Fringe introduces us to a diverse group of characters. FBI Agent Olivia Dunham (Anna Torv), along with her trusted partner Charlie Francis (Kirk Avecedo), is part of a team investigating an aircraft full of dead passengers. Dunham is then summoned by Agent Phillip Broyles (Lance Reddick), who informs Dunham that this incident is the latest in what is called "The Pattern" -- events which included unexplained scientific phenomena. Walter Bishop (John Noble) is a scientist who has spent nearly two decades in a mental hospital after being convicted of mansalughter. He is a brilliant man, but he's given to flights of fancy and it is difficult to communicate with him. His son, Peter Bishop (Joshua Jackson), is brought in (against his will) to assist the FBI. They want Walter to examine the incidents from "The Pattern" to see if he can offer any assistance. Walter immediately recognizes the work as being similar to experiments which he conducted in the 1980s. The clues lead to a huge conglomerate called Massive Dynamics, which is run by Walter's old research partner. As more and more odd things occur all over the northeastern part of the U.S., Dunham, Peter, and Walter find themselves getting closer to a secret which could have a devastating effect on all of mankind.

If you are thinking, "This sounds like The X-Files.", then you are absolutely right. Fringe is a lot like The X-Files. Dunham takes on the Scully role, as she's a concrete realist who has never experienced any strange occurrences (or so she thinks!). In an interesting move, the Mulder character has been split in two. Peter is the young, brash, suave wise-ass who isn't afraid to buck the system, while Walter is the haunted expert in the paranormal who's past has left him scarred. The show's format is even similar to The X-Files. There are episodes which focus solely on events from "The Pattern" and getting closer to Massive Dynamics and the others involved in the ever-growing number of odd happenings. But, there are also stand-alone episodes which step away from this big story-arc to focus on one small story, such as "Power Hungry" or "Unleashed".

But, this shouldn't imply that Fringe is wholly unoriginal or a copy-cat show, because it isn't. For one thing, Dunham is brought into an FBI sub-group which already believes in strange events. Unlike Mulder, no one here is climbing an uphill battle to convince the bureaucracy that there are things beyond the pale. Fringe wisely shifts the conspiracy theories away from the government and onto a large multi-national corporation. If The X-Files made one great mistake (in addition to totally losing focus in its latter seasons), it's that it only gave the viewer two choices; you either identify with the skeptic or the believer. Here, the levels of belief are much more flexible, and most viewers will find a way into the show.

The strongest suit on Fringe (aside from the cast, more on that in a moment) is the writing. J.J. Abrams & Co. set a new bar for TV writing with Lost and Fringe follows suit. The shows' narrative structure is much more linear and straight-forward than Lost, but it's never afraid to leave the viewer in the dark. We are along for the ride with Dunham and we are learning everything just as she does. Again, the show does a good job of balancing the free-standing shows with the overall-arc ones, but each allows the characters to grow and for the audience to become more deeply entwined in the story. The show also doesn’t back down from portraying some pretty hardcore science-fiction. The talk of viruses and matter transmission is never watered down for the masses.

As for the cast, they are excellent. Before Fringe, I was not familiar with John Noble, but he steals the show as Walter. With those peculiar teeth (are those real) filling up that demented smile, Walter may be one of the craziest lead characters ever on a show. And Noble is easily able to balance both the childlike and somber traits which Walter shows. Joshua Jackson seems to be most at home when playing easy-going guys, and thus he’s a natural as Peter. We can literally feel his boredom and apathy at times, and this makes his more emotional scenes all the more powerful. I’m beginning to come around on Anna Torv, but I still think she plays Dunham as a bit too restrained.

I applaud any network show which presents well-written science-fiction to a television audience, and it’s all the more appealing when it has the goopy, horror-tinged ideas found in Fringe. The show is very well-written, the pacing is good, the special effects are usually top-notch, and the main characters are appealing. Season 1 ended with one of the best punch-to-the-gut twists that I’ve ever seen on network TV, so I can’t wait to see what Season 2 holds.

Fringe: The Complete First Season goes over to the other side on Blu-ray Disc courtesy of Warner Home Video. The five-disc boxed set contains all 20 episodes of the show's first season. The episodes have been letterboxed at 1.78:1 and the Disc contains a VC-1 1080p HD transfer which runs at 20 Mbps. The image is incredibly sharp and clear, showing very subtle grain and no defects from the source material. The level of detail and depth is very good. The colors look good, although due to the show's style, the hues are somewhat muted at times. Aside from some mild blurring, the image is better than HD broadcast. The Disc contains a Dolby Digital 5.1 audio track which runs at 48 kHz and a constant 640 kbps. The track provides clear dialogue and sound effects. I would have preferred a lossless track, but the audio here is OK. The stereo and surround effects are effective during key scenes, and the bass is OK, but somewhat soft at times when is really should have come through.