''
Fringe'' is an American
science fiction
Science fiction (sometimes shortened to Sci-Fi or SF) is a genre of speculative fiction which typically deals with imaginative and futuristic concepts such as advanced science and technology, space exploration, time travel, parallel unive ...
television series that originally aired on the
Fox
Foxes are small to medium-sized, omnivorous mammals belonging to several genera of the family Canidae. They have a flattened skull, upright, triangular ears, a pointed, slightly upturned snout, and a long bushy tail (or ''brush'').
Twelve sp ...
network from September 9, 2008 to January 18, 2013. The series follows a team which investigates bizarre scientific occurrences related to "The Pattern", a string of
fringe science–related incidents worldwide. The team consists of
FBI
The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) is the domestic Intelligence agency, intelligence and Security agency, security service of the United States and its principal Federal law enforcement in the United States, federal law enforcement age ...
special agent
Olivia Dunham (
Anna Torv), eccentric scientist
Walter Bishop (
John Noble
John Noble (born 20 August 1948) is an Australian actor. He is known for his roles as Denethor in the ''Lord of the Rings'' film trilogy, Dr. Walter Bishop on the science fiction series ''Fringe'', Henry Parrish on the action-horror series '' ...
) and his genius son
Peter Bishop
Peter Bishop is a fictional character of the Fox television series ''Fringe''. He is portrayed by Joshua Jackson
Joshua Carter Jackson (born June 11, 1978) is a Canadian-American actor. He is known for his starring role as Charlie Conway in ...
(
Joshua Jackson
Joshua Carter Jackson (born June 11, 1978) is a Canadian-American actor. He is known for his starring role as Charlie Conway in '' Mighty Ducks'', as Pacey Witter in The WB teen drama series ''Dawson's Creek'' (1998–2003), Peter Bishop in the ...
), as well as others at the FBI and the
Department of Homeland Security
The United States Department of Homeland Security (DHS) is the U.S. federal executive department responsible for public security, roughly comparable to the interior or home ministries of other countries. Its stated missions involve anti-terr ...
.
The series' narrative also largely centers on a
parallel universe and the mysterious
Observers – a group of pale, bald men who have appeared at significant historical events.
''Fringe'' was created by
J. J. Abrams
Jeffrey Jacob Abrams (born June 27, 1966) is an American filmmaker and composer. He is best known for his works in the genres of action, drama, and science fiction. Abrams wrote and produced such films as ''Regarding Henry'' (1991), '' For ...
,
Alex Kurtzman, and
Roberto Orci. They took inspiration from multiple sources including the works of
Michael Crichton
John Michael Crichton (; October 23, 1942 – November 4, 2008) was an American author and filmmaker. His books have sold over 200 million copies worldwide, and over a dozen have been adapted into films. His literary works heavily feature tech ...
and
David Cronenberg
David Paul Cronenberg (born March 15, 1943) is a Canadian film director, screenwriter, and actor. He is one of the principal originators of what is commonly known as the body horror genre, with his films exploring visceral bodily transformation ...
, the film ''
Altered States'', and the television series ''
The X-Files
''The X-Files'' is an American science fiction on television, science fiction drama (film and television), drama television series created by Chris Carter (screenwriter), Chris Carter. The series revolves around Federal Bureau of Investigation ...
'' and ''
The Twilight Zone
''The Twilight Zone'' is an American media franchise based on the anthology television series created by Rod Serling. The episodes are in various genres, including fantasy, science fiction, absurdism, dystopian fiction, suspense, horror, su ...
''. The three also sought to combine elements of
procedural shows like ''
Law & Order
''Law & Order'' is an American police procedural and legal drama television series created by Dick Wolf and produced by Wolf Entertainment, launching the '' Law & Order'' franchise.
''Law & Order'' aired its entire run on NBC, premiering on ...
'' with an "extremely serialized and very culty" series like ''
Lost
Lost may refer to getting lost, or to:
Geography
*Lost, Aberdeenshire, a hamlet in Scotland
* Lake Okeechobee Scenic Trail, or LOST, a hiking and cycling trail in Florida, US
History
*Abbreviation of lost work, any work which is known to have bee ...
