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Fringe Characters Hub

Main Characters: A Side / Blue Universe

Fringe Division

The Fringe Division is part of a multi-agency task force under the umbrella of the Department of Homeland Security. The Division, staffed by at least two dozen, mostly FBI, agents, is led by Phillip Broyles. It is tasked with the mission of investigating a growing number of science-related crimes.

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Tropes associated with the Fringe Division:

• The Ace: Fringe Division is largely comprised of elite FBI agents.
• Secret Police: Subverted, in that Fringe Division are actually the good guys.
• Oddly Small Organization: In Season 3, the entirety of Fringe Division appears to be just three FBI agents (Olivia Dunham, Phillip Broyles, and Astrid Farnsworth), a mad scientist (Walter Bishop), a civilian with a rather varied skillset (Peter Bishop). The season three finale makes this even worse by retroactively removing Peter from the previous three seasons.
• Police Are Useless: Pretty much everything that happens in the series, regular old police won't be able to handle it. Enter the Fringe Division.

Olivia Dunham

Olivia Dunham

"You so much as twitch, and you won't have a head left to refreeze."

Portrayed by Anna Torv

First Appearance: Season 1, Episode 1: "Pilot"

Olivia Dunham is the FBI special agent who was recruited by Philip Broyles to be part of the Fringe Division, a joint task-force comprised of the FBI and Homeland Security, where she is spearheading several investigations of paranormal events related to The Pattern, alongside Peter and Walter Bishop.

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Tropes associated with Olivia:

• Abusive Parents: Her step-father.
• Action Girl
• Amnesiac Lover: In season 4. Kinda. She alternated between remembering Lincoln and Peter.
• Apocalypse Maiden: Season 4.
• Applied Phlebotinum: Cortexiphan.
• Back from the Dead: She's been shot in the head twice now. Both times by a version of Walter Bishop, funnily enough.
• Badass
  • Badass Longcoat
  • Heartbroken Badass: For most of season 1, the last episodes of season 2, a large chunk in the middle of season 3 and to varying degrees in season 4.
• Brought Down to Normal
• Cool Big Sis: To Rachel. They remain close despite Olivia's implied Promotion to Parent when they were younger.
• The Determinator:
  • To elaborate, in the very first episode, the man she loves (John Scott) ends up being exposed to some chemicals that are turning his transparent and killing him. What does she so? She researches scientists on the FBI database and finds a man she thinks can help... Walter Bishop. Problem: He's been in the asylum for 17 years and she needs a relative to check him out. She takes a plane to Iraq and blackmails Walter's Con Man son into returning to Boston. Problem: Walter tells her that he can't cure John without knowing the chemicals he was exposed to. She lets him, a man who just got out of the asylum, inject her with vast amounts of drugs and put her half naked into a rusty tank so she see who their suspect is. She finds him and gets Walter to cure John. John turns out to be a traitor. Not Really. She still chases him down.
• Eidetic Memory
  • Though generally a fairly realistic depiction. She only remembers stuff from cases she's worked or that has some importance to her. She also talks about compulsively counting cards as a child, so to an extent this seems to be a learned skill.
• Eleventh-Hour Superpower: Justified. Her gifts are activated by extreme fear and love.
• Fake American: Anna Torv is of Australian nationality.
• Ghost Memory: She often used to mix up her own memories with John Scott's, after sharing consciousness.
  • They also get mixed up with those of Fauxlivia.
• Grand Theft Me
• Healing Factor
• Hot Chick in a Badass Suit
• Improbable Aiming Skills: Walternate tried to brainwash her into thinking she was Fauxlivia. It worked and she acquired her Alternate's Olympic level marksmanship. She got better but still pulled off some damn good shots in "Concentrate and Ask Again."
• Informed Ability: Telekinesis and Pyrokinesis
  • They're more dormant than informed. In season one, she turned off lights with her brain and in season three she gained the ability to use telekinesis on objects from the alternate universe like the typewriter and the Doomsday Device. In the Bad Future, she had much more control over it. Also, harming Peter Bishop will result in her frying you.
• Made of Iron
• Military Brat
• Ms. Fanservice: The first season never missed an opportunity to put her in the "sensory deprivation tank", which was an excuse to show her in a sports bra and underwear.
• New Powers as the Plot Demands: Seems to be like this where she use a "new" power that is required for the situation mostly.
  • Deconstructed in a way. The activation of these powers is definitely not a good thing.
• Parental Substitute: Since reality was rewritten, Nina Sharp has become this for Olivia.
• People Puppets: A new power of hers.
• Soul Jar
• Stepford Smiler: "Bound." She had just been kidnapped, given a spinal tap, tranquillised by the people who should have been her back up and then handcuffed to a hospital bed with a sex offender who absolutely hates her. The moment Rachel and Ella show up... she's all smiles and cuddles.
• Teleporters and Transporters: She has the ability to cross between universes.
• Tyke Bomb
• Violently Protective Girlfriend: Threatening Peter Bishop in an attempt to activate her abilities works just splendidly.
  • If you attempt to kill Peter Bishop with a crowbar, she will kick your ass even if she is on another building. By using Mind Control.

