Robert N EmersonMy thoughts on Fox's Fringe
September 13th 2008 07:22
Okay, in an effort of full disclosure I have to admit a very important thing, something that could bias me in favor of Fringe, which is that I love the near future genre, deeply and madly to the point of illegality in much of North America. There is something about conspiracy theories, genetic manipulation, preternatural, supernatural, occult, secret societies, and other such things of the genre that give rise to a geekogasm.
Fox's Fringe is just such a show and, as blasphemous as some may feel it is, I think it has the potential to be better than the defunct X-Files. There is still a modest amount of work to do, however that could just be the dust that is knocked off after a solid pilot earns a series greenlight; only time will tell how good Fringe is going to be, but I'm more than hopeful.
The premise of the series is that advances in science, advances that are beyond cutting edge technology into the realm of bleeding edge, are happening so fast, so often, and on such a varied scale, that our ability to contain them has failed. We are now in a world where what is science fiction has become science fact, where mad science is real.
So, we find ourselves witnessing the secret struggles between clandestine government agents searching out shadowy foes that may, or may not, like within the structures of our government and our corporations. Not all of those working on the fringe of scientific thought are alone, some are working in cells, or for larger entities than themselves.
While the X-Files is an obvious first choice of inspiration for Fringe, I would say that it pays more of a homage to Kolchak the Night Stalker (Darren McGavin's series) than the X-Files was. Not only that, but it has touches of Dean Koontz fiction and role-playing games like Wizards of the Coast's Dark*Matter, an RPG setting that was used for two different game systems.
I am very hopeful for Fringe, not only because I enjoy the genre, but because of the fact that the premise is not that far from reality. We are in a time where, potentially, what was once fiction can become reality. Where the idea of a biochemical lab being ran from a storage unit is not that far off from things that can happen.
You see, when something is on the fringe, it does not mean it is removed from us, it means that it is right there, right on the edge of where we are, and it could come closure over time.
Fox's Fringe is just such a show and, as blasphemous as some may feel it is, I think it has the potential to be better than the defunct X-Files. There is still a modest amount of work to do, however that could just be the dust that is knocked off after a solid pilot earns a series greenlight; only time will tell how good Fringe is going to be, but I'm more than hopeful.
The premise of the series is that advances in science, advances that are beyond cutting edge technology into the realm of bleeding edge, are happening so fast, so often, and on such a varied scale, that our ability to contain them has failed. We are now in a world where what is science fiction has become science fact, where mad science is real.
So, we find ourselves witnessing the secret struggles between clandestine government agents searching out shadowy foes that may, or may not, like within the structures of our government and our corporations. Not all of those working on the fringe of scientific thought are alone, some are working in cells, or for larger entities than themselves.
While the X-Files is an obvious first choice of inspiration for Fringe, I would say that it pays more of a homage to Kolchak the Night Stalker (Darren McGavin's series) than the X-Files was. Not only that, but it has touches of Dean Koontz fiction and role-playing games like Wizards of the Coast's Dark*Matter, an RPG setting that was used for two different game systems.
I am very hopeful for Fringe, not only because I enjoy the genre, but because of the fact that the premise is not that far from reality. We are in a time where, potentially, what was once fiction can become reality. Where the idea of a biochemical lab being ran from a storage unit is not that far off from things that can happen.
You see, when something is on the fringe, it does not mean it is removed from us, it means that it is right there, right on the edge of where we are, and it could come closure over time.
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Comment by Anonymous
Comment by Robert N Emerson
TV Babble
Film Mage
As for the concepts, I cannot think of any other show that promoted the usage of LSD for a potentially lethal form of communication, so as to learn the face of the bad guy. In fact, on television currently, Fringe is alone, until Sanctuary and Eleventh Hour hit next month.
You're welcome to your opinion, of course, but I think the show is going to turn out to be a solid piece of work.