The Dreamscape
Encyclopedia
"The Dreamscape" is the ninth episode of the first season of the American science fiction
drama
television series
Fringe
, and thereby the ninth episode overall. The episode concentrates on Olivia’s (Anna Torv
) visions of and former relationship with the late John Scott (Mark Valley
), and how they relate to a deadly psychoactive drug
synthesized by Massive Dynamic.
"The Dreamscape" was written by series staff writers Julia Cho
and Zack Whedon
, and was directed by Fred Toye
. It first aired in the United States on November 25, 2008 on the Fox network
to an estimated 8.73 million viewers. Reviews of the episode were mixed, with one reviewer believing it "certainly moves [the series] in the right direction".
office. When he is done and the other attendees have left, he sees an unusual butterfly
. When he picks the butterfly up, it cuts his hand, and he is then attacked by a swarm. Young jumps out of a window, to his death.
Walter (John Noble
) sees lacerations on Young’s skin while examining the body and concludes that the man’s brain was so convinced of something happening to the body that actual physical marks appeared. Olivia receives information through her computer from someone who claims to be John Scott. However, when she returns to Walter’s sensory deprivation tank she learns that he was involved with Massive Dynamic to a troubling extent.
At the same time, Peter
(Joshua Jackson
) is contacted by Tess (Susan Misner
), a woman from his past who warns him to leave Boston
. When he meets her, Peter intuits that she is being abused by her boyfriend Michael (David Vadim
). He ambushes Michael and warns him not to touch Tess again. Michael then informs local crime boss Worth (Tom Riis Farrell) that Peter is back in town.
and Zack Whedon
, while Fred Toye
served as the director.
season finale, "The Dreamscape" attracted 8.73 million viewers for a 3.9/10 share of viewers 18-49.
(not a favorite of mine, sorry to say), 'The Dreamscape' is an episode more involved with insinuation and mythology-building than with telling a complete-in-one story. But perhaps because I've come to trust Fringe more over its recent run of entertaining episodes, I enjoyed it fairly well, and found myself trying to figure out what kind of thematic connections I could make using the notion of the body reacting to mere thoughts."
Travis Fickett of IGN
rated the episode 7.8/10, explaining that it "certainly moves in the right direction". Fickett found the "coolest moment" to be when Olivia witnesses John Scott's memory, appreciated Peter's backstory ("It's more than Peter usually gets, but what we know isn't much and isn't very exciting."), but criticized Olivia leaving the man at the hospital unsuitably protected. SFScope
reviewer Sarah Stegall enjoyed Peter's sideplot and hoped to learn more of his past, but thought the "cute in-jokes" were meant to distract the audience from a "thin" plot "full of holes". She continued, "The shallow, cookie-cutter plotting is starting to seriously annoy me, on a show which otherwise shows good potential. Color me bitter, but why can bad writing like this survive and even thrive, but audiences turn away from Pushing Daisies
?... Fringe has a great deal of potential to be a breakout show like The X-Files
or Lost
. Right now, its major weakness is the continual reliance on the worn-out cliché of the Big Bad Corporation. It's such a knee-jerk reaction in Hollywood to paint all major corporations as greedy, soulless Bad Guys (except, of course, the major corporations signing their paychecks and producing this stuff), that it has grown stale and dry."
Jane Boursaw of AOL
's TV Squad wrote, "Another great episode tonight, and some of the little symbols we see leading into commercials were actually in tonight's episode," referring specifically to the hallucinatory butterflies and the frogs/toads found in the basement. Andrew Hanson of the Los Angeles Times
took notice here of the pattern of Easter egg
s teasing the next episode of the series. This feature of the show had earlier been touched on in an interview with showrunner Jeff Pinkner
. As an example, the previous episode "The Equation" had contained a shot of a butterfly on a trashcan, foreshadowing
the hallucinated butterfly attack in this episode.
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 thereby the ninth episode overall. The episode concentrates on Olivia’s (Anna Torv
Anna Torv
Anna Torv is an Australian actress known for her role as FBI agent Olivia Dunham on the Fox television series Fringe.-Early life:...
) visions of and former relationship with the late John Scott (Mark Valley
Mark Valley
Mark Thomas Valley is an American film and television actor, known for his role as Brad Chase on the TV drama Boston Legal and Christopher Chance in Fox's action/drama Human Target.-Personal life:...
), and how they relate to a deadly psychoactive drug
Psychoactive drug
A psychoactive drug, psychopharmaceutical, or psychotropic is a chemical substance that crosses the blood–brain barrier and acts primarily upon the central nervous system where it affects brain function, resulting in changes in perception, mood, consciousness, cognition, and behavior...
synthesized by Massive Dynamic.
