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Season 1 – Fringe

Play trailer Poster for Season 1 – Fringe Sep 2008 Crime Drama Sci-Fi Play Trailer Watchlist
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85% Tomatometer 26 Reviews 81% Popcornmeter 500+ Ratings
FBI Special Agent Olivia Dunham is assigned to the bureau's Fringe Division, in which she investigates unusual crimes and occurrences. Assisting Olivia in her investigations are once-institutionalized scientist Dr. Walter Bishop, his jack-of-all-trades son, Peter, and FBI Junior Agent Astrid Farnsworth. As the team investigates cases of science gone awry, they discover connections to their own past and to a parallel universe. As the team solves cases in these interconnected worlds, new discoveries and complications continue to arise.
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Fringe — Season 1

Fringe — Season 1

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Critics Consensus

Action-packed, suspenseful, and filled with intriguing twists, Fringe is a smart sci-fi series that's compelling enough to overcome its occasionally uneven plotting.

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Critics Reviews

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Noel Murray AV Club 05/24/2018
B+
Often highly entertaining - funny at times, creepy at times, and with a liberal dose of what-the-hell? - is more straightforward and plain than Alias or Lost's first episodes were. Go to Full Review Barry Garron The Hollywood Reporter 05/24/2018
What really makes Fringe so promising is that it is potentially reminiscent, in a small way, of the battle-of-the-sexes charm that once made Moonlighting the best hour of TV of its time. Go to Full Review Heather Havrilesky Salon.com 08/20/2013
You get a scribbled treasure map littered with obscure signage that's meant to suggest all kinds of deeper, more complex meanings - none of which you'll ever fully understand, of course. Go to Full Review Sean Axmaker Stream on Demand 05/30/2025
... a stylish journey into fringe science with "X-Files" trippiness but decidedly earthbound conspiratorial overtones. Go to Full Review Adam Sweeting The Arts Desk 08/06/2020
Still, the fact that it can remind us that The X-Files is as outmoded as a first generation iPod is proof that Fringe is doing something strange and different. Go to Full Review Seth Freilich Pajiba 06/14/2018
The one thing that did stand out to me was the show's style. They seem to be going for a "cool" thing, playing around with some of the way they shoot and frame scenes, and it largely works Go to Full Review Read all reviews

Audience Reviews

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Andros K. @Andros_01 May 11 Fun sci Fi drama series kinda like X-Files but with a JJ Abrams style See more Ariana L @Ariana_Lee_ Dec 12 Absolute cult classic See more Frans B @FransB Dec 10 Certainly something else this one. Intrigue, drama, emotion, otherworldliness, suspense, off your rocker theorems, batshit crazy and enough action. Anna Torv shines in character, whole cast is convincing. John Noble in particular, is almost too convincing in his role, brilliant actor! Great cinematography and visually stunning. Gory story at times but entertaining as, you know ... (Note: Next time, get someone else who will be able to write the Peter Bishop character with the alleged 190 IQ, this one is not working) See more Lori M. @carella0203 Dec 1 Never ever disappoints See more Per S @RT83737705 Aug 18 Whether or not it's some mimic of X Files matters none. Fringe is such a mishmash of utter sci-fi nonsense, with half dimensional non credible characters, truly poor over acting, one awkwar scene after another, and such a generally riiculous plot, that it's painful to watch. Everything with it so bad, it's beyond parodic, and it's hard enough to get throght the pilot. Can a reason for it to get such high ratings be that the public finally has reached an intellectual bottom? See more Laurian D @Laurian Aug 11 I'm watching this in 2025 and I'm baffled by how good it is. I can't explain how it was possible to overlook it for so many years. It seems to be underrated and lacking the promotion. The only reason I don't give it a perfect score is the slower start. Season 1 takes about 3 episodes to really kick things off, but once it does, you'll be hooked and falling in love with every aspect of it. Don't overlook this one like I did!! See more Read all reviews
Fringe — Season 1

