It’s been a pretty tough fall season thus far. Honestly there aren’t many programs that I can boldly claim as “the best show that you’re not watching.” Sadly it’s too soon to call for new shows and some great shows have yet to return. There’s really not that much quality on the airwaves right now.
Fortunately there’s Fringe.
Now I realize that not everyone’s into science fiction. The genre’s a tough sell and the people who are the most passionate about it are doing it no favors. Still, Fringe isn’t all that sci-fi.
Ok, it sorta is, but it’s really not that bad. It’s remenicent of The X-Files, not in the “bogged down by it’s own mythology” way, but in the “really creepy cool what if that’s really possible” sort of way.
Basically it’s a show about a unit of the FBI that’s focusing on The Pattern, which are events that linked by the use of “fringe” science (fringe being science that’s more theoretical in nature.) There’s Olivia Dunham the field agent who’s basically running the show. She’s also special in that she’s got some gifts. She’s aided by Walter Bishop, a loony scientist whose theories are being exploited. His son Peter Bishop is also part of the core group; he’s got a mysterious past.
And that’s basically it. In the first season they dealt with high tech bank robbers, parallel worlds, teleportation and other unexplained phenomena. But it wasn’t really as out there as it sounds. I mean this in the best way possible, it’s like community college sci-fi; it’s not that complex. You don’t need a doctorate or even a working knowledge of science to enjoy an episode.
Fringe has some great stories and some great characters. Walter Bishop is a nutty professor, but he’s not a cliché nutty professor. The writers have taken the time to give his peculiarities a purpose and based them in the character’s history. The archvillian Mr. Smith was/is equally captivating.
Fringe really is a quality show that is deserving of your viewing. Season one is on dvd and all of season two is on hulu.com for the time being. Give it a shot.
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