"The Dreamscape" was written by series staff writers Julia Cho
Julia Cho
Julia Cho is an American playwright and television writer who has won national awards for her work.-Biographical information:Cho was born in Los Angeles and is the daughter of Korean immigrants. Her mother is a nurse and her father worked for an aerospace company where his job relocation led the...
and Zack Whedon
Zack Whedon
Zack Whedon is an American screenwriter and comic book writer. He graduated in 2002 with a film degree from Wesleyan University where he served as president of the Eclectic Society...
, and was directed by Fred Toye
Fred Toye
Frederick E.O. Toye is an American television director and producer. He has directed several episodes of the ABC series, Alias, as well as for the FOX science fiction series Fringe...
. It first aired in the United States on November 25, 2008 on the Fox network
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...
to an estimated 8.73 million viewers. Reviews of the episode were mixed, with one reviewer believing it "certainly moves [the series] in the right direction".
Plot
Young Massive Dynamic executive Mark Young (Ptolemy Slocum) delivers a presentation at the company’s ManhattanManhattan
Manhattan is the oldest and the most densely populated of the five boroughs of New York City. Located primarily on the island of Manhattan at the mouth of the Hudson River, the boundaries of the borough are identical to those of New York County, an original county of the state of New York...
office. When he is done and the other attendees have left, he sees an unusual butterfly
Butterfly
A butterfly is a mainly day-flying insect of the order Lepidoptera, which includes the butterflies and moths. Like other holometabolous insects, the butterfly's life cycle consists of four parts: egg, larva, pupa and adult. Most species are diurnal. Butterflies have large, often brightly coloured...
. When he picks the butterfly up, it cuts his hand, and he is then attacked by a swarm. Young jumps out of a window, to his death.
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...
) sees lacerations on Young’s skin while examining the body and concludes that the man’s brain was so convinced of something happening to the body that actual physical marks appeared. Olivia receives information through her computer from someone who claims to be John Scott. However, when she returns to Walter’s sensory deprivation tank she learns that he was involved with Massive Dynamic to a troubling extent.
At the same time, Peter
Peter Bishop
Peter Bishop is a fictional character on the Fox television series Fringe. He is portrayed by Joshua Jackson.-Fictional character biography:...
(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...
) is contacted by Tess (Susan Misner
Susan Misner
Susan Misner is an American dancer, television and film actress.-Career:Misner portrayed the doomed Grace Davidson on the ABC soap opera One Life to Live from 12 March 1999 to 17 November 1999...
), a woman from his past who warns him to leave Boston
Boston
Boston is the capital of and largest city in Massachusetts, and is one of the oldest cities in the United States. The largest city in New England, Boston is regarded as the unofficial "Capital of New England" for its economic and cultural impact on the entire New England region. The city proper had...
. When he meets her, Peter intuits that she is being abused by her boyfriend Michael (David Vadim
David Vadim
David Vadim is a Ukrainian-born American actor who appeared in the movies Air Force One, Exit Wounds, G.I. Jane and Punisher: War Zone...
). He ambushes Michael and warns him not to touch Tess again. Michael then informs local crime boss Worth (Tom Riis Farrell) that Peter is back in town.
Production
"The Dreamscape" was written by Julia ChoJulia Cho
Julia Cho is an American playwright and television writer who has won national awards for her work.-Biographical information:Cho was born in Los Angeles and is the daughter of Korean immigrants. Her mother is a nurse and her father worked for an aerospace company where his job relocation led the...
and Zack Whedon
Zack Whedon
Zack Whedon is an American screenwriter and comic book writer. He graduated in 2002 with a film degree from Wesleyan University where he served as president of the Eclectic Society...
, while Fred Toye
Fred Toye
Frederick E.O. Toye is an American television director and producer. He has directed several episodes of the ABC series, Alias, as well as for the FOX science fiction series Fringe...
served as the director.
Ratings
With the timeslot dominated by the Dancing With the StarsDancing with the Stars
Dancing with the Stars is the name of several international television series based on the format of the British TV series Strictly Come Dancing, which is distributed by BBC Worldwide – the commercial arm of the BBC. Currently the format has been licensed to over 35 countries...
season finale, "The Dreamscape" attracted 8.73 million viewers for a 3.9/10 share of viewers 18-49.
