Bound (Fringe)
Encyclopedia
"Bound" is the 11th episode of the first season of the American science fiction
drama
television series
Fringe
. The episode was written by series co-creators J.J. Abrams, Alex Kurtzman
, Roberto Orci
and executive producer Jeff Pinkner
. Frederick E. O. Toye
directed it. "Bound" follows the aftermath of Olivia's
capture in the previous episode
, and subsequent efforts to identify and arrest her kidnappers.
), conducts a formal review of the Fringe Division. Olivia manages to free herself from her abductors. She, along with Walter and Peter, investigates the murder of an epidemiologist, who is killed by a chemical which creates a giant, slug-like single cell of acute viral nasopharyngitis in his stomach. Olivia succeeds in connecting the murder to Loeb and obtains the necessary evidence to capture him. Olivia tries to question him about her abduction but he tells her that he was trying to save her. Olivia's sister Rachel (Ari Graynor
) pays a visit with daughter Ella.
reported that actress Ari Graynor
would be joining the cast as a guest star for a minimum of three episodes, beginning in January. Her character, Olivia's younger sister Rachel, would be visiting Olivia for a few weeks because "she's dealing with some man trouble back home", as described by an insider. "Bound" marked the first episode to feature the new character.
"Bound" was written by co-creators J.J. Abrams, Alex Kurtzman
, and Roberto Orci
, and executive producer Jeff Pinkner
. Producer Frederick E. O. Toye
worked as the director.
Up to the point the episode aired, actress Anna Torv
considered it her favorite episode, explaining, "In ‘Bound,’ when Olivia gets kidnapped, they’re giving her a spinal tap and she wakes up and breaks out — it was just bang, bang, bang, bang, bang. I found it really easy to follow and kind of energetic, and I really loved filming that." In reference to Trini Alvarado, the other actress in their fight scene, Torv also mentioned when shooting it "We had so much fun!" "That's probably my favorite sequence in the show thus far." Actor Joshua Jackson
believed the episode was important developmentally for the series, explaining it was "creatively when the show really hit its stride in the first season." Jackson continued, "I think right around the midway point of [the first] season the show decided what it wanted to be. From about the midway, point it got on a pretty good streak of episodes. I can’t remember the exact number, but the two-part episode where Dunham gets kidnapped. After that, it was pretty clear; we introduced the bad guys for the season and there was a much clearer narrative drive through the rest of the season."
's Ramsey Isler rated "Bound" 9.6/10; he loved the opening sequence, and called the episode "an energetic start to second half of the season, and it's hopefully a sign of things to come. Perhaps the show runners listened to the complaints about repetitive and formulaic stories in the early episodes of season one and decided to tweak their approach a bit, or they could just be finding their groove. Either way, they should keep up the Jack Bauer approach to Olivia. It works, and it works well." Writing for A.V. Club, critic Zach Handlen also praised the "badassery" of the opening sequence as well as Olivia herself; he graded the episode with an A, calling it "a gripping, bizarre, occasionally wince-inducing hour of television; after a spotty first half of the season, Fringe is finally hitting its stride." Andrew Hanson from the Los Angeles Times
felt that despite the extra ten minutes, "Bound" was "more like a two-hour episode... being crammed into half the time". He thought the episode's four writers were "all busy", as there were three stories going on at once, and compared Olivia to the similarly characterized Lost
character Jack Shephard
. Hanson concluded, "But how bad can it be when my biggest complaint about a show is that I want more? And now that the cold winter of reruns has passed, we should be getting just that." Jane Boursaw of TV Squad enjoyed the episode; like Isler, she also compared Olivia to Jack Bauer, and expressed suspicion that new characters Rachel and Ella were "part of a bigger conspiracy".
Various reviewers disliked the character Sanford Harris, calling him "stereotypical and "one-note".
, director Frederick E. O. Toye
submitted the episode for consideration in the Outstanding Directing for a Drama Series category, but did not receive a nomination. J.J. Abrams, Alex Kurtzman
, Roberto Orci
, Jeff Pinkner
, the writers of "Bound", also submitted their work in the episode for consideration in the Outstanding Writing for a Drama Series category, but received no nominations.
