan Longworth). He is doing a good job at conveying his empathic abilities, which I am sure again will be revealed more as the remaining episodes count down.

It must have been hard for the team to get answers out of him, since he has yet to speak a word. It does also make you wonder what happened to the connection that he had with Olivia in the past. Will it be again or is it lost to time?

Walter (John Noble) plying him with candy is fun, no doubt a desperate plea on his part to try and find out why he is so important to the team. His frustration with Michael’s non verbal communication is evident.

Walter suggests that they try and pry things from Michael’s mind via going into it as he did with September (Michael Cerveris).

It always cracks me up when John gets outrageous, because he lets Walter’s madness bubble to the surface and just peak out; John always does it to perfection. I also suspect it would be a good excuse for Walter to use more drugs.

John also has the great ability, as we saw with Walternate, to have a sinister side to him. What he feared would happen, when he told Nina (Blair Brown) about becoming the man he used to be is starting to show through. Let’s hope that Walter, the one we know and love will still be intact by the end of the series. His God complex is surely starting to manifest and take over, hopefully Donald and our team can prevent that from happening.

It is so wonderful to see Blair Brown have such an integral part in this episode. She has always been a favorite actress of mine and I am glad that she is finally being utilized the way she should be. Nina’s intentions in this episode are what make this episode so epic. Blair had explained so well about her final decision being one that she had no choice in the matter.

The gadgets that the Observers use harkens back to a past episode, Road not Taken, where Peter (Joshua Jackson) had used an old record player to extract sound waves from a window. I mentioned before that as diabolical and cruel as the Observers are they do have some of the coolest gadgets around.

Windmark will stop at nothing to extract any and all information any way he can. I must give great praise to Michael Kopsa for playing Windmark with such evil intent that he makes it so much fun to hate him. He is truly one of those characters that once his demise comes; cheering will be heard throughout all of Fringe fandom.

I think that Nina, somewhere in the back of her mind, knows the eminent danger she is potentially putting herself and the team in, but the cause and what the outstanding Austalian actress who portrayed Etta (Georgina Haig), died for is more important.

Finding a way to help the team is of the utmost importance to her and something she feels show owes Olivia (Anna Torv) and the team.

Walter’s snarky comments are abounding in this episode. Again, John manages to make us laugh even during the direst of situations. Having that extraordinary gift is something I as a director and a Fringe fan know is something to cherish. His comment of “I’m cold” reminds me of the countless times he has complained in previous episodes of the lack of warmth or food at crime scenes.

Nina has always been a very mysterious character, never quite knowing if she is on the side of good or bad. She has toed the line a few times and has definitely done some questionable things in her time.

The fact that she is and I suspect always was a part of William Bell’s (Leonard Nimoy) and Walter’s inner circle speaks volumes about why she has always been shrouded in mystery. Why she has always had these weird connections, like Peter used to, to things that are not quite explained. How she knew Sam Weiss (Kevin Corrigan) and how she happened to mention this black lab that Massive Dynamic has.

Nina’s concern for Walter is evident as shown through the conversation with Peter. They are both worried about him and rightfully should be. The interesting thing is that Nina has seen Walter the way he used to be and knows all too well what reverting back to that state can do harm not only to Walter but the plan and the team.

“Your father understands that anything worth fighting for comes with a cost” is what Nina ultimately tells Peter. How right she is, because this statement not only pertains to this particular episode but every sacrificial episode from every season. The price that they ALL have paid in one shape or form has brought them to this point in time. The picture of Etta plastered on the wall driving home the statement that Nina just told Peter.

The black lab entrance is cool. Leave it to Nina to have a lab underground where all kinds of experiments are taking place. It is of no surprise what they find down there. It explains how Nina has been more than aware of how the Observers work and she has always been one step ahead.

The scene between Peter and Olivia when he asks if she is thinking about Etta is great. Anna has a vulnerability about her that shows in her body language and she also proves how visceral she can be as an actress.

Her maternal instincts are on alert with Michael ever since they found him and in a way he is helping her heal from losing Etta. Peter’s comfort is always ever present, in the way he interacts with her and the way he looks at her. Josh again displays his talent for compassion that Peter has shown since he fell in love with Olivia.

Walter’s fascination with the ECOG device is a little disturbing, more so when he says to prep the subject and Peter corrects him that his name is Michael.

Walter seems to be slowing reverting back to his old self, glimpses we have seen throughout this season. John again being the brilliant one to just give us enough of a shadow to know that something darker looms.

One thing that I found interesting and that no one (at least not in my circle of Fringe friends) has brought up is what Michael represents. What I mean by this is that I cannot help but think of the Michael the Arc angel. If I remember anything of my Catholic schooling, it is that Michael led the armies of heaven against the forces of Satan and defeated them. To me that is what this Michael almost represents, he is the answer and the one that will be the one to ultimately defeat the Observers. It also makes me wonder why he would be so important to Walter if it weren’t for what Michael possesses. Why Donald was sworn to keep him safe, that Michael is indeed the one or dare I say weapon that the team has in their pocket, their ace up their sleeve, in a way.

I maybe reading too much into it, but it was just weird that no one picked up on that. I guess that’s because science and religion do not mix very well, that Michael had to be shrouded (sorry for the pun) in something a little less obvious. I would love to ask David Fury who wrote this episode if that was what Michael represented in this episode or what Michael represents overall. I guess that is a question for Joel as well…his is the maestro after all.

There have been many references to the Observers being like the Nazis and in some ways I can definitely see the correlation. Their methods mirror those that make them look similar to the Nazis, Windmark being the most sinister of them all. It is an eerie sight indeed, frightening to say the least.

Of course Michael’s readings are off the charts, of course he processes things differently than the other Observers, and he IS different, like September (Michael Cerveris). He is the one that is the major cog in Walter’s wheel of a plan, without him the whole thing falls apart. He is an empath; he isn’t the cold, calculating Observers that we have seen (minus September of course). He is the chosen one, the one of great importance, the one that will lead them to the final battle with the Observers…sound familiar? That is where my theory of the arc angel comes in.

The shot of the warehouse made me giggle out loud. It reminded me of the last scene in one of my most favorite movies, Raiders of The Lost Ark. I don’t know if that was intentional to make it look like that, but it was great fun to see. It also made me think that like the warehouse in Raiders, what secrets does this warehouse hold?

The scene with Hastings in the interrogation room with Windmark is very reminiscent of what he did to Walter in episode one of Season 5. It does not matter to Windmark how he gets his answers as long as he is satisfied that is his main goal. By any means necessary.

When Olivia informs Nina that she has been compromised that is when the episode really begins to shine. It is some of the best writing and acting that I have seen in a long time, mostly on Blair Brown’s part. Her decisions from this scene forward are ultimate and when the plan is set in motion there is no stopping her. She knew what she had to do as tough as a decision as it was it is what needed to be done in order to keep the team and Michael safe.

I am so curious what Michael showed Nina when he touches her cheek and she reacts. I suspect it’s the future if they do not defeat the Observers. I hope that we will get a reveal about it so that we the fans are not left in the dark.

The team needs to get back to the lab as soon as possible, especially knowing that Nina has been compromised and possibly put Michael in danger. What they do is brilliant; leave it to Peter, the reformed con man to think up that plan.

It works and our beloved team escapes for the time being. I love that Peter can still hot wire a car; it just goes to show that those con man skills never die!

Once the lab has been breached this is when one of the best scenes in recent memory takes place. Blair does some of her best work and it is so brilliant that it will be forever remembered for the power, but for also the end result.

Windmark discovering the experimented Observers is what sets him off. He calls Nina an animal…I thought pot calling kettle. When Windmark reads her he points out that she had mentioned the boy Observer, he is important to the fugitives, again my theory goes here. The fact that Windmark says that the boy is a chromosomal mistake leads me to believe that Michael has a power that is still untapped.

That Michael is the one and only thing that Windmark is afraid of even though he lets on that he isn’t. Sometimes it is those mistakes or anomalies that turn out to be the very thing that we have been looking for the whole time.

The ones that will save the universe, kind of like how Superman was an anomaly, a boy wonder and the power he possessed ended up saving the world. So was Jesus in his time, again religion comes into play, but only to make my point.

Nina’s speech to Windmark about why Observers tilt their heads is so freaking brilliant I cheered when she finished. She was so on point that you almost wanted to high five her mechanical hand for the excellent job she did.

What she pointed out was so true that it was eerie. The fact that the Observers had devolved instead of evolved is a testament to the human spirit and the relationships that we have. The way that we show love and compassion, the way we feel does not make us weak, if anything it is the one thing that defines us as humans.

Her speech is the last hurrah she has before she makes the ultimate sacrifice. She did it for love, for the love of Olivia, love of Walter, Etta and I even suspect love for William Bell. Nina truly gets the last word, in your face Windmark!

When she shoots herself, twitter went crazy! It seems that Nina after all these years had become a character that fans really loved and to see her commit the ultimate sacrifice stunned everyone, but also made her immortal to everyone. It was the second shot heard throughout all of Fringe-dom (the first being the one that killed Etta). Goodbye Nina, you will be missed, in more ways than one.

The scene when the team discovers Nina dead is so heartbreaking, but John and Anna are the two that really shine in this scene. Even though Olivia does not show as much emotion as Walter did, does not mean the loss is not great. I was disappointed to see that fans were saying that Olivia’s reaction was not as powerful as Walter’s. I do believe they were wrong, dead wrong.

Olivia’s reaction was perfect…for Olivia. What they failed to remember is who Olivia really is. She was never one to break down, on rare occasions she has. Olivia never thought herself worthy of love and always kept a distance so as to not get hurt. She had to develop the thick skin that she had in order to survive her life. I do believe that Olivia feels very deeply, probably more so than we do.

Walter’s reaction was perfect as well. John Noble made a great point during one of his many Noble Intentions videos that maybe Walter and Nina’s relationship may have been deeper than we always thought. John always brilliant as usual moves you to tears. I also love what Josh does, how Peter comforts Olivia, but in a very soft, loving way.

I made a point to someone that all the people in Olivia’s life, regardless of time line, whom she loves, always end up dead. That is my point as to why she always has that pain, it will always be behind her eyes, because she has gone through a hell that we can only imagine and never wish on another human being.

Anna Torv’s talent is undeniable; her eyes are so perfect at revealing those emotions, just under the surface. John had made the point that her subtly is brilliant and that is what makes her so good. Olivia has a quiet strength that has always been there. She carries on through unbelievable pain, she is a survivor, and she is the very definition of the word.

Where they find Michael is clever, obviously Nina made damn sure that Windmark could not find him and he was too hell bent on finding the fugitives that he did not bother to look any further. I love that once they find him and pull him out; he sees Nina and reacts as only an empath can. The single tear speaks volumes, bravo little one!

When Walter dons the ECOG it is a great scene because at first the reaction to the questions are just nods. When Walter asks Michael why he was needed for Walter’s plan, and why he was important he does the same thing he did to Nina, touch her cheek and show her.

The montage is beautiful, it is flash back of all past episodes and a virtual zoetrope of memories that Walter had either forgotten or repressed.

The final revelation to the question is what we have all been waiting for…the question that has been on every Fringe fans mind, who is Donald. I must say it was one of those moments when I audibly gasped! It was so wonderful to see Michael Cerveris again; he has been sorely missed in the fifth season. It was a little weird to see him with hair, but great nonetheless.

Okay, well now we know who Donald is, what I want to know (and I am sure every Fringe fan on the planet wants to know) is how did Donald become September? Is the boy Observer possibly September? Was September another anomaly as well that somehow slipped through the cracks?
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That would explain a lot about September and the significant role he played not only on the show but in the lives of Olivia, Peter and especially Walter. I know that Michael Cerveris said on twitter that his being Donald was the hardest secret he had to keep, but he loved the reaction of all the fans!

