Concentrate and Ask Again

Plot

A pharmaceutical company's lead scientist dies after a blue powder reduces his bones to dust. The Fringe team traces the package containing the powder to a former Marine. While searching the man's home, Peter spots him nearby and gives chase, but the suspect is struck by a car and falls into a coma. Broyles worries that more targeted attacks may be planned.

Walter proposes reading the man's mind using Simon Phillips, an undocumented Cortexiphan patient whose telepathic abilities he cannot control. Simon has lived in isolation for twenty years, finding some relief in the fact that he cannot read the mind of Olivia, another Cortexiphan patient. Despite the mental pain he will endure in a crowded city like Boston, Olivia convinces Simon to assist the investigation. During their time together, Olivia confides her anxiety about whether Peter still feels attraction to her alternate-universe self, Fauxlivia.

Meanwhile, three military contractors are killed when the compound is released in an elevator, confirming Broyles’ fears. With Simon’s telepathy and Nina Sharp’s resources, the team uncovers Project Jellyfish, a secret military bioweapon program aimed at creating a chemical agent that destroys skeletons. The comatose man and two others were involved in the project and received inoculations to protect themselves, but the exposure was passed to their stillborn children, who developed without skeletons.

Realizing the men are seeking revenge against those connected to Project Jellyfish, the Fringe team identifies the final intended target: a former military general running for public office. With Simon’s help, Olivia stops the two remaining attackers before they can release the powder at a dinner gala for the general. After returning Simon home, he hands Olivia an envelope containing what he read from Peter’s thoughts.

Production

The episode "Concentrate and Ask Again" was penned by co-producer Graham Roland and story editor Matthew Pitts, who previously served as an assistant to series co-creator J. J. Abrams. Roland's prior co-writing credit was the season three installment "The Abducted," while Pitts had last written for the season three episode "Do Shapeshifters Dream of Electric Sheep?" Directing duties fell to Dennis Smith, marking his first time helming a Fringe episode since "August" in season two.

The guest cast included Omid Abtahi as telepathic character Simon Phillips, his sole appearance on the series, alongside returning actor Kevin Corrigan as the recurring Sam Weiss. New characters Sara Downey and Warren Blake were portrayed by Jody Thompson and Paul Jarrett, respectively. Thompson described her role as "the kind of role that actors dream of," adding that the script was so compelling and perfectly crafted that she felt her job was simply not to interfere with what the creators had built.

She admitted to feeling anxious about the final result, confessing she had been torturing herself with worry that she might have ruined the beauty of the written material. As was standard for Fringe, Fox partnered with Science Olympiad to release a classroom lesson plan tied to the episode, designed to teach elementary students about bones and their chemical and physical composition.

Reception

The initial broadcast of "Concentrate and Ask Again" drew an estimated 4.3 million U.S. viewers and a 1.6 rating, a 16% drop from the two preceding Friday episodes, "Reciprocity" and "The Firefly." When including seven-day time-shifted viewing, the total audience surpassed 6.0 million, with a 56% increase among the 18–49 demographic—the largest percentage gain of any show that week. Critical reception was mixed to fairly positive. Ken Tucker of Entertainment Weekly viewed the episode as the final part of a trilogy that consolidated much of the series' mythology, though he found the main plot unremarkable, comparing it to an episode of "Undercovers."

He appreciated the smaller touches, like the room filled with William Bell’s possessions, and praised guest star Omid Abtahi for his "marvelously anguished" performance. Carissa Pavlica of TV Fanatic felt the episode did little to advance the overarching story but succeeded in making her question everything, though she noted it lacked the intensity of "Reciprocity." Ramsey Isler of IGN considered the core narrative formulaic—similar to frequent approaches on both "Fringe" and "The X-Files"—but highlighted a generous sprinkling of revealing character moments.

Isler commended the final ten minutes for their engaging action, particularly Olivia’s resolution of the case and the combined revelation of Simon’s note and Sam’s knowledge of the First People, giving the episode a 7.5/10 rating. Alyse Wax of Fearnet singled out the episode’s opening scene in her review of the best television kills of 2011.