John Noble Calls The Fringe Finale One Of The All-Time Greats
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Fringe is not the kind of show that’s going to give you a boring, run of the mill finale. No, with the series finale fast approaching, you can bet they’re going to pull out all of the stops. In fact, John Noble, who plays modern-day mad scientist Walter Bishop, calls next Friday’s conclusion “one of the great finales of all time.”
That’s a bold statement, but, all things considered, it’s not outside the realm of possibility. After all of the shocking revelations of last week’s episode, “The Boy Must Live,” anything seems on the table for the finale. On Friday, January 18th, Fringe will air two back-to-back episodes, “Liberty” and “An Enemy of Fate,” the 99th and 100th episodes of the series.
Noble tells reporters, “I think we finished the series off as well as I could possibly have dreamed of, as I hope will be evident in the next couple of weeks.”
He continues:
I think [the script is] the best finale I’ve ever read, just in terms of being able to tie up the five years, five years of intense work. To be able to pull it together in the way that [executive producer] Joel Wyman did is quite remarkable to me. So I honestly think the fans will be … well, they’ll be disappointed. There’s no question, because the series is finishing. But I think they’ll be very thrilled and honored by the way that Joel has made that happen.
Fringe is well known for the rabid fan support it inspires. Hell, the doggedly devoted enthusiasts are the only reason it’s been on for as long as it has. And few shows have a cast who is as willing and excited about interacting with their fan base. So if Walter thinks fans will be satisfied, that speaks volumes.
Season five has been a tumultuous journey for Walter, Noble’s character. A vast majority of the events of Fringe hinge on Walter, and he has always been the emotional core of the show. Part of why Noble adores the finale so much is, as he says, “I think it’s the perfect out for Walter.”
He doesn’t go so far as to divulge any specific details about the final episodes, but he says:
We know that something radical has to happen in order to beat the Observers. I think by now we’ve built up to the fact that possibly, maybe Walter has to do something pretty outstanding to make this happen…More importantly, I think, what you’ll find is the way that his relationship with Peter plays out over the next two episodes, and in particular the finale, is really quite remarkable.
Honestly, that’s what most of us want. The Fringe team can beat the Observers all they want, and they can leave as many hanging plot threads as they want. However, the one thing we’re not going to be satisfied with is if they leave the relationships between the characters without any resolution. That includes Walter and Peter, Peter and Olivia…hell, you even have to throw Astrid in there. Noble does promise some “beautiful moments” with his costars, as well as a great deal of “payout.”
