Fringe: “Neither Here Nor There” Making Milkshakes with Gene the Cow!

Welcome back Fringe fans,

FRINGETASTIC! Last Friday, September 23, 2011 was the day we have waited for to tune into Fox Television and kick off the fourth season of the “Mythology of the Fringe Universes”.

According to TV By The Numbers (TVBTN), the new season of Fringe started with an approximate 3.8 million viewers and an average 1.5 rating for the series. For the series premiere TVBTN broke the series into 15 minute segments as follows – 9:00-9:15- 3.846 million viewers- 2.3/4 HH- 1.7/5 A18-49. 9:15-9:30- 3.209 million viewers- 1.9/3 HH- 1.4/4 A18-49. 9:30-9:45- 3.373 million viewers- 2.0/3 HH- 1.4/4 A18-49 and 9:45-10:00- 3.502 million viewers- 2.1/3 HH- 1.4/4 A18-49.

The way I see it, the Fringies are just warming up. Fox Television placed the #Fringe hashtag on the screen on the right hand corner on the broadcast again.

That was good to see, as it encourages us, to get Fringe trending on twitter! #WhereisPeterBishop hashtag was a prominent sight in my timeline last Friday night. I was impressed with the tweets flowing for the excitement for Fringe!!

The Fringe Network is helping everyone to keep our eyes open for the vanishing Peter!  Just where in the heck is the elusive Peter Bishop portrayed by Joshua Jackson?!

The bridge Peter created in “The Day We Died” was with hope that they can work together to fix the damages to both Universes. This will lead to an interesting exchange. The beginning of season four is a great start with our universes colliding with the two Olivia’s (Anna Torv) together and sparks flying between them!

Olivia and AltLiv are sniping at each other about trust and the lack of the fundamental properties of a productive truce. The fireworks that Olivia  and AltLiv create together astound me as to how brilliant Anna Torv is. She can just slightly change her voice for each character she plays. For example when she was acting as if William Bell {Leonard Nimoy} was inside her consciousness in ” Stow Away” that is a perfect example. She uses her own voice for Olivia but modifies her voice for a slightly gravely voice for AltLiv. Playing a role opposite from your self must be challenging and Anna does it with panache!

This is going to be a great season! I was of course curious how they would work that Peter is considered someone who ‘never existed’ into the mix of things. I can’t wait to see how they are going to make this dynamic of characters proceed with one of the anchor characters missing. The reason’s as to how they joined up Universes in this reality are a little hazy for me. Especially if Peter didn’t exist to be come a man to join them together. I’m sure all will be revealed to us as to the nature of the accord, or perhaps, it is up to us to decide how this came about.

Olivia seems harder and lonely or is that what they wish to draw attention to? Is Olivia ultimately not whole without Peter in her life?  Is he really gone? This raises questions as to ‘what’ is Peter existing as, as we catch a glimpse of his ghostly presence between the two Olivia’s.. So really Where is Peter Bishop? Is he between the Universes? Is he an apparition?

The Observer’s are having a meeting of the minds to discuss the situation with Peter. Apparently they are having trouble with the fact that Peter is bleeding through the Time-line and showing up in flashes and this is a huge problem for the rest of the Observer’s.

I always get a kick out of September {Michael Cerveris} He tried so hard to ensure that things were fixed but he sure takes exception to having it pointed out to him that it was not, if his look is any indication. I believe, September has a soft spot for Walter Bishop {John Noble} and his son Peter. I’m curious as to how September is going to ‘fix’ the fact that Peter just won’t stay gone from existence. Perhaps September feels that Peter’s existence is fundamentally important to the relationships Peter is part of, and created out of love.

Agent Lincoln Lee {Seth Gabel} makes an appearance to pick up Agent Robert Danzig {Joe Flanigan} for work at his house. I get a nice picture of a very sexy man in his boxers. Now that is some nice eye candy! I personally was  psyched and couldn’t sleep knowing Joe Flanigan, the star from the MGM Stargate Frachise, Stargate Atlantis was going to be making a guest appearance. I am a huge fan of Joe Flanigan’s, so I was delighted to see him on my favourite show of Fringe. Lincoln is a favourite character of mine and with this cast of favourite actors I was very happy to settle down and watch how they interacted with one another.

The interplay between the two Agents shows me that they are close and are not only partners, but friends. The family of Agent Danzing obviously adore Lincoln, much like I do.  I enjoyed the exchange of wit between the two men. The closeness that these partners share reminds me of the closeness that Altliv and AltLincoln share in the other Universe.

Also Agent Scott and Olivia were very close. Lincoln and Robert get right to work and that is where we first see them in action. The sad thing is that Agent Danzing is attacked and is killed.

