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Article by Rhea Dee
Rhea Dee is a Midwestern fat girl floating through space with a donut and an attitude. She's the co-host and co-creator of the podcast Badland Girls. 7 Comments
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My outcast eyes were a-rollin' with Walter's god talk, too, Rhea. Punishment? Umm. . . no. Everything that's happened to Walter since taking AltPeter have been consequences stemming from the mess he himself caused. But, he clearly needs something else to contextualize the events and to deal with them, so whatevs. It takes all kinds, and it's probably easier to lay it all at the feet of a supernatural being rather than accept that you're the cause of your world's destruction. I get that.
Am I the only one that didn't think what Peck was doing was so horrible? He goes back, saves his girl, the deaths in the current timeline are corrected and technically no one has died. I don't see how this is bad. Is it because of the power? The temptation to use it for evil? Nothing bad ever came out Sam Beckett's quantum leaps, ya know.
And now that Walter knows how to time travel, will he use this to go back to 1985 and stop himself from tearing a hole in the universe?
I felt sorry for Peck, too. I really like these Fringe stories where the people are motivated to do universe altering things for a loved one. They're really good stories, and don't feel overly schoompy like, "I MUST save my wife! I NEVER GOT TO TELL HER I'M SORRY!"
Also, just wanted to point out that just because there's talk of God doesn't mean there's talk of Jesus! No one in this ep ever mentioned Jesus, and there are plenty of people who believe in God who DON'T believe in Jesus. So, no one, in fact, was "busting out the Jesus." Except you, of course.
Hmm, good point! Although in shows like these (actually in most shows) whenever there is talk of God in any sort of vague way, I always feel like they mean "vaguely Christian God." It doesn't have to be read that way, of course, and I usually don't read it that way, but I can't ignore it pressing against me.
And ha, if people in high school knew that I was the one busting out Jesus, their hair would turn white.
I just watched this ep tonight!
What I thought was interesting about the God talk was that in the end, Peck was proved right. God IS science, in that science allowed Walter to receive his long-awaited sign from God. I've always thought that God and Science were one in the same, and that people make them polar opposites for no good reason, and I was intrigued by Fringe also seeming to take this tack. Who's to say that Walter confiding his need for a sign to this guy who travels in time wasn't "prayer." Who's to say that his prayer wasn't answered by science? I'm really interested in that idea.
As far as what was wrong with Peck's actions – as we learned in the Father's Day episode of Doctor Who, and as we've also learned from Peter being alive, it's never a good idea for someone who is supposed to be dead to be alive in the world, and it causes repercussions that we can't even imagine. It changes the balance of everything. The only reason why this episode "ends well" is that the fiancee, as well as the guy who kept messing with traveling in time, die. It's good that she's dead, because she was supposed to be, and it's good that he's dead, because he can't affect different times anymore. (and if you're asking what about the repercussions of someone who's not supposed to be dead dying, I'd say that he died the moment he started caring more about other times and less about his present.)
I have to say, the line Peter has when they're talking about deja vu where he says "I guess I'm not living my destiny" gave me chills! CHILLS!
This episode was so good, and I can't wait for next week!
"Why do these horrible body horror things happen to Peter Weller?"
My guess is because he doesn't mind wearing massive prosthetics for a week or three. From what I understand, such things can be quite uncomfortable, so the few guys who are good at it get to do it a lot.
I'm sorry, but I didn't like the gawd thing at all. It would have been at least as good—and most likely way better if they didn't bring that crap up at all. It irritates me that I have to bend the story somehow to reconcile cutting edge science with superstition. I tire of the apologetic way science is presented in relation to religion. Ugh. However, on a scale of 1-10, this episode rates about a 1 on the religious smellometer.
That being said, this story was a top notch yarn. I really like the way it was resolved. Very clever and satisfying. And the story of Peter is very interesting!
What can one say about Peter Weller—he deserves to be in the Tom Savini-Stan Winston hall of fame. I mean, he's Buckaroo Banzai, man!