Fringe - 3.08 - Entrada Review by A.D.Harris

After last weeks set-up episode, getting all the characters exactly where they need to be, it became clear over the two week break, (whether it was the hype or the cast interviews circulating) that 'Entrada' was going to be something special. And so it was.
It was the story of how two Olivia's made it home, one crossing from ours to theirs, the other from theirs to here. In typical Fringe fashion it didn't throw you straight into the action, the show is better than that; it left us right where we left off (infact, we even got to see the final twenty seconds of last weeks episode again), focusing totally on Peter as he begins to realise that 'his' Olivia isn't the one he thought it was. Throw in a couple of 'LOST' shoutouts as the time passes from 12:23 to 2:15 and Peter finally is ready to get out of bed and do something. I did feel that Peter lying in bed for almost two hours was perhaps a bit long; I know I would wait maybe half an hour so I knew she was asleep, but two hours! I think the eight weeks we've all been waiting was enough Bishop Jr. Anyhow, he gets up and gets to her computer, trying to find evidence, but she awakens and Peter has no time to check, instead relying on the one sentence he knows his 'actual' Olivia would know, the lines she spoke to him as she recovered from her 'Time-Shifting-Universe-Jumping-Car-Crashing' trip to see Bell at the start of Season Two.
PETER: Yeah. And like he always says... Na einai kalytero anthropo apo ton patera toy.
BOLIVIA DUNHAM: What does it mean?
PETER: It means, be a better man than your father.
The Olivia he is with doesn't know, and now Peter really knows the truth. Unfortunately Bolivia also cottons on to what he was doing, and gets her gun and (very easily) gets Peter to inject himself with a paralyser, and as the very funky blue/red Fringe credits hit, Peter is looking very motionless as Bolivia heads for the door. Peter did kind of annoy me with how easy he backed down; when I'd seen the short clips before the episode of this scene, I'd expected some serious Bishop Butt-Kicking, but it wasn't to be so. Peter did however make up for it in the remaining half an hour.

From here on it, the story has two sides; one on whether Alt-Broyles will risk it all to save the woman who helped his son, and whether Peter can get to Bolivia before she escapes. The much more exciting storyline for me was the Broyles/Our Olivia storyline, as so much of the set up for 'Entrada' was about that relationship, Reddick getting the chance to really flesh out his Alt-Broyles in ways he hasn't had the chance to do yet with our Broyles.

The best scenes of the episode revolved around the two, in particular a very freaky, gloomy talk in Olivia's cell, markings all over her face; Alt-Broyles fighting his inner demons on trying to find a way to save her. Unfortunately, it became clear early on when Alt-Broyles had a 'last talk' with his wife Diane that things weren't going to end well for him, as it came across very much like his goodbye. Alt-Broyles has been so fantastically developed in the past two episodes it's a shame that we won't see any more of him. However we first said goodbye to Alt-Brandon, Broyles shooting him in the initial part of Olivia's breakout. I can't tell you how much I was like "Yeah, Go Broyles" at that point; and that's something I haven't said too often so it was a welcome change. I'm also glad Alt-Brandon is gone as the Brandon on our side is far more fun and entertaining so maybe we will get him back as he's not been seen at all this season. (On a similar note, What happened to having Nina at least every other episode) Also, he suggested to Walternate that he cut Olivia up to bits beforehand, so good riddance :P

However disappointingly once again, much like 'The Abducted' the weakest point of the episode was that when Olivia realises they need to get off the island as the tank is empty, Alt-Broyles even says:
COLONEL BROYLES: They've changed the harbor patrols. You'll never make it. But I can get you there. Come on.
...and then we see nothing of it. Getting onto the island last episode was easy, but the fact we saw nothing of them getting off was a joke. There was surely some great, tense TV to be had in both those moments and we got nothing. It was disappointing.
Anyhow, moving on from there and catch up with events on our side, after a brief moment of comic gold from Walter and his 'Vagenda' theory, we had the team finding the elusive 'type-writer' which was a big moment for the series, as it had showed up and served many a cliff-hanger in it's time.

I hope they go back to it and find out what it's all about. Also, why oh why did they let off the Owner so easily; it felt kind of weak when he gave the box to the man (whoever he was) at the end, as I felt he should have been arrested. But ahh well, I guess he did confess pretty early on.
All this was leading to...
OBSERVER ALERT:

...the big showdown at Penn Station, Peter and Bolivia squaring off, guns out and all. I loved the quick 'shapeshifter' appearance, and the twist although a little obvious that they killed the woman and it was her, it didn't matter as Peter blew it's mercury brains out in a moment that I'm sure most of us were cheering. IT's nice how type-writers, shapeshifters and alternate universe all slip into a similar episode nowadays, it feels much more real; Observers could do with a similar treatment in season three!
And so she was caught...

...and we turned our attentions back to over there, where Olivia and Alt-Broyles reached the lab in Harvard, as the military team moved in on them. It did seem quite quick that she managed to get back over here compared to last episode, but it was a small thought, and I can't deny the big grin as Astrid saw her crawling out of the tank.
Of course, it all was looking very bleak for Alt-Broyles, but they almost got me. As the red capsule in Bolivia's arm turned red I thought she was a gonner instead, the other side getting rid of her before she spills all the beans. But no, Peter opens the back of the police van and then pushes Broyles away:
Peter: Broyles! Broyles, stop. I don't think you want to see this.
What a moment, Broyles staring at his other self, mangled and charred. The most beautifully creepy moment came a few minutes later though as he closed his own eyes. Such a Fringe moment; such an important moment in Broyles' life; I hope they don't forget this. I want to see some inner-Broyles conflict.

One thing about the whole sequence that was slightly bizarre was that I had thought that the person had to be in the same space to switch the Alt-Broyles for Bolivia, but I figured that the timing of the two storylines was slightly different as when Olivia got back out of the tank, and Broyles got the call that they had found her they were already in an ambulance:
BROYLES: Apparently she crossed over into your father's lab. Astrid's with her. They're in an ambulance on their way to Boston general.
So some time had passed for an ambulance to arrive, so it's something we can let by!

And so we ended with the other side having all of the machine (it seems), Bolivia back at work in Alt-Fringe HQ and Olivia recovering in hospital, Peter by her side; and he doesn't look like he's relishing the fact of telling her he's been sleeping with the other one of her. That's a story for next week; and I'm kinda looking forward to it...

9.5/10

Adam

Don't forget to vote what you thought of Entrada HERE

You can read all my other Season Three Episode Reviews Here:
Fringe Season Three Reviews:
3.01 Olivia
3.02 The Box
3.03 The Plateau
3.04 Do Shapeshifters Dream of Electric Sheep?
3.05 Amber 31422
3.06 6995 kHz
3.07 The Abducted