Saturday, September 19, 2009

Fringe is back

While all of season 1 kept me at the edge of my seat, season 2 is off to a bad start.
I'm going to start by complaining about the decision to replace Charlie Frances (Kirk Acevedo) with Amy Jessup (Meghan Markle). What on earth do we need another female agent on Fringe Division? We already have Olivia and Astrid, and now Amy too? So Broyles is the only male left.
The entire episode felt like a changing of the guard, introducing Jessup, making you feel like she could be a dedicated member of Fringe, and sure, she seems interesting enough, but Charlie Frances was so great.
He and Olivia had such a great relationship; you trusted him and liked him. The worst part was how they got rid of him. Did we get to see a glorious fight? Did he go out saving someone? Nope, we didn't even know he was dead until the end of the episode when the shape shifter who took his face threw him into an incinerator. I guess that's not the end we'll see of Kirk Acevedo just yet, but what a crappy way for Charlie to go.
We'll have to see how next week goes, if they can get into the groove they had last season. The episode ended with the promise that the team would no longer be reacting to the Pattern, but instead being proactive. The promise of excitement is there.
And Walter, played by John Noble who never disappoints, did make me laugh. I was quite happy with his determination to make custard, despite Peter's claims that he hates the stuff. When he got Astrid to mix the ingredients while he performed an autopsy, and then wanted to taste the batter while still wearing gloves covered in blood, I could not stop giggling. More poignant was the moment a doctor informed he and Peter that Olivia was dead (she recovered anyways), and he had to check her himself before he would believe it. Seeing the love and respect that Peter and Walter both have for Olivia when they were told she died just shows how close the group is. How devastated will they all be when they discover that Charlie is gone?

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