This time last year, “Fringe” was an unknown show ““ a FOX fall offering aiming to lure the post-“X Files” crowd. Now, the show is an underground hit, resonating with sci-fi lovers and puzzle solvers. Much like “Lost,” “Fringe” has a corner of the Internet dedicated to solving the show’s patterns and riddles. (And like “Lost,” “Fringe” is the mental offspring of JJ Abrams.)
In the last five minutes of the season finale, viewers saw FBI agent Olivia Dunham (Anna Torv) exit an elevator into a parallel universe ““ one where Leonard Nimoy has an office in the World Trade Center. At the Comic-Con panel on Saturday, fans salivated over the future of Olivia, Dr. Walter Bishop (John Noble), Peter Bishop (Josh Jackson) and the rest of the cast. But the actors spent more time discussing how their characters and on-screen relationships developed over the course of the first season.
“The central relationship of last season was between Peter and his father,” Jackson said. “For the first time in his life, (Peter) has a sense of purpose.”
One fan came up to the microphone and lauded Noble’s characterization of Walter, an out-there scientist who spent years in an asylum. Despite his dark past, Walter serves as the show’s comic relief ““ though the punch line never derives from Walter’s mental illness.
“Walter doesn’t know he’s funny,” Noble said. “He’s not trying to be funny.”
Executive producer Roberto Orci alluded to what fans should expect for the upcoming season.
“Everyone pursues their own truth,” Orci said. “Everyone faces the responsibility of taking a side.”
The exposure of the parallel universe and Peter’s true origins have brought on another rash of “X Files” comparisons ““ some favorable, some not. But Orci said the show’s cast and crew are delighted to be compared to the sci-fi staple in the first place.
“To be mentioned in the same breath (as the “X Files”) is an honor,” Orci said.
In contrast to her hardworking and serious character, Torv laughed about Noble’s humorous delivery and joked that she’s just as curious as the fans are about the show’s upcoming story lines.
“I’m only four episodes ahead of the audience,” Torv said.
Orci said that Nimoy will return for another cameo “if he wants to.” He also gave an ambiguous yet ominous clue about what characters and fans can expect: “A war is coming.”