Re: What Did You Watch? 2025-05-31 (Saturday)

On Sun, 1 Jun 2025 11:16:36 -0700, Dimensional Traveler <dtravel@sonic.net>
wrote:

Fringe S3E15 'Subject 13'
>
IMDb sez: "This follow-up to last season's "Peter" flashback episode
revisits a poignant period of time for both the Bishops and Olivia. "
A 1985 episode so everyone but Mr. Noble got a vacation.  :)
>
Plot Holes: Given the way that they all are supposed to have interacted
as shown in this episode, it becomes questionable as to how none of
Walter, Peter and Olivia have any recollection of each other when they
meet in the pilot episode - Walter is perhaps forgivable due to his
memory loss, but Olivia should have recognised at least the names of
Walter and Peter, and Peter should have known Olivia.
>
The glyphs for this episode spell out: SWITCH
>
When Walter is trying to activate Olivia's ability to cross over he
gives her a puzzle. This puzzle was used in J.J. Abrams show Alias. It
was a tool used when training children to be sleeper agents for the CIA
>
The timeline of this episode contradicts previous episodes that suggest
Olivia was three and living in Jacksonville with her father at the time
of the Cortexiphan trials. The room where Olivia starts a fire is also
different, and the burn marks leave a circle in the middle of the room
rather than an untouched corner.
>
This episode takes place in Jacksonville, Florida home to sun and high
temperatures. Yet in the scene where Peter and Olivia return to the
school it is snowing.
>
(Obviously the Abrams Curse of "randomly throw shit at the wall and see
if anyone notices" was making its presence known in this episode.)
>
>
Fringe S3E16 'Os'
>
IMDb sez: "The Fringe team attempts to find out what process enables
people to become lighter than air and float. Peter and Olivia deal with
trust issues in their relationship, while Walter becomes increasingly
obsessed with retrieving William Bell's consciousness from beyond the
grave."
>
The episode opens with Walter getting stoned with Hurley in the security
room of Massive Dynamics.
>
The glyphs for this episode spell out: "Earth"
>
The episode title is the chemical symbol for the element Osmium, the
densest of the naturally occurring elements.
>
When Nina arrives at Walter's lab she calls Astrid "Astrik".
>
Agent Astrid Farnsworth: "I went to Quanico for this?" (after Dr. Bishop
asks her to dispose of many gallons of blood).
>
>
>
Fringe S3E17 'Stowaway'
>
IMDb sez "As the Fringe team hopes to alleviate Olivia's possession
quickly, Agent Lincoln Lee of the F.B.I. meets them for the first time
over the curious case of what he calls "the compassionate soul vampire.""
>
The glyphs for this episode spell out: ERODE
>
Lincoln Lee: Feel free to give me a call if you ever find yourself
needing some help.
Peter Bishop: Be careful what you wish for.
>
William Bell: You know, stranger things have happened
Lincoln Lee: No, they haven't
>
Dr. Walter Bishop: Even if we were able to transfer your consciousness
safely inside Gene there are other matters to consider.
William Bell: We would communicate through my brainwaves. You would hook
me up into an EEG machine and decipher my thoughts.
Dr. Walter Bishop: That may work but still... I'd have to milk you.
William Bell: We could assign Astrid.
Peter Bishop: Walter. Walter?
Dr. Walter Bishop: Not now son, we are on to something.
>
Personal observation, Leonard Nimoy never looked better than he does in
this episode.  ;)

I watched Fringe when it originally aired and the long, convoluted plotlines
got annoying sometimes.  I re-watched it last summer on Amazon Prime and the
whole series plays so much better when you dont have to wait weeks and
months and years between episodes.   Even the final season that got a lot of
criticism plays much better when you can binge watch it.  The only drawback
is you will likely notice some of those plot holes you mention like Olivia
not recognizing Walter as an adult since things are more fresh in memory.

I started watching the 12 Monkeys series again and it's a lot like Fringe
that way.  I remember it being very slow, convoluted and many times I almost
gave up on it.   I stuck it out and was rewarded by one of the best finales
of a series I can remember.  The series as a whole is so much better binge
watching it.