Fringe - "Forced Perspective" (4.10)

"Forced Perspective" ultimately gets 7 Forced Perspectives (bumped down from my initial "8" rating) from me; it certainly has not been the best episode of the season, to say the least. Some fans have complained that the episode is a bit slow, but I don't know that I agree with that; it's rare that I find a Fringe episode to be slow and/or boring (as one can see from the solid "7" rating even though it's not one of my favorite episodes), but even though the ending of the episode is really sad and compelling (which is why it gets the "7"), it doesn't do a whole lot for me, especially since the episode's concept is really just a recycled concept from "The Ghost Network" (1.03). The scene near the beginning of the episode reminds me so much of the opening scene of "The Arrival" (1.04), as it involves a crane incident; that scene is genuinely creepy, as the drawing depicts the man dying a bloody death as a result of the crane. It's also somewhat difficult to give this episode a higher rating or say that it's one of my favorites because I was really expecting the blood sample from September to provide some useful information, but it does not; we learn that September was alive in 1919, which is absolutely useless; that's incredibly disappointing.

Another issue that I have with this episode is that there is some possibly inconsistent writing in the episode. We had previously seen evidence that Broyles was aware of Olivia's migraines; back in "Back to Where You've Never Been" (4.08), she tells Peter that Broyles had given her some time off because she hadn't been feeling well, yet in this episode, hearing of the migraines seems to be news to him. Again, we see Olivia's tendency to feel a vast amount of empathy for people, especially children and young people; she has an emotional response to Emily and feels an emotional connection to her, and there are some really beautiful scenes between Olivia and Emily. My initial reaction was that Emily's father was definitely involved and most likely had somehow initiated her "ability" when she was a small child because we have seen that kind of scenario play out before, "Of Human Action" (2.07) serving as a great example, but that does not end up being the case. This is an example, though, of what the showrunners had been talking about when they said that there would be stories that we have previously seen in similar contexts but would play out differently, and now, I see what they meant. This is definitely an episode with a lot of Nina, too, and that is a saving grace.

This episode of Fringe definitely paints Nina as evil; she is evil because she is lying about Emily, and she is evil because of the episode's final scene. Because September recently told Olivia that she has to die soon and because Emily tells Olivia in this episode that she wanted to warn people of their impending deaths so that they could have the opportunity to tell people that are important to them that they are loved and are important, Olivia tells Nina that she loves her (since in this timeline, Nina mothered Olivia and her sister), and Nina, secretly continuing to dose Olivia with Cortexiphan, is not affected by this but instead pretends to be flattered by the comment. Was Nina involved in Olivia's Cortexiphan trials when Olivia was a child (in either timeline)? She really is so sinister, but we do know now (since this episode aired, the most recent episode to have aired was "A Better Human Being") that there is a strong possibility that the Nina that has been dosing Olivia with Cortexiphan is not the Nina that we see during the first three seasons, that she is Redverse Nina. I was also sure, at this point, that September was gone for good, but we now know that that is not the case, not yet, anyway, and the main reason that I was convinced was because of the introduction of March. In closing, the hypnosis definitely reminds me of Alias, and the device that Emily uses is what Olivia uses in "Bad Dreams" (1.17), and I love parallels; well, stay on the fringe.

Fringe - "Enemy of My Enemy" (4.09)

"Enemy of My Enemy" is a really fantastic episode and is definitely the best episode of the season so far. The general consensus seems to be that "Back to Where You've Never Been" was the best episode of the season until we saw this one. As most probably already know, "Back to Where You've Never Been" was initially intended to be the fall finale but was pushed forward to January because of baseball, while "Enemy of My Enemy" was intended to be the winter premiere, and it's definitely apparent because the two episodes are very much like a two-part episode; "Enemy of My Enemy" pretty much picks up right where "Back to Where You've Never Been" leaves off. I was honestly expecting Colonel Broyles to be made in this episode and to die trying to free Blueverse Lincoln from captivity, and I expected that because I figured that it would parallel his having helped Olivia back in the third season. Something that I absolutely love about this episode is the scenes that parallel earlier scenes in earlier seasons. For example, Broyles shows Jones' file to Olivia during a scene that is nearly identical to a scene from "In Which We Meet Mr. Jones" (1.07). Also, Jones refers to wanting to avoid "unnecessary deaths," and he uses the exact same term during "Ability" (1.14). The final parallel that I noticed is Elizabeth saying to Walter that "the last time I saw you, you were trying to save a boy; now, I've come to do the same," which parallels what Olivia says to Colonel Broyles in "Entrada" (3.08) as she pleads for her life.

