Fringe: “One Night In October” and “The Bridge” When an Obsession Can Ruin Everything!

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Fringe Retro. Click to visit Fringe on FOX!Welcome back Fringe fans! for us.

This week’s episode “One Night in October” was a peek into what season four of Fringe has in store

The writers are going to not only bring the two universes together to save them both, but they are going Warner Brothers Banner - Click to learn more about the WB!to bring the two together to help solve cases.

Before we begin our review, below is a Fringe special released by FOX Broadcasting called “The Bridge”. Thanks FOX!

One Night in October:

The episode is based on a fundamental debate of nature vs. nurture.  John McClennan, portrayed by John Pyper-Ferguson, was at the center of this debate.  In one universe he was a forensic psychology professor who studied serial killers and in the other universe he was a serial killer. Pyper-Ferguson did an excellent job at portraying McClennan and making the two very similar in personality and different in their actions.

Fringe S4x02 - Man hooked up

We began this episode with a man hooked up to a machine that appeared to be pumping some sort of blue liquid into his brain.  He was being asked to recall a happy memory he had of his mother.  As he told his captor that his memory had made him happy, his face froze over and he had one tear rolling down his face.  This scene was psychologically unnerving and filled with conflicting emotion.  It was not apparent this early in the episode why the victim was being asked to recall happy memories.

Fringe S4x02 - Walter covers

Walter Bishop (John Noble) was in the lab with Lincoln Lee, portrayed by Seth Gabel, covering every reflective surface in the lab.  In episode one “Neither Here Nor There” Walter began to see a man in his television.  We found out this man was Peter Bishop (Joshua Jackson).  There is a vulnerability to Walter now that Peter is gone.  Walter has always been a nervous individual, but without Peter in his life he seems to be less stable.  Peter was obviously the glue that held Walter together.

Walter described the shape-shifters to Lincoln as “vile, part organic tissue and part machine.  It is like everything from over there. They are loathsome, hateful, and contemptible.”  Walter expressed a great dislike for the “other side”.  How will Peter’s absence affect Walternate?  Much of what made Walternate mean and ruthless was the fact that Walter stole Peter from him.

Fringe S4x02 - Olivia and Astrid

Astrid Farnsworth (Jasika Nicole) talked to Olivia Dunham (Anna Torv) in the lab and suggested that she go out with Lincoln.  Olivia was quick to make excuses on why she would never go out with Lincoln.  Olivia is a character that has grown over the past three seasons.  We have seen her go from reserved and a little uptight to having a carefree loving relationship with Peter.  Without Peter in her life Olivia never made the transition to carefree.

Anna Torv has done an excellent job with her two characters in this show.  She has had to portray the same person in both universes, but because of different choices their lives have become different.  Therefore, making their personalities somewhat different.  This ties into the theme of this episode of nature vs. nurture.  Our environment is a product of choices and those choices shape who we are.  Fauxlivia and Olivia have the same instincts that they were born with, but their environment has shaped their personalities.

The victims in this episode are being killed by cerebral hypothermia.  He does this by drilling a hole in the back of their heads and injecting them with a chemical that freezes their brains.  This gives a whole new meaning to the term “brain freeze”.  I could not resist that bit of humor.  Agent Phillip Broyles (Lance Reddick) informed Olivia of the recent murders and the fact that these murders have occurred on the other side.  They requested their assistance in catching this killer.

Fringe S4x02 - Briefing Faulivia

Olivia and Agent Broyles met with Fauxlivia where she briefed them on the situation.  This killer, John McClennan, had eluded them for five years.  They had just recently learned who he was, but when they went to apprehend him he was gone.  Fauxlivia asked Olivia and Agent Broyles if they would bring the other John Louis McClennan to the other side so that he may go through his belongings and get a “feel” for what their McClennan was like.  I like the subtle change in the serial killer’s name.  Have you ever noticed how serial killers or assassins have three names. Lee Harvey Oswald, John Wilkes Booth, and John Wayne Gacy just to name a few.  I had never noticed this until Mel Gibson pointed it out in “Conspiracy Theory”.  Interesting little fact.

Fringe S4x02 - The suspect

Olivia was quick to point out she did not know how this would help them find the killer’s whereabouts.  Fauxlivia replied with “I lived in your apartment and I picked up on a lot of things about you”.  This struck a nerve in Olivia.  She will have to come to terms with her abduction this season.  There is no way around this if they are to work together.

Fringe S4x02 - Fauxlivia nerve

There are also noticeable differences in Fauxlivia without Peter.  He softened her up towards the end of season 3.  There is also no baby!  I kept waiting to see the baby but it never showed him.  Without Peter Fauxlivia never got pregnant.  We saw a hint of the old Fauxlivia when she hit a nerve with Olivia.

