Episode Title: "Olivia"
Writers: J.H. Wyman & Jeff Pinkner
Director: Joe Chappelle
Previously on "Fringe":
Years ago, Dr. Walter Bishop (John Noble) kidnapped his young son Peter from an alternate Earth to save his life and to replace the son that he lost in our world. More recently, Peter (Joshua Jackson) learned the truth about his origins and returned to the alternate Earth with his true father (hereafter referred to as Walternate). Upon learning that Walternate planned to use Peter to destroy our universe, Walter and FBI Agent Olivia Dunham (Anna Torv) crossed over to the alternate Earth to retrieve him.
Upon arriving, Olivia and Walter discovered that this world had its own Fringe team, including Charlie Francis (Kirk Acevedo) and an alternate Olivia (or Bolivia). Olivia bested Bolivia in a fight and took her place on the alternate Fringe team. When she reunited with Peter, she told him what Walternate had in store for him and expressed her feelings for him with a passionate kiss.
Walter's former partner William Bell (Leonard Nimoy) formulated a plan to allow the trio to return to their world, but he was briefly knocked unconscious. When he awoke, Olivia brought him inside the Opera house where he powered their trip home at the cost of his life. However, it was soon revealed that Olivia had been replaced by Bolivia while Bell was out cold. Meanwhile, the real Olivia was locked away on the alternate Earth, as she begged Walternate to release her.
Story:
In a laboratory on the alternate Earth, Walternate watches as a psychiatrist named Dr. Anderson (Gabrielle Rose) examines Olivia and tries to convince her that she is actually Bolivia. Olivia firmly stands by her story about coming from a different Earth, even though she is fully aware of how crazy that sounds. When Anderson presses her with details about her life, including the Olympic gold medal Bolivia won for marksmanship and her mother, Olivia retorts that her mother is dead and she never won a medal for anything. Unhappy about Olivia's response, Walternate orders her to be reinjected with memories taken from Bolivia, which have apparently failed to take affect in several previous attempts.
After her latest injections, Olivia is able to free herself and escape from the lab, which turns out to be on Liberty island. She dives off of a high cliff into the New York harbor. The following morning, the disheveled agent takes a Taxi driver named Henry (Cameron K. Smith) hostage. Olivia forces him to buy her clothes to disguise herself and to drive her back to the Opera house. Back at Fringe division, Bolivia's partners Charlie Francis and Lincoln Lee (Seth Gabel) learn that she has escaped and from their reactions, it is clear that they aren't aware that Olivia is not their partner. Despite Lincoln's massive burns, he insists upon being part of the team sent to find her.
Olivia returns to the Opera house only a few moments before it is sealed in Amber. With that way home closed to her, Olivia asks to be taken to the Massive Dynamic building, only to find that it does not exist in this universe. At a nearby gas station, Olivia briefly breaks down before she is confronted by Lincoln. She locks him in the gas station bathroom and narrowly avoids Charlie by placing an incredible shot at the gas tank behind him. Henry commends her on the shot, but she says that she has never been that good. She also briefly mentions Bolivia's boyfriend Frank when she meant to say Peter.
Suddenly remembering an address for a safe house, Olivia bids Henry farewell and thanks him for believing in her. Inside, Olivia is stunned to find her mother Marilyn (Amy Madigan). At first Olivia insists that Marilyn isn't her mother, but she then seems to recall painting the house with her and they bond. Charlie shows up looking to talk to Marilyn and is shocked to find Olivia there, with her personality seemingly replaced by Bolivia's. She thanks Charlie for helping her as they return to the Fringe team. Later, the alternate Broyles (Lance Reddick) demands that Walternate explain why he wanted to brainwash Olivia and send Bolivia to the alternate universe, but Walternate simply hangs up on him.
Back in our universe, Peter gives a deposition about the events leading to his return and his motives for coming home are questioned. Outside, Bolivia and Walter wait for him. As the trio goes out to enjoy a rare quiet dinner, Bolivia and Peter share a passionate kiss of their own.
Breakdown:
After a week in which most of the new dramas were extremely disappointing, I'm pleased to report that "Fringe" is back at the top of its game.
The new season is basically breaking into two different narratives: odd numbered episodes will follow Olivia in the alternate universe while even numbered episodes take place in our world. The setup at the end of this episode is intriguing in that it isn't clear if Olivia is faking her responses with Bolivia's memories, or if the process has actually worked as described. It was also a nice touch when Walternate explained that Olivia's adrenalin rushes during her escape were the missing steps necessary to make the memory transfer work.
The alternate world is apparently even more paranoid than our own, since the people who live there constantly have to show their identification or "Show Me" cards just to catch a cab or get around. In the season finale, Walternate described this world as a place where the laws of physics became "mere suggestions," so I'm looking forward to seeing how that is demonstrated in the coming season. The alternate Fringe team is also interesting, especially when it became clear just how much they care for Bolivia. While I expected that from Charlie Francis, Lincoln Lee is kind of a surprise. And I'm also wondering if he has a counterpart in "our" world.
Cameron K. Smith's Henry the cab driver was unexpectedly interesting. Smith took what could have been a one-note role and actually made him compelling by brief hints of his own backstory and by the way he slowly came around to accepting Olivia's story. The scene where he explained why he believed in Olivia and how it related to his wife was very moving. And it was also intriguing when Henry apparently stayed outside of the safehouse after Olivia told him to leave. Reportedly, Smith will be coming back to the series later this season, so he may play a part in Olivia's eventual escape.
While I could have waited until next week to see what was happening in our universe, the quick glimpse of Bolivia, Peter and Walter gave some indications as to how that dynamic is going to change this season. Bolivia doesn't seem to have wasted any time pursuing a physical relationship with Peter, which means the eventual revelation is going to be messy. It is kind of shocking that neither Peter nor Walter have picked up on anything different about her, but presumably that will come. In fact, it could end up being a "Fringe" drinking game this season. Anytime Bolivia is about to be exposed, take a drink. Maybe we should also take bets on who learns the truth first...
Regardless, this was a great way to kick off the season and I'm ready to dive into the rest.
Crave Online Rating: 8.5 out of 10.