He is changed by some unknown process from a human being into something that we are not sure of what he is becoming. The attacker’s skin is translucent and he is just a freak of the strange and unexplained.Olivia shows up at the crime scene and the Observers are remarking on how Agent Lee and Olivia had once known each other before the altered time-line. I think there will be several changes as to how things progress and explanations will be needed as to how things happened with out Peter’s existence in this time-line.

Agent Astrid Farnworth {Jasika Nicole} is Olivia’s partner on the scene and she is walking Walter Bishop {John Nobel} through the crime scene. I noticed she called Walter Mr. Bishop rather than Walter. Why isn’t Walter at the crime scene with them? Is their relationship less than what we we are used to?  As Astrid examines Agent Danzing’s body Olivia procededs to talk to Agent Lee. Lincoln and Olivia are not hitting it off very well because frankly she just seems more of a clinical being in this time-line that I might have trouble getting used to. Lincoln is distraught over the loss of his partner and Olivia seems less than concerned about Lincoln’s feelings than getting the job done. I suppose a person for her to love is the key to her compassionate side.

I was disappointed that Agent Danzing was not long for this episode. I was really hoping for more Joe Flanigan, as were a lot of “Flan Fans” that follow him on twitter and in the Stargate Fandom. But is he really dead? With Fringe I am  always curious when someone dies, if they stay dead. Like Peter for example, is he really erased from the timeline? He is bleeding through after all. Perhaps we will see Agent Danzig again?.

Walter  back in his laboratory with Astrid and it is a wonderful sense of being back home for a Fringie fan. Walter is hard at work complaining about things that is not to his liking which is always funny! Astrid seems to have less patience with Walter but is still his assistant. I am glad that did not change with this new timeline.

Olivia is in another room looking over Agent Danzing’s file and she seems to have an expression on her face that maybe Lincoln’s comments struck a nerve as to whether or not she is capable of understanding the relationship of a partnership.

Walter is uncomfortable with working with the other side and I had to laugh when he talked about Walternate as being not a man that can be trusted. They are alike, but hopefully not too much.  I find Walter to be not as sweet… Is it the lack of sugar or that he doesn’t have that person to keep him lovable and likable? Astrid is trying to talk some sense into Walter that they need to work together to ‘find another way’ to fix the two Universes instead of destroying one or the other. That is the most important thing right to all of them now,  and not who trusts who. As they are discussing the situation, Lincoln wanders into the into Walter’s laboratory.

Walter enlists Lincoln’s assistance while Astrid is out of the room. I always like to see the look on a person’s face when Walter gets a unsuspecting bystander to participate in his strange experiments. Lincoln looks a little unnerved, but I’m not sure if it’s from Walter himself or the fact he is holding a dead pigeon. Walter and his pigeons *chuckling*. The pigeon is dead and Walter injects the pigeon with a serum that animates the bird to fly out of Lincoln’s hands and flies around the room for a moment until it unceremoniously drops ‘dead’ on the floor. Walter’s smile is almost insane! He is so funny! Lincoln is wondering who these people are and Olivia is wondering what he is doing there. Lincoln had used his resources to track them down.

Olivia is angry that he is meddling in an area that is none of his business. They face off, upset with one another because one wants answers and one is angry because she doesn’t wish to give them. Olivia is going to call the Bureau and have him removed and Lincoln is about to call the New York Times. Walter tells Lincoln if he really wants a story, he should look under the dome as he is growing an ear. I think she secretly admired his courage to seek out the answers he wanted. Agent Broyles (Lance Reddick}  called to let them know about another victim. Olivia is ready to let Lincoln come along for the ride and maybe he could be useful or perhaps she is just curious about him as he is about their division. Will Lincoln  and Olivia become partners in this timeline? I’m very curious.

Olivia, Astrid and Lincoln go to the new crime scene leaving Walter at the lab and a communication device to walk through the crime scene with Astrid. Astrid has her ear piece in place and Walter is busy making popcorn & rockin’ it out.  “Walterisms” are always funny as he tells Astrid not to let that ‘ham fist touch the body’ who was the lady who was standing ready to examine the body.

Checking the victims anus was probably not the first thing the ‘ham fist’ was going to check! *laughing* The victim was a commuter and she crashed. Olivia and Lincoln are assessing the situation and Lincoln noticed that one of these things are not like the other. I, of course had that children’s song from Sesame Street stuck in my head after that.

The witness (Natalie Grace) that was away from the others had seen more than the rest and Lincoln was the one to catch the fact that she was more subdued and had probably seen more than what the others had seen. The girl’s name was also Olivia and Olivia was able to question her and get a picture of the suspect. Lincoln’s perception of the situation encouraged Olivia to keep Lincoln and take him further into the investigation. There were more bodies then he was aware of.