When Walter finally tells the team that Donald is September they are a little perplexed, how that is possible I bet they are thinking. The look on Walter’s face is wonderful, almost like a veil had been lifted from something that was clouding his memory. He almost had a look of relief and nostalgia, as if to say to himself, now it all makes sense.

Beautiful, heartbreaking episode, I am conflicted about the fact that there are only three episodes left. I am happy that we do get to see the final battle between good and evil, but I also do not want to see our team’s story end. I am being selfish when I say that I want Fringe to go on forever.

The good thing is that thanks to other mediums, Fringe WILL go on forever. I do hope that there is going to be more in the way of comic books and possibly a movie or two. Until then, we always have our DVDs and fan fiction to tide us over.

It will be a hell of a final ride and this fan is desperately looking forward to it. Have a Happy New Year Fringe fans, see you in 2013 and remember that “Momentum can be deferred, but it must always be paid back in full!”

I hope you enjoyed my review and my previous news articles about my analysis of Fringe and I thank you for visiting WormholeRiders News Agency.

Please feel free to leave a comment here or If you prefer, you may also click the social media icons below to share this news article or as many of our readers and visitors often do, visit the WHR on Facebook or me on Twitter by clicking the links or images avatars in this news story. See You on The Other Side“!

Until next time,

Regards,

Lori
December 31, 2012
Fringe: Black Blotter Does More Than Free Your Mind, Walter Gets to Ride Gene the Cow!

Welcome back Fringies!

As we approach the end of one of the most epic science fiction dramatic television series produced within the past quarter century, we take pause to remember those whose contributions have made the Fringe series one of the most beloved in all of televised entertainment history!

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Not to discount the creative genius of series creators and producers including J.J. Abrams, Joel H. Wyman, Jeff Pinkner, Roberto Orci, David Fury, Tanya Swerling, Tamara Isaac, Noreen O’Toole, Bryan Burk, Monica Breen, or the brilliant talent of Anna Torv, John Noble, Joshua Jackson, Jasika Nicole, Lance Reddick, Blair Brown and so many others, this reviewer would like admirers of Fringe to remember the following; among these lofty names are other contributors, each as part of an entire team whom made the series so great and “Black Blotter” a memorable episode of Fringe!

Image courtesy of Joel Wyman via Twitter

WormholeRiders therefore pays tribute to some of the dozens of lesser known, albeit crucial crew members who toiled tirelessly for Fringe in general, and “Black Blotter” in specific. Each exquisitely made the series come to life before our very eyes on our television and or computer screens over the past superb five seasons coming to close in January 2013.

Click here to see all whom have made Fringe an excellent entertainment product!

Image courtesy Ari Margolis of JonXProductions via Twitter

Our congratulations to Kristin Cantrell for success regarding her first televised screenplay, superb episode direction by Tommy Gormley, to Paul Wagner of the Art Department, Tobias Sarin and Lou Gruzelier “B” Camera leaders, Ryan Purnell for Digital Compositing, to Kristen Branan for Visual Effects from ZOIC Studios, to Visual Effects Editor Jon Dudkowski, to Neil Morrill for outstanding work in the Makeup Department, Stunt Coordinator Ken Quinn, Ryan Davis and Rick Norman for excellent Sound Design and Re-Recording, and many others that have made Fringe a series that will be sorely missed as the last four announced episodes air beginning today, Friday December 21, 2012.

The music selected for Walter’s LSD “trip” is the centerpiece of his altered mental state that reinforces an adventure in the episode that makes “Black Blotter” so worthwhile. Special kudos to Chris Tilton and Michael Giacchino for their delightful music score, and for selecting wonderful background music for “Black Blotter” including Donovan (Hurdy Gurdy Man) and Steppenwolf (The Pusher). Included above, these epic 1968 hit songs accurately reflect “Black Blotter” from the era of LSD!

For retrospective regarding this analysis, back in 2009, when WormholeRiders was a fledgling news agency, a single web site with a single blog, this reviewer called “it”; that wormholes, time paradoxes, alternate realities and universes would be the fundamental premise well beyond the first season of Fringe.

A few said this reviewer was wrong, some said this reviewer was, in fact, crazy. Time itself has edified this reviewer’s belief that the series creative genius’ had planned carefully in what has proven to be precisely that edification.

Image courtesy Joel Wyman via Twitter

Late in 2010 and early 2011, when the two “sides” or realities of Fringe fought each other, this reviewer postulated the opposing forces of Olivia/BOlivia, Broyles/Alt-Broyles, Nina/AltNina, and most critically, Walter/Walternate would join forces to fight an even more evil third enemy.

Not one to bother TPTB Executive Producers, over time I had sent a series of single tweets to Joel Wyman regarding this subject matter. He responded with what I thought it would be?

I answered with two words; “The Observers”, but that I would not say more to avoid spoiling.

Mr. Wyman responded with two words of his own; “Much appreciated”. And so it has become with The Observers in the 2036 timeline.

Only because this reviewer had read a similar tale known as “The End Of Eternity” by Isaac Asimov, was the insight I learned remembered, not for any other reason.

Fringe admirers learned in the recent past via discussion at San Diego Comic-Con and Twitter from creative genius Joel Wyman that seven (7) episodic seasons were planned. This reviewer stands by his belief that Fringe will not end after only five (5) television seasons on FOX Broadcasting.

While this reviewer may prove to be incorrect in this regard, it is hard to believe that Warner Brothers and Bad Robot will abandon one of their most respected and creative franchise endeavors.

This reviewer fervently believes that Fringe will continue on the big screen (movies), with direct to DVD mini-series, be picked up by a new network (Science Channel?) or a combination of all three to bring the adventure of seven contemplated seasons full circle.

Black Blotter Primer:

The reveals within the “Black Blotter” episode are many. Flashbacks are utilized via Walter’s use of LSD to identify key elements from the first four seasons that hold the answers to understand the 100+ episode journey that is Fringe.

At episodes end, new and compelling questions are presented that cement the solid foundation being laid by Fringe Executive Producer Joel H. Wyman.

How will Cecil (Zak Santiago), who was with “The Child Observer” from the “Pocket Universe” dovetail this finding in “Black Blotter”?

What does Walter learn on his LSD “trip”? Will the “acid” open memories that lead to the answers to defeat The Observers domination of the Earth in this altered reality timeline? Can his grand daughter Etta (Georgina Haig) be saved (restored)?

In a major reveal within “Black Blotter”, does anyone doubt that “Michael” the young Observer is the child of September (an homage in my opinion to Michael Cerveris) from the year 2036? Will Michael eventually once again alter the time line to save Peter (Joshua Jackson), Olivia (Anna Torv) Walter (John Noble), Astrid (Jasika Nicole), Broyles (Lance Reddick) and the irascible Nina Sharp (Blair Brown) from death at the hands of The Observers?

From the earliest fond memories of Fringe in our minds, all have wanted all our heroes to survive. But will they? And by what mechanism will this become manifest? Which, if any, of our heroes will be the ones that remember everything that has happened when all is said and done? To the point: Will any of them remember anything?

And what of another beloved series character, bowling alley manager Sam Weiss (Kevin Corrigan)? All have desired to learn the fate of Sam Weiss. Did Sam perish fighting to support the resistance leading up to the events in 2036? In “Black Blotter” we will find the answer to this question in a somewhat shocking, yet bittersweet discovery.

Walter’s memories, brought to the surface by ingesting “Black Blotter” LSD, revolve in part around those of Elizabeth Bishop, his wife. Elizabeth Bishop (Orla Brady) graced the series five times previously in “Peter” (2010), “Over There Part One” (2010), “Subject 13” (2011), “Back to Where You Have Never Been” (2012) and “Enemy of My Enemy” (2012). Each is critical is in this reviewers opinion, becoming the crux of “the what”, and “the why” of all that is about to happen in the closing episodes of season five.

Not to spoil for those who have yet to experience Fringe, one should never forget that it was “our” Walter’s tampering with the timeline, bringing alternate Peter to “our side” of the universe that set the stage for what was to occur over the course of all five seasons.

Walter’s intervention, to stave off his broken heart over the loss of their son, ultimately led to his involvement with David Robert Jones (Jared Harris), the ZFT manuscript planted in the 1930’s, Walter’s dubious association with William Bell (Leonard Nimoy) and multiple interventions by The Observers who at first seemed benevolent visitors to the Earth.

All of these situations occurred in attempts to restore or maintain the timelines in “balance”. This leads to the theory that such interventions are what shifted The Observers from being benevolent watchers of the timeline to The Observers of 2036.

Led by the evil Captain Windmark, brilliantly portrayed by Michael Kopsa, one must ask, was all of this the reason The Observers became the radicalized invaders of our fair planet? And just how and why did they become so selfish and evil? Was a reality change the ultimate cause?

Could all be restored if the cure for “his own” Peter could be made available in the past, obviating Walter’s original universe reality crossing expedition? Would such eliminate the revenge driven character “Walternate”? Would such a “fix” allow Walter and Elizabeth to lead normal lives in both realities, each with their own Peter?

Would such a solution also free Peter to not become the subject of cross universe adversarial situations that brought Earth to the attention of The Observers in the first place? Or were The Observers watching anyway as this reviewer suspected long ago based on a novel by Isaac Asimov that I had read in my youth?

What of Olivia and Peter? Will they be the only ones to remember everything when order to the universe is restored? How will it all be accomplished? With only four episodes of the fifth season remaining, read my closing theorem at the end of this analysis and then… we shall see Fringies, we shall see!

More on these topics later in the theorem section at this reviews analysis and contemplated conclusions.

Before beginning my analysis of “Black Blotter”, we include, courtesy of FOX Broadcasting, the latest promotional trailers for the next episode “Anomaly XB-6783746”. Written by talented David Fury, we are about to learn the Fringe story arc’s final foundation, setting up the final three episodes that will air in January of 2013.

Black Blotter:

The episode opens with Astrid waking to the sound of Donald’s radio emanating signals for the first time since the Fringe Team of 2036 had been monitoring his radio.

Accentuated in “The Recordist”, The Fringe Team is searching for answers to locate the missing pieces of the puzzle required to put an end to the slavish conditions perpetrated on humanity by the evil that has become manifest on Earth in the form of The Observers of that future era.

In the underground Harvard facility of the year 2036, Walter’s laboratory appears to be a fantasy landscape of surreal proportions. The genius of the “Black Blotter” episode is that the viewer must ascertain if what we “observe” is real, or if the scenes we witness exist only in Walter’s mind?

One of the opening sequences great lines is when Walter says Astrid’s hair is so “beautiful”. Packing a pistol, Astrid knows something is up since she had just been sleeping on her hair! Based on the dreamlike visage on Walter’s face we suspect far more than a few puffs of “Brown Betty” are at work in Walter’s mind!

This discovery becomes a challenge as Olivia and Peter awake only to find that Walter has taken an LSD “trip” with “Black Blotter”. In order to expand his mind, we find out Walter’s purpose is clear; He needs to unlock the secrets in his mind for victory over The Observers to restore humanities timeline to what it needs to, should be, or what it will become after The Observers, invaders of Earth, are vanquished.

Before the LSD that Walter has taken is definitely confirmed, we segue to Peter and Olivia intimately chatting in the bedroom. Peter shares with Olivia that he still has headaches after the removal of The Observers “tech” from his brain.

Although Peter is returning to normal, as evidenced by his once again growing intimate relationship with Olivia, Astrid interrupts their moment together to alert them that Walter is up to something. Of course he is!

