News Update: Joshua Jackson Interviews

CanMag - Joshua Jackson on Fringe:

Ah, the ever present reluctant hero. "I also liked, there's a built-in, ingrained conflict for Peter because he doesn't want to be here, period, but then he really doesn't want to be forced to confront his father. He's sort of a reluctant participant in the group. Then all of those things are his greatest faults that he can't commit to anything and that he's never really found an overarching passion."

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Josh-Jackson.net - An [Exclusive] Interview with Josh Jackson:

Mandy: It does seem great. Because everything I’ve seen so far . . . and I’ll admit, I’ve seen the leaked pilot…

Josh: Naughty, naughty, naughty!

Mandy: I know, I know! I just couldn’t resist! I had to see what all the hype was about. But it looks fantastic, and I can’t wait to see the real final results, and yes, it is like a movie.

Josh: The pilot, even though you’ve seen the leaked one, shows most of what’s there, it’s not quite the finished product; but it’s a lot of the schemes [sic], and like the music wasn’t finished, and it wasn’t a very good print of the show. But yeah, that one is like a movie. It has its own beginning, middle and end. But in size the whole universe, and that’s kinda the fun of the show; sorta piece by piece getting farther and farther to what is the fringe world.

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Fringe Music Video: Ror-Shak - A Forest

Fox has a new music video for Fringe, featuring Ror-Shak and their cover of The Cure's "A Forest".

The scenes appear to have been shot specifically for the video, but may contain plot elements from future episodes that could be considered spoilers. This still image, a scene from the Sheep Video from the CASE 0091 ARG. There is also a scene that could be related to the Fringe Preview Comic.

To see screenshots from the video, visit Spoilers.FringeTelevision.com.

News Update: With Fringe in the Home Stretch, Some Signs the Media Blitz Has Begun

With Fringe premiering next week (Tuesday, September 9 at 8/7c) it is a safe bet that fresh Fringe news--interviews, press releases, marketing ploys--won't be in short supply between now and 9/9. With that in mind, we'll do our best to provide you with comprehensive News Updates in the coming days.

The A.V. Club catches up with J.J. Abrams:

AVC: Do you want to direct an episode?

JA: Well, I'm hoping. Maybe a season finale or a season opener or something. I've been wanting to do it since the pilot. We have great directors working on Fringe, but when someone else directs something that you're involved with, it's always their vision, and the director in my head is definitely wanting to get involved.

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BuddyTV, iVillage and Television Without Pity pepper J.J. Abrams with questions:

BuddyTV: I wanted to ask you, what's your obsession with mysterious boxes? You always have a mysterious box. Do you always know what's going to be in them when you write?

JA: No. But the funny thing about the box motif is, it's just human nature, I think. You want to know, what is it? What do you see inside of that thing? I think in certain situations, it can be a really fun story point. Even in one of the early episodes of Fringe, there's a teaser at the end of one of the episodes that is kind of a magic box-y sort of thing where you're like, “What the hell?” I just love that stuff, so that's my own personal interest.

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IGN writes a comprehensive piece on Why You Should Watch Fringe:

"There's a large mythology that we all decided on when we wrote the pilot and we knew that when we went to series we were going to have to reach a certain end point," says Kurtzman. "That end point's very flexible in terms of when we get there. If they let us run for 12 seasons, you'll see it in season 12. If they take us off the air by nine episodes, you'll see it in episode nine. So there's a lot of room there."

The team adds that they were lucky to figure out what that mythology was going to be early in the process of creating the show, because sometimes on other shows it doesn't come as easily or as early, forcing the writers to sort of "find it as they go."

"This time we really do have a plan," says Orci, while noting that this was a lesson they learned while working on the sometimes convoluted Alias.

"I think we're of the opinion that shows that sort of say, 'Yeah, we know our big answer,' but they don't really… you can tell," adds Kurtzman. "You can tell because the storytelling starts to feel like it's treading water. And we knew that if we were going to go into this, given how massive it was going to be to explore this world, we had to have our end point in place."

"[Standalone episodes] was one thing that we demanded from the beginning when we all were going to sit down and do this show," recalls Orci. "We have to learn our lessons from before. We studied procedurals specifically to try and merge [it with serialized]. And it's very against our instincts to do that, but when nine of the top shows on TV are called Law & Order and CSI, you have to study them a little bit and figure out what it is they're doing that's such a satisfying [experience]."

