Almost Human premieres this Sunday and Monday

The new FOX Sc-fi drama Almost Human begins its two-night series premiere this Sunday and Monday (11/17 & 11/18) at 8:00 pm (7:00 pm central).

The show, brought to you by the creators of Fringe - J.J. Abrams, J.H. Wyman, Brad Anderson, et. al - is a mix of Fringe, Robocop, and Blade Runner. You can read the official description after the break.

I've seen the Pilot episode, and really liked it. It will feel very familiar to Fringe fans, almost what we would have gotten if Fringe had stayed in the future.

While we won't be blogging about Almost Human here, please check out out Almost Human Wiki at AlmostHumanWiki.com.

Also, if you have any suggestions for a good Almost Human blog, please leave them in the comments!

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J.J. Abrams Talks ALCATRAZ, Serialized Storytelling, the Final Season of FRINGE, and Upcoming TV Projects

J.J. Abrams Talks ALCATRAZ, Serialized Storytelling, the Final Season of FRINGE, and Upcoming TV Projects

by Christina Radish
Posted:January 23rd, 2012 at 3:14 pm

The new Fox drama series Alcatraz follows a unique trio investigating the mystifying reappearance of 302 the most notorious prisoners and guards, 50 years after they vanished. As San Francisco Police Department Detective Rebecca Madsen (Sarah Jones) and Alcatraz expert and comic book enthusiast Dr. Diego Soto (Jorge Garcia) help government agent Emerson Hauser (Sam Neill) and his associate, Lucy Banerjee (Parminder Nagra), piece together the inexplicable sequence of events, they ultimately discover a much larger, more sinister present-day threat.

While at the TCA Winter Press Tour, executive producer J.J. Abrams talked about what intrigued him about the premise of this series, the changes they decided to make to the original pilot, why serialization has become a dirty word for TV, and that this was designed as episodic with an over-arcing large story and mythology stories that they’ll get to, over time. He also talked about how hopeful he is that Fringe will get renewed for at least one more season, said that Eric Kripke (Supernatural) is doing a great job developing the Revolution pilot that he will be producing, and that he is excited to be working with One Tree Hill creator Mark Schwahn on a show in the vein of Felicity. Check out what he had to say after the jump:

.
What’s your sense about the likelihood of Fringe getting another season?
ABRAMS: I don’t know. For some sick reason, I’m hopeful. There is some stuff coming up that is so great. They’re doing such amazing work. Maybe it’s just that dumb optimism of hoping that, when good work is done, it gets rewarded. Some of the work that Jeff [Pinkner] and Joel [Wyman] are working on now is so good that I’m just crossing my fingers it gets to continue. And, if not on Fox, maybe somewhere else.

Has Fox given you any indication that they would give you a heads up before canceling the show, so that you can make sure things get wrapped up?
ABRAMS: I would think that, if the show was going to end, they’ve been so wonderful and incredibly supportive and really aware of the audience that they have and don’t have, I’m sure they would be courteous enough to do that.

What can fans expect from Fringe, for the remainder of this season?
ABRAMS: I don’t want to talk about anything specific that’s coming. But Joel Wyman, one of the showrunners, directed an episode that is incredibly romantic and powerful and emotional, and has my favorite combination of weird and sweet, sci-fi and romance.

Are you planning an endgame, story wise?
ABRAMS: Not in the immediate future. My dream would be that the next year would be the great ending for the show, to have one more season, but of course, any producer would say that.

Read the entire collider.com article here.

FRINGE: A Sitdown with J.J. Abrams

J.J. Abrams discusses his love for Fringe, what Fringe fans can do to help the show (watch live and tell your friends), and the possibility of Abrams directing an episode of Fringe.

Fringe Easter Eggs: Alias Scanner

Here is a comparison of the body scanner used in the Fringe episode "Neither Here Nor There", and the scanner used in the J.J. Abrams show Alias.

