In the first two seasons of "Fringe," the show owed its distinctive charm to its harmonious balance between the utterly bizarre and the universally appealing. Everyday detective work and high−adrenaline shootouts fused brilliantly with graphic, nightmarish sci−fi images, coaxing sincere creativity from two hackneyed genres.
In the show's third−season premiere on Fox, unfortunately, that special consonance has been sacrificed for the sake of heavy character development. As much is revealed about once−blonde bombshell Olivia Dunham (Anna Torv) as is withheld in the usual over−the−top gimmickry.
Though this complex portrait of Olivia's character seems to indicate a mature future path for "Fringe," the show is simply not as fun to watch without spontaneous combustion and tentacled experiments run amok.
"Olivia," as the episode is aptly named, documents the titular character's escape from government surveillance in an alternate universe parallel to our own. In this dimension, the doppelganger of mad scientist Walter Bishop (John Noble), dubbed "Walternate," is the ruthless U.S. secretary of the defense.
Intrigued by Olivia's ability to travel painlessly between worlds, Walternate decides to retain her for further study, injecting her with a sequence of false memories to keep her docile.
On the run from this sinister duplicate of her friend, Olivia hijacks a taxicab driven by Henry (Andre Royo) and is forced to defend her sanity and identity to her cab−driving companion. That's no small task, as even she admits that her theories about evil identical twins and supernatural science sound "preposterous."
Torv's no−frills portrayal of Olivia is neither deplorable nor commendable; she tackles the role with unwavering solemnity, creating a portrait of a strong heroine who also happens to be a beautiful woman. Her steadfast depiction of Olivia acts as both a strength and a weakness as her stoic acting comes off as almost too consistent, even in most of her sentimental scenes. She is admirable, but not the most relatable personage.
Because Torv's face fills the small screen for the majority of "Olivia," her monotonous acting becomes increasingly problematic as the premiere plods along. Torv does have moments of brilliance, though — she handles Olivia's confusing reunion with her mother with adept poignancy. Yet for all her talent, she lacks the flexibility and emotive allure to carry an entire episode alone.
Calling this episode stale would be too harsh, considering that it takes place in an eerie and original world in which the Twin Towers still mark the New York skyline and Lady Liberty glows a tawdry bronze. Yet it is tempting to call this one−hour segment stale, as it is burdened by a meandering cab ride and replete with "Law and Order: Special Victims Unit"−style car chases.
Memory alteration is a fairly tame subject for a show that has, in the past, tackled much more fascinating points in pseudo−neurology like mass mind control and the reaping of conscious thoughts from dead brains.
In fact, limiting the show to this off−kilter other realm is a failing in and of itself.
Because the plot is so predictable and linear, the absence of Olivia's own world does not effectively engender suspense; integrated footage between the two dimensions would have nicely broken up the dragging storyline. When Peter Bishop (Joshua Jackson) and the real Walter do appear briefly in the end, an unsatisfying clip hardly rewards viewers for their patience.
Their respective cameos, however, establish a more engrossing premise for the second episode. Hopefully the show will deliver on the momentum and expectations built up in the end of the episode.
Due to its mediocre plotline and structuring, the premiere of "Fringe" fails to meet the high standards it set before its seasonal hiatus. Its failings, though, seem indicative more of a slow start to the season rather than a precursor to a bad one.
"Olivia" alone may disappoint, but it sets up an interesting emotional dynamic across both worlds for ensuing episodes to explore. So long as the show does not sacrifice the wacky, scientific eye−candy for character−centric drama, this foray into psychology suggests that the best is yet to come for "Fringe." If only it would arrive a bit more speedily.