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Sci Fi Wire on the Set of Fringe with Anna Torv

Anna Torv talks to Sci Fi Wire about what has gone into developing her character (Olivia Dunham), how saying "Yes" to Fringe was a no-brainer and how Fringe isn't genre-specific.

Click here to read the full article.

Fringe's Torv Talks Exclusively

When Fox's Fringe debuts next week, it will introduce a new Australian actress to American audiences: Anna Torv, who has appeared in some TV down under and elsewhere, but is otherwise unknown.

But if Fringe--created by J.J. Abrams and his Star Trek writing team of Alex Kurtzman and Roberto Orci--is a big hit, as Fox and several critics expect, Torv won't be unknown for long. She joins a list of Abrams discoveries--including Felicity's Keri Russell, Alias' Jennifer Garner and Lost's Evangeline Lilly--who emerged from obscurity into the limelight.

"J.J. has this, I don't know, like, uncanny knack for casting women," Torv's co-star, Joshua Jackson, said. "It's crazy."

Torv, a native of Melbourne, is perhaps best known for starring in the BBC series Mistresses and the cable miniseries The Pacific. She auditioned by tape for Fringe and was one of thousands of actresses considered for the difficult lead role of FBI special agent Olivia Dunham. Before she knew it, Torv was on a jet to Toronto, where the two-hour pilot was shot, and is now living in New York, where the series will be filmed.

Fringe centers on FBI agent Olivia Dunham, who finds herself drawn into an investigation of a mysterious aircraft disaster in Boston. Olivia's desperate search for help to save her gravely injured partner leads to brilliant scientist Walter Bishop (fellow Aussie John Noble), who has been institutionalized for the last 17 years. And the only way to question him requires pulling his estranged son, Peter (Jackson), in to help. The investigation gets weirder and weirder as Olivia discovers that things--and science--are not what they seem.

Torv spoke with SCI FI Wire exclusively on the Manhattan set of Fringe last week. Fringe premieres Sept. 9 and will air Tuesdays at 9 p.m. ET/PT.

Tell us about your character.

Torv: I play Olivia Dunham, who's an FBI agent, who ... all of a sudden is exposed to this whole other world and is kind of forced to deal with it, which she does. She sort of tends to take on all the responsibility she can get. She has a real sense of duty. When we first started shooting it, we were able to talk to a retired FBI agent, which was fantastic. Yeah, it's really good. And even just talking to him, I mean, not about any secrets stuff, but ... these people that do these kind of jobs have ... just such a strong sense of duty. Like, a strong sense of duty and just total focus and tunnel vision, ... high expectations of themselves, too. And I think Olivia really does fall into that category.

And she's ex-military, used to being in charge. She's used to being able to figure out what's happening, and suddenly is thrown into these situations that are mystifying?

Torv: I think so. ... I think she's used to hard work and, like, following the trail, and the stuff that she's dealing with is horrific, because it's huge. ... One of the beautiful things about J.J.'s show is that there's always this overriding thing that follows you that you can't quite get to the bottom of. Real characters in totally outrageous situations, and yeah, this is the same.

Roberto Orci told us that the subtext of the show for him was about the family that you choose: that these people sort of need each other and that's why they come together. Do you agree with that?

Torv: I do, absolutely. And I think that as the show progresses they will need each other more and more and more. ... The entire cast is fantastic. ... The power of three's a fun little number, because ... the dynamic is always going to shift, and you're always going to need one person more than the other. ... I was brought up in a family of three, and there's always two people against one.

Tell me about some of the crazier stuff you've had to do.

Torv: I don't know what I can say. I mean, seriously-- ... this sounds so boring--but, legitimately, standing outside of a hospital in minus-45 degrees with the wind blowing in my face, with no hat on, no gloves on, nothing on my face. That was insane. And the scene got cut from the pilot anyway. ...

In the pilot, they shoot you in a water isolation tank a la Altered States.

Torv: Yeah. I don't know, how long did we do it? I think only a day, I think it was only one day in the tank. And that was OK. They were really sweet. They had to put Epsom salts in so I could float a little bit. ... I was having to use my stomach muscles. But I was glad I was in first, because they did all of my stuff, and then the camera guys got in the tank with their big boots, and shot back up. So I got off easy. ...

