Unearthed



Season 1 bonus episode
Aired: January 11th, 2010
Written By: David H. Goodman, Andrew Kreisberg
Directed By: Frederick E. O. Toye

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Unearthed

Episode Synopsis



While the body of a young, recently deceased girl is being harvested of its organs, she suddenly comes back to life yelling classified naval launch codes and Russian phrases, leading the Fringe Division to a recently murdered naval officer. While the girl's mind-bending condition intensifies, Walter dusts off some old lab videos and hypothesizes the unthinkable.

Synopsis provided by the Fandom Wiki, Fringepedia, and Wikipedia.

The Glyphs



This episode's glyphs spell: A-V-E-N-G-E

Andrew Rusk, by way of Lisa Donovan, was on a mission of avenge his own murder.

Glyph symbol AGlyph symbol VGlyph symbol EGlyph symbol NGlyph symbol GGlyph symbol E
Glyph symbol A
Glyph symbol V
Glyph symbol E
Glyph symbol N
Glyph symbol G
Glyph symbol E

The Observer



The Observer can be seen walking behind Olivia as she speaks with Lisa Donavan's mother at the steps of the church.

Observer

Timestamp: 13:09

Episode Clues



Previous Episode Clue

A pirate flag (skull and crossbones) appears on a TV monitor in 'There's More Than One of Everything', a reference to the Shapeshifter ability to remodel his skull and bones in 'A New Day in the Old Town'.

Previous episode clue

Timestamp: 00:27


Next Episode Clue

A pirate flag (skull and crossbones) appears on a TV monitor in 'There's More Than One of Everything', a reference to the Shapeshifter ability to remodel his skull and bones in 'A New Day in the Old Town' (which was filmed directly after this episode).

Next episode clue

Timestamp: 30:47

Items of Interest



  • This episode was filmed during season 1 but aired during season 2. Joshua Jackson explained: "They only had 22 airdates for our show this year, but they ordered 23 episodes, so we shot one for next year, which is just silly TV network stuff. It's not for any cool reason like we had something we needed in New York that we couldn't shoot elsewhere. It's just an accounting issue." This episode has continuity errors with season 2 because it was filmed during season 1, and the previous/next episode clues don't fit nicely because this episode's placement in the series was never fully established. It was originally aired as the 11th episode in season 2 but is included as a bonus episode for season 2 on home media and as the final episode of season 1 on streaming services.

Fringe Division Case File




U.S. Department of Justice
Federal Bureau of Investigation
121 105th Street • Washington, DC 20735
Phone: (202) 555-2100 • Fax: (202) 555-2101
E-mail: washington.fbi@fbi.com

FRINGE DIVISION CASE FILE #358-11110


FRINGE EVENT: Radiation inhibitor creates soul transference

CLASSIFIED CASE CONNECTION(S): Dr. Bishop's experiment on cranial manipulation and psychic capability

AGENTS ASSIGNED: Dunham, Francis

SUPERVISING AGENT: Agent Broyles, Lieutenant Commander Will Turlough (US Navy)

FILE ARCHIVED BY: Dalvania Domingues, Paul Meredith

WITNESSES/CONTACTS: Maureen Donovan (mother), Dr. Newell, Dr. Halperin, Jake Selleg (in custody)

LOCATION: Boston General Hospital

VICTIM(S): Lisa Donovan, Andrew Rusk (deceased), Teresa Rusk (spouse)


CASE REPORT SUMMARY:

High school junior Lisa Donovan collapsed during gym class from a cerebral aneurysm (specifically in her Broca's area) and slipped into a coma. Mother, Maureen Donovan, decided to take her off life support, but Lisa Donovan awoke unexpectedly, speaking Russian and repeating "6-8-3-3-9-alpha=echo-3-5-8."
 Lisa Donovan's lead surgeon recognized the numbers as alphanumeric code: lineal identification for sailors in the US Navy, specifically Petty Officer Andrew Rusk (USS Gloucester), and launch codes for ICBM missiles aboard a nuclear submarine. Lieutenant Commander Turlough of the US Navy came in to secure the case and blocked a requested investigation.
 Fluent in Russian, Andrew Rusk was identified by Lisa Donovan as having been shot, and it was later confirmed he had been dead for three days. Dr. Bishop theorized that Rusk's murder and Lisa Donovan's rebirth happened simultaneously, jump-starting Lisa Donovan's body. Prior, Rusk had been exposed to a reactor leak and given a highly experimental radiation inhibitor. It kept his energy from dispersing post death and being able to transfer to Lisa. Teresa Rusk hired Jake Selleg, a former Navy SEAL Team 6, to kill her abusive ex. Rusk took over Lisa Donovan's consciousness for revenge but was prevented by Agents Dunham and Francis.

Walter's Food



Walter drank raw milk.
Connection: Raw milk
Raw milk
Timestamp: 25:30

Connection Chart


A visualization of all the ways this episode connects to other episodes. Scroll down to see the actual connections.

Episode Connections





Spoilers for future episodes below!




S3E16 - Os

  • WALTER in 'Unearthed': "I propose that Rusk's murder and Lisa's rebirth happened simultaneously. In fact, it was his suddenly dispatched energy which jumpstarted the girl's body and brought her back to life."
      This is similar to William Bell's 'Soul Magnets' experiment that was enacted in 'Os'.
    WALTER about Bell in 'Os': "I know he's dead, I know that. But maybe we can bring him back. Look, one of his research projects. He posits here that a person's soul or consciousness continues to live on after death. And all it needs is a vessel or a host to return to."