More humor is injected in the opening scenes as Peter asks Walter if he is “tripping?” The two word response from Walter “most definitely”, with a near “sh_t eating grin on his face” accompanied by two visions tells the tale! The first being a “Tinkerbell” like PIxie juxtaposed with the return of key series characters.

One key character is none other that Dr. Carla Warren (Jenni Blong), part of Walter’s LSD hallucination visions down memory lane. Fringe admirers will recall this character from two past episodes; “Jacksonville” (2010) and “Peter” (2012). “Black Blotter” represents the third episode where the Dr. Warren character, killed in the lab fire, will play a pivotal role, at least in Walter’s mind.

Without delving into the past story arc too deeply, recall that it was Dr. Warren who played opposite Nina Sharp (Blair Brown) during the early days of the Cortexiphan trials warning Walter what he has planned would likely damage the space-time continuum.

Among other things, including trying to stop Walter from crossing into the other reality via the wormhole Portal he had constructed to “save” Peter for himself and Elizabeth in “our” reality, we learn at episodes end, this seesaw battle for Walter’s inner conscience will become paramount to what has to be done to save us all from the evil that has become The Observers.

As “Tinkerbell” lands on Walter’s finger, Astrid tries to ask if Walter knows what the radio signal mean’s? A bit entranced by the vision on his finger, Walter is not quite oblivious, but almost.

Floating in and out of lucidity, Walter shares with Peter, (as Astrid and Olivia look on) that 2036 Nina had promised to removed the portions of his brain that made him like Walternate after his LSD “trip” to recall what he cannot otherwise remember.

In the meantime, a clue is offered; Walter continues to “see” “Tinkerbell” and Dr. Warren which he observes flying around Peter’s head. Dr. Warren tells Walter that the other “he” knows things. We can observe by the look on Walter’s face he is afraid of the “other him”, Walternate!

During this sequence Walter sees a dimensional aperture (a wormhole gate or portal) frozen in time wherein “Tinkerbell” splits into two version of herself, one Blue (a bit green really except for the wings), and one Red as the Red “Tinkerbell” flies through what appears to be a portal between realities.

Clearly this is an homage to the “Blue Verse” (good) and “Red Verse” (evil) which dominated the Fringe story arc in previous seasons.

The conundrum within “Black Blotter” is that Walter knows he has a “dark side” in what appears to be his dual personality often alluded to in the past or other timeline realities via the Walternate characterization.

One must contemplate; is this where the knowledge and memory of Sam Weiss also resides? Walter realizes the knowledge to defeat The Observers that the Fringe Team needs is in the “Walternate” side of his personality. Walter is rightfully terrified of the “other Walter” submerged within his tormented soul.

As Walter has long feared in the 2036 timeline, and why he desires Nina Sharp to remove portions of his brain when the mission to eliminate The Observers is complete, is that the “Walternate” in him will potentially take away his son Peter and what he, Walter desires to be, a non aggressive personage of good intentions and spirit.

Without much delay Olivia and Peter go off to find the source of the radio signal using technology provided by Anil (Shaun Smyth).

Among several dead bodies including The Observers and Loyalists, what they discover are the bones of the Sam Weiss” behind the wheel of a large utility van.

Using the resistance radio triangulation technology from Anil, Peter and Olivia travel to Willington, Connecticut to the source of what appears to be the signal. Calling Astrid back in the Harvard laboratory, the discovery of skeletal Sam Weiss produces no recollection of him in the 2036 timeline for Astrid or Walter, at least not yet. Peter and Olivia discover the utility van is not the source of the signal, only a relay station.

Sharing a tender kiss in the woods, it is here they confirm the find. The weathered bones of Sam Weiss in the utility van are verified from the discovery of a driver’s license. Dead from a firefight some ten to fifteen years previous, the bones of Sam Weiss lead, via a cable, to a solar powered radio relay repeater.

After examining the surroundings, Peter and Olivia determine the signal is located elsewhere. A quick segue finds Walter chatting with Dr. Warren where he seemingly discovers a notebook journal beneath the floorboards.

Thanks to the hallucinations from LSD, Walter’s memory envisions a younger Nina Sharp. She and “Tinkerbell” caution Walter to not consult the documents in the notebook journal.

As Walter heads out for to join Olivia and Peter in a taxi, Dr. Warren is mentally in tow. In his mind Walter had apparently escaped from Astrid in the taxi outside The Observers Headquarters in New York City. Not really!

In “reality”, Astrid has taken Walter to link up with Peter and Olivia, but not before thumbing the notebook to find a number of his inventions as well as two words; “Black Umbrella”, which become important a bit later in the episode.

Despite being “high as a kite”, Walter is concerned he is following the path of what the “Walternate” personality really wants him to do, once again find a young Observer Child who may hold the answers the Fringe Team needs to set thing right.

With a segue to the next sequence, Walter and Astrid link up with Peter and Olivia. This reviewer very much enjoyed seeing all four of the team back together in action!

After an exciting Fringe Team firefight dockside, eliminating some of The Observers minions, the four heroes head to an island where the radio signal is emanating from.

But not before Walter “sees” “The Emerald City”, another homage to “The Wizard of Oz” which our Fringe Team Leader Lori has postulated previously in her analysis of the genius of the Fringe series that utilized familiar works of entertainment to “ground” the audience within the story arc.

The island, sans the Emerald City observed in Walter’s mind, is the originating source of the radio signals. Once on the island our heroes are suddenly confronted by veteran character actor Tom Butler portraying Richard.

Richard is accompanied by his his wife Carolyn (Maria Marlow) and a surprise with Michael (Rowan Longworth), appearing as “The Child Observer” reprising his role as we have seen previously in Fringe (more on this subject later).

Michael “The Child Observer” has not aged a day in the twenty years since he was secreted away for his own protection until retrieved by Walter after first being previously secreted in the “Pocket Universe”, but only if Walter can remember the password to do so.

In a sequence that is really homage to Monty Python, a delightful animation scene is used to illustrate the inner workings of Walter’s mind. Accentuated by “Black Blotter” LSD, a visual of the “Black Umbrella” and a key unlocking a tree appears in Walter’s mind. Heck, we even get to see Walter ride “Gene The Cow” just like he is the “The Wizard of Oz”. Well, he darn well is, isn’t he?!

Walter leaves the LSD hallucination vision, quickly snapping back to reality uttering the “Black Umbrella” password. We observe “Tinkerbell” the Pixie who claps, while Walter smiles wryly (literally painted on his face).

Recall that we heard the password earlier in the taxi cab when Walter was “with” Dr. Carla Warren.

A suspicious Richard and Carolyn, who have been protecting an “item”, are now prepared to turn over the young Observer Child named Michael subsequent to when the “Black Umbrella” password is provided by smiling Walter.

In several touching sequences, Richard and Carolyn surrender Michael to the 2036 Fringe Team noting his purpose is for something “really important”.

Admirers of full circle story arcs, and Fringe fans alike, will recall Michael is more than familiar. Michael, The Child Observer, is the same child from season one episode fifteen “Inner Child” and the same person whom had been stored in Walter’s “Pocket Universe” from season five episode six “Through the Looking Glass and What Walter Found There”.

In the closing sequences after leaving the island, Olivia makes hot chocolate for Michael, “The Observer Child” while Peter watches closely. Michael remembers Olivia from the previous timeline.

Peter is curious how such is possible, wondering how can this be? Olivia knows Michael must be special recalling that The Observers internalize time is a different fashion than human beings.

In the final moments, we find Walter “coming down” off his “Black Blotter” LSD “trip”. Walter is back in the underground laboratory at Harvard. Visions of his wife Elizabeth are superimposed on the wall to reflect his thoughts.

Walter recalls several memories of arguments from his past that led to this timeline becoming manifest. One is with his wife warning him about going to get Peter from the alternate universe reality stating “some things are only for God”.

Dr Warren also appears using Robert Oppenheimer’s prophetic words to warn Walter that he will become “The Destroyer of Worlds” and “There Has to be a Line” not to be crossed. The memory flashbacks include Walter crossing through the wormhole on his mission to get alternate Peter, completing the full circle arc within “Black Blotter’.

Finally, after Dr. Warren states “the journal doesn’t matter” after Walter apparently decides to incinerate the notebook which contained recollections of all of his various inventions and devices.

This includes the scenes of the inter-dimensional Wormhole Portal that set everything in motion from the original Fringe timeline where it all began not so very long ago.

As we watch Walter pour lighter fluid and apparently set the journal notebook aflame in a Pyrex laboratory container, a younger Nina Sharp and Dr. Warren’s final words of opposing debate are foreboding visualizations from Walter’s memories; “it’s too late, now that you remember all the things you are capable of…” with young Nina Sharp retorting “Walter you got the boy back, you have to continue, you have to keep fighting…”

We are suddenly confronted with a shocking reality. As the camera pans back, we “Observe” the Pyrex container is empty, containing only the burning lighter fluid as the words of Dr. Warren echo in our minds; ‘You’ve Been Him Longer Than You Have Been You!” an echo of a metaphor rippling across the timelines.

Throughout the course of “Black Blotter” viewers were led to believe Walter’s journal notebook was “real”. Not so. The notebook, just like the “Tinkerbell’s”, Elizabeth Bishop and Dr. Warren, and all the rest were not in the “real” world.

Each was a visualization of Walter’s memories that he had been experiencing the entire episode courtesy of the mind liberating tendencies of “Black Blotter”. Walter IS the notebook journal!

All are, and have been, his memories of what he needs to remember in order to accomplish the mission in 2036. Each of these memories, across several timelines, have been freed in Walter’s mind. Viewers and Walter himself stare dumbfounded at his other self… It’s Walternate!

Interrogative Theorem:

We will “Observe” an entirely restored Walter soon? Will such a day be one to rejoice, or a day to chill our Fringie souls? Further, across five seasons, have we ever really witnessed just who the “real” Walter truly is, Walter or Walternate?

Is he not both? Time has proven he is, and always will be, Walter and Walternate! Was all well until the diverging timelines took place when September (Michael Cerveris) observed Peter and the Fringe Team’s activities in 36 episodes over the past five seasons?

Did this earlier Fringe event cause the dual personalities to generate the spilt creating the two distinct characters that were always there to begin within one soul in one reality?

Will Fringe admirers continue to connect with, and admire Walter amid the dire current circumstances and realization that he is, and always was Walternate? How will Walter and all of these factors manifest themselves in the final four episodes of season five?

Will the separate realities that were also part of a larger homage in “Black Blotter” to the entire series play a role in the final episode to bring closure to the viewership? Or will the series creators eliminate not only The Observers, but put the multiple timelines to rest with a return to an “original reality” before it all began?

In the epic science fiction novel by Isaac Asimov, “The End of Eternity”, this was the path chosen for the stories protagonists Noys Lambent (Olivia in Fringe), and Harlan (Peter in Fringe). They were the only ones to recall everything, but with no way to alter it when “The End of Eternity” became manifest after those in “The Hidden Centuries” prevailed over the evil and perversion of those who had altered reality to favor their matrix of existence to the detriment of humankind and all other life forms.

As Noys and Harlan began a new life free of “The Eternals” (equivalent to The Observers in Fringe), Laban Twissell (analog to Walter in Fringe), had to be destroyed because he too had an evil dark side like Walternate once he was revealed as the creator of the “Time Kettles” (like Walter’s wormholes in Fringe), which had originally empowered The Eternals to become evil and corrupt from power over all others lives.

A reality reset to its original shape was the only viable option to Asimov’s “The End of Eternity”, a single novel that needed to have a neatly wrapped conclusion in a world prior to the establishment of the multi-verse as hypothecated in modern scientific theories.

This reviewer’s theorem is that the brilliant creators of Fringe need not end the franchise at this time with a neatly wrapped “package” tying up loose ends. Much remains to be explored in a world with “Endless Possibilities”.

