'Fringe' - Jacksonville

The Fringe Division gets closer to the Other Side, while Peter and Olivia also get closer to something else

By LATOYA FERGUSON Feb-6-2010

This review may contain spoilers.

"We're standing in two buildings. One of which comes from the alternate universe."

Walter (John Noble) pretty much said it all with that line. Although, Peter's (Joshua Jackson) wholly inappropriate "first times are always sloppy" did come in a close second for this reviews.

"Jacksonville" was the 'Fringe' winter finale, meaning it was the last new episode until April 1's "Peter." Naturally, the Bad Robot clan decided to go out with a bang before the hiatus, and this was a key mythological episode -- a game changer, if you will. They also reminded us that while the standalone episodes are fun for all, it's the mythology where the show really hits it stride in terms of storytelling. If the show could find a better way to balance the standalones (which are far more common) and mythological episodes, there would be a lot less for anyone to complain about.

The episode as a whole wasn't really anything to write home about. In fact, the opening teaser was nowhere near as gruesome as the teasers for previous episodes have been, and we all know how important a gory opening is to a 'Fringe' episode. Honestly, this episode was all really just a setup for the rest of the season.

You could say this episode opened up a few doors, even. This would be the case if you were a fan of writing horrible puns about shows that have doorways to an alternate universe, of course.

Olivia (Anna Torv) now knows that Peter is from the Other Side. She spent a good chunk of the episode upset with Walter for his experiments on children - namely her - and her new knowledge that the Peter she knows and kind of loves is not the "real" Peter can't do much to strengthen the bond with the eccentric scientist.

What Worked

The little touches that were the difference between our world and the Other Side were nice. From "Manhattan" with one 't' to Richard Nixon on the silver dollar to double-decker cars, it was interesting to see the slight changes between "our" world and the Other Side.

Now the 'will they or won't they' of Peter and Olivia has been a part of the show from the vary beginning, but they've never really ever behaved in ways that show that they were all too interested in one another. This episode changed all of that - and then the rug was swept right from underneath it. This was the first time there was anything other than slightly incestuous brother/sister type chemistry from Peter and Olivia, so of course it was all brought to a screeching halt by the end of the episode; kudos to Anna Torv for her misty-eyed -- and completely heartbreaking -- reaction to the realization that Peter is not Peter.

What Didn't Work

I'm legitimately curious as to whether or not people turned their heads and went "huh?" as soon as Nina Sharp (Blair Brown) appeared on the screen. Not to sound like a broken record, but the absence of Massive Dynamic this season becomes glaringly obvious at times, and this was certainly a reminder. This probably has more to do with the fact that since Massive Dynamic is directly connected to William Bell, it is something that only really appears in mythology episodes. The problem is, the mythology episodes are few and far between.

Giving Credit Where Credit Is Due

"Fringe" stars Anna Torv, Joshua Jackson, John Noble, Lance Reddick, Blair Brown, Jasika Nicole. "Jacksonville" was written by Ashley Edward Miller & Zack Stentz and directed by Charles Beeson.

"Fringe" airs Thursdays at 9 p.m. on Fox.

About the Author: LaToya Ferguson is a staff writer for Airlock Alpha and InsideBlip. She contributes from her home in sunny Florida where she is currently in her final semester of college as an English major with a concentration in Film & Media Studies. Her favorite color is blue, and she watches way more television than any sane person should.
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