Fringe

There is no doubt that many Lost fans tuned into the series premiere of Fringe tonight. The series was conceived and penned in part by the co-creator of Lost, J.J. Abrams, a man who continues to gather quite a fan base. JJ’s projects have been known for there intermingling of drama and sci-fi and Fringe certainly fits that mold. Shows such as Alias and Lost were designed primarily around storytelling and drama, with bits and pieces of science fiction elements sprinkled on top, with Fringe the science fiction, or science reality as it is presented in the context of the show, takes a much more important role.

Fringe gets its name from the term “fringe science” which is briefly defined in the show through a list of it’s areas of study, including reanimation, teleportation, and a whole bunch I can’t recall at the moment (I have to watch it again). The show seems to borrow elements from JJ’s repertoire as well as other popular television shows. A heavy emphasis on secret government agencies and projects (Alias), mysterious organizations carrying out extraordinary projects and research (Lost), exploration of fringe sciences dealing with human genetics (Heroes).

The Pilot episode, interestingly enough, begins on an airplane where the situation quickly deteriorates as an airborne compound causes the flesh of every passenger to dissolve. The main character Olivia Dunham, played by Anna Torv, a liaison monitoring several government agencies involved in the investigation of the plane mystery (by the way the plane landed it self, using a Massive Dynamic developed system) quickly discovers what she is investigating is far out of the ordinary. Her investigation leads her to a former scientist, Dr. Walter Bishop played by John Noble, who was admitted to an insane asylum for his dealings with fringe science at Harvard. Due to Dr. Bishop’s current state she must enlist the help of his estranged son, Peter Bishop played by Joshua Jackson (Dawson’s Creek). Olivia reports to Phillip Broyles, played by Lance Reddick (The Wire, Lost), who is more familiar with these strange occurrences that we originally assume.

Another big force at play in the show is a corporation called Massive Dynamic. Their slogan: “What do we do? What don’t we do?” What ever they are doing, it has allowed the company to grow into a multi-billion dollar corporation. They deal with medical, communications, energy, transportation, and entertainment technology. But, it becomes quickly apparent that Massive Dynamic has many secret projects as well. In the end it has elements of SD6 and the Hanso Foundation, and a founder/chairman/CEO named Dr. William Bell, who it turns out shared a laboratory with Dr. Bishop. See it’s all starting to come together now. Naturally this corporation has its own website, massivedynamic.com, a familiar ploy to us Lost fans, and Dr. William Bell is just as anonymous as Alvar Hanso was (until Rachel Blake outed him).

Overall, Fringe stands up to the hype, delivering a show that stays true to the JJ Abrams style, and has the potential to appeal to a large number of viewers. Its strong emphasis on science fiction could limit its effectiveness with certain viewers, while also appealing to others. I feel, however that this show has the potential to please any fan of JJ Abrams work. It airs Tuesdays at 9 on FOX.

Let us know what you thought of Fringe in the comments!