Season 3 of Fringe
premieres Thursday,
September 23 on Fox

This is the best SciFi show on television at the moment. The cast has a wonderful chemistry. Especially Walter and Astrid. I am so looking forward to this new season.

This article contains spoilers, don’t continue reading unless you want to know.

A little Fringe science is never a bad thing. I am a big fan of this show. At the end of season two the fringe team returned to their original universe. But they don’t know they have the wrong Olivia with them.  Here is what I have been able to find out.

The first half of the new season will be every other episode in the alternative universe starting with the imprisoned Olivia in the premiere named Olivia. Spoiler fairies also told me that it will take until the mid season finale before B-Olivia will be unmasked. I am all psyched about having another Fringe team to get to know now every other episode. The stories will be told from the point of view of respective universe.

One of the drawbacks of this is that Peter will only be in every other episode, at least up to the mid-season finale.

New this season is Amy Madigan in the pivotal role of Olivia’s mother. And in episode 2 a powerful female government agent becomes and adversary to the Fringe team for 3-4 episodes.

I will keep this updated up to the premiere with what we know.

The spoiler faeries tell that Walernate will continue to manipulate Peter. By using B-Olivia who will seduce him …

Speculations

I wonder where the new season is going to take us. First half of the season is undercover B-Olivia and every other episode in another universe. The logical progression should be intensifying and maybe defusing the brewing conflict between the two universes. B-Olivia should learn that there are no sinister plans against her universe. But will Walternate believe her? I would love it if they start to see traces of a third party stirring up trouble between the two universes (if there are two why not many). Maybe that is for later, if ever. I think I read somewhere that the writers would keep it to these two for now. What do you think will be the big problem this season? Beside getting Olivia back.

New this season

• The intro will have a red tone for the Altverse episodes and the ordinary blue tone when the episode takes place in the original fringe universe.
• Olivia’s mother played by Amy Madigan will appear in roughly four episodes beginning with the season premiere when mother and daughter reunite in the alterna-verse. Casting describes her as “lovely and together”. She loves her daughter very much and is even more devoted since she lost her other daughter in childbirth.
• As foreshadowed by the chalkboard anagram in Walternate’s lab in the season finale, Sam Weiss (Kevin Corrigan) will make an appearance or two (or more) in season 3.
• Thomas Jerome Newton (Sebastian Roche) will also return for an appearance or two.
• The two Olivias will be very different. Altivia was not experimented on as a child; she has not been betrayed like Olivia. How will Olivia react when she finds out about B-Olivia’s childhood? (I assume that is what the mother will be doing)
• The two Walters will meet if the writers get to decide.

Episode 3.01 – Olivia

Takes place in the Altervese. From what is looks like, Olivia is going to escape her imprisonment in the season premiere.

Fringe has tapped Wire alum Andre Royo (a.k.a. Bubbles!) to guest star in the show’s third season premiere. Royo will play Henry, a soulful taxi driver that is unexpectedly forced into a tense situation with Olivia (Anna Torv).

Episode 3.02 – The Box

Back in the original Fringe universe

The story alternates to the Fringe Team ‘over here’ where they investigate a mystifying case that people are discovered in a trance-like state that ultimately leads to their death. The unlikely suspect: a mysterious box. As Peter and Walter collaborate to study its properties, alternate Olivia presses on and turns up the heat on an unsuspecting Peter. Meanwhile, key information about the future is revealed when Walter and Nina meet at Massive Dynamic for the reading of the last will and testament of William Bell.

• [POWERFUL FEMALE GOVERNMENT AGENT] -35-55. Becomes an adversary to our Fringe team. Possible 3-4 episodes out of the first 9. Starts episode 302 . Submit all ethnicities. PLEASE ALSO SUBMIT NAME ACTORS.

Episode 3.03 -The Plateau

Alterverse episode featuring the Alt team including agent Charlie Francis.

Episode 3.04

Original world episode probably involving a hospital and ER.

Videos

Hardcover: 304 pages
Publisher: Tor Books
Jacket art: Paul Youll

A dissident faction of the Clan, the alternate universe group of families that has traded covertly with our world for a century or more, have carried nuclear devices between the worlds and exploded them in Washington, DC, killing the President of the United States. Now they will exterminate the rest of the Clan and keep Miriam alive only long enough to bear her child, the heir to the throne of their land in the Gruinmarkt world.

The worst and deepest secret is now revealed: behind the horrifying plot is a faction of the US government itself, preparing for a political takeover in the aftermath of disaster. There is no safe place for Miriam and her Clan except, perhaps, in the third alternate world, New Britain–which has just had a revolution and a nuclear incident of its own.

Charles Stross’s Merchant Princes series reaches a spectacular climax in this sixth volume. Praised by Nobel laureate Paul Krugman as “great fun,” this is state of the art, cutting edge SF grown out of a fantastic premise.

The plot: Rogue elements of the Clan’s conservative party detonate suitcase nukes in Washington D.C. at the same time they try to assassinate or subvert the progressive party with foreseeable consequences.

Miriam grasp the chilling consequences immediately and tries to convince the clan to evacuate to New Brittan where the revolution is progressing into an internal power struggle. Mixed up in it all is the other side of the family and a rogue doctor pitching an army of world walkers.

With the president killed in the attack, former clan collaborator and vice president WARBUCKS becomes the new president keen on shuffling all his secret under the carpet in one go he orders a genocidal strike on the Clan’s homeland.

One of the loose ends on the alternative US timeline is Mike Fleming DEA agent and former boyfriend of Miriam. His part is one of the more entertaining, especially when he tries to get into the news warning about the upcoming attack, but are not believed, and the reporter realizes what he missed followed by a long arc.