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Cast & Crew

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Anna Torv

Agent Olivia Dunham

Joshua Jackson

Peter Bishop

John Noble

Dr. Walter Bishop

Lance Reddick

Agent Phillip Broyles

Kirk Acevedo

Agent Charlie Francis

Mark Valley

John Scott

Episodes

Episode 1 Aired Sep 9, 2008 Pilot When an international flight lands at Boston's Logan Airport and there are no signs of life, FBI Special Agent Olivia Dunham, a scientist, Walter Bishop, and his son Peter uncover a deadly mystery involving a series of unbelievable events. Details Episode 2 Aired Sep 16, 2008 The Same Old Story The link between a wildly accelerated pregnancy and a baby who ages in a matter of minutes is investigated; Peter endures his new role as his father's keeper; Olivia turns to Massive Dynamic's chief operating officer for assistance. Details Episode 3 Aired Sep 23, 2008 The Ghost Network The team investigates a bus full of dead commuters who appear to be fossilized, and uncover a man who has visions of pattern-related disturbances before they happen; Dr. Bishop requests a piano in the lab to help him process data. Details Episode 4 Aired Sep 30, 2008 The Arrival Broyles asks the team to investigate a deadly explosion at a New York construction site; after Olivia uncovers a commonality between disturbing events, Dr. Bishop takes matters into his own hands. Details Episode 5 Aired Oct 14, 2008 Power Hungry The team investigates a man who has the ability to harness electricity; Olivia is shocked by a blast from her past; Dr. Bishop uses homing pigeons to help him crack the case. Details Episode 6 Aired Oct 21, 2008 The Cure A woman with a rare disease surfaces in Massachusetts and brings illness and death to everyone she encounters. Details Episode 7 Aired Nov 11, 2008 In Which We Meet Mr. Jones When a strange parasite attaches itself to the internal organs of a dying FBI agent, Olivia suspects a connection to the Pattern; Peter and Walter tap into a dead man's brain waves. Details Episode 8 Aired Nov 18, 2008 The Equation A sequence of flashing lights during the kidnapping of a young music prodigy (Charlie Tahan) leads Walter back to his former bunkmate at St. Claire's Hospital. Details Episode 9 Aired Nov 25, 2008 The Dreamscape The team investigates when a Massive Dynamic employee (Ptolemy Slocum) is so certain he is being attacked by butterflies that he leaps from a window to escape them. Details Episode 10 Aired Dec 2, 2008 Safe Olivia, Walter and Peter find a robbery suspect trapped inside a vault as if the wall had solidified around him. Details Episode 11 Aired Jan 20, 2009 Bound Olivia's sister, Rachel (Ari Graynor), visits; Walter, Peter and Olivia try to solve the murder of an esteemed epidemiologist, which may be linked to Olivia's abduction. Details Episode 12 Aired Jan 27, 2009 The No-Brainer Olivia, Peter and Walter investigate the death of a car salesman who was found in a pool of goo; Olivia is upset when the case puts a loved one in harm's way. Details Episode 13 Aired Feb 3, 2009 The Transformation The team finds freakish remains at the crash site of an international jumbo jet; with answers just out of reach, Olivia and Peter decide to go undercover. Details Episode 14 Aired Feb 10, 2009 Ability German agents ask Olivia about her relationship with David Robert Jones; the team investigate a case where victims die after their orifices suddenly close. Details Episode 15 Aired Apr 7, 2009 Inner Child A mysterious child who was living alone underground forms an unspoken bond with Olivia; a serial killer resurfaces. Details Episode 16 Aired Apr 14, 2009 Unleashed Olivia and Peter enlist the help of Dr Walter Bishop, Peter's father, in stopping the spread of an unexplained phenomenon. Details Episode 17 Aired Apr 21, 2009 Bad Dreams Olivia dreams about a suicide as the event really happens at Grand Central Station; shocking information about the ZFT manuscript is revealed. Details Episode 18 Aired Apr 28, 2009 Midnight The Fringe Division investigates the discovery of several mutilated bodies drained of spinal fluid; the team discovers a scientist with possible connections to the ZFT bioterrorist cell. Details Episode 19 Aired May 5, 2009 The Road Not Taken Olivia starts having elaborate visions; Walter confesses his previous knowledge about the Z.F.T. manifesto; Peter's secret project is exposed. Details Episode 20 Aired May 12, 2009 There's More Than One of Everything A person with close ties to the Fringe Division is attacked; David Robert Jones returns. Details

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Fringe — Season 1

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Season Info

Executive Producer
J.J. Abrams, Alex Kurtzman, Roberto Orci, Jeff Pinkner, Bryan Burk
Network
Fox
Rating
TV-14 (V)
Genre
Crime, Drama, Sci-Fi
Original Language
English
Release Date
Sep 9, 2008