Power Hungry

Season 1, Episode 5, Aired
EDIT

Episode Summary

The team investigates the case of a man who can generate electrical phenomena and is at the center of a series of strange deaths involving electronic devices.
8.5
out of 10
EPISODE RATING: Great
602 votes
  • Your Rating: 10
    "Perfect"
  • Your Rating: 9.5
    "Superb"
  • Your Rating: 9
    "Superb"
  • Your Rating: 8.5
    "Great"
  • Your Rating: 8
    "Great"
  • Your Rating: 7.5
    "Good"
  • Your Rating: 7
    "Good"
  • Your Rating: 6.5
    "Fair"
  • Your Rating: 6
    "Fair"
  • Your Rating: 5.5
    "Mediocre"
  • Your Rating: 5
    "Mediocre"
  • Your Rating: 4.5
    "Poor"
  • Your Rating: 4
    "Poor"
  • Your Rating: 3.5
    "Bad"
  • Your Rating: 3
    "Bad"
  • Your Rating: 2.5
    "Terrible"
  • Your Rating: 2
    "Terrible"
  • Your Rating: 1.5
    "Abysmal"
  • Your Rating: 1
    "Abysmal"
Rate It

Watch Online

TV.com
Free
The WB
Free
Amazon
Buy
iTunes
Buy
VUDU
Buy/Rent

Cast & Crew

See All EDIT

Fan Episode Reviews (11)

See All

  • Ok episode, nothing great.

    8.0
    "Great"
    By tv_buffy_addict, Mar 12, 2011 Report Abuse
    I didn't like the electricity guy. He seemed like a creepy stalker! I mean seriously how are you meant to like him after he has creepy pics of this girl he likes on his phone (who doesn't know who he is), then he accidentally kills her. Plus I thought it was really predictable when he killed his mum.
    All the stuff about Olivia's ex was ...odd. The guy was kind of evil and didn't he try to kill her? It'll be interesting to see where they'll go with this.
    I'm loving the characters and the show but this was an average ep.moreless

    DO YOU AGREE?

    1 1

  • Well this episode get a big fat MEH, from me.

    8.5
    "Great"
    By benner82, Jul 24, 2010 Report Abuse
    Well this episode get a big fat MEH, from me. I still like this show a lot over all, but this episode was pretty lackluster. The premise for the episode was promising enough, but I thought it got a little silly when they brought the pigeons on. The end was very good though, after the case had been resolved. I think that redeemed the episode from going from lackluster to dull. The over arcing character story lines need to get more in depth, in my opinion, if they want solidify their fan base. The writing of any single episode, this one included, has never disappointed me. It is very sharp and clever. A lot of research must go into each episode, at least I hope so.

    I really don't have much to add other than emphasizing what I said earlier about getting more in depth with the characters and/or over arcing story lines dealing with John Scott or Massive Dynamics, which was sadly absent this episode.moreless

    DO YOU AGREE?

    0 5

  • A man has the power to control electronic devices.

    8.5
    "Great"
    By thefanof, Jul 24, 2010 Report Abuse
    It's rare that I'll start off with the negative for an episode, but this week things took way too long to get into the story. We didn't need to see the man for 7 minutes to know who he was before something happened. To maintain possession of House viewers Fringe needs to quickly hook them in with a 1-2 minute supernatural occurence, like they have done for the past few weeks.

    The back and forths between Walter and Peter Bishop are usually the high point of the episode but it felt forced tonight and not as natural. I did like Walter being obsessed with his wool socks though. If John Noble doesn't receive an Emmy nomination there is something severely wrong with the system.

    The premise here was good, but at points it came off as pretty pointless in the grand scheme of things. They advanced the storyline between Olivia and John and I am interested in where that's headed, but this just wasn't up to standards set by previous Fringe episodes. Still a good, entertaining hour though.moreless

    DO YOU AGREE?

    5 0

  • "Visiting hours. Everyone put on their best straitjacket" - PETER

    8.5
    "Great"
    By efc91, Jul 24, 2010 Report Abuse
    The team discovers a man with the uncontrolled ability to affect electrical energy, made the way he is by a scientist performing illegal experiments on humans. With the help of carrier pigeons modified to track the man's electromagnetic signature, the team manages to track him down and arrest the scientist. Meanwhile, Olivia begins seeing visions of John, which she learns are caused by memories transferred to her during their experience in the first episode. Through these memories, she discovers one of John's secret hideouts, where a large number of investigation files relating to the Pattern are found. This episode gave a lot of the characters screen time which means CHRACTER DEVELOPMENT yay but still the episode was slow and nothing much happened. I enjoyed it but after the last couple of episodes this is a bit of a let down. I gvie it a 8.5 out of 10 there was some funny moments in this one.moreless

    DO YOU AGREE?

    1 0

  • On the whole, a solid effort and further evidence that Fringe is only just getting started.

