Coming off four seasons of LOST--the most serialized show in the history of broadcast TV to that point--the Bad Robot production company wanted to do something a little different. Something a little less overtly cinematic in scope and more in tune with the roots of network episodic TV. That was the philosophy from which "Fringe" sprang forth, and this first season is a fascinating journey from relatively traditional sci-fi/fantasy/investigative procedural (clearly taking inspiration from the 1990s The X-Files) to the perfect blend of over-arching drama and interesting concepts.
For a very basic overview, Fringe tells the story of the titular division of the FBI, put together by Philip Broyles (Lance Reddick) to investigate a "pattern" of strange supernatural or pseudo-scientific phenomena. Olivia Dunham (Anna Torv) leads the team, while Peter Bishop (Joshua Jackson) is roped in because his father, Walter (John Noble) was once an inquisitive scientist (and perhaps much more) towards those sorts of "mad science" cases. Of course, Walter has spent the last decade or so in a mental institution, complicating his social interactions and investigative prowess.
For its first 13 episodes, Fringe is a solid (if largely unspectacular) 7-star effort. In many ways, it is The X-Files without any "mythology" episodes--but also without that constant Mulder passion, too. Each week, a case is investigated and more questions are raised than answers/explanations given. Often, the misdeeds seem to point back to Massive Dynamic, the global tech giant corporation managed by Nina Sharp (Blair Brown). But mostly, the connections are brought up and then not returned to. There's also one specific recurrent theme involving Olivia and ex partner/lover John Scott (Mark Valley), who has essential become a Fringe case in and of himself.
If Fringe had continued in this vein forever, it likely would have lasted perhaps one season and died on the vine. While clearly teasing "something bigger", it was truly that--a tease. Even this far into its freshman effort, the plots/characters did not congeal around anything tangible. Truth be told, without the incredible acting efforts of Noble as the eccentric Walter, I probably wouldn't rank those first 13 even as high as I do.
But then, something utterly remarkable happens: The Olivia/John subplot is--mercifully--wrapped up (it was the biggest misstep of those early goings) and Olivia becomes a more active participant in the investigations. In what is truly a "light switch flipped" type of moment, the show (from episode 14, Ability, onward) is as solid a 10/10 stars as I've given anything.
Freed from the Scott melodrama, Torv is able to establish herself as the true lead of the series. That's step #1. The writers clearly made a conscious decision to narrow the focus a bit, prioritizing the mysterious ZFT terrorist group led by the enigmatic David Robert Jones (Jared Harris). That second step allowed for week-to-week carry-over intrigue instead of having to start from scratch each episode. The final touch? The odd dynamic/relationship between Peter and Walter begins to unravel/introduce some of the show's biggest mysteries.
Think of the final 7 episodes this way: a perfect mixture of standalone/arc storytelling (better than even its X-Files inspiration was ever able to perfectly nail), a dollop--but no more--of LOST's heady philosophical concepts, and an irresistible "there are other worlds than these" Stephen King-like concept that is revealed in the season's endgame.
I have never quite seen the like of Fringe Season One before or since. The way it transitioned from "above-average procedural" to "maybe best thing on network TV at the time" in such a short time might be singularly unique. I settled upon an 8/10 rating simply because that best represents the overall mass of these first 20 episodes. But let me be clear on this: by the final 4-5 installments, Fringe was a show that could rival any of its genre contemporaries (LOST, 24, etc.). The final scene of the S1 finale? One of the most iconic moments in TV history.
Thus, the key thing to know about Season One of Fringe is to not give up on it in the early goings! Especially watched 10+ years after the fact, when shows now hit the ground running, Fringe looks for all the world to be a standard X-Files clone. But by the end of this first journey, it had carved out a niche all its own. It just takes some time/patience on the part of the viewer to get to that point.
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