Fringe S4x02 - Mcclennan and Olivia

Olivia met with Professor McClennan in his office at West Connecticut College where he teaches.  She explained to him that the FBI needed his help in profiling on a case.  She told him that he would need to be sedated because it was a long ride and it would be better.  The reason he was sedated was because they did not want him knowing that he had crossed into a parallel universe.  This will be an interesting problem to overcome this season, and I want to see how many solutions the writers can come up with.

Fringe S4x02 - Other Lincoln Lee and Fauxlivia

Agent Lee and Fauxlivia have a certain chemistry on screen.  This was very noticeable in the next scene when they laugh at her wig.  She was changing her hair to be like Olivia’s.  Since she has red hair she has to put on a blonde wig.  Professor McClennan cannot know that she was not the Olivia he met back in his office.  Olivia met Fauxlivia and agent Lee outside of McClennan’s house.  There was definate tension between the two.

Fringe S4x02 - Buttons jackets 2 Livias

I cannot express enough how well Anna Torv does in making Fauxlivia a different character.  Olivia told Fauxlivia that her jacket was buttoned.  This goes to show the differences in the two.  Fauxlivia is always smiling and Olivia seems reserved and she hardly ever smiles.

Fringe S4x02 - Astrid and Walter

This next scene showed how unraveled Walter had become without Peter.  Walter was listening to a record and had the volume turned up.  It was so high that Astrid had to yell at him so he could hear her.  She expressed concern for Walter, and told him that she had checked his levels on his meds and they were not right.  He confessed that he had been experimenting.

This scene was very revealing.  Astrid has had to assume the role of caregiver for Walter because Peter never did.  In the previous seasons Astrid was a sort of babysitter for Walter, but this season she has become his primary caregiver.  Walter also lives in his lab which is different from the previous seasons where he lived with Peter.

Fringe S4x02 - Father picture

Fauxlivia and Professor McClennan took a tour of his counterpart’s house.  He profiled him by certain things he observed while walking through.  He began to see things that reminded him of himself such as egg hatching lights that his father used back on his farm and a chair that he had when he was young.    He told Fauxlivia that the killer hated that his victims had happy lives and he did not.  He took them when they are happy.  It was not until he saw a picture of his father hanging on the wall that he realized there was more to this case than he had originally been told.  He got upset and Olivia had to intervene and expose that there were two of them.

Fringe S4x02 Upset-McClennan

Olivia and Professor McClennan are in the house and she had explained to him the two universes and how he came to be there.  She had told him that they are looking for his counterpart.  She asked him if he could tell them anything about him that might help.  He replied “I don’t just understand him.  I am him. What is in him is in me.”  This was where he confesses his feelings to Olivia.  He has homicidal thoughts just as his counterpart does.

Fringe S4x02 Understanding-Olivia

Fauxlivia walked in just as Olivia told McClennan that she too came from an abusive home and she could empathize with him.  Fauxlivia looked at Olivia as if she was understanding why she was the way she was.

Fringe S4x02 McClennan-explains

McClennan confessed to Olivia and  Fauxlivia that he had the same homicidal thoughts and past that his counterpart had.  He also told them about Marjorie.  She was the person that helped him learn how to cope with the urges to kill that he was having.  He said that his life would have been more like his counterparts without having had Marjorie in his life.  He expressed that he wished he could talk to him and tell him he did not have to suffer.  Olivia told him that he could not know that he existed.  Professor McClennon climbed out of the bathroom window and went to find his counterpart.

Fringe S4x02 Col Broyles-back

In the next scene Colonel Broyles met with the Fringe team to discuss McClennan’s whereabouts.  I mention this scene not because I felt it was important, but to point out that Colonel Broyles is not dead.  He died last season helping Olivia escape back to the other side.  I am sure this will be explained later in the season.  What other things have changed with Peter gone?  I also wanted to capture this to show what a nice physique Lance Reddick has.

Fringe S4x02 - Suprised Mcclennan

Professor McClennan found his serial killer counterpart.  He was about to drill into the skull of his next victim when the professor interrupted him.  The look of surprise on his face was one that I believe many of us would have if we had been faced with the same.

The professor told evil McClennan that he remembered the night his father found the “dead things”.  Evil McClennan said his father had caught him and took him home.  He said he beat him 3 days straight.  Professor McClennan told a different story.  He ran as fast as he could until he fell down in a field.  He was found by a woman named Marjorie.  He said “Because of her I don’t have to do what you do to stop the pain.”  He offered to help evil McClennan deal with his urges to kill people.  Evil McClennan turned on him and knocked him out.

