"Brown Betty" - Disappointed!

[Michelle]

As a Fringe lover, I normally overlook the bad episodes. But this one was pretty bad. I don't care if Walter was high, could have been a better story.

I'm a big musical theater person and a costume designer. So the whole show just pissed me off because it was hardly set up as a musical and when they did sing it was out of place and awkward. I had trouble focusing on the lame story because the Period was so confusing. It was 1940s for the most part, but only in terms of some costumes and cars and the occasional speech pattern. WTF? I got really pissed when I saw Nina's computer. They should have just stuck with one time period. That's what ruined the episode for me.

[Fringeternate]

One other thing I wanted to mention, many people here seem to feel that the story did not do enough to progress the character development, but I don't think that every single episode has to be responsible for pushing character development.

No, every episode doesn't have to be about pushing character development. Bad TV shows prove that daily. I think what we're experiencing overall in the development of the show is a bit of a let down. After Lost people just expect more from something sporting the JJ Abrams name. Character development is something people want out of a show like this. It keeps us coming back.

The point of this story was meant to show Walter's grief for what happened with Peter, and how his heart is broken over it. After what happened at the conclusion of last week's episode, it is very appropriate in my opinion that the show slows down here to spend some time focusing on Walter's emotions, and I found this to be a very original way of doing it.

If the show actually was a study of Walter's grief then it accomplished the opposite. By centering around a grief that was already dramatically (and successfully) displayed they've actually lessened the emotional impact of said grief on the audience.

At first, I thought disappointment would be impossible as my expectations for this episode were so low. It turned out to be worse than I imagined. I'm sorry to say this is one of the worst things I've ever seen on television. It was awful.

[xstos]

This ep blew more chunks than a cow being rendered through a meat grinder. Obviously i'm watching the show for all the singing, dancing, and totally irrelevant story lines. Not to mention how much I like musicals. It's hard to imagine why sci-fi x-files nerds would dislike this deviation from actual content into a candy-assed pansy circus. I would've understood if Dunham had to infiltrate a gentleman's club as an under-cover stripper or a magic shroom ep a-la that 70s show where they all smoke the brown betty and trip out while trying to repair a rip in the space time continuum.

sorely disappointed,

xstos

[fewsilly]

This was not an episode of Fringe. I watch this show because it is not a musical. If I want to see that junk I can watch glee. It was really bad. I fast forwarded the whole thing. It felt like it was a bad Star Trek Holodeck episode. At least in Star Trek they have a side plot. They could have cut back and fourth showing Olivia looking for Peter. We watch this show to see weird stuff about alternate universes not a singing Detective story.

[The_war_is_already_on]

It kinda blew. He should have taken a whole cocktail of psychedelic drugs and got glimmers into the alt-universe, or they could have used the episode for a random walter backstory somehow, or an our peter-walter story..

He could have used some technology to try and find peter, perhaps in the process going into a dream state???

I can imagine much better ways of getting into walters mind to his true feelings.

This was not fringe at all, until the last few seconds of the show.... And it was only meant to be filler to begin with, because I honestly didnt truely feel walters pain.....
:/

[DankoRamone]

How did no one apparently realize that the story is presented as visualized by Ella as Walter tells it? That explains the mix of time period-specific items throughout, and the strange colors in Walter's lab, including the polka dot cow. It wasn't presented "as the story Walter tells." It was presented as Ella pictures the story in her mind.

[The_war_is_already_on]

^Of course. And in fact, both walters imagination, and ella are probable key elements to the overall story...

However, its a bit abstract for most people. Its kinda like an opera where all the lyrics are either a faery tale, or some code or allusion.

Totally artful, and actually perfect in terms of mystery, character - and simplicity etc.

But, it wasnt entertaining in the least, for the casual veiwer, who isnt into either tangental imagination, or dramatic music and character deviations.

They want actual wow moments, sex or action, drama, peril, or something otherwise hard hitting.

And not for me either, although it did still hit my mystery/clue spot

I like it, respect it, and hate it.

In a way, that's a very high standard of sucess, lol

[fragaria x phile]

Just rewatched it:

It bothered me that when Olivia called Astrid 'Rachel' on the phone, post production didn't fix it.