I love Peter's line in this episode as he argues with Blueverse Lincoln; he says, "I lost a universe!" in reply to Lincoln having said that he lost his partner. Some people interpreted that a bit differently than I did, though; some people, like Darrell of the Fringe Podcast, interpreted that as his home, the people that he loved, and so forth, but I immediately interpreted that as the Redverse because the decision that he made led to the Redverse's destruction, although I could be wrong because he incorrectly thinks that there is an alternate place to which he needs to travel, so in that sense, he could be using the words interchangeably, but I don't think so. I love the scene between Peter and Jones; Jones is so surprised when Peter points what he knows of Jones, and the look on his face says it all. "How do you know that?" is definitely what he's wondering, but he quickly recovers and regains control. I don't understand what Jones wants, though, what he's trying to do. Is he trying to destroy the Redverse? If so, why was he sending Shapeshifters to the Blueverse? I really expected the money that Jones was distributing to be the sealant from "Ability" (1.14), since he was distributing that via money, and that may have been another intended parallel. Obviously, Colonel Broyles is assisting Jones, and I have my theory as to why. He doesn't seem very happy to be working with Jones, which is evident from the scene in which he looks at him as Jones looks through his car window; he doesn't look very happy, to say the least. My theory (which existed before people said the same on the podcast)

Based on the ending of the episode, we know that Jones does know Olivia. She has apparently never met him, but he knows her because he is behind Nina's ploy to pump her full of Cortexiphan. Therefore, since he knows Blueverse Olivia, he must have been pretending not to recognize Redverse Olivia. What Jones does as far as the people at the clinic is incredibly graphic, and at first, it reminds me of "The Cure" (1.06) when the people's heads explode, but then, the Fringe Podcast pointed out that it was like the pilot episode, and I experienced an "a-ha" moment because that is definitely closer, and that may have been what it was supposed to have been. Obviously, Michelle Krusiec's character is now gone, and I'm disappointed because Krusiec tweeted that we would eventually learn Nadine Park's actual name and that it is really cool, and we haven't learned it, and I doubt we will. I tweeted her and asked her, and she said that she's not sure what she's allowed to say and what she isn't and suggested that I look online, and I did, but I didn't find anything, unfortunately. We might, but I doubt we will ever learn her real name, so so much for that teaser. I am definitely really excited to see where Jones being the enemy of both universes will take us, and I knew knew that this was going to happen, probably right around the same time, if not before, xerophytes offered the theory.

Olivia asks Astrid to run September's blood, and it's annoying that in the following episode, "Forced Perspective" (4.10), the blood doesn't tell us anything other than the fact that he was alive in 1919, which we already knew. There are definitely some great scenes in this episode, though. I like the scene in which Blueverse Lincoln (who is so much cuter with glasses) is happy to see Redverse Olivia and Redverse Lincoln happy together (although not romantically), and that scene is really funny because you can tell that he sees a chance to hook up with Blueverse Olivia. Another scene is Kick-Astrid asking Peter if he is really from a different timeline, and when he says that he is, a brief "cool" is her response, and it's so funny. Another scene is the one in which Walter and Elizabeth talk, and Walter, in despair, says that he can never be forgiven for what he did because he asked God for a sign of forgiveness, and it never came (confirmation that "White Tulip" is yet another episode that never happened), and Elizabeth replies by saying that she forgives him and that if she can, God can; that is one of the most beautiful scenes of the series so far. There are some people that don't think that she really forgave him, that she just manipulated him toward some endgame, but I don't agree with that.

