Fringe backdrop
Sci-Fi & Fantasy•Drama•Mystery

The Best Episodes of Fringe Season 1

Every episode of Fringe Season 1 ranked from best to worst. Discover the Best Episodes of Fringe Season 1!

Binge this in 17h 18m•Peaking at 9.1/10

FBI Special Agent Olivia Dunham, brilliant but formerly institutionalized scientist Walter Bishop and his scheming, reluctant son Peter uncover a deadly mystery involving a series of unbelievable events and realize they may be a part

Airs on
FOX
BestEpisodes
WorstEpisodes
BestSeasons
AllEpisodes

Seasons5

All12345

Episode Rankings

  1. #1 Fan Favorite
    Fringe Season 1 Episode 1 - Pilot
    8.1/10(5356 votes)

    #1 - Pilot

    S1:E1

    When all the passengers on a plane die, FBI agent Olivia Dunham investigates the events and her partner almost dies. A desperate Olivia looks for help from Dr. Walter Bishop who has been institutionalized. Olivia, Dr. Bishop and his son Peter begin to discover what really happened on Flight 627 and begin to uncover a larger truth.

    Director:Alex Graves
    Writers:Roberto Orci, J.J. Abrams, Alex Kurtzman

    Be the first to start the conversation for this episode

  2. Fringe Season 1 Episode 2 - The Same Old Story
    7.6/10(3878 votes)

    #2 - The Same Old Story

    S1:E2

    Olivia, along with Peter and Walter Bishop, investigates the strange death of a woman who had an even stranger child. The woman was pregnant for only hours, yet the baby she birthed was fully developed - and also aged eighty years in the span of a few minutes. Olivia asks Nina Sharp of Massive Dynamic for help.

    Director:Paul A. Edwards
    Writers:Jeff Pinkner, Roberto Orci, J.J. Abrams, Alex Kurtzman

    Be the first to start the conversation for this episode

  3. Fringe Season 1 Episode 3 - The Ghost Network
    7.7/10(3498 votes)

    #3 - The Ghost Network

    S1:E3

    The team investigates a bus full of dead commuters that appear to be fossilized and uncover a man who has visions of pattern-related disturbances before they happen; Dr. Bishop requests a piano in the lab to help him process data.

    Directors:Frederick E. O. Toye, Alex Graves
    Writers:Roberto Orci, J.J. Abrams, Alex Kurtzman, J.R. Orci, David H. Goodman

    Be the first to start the conversation for this episode

  4. Fringe Season 1 Episode 4 - The Arrival
    8.1/10(3440 votes)

    #4 - The Arrival

    S1:E4

    Broyles calls in the team to investigate a deadly explosion and its source: a strange cylinder unharmed despite the destruction. Olivia determines that the same cylinder, or a similar one, is responsible for similar events in widely diverse locations.

    Director:Paul A. Edwards
    Writers:Jeff Pinkner, J.J. Abrams

    Be the first to start the conversation for this episode

  5. Fringe Season 1 Episode 5 - Power Hungry
    7.4/10(3145 votes)

    #5 - Power Hungry

    S1:E5

    The team investigate the case of a man who can project electricity... and is at the center of a series of strange deaths involving electricity.

    Director:Christopher Misiano
    Writers:Jason Cahill, Julia Cho

    Be the first to start the conversation for this episode

  6. Fringe Season 1 Episode 6 - The Cure
    7.6/10(3032 votes)

    #6 - The Cure

    S1:E6

    The team investigates a woman that re-appears after weeks of being missing with a rare disease. She also inexplicably causes pain and death to the people she meets. During the investigation, dangerous level of radiation are detected. Walter obsesses about cotton candy; Peter strikes a deal with Nina Sharp; and a truth about Olivia is discovered.

    Director:Bill Eagles
    Writers:Brad Kane, Felicia D. Henderson

    Be the first to start the conversation for this episode

    7. Trending NowTRENDING NOW

    The 20 BEST Episodes of Fringe

    READ
  7. Fringe Season 1 Episode 7 - In Which We Meet Mr. Jones
    7.9/10(3052 votes)

    #7 - In Which We Meet Mr. Jones

    S1:E7

    When a strange parasite attaches itself to the internal organs of a dying FBI agent, Olivia suspects a connection to the Pattern; Peter and Walter tap into a dead man's brain waves.