Specifically; what caused the radicalism from the seemingly benevolent nature of The Observers on Earth (like September) to the ruthlessness of Captain Windmark? How was September and those of his ilk overthrown? Did a reality change threaten The Observers existence, leading to the radical and tyrannical world of 2036?

Or must we accept that these intriguing potential stories were abandoned (passed over and pulled into a shortened fifth season) when the series ratings added overwhelming financial complexity to the contemplated sixth, and alternate fifth seasons?

This reviewer cannot speculate on this final hypothesis opined in the previous paragraph at this time. However, sometimes in business, financial considerations force compromises that “pull in” a future “reality” well before its time.

What this reviewer can say at this time is this:

Much more can be, and remains to be explored if another network (e.g. The Science Channel) picks up the Fringe franchise. Or perhaps Bad Robot and Warner Brothers will elect to pursue a direct to DVD or big screen strategy?

How would this be accomplished? By leaving season five with a huge cliff hanger! This could “plow the field” with new “seed corn” for more of the enjoyable alternate realities that are what Fringe is all about!

And here is where we must leave our analysis for now. The next four episodes will tell the tale, wherein only time will tell what reality will ultimately become manifest.

Thank you for reading and visiting WormholeRiders News Agency.

Please feel free to leave a comment here or if you prefer, click the social media icons below to share this news article.

Or as many of our readers and visitors often do, visit WHR on Twitter, or visit me on Twitter by clicking the text links or images avatars in this news story. I and Team WHR look forward to Seeing You on The Other Side“!

Thank you.

Best Regards,

Kenn

December 21, 2012
Fringe: Through the Looking Glass and What Walter Found There? A Pocket Universe!

Hello Fringe fans. Heck of an episode, huh?

Well, let me say that I am still conflicted about what Peter is doing. On one hand I can completely understand, but on the other, he is doing himself and the team a grave disservice.

There are all kinds of clichés that come to mind when thinking about this episode. “If you can’t beat them join them” or “Keep your friends close and your enemies closer” are the two that stand out the most for me. Let’s hope in the end, Peter knows what he truly is doing.

In this video Anna mentions how Olivia is worried about Peter and the changes in him. She worries that she is losing him…

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The three week hiatus will be tough, especially knowing that by the time the next episode airs, Fringe will be finished filming…for good. The promo looks kick ass! So great to see our old team doing what they do best, and let’s all hope that Polivia will reign supreme. The one thing I am most excited about is the fantastic jazz diva Jill Scott will be playing an Oracle. She is a huge Fringe fan, from what I hear! Ari Margolis had mentioned on twitter that Season 5 episode 8 had some of his favorite Peter and Olivia moments. Let’s hope he is right.

Now on to the review…I was particularly impressed this episode by how Peter (Joshua Jackson) was manifesting his Observer traits so quickly. I guess working on the set with them for five years now; you pick up a few things. This episode is chock full of fabulous performances, but Josh is the stand out. The others are just as good (when are they not?), but again, Josh makes this episode his own. The slight head tilt and the way he speaks are direct signs that the Observer tech has taken hold of him hopefully not completely.

It does get a little creepy though when he starts to see through the Observers eyes and can hear the conversation between two other Observers. His eaves dropping aids him in his later plan, but it also leads me to believe that he may not be in complete control. I have a feeling that what he is “seeing” is what he wants to see not what actually happens. I may be wrong, but the plan does not play out exactly as he remembers. That blank stare of his is eerie, but again he does a great job at conveying his lack of emotion.

I have said it in a past reviews how showing no emotion goes against the grain of everything an actor is taught. To be able to not show emotion in your scene is a true test of an artist and his/her craft. Bravo to Josh for falling into that category.

It is a little weird that Walter (John Noble) doesn’t really notice the change in Peter; I guess he is too concerned with his own change that is happening to notice. It is sad, though, because as we will see later in the episode how he is turning back into the man he used to be…the not-so-good man and Peter is no better than his father…

When Olivia confronts him in the lab about leaving without her, she already suspects something is amiss. She knows Peter better than anyone and you can see it in her eyes that she is worried. Anna has great body language and great emotive eyes, which is why she has always been such a great actress. I love that Peter tells Olivia “I’m fine” which is normally her answer for when things are NOT fine. It seems the shoe is now on the other foot and Olivia knows it.

It is great to see the cast assembled around the television partaking in another one of Walter’s video tapes. It makes me smile that our team is still able to stay intact even through these dire circumstances. The lab has always been a sanctuary for all of them at one point or another. All we need is Gene unambered and the lab will be complete.

As I have mentioned in a previous post, I love that in this season the writers are bringing back old familiars from past seasons, from the past Fringe cases. The cylinders have always played an integral part in Fringe history and the Observers. I wonder what will be brought back next.

The reveal of what and why William Bell’s (Leonard Nimoy) hand was in Walter’s possession is finally clear. It doesn’t surprise me though that Bell had betrayed them for his own purposes. I had a feeling that we will see him again and that he played a part in the invasion. John Noble as usual is wonderful in this scene; his heartbreak at the betrayal by his best friend is evident. He is another actor that says volumes with his eyes. The interesting thing about this scene is Walter mentions another man with an accent who was torturing him for information! Although Astrid informed him that the story was from the movie Marathon Man, I suspect that Walter may be telling somewhat of the truth…only time will tell.

I love that the posters of Etta (Georgina Haig) are a constant reminder to her family not to give up the fight. It is the one thing that keeps them going, to know that she didn’t die in vain.

Upon arriving at the storage facility, we see the utter decimation that happened and hope that the team can come up with a way to get into the storage facility. Of course with some fancy calculations they do…it’s Fringe after all, they will always figure it out.

I must mention one thing that I have absolutely loved about this show from the beginning. The writers, and not of just this episode (the wonderful Graham Roland) but every writer in general always seem to inject a bit of humor into the episodes. That humor always finds its way via Walter Bishop. John Noble takes those little morsels and makes them his own; he leaves these indelible marks on every Fringe fan and in every episode. No matter how dire the situations, how dramatic, scientific or horrendous, Walter’s sayings (or Walterisms) lighten up the show and give it that humanity that has become synonymous with exceptional television.

Nice save, Peter…when he ‘sees’ where the door are supposed to be from his newly found ability, he covers it up by saving “From an engineering point of view” instead of the truth. Olivia notices immediately his body language and his stance; she notices the blood coming from his ear and calls him on it. Once again, Peter has an answer for everything; a little too easily explained which sends sirens and red flags in Olivia’s brain that something is indeed wrong.

Peter’s plan with the briefcase backfired the first time, which is why I mentioned earlier about how he ‘sees’ what he wants to see and not how things really happen. It is a scary thought that Peter is becoming like them, but in a way it gives him the advantage…or does it? He has to be careful with Anil (Shaun Smyth), because he suspects something is wrong with Peter as well. He knows what Etta’s death did to him and is worried that it is throwing Peter deeper and deeper into the place he should not be going. Anil was a friend to Etta just like he is a friend to both Peter and Olivia, so I bet he feels responsible to her to keep them safe.

It saddens me to hear that Peter is lying to Olivia about his motives for meeting Anil. Peter has been doing a lot of lying lately, ever since he inserted that Observer tech into his body. Then again, Peter used to lie for a living; I guess old habits die hard. Still, the situation is not good when he lies to the woman he loves about his intentions. Olivia’s eyes speak volumes to him about her look of worry, as she should be. Her gut is rarely ever wrong and I suspect that it is screaming at her right now.

It is also so great to see Nina Sharp (Blair Brown) again; it wouldn’t be Fringe without her. She does play a crucial role in this episode as does William Bell (Leonard Nimoy), though not physically but indirectly. The scenes that she has with Walter (John Noble) and Olivia (Anna Torv) are wonderful. She is one of those actresses that is always great to watch because she can say so much with just a look.

Her joy at seeing Olivia again is counterbalanced by such sadness in her eyes about Etta and what pain Olivia went through. It’s a great scene with them. She shows a side of her that is normally not shown, but it nice to see. You can see the pain that she is in because of Olivia’s pain.

The scene in the garage with Walter is wonderful. I like how she asks him about his demeanor since having the parts of his brain implanted again. I know that Nina is not only concerned, but fishing to see if that man she knew before is back. I love what John Noble does in this scene. I love that he shows his humility by blaming the man he was before and vowing to never go back there. I like how he used the phrase that he wanted to “walk with the gods” as most megalomaniacs tend to do. He has Peter to keep him from becoming that man again, if Peter doesn’t beat him to it.

Creepy creepy creepy is all I have to say about the scene between Peter and Anil where he is telling him what he should have seen. Bravo to Josh again for his robotic like movements and his almost lack of emotion. I am glad that the tech hasn’t taken him completely over yet…or has it? The perplexed look on Anil’s face is great, he has a suspicion that something is not quite right.

Peter’s skills as a con come in handy when stealing the car, but it seems the Observer tech is affecting him on a level he never anticipated…watch out Peter, it can only get worse before this all is over with.

The scene in the restaurant reminds me of two things, one is my favorite Fringe episode ever (Brown Betty) and Mad Men. The sleek look of the restaurant and the hat check or in this case briefcase check girl is very much keeping with the themes of both. The banter she has with him is also very reminiscent of the film noirs and the brilliant dialogue that would be bandied about between characters.

I don’t know why there aren’t more scenes between Astrid (Jasika Nicole) and Olivia (Anna Torv)? The two actresses are great together and it shows. In the few scenes that they have had together through the course of the series have always made me grateful that they cast an actress who has the ability to be the calm in everyone’s storm. Astrid is one of the few people who can truly be the constant for everyone else’s chaos. The compassion that Astrid always has for the plight of Peter and Olivia is wonderful, she has always been a champion of theirs. Astrid has also always given Olivia hope when Olivia has doubted her relationship with Peter that is the kind of person Astrid is. She sees the pain in Olivia’s eyes when she says that she is losing Peter. Astrid’s eyes are so warm usually, but this time, she feels the pain Olivia is in and is worried about her friend…both of them. Jasika is so great as well, because despite the fact that she is most of the time shadowed by the three main characters, she still shines in her own right. She holds her own very nicely against John, Josh and Anna!

Things start to get a little hairy for the team as the episode progresses. It comes down to the wire where they have to get into that storage facility without detection. When Nina voices her fears to Walter about having Peter be his safety net isn’t enough John Noble is brilliant.

It is interesting to me that Nina is talking about how much she tried to hold onto William and how much she loved him, but that wasn’t enough. Once William tasted what it was like to be a god, all hope was lost. It is parallel to what is happening to Peter and Olivia, her immense love for him and fear of losing him may not be enough to save him. That is the price of genius I guess, the price you pay for wanting to be a god…

John is so brilliant in this scene! His words are vitriolic, they cut Nina to the core and he is brutal, but brilliant. That is what made Walternate such a great character as well, Noble was able to inhabit both completely separately, but now they are seeming to be almost melding together. Nina confirms her hunch, he is becoming the man he used to be…and that is not good at all. It’s bittersweet how Walter still holds onto the notion that Peter’s love will save him from becoming that man again, just as Nina confirmed to him that he was. Walter’s hope (there is that word again) is heartbreaking because it may not happen, we may lose both Bishop boys in the process.

Peter’s plan is diabolical, he used an old Fringe incident from the pilot episode and it certainly was a jaw dropping scene (yes, pun intended). I am glad to see that the old Fringe is back in this episode, the creepiness hasn’t been there for a while and it feels right seeing it again, as gross as it may have been. The hat in shambles on the ground is a priceless reminder that means Peter is catching up.

