DJariya

Synopsis:

As time dramatically ticks down toward the end of this acclaimed series, Peter, Olivia and Walter stop at nothing to save the universe from Observer rule. Walter enters the infamous deprivation tank in an attempt to uncover a key piece of information about the mysterious figure, Donald. Meanwhile, Captain Windmark sets out on a revealing mission of his own as long-standing questions are answered in the all-new "The Boy Must Live" episode of FRINGE airing Friday, Jan. 11 (9:00-10:00 PM ET/PT). (FR-511) (TV-14 V)


Episode 11 of 13

Next week is the 2 Hour Series Finale

Deftones

2nd to last airing of the show.

cleaver

I'm so excited I'm actually typing this with my nipples

Raul3

JayDerek

You win the Internet today

Moopher

Fuck.

Scorpio

Every second of this episode was excellent.

windom

So why did none of the characters mention the paradox that their plain would create?

mugwump

I realize I'm in the minority here but this final season just hasn't engaged my interest like earlier seasons. I guess I was more a fan of the monster-of-the-week and alternate universe angles and while this storyline sprang out of those origins and certainly is doing its best to incorporate nods to the past I just don't care all that much for the Observers as the big baddies. Commence the throwing of rotten vegetables.

riley_dude

It's all about the characters mugwump.
Excellent episode.
Bring on the finale.

Josh-da-man

I was wondering about that, too.

When Etta was killed, I speculated that the series would end with time being reset so that the Observer invasion never happened.

Of course, if the prevent the Observers from existing in the first place, it also means Peter will die at the lake in 1985. So no Etta.

Never mind the causality paradox that would be created by September and Michael being the ones who prevent the Observers from existing. Doing so would negate their own existence, and allow the Observers to exist. It's the grandfather paradox.

Raul3

My guess is that human beings still evolve, but they evolve different. So they will still be able to travel through time, but they will have emotions.

And of course, somewhere there is a directive that they have to save Peter. Maybe even both Peters.

And let me stop here because my head is ready to explode

Raul3

Oh, and it's a rule, all time travel stories have holes. So they will show us how they decided to resolve this story, and let's hope it's not that imperfect.

rw2516

After the kid gets sent to the future he should remember everything that's happened and make sure somebody goes back and saves Peter when time travel is discovered.

Deftones

I'll bet Peter and Olivia are probably wishing they kept Peter's device he used to turn into an observer. They could've given it to September/Donald. Doh!

The preview for the finale looks ridiculous.

SteelWill

Peter doesn't die without the observers, he's saved by Walternate in his universe because September doesn't distract him from the cure. Of course that still creates problems, so I assume the timeline just diverges at a more convenient point.

And this show really is about the characters.

Derrich

I think Peter knows they aren't getting Etta back. He also probably knows that he wont be around in the new timeline. That's why he didn't share in Olivia's joy at Donald's apartment when she heard the plan. He didn't want to take her hope away so he didnt say anything.
Walter also knows.
The arc is that Peter is willing to sacrifice himself (again) for the greater good, and Walter is, too.

Olivia is the only one flying blind at this point, mostly because of her love of Etta and hope that she gets her back.

D

SiberianLlama

Excellent episode, and I too am looking forward to/dreading next week's last two shows. I also thought about the fact that if the Observers were never created, no one would save Peter when he drowns in the lake.

Also, am I the only one who thought that the Chancellor that Captain Widmark meets in the future looked like an "observer" Walter? Maybe I was trying to see things that weren't there, but he looked a lot like a bald observified John Noble.

Shazam

Nah Peter's going to stay, he's already an anomaly because he was brought back into the universe via love and puppies.

TheKing

My issue with their plan comes from the time travel rules of Back To The Future II, when Marty and Doc go to the alternate 1985.

Right now, they're in an alternate version of 2036, one where the invasion has already happened. A trip into that future would lead them to a different future than the one that originally led to the creation of Observers. That's why Doc and Marty had to go back to 1955 to stop Biff instead of going to the future.

That being said, I have full confidence that the finale will address any issues like this.

Kevin M. Dean

One needs to remember that the current timeline is already one where Peter died at the Lake. The adult Peter is already from another timeline, so resetting the observers wouldn't necessarily make a difference in regard to saving Peter at the lake.

PhantomStranger

Fringe has always played fast and loose with the normal rules of sci-fi fiction. If you are expecting a tidy, coherent solution to the time-travel paradoxes in the final episodes, look elsewhere.

Raul3

This.

And of course I'm more than OK with that.

Superman07

I was thinking this as well.

A little disappointed Peter isn't apparently more important. I guess he is/could be, but "he must live" was kid Observer kind of detracts.

I truly wonder if this was the plan from the beginning.

For time travel, would be good if they tied in Peter Weller episode tech.

In all honesty, I wouldn't be terribly upset if he series ties back to events in the pilot. I know that's kind of reset and series never happened, but timelines and universes have been screwed up so much I think we've already lost semblance of original characters and timelines.

rw2516

Peter could still be important. As are the other characters. The kid has to be sent to the future. How crucial are Peter and the others to the success of the plan. Without Peter's contribution to the timeline maybe the plan wouldn't work. The kid will probably remember everything and can tell them they have to go back and save Peter as soon as they discover time travel.
We assume the observers have been time travelling to ensure a timeline with a 99.99999% sucess of the invasion. Maybe some of the time travelling observers we have witnessed are "post series finale" friendly observers, ensuring the timeline so everything in the show takes place.