The Bombers led from start to finish and were rarely troubled on their way to the 16.13 (109) to 10.11 (71) win under the closed roof.
The Dons had 12 separate goalkickers on the day, but skipper Matthew Lloyd again failed to bother the scorer while Scott Lucas contributed just the one major.
Jason Winderlich was impressive for Essendon with two goals and 27 possessions, with Jobe Watson (30) and Fletcher (28) also prominent.
David Zaharakis and Michael Quinn didn't look out of place in their AFL debuts and returned 21 and 20-disposal performances respectively.
It was difficult to pick out clear winners for Fremantle, but Paul Hasleby continued his encouraging return from knee surgery with 24 possessions, while Rhys Palmer chimed in with 21 touches and two goals.
Aaron Sandilands had the better of David Hille with 36 hit-outs, but the Bomber onballers were awake to his dominance and were often the recipients of his taps
The Dons had Fremantle on the back foot early with goals to Adam McPhee and Alwyn Davey inside the opening five minutes getting their side off to a flyer.
David Mundy steered his second attempt on goal for the term through the middle, but it was the visitors' only major for the quarter as the Dons pressed home their advantage around the stoppages.
Young livewire Zaharakis was relishing his first taste of AFL footy and was important in the early exchanges as the slick Bombers moved the ball quickly and with apparent ease.
Paddy Ryder, playing as a tall forward option, made the most of the good delivery inside 50 and converted from long range late to help his side to a 22-point lead at the first change.
A hesitant, error-prone Fremantle had offered fans little hope in the opening term, but just as the obituary was being written following Heath Hocking's goal inside the first minute, the visitors came good.
Brett Peake took a nice mark running with the flight of the ball which he converted to spark Freo who slashed the margin to just nine points on the back of goals to Byron Schammer and Matthew Pavlich, who didn't look 100 per cent fit.
But despite the increased work rate, Fremantle was unable to edge any closer with a superb one-handed grab in the goal square allowed Hille to restore a 17-point advantage at half time.
Dean Solomon had enjoyed a reasonable outing against his old side, but he sprayed a shot he should have nailed after the restart and could only look on helplessly as the Bombers promptly took it up the other end where Adam McPhee booted his third.
Again the Dons threatened to run away with the game as Ryder and Tayte Pears added to the margin, but Freo managed to eke out goals at important times – including an opportunistic effort from Palmer - to remain in touch.
Fremantle needed to get busy early in the final term at 23 points down, but couldn't stop Winderlich and Hayden Skipworth booting the first two goals of the quarter to seal the result.
Essendon 5.2 9.5 14.7 16.13 (109)
Fremantle 1.4 6.6 10.8 10.11 (71)
GOALS
Essendon: McPhee 3, Ryder 2, Winderlich 2, Pears, Slattery, Lucas, Davey, Lovett, Hille, Hocking, Dempsey, Skipworth
Fremantle: Peake 2, Pavlich 2, Palmer 2, Mundy, Schammer, Solomon, Dodd.
BEST
Essendon: Winderlich, Fletcher, Dempsey, Watson, Zaharakis, McPhee
Fremantle: Sandilands, Solomon, Hasleby, Pavlich, Mundy
INJURIES
Essendon: Slattery (eye)
Fremantle: None
Reports: Nil
Umpires: Kennedy, Stewart, Avon
Official crowd: 27,461 at Docklands
The views in this story are those of the author and not necessarily those of the clubs or the AFL.