Once again, as in previous episodes, music plays a part and again John is brilliant! Walter’s comment about Belly stealing his record collection among other wrongs he did to him is perfection. Walter no doubt misses not only this David Bowie (who shares his real name with a villain from Fringe) album, The Man Who Sold the World, but I am sure a number of other fantastic and eclectic albums as well. Bravo to the writers, again, for infusing music as a driving force in this and many other episodes. Am I the only one not surprised that Walter loved Bowie?

The discovery of the safe is a coup for our team, yeah for them. Now all they needed was to open it, Walter to the rescue. Apparently Bell had the same combo for everything, “terrible memory…too much LSD” only one problem, Walter forgot the combination. I had forgotten that the combination was mentioned before in the Jacksonville episode, but Olivia apparently forgot it too, which is not like her. I almost expected Peter to go Observer on him and recite the combo to him, thankfully he didn’t. What was found in the safe were two things of great import, “to guard the things he loved most” as Walter mentioned. The picture of Nina proved Walter wrong about Bell’s feelings for Nina, he did indeed love her.

The something else that they find in the safe helps them find the cylinders, upon Peter touching it; they appear from underground, where it seems they like to reside. Maybe it sensed the tech in Peter’s body or he just got lucky, either way it was another piece to the intricate puzzle. Finding the clues for whatever it is that will defeat the Observers reminds me (and I am sure I am not alone in this) of the Doomsday machine. The pieces that finally came together to create the machine and what it was ultimately used for makes me think about the same thing for Walter’s plan.

When Peter hands one of the cylinders off to Olivia and says to take her car, he uses the word ‘logical’! I laughed out loud at that because it was clearly a nod to Nimoy and his iconic character (who rarely showed emotions as well) Spock. That set a huge alarm off in Olivia, so much so that she confronts him later. Kudos to the writers for paying homage to one of the greatest science fiction shows ever, Star Trek, a show that was, like Fringe, ahead of its time.

I think it is very sweet that Walter brings Nina the picture that William had of her in the safe, it is his olive branch in a way. His concerns for himself are evident, he confessed to her that she was right, love wasn’t enough for her to save William and it may not be enough to save Walter and Peter. Walter begging Nina to help him reverse the effects of his brain matter being inserted again is sad, but John again is brilliant. His fear of losing everything is visceral, as only John can make it. The desperation in his eyes is heartbreaking.

The last two scenes are my favorite, it’s Josh and Anna and what they do best. It is alarming to Olivia when she sees the boards with all of Peter’s writing on them, her hunch was right and she hates it. When Peter finally confesses to Olivia that he has the Observer tech it is the worst possible scenario imaginable. The part when Peter starts saying the same thing as Olivia is right out of the Arrival episode, another great one from the first season. Olivia is clearly shaken to her core, she is scared and fearful beyond belief, she cannot lose Peter, he is the only thing holding her together right now, her tether to the world.

Walter’s chest of treasures is their only hope of saving what is left of the universe. It is sad to know that right now he doesn’t remember, but all will be revealed. Patience is something that the team has scarce little of and hope is their only weapon right now.

The ending sequence is great. How the song “The Man That Sold the World” illuminates what is going on in the story as it is intercut with Windmark’s (Michael Kopsa) and Peter’s predictions at the same time. Walter’s letting the music wash over him as he always does in times of despair, it is his saving grace, the one thing that he can count in to give him peace. The lyrics to the song are very revealing about coming face to face with the man that sold the world, which I suspect is Bell…only time will tell. Then Peter loses a bunch of hair…not a good sign, not a good sign at all.

I just hope that the remaining episodes will be as amazing as the first seven have been. I am looking forward to the final journey of our beloved Fringe team and see how once and for all the Observers will be defeated. For now all we can do is wait, only time will tell…let’s hope it’s a happy ending. I do hope and keep my fingers crossed that there will be a movie (maybe several) in the future. I hope you enjoyed my review, I would love to hear your comments. Stay strong during the hiatus…re-watches help.

Thank you for reading and visiting WormholeRiders News Agency.

Please feel free to leave a comment here or if you prefer, click the social media icons below to share this news article.

Or as many of our readers and visitors often do, visit WHR on Twitter, or visit me on Twitter by clicking the text links or images avatars in this news story. I and Team WHR look forward to Seeing You on The Other Side“!

Thank you.

Best Regards,

Kenn

November 12, 2012
Fringe: “An Origin Story” Means Emotions May Be The Biggest Problem At War!

Hello Fringe fans!

What an episode we had last week, huh?

The most heartbreaking point of the story told here so far, the death of Etta Bishop (Georgina Haig) and how the Bishop family dealt with it. This tragic circumstance has motivated the Fringe Team to fight even harder to defeat the invaders of Earth, The Observers.

The battle continues in this weeks episode with a long title “Through the Looking Glass and What Walter Found There”.

An Origin Story:

In the fifth episode titled “An Origin Story” and right in the first scene the pain was there right before our eyes as Peter Bishop (Joshua Jackson) found Etta’s secret storage of C-4 explosives, weapons and other things while Olivia Dunham (Anna Torv) was asleep.

One nice thing that we noticed when he found his daughters stuff was the recognition of himself through his daughter smartness for having such a cute safe in her house, yes, I said cute because any weapon against Observes deserves such a description; those cold hearted motherless sons of very good nice parents that have never ever had anything to do with dirty prostitution.

As Peter was going through Etta’s stuff, Olivia woke up to an adorable and heartbreaking moment with her husband.

You know I am quite sick of the word heartbreaking because of what they have faced this season is far worse that heartbreaking! It is a whole new level of heart-wrenching which was shred to pieces over and over again in a way that cannot ever be healed.

This is how POlivia is at the moment and I guess pretty much everyone feels exactly the same. I happily have no idea what it is like to lose a child and as far as we have seen on the show, Walter destroyed one universe to save his son which ended badly.

A war had started and it caused Peter to erase him from the timeline unaware of that. Right now, Peter lost his child and what he will do to avenge her death is a question I am most curious to know about.

All of these things made that Greek sentence he learned from his mother sound very loudly in my head, has he not understood one word of that sentence?

When we got to see Olivia, I had to look somewhere else, I could not look at her, it was so painful There was pain all over her face despite the fact that there were no words said. I have said to some friends that I refuse to believe POlivia is going through all that and somehow they will get Etta back later on, they have to. It does not matter what anyone says, I will hold on to the so called blind hope until the end.

The Observers came from the future to do the business we have seen they do. It was very cool to see them get their things from the future through those black windows (wormholes) to accomplish their goals, then those white huge boxes came out of that window floating.

I was like NO WAY? The effect it had when the boxes fell on the ground was also super cool; the curiosity is killing me about what the heck was on the other side of that wormhole.

At first, when I watched he promo I thought It was Over There and the hopes of seeing Altlivia, the absolutely sexy hot, red head Anna Torv and Agent Lee (Seth Gabel) but now as we know it was the future… WHAT THE HECK?! Seriously awesome!

The window they opened reminded me of season one’s window opened by David Robert Jones (Jared Harris) who was on the hunt for William Bell (Leonard Nimoy) and to do it he had shot Nina Shark, sorry, Sharp (Blair Brown) to get a power cell from her mechanical arm.

The huge difference was that we could actually see things over there, as if we were looking through a window and in this one the Observers have opened. All we could see was black probably because back in season one, the opened wormhole was both at the same time, here and over. They are different from what happened in this episode which was a connection between present and future.

The scene of Walter Bishop (John Noble) asking POlivia to keep Etta’s perfume which helps him cope with the loss remembering her as a little kid was rather simple and awesome at the same time. Right after that, Peter got a call from Astrid Farnsworth (Jasika Nicole) that led to some Walter/Astrid greatness involving a propane tank plus an ethanol gallon in Amber very close to the tapes they need which unfortunately made it impossible to retrieve more video tapes for now, all due to Walter’s cooking habits.

Olivia got a phone call too, but from Anil (Shaun Smyth) to tell them about the Observer’s dirty work. The thing is, the baldies have brought these white huge boxes from the future to build their pollution machine to make the air breathable to them.

Of course the resistance wanted to attack the next one, even though it will not be possible unless they can read that weird language the Observers write on their note pads. They also showed who they got as hostage, a baldie!

As far as I am concerned, they have worked hard and they have gone nowhere, but lost Etta.

So I agree with Peter. It is not the time to be all careful and afraid; they have to do something big like shoving an anti-matter thingy up inside a place you would not like to know. An idea that sounded possible and more effective, they would try to turn those wormholes into black holes which would cause massive destruction on the other side.

Walter explained it well, though I did not buy his idea I do not know why, it sounded like he wanted Peter do something he knew would not work or it was something else entirely. I just know that it looked weird.

As Olivia herself pointed out that there was one problem. How would they get close enough to throw the anti-matter bomb inside the wormhole? This was a problem given the fact that it was full of Observers and Loyalists around. Olivia was really worried about the whole plan, but it was not all.

She was really afraid of losing Peter, too, given the danger of the plan. It was difficult to put the plan into action, because the cube the resistance got from the Observers was deactivated and he needed the captured Observer (John Prosky) help to activate it.

This scene was absurdly interesting and just WOW, Peter was reading him this time, the talented gambler was back and he managed to build the cube without a word from the Observer.

Everything seemed to be working perfectly well despite the interference from an Observer, Peter threw the bomb at the hole and it exploded which made all white boxes come back to the hell where they had come from; however it did not work at all.

While they were escaping believing the plan had worked, Anil, Peter and Olivia spotted another portal with those white boxes coming out of it. FAILURE, again. There was one sentence Olivia said about the gun she used to shot the Observer while he tried to stop them from exploding the wormhole, she said “Yes, it is that type of gun” and this gun was created by Bell, remember Brave New World parts one and two?

Bell surely had some knowledge about the Observers’ technology at that time. It is all interesting because for the whole time, he knew stuff but to what length did he know things? The questions are endless.

The participation of John Prosky as the captured Observer was absolutely crazy awesome. His speech about the ant colony and how Peter feels about he Observers was amazing.

Peter was oblivious to his limitation refusing to acknowledge the Observers superiority in power, and it led me to think about the perception of things that we have had on season five so far. There has been some anomalies this season, I do not know how, it is so hard, to put them to words.

What if the whole thing is some sort of shared consciousness of the characters with September (Michael Cerveris)? It would mean that none of this has already happened but yet, it will happen. We know for sure that September is a friend to them and it is undeniable that these Observers would smash humanity in a blink of an eye, though WHY have not they done it? WHY is the resistance so active?

The Observers do have the power, the means, anything necessary to wipe mankind off the planet and they have not done it. Maybe what is happening here is what happened in Lysergic Acid Diethylamide back in season three, but longer. My point is, September knew they had no chance against the baldies and maybe helping them see what he must have experienced so they would have a chance. It sounds too absurd to say that, but I do not know what to think anymore.

The “poker” game between Peter and the captured Observer was simply magnificent, but the fact that it was the game of one player due to the fact that even arrested, tied and unable to do anything, the damned observer was still in control of himself and in part, of the situation. Was he being read by Peter and as said, afraid?

Or was he just pretending, manipulating Peter because you know, we are always looking for a pattern everywhere even if there is no pattern at all, looking for a meaning where there is none?

It made me feel like we have no way out of this, and it is all lost. Frakking Observer! Based on the observation of a fly, Peter took the decisions he took regarding building the cube up solely from his intuition and knowledge about engineering which came from the future, a very distant future, by the way. Too much in my head.

Remember the conversation between Peter and Olivia about the fact that she was afraid she might lose him? Walter listened to it and as the biggest POlivia shipper of all time, he found a way to help them out with a tape from one of Etta’s birthdays before the frakking invasion which Olivia refused to watch at first.