JJ Abrams Gives A Nod To 'Fringe' On His New Show 'Person Of Interest'

One of two new JJ Abrams shows, 'Person Of Interest', premiered on CBS this past Thursday night.

Do any of the names on the email that was in the episode look familiar? Click here

Thanks to spoilertv.com for the find.

Happy Birthday, JJ Abrams!

Happy 45th birthday to the man behind the universes, and I don't just mean the two
we know of in 'Fringe.'

JJ Abrams, the creator of Alias, Felicity, Lost, and Fringe is celebrating a birthday today! Without him and his dreams and hard work, NONE of the Fringe characters would exist!

THANK YOU for all of your hard work in making Season 4 of Fringe a reality, JJ.
The staff and fans here at Fringe Television wish you a very HAPPY BIRTHDAY!

JJ Abrams' Super 8 Promo With Fringe Easter Egg

Can you identify the Fringe Easter egg in this promo?

Why Is JJ Abrams Obsessed With Alice in Wonderland?

(Note:This article is a tad old, but continues to ask a relevant question. As recently 2 episodes ago we met a confused character named Alice Merchant who was viewing through a looking glass.-fringeobsessed)

Jan 3, 2010 3:00 PM
Why Is JJ Abrams Obsessed With Alice in Wonderland?
Kiala Kazebee — JJ Abrams and Alice in Wonderland: What's the connection? Lost is rife with Carroll-isms, and now Fringe is falling down the same rabbit hole. We investigate the Abrams/Alice relationship just in time for Fringe to pick up January 11th.

Abrams has been mining the Alice mythos for years -Alias, Lost, and yes, even Felicity are all filled to the brim with Into the Looking Glass subtext and, as is the case with Fringe, actual context. For the sake of brevity, topicality and to spare you the pain of many, many white rabbit-related metaphors we'll keep the focus on Fringe with a bit of Abrams' back catalog to support the theory.

Alice in Abramsland

"Oh how brave they'll all think me back home!"

We know Abrams has a penchant for pretty female characters cast adrift in dangerous waters. Sydney Bristow, Kate Austen (who was originally slated to lead the Losties, not Jack) and Abrams' current muse Agent Olivia Dunham all embody the Alice character: fearless young women with unhappy home lives and an insatiable amount of curiosity.

Think about it - Olivia has no qualms about stepping into Walter's LSD box time and time again, essentially mimicking the "Drink Me" scene in Alice's Adventures and eventually finds herself at the end of Season one on the other side of the looking glass talking to William Bell in a parallel reality. William Bell may even be her white rabbit, as evidenced by the Fringe Season Two poster revealing a bunny in the shrubbery wearing a tiny bell around his neck. And, of course, they are all surrounding a gigantic hole in the ground (referencing episode 2 Night of Desirable Objects). This has actually been discussed here because the internet is a vast and wondrous thing.

The Mad Hatter, the White Rabbit and the Pocket Watch

Alice: What a funny watch! It tells the day and the month, but not the time!
Mad Hatter: Why should it? Does your watch tell you what year it is?
Alice: No, because it stays a year for so long.
Mad Hatter: Well, then, I rest my case! (via)

Time travel - and the concept of time in general - is a constant (heh) in Abrams' world and Fringe is no different. The Observer, who resembles the white rabbit in more ways than one, carries the ubiquitous pocket watch everywhere he (or they, I guess) goes, constantly checking it for a yet to be determined purpose. What we do know is The Observers have been around since time began at every "important" historical event. Also they really love spicy food which has absolutely nothing to do with Alice in Wonderland but is a bit of whimsy much in keeping with Carroll's brand of literary nonsense. Or it helps metabolize the time travel. Who knows?

Walter Bishop is quite obviously the Mad Hatter, solving and creating new riddles and completely off his rocker supposedly due to his love of hallucinogenics (although by now we know his crazy stems from his missing brain grapes).