Agent Broyles met them at a secret facility were Agent Lee was explained what the legal  responsibilities of viewing what Olivia and Broyles were about to show him. There were a lot of bodies and they all died with in 3 days. It was quite the image. As Lincoln stood over the body of his friend Robert, he told Olivia that Agent Danzing was not just his partner for five years but he was like family. He was grieving for his friend and he wanted answers for the loss of his friend. Robert believed that every thing happened for a reason but Lincoln was having trouble finding a reason for this horrendous slaughter of people. Why are these people being skilled and what is happening to their skin?

September is busy acquiring the items he needs to erase Peter permanently from the time-line. I didn’t realize one would go to a store to do that, but the Observer’s are very intelligent and so I guess you can, if you are that smart. The dry tone that September uses to tell the clerk what he was doing, makes me laugh. I always question what the Observer’s are up to. September, Walter and Peter have had so much history together. Even though the typical Observer seems to not show that they care, we caught a glimpse of the compassion and even love that an Observer is capable of. In Season two in the episode ‘August” and the experiment September orchestrated to prepare Walter for the loss of Peter in  “firefly’, we saw those feelings. The Observer’s are more complicated than we can even comprehend. Will September really erase Peter from the time line?

Olivia, Astrid and Lincoln are back in the lab and Walter is no where to be found. Walter has seen a glimpse of a man in a mirror and is terrified. This is where Lincoln got a taste of Walter’s strangeness. Olivia is the one that comforts Walter in the event of this upsetting incident, not Astrid like I was expecting. Olivia seems to have taken over Peter’s role as Walter’s guardian. Astrid and Olivia are Walter’s family and his link to him being a functional human being. Lincoln is not sure if Walter is ’all right’ in the head but Walter is brilliant and when he functions he functions very well. I can see Lincoln’s concern.

Walter seeing men in mirrors and not wearing any pants but working on a body makes anyone wonder about a person’s sanity. However Walter has a heart of gold and he is struck by the sadness of the engagement ring of the victim’s loss of a chance at love. There is nothing sadder than when two people are in love and something intervenes. Olivia and Peter have had things intervening since they first met. So there is a lot of irony in Walter’s statement.

While Walter was doing the autopsy on the victim the test results came back. Though Lincoln’s idea was wrong, it was clever and lead Walter to suppose that the victim’s may have had something in common which would explain why the victim’s are chosen for the reason that they are. Unfortunately Lincoln gets another revelation that he is quite upset about. The victim’s are not returned to their loved ones. He loved his partner and the thought of never having that closure for the families & friends, is unthinkable to him. Walter is cynical in that he says “every one dies, even twice” he is of course referring to Peter who died twice as a child. I would have thought Walter would have had more compassion with Lincoln’s assessment of the heartlessness of protecting Fringe division over the peace of mind of the victim’s families.

But I also understand Walter feelings and that he went through a lot to try to save his son and he failed. I would probably be cynical to some degree too. Lincoln is not impressed by the Fringe’s policies but he still is willing to help and he realizes that the victim’s had another correlation to each other. The victim’s all took commuter trains and that is how this murderer seems to be selecting his victim’s. A pattern is always a bonus to an FBI agent to find the killer. As they are coordinating a trap at commuter train stations to catch the translucent man, he is conducting experiments on himself. This is one ugly guy and I bet he doesn’t get many dates especially when he pulls out his own fingernails… Ewwwwwww that was just disgusting!!! *GAG* I noticed he wrote things down in a strange language. Who is this translucent man who needs metals from his victims. What is his purpose?

Olivia and Lincoln are sitting in the vehicle waiting to catch the freak and Olivia tells Lincoln about when she lost her partner agent Scott. We also got a glimpse into the back ground of this time-line and how Walter came into her life with out the presence of Peter. The conversation is cut short as the translucent man is sighted and the chase is on. Two other Agents are on the seen first and one is injured. Lincoln stays to help the other agent from bleeding out and Olivia chases after the murderer alone. She is able to  shoot the freak and Lincoln runs to see what the shots are about. He is relieved to see Olivia alive and well in the window of the warehouse.

Lincoln goes back the the downed FBI agent and as the man begins to awaken he reveals to Lincoln that there is more than one of the translucent men. This is not over and Lincoln catches a motion out of the corner of his eye he races after the second culprit on his own. Lincoln is also able to triumph over the translucent being and shoots him dead. As they are loading the corpses of the translucent men up to take back to Walter’s laboratory, questions remain as to not who they are but ‘what’ they are.

