Mania Grade: A-
10 Comments | Add
Rate & Share:
Related Links:
Info:
- TV Series: Fringe
- Episode: Amber 31422
- Starring: Anna Torv, Joshua Jackson, John Noble, Jasika Nicole, Lance Reddick, Blair Brown
- Written By: Alison Schapker, Monica Owusu-Breen
- Directed By: Brad Anderson
- Network: Fox
- Series: Fringe
Fringe: Amber 31422 Review
Olivia Slowly Loses Her Mind… Or Is She Regaining It? By Kurt Anthony Krug
November 05, 2010
Fringe Review
© Fox/Bob Trate
After being off for a few weeks, Fringe returns and delivers yet another strong, quality episode. It’s like it was never gone.
“Amber 31422” occurs in the alternate universe, a.k.a. Over There. The origin of the amber substance used to quarantine dangerous areas is given. When dimensional rifts started occurring Over There in 1989, Uncle Sam’s way of containing it was creating the amber substance. Those unfortunate souls caught in it were declared legally dead by the government.
In the beginning of the episode, Joshua Rose (guest star Shawn Ashmore, Iceman from the X-Men movie franchise) frees his identical twin brother Matthew (guest star Aaron Ashmore, Jimmy Olsen from Smallville) from the amber, in which he was trapped for four years. However, Matthew is not dead; he was in suspended animation, a tidbit of info the government is withholding from the general public.
It’s a pretty cool twist as it turns out Joshua is a bank robber and Matthew is the straight-arrow accountant. However, everyone believes it was Joshua trapped in the amber. Matthew came to stop him four years ago from robbing the bank and was trapped in amber in lieu of his twin, who went on to assume the other’s identity. It’s revealed that he was ashamed of his crimes, especially after what happened to his brother.
Meanwhile, Olivia (Anna Torv) – who is brainwashed into believing she’s Over There’s Olivia (or “Bolivia” as she’s been referred to) by Secretary of Defense Walter Bishop, aka Walternate (John Noble) – is having visions of Peter (Joshua Jackson). Walternate performs experiments on her to tap into her ability to journey over to the prime reality without suffering any harm. Putting her in a sensory deprivation tank to harness her powers, Olivia does indeed cross over, ending up in a gift shop. She returns no sooner than she leaves.
Despite all the times she self-medicates, she can’t get rid of Peter, try as she might. Peter represents the person she really is – the Olivia Dunham of the prime reality who has a niece and whose sister is alive and whose mother is dead.
The reason why she doesn’t turn Matthew in at the end, realizing he was the one trapped in amber and not his convict twin, is because they’re a lot alike, according to Peter. She undergoes another test to cross to the main reality and lies to Walternate that she didn’t make it there when she actually did. Slowly, it seems the real Olivia is starting to overcome Walternate’s brainwashing.
It cannot be stated enough: This is an excellent show. The characters are three-dimensional so you care about them; the overall mythology is not a convoluted mess like The X-Files, a show to which it’s been compared; and the creators know when to end a story arc and when to keep it going to amp up the suspense. Easily, the best show on network television today that many people aren’t watching.
Welcome Back Olivia!!
Fringe is definitely one of, if not the best show on network TV right now. It consistently delivers great television.
Kurt , you definitely said pretty much everything I'm feeling about this episode. Its funny how alike, but not alike Waltermate is to Walter. You have to wonder if Walter had not have kidnapped Peter and raised him, but just dealt with the loss, would he have ended up like Waltermate? They both have that same cavalier attitude about the boundaries of science, but Walter seeing the pain he has inflicted is ashamed whereas Waltermante seems to have no moral compass. John Noble plays both excellently.
I have to say Anna Torv plays both roles really well too. I don't know if its her expressions or some sort of camera tricks but besides the hair she makes her face noticeably different between Olivia and Bolivia. Their exoeressions aren't even the same.
Love this show.