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Tonight’s pattern: Hand, Leaf, Hand, Apple, Apple

Welcome back to the story of a traitor, a criminal, and a lunatic. Nothing is as it seems. I’m glad Fringe is back because I missed the quirky Dr. Bishop, the sizzling hot Peter (Pacey has gotten hotter!) and the never-ending conspiracy that is the American Government. TVguide.com and various other entertainment blogs referencing Joshua Jackson say the new episodes were like a season two or a 2009 pilot. Also, if you have never seen the show you could get into it without much coaxing. I found that mostly true, in that if you didn’t know what you missed you wouldn’t be the wiser. But as a huge fan, I can say you would have missed out on all the mystery that was the “first season” and what makes Fringe ultimately the best new show of the year. The quirkiness and mystery is what draws me to this show and without it I would probably lose interest. I just hope they don’t get bogged down in the procedural nature of the show because I might have to bang my head against the wall (do we really need another cop show or CSI?).

  In the last episode Olivia was kidnapped in the closing minutes. While we know she won’t be gone for long, since she is the leading lady, the episode does open on Peter worrying to Walter about Olivia’s absence. Cut to Broyles and the FBI also flying into crisis mode to find her. That is when Harris shows up and starts an investigation of the Fringe Unit. I tell you what, Harris is creepy and he gives those long looks that 24 and many a soap have made famous for its moles and villains. The second I saw him, I felt very suspicious of him. Didn’t you? All the questioning and red tape he brings with him feel unnatural. Is he a part of this conspiracy? Is he connected to Loeb too?

Speaking of Loeb, it isn’t long until Olivia wakes up on a slab in an abandoned warehouse. There is a man in a mask getting ready to inject her. What is he doing to her? Why is he giving her a spinal tap? Not. Good. Then, to top it off the masked man leaves the room and it turns out to be our friend, Mitchell Loeb, who was involved in all the pattern cases to date. That guy gets around! Unfortunately, Olivia and her team don’t know they are involved; all she gets is a view of the floor… and some shoes.

  Oh my. How gullible can someone be? Olivia tricks this attending scientist into untying her. A broken beaker and a few fallen doctors later, Olivia swipes some vials of yellow unknown contents and emerges from the warehouse with a convenient get-away car outside. She hides the vials in the dirt and calls for back-up. But, when “back-up” arrives, they arrest her. What? Why? Oh, it’s Harris. Shocker! The disdain on his face is priceless.  What’s his deal? Why does he hate Olivia so much? The answer to that comes when Olivia awakes in the hospital with Harris sitting beside her. It turns out she once busted him for sexual assault, but somehow he got off. Can you say vendetta? Why was his conviction overturned? What does it have to do with this investigation into the Fringe unit and with everything else going on? The timing is just impeccable. 

To top it off, all I can say is “How do they do it?” Charlie went to the location Olivia told him of and the warehouse was vacant. Nothing. No trace of anyone. The vehicle only has her prints. Did she dream it? How could that be? Olivia goes to Peter and Walter and they go and dig up the vials. I was worried they wouldn’t be there, but they were. Whew! So it was real, but what is in the vials and is it important? Walter, like usual, has a theory of what the yellow stuff is but needs more information. Can’t he just tell us? I mean, throw me a bone here. Meanwhile, back at the office, Olivia’s sister, Rachel, shows up with her daughter in tow. It just seems odd she would show up at that time and with some big secret written all over her face, even Olivia notices something is wrong. Crazy.

Finally! The mystery of the episode arrives and it’s a dozy!  Cut to a professor lecturing on the bacteria and viruses, who seems fine until he starts to choke. What is that mass on his neck? A slug with spikes just came out of his mouth! Scream it for me sister, I would scream too! What is that thing? Why did it target Dr. Kinberg? It is so gross and not to mention fast. Upon arrival the team takes a look around and finds the creature is still in the room. It was pretty funny watching all those adults run after it; like a trying to catch a chicken! Walter catches the creature and takes it back to his lab. Leave it to Walter to be on top of his subject!