Can you talk about the sort of concept of the show. It's pretty out there, and sort of tough for people to wrap their brains around.

Torv: I'm really excited for the show to premiere so then I stop getting asked the question, because ... I never know which way to go. It's kind of got a bit of everything, I don't think it's genre-specific. I think that it is very science fiction, but more emphasis on the science as opposed to the fiction. There's drama, because your characters are all real, but they're dealing with these ... horrific [scenarios], so I think there's elements of horror. There's elements of action. There's investigative [stuff]; there's crime-solving. I mean, it's just all consuming and far reaching. ...

It sort of feels like a J.J. Abrams show because he'll take many genres and sort of smash them together.

Torv: Totally. And seamlessly, you know? And that's the kind of thing. I was actually just thinking about that the other day, going, "Oh, my God. We were up to episode four, and the cases are the things you've looked at and seen, or the characters have seen, is ridiculous. And yet it all seems to kind of gel and work.

Just briefly watching you this afternoon, rehearsing with the other actors, it's like you guys have a lot of fun.

Torv: Yeah. Well, especially scenes like this, because ... we're all together doing stuff, and it's not, like, high high high stakes. It's legitimately doing and asking questions and moving and doing. I love any scene were we actually get to move or walk and talk. That's my favorite.

This came up pretty suddenly for you. You were in Australia, and suddenly you're moving to New York and you've got this TV series.

Torv: Good things sometimes come really quickly and easily, actually, and it was just the most painless audition process I think I've ever had. And I got the part really quickly, and I mean it was a no-brainer. I said, "Yes, thank you, I am so excited." And I actually hopped on a plane the next day. Went to Los Angeles and met J.J. and some of the others and flew to Toronto, like, the next day, and we started shooting that week. And then we had a little bit of time between the pilot and starting the series, so I had a little bit of time to prepare to come to New York and sort all that stuff out. But, yeah, I don't know. I think also, and then since I've been in New York, too, I've just been working nonstop, so, all this sort of external stuff that's going on is really almost nonexistent. We're working so many hours a day, and I literally go from home to set to home to set. But I'm having fun. ... I'm really having fun doing the show. --Patrick Lee, News Editor