Fringe S4x02 - Out of darkness

Fauxlivia had asked Olivia to ride with her to McClennan’s farm.  She asked Olivia if she had told him about her childhood abuse to get him to open up.  Olivia said that she had, but it was also true that her stepfather had abused her.   Fauxlivia asked what happened to her stepfather and Olivia replied “I killed him.”  Wait!  Before Peter disappeared Olivia’s father was alive and sending her postcards.  What has changed with Peter being gone that would have caused her stepfather to be dead?

Evil McClennan had restrained Professor McClennan and he had drilled a hole in his skull.  He had the same hose with blue liquid in it that the victim at the start of the show had.  Evil McClennan hooked something with wires attached to the back of his skull.  He asked the professor to tell him about Marjorie.

Fringe S4x02 - Marjorie

Professor McClennan told Evil McClennan “I never understood how someone so beautiful could love something so dark.”  This reference was important in understanding how both McClennans felt about themselves.  The professor referred to Marjorie as “someone” but referred  to himself as “something”.  Evil McClennan was able to feel what the professor felt.

Olivia and Lincoln find the professor but his evil counterpart was not in the room.  Olivia found him in the next room visibly upset.  He said “I took her from him”.  He also said she “made him feel for them.”    It was at that moment that evil McClennan realized what he had done.  He took his own life.

Fringe S4x02 - Evil kills self

The next scene was Olivia and agent Broyles in the hospital looking at Professor McClennan.  Broyles explained to Olivia that McClennan suffered memory loss of about 2 weeks and he had no memory of Marjorie.  This was important because Marjorie was the one thing that shaped him into the adult he was.  He said something to Olivia that let her know he may have forgotten Marjorie, but the lessons that she taught him were still in him.  He said “You know what they say?  That even when it’s the darkest you can step into the light.”

Fringe S4x02 - Darkest light

Olivia walked out with agent Broyles and asked how could he remember what Marjorie had taught him and not remember her.  Agent Broyles replied “At the risk of sounding sentimental,  I have always felt there were people that left an indelible mark on your soul.  An imprint that can never be erased.”

Fringe S4x02 - Indelible mark on reality

How fitting that they would break away from that scene to Walter preparing for bed.  Walter had become nervous with turning off his lights.  When he turned out his lights he heard Peter’s voice.  Walter does not realize the voice he was hearing was his son’s voice.  Peter died in both universes when he was young.  This was why Walter’s medication levels are high in his blood.  He must be taking extra doses of his medication because he fears he is hallucinating.  Each time Walter had heard from Peter he has said “I’m here Walter.  I’m right here.”.


Fringe S4x02 - Walter is afraid

I am excited about the direction the writers are going with this story.  Season three was all about choices.  They focused on choices that each of the characters had made that led them to where they are today.  They concluded with the ultimate choice of Peter stepping into the machine and bringing the two parallel worlds together.  This season will be about the results of those choices.

Fringe returns this Friday 9 PM E/P 8 PM central with “Alone In The World”! Make sure to tune in live to show your support! Thank you.

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Click to visit and follow WormholeRiders News Agency on Twitter! I trust you have enjoyed this review of Falling Skies co-written by the managing editor WR_Systems (Kenn) due an unfortunate illness with my child as I tweeted last evening. Thanks Kenn! And as always we here at the WHR Fallings Skies team thank you for visiting WormholeRiders News Agency.

Please feel free to share this news article by clicking one of the social media icons below. You may also leave a comment here, and you may desire to visit me on Twitter by clicking my avatar

Thank you,Click to visit and follow RedOne68 (Sandra) on Twitter!

Redone68 (Sandra – WHR Falling Skies Team Leader)

