504: 'The Bullet That Saved the World'
Written by Alison Schapker
Directed by David Straiton
Synopsis: After infiltrating a subway station to recover a vital piece of Walter's
plan, the Fringe team meet up with an old friend... and must determine
if he can be trusted.
Verdict: Wait. Hold up. Pause that and rewind a second, would ya? They killed
Etta? ETTA? Olivia and Peter's progeny? The child upon whose shoulders
the fate of the world seems to rest? The symbol of hope (see 501)? Well,
if the Fringe writers are trying to one-up Homeland's production crew
in the 'WTF?' stakes then they're doing a mighty fine job. The impact of
that suckerpunch is pretty damn intense and the ripple effects will
doubtless be felt throughout the rest of the season. Kudos to everyone
involved for keeping foreshadowing to a minimum, thereby making the
scene all the more shocking, and also to Anna Torv and Josh Jackson for
some absolutely stellar acting in both their final moments with
their daughter and the aftermath at hour's end.
For all this
will undoubtedly be the episode's major talking point for weeks to come,
there's still a whole 35 other minutes worthy of our attention and
Alison Schapker does a fine job of keeping up the pace and
generating a whole whack-load of tension to keep us on the edge of our
seats. The concept of Walter retaining evidence of previous Fringe
events is an absolutely brilliant one, completely in keeping with his
character (if a little out of the blue), and the decision to have the
team create events of their own is a nice nod to continuity. It's also somewhat disturbing, taking the actions of the team into
questionable territory (using deadly poison gas against guards? Some
might cry terrorism), further blurring the fine line between hero and
villain.
If there are flaws, they're to be found in some of the
more unusual decisions made this week: Peter's trip to the pawn shop is
sweet and everything but would he really risk throwing everything away
for a necklace? How inept can the Loyalists be to miss every single shot
at, and chance of capturing, the Fringe agents? And while things remain
enjoyable for now, how much longer can the game of cat and mouse with
the Observers (chase, capture, rescue, chase etc) endure? But let's not
dwell too much on those right now... poor Etta! Poor Olivia! And Peter! Oh, and Broyles is back! Man, oh man. (8)
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