Fringe Episode Guide

Last Updated: 03/04/09

Sep. 9, 2008 - 101: Pilot

Pilot : Easter Eggs : Watch : Discuss : Gallery

Sep. 16, 2008 - 102: The Same Old Story

The Same Old Story : Easter Eggs : Watch : Discuss : Spoilers : Gallery

Sep. 23, 2008 - 103: The Ghost Network

The Ghost Network : Easter Eggs : Watch : Discuss : Spoilers : Gallery

Sep. 30, 2008 - 104: The Arrival

The Arrival : Easter Eggs : Watch : Discuss : Spoilers : Gallery

Oct. 14, 2008 - 105: Power Hungry

Power Hungry : Easter Eggs : Watch : Discuss : Spoilers : Gallery

Oct. 21, 2008 - 106: The Cure

The Cure : Easter Eggs : Watch : Discuss : Spoilers : Gallery

Nov. 11, 2008 - 107: In Which We Meet Mr. Jones

In Which We Meet Mr. Jones : Easter Eggs : Watch : Discuss : Spoilers : Gallery

Nov. 18, 2008 - 108: The Equation

The Equation : Easter Eggs : Watch : Discuss : Spoilers : Gallery

Nov. 25, 2008 - 109: The Dreamscape

The Dreamscape : Easter Eggs : Watch : Discuss : Spoilers : Gallery

Dec. 2, 2008 - 110: Safe

Safe : Easter Eggs : Watch : Discuss : Spoilers : Gallery

Jan. 20, 2009 - 111: Bound

Bound : Easter Eggs : Watch : Discuss : Spoilers : Gallery

Jan. 27, 2009 - 112: The No-Brainer

The No-Brainer : Easter Eggs : Watch : Discuss : Spoilers : Gallery

Feb. 3, 2009 - 113: The Transformation

The Transformation : Easter Eggs : Watch : Discuss : Spoilers : Gallery

Feb 10, 2009 - 114: Ability

Ability : Easter Eggs : Watch : Discuss : Spoilers : Gallery

Apr. 7, 2009 - 115: Inner Child

Inner Child : Discuss : Spoilers

Apr. 14, 2009 - 116: Unleashed

Unleashed : Spoilers

Apr. 21, 2009 - 117: Bad Dreams

Bad Dreams : Spoilers

Apr. 28, 2009 - 118: Midnight

Midnight : Spoilers

May. 5, 2009 - 119: Spoilers

May. 12, 2009 - 120: Spoilers

May. 19, 2009 - 121: Spoilers

May. 26, 2009 - 122: Spoilers
Have an update or correction, please leave a comment.

10 New Fringe Behind The Scenes Videos and Interviews

1. "How the show was cast" featuers interviews from: * J.J. Abrams -- Co-Creator / Exec. Prod. / Writer * Alex Graves -- Director / Exec. Prod. (pilot) * Alex Kurtzman -- Co-Creator / Exec. Prod. / Writer


2. "B-ROLL" features behind-the-scenes footage from the filming of the Fringe pilot episode.


3. "How I prepared for my role" features interviews from: John Noble -- "Walter Bishop" * Blair Brown -- "Nina Sharp" * Kirk Acevedo -- "Charlie Francis"


4. "How FRINGE was created" features interviews from: * J.J. Abrams -- Co-Creator / Exec. Prod. / Writer * Alex Kurtzman -- Co-Creator / Exec. Prod. / Writer * Roberto Orci -- Co-Creator / Exec. Prod. / Writer


5. "Graphics" features animated Glyphs graphics.


6. "About the car chase" features interviews from: * Alex Graves -- Director / Exec. Prod. (pilot) * Mark Valley -- "John Scott" Plus, behind-the-scenes footage from the filming of the Fringe pilot episode.


7. "About The Script" features interviews from * J.J. Abrams -- Co-Creator / Exec. Prod. / Writer * Roberto Orci -- Co-Creator / Exec. Prod. / Writer * Alex Kurtzman -- Co-Creator / Exec. Prod. / Writer * Joshua Jackson -- "Peter Bishop" * John Noble -- "Walter Bishop"


8. "About My Character" features interviews from: * Anna Torv -- "Olivia Dunham" * Joshua Jackson -- "Peter Bishop" * John Noble -- "Walter Bishop" * Lance Reddick -- "Phillip Broyles" * Blair Brown -- "Nina Sharp" * Jasika Nicole - "Astrid Farnsworth" * Kirk Acevedo -- "Charlie Francis"


9. "About the foot chase" features interviews from: * Alex Graves -- Director / Exec. Prod. (pilot) * Joshua Jackson -- "Peter Bishop" * Anna Torv -- "Olivia Dunham" Plus, behind-the-scenes footage from the filming of the Fringe pilot episode.


10. "About FRINGE" features interviews from: * J.J. Abrams -- Co-Creator / Exec. Prod. / Writer * Alex Kurtzman -- Co-Creator / Exec. Prod. / Writer * Roberto Orci -- Co-Creator / Exec. Prod. / Writer * Joshua Jackson -- "Peter Bishop" * Anna Torv -- "Olivia Dunham" * Lance Reddick -- "Phillip Broyles" * Blair Brown -- "Nina Sharp"
    

Fringe Behind the Scenes Footage and Interviews

Fox Television has released 3 videos featuring behind-the-scenes footage from the filming of the Fringe pilot episode, and interviews with Alex Graves, Mark Valley, Joshua Jackson and Anna Torv.

1. B-ROLL: features behind-the-scenes footage from the filming of the Fringe pilot episode.


2. About the car chase: features interviews from: * Alex Graves -- Director / Exec. Prod. (pilot) * Mark Valley -- "John Scott"


3. About the foot chase: features interviews from: * Alex Graves -- Director / Exec. Prod. (pilot) * Joshua Jackson -- "Peter Bishop" * Anna Torv -- "Olivia Dunham"

Kurtzman and Orci on LIFE AFTER FILM SCHOOL

This Sunday, August 31 at 7:30pm ET (4:30pm PT) Fox Movie Channel will feature Alex Kurtzman and Roberto Orci on their half-hour series, Life After Film School. The Fringe Co-Creators, Writers and Executive Producers will be interviewed by aspiring student filmmakers Codie Elaine Brooks, Katie Lovejoy and Oren Peleg.