  Back in the lab it turns out the giant spiky slug is a one-celled common cold virus, supersized. Large. Huge. Yuck. Walter figures out the powder in the vials are the virus in powder form and it activates when it comes in contact with water and stomach acid. The professor’s water must have been spiked with the contents of a vial, but why? Why would they target the professor? What does it have to do with Olivia’s kidnapping?

It turns out Kinberg was recruited by the CDC on a special, top-secret task-force that oversees epidemics and outbreaks. So are these people planning an epidemic so they have to silence their foes? Why else would they kill him? Was that the real reason these people were hired by the CDC? And guess what? He isn’t the only one on the task-force. Simon, a professor close by was also recruited, so Olivia brings him in to be placed in protective custody.

Unfortunately, Loeb is back on the job (remember, they don’t know he is a “double agent”) and he infects the protected Simon with a cold slug and he dies in custody. Not only that, Harris puts Loeb in charge of Olivia’s kidnapping! Wow! He was the one who abducted her! That is just plain wrong! Loeb goes unnoticed as the double agent until Olivia recognizes his SHOES. Walk away slowly, Olivia, or better yet go investigate his house! That’s the spirit! They have to pin something on him and where better to find it than at his house? So, she goes to his residence to look for evidence. Charlie goes to Peter to get a wire tap on Loeb’s home phone. Wire tapping is illegal, but I thought that if the government wanted to listen in on your conversation they could pretty much do what they want.

While at the Loeb residence, Olivia runs into his wife who catches Olivia trying to break in to the front door. The wife is already suspicious as Olivia asks to use the restroom and so she calls Loeb at work. He tells her to kill Olivia with the gun in the closet! Watch out! Remember how Charlie asked Peter for a wire tap? It comes in handy when they intercept the conversation. Peter calls Olivia to warn her. Next comes every man’s dream: a brutal, rolling on the floor, gun-slinging “GIRL FIGHT!” And those girls can fight! In the end, to protect herself, Olivia shoots the wife in the head. Wow! I wonder if that will come back in the investigation of the unit. Not good.

At this same time Loeb flees the building and they can’t find him, so they “fake text” him from his wife and he comes to meet her but SURPRISE! It is the FBI. With Loeb in custody they try to get out of him why he abducted Olivia and why he infected those doctors. He won’t say until he finds out his wife was murdered by Olivia. He gets angry and spills that they were trying to save Olivia. WHAT? Are these people actually good? What do they mean they were trying to save her? Then, he says that they had a plan and now she has no idea what she has done. So was he messing with her or telling the truth? Now that is what I call blurring the line between good and evil. Could these people actually be trying to save the world? Why would they go to such lengths then? And that would mean the ends justify the means and that just isn’t right, right?

  I’m just curious what that last scene means. Nothing crazy happened like in episodes past but there was something subtle about the scene. It just reinforces the idea that something is going on with her sister. Is she leaving her daughter with Olivia? Will she be there in the morning? What is going on with her? Is she involved in the pattern? 

I thought we would get more answers tonight to tie up lose story lines, but I got nada. I guess it will be a slow reveal. But I NEED to know who “the observer” is (he was in front of Harvard walking by as Olivia pulled up), who Massive Dynamic is and what that weird committee that includes Broyles and Sharp is. I also read some interesting stuff online saying that Olivia and Bishop are connected, but how? Will we see Olivia’s dad? Is Walter really her dad? I hope not because I am rooting for team Oleter, Polivia, whatever you want to call them. That would just be too odd. Speaking of Peter, can we get some more back story? Alright, enough gripping, getting on with it.

With every reboot there are slight differences in the story telling and tonight was no different. The audience didn’t get a glimpse of the night’s mystery until later on in the episode. I wonder if that will carry over to the rest of the season or it was just so they could build some background for the new viewers (which by the way was 12.1 million, a 40% jump since the last fresh episode! YAY!).  But I’m so happy the conspiracy of the pattern still exists and it gets crazier, weirder and more disgusting (I’m looking at you slug) by the minute. Now, keep digging Olivia because I’m on the edge of my seat.

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