Fringe

Pilot

Season 1, Episode 1, Aired 9/9/08

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Episode Summary

When all the passengers and crew on Flight 627 Hamburg-to-Boston die in a hideous manner, FBI agent Olivia Dunham investigates the event. While following up a lead, her partner and lover, John Scott, undergoes life-threatening chemical contamination. A desperate Olivia looks for help and finds Dr. Walter Bishop, who cannot help her because he has been institutionalized. The only way to even question him is with the help of his son Peter.
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''Olivia continues her investigations and goes to Nina Sharp, a manipulative executive. Olivia, Peter and Dr. Bishop begin to discover what really happened on Flight 627 and start to uncover a larger truth.moreless

8.7

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Cast & Crew

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Lance Reddick

Phillip Broyles
Blair Brown

Nina Sharp
Jasika Nicole

Astrid Farnsworth

Fan Episode Reviews (86)

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Looking forward to seeing more

9.0

"Superb"

By dreamgoat, Jan 25, 2012 Report Abuse

This show is very unique an has promise so I'm looking forward to seeing more. From the author that made "Lost" JJ Abrams, which I enjoy very much. I hope this show will give me that same type of belonging that Lost did, the greatest part of Lost is that you can ever stop watching it. It was like a very long movie, its not what happens in the end or the beginning. It's the journey getting there that makes for a great show and the experience.moreless

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0 0
Reminds me of the Alias pilot.

8.5

"Great"

By becksdakex, Sep 11, 2011 Report Abuse

I'm a big fan of Alias and I can't help but compare these two. Both shows has a strong female lead who works as an agent (FBI, CIA), fiancee in trouble, a possible new love interest and a lot of back and forth, twists and turns.
This pilot is very strong and one of the best I've seen, it introduces the characters in a great way and builds a firm ground for the future. I'm usually not into science fiction but I find this very interesting, I like when shows twist the reality just a little bit.moreless

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0 0
Pacey Witter's all grown up in this sci-fi thriller series by JJ. Abrams.

8.0

"Great"

By jacaranda9dbux, Jun 05, 2011 Report Abuse

Watched the first few episodes of Fringe season 1 last night with the wife and she liked it. She doesn't usually like the shows that I watched Anyway, the pilot episode is pretty neat with the decaying-while-alive scene, that's the one that got our attention. That's exactly what the pilot should do, grab the viewer's interest so they will watch the next episode.

I also love the ending of the pilot episode, exactly what the viewers should feel at the end of any show... "What's going to happen next?" This is when John Scott, very dead, was taken and to be 'question'.. "Question him"... I will continue with the marathon of season 1 before I start with the sophomore season... Fringe is good.moreless

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4 0
This was the start of possibly the best tv show ever made. If it continues like this it will even surpass the standards of 24

10

"Perfect"

By CarloMartin0, May 29, 2011 Report Abuse

This was the start of possibly the best tv show ever made. If it continues like this it will even surpass the standards of 24. I heard many people say that LOST was so successful because it did something that no show had ever done, but it never really impressed me and I stopped watching at the end of the 2nd season. Fringe on the other hand is utter perfection. The great cast and writing simply just work. the problem with most sci fi shows for me is that they are completely unrealistic, fringe on the other hand is based on science ( fringe science). I know it is also unrealistic, but they was they manage it just gives it an air of credibility.Spoiler: the walter stealing peter is one of the best story lines ever created. If you came here wondering if you should watch this show, my answer is simple: Just do itmoreless

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1 1
THE must-see pilot of the 2008 fall season.

9.5

"Superb"

By JBentham, May 09, 2011 Report Abuse

I was lucky to see the screener version of the pilot, so obviously only continue reading if you don't want to be spoiler.

OKAY; wow. JJ Abrams did it again. Alias, Lost and now Fringe - 3 amazing shows by him, 3 amazing pilots. The opening grabs the attention of everyone, Naturally. It's pretty violent and definitely makes you ask the question: What the hell's going on?

Everyone on a plane dies in a very violent way and it is, obviously, up to the FBI to study the case. Terror attack? Virus? What is it?

Loved how quick the plot was established. Even after the incident the episode only "idled" with character development for 10 minutes - then came the warehouse scene which I think is classic JJ. Instantly puts one of the main characters in danger. Well, at least we think he's a main character - we're led to believe that he is.

Now Olivia is amazing. I love how, once again, classic JJ, they casted a somewhat unknown actress for the lead (Anna Torv). This makes her more original and fascinating to watch. I loved her acting in the episode and her character is very well written and defined.

Kind of like Sydney Bristow just a little more down to earth given the show's nature.

Her motivation to save her boyfriend was clean and that was the "backbone" of the pilot. The show soon introduces the other leads, Joshua Jackson's character, Peter Bishop and Walter Bishop.

Daddy issues? Really, JJ? I mean, it's a good thing, but for the 3rd time in this review alone: Classic JJ. Olivia blackmailing Peter was great and actually, the whole introduction to Peter was great. Somewhat comical, and at that point of the episode, comic relief was welcome.

Peter and Walter scenes were great. I'm really interested what made them so keep distance so badly, what is it exactly that Walter did before.

Speaking of which, Walter's a good character too. Though, I expected a little more from the "scientist" of the show(as in, more mysteries around him), he turned out to be a 99% good guy by the end of the episode. But probably this is just temporarly.

