Fringe The Complete First Season Review-Own it on DVD September 8th, 2009
- Genre: Sci Fi, Drama
- Price: $38.99 on Amazon
- Run Time: 1272 Minutes
- Publisher: Warner Home Video
- Starring: Anna Torv, Joshua Jackson, John Noble, Lance Reddick, Kirk Acevedo, Blair Brown, Mark Valley, Jasika Nicole
- Special Features: Genesis, Casting, Visual Effects, and Real Science Behind Fringe; Deciphering the Scenes; Unaired Scenes; Massive Undertakings; Gag Reel; Robert Orci’s Production Diary; Gene the Cow
For those of you who didn’t know, I am a huge fan of Lost. Seeing that J.J. Abrams was one of the people behind Fringe, I was eagerly anticipating Fringe. I thought it was going to be the best new show of last season. When the pilot aired I was a little disappointed. It was probably because I had such high expectations for the series. The first half of the season was above average to a good show. I was expecting a great show though. Then the second half of the season came around and Fringe quickly became a great series. If you are already a fan of Fringe or sci-fi crime dramas like the X-Files, you need to pick up the first season of Fringe on DVD or Blu-Ray. You will not be disappointed.
For those of you have never seen Fringe before it mainly follows three characters. First there is Olivia who is a young FBI agent who begins investigating the strange events and occurrences of the world. Joining her are Walter, a brilliant scientist who spent 17 years in a mental institute, and his son Peter who has no problem breaking the rules and showing how much smarter he is than most of his peers. Along with the help of the FBI, the gang of three tries to track down what is behind the group of events known as the “Pattern”. There is more to the events than even the FBI could imagine.
As I have already mentioned, Fringe kind of disappointed me off the bat. The show wasn’t bad but it didn’t live up to Abrams unusually high standards. This actually probably turned off quite a few people and they gave up on the show. If you are one of those who gave up on the show you gave up on the show too early. A couple of episodes after the halfway point the show really turned the corner as more mythology was introduced into the show. The weekly cases were kept but there was also a mythology that tied everything together. If you gave up on the show since it didn’t meet your expectations, I would really recommend that you give Fringe a second chance.
If Fringe continues on the path from the end of last season, it could easily be a top ten show next year which is a huge compliment from someone who watches as much television as I do. With the great season one finale, I can’t imagine Fringe not having a great second season.
Along with the 20 extra-long season one episodes (usually around 50 minutes), you get quite a few special features on this DVD set. I am usually not a huge fan of special features, but I have to admit that Fringe knocked the ball out of the park. While I wish there was more material on the season finale, I really can’t complain about what you do end up getting. While I believe the six hours of supposed special features is a stretch, there is plenty of special features to be had in this DVD set. The special features include:
- Commentaries on three episodes-I am personally not much of a fan of commentaries so the fact there is only three doesn’t really bother me. They are pretty good as far as commentaries though.
- Deciphering the Scene-This special feature looks at a scene from each and every episode of the season and goes behind the scenes of how the scene was created. They are quite informative and entertaining. Length: 3 Minutes
- The Massive Undertaking-Longer looks at certain scenes in four episodes. These are similar to the deciphering the scene features but are more detailed. I found them to be pretty entertaining. Length: Around 4-5 Minutes
- Dissected Scenes-Your typical deleted scenes. Since Fringe’s episodes were several minutes longer than most shows, the stuff that didn’t end up making it into the show usually aren’t that good. Deleted scenes are included for five episodes. Length: Varies
- Roberto Orci’s Production Diary-This is a look at what went into making the pilot. I usually find these behind the scenes features to be pretty boring but in Fringe’s case it was quite entertaining. It was informative and surprisingly actually kind of funny. Length: 15 minutes.
- Evolution: The Genesis of Fringe-This looks into how the series was created. I was a little disappointed by this feature. It wasn’t bad but I think it could have been a little longer and it could have focused more on the entire season and not just the pilot. Length: 10 Minutes
- The Casting of Fringe-Your typical casting special feature. It was kind of interesting how several of the cast members actually originally auditioned for other roles on the show. Length: 10 minutes
- Gene the Cow-This is a pretty short special feature but it is actually quite entertaining. You would think that a cow wouldn’t cause much trouble but it appears the show had quite a bit of trouble with Gene the cow. Length: 3-4 Minutes
- Behind the Real Science of Fringe-One of the best features in the DVD set. While I found it hard to believe, it turns out that Fringe used more real science than I could ever have imagined. This special feature looks at how some of the weekly cases were developed and how they are based on some scientific fact. Length: 10 Minutes
- Unusual Side Effects-Fringe’s gag reel. I really wouldn’t say it is any better or worse than most gag reels. Length: 4 Minutes
- Fringe Visual Effects-While it’s not much different than your typical special effects feature, it is pretty entertaining and does a good job showing how some of the more impressive special effects of the season were created. Length: 15 Minutes
While the beginning of the season didn’t live up to my expectations, the end of the season made up for it. If you like sci fi shows and never checked out Fringe or you tried it and gave up on it, I would recommend you picking up the first season since I doubt you will be disappointed. As far as fans of the show, what can I really say. I personally wouldn’t buy the DVD set based on its special features (I wouldn’t buy any DVD set based on the special features), but I don’t think you will be disappointed if you do end up purchasing the DVD set for its special features. Fans also are probably willing to rewatch the episodes which makes this a must purchase for fans of Fringe.
While I am going to end up giving Fringe a 4.5 out of 5, I can assure you that it came so close to getting the perfect five out of five rating.
