By now you will know that Fringe has moved to the Friday Night Death Slot on FOX. This tends not to end well for shows, especially sci-fi shows. Firefly, Dollhouse and many more of our favorites were aired on Friday nights, and their eventual cancellation was at least, partially due to this. [One can only hope that the title of this episode is not an omen. - Ed.] But, according to creator J.J. Abrams, Fringe is going to embrace the timeslot, and be bigger, weirder and better than ever. And boy did this episode do just that. The third season has so far been outstanding, and this episode shows that it’s not about to fade in quality. If the entire season can sustain this level of intrigue, excitement and entertainment, I believe Fringe has a damn good chance of living a happy, healthy and appropriate lifetime.

The episode opens with a classic Peter/Walter interaction. These scenes never fail to bring a smile to my face. The show isn’t renowned for it’s comedy, but whenever there is a bit of wit, it will often involve these two.
 
Next, we cut to a hospital where an elderly patient (Played by Back To The Future star Christopher Lloyd) claims to have just spoken with his son Bobby, who as it turns out, has been dead since 1985. We are then shown a location outside, with The Observer and indeed Bobby there. The Observer proceeds to thank Bobby for his co-operation and tells him that he is taking him home. Home being, what we believe to be the past. The opening credits roll on and we have no doubt that this will be an Observer orientated episode.

This episode manages to reveal more about The Observers, while still posing more questions about them. As Peter puts it so perfectly: “You ever feel like, every time we get close to finding the answers, someone changes the question?”

Season 3 has been the show’s most confusing one yet, with alternate universes, time-travel and more weird goings on than ever. It’s really made me start to think; when exactly did Fringe start becoming so like Lost? This is, in no way a criticism. Lost just so happens to be my favorite show. And with Fringe becoming more and more similar to Lost each week, I am damn well excited.

What we learn about The Observers this week is that they have a bag full of tricks. Sure, we’ve seen before that they have handy powers, but now it appears like they are pretty fucking close to being Superman! One scene, in which The Observer stops a pack of thieves from robbing a bank, while rescuing a woman in the process, is nothing short of badass. The Observer proceeds to catch the bullets fired at him by one of the thieves, and knock him out, taking it all in his stride. Like I said, Superman.

Meanwhile, the Fringe team question the hospital patient, Mr. Joyce. As it turns out, Joyce was once the keyboard player in Walter’s favourite band. There’s an instant connection between Walter and Joyce. One of the best aspects of the episode is the bonding between the two. The chemistry is brilliant. Guest star Lloyd shines, and John Noble proves again why he’s the most achieved actor on the show. Walter brings Joyce back to the lab and eventually manages to get information out of him regarding his son’s visit.

Olivia is less involved this week, which is, in all honesty, a good thing in my opinion. Although she’s been mostly good this season, the last couple of episodes have seen her whine about the alternate Olivia taking her place. Although she does have good reason to be upset, it’s not all that exciting to watch. In this episode, Olivia gets a book in the mail from Peter. She is quick to realize that it is not for her, but in fact for the other Olivia. As much as Peter reassures her that she’s the one he loves, she never seems fully convinced. And I figure that little things, like this book incident, will keep reminding her of her alternate counterpart living her life. Hopefully, she puts this behind her soon, but I’m not holding my breath.

Back in the lab, Walter is greeted by The Observer. They converse, and The Observer explains how the future is not certain. Every action causes a ripple. This particular scene, I found to be rather creepy. When The Observer speaks, every word is so careful. It’s not quite right. That, matched with eerie music and just the cryptic way that he says everything gave me the chills. The Observer tells Walter to: “Give him the keys and save the girl”.

This turns out to be something vital near the end of the episode. Peter speaks those exact words to Walter, before chasing after The Observer.
Walter believes that Peter is in danger, but lets him go anyway. As in unfolds, The Observers did not want to kill Peter. In fact, through an unnecessarily thorough and complicated sequence of events, The Observers save Walter’s life.

The final scene sees two Observer’s talking. They are pleased that Walter was willing to let Peter die, and that he would do it again when the time comes. Another twist in the tale. What the hell are these bald dudes up to? Seriously.

Overall, the episode is a cracker. A proper mysterious mind-boggler. Moving away from the alternate universe stuff turns out to be a good move. In this episode, we get action, weirdness and drama. We get a whole lot of heart. Scenes with Walter and Joyce are a joy to watch. Joyce’s life, in many ways, mirrors Walters. There’s a bond apparent and you sort of wish that Joyce could stick around to keep Walter company.

Fringe is following in Lost’s footsteps and is managing to raise a whole lot of questions. Hopefully ratings will stay strong because this is turning out to be the strongest season so far. Stay tuned!

   -- Joe O'Brien