Subject 9
Encyclopedia
"Subject 9" is the fourth episode of the fourth season
of the Fox
science fiction
drama
television series
Fringe
, and the series 69th episode overall.
) experiences a strange disturbance in her home that creates a brief time distortion and attracts metallic objects to it before it dissipates. After explaining this to Walter (John Noble
) and Astrid (Jasika Nicole
), she and Astrid return to her home to examine the area, where the disturbance occurs again. Walter, observing this from his lab, surmises the effects are similar to one of his Cortexiphan children test subjects who displayed the ability for astral projection
. Walter suspects that the children that underwent the Cortexiphan nootropic
drug trials are psychically linked, which is why Olivia is experiencing them. Walter can only recall the child subject as "Subject 9", but Olivia is able to secure records from Massive Dynamic that name the person as Cameron James (Chadwick Boseman
). While there, it is revealed to the viewer that, in this alternate timeline, the Cortexiphan trials were stopped after Olivia ran away from experiments as a child (a la Subject 13
but without Peter (Joshua Jackson
) to bring her back). Olivia also remembers being experimented on, unlike the original timeline, and the Fringe Division has not encountered the former Cortexiphan children before, as Astrid has no memory of them. It is also revealed that Olivia now shares a much closer relationship with Nina Sharp (Blair Brown
), who knew her growing up. Walter insists on leaving the lab for the first time in three years, joining Olivia to visit Cameron. Walter accidentally catches a glimpse of a letter from St. Claire's mental hospital in Olivia's coat; the letter is a request for Olivia's recommendation as to whether Walter should be reinstitutionalized or not.
Arriving at Cameron's apartment, they find he has changed names and will not be back until the next day. Olivia sets Walter up in a hotel room to spend the night, but he suffers from a panic attack fearing the germs and contaminants in the room. He also reveals that his wife, Elizabeth Bishop (Orla Brady
), killed herself much earlier in this timeline, just after Peter died. He tells Olivia that he is glad Elizabeth can't see him like this. Olivia offers to treat Walter to a root beer float, during which Walter reveals his discovery of the letter and that he came on this journey in order to deomonstrate to Olivia that he is still useful. As they talk, the disturbance appears, much larger and more destructive than before. It pursues Olivia and Walter out of the restaurant, but dissipates after being hit by a car.
After resolving the situation with the police, Olivia and Walter return to Cameron's home, catching him before he can evade capture. Cameron explains that he resents what Walter did to him, as his power makes it difficult to live a normal life. When the same disturbance appears, Cameron is able to use his power to disperse it, and Walter realizes that the Cameron is not the cause of the disturbance; should more such disturbances continue to appear, they will eventually destroy the world. Walter convinces Cameron to help him to destroy the disturbance the next time it appears. They travel to a nearby power station and wait. When the disturbance does appear, Walter guides Cameron in actions that will stop it, but Olivia, recognizing a human figure within it, fires her gun, distracting Cameron long enough to cause the disturbance to disappear. As they try to figure out what to do next, Olivia receives a call from Broyles (Lance Reddick
), explaining that they have come across a man who had just appeared in Reiden Lake and who knows far too many confidential details about Fringe.
After dropping off Cameron, Olivia and Walter go to the hospital where the man is being held, asking for Olivia by name. As Olivia is taken to the man, Walter discovers to his relief that Olivia has refused to allow him to be re-hospitalized. Olivia is shown to where the man is being held. The man is revealed to be Peter Bishop and he is much relieved to see Olivia. Olivia can only ask "who are you?"
, J. H. Wyman, and consulting producer Akiva Goldsman
. Executive producer Joe Chappelle
returned to serve as the episodes director.
In an interview with television reporters, actor John Noble
noted that he loved the episode because of Walter's fears of venturing outside the lab conflicting with his fear of St. Claire's mental institution.
, an estimated 3.13 million viewers watched "Subject 9" on its first American broadcast. The episode scored a 1.2 ratings share in the adults 18-49 demographic, down 8 percent compared to the previous week's episode
.