Another major character, Philip, portrayed by the awesome Lance Reddick, at first doesn't do much but near the end it's revealed he knows more than what we think. Not really a shocker, because, well, Lance Reddick always plays shady characters. He's intriguing but obviously we'll have to wait a few episodes to learn about him, knowing JJ's previous projects and his way of storytelling.

The episode was long and yes, it did drag a little. Probably the scenes where Olivia and Peter are getting Walter out of the facility so he can examine John were a bit too long... but soonly after that the pacing got better.

The dream scenes were very well done. Great cinematography and just really intriguing. The science of the show - belivable. I'll say that I can actually believe what the characters are saying, however it seemed to me that the writers revealed a bit too much of the "Fringe science" side of the show in the pilot.

Near the end of the episode the "villain" is introduced; Massive Dynamics, the big and evil company who is way ahead of everyone. We almost got to see the head of the company, but we did not, only a representative. Now this makes me think that the master mind behind everything will be a huge reveal later in the show and probably someone more famous will be casted for that role.

I was a bit disappointed 5 minutes before the ending; so is this it? Everything gets solved, bad guy gets caught, all is going to be good and happy forever?

But, god. I forgot it's a JJ Abrams pilot! Of course the guy who's been saved IS a bad guy! The main character nearly died, turned out to be bad.. and then he died! Fantastic car chase at the end that was really spectacular. I can definitely believe that the show's pilot was $10 million. It was worthy every penny.

I mean, wow. The setting of the show... the snowy enviorments really set the mood of the show. I hope they can keep the snow for the episodes to come.

The cgi? top notch once again. Same for the action scenes as I mentioned above.

The episode's cliffhanger sent chills down my spine, obviously. It was great "-How long has he been dead? -5 hours. -Good. Question Him." LOL, I mean how many shows can have dialogs like that? Fantastic pilot. I want the 2nd episode now!

Not only did it establish the show's storyline and characters, it also managed to entertain me for every single minute it lasted. It was like a mini movie ; and it's up to you if you want to see the continuation. Apart from minor mistakes, this was a flawless pilot.

Well done JJ and co! May this be the next LOST!moreless

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Trivia, Notes, Quotes and Allusions

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Trivia
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- Trivia: The glyphs first seen here form a code that spell out "observer." Edit
- Trivia: Right outside the Massive Dynamic building you can see the symbols for a pen and a rose. This is a clue to Christopher Penrose and Dr. Claus Penrose, who appear in the next episode "The Same Old Story." Edit
- Hidden Phrases During the beginning credits the words "Observers are here" can be seen. During the dream sequence the words "He's Not Dead" appear on a tombstone. Edit
Notes
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- There are eight pictures that appear when a commercial breaks is coming or for promoting the show. APPLE: the seeds in the apple are human embryos BUTTERFLY: the wings are made up of bones FLOWER: some of its petals are dragonfly wings and the center shows a Fermat's spiral FROG: has a symbol on its back for PHI HAND: it has six fingers HORN: has the Fibonacci spiral and has the number of PHI inscribed on the horn LEAF: has the delta symbol in the middle of it SMOKE: for a woman's face *in most of the pictures there is a small yellow dot. Edit
- Original International Air Dates: Australia: September 17, 2008 on Channel 9 Sweden: October 2, 2008 on TV4 United Kingdom: October 5, 2008 on Sky1/Sky1 HD Norway: January 1, 2009 on Tvn Finland: January 5, 2009 on MTV3 Thailand: February 7, 2009 on True Series Hungary: March 13, 2009 on RTL-Klub Germany: March 16, 2009 on ProSieben Belgium: May 28, 2009 on RTBF2 France: June 10, 2009 on TF1 New Zealand: July 1, 2009 on TV2 Poland: September 10, 2009 on TVN Slovakia: October 4, 2009 on Markiza Czech Republic: February 5, 2010 on Nova Cinema Edit
- Kirk Acevedo (Charlie Francis) and Lance Reddick (Phillip Broyles) previously starred together on the HBO series Oz. Edit
Quotes
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- Walter: If you want to watch, you can come closer. You work here? Astrid: Yeah. I'm Astrid Farnsworth, assistant to Agent Dunham. Walter: Who? (Astrid points to Olivia in the sensory deprivation tank) Walter: Oh, yes! I'm Walter... ummm... Peter: Bishop. Walter Bishop. Walter: Yes, thank you. Peter: Don't mention it. Edit
- Nina: (uncovers John's body) How long has he been dead? Man w/Gurney: Five hours. Nina: Question him. Edit
- Olivia: His name is Peter Bishop. He's a high school drop out; an IQ at 190, but just 50 points North of Genius- misfit, nomad. Hasn't held a job longer then two months. He's been a wild land fireman, cargo pilot and briefly a college Chemistry professor. He falsified a degree from MIT and even managed to get a few papers published before he was found out. Sounds like a massive pain in the ass. Edit
Allusions
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- Peter: You're telling me, what, my father was Dr. Frankenstein? Referencing the book by Mary Shelley Frankenstein or The Modern Prometheus. The story is about Doctor Frankenstein who creates a living being out of the parts of dead people, a being that turns against its creator. Edit