Peter Bishop, the Queen of Hearts, and the Cheshire Cat

I think the theory goes that Peter Bishop is actually Another Dimension Peter, able to pop in and out rakishly without any damage done to his mind. Is he the Cheshire Cat? My gut says maybe. This isn't an exact science people; it's Fringe science. (Nina Sharp, however, she of the red bob and God complex, is most definitely the Queen of Hearts.)

So, where are we at with this whole Alice thing? We've got an entire Lostpedia wiki written about the Alice connection, even IMDB notes the Wonderland theme throughout Alias and now we've got a curious lady with long blonde hair taking hallucinogens, following a white rabbit (or several) down a hole or through a glass or across time or what have you and thwarting the Queen of Hearts while courting the Mad Hatter's son who may or may not be the Cheshire Cat. I think I've made my point. Or spouted a bunch of literary nonsense. What do you think?
Source:io9.com

Anna Torv and J.J. Abrams To Present at Upcoming WGA Awards

Hollywood Set to Present Honors to Excellence in Writing
By: HollywoodNews.com

HollywoodNews.com: Spotlighting the creative collaboration between writers and other artists in the entertainment industry, a wide array of Hollywood talent is set to present honors at this year’s Writers Guild Awards L.A. show Saturday, February 5, at the Renaissance Hollywood Hotel-Grand Ballroom. The West Coast WGA ceremony will feature writers, actors, and directors who’ve worked together to create memorable films, television shows, videogames, new media, and other written programs.

“We’re excited that some of the most talented storytellers, actors, producers, and directors have agreed to spend their Saturday night telling us insider tales of how some of the best shows and movies are created,” said 2011 WGA L.A. show Executive Producer Spike Jones, Jr.

Awards presenter pairs include: author Mitch Albom and Emmy-winning actor Hank Azaria (Tuesdays with Morrie), Academy Award-winning screenwriter Mark Boal and Oscar-winning director Kathryn Bigelow (The Hurt Locker), WGA-winning writer-director Morgan Spurlock and WGA-nominated writer Jeremy Chilnick (The Simpsons 20th Anniversary Special: In 3-D! On Ice!), Emmy-winning writer-executive producer Greg Daniels and Emmy-nominated actress Amy Poehler (Parks & Recreation), Emmy-winning actress Catherine O’Hara and Emmy-winning actor Martin Short (SCTV), actress Anna Torv and Emmy-winning writer-director-producer J.J. Abrams (Fringe), Emmy-winning writer-producer Al Jean and actor Dan Castellaneta (The Simpsons), actress Mayim Bialik (The Big Bang Theory, Blossom) and Emmy-nominated writer-producer Don Reo (’Til Death), and Daytime Emmy-winning As the World Turns star Eileen Fulton, who appeared on the long-running daytime drama for over 50 years, and Daytime Emmy-winning ATWT director-executive producer Christopher Goutman.

Columbia Pictures Chairman Amy Pascal, Oscar-winning producer Scott Rudin (No Country for Old Men), and Academy Award-winning director Steven Spielberg (Schindler’s List), via a special video presentation, will present the WGAW’s Laurel Award for Screen to Academy Award-winning screenwriter Steven Zaillian (Schindler’s List). Emmy-winning actress Candice Bergen (Murphy Brown) and Emmy-winning writer-producer-director Michael Patrick King (Sex and the City) will present the Guild’s Paddy Chayefsky Laurel Award for Television to Emmy-winning writer Diane English (Murphy Brown).

In addition, Emmy-winning writer Allan Burns (Lou Grant) and Emmy and WGA-nominated executive producer-showrunner Neal Baer (Law & Order: SVU) will present the WGAW’s Valentine Davies Award to Emmy-winning TV writer Seth Freeman (Lou Grant) and Oscar-nominated screenwriter Susannah Grant (Erin Brockovich) for their entertainment industry and community service. WGAW President and writer-director-producer John Wells (The Company Men) will present the Guild’s Paul Selvin Award to those writers whose script highlights First Amendment and civil liberties issues, as well as the Guild’s Jean Renoir Award for Screenwriting Achievement Award, given this year to Italian screenwriter Tonino Guerra (Amarcord, Blow-Up; [*Editor’s note: Guerra will not be present at WGAW awards show, but accepted his honorary award at his home in northern Italy]).

