By Daniel
Fifteen people trying to crack a code broadcast on shortwave radio wind up with retrograde amnesia, which you hope at least lets them start fresh with a new hobby that's actually interesting. But the Fringe team wants to figure out the source of the transmissions, not judge.
The broadcast -- a series of numbers that gives shellshocked Lost fans flashbacks -- is traced to a silver box, installed by a man who gives Alias fans flashbacks. Looking for help, the Fringe team turns to Markham, who gives them a book about pre-dinosaur humans who were wiped out by a cataclysm, and a chart in the book corresponds perfectly with the numbers being broadcast -- which are separate from the amnesia-causing attack by the guy from Alias.
The Fringers close in on him, only Fauxlivia’s way ahead of them, mainly because he’s a shapeshifter from the other side, and she takes him out -- out of his building, many stories up, and he plunges to his death before Fringe can learn anything from him. She’s running scared herself because her non-Olivia-like behavior is starting to raise some red flags among the people who know Olivia. Except Peter, who seems to remain oblivious.
It’s Astrid who cracks the case by determining the numbers are latitude and longitude locations -- which seems kinda too simple for a puzzle that seems to have stumped so many people who have gone before, but anyway… the closest location broadcast turns up a piece of the Alterverse doomsday machine, and Walter finally comes around to Peter’s insistence that they study the device. Following all the shenanigans, Fauxlivia’s latest instructions are: “Initiate Phase Two.”
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