Continuing from yesterday on my Fringe review catchup, I turn my attention to last weeks episode, perhaps the most crazy and unique Fringe episode to air so far. And yes, I say that whilst also considering the musical, cult detective trip that was Brown Betty. Lysergic Acid Diethylamide (LAD from now on in the review for the sake of my copy and paste key) is one hell of a bold, brave...
OBSERVER ALERT:
...exciting, fresh, unique, original and daring feat for a live action science fiction show to take. Not only did it dare to head into a world most recently seen in Christopher Nolan's Dream-Trip Inception, but it also threw us into the world of animation as Olivia's clouded psyche struggling to envision the true form of Leonard Nimoy's William Bell.
I have read that people felt it was a cop-out and that it was because Nimoy didn't want to return, but the truth behind the matter is that not only did he wish to return but he actually did return and so had the producers truly wanted to do LAD all in live action, I'm 100% sure that they would have. The interpretation I saw in the animation could be viewed in numerous ways: perhaps Olivia's mind, whilst dormant inside a body that Bellie has hold over has mixed and confused itself presenting moments where both are present as a confused and bizarre form of animation. It also could be metaphorically significant in the sense that Bell has always been a man of mystery and so the fact that we struggle to see him as he truly is in real life form is being visually interpreted in such a way inside Olivia's mind.
Evidence to back this idea is that there is only one scene with Bellie not present also in this clouded animation, which is the scene on the Zeppelin when the mysterious man (apparently played by Ulrich Thomsen) with the X on his shirt as he attempts to kill Peter and Walter. The signifance of this furthering the hazy state of Olivia's brain is clearly that we do not really know who he is. It also leaves us excited by having seen a new character who (after the crazy ending) seems to be of importance to the story, yet we haven't really seen him. Prepare for lots of "is that him, no, that's him!"
There were many things we were supposed to interpret from inside Olivia's mind; her uncertainty over Nina Sharp visually shown by her apparent helping of Walter and Peter to the elevator but also having another motive; trying to quite literally shaft them. (elevator shaft them of course :P)
Also the significance of Walter falling onto Eden Lake when he fell from the Zeppelin, a sign of Walter meeting his doom at the place where he caused a lot of pain of suffering. LAD was riddled with exceptional clues and pieces to take forward. Like Brown Betty which gave us Walter's state of mind through indirect and subtle means, LAD did the same for Olivia, leaving us with more of an understanding of the woman beneath her exterior. (Things like this are why Fringe is just so bl%&£y good.)
And talk about some beautiful animation, which whilst not being totally perfect visions of the characters, (Peter especially) it just looked gorgeous and scenic, giving the chance for the writers to see the world and do things in the world which the budget for live action may not have managed. Worthy of note was Ryan McDonald's inclusion in the opening credits; did he actually say anything when his Zombie form raided the roof of the World Trade Center. Pretty easy money for him in this episode, a few "urghs" and I'm sure a nice looking paycheck.
One element of the dream world that worked less well was the mass-person-attack in live action at the start, which although I'm sure looked good on paper didn't quite have the thrills and chills I'm sure it was supposed to bring out. I did enjoy seeing Walter on top of a bus though, and the moment where Peter despairingly asks him if he does actually have a plan was one of the funniest moments of the episode.
Speaking of funny, LAD was full of laugh out loud moments, Peter's LSD tripping moment declaring Broyles an Observer was pure quality, Broyles' shocked look was perfect. In a normal episode that would have been Broyles' best moment, but he was given some blinding moments in LAD, accidentally drugging himself and spending the rest of the episode looking wide eyed and gawping; the word I'm looking for is brilliant. I love seeing Broyles' lighter side.
That being said, there was a moment of dark and foreshadowing; the moment he told Astrid "Death. I saw death. All of it. And it was me" was creepy and spooky. I'm sure he was thinking about seeing his Alternate self's murdered body in his mind, but I felt there was an element to the coming-soon blight. I did however think the Disney bird on Walter's shoulder was a little OTT, I had enough animation in Olivia's mind...
Significant to Walter's story arc was his conversation with Bell inside the Zeppelin, William telling Walter "The decisions you make will be the right ones. The direction you choose to take will be just." Walter always believed he needed his old friend to save the world but actually he has what he needs already. Not the knowledge he lost when his brain was cut up, but the mindset to do what is right; Walter's redeeming quality made clear to him.
Then comes the final few moments as Peter foils Olivia's mind security (He must have had some training from Mr. Charles :P) and finds Olivia in child form, the scared girl sitting around the table with the menacing Step-Father shadowing over her. As her scared subconscious began to ravel in on itself, and Peter, Bell and Olivia tried to find the way to bring Olivia out, everything that scared Olivia from her past confronted her. But then Peter sacrificed himself for her; throwing himself in front of the Jeep to keep her mind alive. It was the moment that she needed to see that she wasn't scared of this anymore. She turned and looked back at Bell who had fallen on the floor and the armies rushing towards her and told them to stop. She had won.
And it was at that moment that Bell's Soul Magnets plan became clear to me. He had achieved what he needed to do so that he could 'move on'. He had always called 'Olive' the strongest of his and Walter's children, but he also knew she was scared and had fears inside herself. No more. The chasing world stopped and vanished, the Olivia that Bell knew our world needed to survive was ready...
And with a final parting word to Walter, "Please tell Walter that I knew the dog wouldn't hunt" he was gone.
