FRINGE: "Jacksonville"

Original Air Date

February 4, 2010

Description

Two worlds collide with disastrous results.

Notes

(A-) Holy Frickin' Cold Open Batman. That was crazy. Not only were their subtle hints about alt-world, but we end up with a guy being mutated or merged with another body (his other dimensional self) and ending up with extra limbs and an extra face. Crazy! Also, Crazy Awesome!

The architect in the cold open was working on an a new annex to the Pentagon. Important? In alt-world the 9/11 terrorists attacked the Pentagon and the White House. A world without Coffee? Nixon on the silver dollar?

There was a subtle hint about what might come when Walter unlocked the Jacksonville lab facility that he and Dr. Bell used to experiment on children, including Olivia. The padlock had the following combination: 5-20-10. "I Always use the same combination, but can't remember the significance," Walter said.

It obviously means something significant. Sounds like a date to me, May 20, 2010. Is something bad going to happen on that date?

Olivia started a fire with her mind... say what? I love how that point just sailed by in this episode like it was normal. I am sure it will come up again sometime.

Just as I was hoping for a little Olivia and Peter romance it comes. Peter and Olivia almost kiss. Nice. Then at the end of the episode they plan to go out for drinks, but now that Olivia can see glimmer of things from alt-world she knows that Peter is actually alt-Peter. Oh snap.

"Please don't tell him," Walter asks. Think she will?

It also seems that what triggered Olivia's ability are her repressed feelings for Peter. It was when she was about to kiss Peter that they became usable.

One other thing of note with the series so far. I am somewhat struck the writers would include the World Trade Center and the 9/11 attacks as an element of the show. At first I thought it was just a passing item that helped illustrate the difference between the alt-world and the real world, but I am starting to wonder if it means more.

I started to think this way when Broyles said, "you would be surprised what you can make the public believe," in response to Olivia's comment that the conspiracy theorists are going to have a field day with the sudden disappearance of a building into alt-world.

Did Broyles make a veiled reference to the 9/11 attacks. Could this have been the beginning of an inter-dimensional war? Could the new annex to the Pentagon be for a new division of inter-dimensional warfare? It seems like that alt-world is having issues if they don't have coffee -- one of the alt-world people mentioned global warming. Could the alt-world American government be launching an attack on the real world American government in an effort to take the real world resources?

Picking up on the Nixon on the silver dollar point that was made briefly. What would that mean for alt-world America... a world where people don't question the government as much as they should... an American surveillance state?

Maybe we will find out on Cinco de Mayo.