'Fringe' - 'The Box': Over here
Faux-livia gets to work on our side
Fauxlivia (Anna Torv) in action on "Fringe."
A quick review of tonight's "Fringe" coming up just as soon as I work behind a deli counter...
As I said last week, having the two Olivias swap universes was a great idea, not just in terms of the larger arc, but for spicing up the Monster of the Week episodes. Do a version of this A-story with Olivia, and it's boring. Do it with Fauxlivia(*) - even if she's not pulling the strings the way she is here - and it becomes something else altogether. She has an agenda, and she's trying to learn about our world ("Who's Bo-no?"), and she's trying to maintain her cover (here seducing Peter to avoid him noticing the blood stain on her floor), and she's a general fly in the ointment. And that's vastly more interesting than our Olivia Dunham working a case and playing straight woman to the Bishops.
(*) By the way, I understand that the show's producers have taken to calling the character "Bolivia." I will not be a party to that foolishness. Fauxlivia is a much better nickname by a factor of a thousand, and so instead I will pay homage to whatever internet poster first coined it by sticking with it for as long as the character remains a factor on the series.
Beyond that, the idea of Walter being in charge of Massive Dynamic has a lot of possibilities - just think of what he'll do with the Food Services division! - though I hope the MD offices have room for Gene the cow if a lot of the research action is going to move there. (Also, I wonder if we'll see an MD branch up in Boston, or if the characters will be commuting from Boston to NYC even more than before.) And hopefully he'll have the freedom to play the "Miami Vice" theme there, as well, if it's scientifically germane.
Overall, not as strong as "Olivia," but still a very promising sign for this Over There/Over Here structure we're going to use for at least a while in season three.
What did everybody else think?
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September 30, 2010 at 10:11PM EST Reply to CommentFrakking loved the episode.
But Alan, you forget, that the Here Fringe Division, like the There Fringe Division, will be based out of New York.
Don't you remember in last year's finale, after the made it back Here, Broyles brought them to a new command center that looked liked There's command center?
So, this move has been coming. I'm surprised this year didn't start that way anyways.
Ed W
September 30, 2010 at 10:12PM EST Reply to CommentI think the producers may have gotten mixed up on "Bolivia" from hearing fans use it and not realizing it was meant as a mashup of Bishop and Olivia, in a Brangelina sense. Fauxlivia is as you say much better for alt-O.
As to this episode, I liked it more than you did and more than the premiere.
Do you see any possibility at all that they might kill off Olivia and have Fauxlivia become Torv's new permanent character she plays on the show? Possibly including redemption/change of heart on her part.
September 30, 2010 at 11:03PM ESTbelinda Huh, thanks for the clarification! I've always thought the character was always referred to as Fauxlivia, so when I read "Bolivia", I didn't understand why that name was used. So definitely put me down for Fauxlivia - much more fitting.
October 1, 2010 at 1:45AM ESTI think it's even more than Fauxlivia handling a regular MotW that is bringing more intrigue and fun, but that in this episode, the MotW is linked directly to the mythology. I wonder if that would be the case for every episode (which seems kind of hard to do in the long run) - that every episode will be a little piece of the puzzle to the Peter weapon, and how the other side wants to use this universe to activate it somehow.
belinda .....unless, we're going to find more parallel universes (and more alternate characters)out there on the show, which is why the producers want it to be "Bolivia" instead - so they (and we) can differentiate the characters from A world to B world to C world (Colivia?)to D world (Dolivia?), etc.
October 1, 2010 at 1:47AM ESTOldDarth
September 30, 2010 at 10:22PM EST Reply to CommentI prefer Bolivia and Anna Torv must be loving the acting opportunities she is being given this season.
Solid episode but I noticed Bolivia kept herself in the background in the group scenes quite a bit and she was only in the lab briefly.
eddie willers Put me down in favor of Bolivia.
September 30, 2010 at 11:40PM EST(They also used that in closed captioning tonight)
Budo They have cleverly included a couple of moments where she evades comments from others that contained pop-culture references. I like the way they're making her not being discovered plausible so far.
October 2, 2010 at 12:52PM ESTBea
September 30, 2010 at 10:51PM EST Reply to CommentI was very much against Bolivia because fauxlivia is a VERY clever name, but I'm also a very bad speller, so it was always a "mouthful" to type. Also, I've taken to calling her Bad!Olivia in my head, so Bolivia doesn't bother me as much anymore.
(And it stands for Bizarro!Olivia, for my friend, so we both accept it now.)
She and I haven't spent a long time discussing the best nickname for alterna-olivia at all... :P
Can't wait to see tonight's episode! (Darn being on the west coast!)
That Guy I am violently opposed to any names that involve ! in the middle. FTN.
October 1, 2010 at 4:59PM ESTBigNerd BirzarOlivia is actually just as good as Fauxlivia.
October 7, 2010 at 12:00PM ESTSush
September 30, 2010 at 10:52PM EST Reply to CommentThe Kent street stop portrayed on the Show for the green line was underground. In the REAL boston, its ABOVE ground. So they were WRONG...unless the show FRINGE is an alternate reality from the VIEWERS where KENT st was made to be underground...Hm
Therem
September 30, 2010 at 11:11PM EST Reply to CommentThis was a solid episode, with some funny resonances with "Raiders of the Lost Ark". Don't open that box!!
