Concentrate and Ask Again

"Concentrate and Ask Again"
Fringe episode
Episode no.	Season 3 Episode 12
Directed by	Dennis Smith
Written by	Matthew Pitts Graham Roland
Production code	3X6112
Original air date	February 4, 2011
Guest stars
Omid Abtahi as Simon Phillips Kevin Corrigan as Sam Weiss Jody Thompson as Sara Downey J. R. Bourne as Agent Edwards
Episode chronology
← Previous "Reciprocity" Next → "Immortality"
Fringe (season 3) List of Fringe episodes

"Concentrate and Ask Again" is the 12th episode of the third season of the American science fiction drama television series Fringe, and the 55th episode overall.

Plot

A lead scientist for a pharmaceutical company is killed by a blue powder that turns his bones into dust. The Fringe division traces the source of the package which contained the powder to a former Marine; when they search his home, Peter finds the man nearby and gives chase, but the man is hit by a car and knocked into a coma. Broyles fears that there may be others involved in targeted attacks. Walter suggests they read the man's mind to learn of any such plot using the ability of one of his undocumented nootropic Cortexiphan patients, Simon Phillips, (Omid Abtahi). Simon, who is unable to control his telepathic abilities, has isolated himself from the general population for two decades, but finds some comfort in not being able to read Olivia's mind as a fellow Cortexiphan patient. Olivia convinces Simon to help them with the ongoing investigation despite the mental anguish he will suffer in a large crowded city like Boston. During their time together, Olivia explains her concerns over Peter, wondering if he still feels any attraction to her alternate self, Fauxlivia, in the parallel universe. Meanwhile, three military contractor executives are killed by the release of the compound in an elevator, confirming Broyles' fears.

With Simon's ability and Nina Sharp's help, they learn of a "Project Jellyfish", a secret military bioweapons project that the comatose man and two others were involved with that was aimed at developing a chemical agent that destroys skeletons. Though they were given inoculations to negate the effects of the chemical agent, their exposure was passed to their stillborn children who had developed without skeletons. Realizing that the men are seeking revenge on those involved with Project Jellyfish, the Fringe team determines the identity of the last intended victim, a former military general running for public office. With Simon's help, Olivia is able to neutralize the two targets before they release the powder at a dinner gala for the general. As Olivia returns Simon to his home, he hands her an envelope that contains Peter's thoughts that he had read.

In side plots, Nina has recovered different translations of the tomes about the First People, including one from William Bell's personal safe, and realizes that they all say the same thing in different languages. She identifies the name of the author of each book as an anagram of the name "Sam Weiss", the bowling alley owner that she had directed Olivia to after her initial return from the parallel universe. She approaches Sam, who does not deny he wrote the books, and who explains that the doomsday device being constructed can either create or destroy a universe; how that will work will depend on Peter, who is biologically tuned to the device. Sam posits that Peter will most likely save the universe from which the Olivia whom he loves originates. The episode ends with Olivia reading the note from Simon, which states that Peter still has feelings for Fauxlivia.

Production

"Concentrate and Ask Again" was written by Graham Roland and Matthew Pitts. Dennis Smith directed the episode.^[1]

The episode featured guest stars Jody Thompson and Paul Jarrett as the new characters Sara Downey and Warren Blake, respectively. Thompson called the part "the kind of role that actors dream of", and described the episode, "The material was so compelling and perfectly written it was a matter of not getting in the way of what the creators had created. I’m anxious about how it will come off. Truthfully, I’ve been torturing myself, wondering if I have somehow ruined the beauty of what I read in the script".^[2]

As with other Fringe episodes,^[3][4] Fox released a science lesson plan in collaboration with Science Olympiad for grade school children, focusing on the science seen in "Concentrate and Ask Again", with the intention of having "students learn about bones and the nature of their chemical and physical composition."^[5]