The conversation he had with Olivia was the most important thing that has happened so far in season five. Olivia had dealt with her pain building walls around her heart once and Walter himself broken the whole universe because he could not cope with losing a son.

He also mentioned vengeance from his evil doppelganger Walternate. They have to deal with it together otherwise what Olivia fears the most is gonna happen, they will lose each other and it just cannot happen. I cannot understand what the Awards people must think what good TV is.

Maybe their minds are full of stupidity and their way to judge what is good and bad is just craptastic. I am not sorry if I offend anyone, I am sorry I do not feel sorry.

This TV show and its cast have been slapped in the face throughout the years and I just do not get it. The scene between Olivia and Walter was just super awesome, why cannot they see the talent here?

At this point, I am not sure of anything else; one thing did scare me. Peter told the Observer if he had that tech inside him, he would be ten times what the bald one is. SCARY!

By the look in the Observer’s face, what did he read there? Have I understood what I…? No! Not possible that Peter is actually thinking about it. However as it turns out, he did it. Peter took the tech out of the Observer’s head and inserted into him to my absolute shock, I mean, has he lost his mind completely?

If I could, I would have screamed at him DO NOT FRAKKING DO THIS FRAK FOR FRAK’S SAKE, but unfortunately, Olivia’s call came a bit late as she said she needed him to come home in one of the saddest scenes ever as she was crying her heart out as she watched her daughter’s birthday party video tape.

He already had the thingy inside him and Gene in heaven protects Peter from what I think will happen now. Did you see the look in his eyes?

Has Peter gone completely powered up Observer mode angry-mad bad-ass? Smokes come out of my head.

Maybe it is all happening, and Peter will become a rough, cold hearted Observer, but it does not mean it is all lost. The Observers are emotion free, right? The do not have hearts.

If it is all caused by tech that takes all emotion from them, it does not happen smoothly. I’d like to believe that there is a crack in all things for obvious reasons.

Remember Sheriff Mathis played by the great Martha Plimpton, right? In season two, episode called Northwest Passage?

You just need to find a crack in the darkness so the light will get in and this whole thing was not mentioned one, but throughout the whole series.

We are led to think about it in minimal pieces of dialogue or in major ones like in the ditto episode or like in the fourth season, episode One Night In October that even with having his mind completely erased by his counterpart, Professor McClennan (John Pyper-Ferguson) still had in his heart the thinking about darkness and light taught by Margery (Julie Schnekenburger).

Do you remember when Broyles (Lance Reddick) told Olivia about the indelible mark, an imprint people leave on our souls so big it cannot be erased and it changes us forever, if it is all happening for real, then this is how Peter will be saved if what I think happens to be true, which I hope is not the case at all.

I also hope that no one helps The Observers like seen in the Reward Wire videos by FOX Broadcasting!

My thanks to Kenn for video embedding and Lori for final proof of my review. As always, we appreciate you visiting the WormholeRiders News Agency!

Feel free to share this article by clicking the social media icons below. You can visit me on Twitter by clicking the text links or images avatars here. In any event, the WormholeRiders will look forward to Seeing You on The Other Side on Twitter to tweet about Fringe!

Thanks for reading!

Raphael

November 8, 2012
Fringe Turning Point: The Bullet That Saved The World…and Shattered My Heart at the Same Time!

Well Fringe fans, this past episode rendered me shocked and speechless.

My tissue box is minus a dozen or so tissues and my heart is broken. For everyone that has seen this episode you clearly know the reasons why.

Fringe has pulled out all the stops and then some, as I stated in a previous review, they are definitely going to go out with a bang and not a whimper.

This episode proves it in spades. I know that the remaining episodes will be a tour de force for everyone involved including the gifted and gorgeous Georgina Haig in her role in Fringe below.

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Before I start my review, let me comment on that intense promo for next week’s episode. It is clear that Peter has only one thing on his mind and when he gets it set there is no changing it.

An Origin Story will also give us a chance to see our beloved Polivia reconnect over the loss of their most precious soul. I for one cannot wait, it will be epic!

The Bullet That Saved the World:

Now, on to the episode, I like how it starts with Peter (Joshua Jackson) siphoning gas from a car and then heading into a pawn shop. The items that are shown are definite reminds of my youth and of the bygone era that I am sure Peter longs to get back to. If Walter had entered that pawn shop, well, the phrase kid in a candy store would be an understatement.

The shop clerk (H.A. Hunter) is trying to get him to buy other things than what he came in for, typical. Peter has his mind set on one thing and one thing only, he just wants to get that thing and get out. The Observer reads him, but Peter tries his hardest to fill his mind with random thoughts so that the Observer won’t know his true intention.

Joshua Jackson is great in this scene because you can see his body language change the second the Observer hands him the necklace. His demeanor becomes somewhat confident but with a definite undertone of nerves. This Observer does not seem as vicious as the others, he seems almost passive, which leads me to believe that not ALL the Observers are as bad as we think, September (Michael Cerveris) being the prime example.

Peter’s nerves are clearly starting to surface and that is never more evident than when he leaves the shop and has to literally fight his way out of the situation. He desperately wants to get back to his family. It is always fun to watch Josh be bad ass, it harkens back to his past and all the times I am sure he had to fight his way out of sticky situations.

The clever boy that he is, Peter escapes down a sewer drain, but not without the situation getting dire after a bomb conveniently follows him down there!

Thankfully Peter makes it out alive, a little worse for the wear but alive. I am sure Peter is used to it by now, but it is still great to see him alive and breathing.

Meanwhile back at the lab…another great scene where Walter (John Noble) infuses his humor in the situation. John or Walter I should say always has a way of making even the most drastic situations a bit lighter because if his comments. This episode is no exception as we see in this scene and in some to follow.

The scene in the lab with Peter, Olivia (Anna Torv) and Etta (Georgina Haig) is a wonderful Bishop family moment. The concern that Olivia has for him is evident, even though there is some strain between them at the moment, the deep love they have for each other out weighs that.

I love that Peter again calls Etta kiddo and that he tells her the bumps and bruises are worth it. Any parent would say the same thing; they would gladly manifest their child’s pain if they could. I love that Etta is the one that ends up schooling her parents on how they will learn to deceive the Observers when being read. It shows how the combination of both Peter and Olivia is ever present in their daughter.

Georgina does excellent work in this episode as we will see as it progresses. The doubt and fear that Peter has about the Observers being two steps ahead and not knowing how to beat them, it trumped by Etta and her unwavering hope that they will defeat them…one by one.

Hope seems to be a recurrent theme in these episodes so far and I do not suspect it will be going away anytime soon. It is the one thing that they can hold on to. Sometimes that it all that you need to give you the strength to carry on. Hope is a very powerful thing, it is what saves people’s lives and gives them guts to face their fear head on.

I feel that in this season everyone is at the top of their game; they are the best they can be. Maybe it is because the actor’s finally know the fate of their characters and know how the series will end. The writing has always been brilliant, but again, this season is at its peak, with the loose ends from all the past seasons finally falling into place.

I have a few wild theories that I will pose to you the reader a bit later in my review. I may be way off on them, but in Fringe world, anything is possible.

It was so great to see Broyles (Lance Reddick) again! It wouldn’t be Fringe without him. I just hope we also get to see Blair Brown in the next few episodes, I miss Nina Sharp. The scene with Windmark (Michael Kopsa) in the pawn shop is great. It is a little weird seeing Broyles taking orders from someone else, when we are so used to seeing him giving the orders.

You can see the awkward way that Broyles is around Windmark, Lance pulls this off beautifully. He has a somewhat defeated disposition about him when it comes to taking orders from Windmark. Broyles, however, still has that toughness to him; he always has that authoritative air about him, but also knows compassion and loyalty as we will see later in the episode.

It’s sad to hear Windmark being so technical about the necklace and asking why would Peter come and risk his freedom for something so unexceptional. It makes you wonder just what happened to make the Observers so strict and inhuman. What caused this lack of emotion so much that they have become robotic? We may never find out…but then again maybe we will it’s Fringe after all. It is also sad because it makes me think about how such a small thing like a necklace can mean so much to the person who wears it. How that small gesture speaks volumes about the intention behind it.

The scene at the lab with the team as they are watching yet another one of Walter’s tapes, he mentions a story about how his mother took him on these Manhattan Mystery Tours which makes Olivia hang her head in her hands at the ridiculousness of the story. Hilarious! But Walter being Walter it all comes to a point about where the plans are hidden.

What comes next is very cool and unexpected, leave it to Walter to always be thinking, albeit not always clearly or rationally, ahead. His reference to the detective comics that Walter had as a child makes me think of the “Brown Betty” episode (which as you all know is my most favorite episode ever). Fringe…a full circle show. His mention of Pinkos and the mosquito comment later in the scene are classic Walter answers…brilliance at its finest.

The discovery of the past Fringe cases is so fraking cool! I love how the show always manages to take you back to the past cases, that everything in Fringe is connected. Maybe Walter did know something about what the future held, but again his memories are scattered at best. I love that he mentions that they should make a few Fringe events of their own. The one they chose was from the first season, the episode was call “Ability“. It was a horrific way to die, suffocating to death, no thanks!

Walter and food…I need not go into an explanation on this one, except to say that as usual, his stomach has won the battle and has not ceased to amaze me.

The disgusting but hilarious way that Walter tastes the jelly from the twenty plus year old doughnut hole, well, thankfully I wasn’t eating at the time. Again, I love how Walter or rather John Noble in this case can take such joy in the antics of our most beloved crazy scientist.

The scene with the Loyalist in the room with the Observer was scary, but in a way it was necessary, because it revealed a new aspect to the story. The code word Dove was mentioned, there has been speculation as who the dove actually is.

Some say its Broyles others think it was Etta or just maybe it could be someone else entirely different. The dove has always been a symbol of peace, harmony and hope…there is that word again. It comes as no surprise that Fringe has used this to give weight to the fight that they are currently in.

When the Observer asks Broyles about the relationship that he had with the Fringe team, a red flag went off. It seems that Windmark knows a lot about things that are past and that may be used against Broyles or other team members in the future. It is scary that Windmark has that ace up his sleeve. He is the true definition of diabolical. You can tell that the Observer is trying to read Broyles thoughts, but he was taught well and is able to deflect them.

One of my favorite scenes this episode is watching Walter and Peter play with a homemade projectile gun and he says “Pull!” and launches something in Astrid’s (Jasika Nicole) direction. The giddy look on both Bishop Boys faces is priceless. It is nice to see those wonderful father/son moments that have been rare but always profound. It also shows the hope that they have and the way that they can somehow imbue humor into their grim situation.

The next scene with the two fantastic actresses is wondrous. Those mother/daughter moments are what make it so wonderful to watch. Georgina Haig and Anna Torv have and incredible chemistry, one would think that they could be actual mother and daughter.

It is so beautiful to see Etta explain how she came about the bullet that she wears. I love that Etta says that she wore it to feel closer to her. She clearly had been thinking about her parents and finding them longer than we expected. “I figured it had to be important or you wouldn’t have kept it,” Etta says to her mother.

Oh kiddo if you only knew. Your very existence is due to that bullet and the symbolism of it. It’s even more poignant to hear what Peter called the bullet, a fact that we do know from “Brave New World Part 2“.

Again we see the sheer brilliance of Anna Torv and her aptitude to convey subtly, she has perfected it. You can also see the sadness in her eyes for the past that she remembers and longs for again. The memory of it forever etched in her photographic memory.

After that poignant scene things start to get volatile. The team’s sense of urgency is heightened when they know they have been compromised, thanks to Olivia’s idea of re-ambering the lab, it buys them some much needed time to escape. It also sets them back since now they have to work twice as hard to extract everything that they had to re-amber again. It seems their work is never ending.