Peter Bishop

Peter Bishop

"You're hot. But I'm looking for someone with syphilis."

Portrayed by Joshua Jackson

First Appearance: Season 1, Episode 1: "Pilot"

A con artist traveling the world, he was blackmailed by Olivia to act as Walter's guardian following his institution release. At first, he wanted everything to be over with as soon as possible, but quickly became involved with Fringe Division as a FBI consultant, and occasional badass.

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Tropes associated with Peter:

• Actor Shared Background: Both Peter and Josh Jackson have mothers who are from Ireland.
• Badass
  • Badass Bookworm
  • Badass Longcoat
  • Badass Driver
• Cloudcuckoolander's Minder
• Con Man
• Changeling Fantasy: He's not truly Walter's son, but rather "Walternate's", from the parallel universe.
• Dark and Troubled Past
• Deadpan Snarker
• Estrogen Brigade Bait
• Guile Hero
• Living MacGuffin: At the end of season 2, it's revealed that the Doomsday Device capable of creating, healing and/or destroying universes is keyed specifically to Peter's DNA, and that the fate of two universes depended on his decisions. Really added some "oomph" to the Love Triangle.
  • MacGuffin Man: At the end of season 3, the Observers imply that Peter was actually this all along. After he is erased from existence, they comment that it was because he had fulfilled his purpose and was no longer needed.
    • In "The End of All Things" it's revealed this wasn't the Observers plan along, only since Henry was born to the wrong Olivia.
• Incurable Cough of Death
• James Bondage
• Mad Scientist's Handsome Son
• Perma-Stubble
• Reformed Criminal
• Ret-Gone: As of "The Day We Died".
• The Scully: Up until his encounter with The Observer.
  • Played for Laughs in 4x21. While talking about Spontaneous Human Combustion...

Peter: You realise that that's a myth, right?

• • This is a man from another timeline AND another universe who has also travelled back in time, investigated the things like were-hedgehogs killing plane passengers, once used the amount of adrenalin in a woman's brain to calculated where she died and has girlfriend who can kill you with her brain.
• Took a Level in Badass: He starts out as a Non-Action Guy (albeit a resourceful one) who often has to be rescued by Olivia or Walter. This changes in Season Three, in part because of contact with an Artifact of Doom.
• Tranquil Fury: When he finds out about Fauxlivia he doesn't raise his voice at all but the loathing is pretty evident.
• "Well Done, Son" Guy: Since reality was rewritten and no one remembers him this trope is taken rather literally.
• What Measure Is a Non-Human?: Peter doesn't like shape shifters. At all.
• Wife-Basher Basher

Peter: If you touch her again, I'll kill you.

Walter Bishop

Walter Bishop

"Excellent! Let's make some LSD."

Portrayed by John Noble

First Appearance: Season 1, Episode 1: "Pilot"

A brilliant all-knowing scientist who once worked with William Bell, Walter has spent the better part of two decades locked up in a maximum security mental institution. However, the John Scott case brought back a need for his services and has since then been working with Fringe Division.

He is now the current CEO of Massive Dynamic.

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Tropes associated with Walter:

• Admiring the Abomination: A big part of his character.
• Amazingly Embarrassing Father
• Amnesiac Dissonance: Ho boy...
• Anti-Hero
• The Atoner
• Badass Driver: "I made a skid!"
• Beware the Silly Ones
• Bunny Ears Lawyer
• Cloudcuckoolander
• Erudite Stoner
• Fan Boy: Is a huge fan of Violet Sedan Chair and Manfred Mann
• Fake American: John Noble is Australian.
• Humans Are Special: "The mind is God! There are no limits except for those we impose upon ourselves."
• Intoxication Ensues: Frequently toting on his own homemade concoctions.
  • He was stoned out to Pluto during "Brown Betty." Only because regular old alcohol wouldn't do the trick.
  • Hilariously subverted during "Lysergic Acid Diethylamide." It says something when Walter is one of the lucid people in the room.
• Large Ham
• The Mad Hatter: Sometimes he's proud to be crazy, other times feels cursed by it.
• Mad Scientist
• Mysterious Past
• Not So Different: He's starting to feel that he and Walternate are more similar than he originally thought, as he's beginning to understand why Walternate's done some of the things he's done.
• Nightmare Fetishist
• Omnidisciplinary Scientist
• Papa Wolf: He is very protective of Peter but "Subject 13" shows us that he was protective of young Olivia as well. When little Olivia tells him that her abusive stepfather is hitting her, Walter makes it clear that if he does it again he'll seriously regret it. The bastard looked terrified. It was awesome.
• Running Gag: Anything involving Walter and food.
  • And his inability to get Astrid's name right.
• Shipper on Deck: Ships Peter and Olivia.
• Sweet Tooth
• Took a Level in Jerkass: In both time lines, whenever his brain is rejuvenated, he's a bit of a dick.
• Tranquil Fury: In a season two episode, we have a creepy Nazi who's genetically tailoring a design toxin that will cause fatal asphyxiation to anyone who isn't blond and blue-eyed. In a crowning moment of badassery, Walter displays his hatred of Nazis by coldly re-designing the same toxic gas to only kill the creepy Nazi guy. At a crowded peace summit no less. Walter does not like Nazis.
  • It also had a lot to do with the fact that said Nazi was using Walter's father's genetic research to carry out his plans. Walter took this as a personal insult.
• Well-Intentioned Extremist
• Wham! Line: (smile) "...How are things on your side?"
  • Gives a good idea on what sort of person he was (and was becoming).

