I liked this episode. It made everybody seem more human. And I liked the name of where Walternate worked “Bishop Dynamic”.
By the way, since a new episode won’t be on in two weeks, what’s coming up next week that will preempt it?
So … not only did Walter provide the casus belli for the war between the parallel universes, his failure to move a little faster in dealing with Olivia’s evil stepdad led her to unknowingly tip off Walternate as to the existence of our world. Sure, perhaps Walternate’s capable mind would have come around to the idea of parallel universes without any help, but from where I am sitting, I think that he’d have drunk himself to death first.
Walter didn’t know about the abuse until after it happened. And I found it kind of funny that he seemed nervous when confronting the father. In the episode where Newton puts the brain pieces back into Walter, and he thinks he’s back in the 80’s he gets really angry and threatening. Not shy or nervous at all.
Also, seeing that the marriage was falling apart explains the last episode where Walternate is with an Asian girl. I guess they got divorced after all.
Loved the '80s intro. It’s little details like this that make the show special.
Otherwise, I’m having a somewhat hard time integrating everything seamlessly – some things, like toys, but also a car, can apparently be brought over without trouble, but Walter’s going there is a problem because of ripping the universe apart; the shapeshifters can get through, humans can’t… Is there any rationale to what can and can’t cross, and how and when?
Perhaps things can cross if they are exchanged with their duplicates, but then what about the shapeshifters? And what about the guy attempting to cross over on that bridge?
There are different ways to cross over. The way Walter used to get Peter was a bad way. The way Olivia can cross over, and the way the shape shifters can cross over are good ways.
The way Walter used just ripped a hole in the barrier between worlds. I don’t know how Oliva does it, but the shape shifters wait until there’s some sort of alignment between worlds, and they can somehow phase through without damaging the “fabric” of either universe.
I don’t want to have to fanwank this show. I want to just enjoy it. I don’t like the plotline of Walter etc. knowing Olivia previously. too soap opera. and I rebel against the idea that Walter’s one mistake (taking the other Peter) could really cause all those problems on the other side. There has to be some other causes to be revealed, or I will be slightly disappointed.
I say ‘slightly’ since I enjoy the acting and the show in general so much that these gripes haven’t ruined it for me.
I was really worried about this episode when I saw the preview, when it made it sound like it would be all about how Peter and Olivia were always destined to be together. Instead, they really only had one short scene together.
I wish we had seen more of alt-1980’s. I wonder if in this world Walter gave the idea for the name “Massive Dynamic” to Bell.
As for how they cross over, basically there’s a whole bunch of different ways, but either it involves opening a door of some kind, which is dangerous for the universe, or it involves “phasing” over in some way, which is dangerous for humans. Shapeshifters and the Cortexiphan kids can do it safely. Bell did it too many times which caused him to become molecularly unstable. I think the idea of bringing Walternate over on abridge was that it was safer to bring him over inside some huge object, but that’s not something they can do easily.
I was troubled by the fact that child-Olivia drew a blimp after having seen one on the other side; but, child-Peter, although suspect of his fake parents, never brought up the missing blimps in his argument against them.
I feel like I’d have been like, “You know what? This doesn’t feel right. You guys seem weird. I never had a freakin’ baseball mitt and this one is USED… and what’s up with the blimps? Did I just imagine those while I was sick too?”
I think I missed something along the way - Olivia has met Peter and Walter before (knew Walter quite well, actually), but didn’t recognize them when meeting them way back in episode one? She had her memory of the cortexiphan treatments and all that blocked, was it?
So, Walter took Peter and then tried to put him back, but wasn’t able to? Why was he trying to put him back - because Peter was so unhappy with his kidnappers? Did Walter think Peter wouldn’t notice he was in a completely different universe?
Yeah, they talked about that back in Season One. I think she just blocked out all the painful memories. I don’t think Bishop or Bell did it to her.
So, Walter took Peter and then tried to put him back, but wasn’t able to? Why was he trying to put him back - because Peter was so unhappy with his kidnappers? Did Walter think Peter wouldn’t notice he was in a completely different universe?
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Walter never intended to kidnap Peter. He knew he belonged back with his parents. He only brought him over to cure him, but his machine fell through the ice and was destroyed.
Ah, that makes much more sense now.
And he somehow knew that he couldn’t build a new one, because it caused too much damage, which is why he was hoping that Olivia could bring Peter back.
I was confused about when young Olivia switched universes. She initially went to Red universe when she was frightened by Walter’s experiment using the fake bloodied boy, right? When did she switch back and what triggered the switch? I seem to recall that when adult Olivia switched there was some sort of shimmering Star Trek-like transporter effect that accompanied the switch, but I don’t remember seeing that happening in this episode.
Yeah, that was a great touch.
While I am glad that we are being shown (not just told) the backstory of Walter taking Peter from the other universe, I don’t really like how young Olive fits into it all, and I don’t care for the abuse-victim aspect of her story. That said, now that they have introduced that I hope they address it further since I doubt Walter’s little warning to the stepfather would make him suddenly reform.
So did Peter just block all these memories, too?
A good episode overall, though. The actress playing Peter’s mother did a great job.
No.
The first time she went to the Red universe was when she was running away from her stepfather. She was there long enough to see the blimp in the sky.
I don’t think she actually traveled to the RU in Walter’s experiment; instead, she triggered that not-quite-fireball thing (perhaps triggered by just fear?). In a previous episode (Jacksonville?), the team goes to visit the daycare center and they show that burned room – or at least another burned room.
Walter’s theorized that for Young Olivia’s to switch universes, she had to feel simultaneous, intense love + fear/anxiety.
I’m not really sure why Adult Olivia needs the tank to help her switch universes, though, other than for sensory deprivation.
Like when they went from widescreen to box screen during the betamax experiment? I was ready to call the cable company! 
I’m surprised no one started a thread about last week’s episode…after all, Peter and the real Olivia finally got together in it.
When she went to confess to Walter that her father had hit her why did Water disappear from behind his desk and then re-appear behind her at the doorway?
Because she temporarily switched universes. The Walter sitting at the desk was Walternate.
I liked this episode, but it’s really hard to swallow that kids that old wouldn’t remember meeting each other. Not to mention we have no idea why/when Peter forgot that he was from the other side. 7-8 is pretty old to completely forget everything in Peter’s case, even if Olivia has the excuse of being tramatized (which also is flimsy).