New Home for Fringe

Even as we brace ourselves for the Fringe finale in January, the Science Channel is giving Fringeophiles another Walternative venue for indulging themselves in series nostalgia—a Thanksgiving week season 1 immersion tank, if you will.

The Discovery-owned cable channel's acquisition of the series is being kicked off with a Thanksgiving week marathon encompassing the entirety of season 1. The network will kick off with a premiere of the two-hour pilot and first episode on the night of Tuesday, Nov. 20. Then season 1 continues with back-to-back episodes on Friday, Nov. 23 from 10:30 a.m. all the way to 11 p.m., then another all-day run on Saturday from 11:30 a.m. to 11 p.m.

After that, Fringe will move on to seasons 2 through 5 as it settles in its regular slot: three episodes every Tuesday night introduced by John Noble. That's starting next week on Nov. 27. They've also produced a series of "Science of Fringe" shorts, examining phenomena such as time travel, dream sharing and parallel universe, slated to run during the regular airings starting next week.

(For more info and online video, check out the Science Channel Fringe page.)

The execs think Gringe's audience is a good fit for them. "Viewers tuning into Fringe on Science Channel will see one of television's smartest and most addictive series in a more thought-provoking format than ever before," said Debbie Adler Myers, General Manager and Executive Vice President of Science Channel. "Audiences will find all of the action and riveting drama associated with this pop culture sensation, along with a deeper dive into the mind-blowing science that provides the foundation for the series."

Is this a subtle case of network drift? In the past I've decried the pervasive trend of cable channels drifting away from the kind of content promised by their names--Syfy anchoring its Friday schedule with wrestling being a glaring example, and does the History Channel still actually air programs about history?--but Fringe is actually a pretty good fit: it's starting point is what science can be, how inquiry and iconoclasm can open up revolutionary possibilities in knowledge.

Besides, when it comes to keeping classic genre TV available for new audiences I'll admit I'm a hypocrite, especially when we're talking about shelving good science fiction next to science fact. (Speaking of Firefly, Science is airing the 10th anniversary special this Wednesday.)

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