Suitcase bombs are a thing of the past in an era of the human-body
In a deft turn of storytelling, this past episode involved more hardcore science than the creature-feature devices that have been the staple of late. “Fracture” illustrated how a synthetic nerve agent can turn the average person into the ultimate weapon.
Using cool sci-fi imagery, we saw first-hand how the human body can be turned into a diamond-hard crystalline substance that will shatter and explode when exposed to the correct VHS frequency. Watching this process and seeing the lethal aftermath, I was impressed with how destructive it was. It was just as devastating as a nail-bomb or even a C-4 explosive. Plus, the advantage of using chemically-activated human tissue is that it can pass right through security sensors and it does not require that the person know that they are being used as a human-bomb.
It was a delicately woven storyline about domestic terrorism, chemical weaponry, experimental military projects and exactly how unprepared we are to combat or effectively prevent these types of threats.
It also provided a great backdrop for our Fringe Division team to use their respective strengths to research the paranormal phenomenon and ascertain its cause. It got Peter (Joshua Jackson) and Olivia (Anna Torv) out in the field learning to work together as equals in tracking down leads and information. It allowed Walter (John Noble) and Astrid (Jasika Nicole) to work together to sort out and organize the human-puzzle of the bomber’s remains, as well as an excuse to play with an exploding watermelon. And it also got Philip (Lance Reddick) back in the game by giving him something more to do than just granting approval over the team’s unorthodox investigative techniques.
What Worked
Following up on the breadcrumb dropped a couple episodes back, it was nice to see Peter and Walter actively debating where to live now that they have been given permission to upgrade into a better apartment. Typically, this kind of backstory would be either dropped or relegated to a one-line punchline, so it was nice to see it so thoughtfully explored throughout the episode. It was even better to see that Astrid was the one who convinced Walter that he needed to move outside of his comfort-zone as that is the best way to make incredible discoveries about the world around him.
Also succinctly handled was the quick trip to Iraq, where Peter’s dubious past sat like a white elephant in the room as Peter and Olivia tried to persuade an old contact to help them locate those who had worked on the Tin Man Project. Olivia’s quizzical query to Peter, “Are you going to tell me what that was about?” and his firm, “No” in reply, was a good way to remind us that Peter was not always the squeaky-clean, nice guy we now know.
The other hanging storyline that was quickly resolved was the mysterious treatment that Sam Weiss was to provide for Olivia. His unorthodox approach by making Olivia re-learn how to tie her shoes and then measuring her hand to see if it had gotten smaller were but small gestures to help her regain her confidence. The surprise of her pulling her gun on him in a show of defiance and exasperation over his prodding teaching style was a sneaky way of getting her to walk without her cane.
Then, in a nice nod to the over-arching theme of the show, the last scene with The Observer sorting through the contents of the briefcase and seeing all the photos of Walter was just tantalizingly delicious. As crazy as Colonel Gordon may have seemed, he was absolutely right about one thing: they are observing and collecting data about us.
What Didn’t Work
After introducing Agent Amy Jessup (Meghan Markle) so strongly in the second season premier, it is a shame that she was given virtually no screen time in the second episode and now she was not even given a single scene in this episode. Also just as noticeably absent was Faux-Charlie (Kirk Acevedo) who is supposedly shadowing Olivia’s every move. I must applaud his new invisibility skill. I didn’t notice him at all.
Then in the outright appalling category, I find it implausible that our government would ever send agents into the same building as a possible human-bomb without any protective gear like a vest or body shield. Surely, our government would never allow its field agents to go so unprepared into a potentially dangerous situation. Body armor may not be sexy, but we should at least portray our agents as having a modicum of common sense.
Giving Credit Where Credit Is Due
‘Fracture’ was written by David Wilcox and directed by Bryan Spicer. ‘Fringe’ stars Anna Torv, Joshua Jackson, John Noble, Lance Reddick, Blair Brown, Jasika Nicole. ‘Fringe’ airs Thursdays at 9 p.m. on Fox.