Kurtzman and Orci discuss how their partnership grew out of a college creative writing class. Kurtzman brought Orci onboard the writing staff of Hercules: The Legendary Journeys where they eventually became show runners. Their collaboration with J.J. Abrams began writing and producing on Alias, the feature film Mission Impossible III and continues on the new Fox series Fringe, debuting September 9.

...

“Alex and Roberto reveal to our film students how writing spec scripts got them to the next level in television,” commented Adam Lewinson, VP of Programming. “They share the secrets of their success as a writing and producing team who have proven to be hugely successful while working on multiple projects simultaneously.”

That's how the press release bills the show. However, what the press release doesn't say is that a good third of the program is devoted soley to a Q&A on Fringe. Having seen it, it's a must see for Fringe fans, and I'd further recommend it to--fans of Transformers, Mission Impossible III, Star Trek, etc--anyone who has ever seen the names Kurtzman and Orci a second, third and fourth time, and wondered, who are these guys and why are they writing all my favorite stuff?

Is Joshua Jackson the next George Clooney?

That's the burning question around these here parts. We raise it yet again because of what Debbie Chang had to say upon meeting Josh:

"Oh yeah, I did talk to Joshua Jackson as well. You know, even though, I am ostensibly a professional writer, I couldn't shake my fangirl-ness around him. He looks a lot taller and less round-cheeked in person." -- Debbie Chang, BuddyTV

For some reason we can't quite put our finger on, Debbie's description of Josh really piques our interest. There's just something curious about it. Something telling? Like she's trying to communicate something more. Maybe even something like: Joshua Jackson IS the next George Clooney?

Sci Fi Wire on the Set of Fringe with Joshua Jackson

Sci Fi Wire on the set of Fringe interviews Joshua Jackson who gets a bit spoilerish with his answers.

Click here to read the edited, spoiler-free version of the article.

Fringe's Jackson Spills All

When we last saw Joshua Jackson on regular series television, he was resigned to staying in Capeside forever, even though Joey decided to choose him over Dawson.

That was more than five years ago, in the finale to the sixth season of Jackson's breakthrough series, Dawson's Creek.

But hold on to your rowboat: Pacey's back.

"I think he's finally going to leave the Creek after this season," said J.J. Abrams. "Really, all I love to do is make Pacey jokes."

Jackson is a regular on Abrams' upcoming Fox SF series Fringe, and he tells SCI FI Wire that it took Abrams to lure him back to the grind of an hourlong drama.

"It was something I have been hesitant about for the last five years, since Dawson's Creek ended," Jackson said in an exclusive interview on the show's set in New York on Aug. 26. "And, you know, the time commitment and the being-in-one-place of it all is a massive life shift, and I had a really great five years of not being on TV. But I don't know, the stars sort of aligned for this, and J.J.'s a great guy."

Jackson added: "Beyond the lifestyle choices of working on a television show, the thing that had kept me from doing TV was knowing how hard it is to tell good shows, good stories, over a long period of time. And he ... and his group--he works with the same people over and over again--have a track record of being able to do that. And that was the thing that sort of tipped it to the other side for me."

Jackson spoke during a break in shooting on Fringe, in which he plays Peter Bishop, the smart but damaged son of brilliant but eccentric scientist Walter Bishop (John Noble). Peter finds himself reunited with his estranged father at the urging of FBI agent Olivia Dunham (Anna Torv) as they investigate strange cases on the "fringe of science": cases that hint at a nefarious conspiracy underlying strange phenomena across the globe.

Below is an excerpt of SCI FI Wire's interview in which he discusses his character--and why he made a trip to the emergency room.

Tell me about your character, Peter.

Jackson: Yeah, well, ... Peter is just sort of discovering he's part of this world right now. Because when he's initially brought in, in the pilot, it's completely against his will, and he's only brought in because Olivia needs him to serve a function and get access to my father. But then, like anybody who's got a bit of curiosity, he sees this wild world and the access that he has through being a part of this world, and it sort of draws him in.

The character sort of functions in a couple of different ways, in addition to the father-son dynamic. On the one hand, you're sort of the voice of skepticism, on the other hand you're sort of interpreting what Walter's saying. And then you're like the Greek chorus that gets to make jokes.