When Windmark makes the statement that Etta had hid her thoughts from them and that others may have the ability as well, it is not a good sign. Windmark is onto something he just needs confirmation and he intends to get it anyway he can. He has no qualms about the way he does it, his way or no way.

The Walter electrocution line again, funny, but what follows it is what makes the last 15 minutes of this episode harrowing, heartbreaking, breathtaking and gut wrenching. It is writing like this that always put Fringe in the top notch of exceptional shows.

When Peter and Walter enter the train station and finally find their way underground the x that marked the spot is an age old symbol that was used in the 1940’s “Kilroy was here”…indeed he was. It is lucky for Walter that he used such an iconic symbol to mark where the schematics are.

Peter and Walter are interrupted by an Observer that seems, after being shot by Peter, to be able to teleport preternaturally. Finally escaping to find the other team members our heroes breathe a sigh of relief, if only temporary.

I love that Broyles pulls out a picture of Peter and Olivia from their days in Fringe Division. They were a part of his family as much as they were his team members and colleagues. The schematics look veryfamiliar to Fringe fans.

They look suspiciously like the etchings that were made on the table in Walter’s cell in St. Clair’s, only problem is he cannot remember them. I have a feeling I know why. I will be posting my theories at the end of this review.

The scene with the Broyles and team reunion is so great. It is such a beautiful exchange between Olivia and Broyles, whom she calls “Philip” which I don’t think he she has ever done.

It is so great to hear about how Broyles met Etta and that he had a hunch who she was before she told him. The affection that Broyles had always had for Olivia is definitely shown in his interaction with her. I love also that as soon as he found out who Etta was that he knew he’d join the resistance.

I love that Broyles mentions that Etta taught him instead of the other way around. Like mother like daughter. Some tissues were definitely used during this scene, well worth it though.

The irony of Windmark using the word barbaric to show his disgust for what the Fringe team did is very interesting. He is just as barbaric if not worse when it comes to what he has done to get the information that is needed from Walter or anyone he crosses paths with. Plus what happens in the last few scenes is the very definition and he shows that he is the epitome of the word and then some.

The hardware that Broyles brings to the Fringe team is frightening, but unfortunately a necessity in the war they fight, a fight that ends in the worst way possible. The last scenes are definitely edge of your seat when the team is chased into the warehouse. It was in these scenes that the heartbreak began and ended with the most poignant, gut wrenching, beautiful and utterly devastating loss in Fringe history to date.

Tissues and swear words were used by this reviewer profusely throughout these last scenes, both being strewn in all directions. The gun fight is reminiscent of past Fringe episodes and it always makes for great television. When Windmark asks Etta, while he is chocking her why Peter bought her the necklace, she for the first time lets him see in her mind. A memory of before the Observers invaded, her childhood, the one time in her life when she was happy.

It is a gorgeous scene and Georgina is a masterpiece. She is so at peace in this moment that it is almost surreal. She knows her fate, she knows what has to be done and she is the willing sacrifice. Love, her motivation since she found the bullet, she needed to find her parents, needed their love and to love them.

Something Windmark knows nothing about and will never know about. “You never know when to give up” Windmark says to her…she is a Dunham & a Bishop they never give up. It was in her DNA the second she was conceived and runs through her veins like her blood.

When Etta was shot, it was truly the shot heard around the world. I can honestly say that I never expected it and worldwide gasp and scream were heard from Fringe fans everywhere. When Olivia utters Etta, it is heartbreaking, she feels it, and she knows in her gut that something is wrong. A mother knows and has an instinct that will always be connected to her child.

The fact that Etta is holding onto the necklace is truly heartbreaking, I am teary eyed just re-watching and thinking about what it symbolizes. It truly is the bullet that saved the world, ironically because it is the catalyst that will drive her parents to continue the fight and avenge her death.

When Olivia, Peter and Walter find her, the flood gates of emotion open for me and I am sure every Fringe fan out there. There are not many shows that can make me cry, but this one managed to do it, this scene in particular. I suspect the finale episode I will be a puddle of snot and tears on my bed, but that is yet to come.

This is probably the most beautiful scene ever filmed in Fringe…so far. The way that Etta has come to terms with her fate, that she is calm and knows that she is leaving her parents after just finding them. She also knows what it’s like to be loved by her parents, to be a family again and to fight side by side with them as she always wanted to.

This scene reminds me of two things, What Edwin Massey (Paul McGillion) said in “The Recordist” episode about cowardice “You are not a coward if you are afraid, you are a coward and you know what needs to be done and you don’t do it”. Etta is her mother’s daughter, she is always putting others above herself, and she sacrifices herself for the good of the resistance.

She knows what needs to be done and without hesitation she does it. She becomes the hero, the martyr, the dove if you will a true testament of her genes and her love for her family. The other is my theory from a past episode regarding the chess game.

Both Anna and Josh astound in this scene. The frantic way they are trying to stop the bleeding and telling her they can get her help is calmed by Etta saying to leave her. The look in Olivia’s eyes is heartbreaking, Anna once again is astonishing, and she is a force of nature.

When Olivia tells Etta “I love you so much” it is profound, she doesn’t say that often and when she does she means it with her entire being. Etta’s response is perfect, “I know”-she always did, but to hear it from her mother, she can die in peace.

Josh is so amazing in this scene, he shows how distraught he is, he reacts the same way he did when Olivia was shot by Walter in season three finale. His world is shattered; again, he has lost her again, his perfect little soul.

No parent should go through that, but he now knows how Walter felt when he lost Peter twice. Walter is also mourning the loss of his only granddaughter, John again and always brilliant.

When the team is not been found, Windmark assumes that because of love they would go back and get Etta, once they investigate and find out they were wrong, they discover two things, they necklace is gone and the anti-matter bomb that she has, with seconds left on it. How Windmark gets out of there is beyond me. From a distance, her family watches and mourns the loss of one of their own, their daughter Etta who is now with her partner Simon Foster (Henry Ian Cusick)…partners forever.

The last scene of Olivia holding onto Etta’s necklace made my cry again. It will truly be the symbol of her undying drive to make sure that Etta didn’t die in vain. The look on Peter’s face as the episode ends is heartbreaking, his world ended the second her last breathe was taken. He will make it his mission for the rest of his life to exact revenge on the people who did this.

The hashtag for this episode was #TurningPoint and indeed it was for the whole team. A lot of fans were hoping that this would be Josh’s episode to shine, but I think the next week’s episode “An Origin Story” will be the one where we really see what Peter Bishop (Joshua Jackson) is made of.

I just hope that he uses that brain of his and knows that revenge is never the answer; as good as it may feel. It will definitely be an episode that will be talked about and no doubt will be one of Josh’s best.

Okay…now to my Fringe theories:

I have a feeling that we will definitely see William Bell (Leonard Nimoy) again. I think he has something to do with either the Observers invading or as Walter said to help complete his plan. Bell has been involved with Fringe either directly or indirectly from the beginning. He is definitely a cog in the wheel somehow.

When Bell talked about the Chess game in Brave New World Part 1, he had mentioned that “The most valuable piece is the Bishop and for the game to be won the Bishop must be sacrificed”. I had assumed that the Bishop was Olivia, now I think it was Etta. Bell knew the game, he saw the future, and he had already been there. “The art of chess, the art is knowing when a piece is most valuable (Etta) and then in that very moment, being willing to sacrifice it.

For in the vacuum created by the loss of one that is most precious (Etta’s death) opportunity abounds. Influence maximized and desire becomes destiny (Peter and Olivia’s wanting to avenge Etta’s death). It is a clever way for the writers to throw us off track and then truly reveal what was meant by Bishop being the most valued piece.

I think the parts of Walter’s brain that were extracted are the very parts that contain the information to the schematics found and I do believe that September dictated them to him. The Observers have the ability to cross time and September has always been part of the Fringe team’s life.

He knows their future but cannot tell them, so he told Walter the plan and then slightly changed it so that the events of the future would come back to that plan. There were also theories on Facebook about maybe doing another reset to before the Observers invaded so our team can defeat them before they invade.

Okay, those are my theories, I may be way off or right on the money, only time will tell. Thanks for reading this long review, I would love to hear your comments on it.. I hope you dried your eyes and put your heart back together, until next week…RIP Etta Bishop, you will be missed.

I hope you enjoyed my review and my previous news articles about find memories of Fringe at San Diego Comic-Con 2012 and I thank you for visiting WormholeRiders News Agency.

Please feel free to leave a comment here or If you prefer, you may also click the social media icons below to share this news article or as many of our readers and visitors often do, visit me on Twitter by clicking the links or images avatars in this news story. See You on The Other Side“!

Until next time,

Regards,

Lori

October 31, 2012
Fringe: Brave New World Part One – Will We All Survive?!
Hello fellow Fringe fans,

It has been a wild ride that has almost come to an end. In this episode, part one of the two part season finale (sounds better than series finale, does not it?), we get some questions answered and even more questions asked. I am very happy about the renewal even though it is not a full season, thirteen episodes is better than none.

Before we delve into the brave new world, let us take a moment to talk about the epic promo for part two of the finale. Bell (Leonard Nimoy) is back, Olivia (Anna Torv) is activated and someone loses their life…or do they? To say this week will be the longest in Fringe history is an understatement!

Included below courtesy of FOX Broadcasting are the promo trailer. Thanks FOX!
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Editorial – Season Five Renewal:

Before I start with my review,. I want to say thank you to The Powers That Be (TPTB) who renewed our beloved show. The mixed response to the decision of giving us thirteen final episodes and not the full twenty two is interesting to me. Some fans are very happy about the thirteen episodes others are pissed off that we do not get a full season.

My response to the fans that are not happy about it is this…be thankful, it pushes us closer to syndication, which is a huge deal for all parties involved. It also gives us a chance for closure, a chance to finally give us the ending it deserves. That is the one thing that everyone is in agreement on, the fact that we will have an ending. Whether the ending is one that we all love or hate or are indifferent to, I do think that whatever the ending be it will definitely no doubt be extraordinary, memorable, heartbreaking and fitting.

Yes it will be sad to see it end. I will be mourning Fringe as I have been mourning The Sopranos every since it ended. It will be one of the shows that leaves an indelible mark in television history. Shows like both Fringe and the Sopranos do not come along often, but when they do their impact is felt throughout your life and in television history.

This something that should be celebrated it is a benchmark, it’s a notch on a timeline, it is something that should (and will) be talked about for years to come. The love that the fans worldwide have for Fringe will always be there, it has changed lives, brought people together and has forever bonded them together. Fringe is a once in a lifetime show and I for one am glad to be a part of it up until the very end.

Brave New World Part One:

Now…on to the Brave New World, I am extremely happy that this is a season finale and again not a series finale. The only problem with watching Fringe on the night it airs is that I am on twitter and I miss so much, so watching again is a treat. It was as Ari Margolis said jaw dropping and wonderful and amazing and my Polivia heart was soaring.

I loved the usage of the musak version of Billy Idol’s ‘Eyes Without a Face’ it cracked me up!

What started out as a seemingly normal commute day for the citizens of Boston, ended in the most bizarre way.

We begin observing the Fringe activity with Neal (Reese Alexander) getting his usual morning beverage and heading out for his work day when something unusual happens. The other people are horrified by what they see and soon discover that they are afflicted with the same problem. Yikes…my advice, do not drink the coffee it can kill you.

I commend the actors in that scene, it is very difficult to not move in that scene, to become almost statuesque. That is an exercise that is fundamental in acting class and they all pulled it off brilliantly.

The next scene is one that has put a permanent smile on my face. We get to see our beloved Polivia again. I have always loved when we get to see Olivia (Anna Torv) and Peter (Joshua Jackson) being domestic and ‘normal’. It makes their love story that much more real for me and much more epic.

