Fringe Season 1 – Episode List & Guide

Below you will find an overview of each episode’s review.

Click on the links to read the Full Reviews:

1.01 – Pilot: C

First it was “Heroes” which took a previous concept and retold it through a television series (in that instance it was X-Men). Now we’re given “Fringe” – a series that looks and acts a whole lot like the X-Files, complete with conspiracy theories, super-secret government agents, and enough pseudo-science to make Fox Mulder a very, very happy little agent. With the missed opportunity of the X-Files: I Want to Believe movie this past summer, perhaps it was time to pass the torch on to a new franchise, one which could reinvigorate the concept and seek the truth in the most unlikely of places. J.J. Abrams, creator of Lost, has given it his best effort, however, the end result is middling at best – and, at worst, a poor knockoff. The torch is ready to be handed off … I’m just not sure that Fringe is quite ready to take it to the next level.

1.02 -The Same Old Story: C

“The Same Old Story” is the second installment from J.J. Abrams’ new series, Fringe. The opening pilot established the framework for the series. This was the first episode to try and expand upon the characters and overall foundation for the series. The results are mixed. The premise is singularly questionable and the execution certainly leaves a lot to be desired. What little interest the episode generates is a result of the mannerisms of its characters – which is a good start. But the storytelling is going to need to be much more finely tuned if this series is going to resemble anything close to success.

1.03 -Ghost Network: C+

“Ghost Network” is only slightly better than its predecessor. As yet, Fringe is still overly reliant on technobabble solutions and connections to Dr. Bishop’s past. Of course, the chemistry between the top three characters of Agent Dunham and the Bishops is enjoyable. And I’m sure that mastermind J.J. Abrams has some grand design for the Dr. Bishop connections, but the crutch of relying on esoteric, and ultimately pointless, explanations for each episode’s occurrences simply does nothing at all worthwhile. In short, unless the series manages to make the search for truth (rather than the obscure explanation of “truth”) the central focus of each episode, and unless the series moves beyond simply connecting everything back to Dr. Bishop, the whole enterprise is going to flounder and, eventually, fail.

1.04 -The Arrival: C+

“The Arrivial” is yet another example of both the strengths and weaknesses of the series, as well as the potential for greatness for the series. As the episode unfolds, there are a couple of nice homages to the X-Files (lighting) and David Lynch (offbeat and humorously bizarre characters). But what sets this episode apart from the other episodes of Fringe thus far is that this one, more than the others, keeps the mystery alive long enough to generate some legitimate suspense, mystery and drama. And yet, this episode doesn’t yet represent a bona fide success.

But it’s getting closer.

1.05 – Power Hungry: B-

“Power Hungry” is a slight improvement. There is still a heavy over-reliance on technnobabble solutions and explanations, as well as an overly-coincidental relationship between the mysteries and Dr. Bishop. But what this week’s episode makes successful is the search itself, as well as the mood and atmosphere surrounding that search. In essence, this episode is as much about style as it is about substance. And, at least this time, the style is just good enough to compensate for the lack of substance.

1.06 – The Cure: C

“The Cure” is an episode that is indicative of a series that doesn’t yet know what it wants to be or what direction it wants to go. Indeed, there’s quite a bit of splattering things against the wall to see what will stick, and to see which shapes become most pleasing. Once again, there is a bit of potential here. And this episode does resolve one of the major issues that plagued the first few installments. But with a lack of a clear focus and purpose, the episode as a whole suffers.

1.07 – In Which We Meet Mr. Jones: B

“In Which We Meet Mr. Jones” establishes a much clearer sense of direction and purpose for the series. Indeed, there is a strongly focused storyline which manages to have implications both immediate and for the future. Ultimately, the episode succeeds in establishing a mystery and allowing the search for truth to lead to even bigger, more dangerous questions for the main characters. The only major blemishes include gratuitous gore and a contrived conflict to prolong the suspense of the episode’s conclusion – and some obvious lines from Walter. Aside from that, this is one of the best episodes of the series thus far.

1.08 – The Equation: C

“The Equation” is an episode which has a decent mystery, but is presented by way of a by-the-numbers plot that ultimately saps away much of its suspense.  The episode also makes an attempt to connect its story into the larger “Pattern” arc that is being developed by the series.  And on that front it succeeds fairly well.  But the further attempt at creating some lingering drama over the ultimate fate of Walter pushes things just a bit too much toward the melodramatic.

1.09 – The Dreamscape: C

“The Dreamscape” is a strongly suspenseful, if somewhat unfocused episode.  Once again, plausibility is pushed to the limit, but for sheer tension, the episode packs a fairly powerful punch.  There are a couple of minor, but important, character moments.  But where it loses much of its overall value is a scattershot approach to its storytelling.  Ultimately, “The Dreamscape” provides some necessary plot details to the overall series arc, but does in such a way as to diminish the overall episode.

