Transilience Thought Unifier Model-11
"Transilience Thought Unifier Model-11" | |
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Fringe episode | |
Episode no. | Season 5 Episode 1 |
Directed by | Jeannot Szwarc Miguel Sapochnik |
Written by | J. H. Wyman |
Production code | 3X7501 |
Original air date | September 28, 2012 |
Guest appearances | |
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"Transilience Thought Unifier Model-11" is the first
It was written by
Plot
Peter (Joshua Jackson), Walter (John Noble), and Astrid (Jasika Nicole), after being recovered by Etta (Georgina Haig), begin to adjust to the Observer-controlled world of 2036. Walter notes that he and the Observer September had created a plan prior to the Observers' takeover, but September had fragmented Walter's memory to protect the information. After the Observers' arrival, Walter had Olivia (Anna Torv) retrieve a device to help restore these memories, but she had disappeared. In the present, they trace Olivia's path, finding a nearby patch of amber, but cut into with several human-sized chunks removed. Etta explains there are "amber gypsies", who cut and sell trapped humans on the black market. They track down Olivia's piece of amber to Edward Markham (Clark Middleton), who had been in love with Olivia since the first time he saw her.
While they are retrieving the amber, the Observers, alerted by the black market dealer, arrive. Though they safely escape with Olivia, Walter is captured and taken to a secure Observer facility, where Captain Windmark (Michael Kopsa) arrives to interrogate him. Windmark starts violently probing Walter's mind. He taunts Walter with the fact that there is no music in this future, that nothing will grow from the scorched earth. On continued probing, Windmark discovers the fragmented memories and attempts to obtain the memories by any means possible.
Olivia is freed from the amber and has a tearful reunion with Peter while meeting her grown-up daughter for the first time. As they talk, it is revealed that Peter, Olivia, and young Etta were enjoying a picnic in a park on the day of the Observers' invasion, and Etta went missing in the confusion. Subsequently, Peter and Olivia had separated; Peter going to search for Etta, who had been taken by the Observers, and Olivia joining Walter in fighting them. Etta takes them to a hidden facility where human resistance members have found the device that Olivia had been trying to locate, the Transilience Thought-Unifier Model-11, which is capable of restoring Walter's thoughts, though they believe the device to be non-functional. While there, they can track Walter's capture to a secured Observer facility. Etta uses her Fringe credentials to break into the facility and recover Walter. Afterward, Windmark connects Etta to images of a young girl from Walter's mind.
Once safe, Walter finds that the Unifier device activates to his touch, but when they try to use it, it fails to find any memories; Etta suspects that the memories were destroyed, and the plan is lost for good. A despondent Walter tries to sleep but is distracted by reflections from outside, which he traces to a makeshift sculpture made of broken CDs. In a bag nearby he finds an undamaged CD and plays it on a car's stereo; he cries as it plays Yazoo's "Only You", the first music he's heard since awaking in 2036. As he mulls emotionally, he spies a single dandelion, growing from the rubble, and cries to himself.
Production
"Transilience Thought Unifier Model-11" was written by showrunner
Filming of the episode commenced on July 18, 2012,
Beginning from this episode, former main cast member
Reception
Ratings
"Transilience Thought Unifier Model-11" first aired in the United States on September 28, 2012. An estimated 3.2 million viewers watched the episode. It earned a ratings share of 1.1 among adults aged 18 to 49, a tie with the series premiere of the
Reviews
Noel Murray of
Ramsey Isler of IGN was more critical of the episode and rated it 7.7 out of 10. Due to the season's shortened length, he said he was a "tiny bit concerned that this season premiere wasn't as powerful as I hoped."[17] Isler added that while the episode "does a good job of filling in the informational gaps... there's still something missing. There's still no link between where we were for 4 seasons, and where we are now."[17] He was unsure about Henrietta's addition, writing that because she was "thrust into the mix and viewers were just expected to accept her as is," she did not yet feel a part of the series. Isler did however praise the final sequence with Walter, writing that it "is a great scene; artfully directed and made even more special by the fact that Fringe rarely uses pop music to set the mood. This scene is simple but impressive enough to stand out as the best part of this episode and set the tone for the rest of the season. There's still hope for this story and this world, and as usual Fringe viewers will have to be patient to see that hope spring forth."[17]
References
- ^ "Breaking News - FOX Announces Fall Premiere Dates for the 2012-2013 Season". TheFutonCritic.com. 2012-06-18. Retrieved 2012-06-29.
- ^ Wyman, Joel (2012-05-22). "Here's what I promised ; )". Twitter. Retrieved 2012-05-23.
- ^ Crowell, Brent (July 18, 2012). "And so it begins... Season 5 #Fringe". Twitter. Retrieved July 19, 2012.
- ^ Wyman, Joel (2012-05-01). "Hi. We will begin filming season 5 in July". Twitter. Retrieved 2012-05-07.
- ^ “Start Dates for Vancouver Filming of Fall TV: #Supernatural #OnceuponaTime #Fringe #Arrow #EmilyOwensMD”. Retrieved 2012-07-08.
- ^ Hibberd, James (2012-04-26). "Official: 'Fringe' renewed for final season!". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved 2012-04-30.
- ^ Ng, Philiana (July 24, 2012). "'Fringe' Shuts Down Production Briefly". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved August 18, 2012.
- ^ Gonzalez, Sandra (2012-07-26). "'Fringe' production delayed as John Noble deals with health issue". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved 2012-08-18.
- ^ a b Jensen, Jeff (2012-08-16). "'Fringe' star John Noble back to work after treatment for sleep disorder". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved 2012-08-18.
- ^ Abrams, Natalie (2012-05-22). "Fringe: Seth Gabel Not Returning as Series Regular in Season 5". TV Guide. Retrieved 2012-05-23.
- ^ "Listings - FRINGE on FOX". The Futon Critic. 2012-09-28. Retrieved 2012-09-28.
- ^ Hibberd, James (2012-09-29). "'Made in Jersey' premiere bombs in Friday ratings". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved 2012-09-29.
- ^ Kondolojy, Amanda (2012-09-29). "TV Ratings Friday: 'Shark Tank' Dips, 'Grimm' Up a Tick, 'CSI:NY', 'Blue Bloods' & 'Fringe' Premieres Down + 'Made in Jersey' Premiere". TV by the Numbers. Archived from the original on 2012-10-01. Retrieved 2012-09-29.
- ^ Murray, Noel (2012-09-28). "Transilience Thought Unifier Model-11". The A.V. Club. Retrieved 2012-09-28.
- ^ Zap2It. Archived from the originalon 2012-09-30. Retrieved 2012-09-29.
- ^ a b Jensen, Jeff (2012-09-28). "'Fringe' season premiere recap: Future Shock Blues". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved 2012-09-29.
- ^ a b c Isler, Ramsey (2012-09-28). "Fringe: "Transilience Thought Unifier Model-11" Review". IGN. Retrieved 2012-09-29.