Modern Family stars Jesse Tyler Ferguson and recent Emmy winner Eric Stonestreet will co-host this year’s event.

This year’s show is executive produced by Spike Jones, Jr., with Carole Propp as talent producer and Emmy and WGA-winning writer Guy Nicolucci (Late Night with Conan O’Brien) serving as the L.A. show’s head writer.

The WGAW Awards Committee includes Guild members: Karen Harris (chair), Steve Chivers, Patrick Doody, Shelly Goldstein, Ruth Livier, Scott Saltzburg, and Maiya Williams.

The 2011 Writers Guild Awards will be held on Saturday, February 5, 2011, simultaneously at the Renaissance Hollywood Hotel-Grand Ballroom in Los Angeles and the AXA Equitable Center in New York City. For more information about the 2011 Writers Guild Awards, please visit www.wga.org or www.wgaeast.org.
Source:hollywoodnews.com

( Note:Anna Torv looks great in black, but I hope she wears another colorful outift.)

J.J. Abrams:Fringe Deserves To Live Beyond Season 3

Today's News: Our Take J.J. Abrams: Fringe Deserves to Live Beyond Season 3
Jan 20, 2011 09:40 PM ET
by Natalie Abrams

Fringe's big move to the Friday dead zone has sent fans into a panic, but series executive producer J.J. Abrams says the sci-fi series will stay true to its story no matter where it lives.

But it's not going to get more complicated either. Abrams says at the risk of cancellation, writers won't be diving further down the rabbit hole. "It absolutely would if we weren't moving to Fridays," he says.

Which is not to say things will be dumbed down. At its core, Fringe is about "a woman who was experimented on when she was a kid ... about a man who might not have come from here ... about a father who is holding incredible secrets including those that mean war," Abrams says. "These are things we talked about at the very beginning.

"To not embrace that means that we will fail on other people's terms," he continues. "So, if we're going to fail, let's go down doing the most badass, weirdest, interesting, sophisticated version of a series that we could possibly do."

On the bright side, Fox Entertainment President Kevin Reilly last week insisted reporters not write the show's eulogy "prematurely." He said if the viewers who watched the show on Thursdays all made the move to Fridays, it would be more than enough to keep Fringe going.

Abrams says there are no hard feelings when it comes to the network's decision. "I literally have loved being at Fox, so much so that we're doing [the series pilot] Alcatraz for Fox," he says. "Having said that, I do not want Alcatraz to get a slot only because Fringe has left one for it. My goal is that they can co-exist happily. They're two very different series, but Fringe deserves to live beyond Season 3."
Source:tvguide.com

"J.J. Abrams 'horrified' by 'Fringe' Move"

Wednesday, January 12 2011, 10:17am EST
By Catriona Wightman

J. J. Abrams has admitted that he is "horrified" by the news that his show Fringe is being moved to Friday nights.

The drama's network Fox announced in November that the series will be pushed back to make way for American Idol.

"Oh, I'm horrified beyond belief," Abrams told Collider. "But as a fan of the genre and the show, I'm hoping that fans will tune in."

He continued: "I certainly can promise that it will be worth their while. The episodes that are coming up are spectacular. I guess you can just be hopeful and say that if the work is good enough, it will find the audience. I think they're doing better work now, even in the second half of season three, than they've ever done in the series. I'm just crossing my fingers that fans of the show show up."

Abrams admitted that he doesn't see an upside to the move because "the audience on Friday nights is harder to find", but insisted that he is still on good terms with Fox.

"Certainly, I would be lying to you if I said I'm thrilled about the move," he said. "But what I am thrilled about is that the network has been incredibly supportive and, despite its move to Friday, they've been nothing but encouraging of the show. It's still on the air in its third season and it's not easy to do that. It's not easy to get to season three of anything. They've allowed the show to become truly great, I think. The question is, will audiences find a great show on Friday nights? I pray that they do."