I think it was Charlie Jane Anders of io9.com who came up with the name "Fauxlivia". And I agree -- it's far superior to "Bolivia".
And re: the cow, shouldn't her name be "Jean", not "Gene"?
Count Screwloose It's Gene as in Genetic.
September 30, 2010 at 11:23PM ESTAli
September 30, 2010 at 11:52PM EST Reply to CommentGreat job by Eric the Ack-Ack-tor.
reverendmalibu Seeing his head blown up was quite something. I wonder what people who didn't know who he is thought of that cameo.
October 1, 2010 at 12:16AM ESTRob I agree...great job, Eric!
October 1, 2010 at 8:28AM ESTFound
September 30, 2010 at 11:58PM EST Reply to CommentI haven't even seen the episode yet, but Fauxlivia rocks! This summer I bought an Aria Les Paul copy guitar which I immediately dubbed the Faux Paul. Hey, maybe Blair Underwood on "The Event" could be Fauxbama?
Misterpuff
October 1, 2010 at 12:34AM EST Reply to CommentChocolate Milk!
Yet Walter can still come up with a expedient yet definately effective way to make Peter temporarily deaf.
Aspirin!
And Fauxlivia is a hard case under that softened Olivia exterior, and NO photographic memory...
Kerrigore I honestly found that to be the most ridiculous part of the episode, and a big turn off in general. Firing a gun that close to one's ear is insanely irresponsible and would definitely result in permanent hearing loss (not total loss of hearing, but partial). There's a reason you wear hearing protectors on the firing range.
October 7, 2010 at 2:09AM ESTSean
October 1, 2010 at 2:32AM EST Reply to CommentSo, when Walter walked by the research room off the corridor when he first went into Massive Dynamic, two techies were working on a particle device that ran an energy field that looked ALOT like the teleport graphics from Star Trek. Considering that flick was made by the same guys who make this show, and that freakin' Spock created Massive Dynamic, I'm guessing that was intended?
EEB
October 1, 2010 at 12:15PM EST Reply to CommentI'm really liking this over here/over there thing, especially last week's Olivia. Though, I can't wait for all to be revealed and the 'real Olivia' to be reunited with the Bishops.
Speaking of commuting from Boston to NYC, did it ever bother anyone else that they put this in the show like its an hour drive? Its a FIVE hour drive without bad traffic--where were all the road trip scenes?
jen
October 1, 2010 at 2:05PM EST Reply to CommentRegarding Fauxlivia/Bolivia - Thank you a thousand times Alan! I've been trying to start a blog crusade to never refer to her as "Bolivia" again in reviews. I think it's the lamest and least creative nickname possible, in addition to just sounding stupid when you try to say it next to "Olivia". It's the name of a country, people!
karaokequeen
October 1, 2010 at 4:03PM EST Reply to CommentMundane plot question for this episode: what exactly were Fauxlivia and Newt trying to accomplish with the box? i.e., was the midget walking off with it part of the plan? Was the intent all along to have Peter work on it, or to keep it away from him?
Sorry if this is an obvious point; I only watched "Fringe" sporadically before this season, so I may just be missing something.
Kerrigore I think the plan was to have them recover it so that peter would work on it, but in a way that seemed plausible so that Peter/Walter didn't suspect that it was deliberate. Newton definitely wanted the midget to steal/open it, that's why he built up the suspense so much and then left it with him.
October 7, 2010 at 2:19AM ESTHwat
October 1, 2010 at 4:32PM EST Reply to Comment"alling the character "Bolivia." I will not be a party to that foolishness. Fauxlivia is a much better nickname by a factor of a thousand,"
Bolivia doesn't make sense - but Fauxlivia is too contrived without being clever.
Walter inherriting the whole kit and caboodle is nice, though the turn reminds me of Angle getting Wolfram and Hart *g*
(and when will this shitty site work with Firefox? When I press "psot new comment I get. "Please select an option to post a comment. You are logged in" - well if i'm logged in what the hell is the problem then?!
Hwat And that was posted in chrome - or perhaps you are trying to sabotage firefox users and push them to chrome?
October 1, 2010 at 4:33PM ESTSeeking Unemployment
October 1, 2010 at 7:44PM EST Reply to CommentWrite a comment...
Seeking Unemployment Posting problems - fun. Okay, how come no mention of Silent But Deadly?
October 1, 2010 at 7:46PM ESTTom Galloway
October 3, 2010 at 3:05AM EST Reply to CommentGiven the bit about Earth-2's Olivia's various possible names, I had to do the following;
The name game!
Olivia!
Olivia, Olivia bo Bolivia Bonana fanna fo Fauxlivia
Fee fy mo Molivia, Olivia!
justjoan123
October 4, 2010 at 1:49PM EST Reply to CommentI think the Doomsday machine is not something either Walter or Walternate constructed. I believe it is something Walternate found, and is trying to complete with pieces seeded Over Here and Over There. He told Peter it was very old tech, which leads me to believe it was the invention of the First People who appear in the red-tinged opening credits for Over-There-Fringe. Several vague references have been made to their not being the original inhabitants of this world, so I think Walternate is attempting to awaken an ancient weapon.
Chip
October 10, 2010 at 12:53PM EST Reply to Comment"I will not be a party to that foolishness"
*dead*