I can thank my American friend Josh for getting me hooked on Fringe. My wife and I were baby-sitting so he could take his wife out, and he suggested we check out some of the TV shows he had downloaded via his iTunes account. Fringe sounded like the most interesting, so after the kids were put to bed, we settled down to see what this X-Files type series could offer. We were still watching when Josh and his wife returned home.
When the show finally arrived on NZ television we sat down to watch and catch up to where we had got on that one night. Sadly the adverts got the better of us, and we decided to wait for the DVD release.
Now, a considerable time later, we’ve just finished watching season 2.
The season kicks off with an expected, mind-bending episode, but then settled down into a slow-burn approach to the season. Not a lot happens, but there’s plenty going on. Some of the episodes feel like filler and leave you wondering is the show has run out of ideas early. The worst example of this is the totally skippable “Brown Betty” episode, a noir-ish detective episode, narrated by Walter, which adds nothing to the overall story, but does a great job of annoying the heck outta you.
Contrast this to the magnificent “Peter” episode, which is a retro themed (they even re-did the them tune and floating graphics) episode that explores the complicated relationship between Walter and Peter. This is where a slight detour from the usual works, and delivers in a huge way.
And it’s what typifies the whole season, it’s pretty much up and down, with some great moments, bracketed by the ho-hum.
Of course the mystery of Fringe is in the bigger picture, and we get to see a fair bit of what is happening, with plenty of twists and turns to keep fans of the show happy. The ending is naturally a bit of a cliffhanger and by the time the season wraps up, it’ll have you wanting for more.
Not as commanding as the first season, but season two does have enough spark to make you want to keep watching for at least another season. FILMGUIDE rating: Reviewed by: Jonathan
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