Fringe -- this decade's "The X Files?"

They've obviously been influenced by "The X Files" in trying to figure out who is perpetrating what and why. This wasn't just a cliffhanger -- they writers pushed you over the cliff and somehow snatch you out of the air in the new series second opening in January.

It is mind bending and fascinating.

Yes, it's definitely one of the better shows for this year. Hopefully, it will be getting a good audience and won't get cancelled. This has happened on so many occasions in the past - good shows being cancelled. A good example is "Strange Luck" from a few years back.

"11th Hour" continues to interest me, too. I think there's room for two shows of a similar nature on the tube.

Eleventh Hour gets room on my DVR every Friday -- I usuall get too sleepy to watch it all the way through. There's a very good thematic moral core to the show, not just the "someone gets killed followed by the mystery of catching the killer." "Dexter" on Showtime has this same attribute.

Yea, I was hooked on this show from the very beginning too. I hate those 'mini breaks' or whatever they call it. I need answers!!! When does the series start again?

January 20th

Link: http://www.fox.com/fringe/

"Fringe" is back with a boom -- a boy discovered under a building about to be demolished who has lived there for years. I think FOX channel.com or HULA has the episode for free on your PC. I almost missed part of it as American Idol went over by several minutes and would have cut off the ending, but I responded by recording FOX news and then deleting it.

Definitely an interesting episode.

The end was very intriguing, with the adult bald guy watching the car with the bald child go by. It seems to me that the boy is going to be one of the "information/event gatherers".

I'm still a big fan of 11th Hour as well. I now find it superior to the various CSIs. There's not the many overt gratuitous autopsy scenes, which I feel is strictly done for rating purposes.

The CSIs have become a bad joke. The careful attention to detailing the autopsies, and the various characters involved, are wearing their street clothes and have their hair everywhere. Why bother putting so much realism into one part of the show, and when a lot of the rest is laughable?

Last night's CSI was good, despite the fact that they tried to put "Re-Animator" in it's comical gore to shame by having Robert David Hall pull out a brain from an open skull, holding it up in the air and pulling the hemispheres apart with a straight face (I did detect some tongue biting here). I don't think they were going for laughs there, although the whole storyline of the Jesus wanna-bes was one of the most whimsical of the show. I like CSI when they make fun of themselves. I'm starting to like Laurence Fishburne's character -- he had a nice turn at the end of last night's show with the whimsy. You're right, they're going to have to set their sights higher on the imagination gauge, but, of course, they can't go as far out on a limb as "Fringe," which is now beginning to make "The X Files" as tame as a bedtime story.

Since the serial killer of a past running plot was caught, the CIA guy's remark about "we've found another one" when he calls in about the little boy and that last scene means there's a new sub-plot that has to be resolved, but I'm guessing next season.

"Eleventh Hour" is one of the best written new shows as well as "The Mentalist," and I'm beginning to get warmed up to the new "Castle."
It's kind of "Murder She Wrote" updated with a male crime novel author and they aren't taking themselves too seriously.

There always in trouble of getting to formulated but of all of them, I think "Fringe" can keep taking it to a new level.

Last night's episode, although seriously presented, was full of great one-liners and a tongue-in-cheek satire of monster movies. There was elements of nearly every good monster flick from the earliest "Frankenstein," to "Jaws" and "Alien," then some humorous swipes at bad monster flicks. When Dr. Bishop has taken the poison and later asks, "When I told you the poison would kill me in an hour, did one of you by any chance look at your watch?", I nearly busted a gut. Just before, after Dr. Bishop locks out Peter Bishop and Agent Dunham from following him, Peter Bishop shouts out, hoping Dr. Bishop can hear him, "If that thing doesn't rip him apart, I'm going to kill him." These quotes are paraphrased from memory, but what struck me is all of the actors delivered the one-liners with perfect timing and straight faces, it made them even funnier. It was comparable to, "We're going to need a bigger boat" in "Jaws."

T'was a good episode. I loved how far-fetched it got.

They were pulling the stops out without any fear that it was getting outlandish and outre. I believe all the writes have watched Peter Jackson's "Dead Alive" and "The Frighteners," as they don't have any qualms about the audience realizing that some of the stuff is humorous pranks. I have to watch it again and figure out just what happened in spots. The contrast of the characters in domestic and workplace camaraderie that seems commonplace with the the off-the-wall goings on keeps one's head spinning the entire hour. Love those short commercial breaks. "Fringe will be back in 60 seconds." Of course, that's not enough time to run to the bathroom, or go into the kitchen and pop some corn. My pause and "rewind" button are getting worn out. Hey why do they still call it a "rewind" button when nothing is winding? Sounds like a case for "Fringe."

i'll probably "lost" this one, check out season one on dvd and make my decision

i never watched x-files, not sure why i just didn't

Dead Alive - one my all-time favs.

djjd - I'll have to check out episodes I've missed too. I just got hooked recently.

What's funny is that it is set in my neck of the woods (or my neck of the urbanscape). They keep throwing in town names like Medford and Somerville. The scene of Harvard that pre-empts the scenes set in the lab is no part of Harvard I've ever seen. Fun to watch that aspect, but it distracts me from the storyline sometimes.

I watched the first few episodes of this and then it just became boring. I think X-Files was a better show. The best thing about Fringe is that when it's getting ready to commercial it says "Fringe will return in 60 seconds", or however long it will be. I wish every show did that.

Some previous episodes on Hulu -- if you're on high speed, click on the HD button to the right and full screen. (But, you've heard, Hulu is turning brains into cottage cheese).

http://www.hulu.com/fringe

The first few episodes were getting a foothold and establishing groundwork. About episode 4 of 5, it just gets all wild, making The X Files, like I stated seem like bedroom stories. This has one of the best mad scientists ever on film or TV.

can't get hulu in the socialist republic of canuckistan (ie canada)

You can't get hula, either, but Hulu is a shorter trip.

Seriously, I think Hulu is coming your way very soon. So get out the tin foil hats.

Fringe has been renewed for a new season -- last night's ratings, getting the usual big boost from "American Idol," were way up.