Source:Digital Spy

Fringe Ratings: What Me Worry?

There has been a lot of FUD spread around lately concerning Fringe's ratings. Situated in one of the most competitive time slots this fall, ratings have been predictably low. However, Fringe has two things going for it that may allay some fears.

First, in the same time slot, Fringe has improved ratings over what was in the same spot last year. Secondly, with all the cost cutting measures employed by WB in moving the show to Canada and cast and crew redundancy, it is in a much better place to survive lower numbers.

Entertainment Weekly spoke with JJ Abrams, who says the show is not in any immediate danger, and that FOX remains committed to the show.

“The mood on set and in the writer’s room is as good as the ratings are bad, which is to say, wonderful,” Abrams tells me. “Luckily, Fox has been insanely supportive, for which we are deeply grateful.”

Abrams is encouraged by the show’s “strong” DVR numbers as well as the glowing reviews from critics. “But given that we’re on one of the hardest [nights] on television, we’re just focusing on making the best show we possibly can,” he says. “What else can we do?”

Like most things in life, nothing is safe forever, so the LA Times has a list of five things that could help Fringe - more answers, more character development (e.g. Astrid, Bell, Nina), more bad guys, less loose ends, and maybe the most important of all - move the show to a different day.

Fox is a little ham-stringed by not having a 10:00pm primetime slot, so the options for moving the show are limited. Of course it could move back to "reality" Tuesdays, but then there's the American Idol problem in January.

What do you think? Are you worried about Fringe? What would do to improve the ratings?

Happy Birthday, JJ Abrams!

The King of All Media turns 43 today, so let's all take a moment and reflect on how little we'll have accomplished in comparison by the time we're that age (or alternatively, how little we had when we did). Here's to at least another four or five decades of stellar entertainment from the mind of JJ Abrams!

UPDATE: Here's JJ at the MTV Movie Awards:

Fringe Starts Shooting Season 2 Today

After not-much-of-a-hiatus for the cast (and a virtually nonexistant one for the writers), Fringe starts shooting its highly-anticipated second season in "Hollywood North" (Vancouver) today, June 24th.

Since production moved across the continent from New York over the summer, much of the on-location crew will be new this season. To welcome all the new blood (no pun intended), JJ Abrams himself sent out the following letter, which we received from our inside source.

JJ Abrams Interview

The King of Media himself, JJ Abrams, spoke with a handful of journalists (including one of our own) on Friday about Fringe. Specifically, this week's finale and what to expect in Season 2 (no specific spoilers). Here's the audio from the call:

We got to ask two questions, including one of your own! Here's the transcript from our part of the call:

(At the 10:30 mark)

Adam Morgan

All of your projects feature very strong-willed, independent females like Olivia Dunham. Who or what is your inspiration for those characters?

JJ AbramsI would like to think that I've been luck enough to work on projects that have strong-willed characters who happen to be male or female, and in the case of characters like Kate or Sydney Bristow, and certainly Olivia Dunham, those are females that hopefully pop because they are interesting and strong-willed, but I could also point to certain male characters that have the same things. I guess the answer is that I don't really try to write characters that are strong women, I just try to write, when I can, strong characters, and if they happen to be women, they happen to be women.

And in my life, I've got the most spectacular wife in Katie McGrath. She is probably the strongest and best influence on me that I've ever had. And I would say that it's no coincidence that it was after I met her that I wrote Felicity, mostly because she reminded me to write about stuff that I actually care about again. It had been a while. But her strength, and her amazing ability to not only immediately understand right and wrong, but she's amazingly capable of articulating that position. And she's very socially active and politically minded, and fights the good fight, and she's someone who is definitely an inspiration, who happens to be a woman.
(At the 25:10 mark)

Adam Morgan

By the way, I saw Trek last night, and I'm going again tonight. I loved it.