Fringe (season 4)
The fourth season of the American science fiction television series Fringe premiered on Fox on September 23, 2011, and will consist of 22 episodes. The series is produced by Bad Robot Productions in association with Warner Bros. Television...
of the Fox
Fox Broadcasting Company
Fox Broadcasting Company, commonly referred to as Fox Network or simply Fox , is an American commercial broadcasting television network owned by Fox Entertainment Group, part of Rupert Murdoch's News Corporation. Launched on October 9, 1986, Fox was the highest-rated broadcast network in the...
science fiction
Science fiction
Science fiction is a genre of fiction dealing with imaginary but more or less plausible content such as future settings, futuristic science and technology, space travel, aliens, and paranormal abilities...
drama
Drama
Drama is the specific mode of fiction represented in performance. The term comes from a Greek word meaning "action" , which is derived from "to do","to act" . The enactment of drama in theatre, performed by actors on a stage before an audience, presupposes collaborative modes of production and a...
television series
Television program
A television program , also called television show, is a segment of content which is intended to be broadcast on television. It may be a one-time production or part of a periodically recurring series...
Fringe
Fringe (TV series)
Fringe is an American science fiction television series created by J. J. Abrams, Alex Kurtzman and Roberto Orci. The series follows a Federal Bureau of Investigation "Fringe Division" team based in Boston, Massachusetts under the supervision of Homeland Security...
, and the series 69th episode overall.
Plot
Olivia (Anna TorvAnna Torv
Anna Torv is an Australian actress known for her role as FBI agent Olivia Dunham on the Fox television series Fringe.-Early life:...
) experiences a strange disturbance in her home that creates a brief time distortion and attracts metallic objects to it before it dissipates. After explaining this to Walter (John Noble
John Noble
John Noble is an Australian film and television actor, and theater director of more than 80 plays. He was born in Port Pirie, South Australia, Australia and is currently starring as scientist Walter Bishop in the J. J. Abrams television series Fringe.He made occasional appearances on the...
) and Astrid (Jasika Nicole
Jasika Nicole
Jasika Nicole is an American actress and illustrator from Birmingham, Alabama. She is most famous for portraying the character of Astrid Farnsworth in the TV series Fringe....
), she and Astrid return to her home to examine the area, where the disturbance occurs again. Walter, observing this from his lab, surmises the effects are similar to one of his Cortexiphan children test subjects who displayed the ability for astral projection
Astral projection
Astral projection is an interpretation of out-of-body experience that assumes the existence of an "astral body" separate from the physical body and capable of traveling outside it...
. Walter suspects that the children that underwent the Cortexiphan nootropic
Nootropic
Nootropics , also referred to as smart drugs, brain steroids, memory enhancers, cognitive enhancers, and intelligence enhancers, are drugs, supplements, nutraceuticals, and functional foods that improve mental functions such as cognition, memory, intelligence, motivation, attention, and concentration...
drug trials are psychically linked, which is why Olivia is experiencing them. Walter can only recall the child subject as "Subject 9", but Olivia is able to secure records from Massive Dynamic that name the person as Cameron James (Chadwick Boseman
Chadwick Boseman
Chadwick Boseman, sometimes credited as Chad Boseman, is an African American actor and screenwriter. He is perhaps best known for his role on Lincoln Heights as Nathaniel 'Nate' Ray and his role as Sergeant McNair in the NBC television series, Persons Unknown.-Biography:He is a playwright and...
). While there, it is revealed to the viewer that, in this alternate timeline, the Cortexiphan trials were stopped after Olivia ran away from experiments as a child (a la Subject 13
Subject 13
"Subject 13" is the 15th episode of the third season of the American science fiction drama television series Fringe, and the 58th episode overall. Inspired by fan reaction to the show's previous flashback episode, "Peter", "Subject 13" occurs 25 years before the show's current timeline, in 1985 a...
but without Peter (Joshua Jackson
Joshua Jackson
Joshua Carter Jackson is a Canadian American actor. He has appeared in primetime television and in over 32 film roles. He is best known for playing Charlie Conway in The Mighty Ducks film series, Pacey Witter in the television series Dawson's Creek and Peter Bishop in the television series...
) to bring her back). Olivia also remembers being experimented on, unlike the original timeline, and the Fringe Division has not encountered the former Cortexiphan children before, as Astrid has no memory of them. It is also revealed that Olivia now shares a much closer relationship with Nina Sharp (Blair Brown
Blair Brown
Bonnie Blair Brown is an American theater, film, and television actress. She has had a number of high profile roles, including a Tony Award-winning turn in the play Copenhagen on Broadway, as well as a run as the title character in the television comedy-drama The Days and Nights of Molly Dodd,...
), who knew her growing up. Walter insists on leaving the lab for the first time in three years, joining Olivia to visit Cameron. Walter accidentally catches a glimpse of a letter from St. Claire's mental hospital in Olivia's coat; the letter is a request for Olivia's recommendation as to whether Walter should be reinstitutionalized or not.