Another scene that I absolutely love is the scene near the end of the episode when Walter and Peter talk, and they seem to come to terms with the fact that Peter is here, and they have a very nice scene that parallels the scene between Peter and Walternate (whom I actually kind of like in this episode) near the end of "Back to Where You've Never Been" (4.08). During this particular scene, Peter says to Walter that he was surprised to find that Walternate was not the man that he thought he had been but that he is not at all surprised to find that Walter is the man that he thought that he had been. That scene totally made me cry. Peter now wants to help these versions of the Blueverse and the Redverse solve their problems, but now, Walter also wants to help Peter go home, so hopefully, this means that the original timeline will be restored, but at this point, I am convinced that it will be. I totally didn't see Nina working with Jones coming, but I'm not surprised, and some people are saying that it's because she's a Shapeshifter, and I disagree; Nina has always been rotten, and people that aren't acknowledging that are ignoring episodes such as "The Dreamscape" (1.09) and "Of Human Action" (2.07). I'm more convinced than ever that it's Redverse Nina behind the typewriter; almost every time we see Nina doing something naughty, she's communicating with someone, which is why I also think that the Observers report to one version of her. I absolutely love this episode and give it 10 hilarious Kick-Astrids.

Fringe - "Back to Where You've Never Been" (4.08)

Out of the first eight episodes of the season, "Back to Where You've Never Been" is definitely my favorite episode; it's a pretty fantastic episode, earning 10 crossed lines. Admittedly, however, I am tired of dreams being used as an opening sequence, and I don't just mean on Fringe (Fringe doesn't even use that tactic all that often); I mean in general. This is the second time this season that the episode has opened with Peter having a dream, and I wonder if there is a reason that he is dreaming so often about getting back to his Olivia and his Walter and his Astrid; there is the obvious reason, which is that he misses them and that they weigh heavily on his mind, but I wonder if it is something deeper, something orchestrated. I really like the scene during which Peter brings food to Walter in an effort to secure his assistance in getting home but to no avail, and Walter, in a mirror, says, "I may be the only man that can help you, but I'm also the only man that cannot help you," and the fact that he is looking into a mirror is ironic because Peter decides to ask Walternate for help, and Walternate is technically the same man, which makes Walter's statement truer than he realizes; the writers of this series are simply brilliant. The fact that Walter is standing in front of a mirror, in fact, may be what gives Peter the idea of asking Walternate.

I like that Olivia is still having migraines because it means that the writers are not going to throw the ending of "Wallflower" (4.07) away; in case you need to be refreshed, Olivia, throughout that episode, is experience migraines, and at the end of the episode, it is revealed that that is because Nina has been dosing her with Cortexiphan. I sort of know why that is, but I won't say any more than that until I write my "Enemy of My Enemy" (4.09) review. All I'll say for now is that there is a brief correspondence between Olivia and Peter in this episode that is possibly telling. Peter asks Olivia, "What do you even need Walter's device for when you can just cross back and forth any time by yourself?" Her response is, "When I can what?" Obviously, this is a strong indication that the Cortexiphan trials didn't last long enough to have had a major effect or that she doesn't know that she has that ability, but it also ties into the probable reason regarding why she is being dosed with Cortexiphan. I love how Olivia says, "Walternate is an untrustworthy son of a bitch," as that line really made me crack up. Another somewhat funny scene is the scene during which a young boy enters a bathroom and sees, in a bathroom stall, what is really a man being killed by a Shapeshifter but what is interpreted as (rightfully so, mind you, as it is, indeed, what it looks like) two men having sex in a bathroom stall.

What doesn't make much sense to me regarding Peter's question, though, is that I didn't think that Olivia has ever mastered her crossing over ability. My understanding was that she could not cross over whenever she wanted to but that there had to be certain conditions; after all, if she had the ability to do it when she pleased, she wouldn't have been trapped in the Redverse during season 3. Something else that kind of confuses me is that Peter and Lincoln use the device that Walter used in 1985 to cross over so that Broyles won't know (using the Bridge Room would require his knowledge), but when Walter used it in 1985, there were obvious serious repercussions. Was the device perfected by Massive Dynamic, so that it doesn't have such serious repercussions? If not, maybe it's because they used an area that was already a soft spot and there was consequently no damage done to either universe. Unfortunately, we don't see much Blueverse Olivia in this episode, but to be fair, we generally see a lot more Blueverse Olivia than we do Redverse Olivia, so one episode during which Redverse Olivia plays a much more prominent role certainly isn't unreasonable. With the exception of the even episodes of the first eight episodes of the third season as well as "Immortality" (3.13) and "Bloodline" (3.18), it's Blueverse Olivia on whom we are centered, so this was a nice shift.

