Fringe
Recaps

The long-awaited return of The Observer did not disappoint, as the bullet-headed watcher showed up with several other observers in tow. Including one who has tired of simply watching and wants to change the natural order of things.

Will this disruption help Peter, Walter and Agent Dunham learn more about The Observer, or does his appearance signal trouble to come for the Fringe team? Read our recap of "August" and then check out the review below...

What Worked: Neo Observer
When Peter and Olivia slow down the security footage of the kidnapping, we see Artist catching the park ranger's bullets in his bare hands as if he were in The Matrix. All apologies, of course, to the ranger, who we thought was just a terrible shot. While this revelation made the observers and their powers seem even cooler, it really worked well with the end of the episode, where Artist lets himself be shot by Donald. He sacrifices himself to save Christine when he just as easily could have caught the hit man's bullets.

What Also Worked: Walter Bishop, Milkshake Scientist
The secret recipe for the Strawberry Supreme may be the only puzzle Walter cannot solve. If only the proprietors of his favorite, and now closed, ice cream parlor had written the recipe down in observer code, perhaps Walter would have a shot. Instead, he has both his home kitchen and the Harvard lab working overtime trying to concoct the perfect milkshake to mirror the Strawberry Supreme ones he enjoyed at his favorite shop. As Astrid discovers, perhaps French Vanilla ice cream and cough syrup do not a delicious milkshake make.

What Didn't Work: Olivia Dunham, Corporate Shill
Look, we understand the need for commercials. Those shows need to be funded somehow, right? And we're all for in-programming product placement, so long as we're not hit over the head with it.

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A teenager with the power to control minds can be a very terrible thing, as Peter Bishop finds out firsthand this week.

As Walter and the rest of the team race to save him, will Peter's mind be strong enough to fight off the urges to kill? And is this young man a vicious mutant or the by-product of an evil science experiment? Read our recap of "Of Human Action" for the answers and simply read below for our take on the episode...

What Worked: Walter's Foil: A Tale of Two Fathers
It is apparent from the get-go that Dr. Carson is not going to win father of the year. He claims to not know much about his own son and seems to value his work at Massive Dynamic more than his role as Tyler's dad. Tyler reveals that he is angry at his father. We know that Walter, on the other hand, loves Peter with all his heart. And his brain, too, as the genius, distraught at the idea of losing his son, says he can't function without Peter. Having the cold Dr. Carson serving as Walter's foil helped to drive home the true power of the relationship between the Bishops.

Tin Foil: A Tale of Two Hats
While working on a way to stop Tyler's mind control within the walls of Massive Dynamic, Walter and Astrid don tin foil hats. Agent Dunham, seeing the gear, hopes that they've developed more than simple headgear to stop Tyler. However, Walter points out that the tinfoil is not meant to stop Tyler but Massive Dynamic, which he thinks is trying to steal his thoughts. Hey, we wouldn't put anything past the creepy company.

What Really, Really Worked: A Tale of Two Sons
When faced with the thought of losing Peter to Tyler's mind control, Walter mutters "I can't lose him again." It seems that only Nina Sharp picks up on this, but then again, outside of William Bell and Walter Bishop, there is no one who understands the two alternate universes more than Ms. Sharp. We are left to wonder what the scheming Ms. Sharp will do with this nugget of information.

Communications Upgrade
We've always had a hunch that Nina Sharp is not as benevolent as she seems. She may give the appearance that she is trying to help Agent Dunham, but she also has her own agenda. As the episode ends, we see her communicating with William Bell - via an old-timey computer, a significant upgrade over The Agent Formerly Known As Charlie Francis's typewriter - and letting him know that their mind control experiments were a complete success. We are left to wonder just what Nina Sharp is: friend or foe.

Among our favorite Fringe quotes from the episode:

Walter: All commands will come through the headphones. Once you're given the order to put on the headphones, do not remove them under any circumstances. If you do, you may die a gruesome and horrible death. Thank you for your attention and have a nice day. | permalink

Walter: This is exciting. You think the FBI will ever give me a gun? | permalink

Astrid: Chicken. You serious?
Walter: Just a hypothesis. What do you think, more like pork?
Astrid: Truthfully, I don't really spend a lot of time thinking about what human brains would taste like.
Walter: Then why did you ask? | permalink

After a long playoffs-related break, Fringe returned with its spookiest episode yet.

A shadow from Broyles' past came back to lurk the halls of a Boston hospital, taking its victims in their beds and even following them home. These victims were then turned to dust.

Is the killer a man at all, or something more alien than anything the Fringe team has dealt with? As the team races to stop this latest oddity, Broyles may have stepped on a few too many toes in Washington, putting himself at risk. Read the recap of "Earthling" and then the review below...
 