JJ AbramsGod bless you, sir. Thank you very much.
Adam MorganAnyway, now that we've seen Charlie and Broyles in this alternate reality, do you think we might run into, say, a still-breathing John Scott over there?

JJ Abrams

I would say that it would be very difficult now that "John Scott's" show got picked up.

Adam Morgan

Ooo, that's right.

JJ Abrams

But having said that, I'm very excited that it got picked up. And I do think that there will be some very interesting things happening, given this "other place" that you're referring to. And again, that's part of the fun of the show, and I hope one of the aspects of the show that makes it incredibly unique. Meaning, my favorite kinds of ideas are the things that we work on that make me think, "there's no other show on television that could do that wierd thing." That's my favorite kind of an idea. And I just think that if you don't go for those, then the show becomes increasingly mundane and disposable. But the more you can do some of those things, even if they don't work, to try and do those things that feel specifically "that show." Anyway, there are some things with that "other place" that I think will feel uniquely "Fringe."

What Would You Ask: JJ Abrams

Tomorrow afternoon, we'll get the chance to chat with J.J. Abrams, the man behind FRINGE, not to mention LOST, the new Star Trek movie, Cloverfield, Alias, et al. This will undoubtibly be a crowded conference call, so we may only get to ask one or two questions, but we still whnt to know - What would you ask JJ Abrams?

Submit your questions in the comments by noon tomorrow, and we'll try to include as many as we can!

Star Trek: JJ Abrams on Colbert Report

JJ Abrams appeared on the Colbert Report last night to talk about Star Trek. Fringe was only mentioned in passing, but JJ reinforced the fact that the show is made so you can start watching at any time (like tonight!) and you won't be totally Lost, like on LOST. There's also a funny bit about hidden clues in the show.

* Thanks to FringeTelevision Twitter follower hl2run for finding this!

The Colbert Report	Mon - Thurs 11:30pm / 10:30c
J.J. Abrams
colbertnation.com
Colbert Report Full Episodes Political Humor First 100 Days

JJ Abrams Mystery Box Edition of WIRED

The May issue of WIRED magazine recruited JJ Abrams as the guest editor. A year in the making, the "Mystery Issue" features a one-issue redesign directed by JJ, with mind-boggling puzzles on almost every page and hidden clues "that are not apparent at first or second glance."

This means that while many of the articles and puzzles are available online, you will need to get the magazine to get the full Easter egg experience.

Either way, be sure to check out the JJ Abrams article on mysteries and spoilers (spoiler alert: spoilers are bad, mkay?), and the "between-the-pages" interview below.

Plus there's some exclusive Star Trek content, including a comic strip featuring a lost chapter of the Star Trek saga, and Star Trek concept designer Neville Page gives readers a first look at a new monster, Big Red, a lobster-hued snow-planet scourge that attacks Capt. James T. Kirk.

By the way, the "Mystery Box" on the cover refers to a very funny speech that Abrams gave at the TED conference in March 2007.

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J.J. Abrams Interview: iF Magazine

iFMagazine.com has an exclusive interview with Fringe co-creator J.J. Abrams, discussing the role mythology plays in the show, the dynamics between it’s characters, how to keep viewers week after week, and how Anna Torv is like Fringe's Clint Eastwood.

Click here to read the interveiw:

Exclusive Interview: 'STAR TREK' DIRECTOR J.J. ABRAMS GOES OUT ON THE 'FRINGE' WITH HIS NEW SERIES

The creator gives iF the scoop on his new series and tells us why Anna Torv is his Clint Eastwood in the new series

By CARLOS DELGADO, Contributing Writer
Published 1/27/2009

With Fox's new hit series FRINGE currently hitting mid-season, it was about time we caught up with co-creator J.J. Abrams to talk about the role mythology plays in the show, the dynamics between it’s characters, how to keep viewers week after week. And if you're expecting some big scoop about STAR TREK, well, that's a whole other article down the road.

iFMAGAZINE: When people talk about FRINGE, a lot of times they talk about the mythology, but also, they talk about the father/son relationship between Walter Bishop and Peter Bishop [Joshua Jackson]. Did you realize how important that was going to be or did that just sort of develop?