I'm satisfied now to say goodbye to William Bell. Whether everything he did was for good is something still to be seen, but I believe his heart was in the right place and he has left an important mark on both Olivia and Walter in this episode. They are both ready to face what is next.
You need evidence that Olivia is mentally where she needs to be? Just watch that final scene. Eating a piece of toast as casual as you like she blurts out the moment Peter must have dreaded, the identity of the mysterious man in the Zeppelin; "I think that he's the man who's gonna kill me."
You bet she's ready...
And judging from my excitement for what is to come next, I'm ready too.
9/10
Twitter: @AdHarris
Adam
Read My Other 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
3.08 Entrada
3.09 Marionette
3.10 The Firefly
3.11 Reciprocity
3.12 Concentrate & Ask Again
3.13 Immortality
3.14 6B
3.15 Subject 13
3.16 Os
3.17 Stowaway
3.18 Bloodline
Great Review! I think Thomson's credit could be an important easter egg, as his Alias character, Urich Kotter, was one big figure head of a terrorist organization, whom almost kills Sydney Bristow by burying her alive with a corpse in a casket, but alas Marshell saved the day!
ReplyDeleteThere were green, green, green, red, motif with the doors in the military base, but also there is a Christmas tree in the background while young Olivia eats dinner with her family. "The Transformation" is another episode where "Christmas" and Terrorists play role, as like Peter proves himself to Olivia in dream state, so did John Scott prove himself to her in a dream state along with his partner Daniel Hicks leading the FBI to the raid on terrorist, "Conrad" Monreau. The code word for the FBI to move in and raid was "Christmas". In addition of course blue Olivia slightly mirrors Sydney Bristow, as this episode again pointed out that cortixfaners were "designed" to be the way they are, as Sydney too was trained as child as a sleeper agent apart of "Project Christmas".
The McCutchen and Christmas also brings us to LOST. IMO Peter might end up having Desmond like abilities and it now seems more so that we can peg William Bell as our Charles Widmore (but with Faraday like knowledge) --The mentioned rat experiements. Remember how Olivia astral projected Peter while over there Lost in red Olivia's memories? --Once again this mirrors John Scott, but the difference is that Peter has yet to be seen in a dream state prior to the projection---which may mean that Peter has already shared conscience with her prior to "LSD"
If LOST is a big clue, which i believe it is, then I think both Olivias and universe represent one missing one....and Peter just might have flashes before his eyes...as Olivia(s) might be his constant. (remember White Tulip which induces a type of loop theory--one with out dopplegangers --like Desmond--is able to show us how the original reality gets lost and mutates---as the only proof left behind is in fact the paper tulip--this episode points out how Peter may not be on track with his own destiny---and we could say that Desmond could have been the same way since he could be in two places at once (time periods, and the FS) not as limited by space time---and that the "Flash Sideways" mirrors what Desmond really was, like Jacob and MIB---a "Fail Safe" to the humanity (from life time to life time). There were also lines like this :"I lost her! I lost Her! I Have to go BACK!" -Peter
So my final send off is WHH, with variation---just as if one parent reality had two children---"See you in another life, Olivia"...
@Darthlocke: I am so hooked to whatever you write, that if the next few episodes is a complete 180 to what you're theorizing I'll be devastated..
ReplyDeleteThanks. I'll be devastated too!
ReplyDeleteI really enjoy your reviews. I also feel like Peter had his moment of redemption in this episode. After the huge mistake he made not being able to tell the two Olivias apart at the beginning of the season, this time he got it right. Not only does he know her so well that he knew exactly where she'd go to feel safe but he could also tell that he wasn't talking to the real Olivia just by looking into her eyes. I feel like that also helped Olivia with her decision to move forward because she knows that he won't be fooled again. I also feel like the audience on some level needed that too. It was very well done and one of my favorite scenes from the episode. Also I thought the trippy disney bird was hilarious.
ReplyDeleteI haven't decided if her lack of fear is a good thing or not since it was the love/fear combo that triggers her abilities. Either William found a way to maker her "super", or he enabled her from being able to do anything involving the cortexifan...
ReplyDeletelike your rewiews. very entersting to read)
ReplyDeleteGreat recap as always
ReplyDeleteLoved the bird. Zippedee doo dah, zippedee yay.
ReplyDeleteAgain, very late to this party, but thanks for this excellent review. I agree to an extent about the brilliance of the episode (especially with regards seeing into Olivia's mind and enjoying visual representations of what she thinks about other people, like your Nina Sharpe elevator shaft example); however, I have one major gripe.
ReplyDeleteWhile Bell was essential for the two reasons you pointed out (1. His very frank and moving discussion with Walter in the Zeppelin helping him move forward and 2. His helping Olivia to be ready for what's to come), I can't help but feel that Leonard Nimoy was somewhat wasted on the episode.
Here we have the single most enigmatic character the show has to offer... Revealing absolutely nothing of what he knows. I'm not usually one to complain about lack of mythology advancement over character development... But what was the harm in doing both? It isn't like they can bring Nimoy back whenever they want. He should be brought in for special occasions.
He was almost completely useless in the previous Bellivia episode in which a random Fringe mystery was solved. Yes, he allowed the Over Here Lincoln Lee to exist (since Olivia would have recognized him), but again, where was the discussion about his knowledge? I found that a little frustrating.