What We Liked: How It Looked
The shadow man was one of the coolest villains we've seen thus far on Fringe. Whether sneaking through an apartment, a darkened hospital hall or gliding through security footage, this thing was just plain creepy to look at. The little girl's line at the end - coining the "shadow man" phrase - was a perfect end to a spooky character.

What We Didn't: How It Read
It was a key plot point to have the Koslovs be Russian, but c'mon - couldn't big bro Tomas speak English to his comatose brother? It's not like he could tell the difference, and it would have made for significantly less reading on our part.

What We Really Liked: Walter Making Us Laugh
In addition to being one of the best shows on TV, Fringe is also one of the funniest thanks to Walter's off-the-wall outburst, ideas and antics. The choice ones from this episode included his high-tech method of transporting the turned-to-dust remains of Randy back to the lab (in several Dustbusters) and his offering licorice to Agents Broyles and Dunham when they showed up at the Harvard lab. Both worthy of chuckles, another snack we assume Walter keeps on hand.

What We Really Didn't: Randy Making Us Look Bad
An elaborate hoax to trick your wife into thinking you're away on business on your anniversary, then sneaking home to set up the apartment for a romantic dinner? Way to make all the rest of us dudes look bad, Randy.

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How did Fringe follow up on last week's great, William Bell-inspired episode? With an installment titled "Dream Logic."

It followed the team to Seattle, where it investigated the case of a man who stabbed his boss due to a bad dream.

Confused? Read our detailed recap and it will make more sense.

We've listed a few of the best Fringe quotes from the episode below:

Walter: I need help putting this on.
Astrid: Walter, I do not think this is a very good idea.
Walter: Don't be such a grinch. I've told you science should be fun. | permalink

Walter: The ride back was invigorating. The turbulence over Ohio was like being in the belly of a seizing whale. I screamed like a little girl.
Astrid: I'm sure that went over well with the rest of the passengers. | permalink

Walter: Don't worry, Son. I promise to wear my shorts to bed so that if you bring any young ladies home, there won't be any embarrassing moments. | permalink

This was the Fringe episode fans have been waiting for since season one concluded in May.

Olivia returned to her alternate reality and met up with William Bell again and Massive Dynamic.

Without getting into too much here, check out our detailed episode guide for "Momentum Deferred" and chime in with your thoughts on it.

This week's episode of Fringe kicked off in Philadelphia.

From there, Peter, Olivia and Walter must investigate the bombing of a train station. At the scene of the gruesome crime, Walters discovers something strange about the human remains and realizes: people are being turned into bombs!

That's all you get for now. Read the rest in our recap of "Fracture."

If she can't remember on her own, then do something to help her.
- The bosses of The Agent Formerly Known as Charlie Francis, regarding Olivia's failure to remember her trip to "the other side."

The Fringe team headed to Pennsylvania on this week's episode - but, as the quote above suggests, it was a lot more exciting than that set-up sounds.

We'll have to wait for a future installment to see what the other Charlie Francis will to do Olivia. But you can read a detailed recap of "Night of Desirable Objects" right now!

Walter was on fire this week. Among the best Fringe quotes from the evening:

Peter: How's it going, Walter?
Walter: I plan to urinate in 23 minutes.
Peter: Good to know.
Walter: I'm telling you because I'm going to need help unzipping my fly. I can't feel my hand. | permalink

Sheriff Golightly: Be damned if I know what to make of it.
Walter: Well, we're all victims of our own gene pool. Someone must have peed in yours. | permalink

Peter: That was Olivia. Agent Jessup told her Hughes may have killed his wife and child 17 years ago.
Walter: Oh, finally some good news. I assumes we can dig them up. I haven't had any bodies to examine. | permalink

Astrid: We've been at this for five hours.
Walter: Science is patience.
Astrid: It's also slimy. | permalink

Following the must buzzed-about season finale on television, Fringe returned this week with a new episode, a new FBI agent and a new mystery to solve.

The Fox drama also bid farewell to a series regular. Kind of. Sort of. But probably not really, considering those pesky parallel dimensions and the way this show works.

We've got a full recap of "A New Day in the Old Town." It's a must-read for anyone missed the episode or wants to review any of its key points.

Among our favorite Fringe quotes from the hour were...

Walter: Its funny. I love custard, but I hate flan. Which could be an issue of semantics. Or difficulty with the French. Which I doubt, given my near obsession with moules a la creme normande. | permalink

Walter: Peter! Peter! They said I can ride in the back with the body. Can I?
Peter: Sure. Of course you can. Stay out of the medications, though. Please. | permalink

Broyles: You surprise me, Mr. Bishop.
Peter: Thanks. | permalink

Walter: You know, there's something you don't know about me, Son.
Peter: What's that? That once you enter a grocery store, you never leave again? Ever? | permalink