Arriving at Cameron's apartment, they find he has changed names and will not be back until the next day. Olivia sets Walter up in a hotel room to spend the night, but he suffers from a panic attack fearing the germs and contaminants in the room. He also reveals that his wife, Elizabeth Bishop (Orla Brady
Orla Brady
-Early life and career:The second of four children born to Dublin publican Patrick Brady and his wife Catherine who had appeared in amateur productions at the Gate Theatre, Brady first became interested in an acting career after reading works by Germaine Greer and Simone de Beauvoir.Brady drifted...
), killed herself much earlier in this timeline, just after Peter died. He tells Olivia that he is glad Elizabeth can't see him like this. Olivia offers to treat Walter to a root beer float, during which Walter reveals his discovery of the letter and that he came on this journey in order to deomonstrate to Olivia that he is still useful. As they talk, the disturbance appears, much larger and more destructive than before. It pursues Olivia and Walter out of the restaurant, but dissipates after being hit by a car.
After resolving the situation with the police, Olivia and Walter return to Cameron's home, catching him before he can evade capture. Cameron explains that he resents what Walter did to him, as his power makes it difficult to live a normal life. When the same disturbance appears, Cameron is able to use his power to disperse it, and Walter realizes that the Cameron is not the cause of the disturbance; should more such disturbances continue to appear, they will eventually destroy the world. Walter convinces Cameron to help him to destroy the disturbance the next time it appears. They travel to a nearby power station and wait. When the disturbance does appear, Walter guides Cameron in actions that will stop it, but Olivia, recognizing a human figure within it, fires her gun, distracting Cameron long enough to cause the disturbance to disappear. As they try to figure out what to do next, Olivia receives a call from Broyles (Lance Reddick
Lance Reddick
Lance Reddick is an American theater, film and TV actor and musician born in Baltimore, Maryland. He starred in The Wire as Cedric Daniels, appeared in Oz as Detective Johnny Basil and appeared in the fourth and fifth seasons of Lost. He now has a prominent role in Fringe...
), explaining that they have come across a man who had just appeared in Reiden Lake and who knows far too many confidential details about Fringe.
After dropping off Cameron, Olivia and Walter go to the hospital where the man is being held, asking for Olivia by name. As Olivia is taken to the man, Walter discovers to his relief that Olivia has refused to allow him to be re-hospitalized. Olivia is shown to where the man is being held. The man is revealed to be Peter Bishop and he is much relieved to see Olivia. Olivia can only ask "who are you?"
Production
"Subject 9" was written by showrunners Jeff PinknerJeff Pinkner
Jeff Pinkner is an American television writer and producer. He graduated from Pikesville High School in Baltimore Maryland in 1983. He is known for his work on Alias where he served as executive producer. In 2006 and 2007, he worked as an executive producer and writer for the mystery series Lost...
, J. H. Wyman, and consulting producer Akiva Goldsman
Akiva Goldsman
Akiva J. Goldsman from Walker Valley, New York is an American screenwriter and film producer. He received an Academy Award for Best Adapted Screenplay for the 2001 film, A Beautiful Mind, which also won the Oscar for Best Picture....
. Executive producer Joe Chappelle
Joe Chappelle
Joe Chappelle is an American film and television director and producer. Chappelle was a Co-executive producer and regular Director for the HBO crime drama The Wire...
returned to serve as the episodes director.
In an interview with television reporters, actor John Noble
John Noble
John Noble is an Australian film and television actor, and theater director of more than 80 plays. He was born in Port Pirie, South Australia, Australia and is currently starring as scientist Walter Bishop in the J. J. Abrams television series Fringe.He made occasional appearances on the...
noted that he loved the episode because of Walter's fears of venturing outside the lab conflicting with his fear of St. Claire's mental institution.
Ratings
According to Nielsen Media ResearchNielsen Media Research
Nielsen Media Research is an American firm that measures media audiences, including television, radio, theatre films and newspapers...
, an estimated 3.13 million viewers watched "Subject 9" on its first American broadcast. The episode scored a 1.2 ratings share in the adults 18-49 demographic, down 8 percent compared to the previous week's episode
Alone in the World (Fringe)
"Alone in the World" is the third episode of the fourth season of the Fox science fiction drama television series Fringe, and the series' 68th episode overall.-Plot:...
.
External links
- "Subject 9" at Fox.comFox Broadcasting CompanyFox Broadcasting Company, commonly referred to as Fox Network or simply Fox , is an American commercial broadcasting television network owned by Fox Entertainment Group, part of Rupert Murdoch's News Corporation. Launched on October 9, 1986, Fox was the highest-rated broadcast network in the...