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...
. The episode was written by series co-creators J.J. Abrams, Alex Kurtzman
Alex Kurtzman
Alex Kurtzman is an American film and television screenwriter and producer.Kurtzman was born and raised in Los Angeles, California, where he met his high school friend and long time collaborator Roberto Orci...
, Roberto Orci
Roberto Orci
Roberto Gaston Orci is a Mexican-American film producer, television producer, and screenwriter.-Biography:Orci was born in Mexico City to a Mexican father and a Cuban mother. His mother had left Cuba for Mexico after Fidel Castro came to power. He is the older brother of screenwriter-producer J....
and executive producer 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...
. Frederick E. O. 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...
directed it. "Bound" follows the aftermath of Olivia's
Olivia Dunham
FBI Special Agent Olivia Dunham is a fictional character and protagonist on the Fox television series Fringe . Olivia first appeared in the pilot episode on September 9, 2008. She is portrayed by actress Anna Torv....
capture in the previous episode
Safe (Fringe)
"Safe" is the 10th episode of the first season of the American science fiction drama television series Fringe. The episode was written by David H. Goodman and Jason Cahill, and directed by Michael Zinberg. It begins when a group use technology to walk through a bank's wall and steal a safe deposit...
, and subsequent efforts to identify and arrest her kidnappers.
Plot
Olivia's former adversary, Sanford Harris (Michael GastonMichael Gaston
Michael Gaston is an American film and television actor. He played agent Quinn on the show Prison Break. He appeared as Gray Anderson on the CBS drama series Jericho. He also appeared in the first season of The Sopranos as a compulsive gambler in trouble with Tony...
), conducts a formal review of the Fringe Division. Olivia manages to free herself from her abductors. She, along with Walter and Peter, investigates the murder of an epidemiologist, who is killed by a chemical which creates a giant, slug-like single cell of acute viral nasopharyngitis in his stomach. Olivia succeeds in connecting the murder to Loeb and obtains the necessary evidence to capture him. Olivia tries to question him about her abduction but he tells her that he was trying to save her. Olivia's sister Rachel (Ari Graynor
Ari Graynor
Ariel Geltman Graynor, better known as Ari Graynor, is an American actress.-Life and career:Graynor was born in Boston, Massachusetts. She was raised in a Jewish family and attended Buckingham Browne & Nichols, a private school in Cambridge, Massachusetts, and Trinity College, in Hartford,...
) pays a visit with daughter Ella.
Production
In early December 2008, Entertainment WeeklyEntertainment Weekly
Entertainment Weekly is an American magazine, published by the Time division of Time Warner, that covers film, television, music, broadway theatre, books and popular culture...
reported that actress Ari Graynor
Ari Graynor
Ariel Geltman Graynor, better known as Ari Graynor, is an American actress.-Life and career:Graynor was born in Boston, Massachusetts. She was raised in a Jewish family and attended Buckingham Browne & Nichols, a private school in Cambridge, Massachusetts, and Trinity College, in Hartford,...
would be joining the cast as a guest star for a minimum of three episodes, beginning in January. Her character, Olivia's younger sister Rachel, would be visiting Olivia for a few weeks because "she's dealing with some man trouble back home", as described by an insider. "Bound" marked the first episode to feature the new character.
"Bound" was written by co-creators J.J. Abrams, Alex Kurtzman
Alex Kurtzman
Alex Kurtzman is an American film and television screenwriter and producer.Kurtzman was born and raised in Los Angeles, California, where he met his high school friend and long time collaborator Roberto Orci...
, and Roberto Orci
Roberto Orci
Roberto Gaston Orci is a Mexican-American film producer, television producer, and screenwriter.-Biography:Orci was born in Mexico City to a Mexican father and a Cuban mother. His mother had left Cuba for Mexico after Fidel Castro came to power. He is the older brother of screenwriter-producer J....