Philip Broyles

Philip Broyles

"Someone out there's experimenting, only using the whole world as their lab."

Portrayed by Lance Reddick

First Appearance: Season 1, Episode 1: "Pilot"

A Homeland Security agent whose primary objective is to crack the mystery of the pattern, he's the direct head of the Fringe Division and heads up all of their investigations.

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Tropes associated with Broyles:

• Amicably Divorced: Is on reasonably good terms with Diane and her husband. She even invites him in for dinner.
• Bald Black Leader Guy
• Benevolent Boss
• Colonel Badass
• Da Chief
• Death Glare
• A Father to His Men: Towards Olivia and the Bishops especially.
• Horrible Judge of Character: Everyone introduced as a close, personal friend of Broyles turns out to be a bad guy. And then there's Nina Sharp...
• Jerkass: At first. Turned out to be a Jerk with a Heart of Gold.
• Married to the Job: His marriage ended due to him being too obsessed with a previous case. He now refers to Olivia and the Bishops as being like his family.
• Mysterious Past: Mentions a previous ill-fated Fringe Team in passing, knows much more than he lets on and has a... something... with Nina Sharp. John Scott implied that he may have had an ulterior motive for hiring Olivia.
• Only Sane Man
• Papa Wolf: Has chewed out William Bell, Nina Sharp and Sanford Harris for their treatment of Olivia.
• Politically Incorrect Hero: Came off as more than a little bit sexist in the pilot but has mellowed down since.
• Screw the Rules, I'm Doing What's Right: Frequently ignores protocol if it allows his men to do their jobs.
• The Stoic
• Reasonable Authority Figure

Astrid Farnsworth

Astrid Farnsworth

"I speak five languages, but I don't speak Walter."

Portrayed by Jasika Nicole

First Appearance: Season 1, Episode 1: "Pilot"

A young FBI Junior Grade agent, she works as Walter's lab assistant within Fringe Division.

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Tropes associated with Astrid:

• Cloudcuckoolander's Minder
• The Chick
• Mission Control
• My Name Is Not Astral, Asterisk, Australia, Asteroid, Aspirin, Esther, or Ostrich.
• Nerds Are Sexy
• Omniglot
• Team Mom
• The Igor

Charles Francis

Charles Francis

"Suffice it to say, that sometimes the problem with being in law-enforcement is that you got to obey the law yourself."

Portrayed by Kirk Acevedo

First Appearance: Season 1, Episode 1: "Pilot"

A long time FBI agent and close friend of Olivia's, Charlie has been kept out of the loop for some time following the John Scott incident. Recently, however he was made second-in-command of Fringe Division.

Was killed and replaced by one of the Shape Shifters.

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Tropes associated with Charlie:

• Ambiguously Brown
• Badass
• Deadpan Snarker
• Happily Married
• Killed Off for Real
• Only Sane Man
• Sacrificial Lion
• Screw the Rules, I'm Doing What's Right
• Spot the Imposter
• The Stoic

Gene

Gene

"Moo."

Portrayed by Cow

First Appearance: Season 1, Episode 1: "Pilot"

A cow requested by Walter upon reopening of his Harvard lab. Peter explains that since cows are genetically similar to humans, they are the next best thing for experiments. To date, however, not a single experiment was actually conducted on Gene, making her more of a team mascot instead of guinea pig.

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Tropes associated with Gene:

• Enigmatic Minion: J.R. Orci has stated that Gene's true allegiance is to Arvin Sloane.
• Everything's Better with Cows
• Genre Savvy: She seems to enjoy Spongebob quite a bit.
• Once an Episode
• The Other Darrin: Due to livestock restrictions, a different cow was portraying Gene since after the pilot episode.
• Technicolor Science: In "Brown Betty" , Gene's coat is made of multi-color polka dots.