"Olivia. In the Lab. With the Revolver." Review
“Olivia. In The Lab. With The Revolver” is a good episode of Fringe. It’s not amazing, but it does offer some insight into the Fringe mythology, without going overboard. A lot of past plot-lines are brought back, including Sam Weiss (the bowling alley owner), who I honestly forgot all about. It’s nice they put him back in, but I didn’t really like the whole “Let’s play Clue” scene. Is it just me, or was that entire part a bit odd? I’m assuming it’s important since “Olivia. In The Lab. With The Revolver” is a direct reference to Clue.
This week’s mystery isn’t too complex, but I like that it has to do with Cortexiphan. It’s really interesting how all the kids who were experimented on share some deep psyche connection, allowing them to share energy (or “have sex,” as Walter puts it). It also brought back the character Nick Lane, the man who was making Olivia kill people through nightmares in the season one episode “Bad Dreams.” If I recall correctly, he too, ends up in a medically induced coma - that seems to happen with a lot of these Cortexiphan people. They seriously need to get on controlling their abilities.
“Olivia. In The Lab. With The Revolver” has a lot to do with Olivia and Peter’s relationship. I thought it was pretty clever writing how Peter thought Olivia was acting weird because of the near kiss in “Jacksonville.” Of course, we know why Olivia’s been acting so strange, which leads to a couple of nice moments with Olivia trying to make a decision about whether or not to tell Peter who he really is. I liked the scene between Nina Sharp and Olivia best. Nina Sharp is one of the creepiest characters on the show who always seems to know a lot about Olivia… but I still love her.
Oh, and speaking of loving Nina Sharp (nice segue?), I really want to know more about Broyles’ relationship with her. I’m sure the writers haven’t forgotten and I hope they pick up on it sooner rather than later… but please spare us from watching another awkward kiss.
In the end, the best part of the episode was the final minute (as is usually the case with Fringe). Olivia decides she’s not going to tell Peter… because some secrets shouldn’t be told (but honestly, was it even her place to tell Peter, anyway?). But Walter says that he’s going to tell Peter because he needs to start making up for all the mistakes he’s made in the past. It’s a nice moment and a turning point for Walter. When you think about it, he’s caused pretty much every major problem on the show by stealing Peter from the alternate universe and by experimenting on children with Cortexiphan. I think it’s time he start taking responsibility for those actions.
Again, this wasn’t the best episode of Fringe (I still say that was last week’s), but it was enjoyable, nonetheless. It still made connections to the overall mythology, while offering a pretty intriguing “freak of the week.”
-MP
Oh, on a side note, I drive a Jeep Liberty, which is the same car the woman in the beginning drives… you know, when she breaks out in cancerous tumors and dies? Yeah, it makes me never want to drive again.