J.J. ABRAMS: I’ve always been obsessed with the father/son dynamic, or parent/child. In FELICITY, ALIAS, or LOST. Mostly that’s been [co-creators] Damon [Lindelof] and Carlton [Cuse]. That relationship is always a primary one, and in a weird way, Olivia’s character [Anna Torv] is just now finding her real connection to this world. Not just what her job is but [emotionally] why this world of FRINGE science is intrinsically connected to who she is.

iF: What about Anna Torv’s character, Olivia Dunham?

ABRAMS: Here’s what’s cool -- not only do the next episodes start to connect things that are out there, but it also reveals that this experience is not the first time she’s crossed paths with "fringe" stuff. And again, you have to be careful, because you can get too mythological. But like I was saying, a lot of mythology storytelling, it’s just about doing the job to make it palatable for people who don’t study your show. You can’t expect someone, given a week of busy life, to come back next week and be like, “I’m back.” Some people will, but most won’t. But you just have to say, “Okay, if I’m new to this, I don’t want to get into it.” Which is why [last week's] episode… it [began] with a woman who’s been kidnapped. To me it’s like, I’m compelled to watch that episode. Like "who is she? Why was she grabbed? What does that mean?" It’s cool.

Also by the way, another little stupid secret. I think Anna, Olivia, who are a little adrift -- who is she? When I start to think of her as Clint Eastwood, when I start to think of her as the typical, as the relentless woman of few words but driven to… it’s like a weird thing where I started to like get a sense of who she is. Because she’s pretty great at being tough and dark. And then when she has moments of levity, you love her. In this one episode, her sister visits, and at like the worst f*cking time. And she’s got a little daughter, so it’s this great counter point and it makes me feel like, “Oh my God, she’s like me!” Like a crazy day, but when it comes to the important stuff, family, you have to turn all that off. I think Anna’s terrific playing that driven thing with moments of sweetness. But she’s a very different person to write for than Jennifer Garner, Evangeline Lilly or Keri Russell. It’s been interesting.

iF: But she didn’t seem that tied to John Noble’s character, Dr. Walter Bishop.

ABRAMS: Well, she wasn’t . And now she just comes to depend on him for the… you’ll see that there’s a connection that goes far deeper than her job.

iF: Since FRINGE is a new show, how hard has it been to find the show’s voice?

ABRAMS: It’s been hard because I was finishing STAR TREK. It’s Alex [Kurtzman], it’s Bob [Orci], it’s Jeff [Pinker], it’s me. It’s a little bit broken up in that way. But I feel like we’ve started to find the voice of the show a few episodes ago. And the ones that start to air now makes me, for me, feel like… like I can tell you what episode of FRINGE isn’t, where before I was like, “Well that could be our show!”

iF: What isn’t it?

ABRAMS: Well, it’s not one that is so mythology based that you have to go, “I don’t understand what the plot is.” It’s that weird balance of what’s the story you’re telling. It’s so obvious. Once you figure it out and you go, “Oh my God!” you’re like, “no sh*t.” But it’s what that personal story, that little baby step of the character, and how does this connect to the weirdness of the week. How does that reveal that thing? How does that become and it’s all about externalizing that internal step. But it’s that thing where every time you talk about it, people talk to me, it seems cheap but when it works, it’s exciting.

People's Choice Awards Tonight

The People's Choice Awards show is tonight (9 pm on CBS), and Fringe is nominated for Favorite New TV Drama. Unlike most of the other categories, voting is still open for this category - right up until the show airs! So head over to PCAvote.com and vote for Fringe, before it's too late!

UPDATE: The Mentalist, which is a CBS show, won. The People's Choice Awards ... also on CBS ... just sayin'... ** cough ** ** cough ** RIGGED ** cough ** ...