    Director:Brad Anderson
    Writers:Jeff Pinkner, J.J. Abrams

    Be the first to start the conversation for this episode

  8. Fringe Season 1 Episode 8 - The Equation
    7.8/10(2946 votes)

    #8 - The Equation

    S1:E8

    Walter thinks the abduction of a young music prodigy is linked back to his old bunkmate at St. Claire's Hospital. When he kidnaps the child he sees a sequence of flashing lights. Olivia wants Walter to return to the mental institution much to Peter's outcry, but Walter's determination to help ends up having chilling ramifications.

    Director:Gwyneth Horder-Payton
    Writers:J.R. Orci, David H. Goodman

    Be the first to start the conversation for this episode

  9. Fringe Season 1 Episode 9 - The Dreamscape
    7.8/10(2824 votes)

    #9 - The Dreamscape

    S1:E9

    The team is called in to investigate why a man jumps out a window because he thinks he's being attacked by butterflies. Olivia gets some breaks in solving the case from her former partner and that she is so desperate to rid herself of him that she demands to go back into the tank. Meanwhile, some former friends and current foes of Peter find out that he's back in Boston.

    Director:Frederick E. O. Toye
    Writers:Julia Cho, Zack Whedon

    Be the first to start the conversation for this episode

  10. Fringe Season 1 Episode 10 - Safe
    8.5/10(2934 votes)

    #10 - Safe

    S1:E10

    The team is called in on a bank robbery similar to other robberies in the area but this particular bank has the thief embedded inside the steel wall of the bank. Somehow the thieves have found a way to defy the law of physics. Walter thinks they're after something of his. As the investigation deepens it all comes to a head when the thieves ambush one of the team.

    Director:Michael Zinberg
    Writers:Jason Cahill, Julia Cho, Zack Whedon, David H. Goodman

    Be the first to start the conversation for this episode

  11. Fringe Season 1 Episode 11 - Bound
    8.3/10(2856 votes)

    #11 - Bound

    S1:E11

    Olivia's sister, Rachel, visits; Walter, Peter and Olivia try to solve the murder of an esteemed epidemiologist, which may be linked to Olivia's abduction.

    Director:Frederick E. O. Toye
    Writers:Jeff Pinkner, Roberto Orci, J.J. Abrams, Alex Kurtzman

    Be the first to start the conversation for this episode

  12. Fringe Season 1 Episode 12 - The No-Brainer
    7.5/10(2774 votes)

    #12 - The No-Brainer

    S1:E12

    Olivia, Walter and Peter are called in to investigate the death of a car salesman who was found in a pool of "goo," exactly like another man across the country. When Walter discovers that the "goo" is brain matter, the trio tries to figure out how the killer can liquefy human brains. As the deaths pile up, the investigation reveals a common thread linking the victims together in an unthinkable manner. Meanwhile, Olivia is horrified when the case places a loved one in harm's way

    Directors:John Polson, Brad Anderson
    Writers:Brad Kane, David H. Goodman

    Be the first to start the conversation for this episode

  13. Fringe Season 1 Episode 13 - The Transformation
    8.1/10(2780 votes)

    #13 - The Transformation

    S1:E13

    When the Fringe Division delves into another bizarre occurrence aboard an international jumbo jet, freakish remains are discovered at the crash site. Memories tip the team toward some promising leads, but the bigger picture and mysterious threat eludes them. With limited options and insufficient intelligence, Olivia and Peter go undercover.

    Director:Brad Anderson
    Writers:J.R. Orci, Zack Whedon

    Be the first to start the conversation for this episode

  14. Fringe Season 1 Episode 14 - Ability
    8.6/10(2902 votes)

    #14 - Ability

    S1:E14

    German agents question Olivia about her "relationship" with David Robert Jones, an escaped prisoner questioned months earlier now living in the U.S. The Fringe Division investigates a threatening case where victims die faceless from their orifices suddenly sealing.