I had assumed that when Olivia had said nursery in response to the number of bedrooms in their future house that she was already pregnant with Etta (Georgina Haig), but apparently I was wrong.

It was a clever way for the writers to give us that little hope and nod to the future, but it still is not quite within their reach yet. Regardless, it is a wonderful scene and as always Josh and Anna play it perfectly. It never seems to fail that their phones always interrupt them, call of duty is never far behind.

Walter (John Noble) and Astrid (Jasika Nicole) at the Fringe event is hilarious. The way that Walter is inadvertently guiding the hasmet guys to where they should be is brilliant. His use of the word “Ninny” is priceless.

I also love the growing relationship between the two colleagues and friends. it is a testament to how incredibly well they both work together and how each of them thinks of the other as family.

The comment about house hunting and a nursery was wonderful because Olivia is pregnant following the time-line of the alternate universe, only slightly offset in our reality!

To digress for a moment…the fact that I found out that Robin Williams is a huge Fringe fan and would love to be in an episode is EPIC with a capital E. How amazing would that be to see him and Walter go head to head as crazy scientists or maybe as a reformed mental patient? I for one would be glued to my television that night. I know that the producers did hear about it and agreed that it would be unbelievable, let us hope we do get to see that before the end of the series.

Now to the next scene which features the wonderfully talented Rebecca Mader! So great to see another LOST alum gracing the screen again. I love how we do get to see some of the other actors from other Abrams shows, the respect is evident.

Rebecca’s character Jessica Holt is great in her scene with Walter, his alien comment again cracked me up. John Noble can deliver lines like no one else on the planet, it is still amazing to me that he has been snubbed time and time again for an Emmy. When Walter asks to take a blood sample and Jessica’s response of the phrase that men always say is great. It gives us a small glimpse into what w find out later on about Jessica’s home situation.

Walter’s care in handling her is nice. He is gentle and sympathetic, I also like the fact that she is willing to do anything to help them find a cure. The scene with Walter and the vial of blood is very cool. It reminds me of a Shakespearean soliloquy, the way he is handling it and examining it. She will be the willing guinea pig for the mad scientist and his wild theories. The fact that she is a registered nurse and understands the importance of the situation makes her willingness much nobler.

The scene in the lab with the team trying to find a cure for the problem Jessica is having is a great Anna Torv scene. She once again does what she does best, she crosses that boundary between good and brilliant.

This scene reminds me of the X-Men, Rogue (Anna Paquin) and Jean Grey (Famke Janssen) as Jessica’s body temperature begins to rise dangerously high, they are racing against time to stop it. With precious seconds left Olivia grabs her hand and manifests Jessica’s aliment, she takes her pain away. This is why it reminds me of Rogue; she had the ability to temporarily posses the abilities of anyone she touched. Olivia’s ability to do this is as much of a mystery to her as it is to everyone else.

It is great to see Olivia’s abilities surface again, to see her somewhat embrace her ability to a certain extent even though she is afraid of it. It also, though, gives me a sense of foreboding, because as great as it is to see her using her abilities it could be the very thing that could be her downfall. Just like Jean Grey, her abilities could be what ultimately kills her, it could be the one thing that she cannot control, and in fact it would end up controlling her.

Here is essentially a woman (Olivia) who was programmed, if you will, to be a soldier, the one, the strongest out of all the Cortexiphan kids. She was the one that was the leader, it goes back to season two when Bell had pulled her to the alternate universe and told her what her destiny is.

The ability that Olivia has is remarkable, but deadly the same way that Jean Grey was ultimate in her ability, but what happened to her when that power consumed her was drastic. Who Jean was disappeared, who she was became died away, she becomes a weapon and the only way to save her was to end her life…to set her free.

The irony or bittersweet of it all was that the one person who could reach her, the one person that could help her was also the man that loved her, much like Peter with Olivia. Logan made the sacrifice, it nearly killed him in the process but he needed to save her from herself and give her the peace she desired. I have a fear that Peter may have to do the same with Olivia, that the only way to save her is to kill her, set her free. Remember what September said to her…what her fate is…

It is of no surprise to anyone that Jones is once again involved with the nanites and the problems it caused. I think that he did this deliberately, did it to draw Olivia out. I think that it has been the plan all along, get rid of the alternate universe, the distractions.

The scene with Walter and his discovery of the way the antibodies were formed is crucial. Especially since if you look at them they seem to have a little X stamped on them somehow…which goes back to the mystery Mr. X who is the one that is supposedly the one that ends Olivia’s life.

The look on Walter’s face when he finally realizes that it was not Jones, all along, but his long lost partner William Bell, who is the mastermind of this whole scheme. The way that Bell comes back into the picture is great. Aboard that crazy ship of creatures is the man who wants to play god. That laugh that Nimoy has is a dead giveaway and it was so great to hear it first before you get to see him.

I must give kudos to the producers for keeping that secret. It was a brilliant move and I for one loved it. What better way to end the season then to have Bell be the man behind the curtain the whole time.

The scene between Harris and Nimoy about the chess game and the defeat that they suffered if only temporary was brilliant. His explanation of the winning move and the winning game to Jones is diabolical, but perfect, the way he tells him that the Bishop is the most important piece is metaphorical, because it means not only Peter and Walter, but Olivia. She is a ‘Bishop’ if by pure association, she is the one that needs to be sacrificed. Bell talks about patience and how it has been twenty years since his last move, he wanted to make sure that the time was perfect.

“The art of chess, the art is knowing when a piece is most valuable (Olivia) and then in that very moment, being willing to sacrifice it. For in the vacuum created (the machine) by the loss of one that is most precious (Olivia’s death and Peter resetting the timeline), opportunity abounds. Influence maximized and desire becomes destiny (Peter and Olivia’s immense love for one another brought him back).” This speech is a culmination of all that has been happening up until now. How Bell has had this as his plan the whole time, he was just waiting for the right time to strike. The way that the writers have built this awesome bridge to the gap is another one of a million reasons why I love this show.

“The most valuable piece is the Bishop and for the game to be won the Bishop must be sacrificed”-meaning Olivia. She is the one that has to ultimately be sacrificed, the one that will give Bell his power (which were the glyphs for this episode). It also makes me think of episode 419 ‘Letters of Transit” at the end when Walter reveals that something did happen to Olivia at the hands of Bell.

I feel bad for Walter trying to explain that Bell is alive to everyone and no one believing him is so frustrating and John Noble plays it perfectly. It is almost as if he is back at St. Claire’s and that is a feeling he never wishes to have. His refusal to let it go is perfect, he is right, he knows in his gut that he is right, nothing and no one can tell him otherwise and to prove it he goes back to the one place that is his worst nightmare.

The scenes at St. Claire’s are brilliant, John Noble at his finest. The way his demeanor is sitting at his table tracing his hand over his etchings and then when he exits the room is real. You can feel the tension and unease of him. The most brilliant part, though, is when the janitor asks him if he is just visiting or coming back, and Walter’s reaction is visceral his body reverts back to itself when he was at St. Claire’s. That is the stuff Emmy’s are given for…that whole scene from beginning to end is the reason he should get an Emmy.

It is a pleasure to see Samantha Noble as Doctor Benlow in this episode. It is nice to know that the Noble talent has a second generation. John in this scene is hilarious, the way he is snarky towards her and the way he smells and licks the pages of the log book.

It must have been a treat to watch her dad at work, I know it is always a treat for me to watch John work. His end comment of her being prettier than her predecessor is great.

I do have one complaint in the scene with Olivia cutting vegetables; she is sitting down, which is NOT correct. I have never seen any chef that I know (and I know a lot) sit and cut vegetables, it just does not happen.

Anyway, that is the one thing I have a problem with. Her cut finger and the way Peter takes care of her is sweet. His love for he is profound and shows in his actions that have always spoken volumes.

When she explains how she was talking about Jessica and the normal life that she longed for. Of course normal does not exist in Fringe world, but they make do with what they have. Her fear of what she is becoming is palpable, she has this thing inside her that is a mystery to her, but it is the one thing that can possible save her.

She has no idea just how powerful she is, again it reminds me of Jean Grey and the power she possessed was so great that it had to be prevented from surfacing or the fate of the world would be dead. I feel that Olivia has that same power and it will take Peter to stop her from using it, just as Logan did for Jean.

The means to the end was tragic, but necessary, the fate of the world is in danger. Again it reminds me of S2E4 ‘Momentum Deferred’ when Bell tells Olivia that she was the strongest of the Cortexiphan kids, when she needs to keep Peter by her side. Momentum can be deferred but it always must always be paid back and it seems to be doing that now.

The speech that Peter gives to Olivia about all they have been through and he would not lose her again is beautiful. The love he has is absolute and deep, I fear though that something may happen to take her away from him again. This scene is great between Josh and Anna, they have a perfect chemistry on screen. I love how his fingers linger or brush her chin when he takes his hand away, it is very affectionate and makes my point. Epic love stories are always complicated that is what makes them epic, timeless and historical. Boring is never remembered but that kind of love is.

The sun light that destroys the building is cool. I like how it is almost like a beam of light from god coming down and punishing the sinners. Broyles (Lance Reddick) always has the best expressions on his face.

The disco ball comment is priceless, again, another brilliant reason that John’s flawless performance of Walter Bishop is something to behold. He always seems to be just on the surface of crazy, but never quite getting there.

I like the lemon cake scene because it harkens back to my favorite Fringe episode ever. The fact that the cortexiphan is regenerative is exactly what happened in Brown Betty when Olivia was cut by September with that laser and then as Astrid was patching her up, she began to heal…like the wound never happened. That gives us hope that if something does happen to Olivia she will be okay. I mean the only way to really kill her is a bullet to the brain as we saw in the previous timeline.

The peace out and the speech that Walter utters is one of the best that I have seen in a long time. He is so determined to find Bell that he is willing to go it alone. He again proves why John is so freaking brilliant. The fact that he calls Astid, Alex is wonderful and her reaction is perfect. Peace Out Emmy is all that needs to be said.

When Olivia and Peter find the satellites and Peter tells her to turn of the amplifier is sweet. She claims to not know what he is talking about and the smile on Peter’s face is a sign that he loves her very much. Jones and Peter fighting is a great scene, how Olivia connects with Peter and becomes the puppeteer in the fight.

This once again demonstrates Olivia’s abilities and the connection she has with Peter. Her abilities are triggered in the face of fear and love, it is when she is most vulnerable and when she is at her finest. When Jones falls into the satellite and is starting to disintegrate he says that he was the Bishop when I think he is wrong, he was the pawn, the Bishop is still in play.

The ending scene with Walter and Astrid is great, but there is a caution about it. You can feel the creepiness of it. The spaciousness of the warehouse reminds me of mob movies and the place they always take their snitches to beat the information out of them. Meeting the captain and Astrid knowing in her gut that something is wrong is tense; they need to get the heck out of there.

I love that Jasika Nicole gets to be a real FBI for a bit, that she gets to run, fight and shoot. She kicked butt and did it well. She and Walter running through the warehouse and shooting at the bad guys is thrilling…until she gets shot.

I audibly gasped when that happened! Of all the people to get hurt, Astrid is the least expected, and when Walter is holding her and Bell shows up…that is the best. He was right; the whole time when everyone doubted him he was right.

Well, it has been one hell of a season finale, at least part one has. Fandom is anxiously awaiting the second half the season finale and the wait will be excruciating. The final battle begins and a brave new world will indeed be revealed….stay tuned!

Thanks to Kenn for helping with the details and thank you for reading…don’t forget to leave a review. Peace Out!

Thanks to you for visiting and reading my review of “A Better Human Being” while visiting WormholeRiders News Agency.

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Until next time,

Regards,

Lori
May 8, 2012

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