Fun and Games with Fringe at Comic-Con

It was an especially happy occasion for the cast and showrunners of Fringe when they walked out onto the Ballroom 20 stage at Comic-Con this year.  Last year, the J.J Abrams' produced series made a splashy debut at the con, with hopes of generating enough buzz and word of mouth to propel the show into a successful freshman year.  It apparently worked.  No doubt showrunners Roberto Orci, Alex Kurtzman, Jeff Pinkner, J.H Wyman and cast members Josh Jackson, Anna Torv, John Noble and Jasika Nicole were tickled with the task of selling the second season of Fringe to fans a year later.

Speaking of fans, Orci and Kurtzman were quite taken with the level of devotion the audience at the panel has for the show.  The pair remarked on the astute observations and questions they've had from fans they've encountered both at Comic-Con and other events.  This year, the panel took questions from fans as usual, but also threw a few back at the audience in the form of trivia, who were rewarded with Fringe t-shirts for the correct answers.

Anna Torv, who was criticized by some fans and critics early on for being too stiff and one dimensional, was well received by the crowd.  Her role and connection to the mythology of Fringe has deepened signifigantly since those early days and fans are obviously responding to the room her character's been given to grow.   And it looks Torv has really taken to her fans as well.  After the panel ended, she came to the edge of the stage and threw t-shirts out to the clamoring fans.

John Noble and Josh Jackson were as playful as ever.  When asked about the possibility of a blossoming romance between Olivia and Peter, John said that Walter would never allow it, being that Olivia and Peter have such a close working relationship.  Noble continuted the comicial tradition of botching the name of Jasika Nicole's character Astrid - this time referring to her as "Asper," which earned him a round of laughs from the crowd.  Meanwhile Josh Jackson griped about the casting of Lance Reddick, because he's taller, more handsome and has a much deeper voice than leading man Jackson. 

On a more serious note, J.H Wyman answered an interesting question regarding the placement of William Bell's office in the Twin Towers.  In the alternate universe that's part of the Fringe world, the Towers never fell, thus featuring them in the show served as a respectful tribute and a clear indication of just how different Fringe's alternate universe is.  Interestingly, it was mentioned that the White House might not have been saved in that same alternate reality, creating a kind of "yin yang" dynamic.  We'll be watching to see how that develops.

Another point of interest close to the heart of Fringe fans is the matter of Kirk Acevedo's character, Charlie Francis.  There was much talk of his "firing" several months ago after the actor made a pretty blunt statement about his status with the show on Facebook.   The showrunners said that "rumors of Charlie's demise are premature," and that "Kirk is a part of our family"  His character has gone through some drastic changes which we should be learning about early on in the season.

One Fringie who'll never have to worry about his place on the show is Leonard Nimoy.  Pinkner said that Nimoy will be part of the series for as long as he wants to be.  Let's hope that's a long time.