    Director:Norberto Barba
    Writers:Glen Whitman, Robert Chiappetta, David H. Goodman

    Be the first to start the conversation for this episode

  15. Fringe Season 1 Episode 15 - Inner Child
    8.1/10(2907 votes)

    #15 - Inner Child

    S1:E15

    Just seconds before a building is demolished, a mysterious mute child that has been living alone underground is discovered. When the FBI's Fringe Division investigates, the boy forms an unspoken connection with Agent Olivia Dunham. Meanwhile, an especially gruesome serial killer resurfaces and showcases his "artistry" by displaying his work publicly. As the boy gradually assimilates into a new environment, Olivia and the team must race against the clock to prevent the mad man from causing further massacre.

    Director:Frederick E. O. Toye
    Writers:Brad Kane, Julia Cho

    Be the first to start the conversation for this episode

  16. Fringe Season 1 Episode 16 - Unleashed
    7.6/10(2748 votes)

    #16 - Unleashed

    S1:E16

    As animal rights activists ransack a laboratory, they get more than they bargained for when one of the caged "animals" unleashes a ferocious appetite. Leaving grotesquely mutilated dead bodies in its wake, the scientifically engineered beast with the body of a lion, claws of an eagle, fangs of a viper, skin of a rhinoceros and tail of a serpent attacks Charlie. With Charlie’s life on the line, Walter must come face-to-face with both his past and the beast.

    Director:Brad Anderson
    Writers:J.R. Orci, Zack Whedon

    Be the first to start the conversation for this episode

  17. Fringe Season 1 Episode 17 - Bad Dreams
    8.4/10(2843 votes)

    #17 - Bad Dreams

    S1:E17

    Olivia dreams about a suicide as the event really happens at Grand Central Station; shocking information about the Z.F.T. manuscript is revealed.

    Director:Akiva Goldsman
    Writer:Akiva Goldsman

    Be the first to start the conversation for this episode

  18. Fringe Season 1 Episode 18 - Midnight
    7.8/10(2661 votes)

    #18 - Midnight

    S1:E18

    The Fringe Division is on the case when severely mutilated bodies drained of spinal cord fluid begin to pile up. After their investigation leads them to a scientist with possible ties to the Z.F.T. bioterrorist cell, they are shocked to discover the identity and motive of the killer. When the kills occur with increasing frequency, Olivia, Peter and Walter go to desperate lengths to stop them.

    Director:Bobby Roth
    Writers:Andrew Kreisberg, J. H. Wyman

    Be the first to start the conversation for this episode

  19. Fringe Season 1 Episode 19 - The Road Not Taken
    8.6/10(2797 votes)

    #19 - The Road Not Taken

    S1:E19

    Olivia experiences "awake dreams," seeing elaborate visions of things not really there. While investigating a disturbing case of a woman who apparently spontaneously combusted, Olivia throws caution to the wind and explores her unexplained visions further. Meanwhile, Walter discusses key information about the Z.F.T. manifesto, and Peter reveals a secret that yields unexpected results in the case.

    Director:Frederick E. O. Toye
    Writers:Akiva Goldsman, Jeff Pinkner, J.R. Orci

    Be the first to start the conversation for this episode

  20. Fringe Season 1 Episode 20 - There's More Than One of Everything
    9.1/10(3388 votes)

    #20 - There's More Than One of Everything

    S1:E20

    Setting the stage for the dramatic and revealing first season finale are a sudden and unexpected attack on someone with close ties to Fringe Division, the return of bioterrorist David Robert Jones and the inexplicable disappearance of Walter. Find out more about the mysterious events surrounding our trio when questions are answered, observations made, loyalties are tested and the elusive William Bell is finally introduced.

    Director:Brad Anderson
    Writers:Akiva Goldsman, Jeff Pinkner, Bryan Burk, J. H. Wyman

    Be the first to start the conversation for this episode

Season 1 Ratings Summary

"Pilot" is the best rated episode of "Fringe" season 1. It scored 8.1/10 based on 5356 votes. Directed by Alex Graves and written by Roberto Orci, J.J. Abrams, Alex Kurtzman, it aired on 9/9/2008. This episode is rated 0.5 points higher than the second-best, "The Same Old Story".