When we last left FRINGE, Olivia had finally discovered what fans of the show had known since May’s season finale. Namely, there is a very good reason why Peter doesn’t quite fit into our universe. Thus, when FRINGE returns tonight — following that is a cold open unlike anything you’ve seen before (trust us!), Walter will sit down and reveal to Olivia the heartbreaking circumstances surrounding Peter’s journey from over there. No [April Fool’s] joke we swear, appropriately titled “Pete,” tonight’s episode is far and away the series finest hour to date.
Because no Peter origin story would be complete without a trip to the alternate universe, tonight’s episode will not only provide fans with their first glimpse of the “Walternate,” but a younger pre-institutionalized version of the Walter we’ve come to know and love. “It’s quite interesting having played Walter twenty-five years younger he’s actually quite a likeable man,” teased actor John Noble on our recent visit to the set of FRINGE. “He’s married to a wonderful woman, seems to enjoy his what he does and is driven to succeed working with the army. Unfortunately, he does make choices and makes that one error.”
As hesitant as we are to disagree with anything that comes out of John Noble’s mouth, calling the pivotal choice Walter makes tonight an “error” is akin to calling GLEE’s April return only slightly overhyped by FOX. “It will cause this tumbling effect,” explains the actor. “What Walter really was trying to do was play God really. In fact, he even says, ‘There is only one God in this lab and it’s not your!’ That’s quite an interesting thing that I find about Walter through the two seasons thus far, he’s mentioned that a few times. He played God and the repercussion on a broader sense is that he ends up being hoisted by his own petard. It’s not his intention, but he ruins both of their lives [Referring to younger Walter and his wife.]”
Seriously. From here on in, nothing between Olivia and Peter or Peter and Walter for that matter will ever be the same. “There is this build-up towards Peter finding out, which is strangulating. Peter doesn’t know, Olivia does know, and then finally, he finds out and we tumble, we literally tumble into these extraordinary last two or three episodes,” promises Noble when asked to tease the life-altering moment that will take place when Walter comes clean to Peter. “But like a beautiful Grecian Vase that gets broken it will be repaired by a master repairer. There is breaking apart and slow mending and I don’t know how that mending is going to take place but sometimes things that are mended that are stronger than they were before they were broken and that’s what I have a feeling will happen with Walter and Peter.”
“There are so many stories to be told and I can’t see how we can go back to the ‘Monster of the Week’ too much to be honest with you,” exclaimed Noble. “I think now we’ve decided to go the mythology route and I think fans will be very happy with that from what I heard.”
FRINGE returns to FOX tonight at 9PM (“A” Channel in Canada)