, and executive producer 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...
. Producer Frederick E. O. 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...
worked as the director.
Up to the point the episode aired, actress 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:...
considered it her favorite episode, explaining, "In ‘Bound,’ when Olivia gets kidnapped, they’re giving her a spinal tap and she wakes up and breaks out — it was just bang, bang, bang, bang, bang. I found it really easy to follow and kind of energetic, and I really loved filming that." In reference to Trini Alvarado, the other actress in their fight scene, Torv also mentioned when shooting it "We had so much fun!" "That's probably my favorite sequence in the show thus far." Actor 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...
believed the episode was important developmentally for the series, explaining it was "creatively when the show really hit its stride in the first season." Jackson continued, "I think right around the midway point of [the first] season the show decided what it wanted to be. From about the midway, point it got on a pretty good streak of episodes. I can’t remember the exact number, but the two-part episode where Dunham gets kidnapped. After that, it was pretty clear; we introduced the bad guys for the season and there was a much clearer narrative drive through the rest of the season."
Ratings
On its first initial broadcast, the episode was watched by an estimated 11.96 million viewers.Reviews
IGNIGN
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...
's Ramsey Isler rated "Bound" 9.6/10; he loved the opening sequence, and called the episode "an energetic start to second half of the season, and it's hopefully a sign of things to come. Perhaps the show runners listened to the complaints about repetitive and formulaic stories in the early episodes of season one and decided to tweak their approach a bit, or they could just be finding their groove. Either way, they should keep up the Jack Bauer approach to Olivia. It works, and it works well." Writing for A.V. Club, critic Zach Handlen also praised the "badassery" of the opening sequence as well as Olivia herself; he graded the episode with an A, calling it "a gripping, bizarre, occasionally wince-inducing hour of television; after a spotty first half of the season, Fringe is finally hitting its stride." Andrew Hanson from 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....
felt that despite the extra ten minutes, "Bound" was "more like a two-hour episode... being crammed into half the time". He thought the episode's four writers were "all busy", as there were three stories going on at once, and compared Olivia to the similarly characterized 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...
character Jack Shephard
Jack Shephard
Dr. Jack Shephard is a fictional character and protagonist of the ABC television series Lost played by Matthew Fox. Lost follows the journey of the survivors of Oceanic Airlines flight 815 on a mysterious island and their attempts to survive and escape, slowly uncovering more of the much broader...
. Hanson concluded, "But how bad can it be when my biggest complaint about a show is that I want more? And now that the cold winter of reruns has passed, we should be getting just that." Jane Boursaw of TV Squad enjoyed the episode; like Isler, she also compared Olivia to Jack Bauer, and expressed suspicion that new characters Rachel and Ella were "part of a bigger conspiracy".
Various reviewers disliked the character Sanford Harris, calling him "stereotypical and "one-note".
Awards and nominations
At the 61st Primetime Emmy Awards61st Primetime Emmy Awards
The 61st Annual Primetime Emmy Awards took place on September 20, 2009. CBS broadcast the Primetime event and E! the Creative Arts event; both take place at Nokia Theatre in Los Angeles, California. The nominations for the Awards were announced on July 16....
, director Frederick E. O. 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...
submitted the episode for consideration in the Outstanding Directing for a Drama Series category, but did not receive a nomination. J.J. Abrams, Alex Kurtzman
Alex Kurtzman
Alex Kurtzman is an American film and television screenwriter and producer.Kurtzman was born and raised in Los Angeles, California, where he met his high school friend and long time collaborator Roberto Orci...
, Roberto Orci
Roberto Orci
Roberto Gaston Orci is a Mexican-American film producer, television producer, and screenwriter.-Biography:Orci was born in Mexico City to a Mexican father and a Cuban mother. His mother had left Cuba for Mexico after Fidel Castro came to power. He is the older brother of screenwriter-producer J....
, 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...
, the writers of "Bound", also submitted their work in the episode for consideration in the Outstanding Writing for a Drama Series category, but received no nominations.
External links
- "Bound" 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...