It seems there is more of them as we see “Nadine Park” {Michelle Krusiec} one of the victims on the stairs seeming to shift her appearance. Is the other victims also going to appear alive and as these human things? Is this just the beginning of these curious beings? Will Agent Robert Danzing come back as a monster, only become the hunted by his own partner? I would certainly hope to see Joe Flanigan in more Fringe episodes.

Why is it there are always more questions than answers? Lol 😛

At this time, the case seems to be finished  and Agent Lee is back at his place of operations in Hartford FBI headquarters. He receives an envelope that states that Agent Robert’s body is being released to the family. Does Olivia realize that something is missing from her own life? Is that why she did it? Is that why she released the body? Does Olivia feel that someone is missing from her life and that ‘feeling’ of Peter once being in her life, is bleeding through as well? I think she feels something is not right, like that one thing that is niggling at the back of your mind but you can’t quite put into words. Perhaps the question she needs to ask is what all the Fringe fans are asking, Where is Peter Bishop…?

Lincoln cannot seem to stay away and he wanted to thank Olivia for releasing the body to him. Olivia teases him about being there and is glad to see him. She sincerely hopes he can find closure in the loss of his friend. She knows Lincoln has not found the answers that he is looking for and takes him to the alternative universe crossing laboratory.

Walter may have found something within the dead body of the translucent man.Walter found some strange and unexplained technology within his body and he is quick to grasp at the thought that Walternate is up to no good. Astrid and Olivia are both curious as to what this means for them that these are a new kind of hybrid shape shifter that are human and not machines. Lincoln is obviously confused and does not have a clue as to where these beings came from. Maybe China? Now that was hilarious!

Olivia is about to enlighten him as to where they came from and she takes him on a trip to a secret military installation. Lincoln is ID’ed to get in the front door and it is quite funny as he thinks they are getting very personal. He will soon find out how strange things are about to get. Olivia admits to Lincoln that she does feel a hole in her life. And that she would find her answers by being with Fringe.

However, some answers lead to more questions. I think Lincoln seeing another Olivia come out of the door made him speechless and unable to ask anymore questions. This place that he was in was something out of this world and it is out of his Universe and into another for sure. Altlivia presents herself with a cocky swagger of confidence she seems to posses and she expels a derisive snort when she sees Lincoln.

I think she is thinking this Lincoln with his scholarly glasses and suit, that he is a watered down version of her AltLinc. Lincoln is just amazed by her presence but stands in quiet amazement with seeing the other Olivia. Olivia refrains from any explanations or introductions and gets right to the point. Olivia is direct when she hands the shape shifter’s power device to Altlivia and tells her that she doesn’t trust her. Altlivia almost seems surprised at the mention of the shape shifter’s as Walternate’s evil conspirators, but is willing to look into the situation. I’m sure Lincoln has even more questions now. What does this mean for both Universes if neither can trust one another? How can this accord hope to succeed if is there no trust?

September is outside Walter’s laboratory with the device he created from old television parts and what have you.. and prepares himself to remove all traces of Peter from existence. Mean while, Walter is concocting a bedtime drink and prepares himself for bed. Walter shuffles to his bedroom just off his lab and says good night to his guardian Donny, Opps! Timmy! Well, We don’t expect Walter to get his name right do we? LOL!

As Walter settles down to watch some television, September is activating the device. September is an Observer so their expressions on their faces are little to non existent but the look on September’s face is one of hesitation and he not only hesitates but deactivates the device and leaves. What does this mean for September?

The last Observer that failed to comply with the wishes of the other, had an assassin sent after him and August died. What will the consequences be for September? What will be done now, that September did not fulfill his responsibilities? With September not erasing Peter, Peter is still bleeding through the time line and shows up in the darkened screen of the television in Walter’s room. Walter starts screaming in terror with the man appearing on his screen. Timmy rushes in and Walter tells him that he saw the same man he saw in the mirror. Is Peter going to drive Walter insane or drive him to find out who this man really is? If anyone can uncover where Peter is, it is Walter. Will Walter be destined to save his son over and over again?

What place do these shape shifters have in the new season and in this altered time-line? How is Olivia going to find her answers she has been seeking? This new season of Fringe is going to take us on one FRINGETASTIC ride like a roller coaster through a theme park of the Universes of the strange and paranormal! I am looking forward to this wicked ride!

Fringe returns this Friday 9 PM E/P 8 PM central with “One Night in October”! Make sure to tune in live to show your support! Thank you.

Thanks to Kenn for staging the images in my review and as always I appreciate your reading my reviews and visiting me WormholeRiders News Agency. Please feel free to leave a spam free comment or a question here. I will respond to your comment or question as soon as is possible.

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Thank you,

SheppardsHoney (Melinda)