Another entertaining bit is about letting all the different agency’s in on the clan secret after the first bombings. Lots of disbelieve there.

Characterization: The characters are well enough developed but I get a feeling Mr Stross was more interested in world building, economics and politics than in building the characters. There are intriguing and interesting characters here but it feels like the heart is not really there. There are many of the characters I would have liked to know more about.

The world building is nothing spectacular. What is interesting is that he first pitched this as a fantasy to circumvent the contract he then had. His revised contract excluded Merchant Princes from that exclusivity so then he could continue it as SF.

I understand it is difficult to get total closure with so many characters and so many sub plots, but I can’t avoid feeling a bit cheated if the story ends here.

The Trade of Queens and the whole Merchant Princes series is a decent read, and if you have the time and the money go ahead. But otherwise go for Charles Stross other works like Singularity Sky or Saturn’s Children, they are much better in my opinion.

Read Charles own Post Mortem of the series

Anyway, there is many episodes before that happens, last nights Fringe episode was the winter finale. Now we have to wait until April before it is back.

An office building on Manhattan suffer a localized earthquake with many victims, their bodies scrambled in gruesome ways. FBI is called in to investigate. After Walter question the only survivor he realize this is a building from the alternative universe. This scares Olivia as she remembers Bells warnings about colliding universes (only one survives). Walter predict that a similar building from our world will be transported there in less than a day and that the building will be ‘glimmering’ before it does. There is only one problem they can’t see the glimmer to identify the house. Olivia could do it as a kid when Walter was experimenting on her but she can’t now. They have to go to Jacksonville and the abandoned military facility there to repeat the experiment. Olivia have to face her own horrifying past to restore the power she lost.

Olivia really shines in this episode, she has to be brave to face a past she have all reason to fear and she show all the vulnerability you can imagine she feels. There was a little Heroes feeling with the powers, is that bad or good, it’s to early to say, I am willing to follow the script to where it leads.

Peter is in limbo and it is painful to watch, knowing what we know and he don’t. You know it will hurt a lot when he learns the truth. And he have reconnected so sweet with Walter again (last episode when he gave the books he sold back to Walter).

Walter and Astrid is a joy to watch, I heard Astrid will be getting a well deserved story arc after the hiatus. Astrid seems so attached to Walter, that it was a bit surprising when she basically told Walter, this is to much even for me, I refuse.

Without telling to much I can spill that there is movements in the romantic department in this episode, but not necessarily what you expect.

This seasons story arc move a building ahead, but there are quite a lot of unanswered questions left for later. Like how did they move the building? Who was inside the building when it went?

There was some things said that stuck to my mind:
- Nixon on a silver dollar, that is disturbing
- What the hell is wrong with you, you did this with little children

This was a good winter finale, an emotional cliffhanger if you will. One you will look forward to resolve but can wait on until April Fools day when Fringe return for the second half of the season. I wonder if the date was intentional?

Took me long enough to read, but I had a busy week traveling and dealing with life’s ods and ends.

Great book though. I have come to love Eric Flints stories, they are down to earth and written with warmth and humor. Here a stubborn crossbreed of a ram called Brillo first becomes an entertaining story in the Grantville paper and then he grows to become the symbol for the French Revolution, sorry German revolution.

I haven’t read anything by Virginia DeMarce before and that seems to be my loss. I have to look into something else she has written after I finish the ring of fire series.

Another alternative history book, this one takes place in Italy and focus on the religious, political and economic impact of Grantville’s appearance in the Ring of Fire on Venice.

Some young uptimers decide to free Galileo, who I learned a lot about.

Grantville also sends a diplomatic team to Venice to facilitate trade.

I also think Andrew Dennis might be an interesting author to look into

This is the 3rd Ring of Firebook for me and I am hooked. I like History, Science Fiction and as a former SCA member I am also a fan of Creative Anachronisms even if they’re in reverse like here.

I have a slight complain with this book, it suffer pace wise from regular infodumps. It is something David Weber is renowed for, mostly undeserved imho.

Love the characters from Kristina to the Wardens of the Towern.

It is about the spring and summer of 1634 mostly concerning diplomacy and the war at sea (close to shore)

Just finished 1633. Now I will sleep, tell you more about it after I wake up again. I apearently didn’t wake up until December.

This is the first collaboration work in the 1632 universe. It deals with Cardinal Richileu’s attempt to stop and control the threat from the Grantville Up-timers and Gustavus Adolphus. The Dutch Republic nearly falls.

A new favorite, The town of Grantville is moved trough time to the 30-year-war Europe of 1632 and they have to learn to fetch for them self. They meet the great warrior king Gustavus Adolphus, King of Sweden.

Good world building by Eric Flint and a brilliant idea to share the world with other writers.

I will finish this book later.

Miriam is back after the cliffhanger battle at the end of the last book. This book is even more of a cliffhanger I tell you.

We left after the crown prince assassinated the King, most of the Royal court and declared war on the Clan. Miriam was on the run after being impregnated. So now she carries the heir to the throne. The US has discovered the Clan and is now scouting out Gruinmarkt with captured clan couriers while they develop the technology of it.

Now it’s time for the revolution, well sort of. New Britannia has a real revolution going on, it will be interesting how that plays out. Miriam born and raised an American has to come to grip with the ways of the medieval Gruinmarkt and her fellow clansmen if she is to prevent the destruction of everyone she holds dear.

Charles Stross has a really annoying way to end his books in Cliffhangers. It doesn’t make him a bad writer though.