'', which Abrams co-created.
''Fringes
pilot episode
A television pilot (also known as a pilot or a pilot episode and sometimes marketed as a tele-movie), in United States television, is a standalone episode of a television series that is used to sell a show to a television network or other distri ...
was picked up by Fox in May 2008, and premiered on September 9. Critics hailed the series as a successor to ''Lost'', as the two shared many similarities including Abrams' involvement, characters exploring a series of unexplained events, the use of many of the same actors and writers, and the difficulty in categorizing each show within just one genre. Explored themes in ''Fringe'' include free will, the potential benefits and risks of emerging technologies, the nature of time, and the differences that separate faith and reason.
The series was broadcast across five seasons and 100 episodes. Its
first season included 20 episodes, while its second contained 23 installments, though one of these, "
Unearthed", was filmed during the first season. The
third
Third or 3rd may refer to:
Numbers
* 3rd, the ordinal form of the cardinal number 3
* , a fraction of one third
* Second#Sexagesimal divisions of calendar time and day, 1⁄60 of a ''second'', or 1⁄3600 of a ''minute''
Places
* 3rd Street (d ...
and
fourth seasons contained 22 episodes, while the
fifth featured thirteen installments. ''Fringe''s ratings started strongly with a weekly episode average of 8.8 million, achieving first place in the 18–49 adult demographic among the
2008–09 television season's new shows. In addition to these solid ratings,
[ the first season garnered a generally favorable critical reception. Later seasons gradually suffered a decrease in ratings—the series finale being watched by just 3.2 million viewers—though the series did develop a ]cult following
A cult following refers to a group of fans who are highly dedicated to some person, idea, object, movement, or work, often an artist, in particular a performing artist, or an artwork in some medium. The lattermost is often called a cult classic. ...
. ''Entertainment Weekly
''Entertainment Weekly'' (sometimes abbreviated as ''EW'') is an American digital-only entertainment magazine based in New York City, published by Dotdash Meredith, that covers film, television, music, Broadway theatre, books, and popular cul ...
'' conjectures that despite its ratings decline, ''Fringe'' survived for five seasons in part because of Fox executive Kevin Reilly's love of the series, and also due to the network's desire to make amends for the science fiction shows it had previously canceled.
Across its run the series earned many accolades, though it failed to win major awards.[ At the Television Critics Awards, ''Fringe'' earned a 2009 award that designated it "Outstanding New Program of the Year". ''Fringe'' won seven ]Saturn Awards
The Saturn Awards are American awards presented annually by the Academy of Science Fiction, Fantasy and Horror Films. The awards were created to honor science fiction, fantasy, and horror in film, but have since grown to reward other films be ...
among fifteen nominations; from 2009–11, Torv won for Best Actress on Television, while Noble won for Best Supporting Actor on Television in 2010. Noble won a similar award at the 2011 Critics' Choice Television Award
The Critics' Choice Television Awards are accolades that are presented annually by the Critics Choice Association (CCA). They were established in 2011, and the first ceremony was held on June 20, 2011, and streamed live on VH1.com. The fourt ...
s, where the series and Torv also received nominations. Additionally, the series received nominations for two Primetime Creative Arts Emmy Awards, eight Golden Reel Awards, two Satellite Awards, and two Writers Guild of America Award
The Writers Guild of America Awards is an award for film, television, and radio writing including both fiction and non-fiction categories given by the Writers Guild of America, East and Writers Guild of America West since 1949.
Eligibility
Th ...
s. Its series finale, "An Enemy of Fate
"An Enemy of Fate" is the series finale of the American Fox science fiction/drama television series ''Fringe''. It is episode 13 of season 5 and the 100th episode overall. It aired, along with the penultimate episode, "Liberty", in the United Stat ...
", was considered by '' Wired'' magazine to mark the end of science fiction on American network television.
Series overview
Episodes
Season 1 (2008–09)
Season 2 (2009–10)
Season 3 (2010–11)
Season 4 (2011–12)
Season 5 (2012–13)
Ratings
See also
References
Works cited
*
*
*
*
External links
*
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:List Of Fringe Episodes
Fringe
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