…so much, in fact, that I’ll be running weekly commentary on every new episode aired. Yes! ‘FRINGE’ will become the very first show I cover “officially” here at ‘Sensibilize this!’. This week, I’m not going to make you tread through plot recaps and details you can get everywhere else, instead focusing on giving a proper view of what my thoughts were on the artistry (and technicality) behind the first two episodes. But before I begin, I want to direct your attention to the marketing piece below. I’m really liking the visual pieces they’re using to spread the word regarding this series: clean, poster-sized and vague.
So, where to start? How about by telling you that I didn’t like the pilot as much as the media said I would? To me, the piece felt forced and too heavily reliant on already established fiction material. Additionally, it was slow-moving at parts and the role of “Peter” (portrayed by Joshua Jackson) wasn’t to my liking in both delivery of lines and character. But it also showed promise in the form of the character of “Dr. Walter Bishop” (played sublimely by John Noble), a tortured-yet-brilliant scientist who has suffered through years of imprisonment in a mental institution. The playfulness in which Noble bathes when acting this part is refreshing, and makes the character super likeable from the get-go. You feel for this man, even if you don’t exactly know what the fuck is happening inside his head.
Also of great promise, is the character of Olivia Dunham (Anna Torv), which may initially seem as your typical female agent in distress, but later reveals herself as a woman full of confidence and wit. Let’s hope the writers flesh out her character to a more satisfying level. Production design is commendable, with swift, establishing location shots, some photography handled with flair and, of course, the music by Michael Giacchino, which for the most part has been mostly ambient music to setup atmosphere, but oh he does it so well. The main “theme”, composed by series creator J.J. Abrams himself, is also memorable, if not reminiscent of that other, legendary genre show: The X-Files. Most certainly, the two shows draw quite a few parallels between them, not only in thematic structure, but in episode flow as well.
“Ok, so you didn’t found the pilot to be a ‘masterpiece’. Did you like the second episode better?”
Much better. Yes, it lacked the tense moments of the pilot, but the pacing flowed with more grace. The characters felt better, also. Lines were delivered in a more natural, less corny way (I’m looking at you, Joshua Jackson), scenes progressed with an easiness not found in the inaugural episode, and…as expected, things started to get interesting. As I wrote above, it’s not my intention to fill this first ‘FRINGE’ post with plot details and speculation, so I’ll leave that for next week. Needless to say, if you have the chance, watch both episodes as soon as you can, just so you’re ready for next week’s episode. I’m definitely interested in the direction this show is aiming for, and with a crew as talented as the one this serial has on board, quality has but one place to go: upwards.
Catch new episodes of ‘FRINGE’ every Tuesday at 9pm, on FOX. Thanks for reading. : )
I didn’t like the first episode enough that I didn’t even watch the second. I think the real problem that this show faces is that it isn’t willing to go for it. I’ll try to explain myself since it’s a little difficult to explain.
They try to establish a contrast between technology and fringe science in the most spineless way. What year is this supposed to be? Everything looks like it’s taking place now. So, in order to show more of a contrast they introduce 1 building in which the architecture and people within are straight out of an anime. This was to establish what real science was I’d presume. It’s a logical step in story telling, but having science confined to 1 building destroys the real effect I believe they where going for.
This was the exact moment I realized this show wasn’t going to do it for me. If they wanted to show a contrast between science and fringe science this show probably should have taken place in the future. Where this technology was common use in society. This would have made this science seem more taboo. Instead by the end of the episode they have shown that there is no difference between the two. The pinnacle of science is using fringe science.
That being said, I don’t really like any of the characters. I found it hard to relate to any character even partially. The story of the first episode just wasn’t big enough. It felt like if this was the best they had to offer then don’t bother. The pattern is their hook, I guess that could be interesting. I’ll watch the second one since you recommend it. But this series is just screaming a b rated X-Files with a heavy reliance on the creature of the week style formula.