Jackson: A little bit, yeah. ... I think the Greek chorus, the peanut gallery and the skeptic part come together. Because the person who stands one step removed is usually the one who is most capable of pooh-poohing. But just as an archetype, every show like this--every show, period--needs to have somebody who sort of stands at a remove and says, "Doesn't anybody else think this is ridiculous?" And Olivia is a sort of very straight ahead, trying to fix things. She's just a very hard-nosed, go, go, go type of girl. So that's great. I get that character who gets to sort of release the tension every once in a while.

Co-creator Roberto Orci said that, for him, the show is about the family you choose.

Jackson: The family you choose, and then-- ... I don't believe in fate--but people whose paths you're fated to cross. ... There's obviously [a] broken dynamic between me and my father. But then you throw this Olivia character into the mix here, and we become this sort of dysfunctional family unit by necessity. But you throw people in high-pressure situations like this, and they just sort of naturally come together and bond. ... If you take it off the television and put it in real life, that's how you get to know people, seeing them in action.

Tell me about some of the crazier stuff you've had to do so far.

[spoilers removed]

Can you talk about working with Anna and John?

Jackson: Yeah, she is terrific. J.J. has this, I don't know, like, uncanny knack for casting women. It's crazy. And ... they're two Aussies, but they're both sort of dedicated, lovely people, which is why I say the drama all stays on camera. There is so far--and I don't see why it would change--this feeling of "Well, we're all here, and we're in it, and we're doing it together, and we take our jobs just seriously enough that everybody shows up ready to work, but not so seriously that it's, you know, the end of the world if something goes wrong."

[spoiler removed]

John told me he actually gets to milk the cow.

Jackson: He did milk the cow. I enjoyed the fruits of his labors. I did not actually milk the cow myself.

Anything else about Fringe?

Jackson: Fringe, it's the hardest show on TV to talk about.

...or read the full, unedited article at Fringe Spoilers.

Jasika Nicole Online

Jasika Nicole (Astrid Farnsworth) wasn't on the Fringe panel at Comic-Con, but in an interview posted today on MTV's Splash Page, Jasika reveals a few talents that suggest she would have felt right at home in a room full of geeks.

‘Fringe’ Star Jasika Nicole Does Online ‘Magic’ For Autobiographical Comic

Jasika Nicole does it. Amber Benson does it. And Jasika Nicole from the new J.J. Abrams television show “Fringe” does it — online. (They’re all actresses who write comics.)

“I like to write and I’m an illustrator and I have a blog,” Nicole said, “and I thought, ‘Maybe this is the link to put it all together.’”

Nicole’s autobiographical comic “High Yella Magic” can be found here, for now, until she re-does her website. She almost signed with a publisher once, but decided to stay independent after the publisher wanted to change “a lot of things,” she said, “and I wasn’t ready for that.”

“They were like, ‘You shouldn’t talk about this,’ or, ‘This should be your angle,’” she said. “It’s not about an angle. It’s about my experience.”

One of the comics is a take on navigating the audition process when you’re not a “beauty queen” or a “tiny model.” (She makes goofs like having unmanicured toes when she shows up for a Dr. Sholl’s commercial, and chapped lips for a Chapstick ad). One is about how she exhibited a talent for drawing at the age of four, and upset her teachers because she was drawing her mother naked. Another is about having a younger sister who is autistic. “They’re not serious sob stories,” Nicole said. “They’re funny.”

Nicole counts Alison Bechdel’s “Fun Home: A Family Tragicomic,” Mike Carey’s “Lucifer,” and Bill Willingham’s “Fables” as her inspiration to write, draw, pencil, and ink everything herself. She currently posts one new comic a week, but she has more in the wings.

“It’s nice to be able to have something I have complete creative control over,” she said, “as opposed to acting, where you’re just along for the ride and waiting to see what happens. I have so much fun doing it, and I’ll always be able to take out a piece of paper and a pencil and be able to draw something.”

Fringe Posters: Follow The Signs, Imagine The Impossibilities

Here are the remaining sets of FRINGE posters, titled "Follow The Signs" and "Imagine The Impossibilities", plus various other untitled posters.You can see all the other Fringe posters here.