Thursday, April 15, 2010

Fringe Episode 217: White Tulip



When passengers aboard a commuter train appear to have died a still death, it seems that a switch was flipped because all cell phones, mp3 players, laptops, batteries and bodies have been drained of power. As the Fringe team assembles at the bizarre crime scene, Peter remains suspicious that something is amiss with Walter, who is struggling to keep the unimaginable a secret. When the investigation leads them to Alistair Peck (guest star Weller), a very powerful man who has tremendous energy with severe consequences, an ironic set of circumstances surface.


Discuss the episode here in the comments.

18 comments:

  1. When Peck went back in time for the last time, wouldn't there be a Peck still around from that time? It's like Back to the Future 2, when Marty goes back in time again to 1955 and sees himself. Thoughts?

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  2. Basing the time travel theory on what happened on the train, it seems like time just rewound to where he arrived, otherwise he would have seem himself on the train.

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  3. Need a track ID - what was that song playing Alistair Peck's (Weller) lab when Walter went to talk to him?

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  4. T.F.B., That was Tubeway Army / Gary Numan - Are 'friends' electric? Check it out on youtube.
    Kewl tune from about 1979, I think.

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  5. Two things puzzle me from this episode.

    1. The significance of the white tulip, either for Peck or Walter.

    2. As Peck died in the car, would any autopsy of his body discover the metal he added to his body?

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  6. Who was the gorgeous girl who played Peck's fiance? She's stunning. We need to see more of her.

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  7. Great episode!
    I loved Robocop--I mean Peter Weller.

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  8. Anonymous asked "[What was] The significance of the white tulip, either for Peck or Walter."

    When Walter had his talk with Peck (before the Police broke in) he talked about wanting a sign from God (such as a White Tulip) to say that his taking the other Peter was OK (and that he should tell Peter). He also tried to convince Peck to not try to save his girlfriend. Peck (who alone of everyone remembers the old timelines from before they were rewritten by his going back in time) was convinced and when he finally went back opted to die with the girlfriend. As a thank you to Walter (for telling him how to go back all the way in time) left the picture of the White Tulip for Walter as a "Thank You" and sign to tell Peter the truth.

    As to there being two Pecks/etc., think of the old TV Show "Seven Days". Like with that show, the arrival of the Time Traveler erases the existent copy of the TT.

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  9. @April 17, 2010 1:43 PM
    I really appreciate the explanation. Thank-you very much.

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  10. Regarding the question about the opening credits for the episode of Peter, they were a joke. The Midi-style music and the retro graphics were used because it was an entire flashback episode. Think TRON, and War Games, the ways that advanced tech was expressed in the movie worlds in the 70's and 80's. That Fringe Episodes openning totally harkened! Even the images and words associated with 'Fringe' science in that intro, like human cloning, it was all stuff that was concidered very fringe back then.

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  11. In this episode, and in many prior eps, walter's right eye either flashes with an internal glimmer or reflects an external light source. It happens on this episode during the conversation about god and Science, and the white Tulip, about 34 mins 8 seconds. I always thought it happened during times of emotional stress, but now I think it happens when Walter is about to experience a revelation or something similar. I've asked for a screencap of it, but it hasn't been posted yet.

    I noticed it happening before the end of Season one, and i think either Walter has had something implanted in his eye, or somehow reflects this strange glimmer - that ostensibly noone else in the scene would see.

    In this episode, it flashes twice, just as he says to Peck "But it's God." I think it's significant because this is a conversation where a scientist equates God with Science, whereas most scientist probably would not or could not believe in both at the same time.

    Anyone else notice this, and what do you think it could mean?

    C

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  12. I see it now. It almost looks like the smoke glyph. Let me know if you see it in any other episode...

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  13. Dennis, i have seen it in quite a few eps prior to White tulip, but haven't noticed it since that ep!

    I'll be posting once I get those specific eps for you :)

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  14. If you watched The Other Side, you may have noticed all sorts of things happening with almost everyone's eyes!

    also, both Walters have a sort of opacity to their right eye in general...

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  15. a white tulip is a symbol of "pure" love.

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  16. I noticed the eye flicker thing too, but thought it was cataracts or maybe a special contact thing.
    Also to an earlier post: if they checked out Peck's body after the car crash, wouldn't they have found all that metal, etc?

    Did anyone see the observer in a grey trench coat in this episode? I thought I did.

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  17. Great Story in this episode. The time travel was kind of funky though. I'm getting used to that though with JJ Abrams and crew. Star Trek science was a little soft too.

    If it was simply resetting time or rewinding time each time Peck went back then everything would have rewound, Including Peck. You could argue that he was somehow protected or immune from that.

    As I said though, it's a great story. Walter getting his White Tulip at the end must have been pretty amazing to him since, at that point, he had never told anyone about it.

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  18. I think it's more like Quantum Leap where he basically jumped into himself.

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