1.10 – Safe: A-

“Safe” feels like a legitimate season-ending cliffhanger episode (despite the fact that it is merely a mid-season break). More than any other episode of the series thus far, this one incorporates multiple narrative threads from across most of the entire first season. This is easily the best installment of the series thus far. If there is a criticism it is in the fact that this episode is almost entirely about plot, and relatively little about character depth. But this doesn’t necessarily diminish the impact of the episode for fans of the series. The result is a truly dizzying, epic episode in which, despite its title, nothing is safe.

1.11 – Bound: C+

“Bound” is an action-packed, frenetic episode of Fringe that ends up being a bit more like a series primer than a true episode. From a marketing and promotion standpoint, this kind of makes sense. The series enjoyed a bit of buzz following its mid-season cliff hanger and for anyone new joining the show following all of the network promos, the flashbacks and backstory filler are important to help them get started on the show and not feel lost within its myriad conspiracies and mysteries. Add in a host of new twists and turns and there is a *lot* of exposition being thrown around the screen. Unfortunately, the end result is a subpar outing that, while certainly tense and entertaining, simply isn’t up to Fringe’s own standards (which, at this point, are just above average for a typical show).

1.12 – The No-Brainer: C+

Despite its whimsically amusing title, “The No-Brainer” is a terribly uneven episode.  It has plenty of mystery and suspense and a few nicely laced character moments.  There’s also an attempt at a thematic connection between the main narrative and the subplot.  But the episode also features a strongly detrimental supporting character, an awkward pacing, and superfluous melodrama.  As a result, the episode is barely above average.

1.13 – The Transformation: B

Mutations, ghosts, shadowy agencies, and plenty of suspense. It’s just another day at the office for Fringe. “The Transformation” is, ultimately, an entertaining episode which jettisons the gratuitous melodrama of the past few installments and replaces it with legitimate drama. There still isn’t a whole lot of character work being done, and the episode doesn’t really have a point beyond the self-absorbed mystery of the series. But as an edgy sci-fi thriller with a penchant for keeping its audience on its toes … it works.

1.14 – Ability: A-

You know that scene in the Matrix when Neo is being interrogated by Agent Smith and Neo’s mouth is suddenly sealed closed somehow? Imagine that happening in the “real world” and you’ve got the basic premise behind “Ability” – the latest installment from Fringe. And actually, the Matrix-like comparisons don’t end there. Fringe has suddenly positioned itself more akin to the reality-bending rules of the Matrix than to the quasi-horror elements of X-Files. It’s an interesting choice of direction. And I find the new “rules” to be incredibly tantalizing. The episode itself is certainly well constructed. And there is even the revelation of an underlying philosophical question to the entire story arc. All told, this is a strong episode in which the series, finally, seems like it’s going in a direction worth following.

1.15 – Inner Child: B-

“Inner Child” is a solid, if somewhat unremarkable installment of Fringe. Following its long hiatus, the series returns with an episode which features some now-typical Fringe “elements” which help make the episode entertaining. But while there’s a bit of character exploration for Olivia Dunham, there’s little overall thematic work taking place. The result is an episode that provides a decent introduction to the series for newcomers, but one that doesn’t take the series into any new ground.

1.16 – Unleashed: B

“Unleashed” is a wonderfully entertaining and immersive episode of Fringe. True, there are some issues with internal plausibility – and the fact that Fringe rarely tells a story that means a whole heckuva lot beyond the series itself – but fact truth is, for pure entertainment value, this is as good an episode as you can hope for.

1.17 – Bad Dreams: A

“Bad Dreams” just might be the finest episode of Fringe to date. From start to finish, the episode features a tense, disturbing mystery that evolves and deepens as the episode unfolds. Just as importantly, the episode also makes some startling connections to Olivia Dunham’s past – and her present. True, there isn’t a deep, profound message for the audience, but all told, this is a tightly woven, smartly paced episode that is not only heavy on character development, but is light on the technobabble.

1.18 – Midnight: B

“Midnight” is a strong episode which, while not entirely exceptional, still manages to be entertaining and valuable to the series as a whole. Essentially, this is a “monster-of-the-week” installment with just enough continuity to the bigger story and character arcs to make it more indispensable. The “monster” segments are decent, but hardly noteworthy. More important is the connection of the episode’s “mad scientist” to the shadowy ZFT organization.

1.19 – The Road Not Taken: B+

“The Road Not Taken” is the penultimate episode to the first season of Fringe. As such, there’s a lot of setup work being done to ensure that the inevitable season-ending cliff hanger is as riveting as possible. The good news is that this installment is built around a compelling enough mystery that it manages to be more than pure setup and is, in fact, a solid episode in its own right.

1.20 – There’s More Than One Of Everything: B-

“There’s More Than One of Everything” is a bit of a paradox. And I’m not talking about the science involved. Strangely, though the episode is the season finale, most of it feels like setup. Unlike last week’s episode, which made exceptional use out of a secondary story line, this episode spends most of its time as setup for the final action-packed, twist-filled, exquisitely bizarre sequences. Don’t get me wrong, these scenes are fantastic, and make for one heckuva finale. But it’s a shame that the rest of the episode was so … pedestrian.