Fringe PSA Video Lays Out The Rules For Living In A Dystopian Future

By David Wharton | Updated

This article is more than 2 years old

Fringe has a history of reinventing itself, gradually evolving from a “monster of the week” type of show into a heavily serialized mythology involving far-out SF concepts such as parallel worlds, time travel, and the attempted rebooting the entire freaking universe. Now the show is using its final episodes to reinvent itself one last time, dropping viewers — and the show’s protagonists — smack dab in the middle of the dystopian, Observer-controlled future first glimpsed in the episode “Letters of Transit.” If you were wondering what life might be like living in a totalitarian police state run by bald assholes from the future, this new “PSA” lays out some of the rules. Obey, or they’ll rewrite your brain.

I love that Fringe isn’t playing it safe to ride out its final episodes. Most shows would simply maintain the status quo and wrap up the remaining story threads until the finale. Instead, Fringe wrapped up many of its ongoing storylines last season and is now using the final episodes to double down on its weirdness and explore one of the show’s oldest mysteries, the origins and motivations of the Observers. It’s a ballsy move, and I applaud the show’s writers for not taking the easy way out. Bring on the future!

Fringe‘s fifth and final season premieres September 28th on Fox.