    8.5
    "Great"
    By screenagedkicks, Jul 24, 2010 Report Abuse
    Fringe gave us its fifth instalment this week after a short absence and it was something of a beaut. The episode's core concept - that a human being could potentially wittingly or unwittingly control electricity - was explored fantastically, offering up a number of hugely memorable water cooler moments: the guy's arm in the mechanical device, the car alarms and lights going off, and particularly the entire pre-credits sequence in the elevator which was superbly shot for maximum effect. The decision to cut from the chaos to a still shot of the ground, from which we view the ultimate collision, was inspired, magnifying the horror of the incident to an even greater degree than we perhaps would've experienced had we simply been treated to an aerial shot or even remained in the elevator. The subsequent exploration of this theme was also very well handled: kudos to the writers for allowing the viewer to care about the outcome of the investigation by beautifully characterising the role of Joseph, and leading the narrative oft-times from his perspective. Granted, we had our usual absurd blast of barely-even-psuedo-science from Walter (electromagnetic signatures to cassette tapes to homing pigeons is um... yeah), but I'm starting to forgive the show for it to be honest, especially following the superb 'The Observer' which effectively began to shift the show's self-imposed rules (did you all spot him getting out of the elevator before Joseph got in? Did you?) Plus, Olivia's characterisation was delicately handled, paying dividends as a result: I actually began to care about her previous relationship with John, and the entire 'part of his consciousness is in yours' angle certainly holds promise for future wackiness. On the whole, a solid effort and further evidence that Fringe is only just getting started.moreless

    DO YOU AGREE?

    3 0
 

Trivia, Notes, Quotes and Allusions

See All

  • Trivia

    ADD TRIVIA
    • During the scene in which Olivia finds an engagement ring in the container with John's personal effects, there is a second metallic object visible inside the ring box. After the cut, the smaller object is absent. Edit
    • Trivia: The glyph for this episode is "SURGG," possibly meant to be "SURGE." Edit
    • It seems unusual as well as unlikely that any relevant security cameras that might have shown Joe Meegar on tape were wiped by the electronic pulse (including those outside the elevator that might have shown him entering) but the weight sensors on the elevator itself were undamaged so that Olivia could determine the weight discrepancy. Edit

  • Notes

    ADD NOTES
    • Original International Air Dates: Sweden: October 30, 2008 on Kanal 5 United Kingdom: November 2, 2008 on Sky1/Sky1 HD Norway: February 1, 2009 on Tvn Finland: February 2, 2009 on MTV3 Germany: April 20, 2009 on ProSieben Belgium: June 11, 2009 on RTBF2 France: June 24, 2009 on TF1 New Zealand: July 29, 2009 on TV2 Australia: September 9, 2009 on Go! Poland: October 8, 2009 on TVN Slovakia: November 1, 2009 on Markiza Czech Republic: February 19, 2010 on Nova Cinema Edit
    • The flybys of "Worcester, Massachusetts" are actually of Hartford, Connecticut. Edit
    • Music: Can't Fight This Feeling Anymore (REO Speedwagon) Edit

  • Quotes

    ADD QUOTES
    • Peter: Visiting hours. Everyone put on their best straitjacket. Edit
    • Olivia: So… what is this? Walter: This is the sort of work I was born for. Peter: You were hoping for something more specific, maybe? Edit
    • Olivia: Walter, you're not going to accidentally fry one of those pigeons? Walter: Stranger things have happened. Peter: That's his motto. Edit

  • Allusions

    ADD ALLUSIONS
    • Walter's lab note: "I Sing the Body Electric" Referencing the poem from the Walt Whitman collection Leaves of Grass (1855) . The same title was also a short story by Ray Bradbury in an anthology of the same name, as well as an episode of the original Twilight Zone based on Bradbury's story. Edit

Show Forums

See All
Last Activity
Replies

Watch Fringe Full Episodes

See All

Related Shows

Season 1 Episodes

See All
Ep 20
There's More Than One of E...
Ep 19
The Road Not Taken
Ep 18
Midnight
Ep 17
Bad Dreams
Ep 16
Unleashed
Ep 15
Inner Child
Ep 14
Ability
Ep 13
The Transformation
Ep 12
The No-Brainer
Ep 11
Bound
Ep 10
Safe
Ep 9
The Dreamscape
Ep 8
The Equation
Ep 7
In Which We Meet Mr. Jones
Ep 6
The Cure
Ep 5
Power Hungry
Ep 4
The Arrival
Ep 3
The Ghost Network
Ep 2
The Same Old Story
Ep 1
Pilot

Contributors

Become a contributor
More
Less

TV Listings

Full Listings
BROWSE | Shows | Videos | News | Listings | Forums | People | Photos | TV.com Blog

CBS Entertainment | About TV.com | About CBS Interactive | Jobs | Advertise

© 2012 CBS Interactive Inc. All rights reserved. | Privacy Policy | Ad Choice | Terms of Use