Redone68

Hey Wormholeriders! I like to think of myself as a career student because i've been attending university since I graduated high school many many years ago. I have enough hours to have received a degree, but because I had changed my major 3 times I still lacked enough for a bachelors degree. Medicine was finally where I settled and was attending school to become a nurse when I had to return to work. So, I have an associates in behavioral science and that's all I can say towards an education. I like to think i'm educated on life. I work in the administrative side of healthcare and I enjoy doing that. I have one child and he is the love of my life. Children are truly one of our greatest treasures. I am a twin and my sister doesn't live close enough to me for my liking, but she is not too far away. I am a science fiction junkie!! Ever since I got my first Star Wars x-wing fighter as a child I have been hooked. I was somewhat of a nerd in school and science was always my favorite subject. I dreamed of being an astronaut or a astronomer because I loved looking at the stars and planets. It wasn't long after I started university that I found out I could not do the math that was required to get a degree in astronomy. So, I settled for something more realistic and just decided to watch and learn about the heavens on television. Bio Questions and Answers 1. Handle/Screenname: Redone68 for Wormholdriders and Twitter. Most peoople call me Red and that also works. 2. Education/Awards/Etc: Associates in behavioral science. Let's see awards, does band nerd count?! Lots of awards in music which is my first love. 3. Favorite Stargate characters: My favorite Stargate Universe characters would have to be Dr. Rush and Eli. I like brains what can I say! A close runner up would have to be Chloe. My favorite SGA characters would have to be Dr. Rodney McKay and Lt. Colonel John Sheppard. 4. Favorite Actresses: #1 is Evangeline Lilly. I also like Anna Torv, Ming-Na, Emily Deschanel, Michelle Pfeiffer, Kathy Bates, Meryl Streep, and Meg Ryan. I'm sure the list could be a lot longer, but these are the actresses I watch regardless of the role they are playing. 5. Favorite Actors: Josh Holloway...yes ladies...Josh Holloway!! The rest are Joe Flannigan, David Hewlett, John Noble, Robert Carlyle, David Blue, and Harrison Ford. There are lots more but I could spend all day listing them. 6. Favorite Band/Performers: I am a classic rock junkie! Anything classic is good and my favorite is Led Zeppelin. New stuff is good too. I like Stone Sour, Black Label Society, Disturbed, and even Metallica. With me louder and faster is better! 7. Hobbies: I love outdoors so one of my favorites is camping. It's been a family vacation for 35yrs. I also love to fish but never get to go. Hiking is another thing I like to do when I get to. I do some painting but nothing you would pay money for. 8. Pets: I have a cat named Chloe, yes that Chloe. 9. What's your theme song?: I've never really given this much thought. I can relate to many songs during the course of one week. Today I could say "Another One Bites the Dust". Tommorow maybe a little different. 10. If you could have a sidekick, who would it be?: I'll go off into fantasy land and say Sawyer from "Lost" just because he is so tough and sexy. In real life my everyday sidekick is my son. He's my buddy. 11. Favorite Food: Junk food 12. What would you keep in a utility belt?: Tools of course! 13. Favorite Stargate Episode: I can't really say. I enjoyed the movie but didn't start watching the show until Atlantis. 14. Favorite Stargate Atlantis Episode: All of them. There isn't one that I don't love. This comes from the heart. I have watched the reruns over and over and never skip one! 15. Favorite Stargate Universe Episode: Again, I love all the episodes for this show as well. If I had to pick one this season that I would watch an infinite number of times it would be "Human". 16. Favorite Fringe Episode: All of them! 17. Favorite Caprica Episodes: The first episode was the one that i've enjoyed the most. I watch all of them and enjoy them all, but the pilot was great! 18. What was your sci-fi gateway?: I watched the original "Star Trek" with my mother when I was young, but I didn't get into it until "Star Wars". Yeah, I was a huge fan. I was even in the "Star Wars" fan club. That made me an official nerd! 19. What's under my bed?: A monster i'm sure of it! 20. Favorite TV shows (not Stargate): Lost, Fringe, Caprica, Deadliest Catch, Paranormal State, and Bones. Must see all of them! 21. What is your dream job?: Oncologist because I would love to join the fight against cancer. If I could go back 20yrs and start my education over, I would definately be a healer. 22. If you could live anywhere in the world where would it be?: On a beach somewhere. I'm not picky. I just need sun and fun! 23. If your life could be written by any author who would it be and what genre?: Easy Stephen King because 1. I love him and 2. my life seems pretty scary at times. I believe King gave away the genre. If not, horror would definately be the genre. I am exaggerating a little of course, but some days seem kinda mad. 24. Favorite movies: "Star Wars", "Empire Strikes Back", the "Lord of the Rings" trilogy, "Gone with the Wind", "Hellraiser", and all the Indiana Jones movies. 25. What are your goals/dreams/aspirations for WormholeRiders.com?: This is going to be something I enjoy and I hope that the readers get some enjoyment out of what I write as well.

2 thoughts on “Fringe: “One Night In October” and “The Bridge” When an Obsession Can Ruin Everything!

  1. Hey Sandra,

    It was great working with you on this review! Thank you for the really wonderful review and analysis of “One Night in October”. I had read several others now that your posted and they are missing key elements as well as being mostly text based obviously rushed out to be “first to post”.

    As we know, A real secret to reviewing is to do a thorough analysis not being the first to post a hasty epistle or rant, Thanks again!

    Best Regards,

    Kenn

Comments are closed.

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