Reception

Ratings

"Concentrate and Ask Again" was watched by 4.3 million viewers in the United States on its initial broadcast, earning a 1.6 rating. It was a 16% drop in viewership from the previous two Friday episodes, "Reciprocity" and "The Firefly".^[6][7] With 7-day out time shifted viewings, over 6.0 million viewers had watched the show, including a 56% increase in the 18–49 age group, the largest percent gains of any other show of that week.^[8]

Reviews

The episode received fairly positive to mixed reviews. Jose Deamons from Deamon's TV commented: "For the first time this season, I was a little disappointed with the Fringe case this week. It was definitely “fringe-y” enough, but normally this kind of case would leave us with a few more Walter scenes in the lab or running around chasing leads before we settle on the suspects... it seemed like we missed a chance to go through a great case with lots of twists and turns and instead got the details spoon fed to us."^[9] "'Concentrate and Ask Again'" did little to drive the overriding story forward," says Carissa Pavlica from TVFanatic, "but it did a brilliant job of making me question everything." Nonetheless, she commented that it "... was nowhere near as intense as 'Reciprocity'..."^[10]

References

1. ^ Stegall, Sarah (2010-02-10). "Boneless in Boston—Fringe's "Concentrate and Ask Again"". Sfscope.com. http://sfscope.com/2011/02/boneless-in-bostonfringes-conc.html. Retrieved 2011-03-24. 
2. ^ Jeffrey, Morgan (2010-02-04). "'2012' star hints at 'Fringe' guest role". Digital Spy. http://www.digitalspy.com/ustv/s118/fringe/news/a302100/2012-star-hints-at-fringe-guest-role.html. Retrieved 2011-03-24. 
3. ^ "TV Show "Fringe" on Fox Partners with Science Olympiad". Science Olympiad. http://soinc.org/fringe. Retrieved 2011-07-19. 
4. ^ Holbrook, Damian (2010-11-11). "Fringe Unveils Science Sites". TV Guide. http://www.tvguide.com/News/Fringe-Unveils-Science-1025461.aspx. Retrieved 2011-07-07. 
5. ^ "The Science of Fringe: Exploring Bones". Fox Broadcasting Company. http://www.fox.com/fringe/_ugc/images/science/3.12_The_Science_of_Fringe_Concentrate_and_Ask_Again.pdf. Retrieved 2011-07-19. 
6. ^ Hibbard, James (2011-02-05). "'Smallville,' 'Supernatural' return, 'Fringe' dips". Entertainment Weekly. http://insidetv.ew.com/2011/02/05/smallville-supernatural-fringe-ratings/. Retrieved 2011-02-05. 
7. ^ Gorman, Bill (2011-02-05). "Updated TV Ratings Friday: 'Fringe' Falls More Than Fractionally, 'Smallville,' 'Supernatural' Return Even; 'CSI:NY' Up At 10pm". TV By The Numbers. http://tvbythenumbers.zap2it.com/2011/02/05/tv-ratings-friday-fringe-falls-fractionally-smallville-supernatural-return-even/81577. Retrieved 2011-02-06. 
8. ^ Gorman, Bill (2011-02-22). "Live+7 DVR Ratings: 'Fringe' Tops % Gains, 'Grey's Anatomy' Leads Absolute Gains". TV By the Numbers. http://tvbythenumbers.zap2it.com/2011/02/22/live7-dvr-ratings-fringe-tops-gains-greys-anatomy-leads-absolute-gains/83438. Retrieved 2011-02-23. 
9. ^ Deamons, Jose (February 5, 2011). "FRINGE “Concentrate and Ask Again” Review". Deamon's TV. http://www.daemonstv.com/2011/02/05/fringe-concentrate-and-ask-again-review/. Retrieved February 6, 2011. 
10. ^ Pavlica, Carissa (February 5, 2011). "Fringe Review: "Concentrate and Ask Again"". TVFanatic. http://www.tvfanatic.com/2011/02/fringe-review-concentrate-and-ask-again/. Retrieved February 6, 2011. 

External links

• "Concentrate and Ask Again" at Fox
• "Concentrate and Ask Again" at the Internet Movie Database
• "Concentrate and Ask Again" at TV.com