Blueverse Olivia has never really stricken me as the type to listen to music in her car; Redverse Olivia, on the other hand, definitely does, but not Blueverse Olivia, so I wonder, then, if it is Olivia or Peter listening to music in the car. The primary reason that I bring that up is because the song playing is a groovy post-hardcore song called "Changing" by the Airborne Toxic Event; prior to hearing this song in this episode, I wasn't really familiar with the band, but I really love this song, and if you listen to the lyrics, it's certainly very appropriate to Peter's current situation. I like that scene, but it is a blatant Nissan commercial, which is incredibly annoying; I do wish that Fringe would be a little bit more subtle where product placement is concerned, but after all, if increased and blatant product placement helps fund the series and increases its chances of staying on the air, I'm all for it, even if it is in your face, and I do appreciate Nissan sponsoring the series. As I believe I have said before, Blueverse Lincoln is so adorable, and I love his reaction to seeing the Twin Towers, to which Peter replies, "Hey, Scarecrow, watch out for the flying monkeys," and it shouldn't be news to any cortexifan that Fringe loves Wizard of Oz references.

I am very happy to see the two Lincolns finally meet, even though it's not in the original timeline; obviously, as I kind of expected that they wouldn't, they don't really get along, to say the least, but I guess that that is understandable, since no one and his or her counterpart has, thus far, has gotten along. I wonder if the Massive Dynamic file regarding Walter's inter dimensional device being numbered 317 is intentional on the part of the writers to refer to episode 3.17 ("Stowaway"), since that is when we first meet Blueverse Lincoln. I am also very happy to see that Manhattan over there is still being spelled as Manhatan, as I would have feared that there would eventually be a lack of continuity and that it would eventually be spelled the way that it is in the Blueverse. There is something that baffles me about the Show Me situation, though, and by that I mean Blueverse Lincoln eventually being caught in the act of attempting to impersonate Redverse Lincoln due to Redverse Lincoln discovering that his Show Me was reported lost; because Blueverse Lincoln didn't have a Show Me, not only did it result in his being made, but it also slowed him down, and he and Peter needed to get lost as quickly as possible, so couldn't they have manufactured a Show Me? Peter has spent some time over there, and even the Olivia from this orange timeline has spent some time over there, so they should have known that, and that kind of bothers me.

Additionally, I don't understand why Peter and Lincoln don't get off the pier while they have the chance. When Redverse Lincoln calls the guard about his Show Me being reported lost, the two of them are still standing on the pier very close to the guard, and that's just ridiculous. Why didn't they get lost? They knew that they didn't have much time. Redverse Olivia is her usual hilariously snarky self; for example, when the Department of Defense storms through the area demanding that Fringe Division leave, it says that it's because it's now its own jurisdiction, and Redverse Olivia says, "The hell it is; on whose orders?" She, like Blueverse Olivia, can be mouthy but in a much different, perhaps more upfront, manner, as she is a lot more confident. During another instance, she confronts Peter (obviously not knowing who he is in this silly timeline), and when he tells her that he needs to speak to Secretary Bishop, she nods and asks, "Who the hell are you?" As much as she can get under your skin sometimes, she is often extremely funny, and I think that I can probably agree with Peter's sentiment that at the end of the day, she is a good person. She is, after all, Blueverse Olivia, isn't she?

She has apparently gotten to a point at which she doesn't trust Walternate. We had seen that in the original timeline, but events have happened differently in this timeline, and in this timeline, that didn't happen. Of course, she has good reason not to trust Walternate. As she is well aware, for example, he was sending the first breed of Shapeshifters to the Blueverse, and we know, as the audience, that he can be very manipulative and deceptive. Even now, he admits to Peter that he has been spying on the Blueverse, which is how he knew of Peter's presence. However, when Walternate finally agrees to help Peter but asks that he first tell the Blueverse that he is not their enemy, that they have a common enemy, Peter says, "I was wrong about you; you're not the man I thought you were," to which Walternate replies, "You are exactly the man I thought you'd be," so does this mean that if and when Peter returns to the original timeline, he will hold different feelings toward Walternate? Walternate is able to prove his innocence to Peter by killing Redverse Brandon, whom is revealed as a Shapeshifter, but I doubt we've seen the last of him because if and when the timeline is restored, he will obviously be back again. I can't say that I was too emotionally invested in the revelation because this is a different timeline, so it didn't have a big impact, but much of this episode, for me, did.