Reviews
Noel Murray of A. V. Club was generally favorable to the episode, giving it a B+. He wrote, "Much like Fringe fan favorite 'The Arrival'The Arrival (Fringe)
"The Arrival" is the fourth episode of the first season of the American science fiction drama television series Fringe. The episode was written by the series co-creator and executive producer J. J. Abrams and executive producer and show runner Jeff Pinkner. Paul A. Edwards directed it...
(not a favorite of mine, sorry to say), 'The Dreamscape' is an episode more involved with insinuation and mythology-building than with telling a complete-in-one story. But perhaps because I've come to trust Fringe more over its recent run of entertaining episodes, I enjoyed it fairly well, and found myself trying to figure out what kind of thematic connections I could make using the notion of the body reacting to mere thoughts."
Travis Fickett of IGN
IGN
IGN is an entertainment website that focuses on video games, films, music and other media. IGN's main website comprises several specialty sites or "channels", each occupying a subdomain and covering a specific area of entertainment...
rated the episode 7.8/10, explaining that it "certainly moves in the right direction". Fickett found the "coolest moment" to be when Olivia witnesses John Scott's memory, appreciated Peter's backstory ("It's more than Peter usually gets, but what we know isn't much and isn't very exciting."), but criticized Olivia leaving the man at the hospital unsuitably protected. SFScope
SFScope
SFScope is an online trade journal devoted to entertainment news concerning speculative fiction, science fiction, fantasy, and horror. It was founded by Ian Randal Strock in early 2007....
reviewer Sarah Stegall enjoyed Peter's sideplot and hoped to learn more of his past, but thought the "cute in-jokes" were meant to distract the audience from a "thin" plot "full of holes". She continued, "The shallow, cookie-cutter plotting is starting to seriously annoy me, on a show which otherwise shows good potential. Color me bitter, but why can bad writing like this survive and even thrive, but audiences turn away from Pushing Daisies
Pushing Daisies
Pushing Daisies is an American comedy-drama television series created by Bryan Fuller that aired on ABC from October 3, 2007 to June 13, 2009. The series stars Lee Pace as Ned, a pie-maker with the ability to bring dead things back to life with his touch, an ability that comes with stipulations...
?... Fringe has a great deal of potential to be a breakout show like The X-Files
The X-Files
The X-Files is an American science fiction television series and a part of The X-Files franchise, created by screenwriter Chris Carter. The program originally aired from to . The show was a hit for the Fox network, and its characters and slogans became popular culture touchstones in the 1990s...
or Lost
Lost (TV series)
Lost is an American television series that originally aired on ABC from September 22, 2004 to May 23, 2010, consisting of six seasons. Lost is a drama series that follows the survivors of the crash of a commercial passenger jet flying between Sydney and Los Angeles, on a mysterious tropical island...
. Right now, its major weakness is the continual reliance on the worn-out cliché of the Big Bad Corporation. It's such a knee-jerk reaction in Hollywood to paint all major corporations as greedy, soulless Bad Guys (except, of course, the major corporations signing their paychecks and producing this stuff), that it has grown stale and dry."
Jane Boursaw of AOL
AOL
AOL Inc. is an American global Internet services and media company. AOL is headquartered at 770 Broadway in New York. Founded in 1983 as Control Video Corporation, it has franchised its services to companies in several nations around the world or set up international versions of its services...
's TV Squad wrote, "Another great episode tonight, and some of the little symbols we see leading into commercials were actually in tonight's episode," referring specifically to the hallucinatory butterflies and the frogs/toads found in the basement. Andrew Hanson of the Los Angeles Times
Los Angeles Times
The Los Angeles Times is a daily newspaper published in Los Angeles, California, since 1881. It was the second-largest metropolitan newspaper in circulation in the United States in 2008 and the fourth most widely distributed newspaper in the country....
took notice here of the pattern of Easter egg
Easter egg (media)
Image:Carl Oswald Rostosky - Zwei Kaninchen und ein Igel 1861.jpg|250px|thumb|right|Example of Easter egg hidden within imagerect 467 383 539 434 desc none...
s teasing the next episode of the series. This feature of the show had earlier been touched on in an interview with showrunner Jeff Pinkner
Jeff 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...
. As an example, the previous episode "The Equation" had contained a shot of a butterfly on a trashcan, foreshadowing
Foreshadowing
Foreshadowing or adumbrating is a literary device in which an author indistinctly suggests certain plot developments that might come later in the story.-Repetitive designation and Chekhov's gun:...
the hallucinated butterfly attack in this episode.
External links
- "The Dreamscape" at FoxFox 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...