Lower Decks

The following contains spoilers through the episode “Earthling,” originally broadcast 11/5/09.

I really can’t believe I haven’t mentioned it yet here at Lower Decks, but there’s another show that’s probably pretty relevant for our readers, one you’re probably even watching, and it’s something worth mentioning in this week’s ‘Fringe’ review, thanks to the connection between characters named Walter and Sheldon. It’s ‘The Big Bang Theory,’ of course, the only sitcom within light-years (not a term of distance!) that handles our kind of entertainment, steeped as it is in “geek culture.” Sheldon is the genius on that show, but whatever the context, he’d fit right in at the lab. Let’s just say that among other things, watching Walter figure out a formula was a highlight this episode.

The other thing I’d like to mention, which is funny following on the heels of a review where I defended ‘Fringe’ as a terrific blend of serialized/episodic television, is that even as an episodic show (which this week it certainly was), it’s still better than just about any procedural you’ll find, far less formulaic, certainly. What ‘Fringe’ does is take a big picture even when it’s focusing on contained matters. Rather than spend time only solving one murder and putting the guilty party away, these characters are constantly tasking themselves thinking their way through, using their minds and not just a specific set of skills. I referenced ‘House’ last time a bit disparagingly, but what that show does brilliantly is allow its central character to be completely unhinged (well, when he isn’t trying to grow a little). ‘Fringe’ is a show built around characters being themselves, and succeeding because of it. On a show like ‘CSI,’ you have people helping their audience see a lot of ways to focus on details, but here, the creators encourage fans to embrace their own strengths, which is evident every time someone defends Walter, or trusts Peter, or lets Olivia do her job as it needs doing.

Which brings us to Broyles, the man who usually oversees everything with his typical grim demeanor. He’s a no-nonsense figure who gets the job done and sets a firm standard. Trouble is, that’s sort of all he’s been since the show began. The creators promised an episode this season that pierces the armor, and “Earthling” was it. There are a few things the episode plays with, Russian counterparts, shadow creatures and space encounters, but what’s most interesting is a glimpse into Broyles’ past, from a case he worked four years ago. To think of ‘Fringe’ is mostly to think about the point where the series began, or even Walter Bishop’s colorful past, but what’s more is that Broyles was at this before anyone else. Four years ago, he worked on a case that ruined his life, because he was so determined, so committed to making the world a better place, he drove his wife, his family away. Given that, it’s not hard to see why he might be the kind of man he is now, or what he might have been before. I would encourage the creators to explore more of this in the future. What makes ‘Fringe’ great is its ability to feature small things, and occasionally draw back the curtain to a breathtaking, larger world. Someone wonders where a character like Astrid fits in. That’s where. I keep saying she has a story, too, that she isn’t just the meek, amused little assistant, someone to serve as counterpoint and not do all the thinking but rather questions and reaction. It’s not a mistake on a show like this when someone is perfectly comfortable in this kind of environment.

Speaking of this kind of show, among the core characters are a contingent of FBI agents, something that has become less and less unique on television. When ‘Flashforward’ was adapted to TV this fall, the central figures were, from the book by Robert Sawyer, transported from a lab to FBI offices. ‘V’ also features FBI agents, as if all of a sudden the only way to tell a big story is to feature FBI agents investigating. ‘Alias’ featured the CIA, which here serve as a menace, threatening Broyles into playing by the book, which represents another element the series occasionally and therefore implicitly features as part of a bigger picture.

I realize there might be an issue over the lack of advancement in the series arc, but an episode like “Earthling” pushes it along in a unique way, in the case of Broyles and what he represents, if not parallel worlds and the like.