FBI Agent Olivia Dunham (Anna Torv) has
gone to another universe to visit Massive Dynamic founder William Bell (Leonard Nimoy).
She comes back with no memory of what happened and cyborg soldiers from another universe are interested in what she
was told. These soldiers are in the search of a certain head stored in
a cryonic facility. It is part of a plan to be able to open a door to the alternate
universe that Walter Bishop (John Noble) breached 25 years ago (and it ties in with his son Peter (Joshua Jackson)). The Fringe Division of the FBI investigates the usual science elements that
plague the world while trying to stop an invasion from the other universe.
FRINGE season two has a more heavy mythology
arc that develops during the season with episodes like PETER showing how Walter started the problems that the Fringe unit
is facing now and OVER THERE which shows the effects of the breach into the other universe.
I love the mythology arc and it stands out from the other episodes. Yet
there are standalone episodes like WHITE TULIP (with guest star Peter Weller) and odd episodes like BROWN BETTY (with a 1940s
detective story mixed with a musical) that stand out alongside the mythology episodes.
Then you have the H.P. Lovecraft references (Dunwich Hospital and the character
Stuart Gordon) that writers Ashley Edward Miller and Zack Stentz add to the episode GREY MATTERS and it makes episodes like
that more rewarding for people who know the sci-fi and horror genres. Miller
and Stentz are welcome additions to the writing team and their episodes help acknowledge the fact the FRINGE producers want
good writing. OVER THERE does open up new possibilities for season 3 and
I can’t wait to see what happens next (season 3 started on FOX on Thursday September 23).
SPECIAL FEATURES:
Audio commentaries-
MOMENTUM DEFERRED by Jill Risk, Matthew
Pitts, Danielle Dispaltro, Justin Doble, and Charles Scott IV
PETER by Blair Brown and John Noble
BROWN BETTY by Tanya Swerling, Billy Gottlieb,
Chris Tilton, and Jay Worth
OVER THERE, Part 2 by Jeff Pinker, J.H.
Wyman, Akiva Goldsman
FRINGE: ANALYZING THE SCENE featuretes
for A NEW DAY IN THE OLD TOWN (a stunt through a car window), MOMENTUM DEFERRED, OF HUMAN ACTION, WHAT LIES BELOW, BROWN BETTY
(all about how they had to change the look of the sets and the lighting for the 1940s scenes), and OVER THERE Part 2 (filming
the explosion for the climatic scene).
Deleted scenes for NIGHT OF DESIRABLE OBJECTS,
GREY MATTERS, OLIVIA IN THE LAB WITH THE REVOLVER, NORTHWEST PASSAGE, and OVER THERE Part 2 (an extra internet scene which
amounts to nothing)
The gag reel (UNUSUAL SIDE EFFECTS)
feature lots of flubbed lines, swearing, and cast hijinks.
IN THE LAB WITH JOHN NOBLE AND PROP MASTER
ROB SMITH has the two of them go through a tour of the props on the Fringe Lab set.
THE MYTHOLOGY OF FRINGE has the producers
and cast talk about the mythology episodes of season 2 and what is expected to happen in season 3.
Also on the set is UNEARTHED which is an
unaired episode form season one (which aired as a bonus episode on a special night during season 2).
FINAL ANALYSIS: The FRINGE season 2 DVD set has many wonderful episodes that make it a better season over the first
season with a few interesting extras for anyone who buys the set.
This DVD review is ©9-21-2010 David Blackwell and cannot be reprinted without permission. Send all comments to lord_pragmagtic@hotmail.com