It was really nice to see Elizabeth, even though her lack of age is a bit of a possible continuity error. When we see her in "Over There" (2.21) (2.22), she is aged, and she looks, as she should, older than she does in "Peter" (2.15) and "Subject 13" (3.15), yet in this episode, she looks about the same age as she does in those two episodes, and it doesn't seem to me like the crew would overlook something like that; as someone on Twitter pronounced while the episode first aired, she looks like she could be Peter's sister. The Amber Riots of '06 are mentioned, and that is curious because in the original timeline, it is revealed, along with the actual revelation that trapped Ambered victims are technically alive, that Walternate has not disclosed and does not plan to disclose the truth regarding the Ambered victims to the public, but a likely reason is that the rioters wanted their loved ones freed so that they could be afforded a proper ceremony. We learn that Jones, having successfully crossed over since Peter never stopped him, is behind the Shapeshifters 2.0, of which I was convinced, anyway, and I'm really excited that he's back, even though I'd rather it be in the original timeline as Redverse Jones. The episode ends with September facing the aftermath of a gunshot wound as he warns Olivia that in every possible future, she has to die; I want to know who shot him, and I don't want to lose September. I know that I complained a bit about this episode, but I stand by my perfect rating of 10, as it is eventful, game-changing, monumental, and Jones is back, in this timeline, anyway.

"Imagine If… Olivia and Peter Had a Child with Cortexiphan Abilities?" (Beyond the Fringe Chapter #3B)

This is definitely one of the better Fringe comics that I've read. "Imagine If… Olivia and Peter Had a Child with Cortexiphan Abilities" takes us to a parallel universe in which Olivia and Peter have a son (probably around twelve or so) named Trevor, and the comic gives us a very brief glimpse of Trevor's life. He is very smart, and he is bullied by a boy named Mark Murphy. He also has a special ability. Because Olivia passed her Cortexiphan abilities onto him, Mark can see into the future. Mark bullies him for this reason; he treats Trevor as if he is some sort of freak, and he constantly pushes Trevor to tell him what is in store for his future, which Trevor refuses to do. Eventually, however, we see that Mark's mother has been diagnosed with cancer and that Mark wants to know if she is going to live. Fortunately, Trevor sees that she will live, which kindles a friendship between the two of them. Trevor is a great character whom I really like, and I wonder if there is a particular reason why Olivia and Peter chose the name Trevor. I think that it's safe to assume that Henrietta got her name from Peter having learned that his son's name was Henry, but I wonder if Trevor has some sort of significance. I also wonder why it is that he can see into the future; I don't think that we've ever seen Olivia able to do that, but then again, this is a different universe, so it's quite possible that her abilities are different in this universe, that Cortexiphan didn't bestow the same abilities onto her, but that's just a thought. It could also be that she does have the same abilities but that Cortexiphan being passed from a parent to his of her offspring doesn't necessarily mean that the offspring will have the same abilities.


In this universe, it would seem like Olivia has managed to keep her abilities under control. Walter recalls Olivia's past as a Cortexiphan subject as a prideful past that made her a special person. On the TV series, he normally talks about Cortexiphan shamefully because he's ashamed of himself for having made so many people's lives miserable, made people outcasts, but now, he urges to Trevor to consider that he and his mother are both beautiful people because they're special. Walter says that Olivia saved a lot of people's lives because of her abilities, so it stands to reason that her past is not quite as troublesome as Blueverse Olivia's. She is wearing a pinkish-purplish color, which is unusual for Blueverse Olivia. Typically, Blueverse Olivia wears black, grey, white, and pale blue. Peter is a great father, and I love how the lucky coin exists in this universe, as well. He tells Trevor, "I was carrying this coin when I met your mother." I wonder if that's true in the Blueverse, too. I love how Trevor calls Walter Grandpa Wally; it sort of reminds me of how Ella called him Uncle Walter. I wonder if Zoom is a real TV series. I don't think that I've ever heard of it if it is. I feel so sorry for Trevor when he is bullied; I know what that's like, but I wonder how Mark had his cell phone number. I really love this comic, mainly because I love Trevor, and I give it 9 lucky coins.