Fringe On Fox is back with eight new episodes and starts Friday. The fourth season of the popular science fiction television show created by J.J. Abrams, and with Alex Kurtzman and Roberto Orci as writers (yes the same team that brought us the 2009 Star Trek Movie) goes into a new direction, further exploring storylines first established two seasons ago, with the foray into the parallel universe concept.
While I personally have problems with the overall concept of two of the same people who are supposed to be “parallel” talking to each other (and yes, I get the bridge concept), it’s fun to see it play out in the Fringe timeline.
I had the pleasure of meeting much of the cast from Fringe at WonderCon, and during a large press session. It was there that I was able to ask those players present – Blair Brown, Seth Gable, Joshua Jackson, and John Noble – about the parallel universe idea, what to expect from Fringe Season 4, and how much of their characters are actually them.
Blair Brown Is Nina Sharp
Blair Brown plays Nina Sharp, but for me is also best known as Molly Bickford Dodd in The Days and Nights of Molly Dodd. An NBC show that was picked up by Lifetime cable and that was a personal favorite of mine. I always wondered when Molly would land a black guy, and she finally did. When I said this to her at WonderCon, Blair happily said “Yes! Richard Lawson!”
On the subject of Fringe Season 4, Brown explained that the bridge makes it possible for her to talk to her “parallel” without any impact on time or on themselves. On that, Brown says there’s another – yes another – Nina coming up for Season 4. Wild. But Brown’s most excited that Fringe is rolling out eight episodes, and says they’re all really good.
Seth Gabel As Lincoln Lee
Seth Gabel’s having more fun than a pig in the mud. At first, Lincoln Lee was a part-time player on Fringe, but popular demand made him, and Seth, a regular character. Because Seth’s character regularly talks to his other in the parallel universe, he admits he doesn’t quite know who he is. And even though he’s partially joking, there’s a lot of truth in that view.
Joshua Jackson As Peter Bishop
When Joshua Jackson stepped forward before the red carpet at WonderCon, cameras went off like crazy as you can see…
And while Jackson handles the task of celebrity well, ask him how much of Peter is him, and it gives him pause…
John Noble is the face of Fringe, and I say that because of his unique wit, accent, and character. Walter seems to take the most unusual as routine, and nothing (much) surprises him. I asked how much of Walter was actually John, and I got a surprising answer: pretty much all of it.
Fringe Season 4 Friday
Fringe Season 4 promises to be an exciting continuation of the Fringe series. While I think the parallel universe approach is risky from a story sales perspective, it does allow for a wide range of story options and directions. The challenge for Fringe’s writers and producers is to make sure they don’t get so caught up in this esoteric approach that they lose their core audience.
Let’s see what happens.