(S02E19) "I want you to get some rest, Dad." - Peter to Walter

This episode of 'Fringe' had everything -- a slimy embryo, a thrilling gunfight, nefarious shapeshifters, some alternate universe action, and yes, that heartbreaking drama we've been waiting for all season.

Now that we're firmly into the second half -- and heading towards the end -- of season two of 'Fringe,' let's talk about what's happened so far, and what we think might happen. Some of these speculations will mirror those I made last September, because not all of those questions have been answered yet. In fact, we may have more questions now than we did back then.

Still, with the episode titled 'Peter,' we finally started to get into the nitty-gritty about Walter stealing Peter from the alternate universe. Of course, we all knew this, but when will Peter find out, and who will tell him? That and lots of other questions spring to mind.

Will Peter learn the truth about his origins? Yes, I believe so, but the question is who will be the one to tell him? In last week's episode, 'Olivia. In the Lab. With a Revolver,' Olivia was determined to tell Peter the truth, but then decided against it after realizing that their family unit (Peter, Walter and Olivia) was more important than Peter knowing the truth. Then Walter decided that HE should be the one to tell Peter, painful as it might be. Walter knows there's a good chance that he could lose his son ... again. One other question is this: Walter visited Peter's grave in season one. If that grave is in this universe, why on earth would they use his real name on the gravestone? What if Peter stumbled across it?

(S02E17) "I have to tell him. I've gotta tell Peter the truth." - Olivia to Walter

I wish I could figure out how Sam, the bowling alley guy, fits into everything. I don't trust Nina Sharp one bit and neither does Olivia, so why should she think that Nina's suggestion to talk to Sam is a good thing? He could be totally nefarious (even though I don't get that vibe from him).

His midnight game of Clue did give us the great title for this episode, though, so there's that (along with the fact that we got to see Finn Garrity from 'Damages' again). But even so, he's not being very helpful at this point. Is he from the other universe? "I'm older than I look," he told Olivia. "I barely remember my childhood. I'm also taller than I appear."

(S02E16) "Somewhere, Peter will grow up, somewhere he will lead a proper life, somewhere he will be happy, but just not here. And we must take comfort in this. We must begin to move on." - Walter to Elizabeth, watching alt-Peter through the window to the other universe

I've said it before and I'll say it again: John Noble is a fantastic actor. With the flashback to 1985 in this episode, he completely morphed into a different Walter Bishop. And yet, you can see traces of the person that he is now, and because of all he's been through, you can understand how he got from there to here.

But he wasn't the monster that I thought he might be, based on some of the things we've learned about him since 'Fringe' began. Instead, he was a loving and caring husband and father who was obsessed with finding a cure for his son.

This episode has gotten a lot of hype, and it didn't disappoint. While it did answer a few questions, it posed even more questions, which will make the rest of the season exceedingly entertaining and possibly heartbreaking.

(S02E15) "We're standing in two buildings, one of which comes from the alternate universe." - Walter

Well, we asked for it, and we got it. A few big reveals -- or not -- about the alternate universe and Olivia's part in it. Big episode of 'Fringe' tonight, with lots of things coming together. This is the winter finale, and the next episode airs April 1, 2010.

'Fringe' roared out of the starting gate last year with a flurry of sci-fi plots boasting surprises at every turn. Even though it took a ratings dip this season, the Fox show continues to churn steadily along, offering key plot points on alternate universes, shapeshifters, mercury junkies, and liquified brains with each new episode. Throw in some bald-headed Observers, an FBI agent who might have mental powers, a rogue genius from an alternate universe, and a quirky mad scientist, and you've got the makings of an 'X-Files' type hit.

One of the highlights of the series thus far occurred in the season 1 finale on May 12, 'There's More Than One of Everything.' All season, the writers had been teasing us with rumors of the mysterious William Bell. We knew that he'd been Walter's lab partner in the distant past, and that the two had apparently conducted experiments on young children, including Agent Olivia Dunham (Anna Torv). Also, both men are connected to Massive Dynamic, the futuristic company which seems to be at the center of everything.

(S02E10) "I don't do Valium nearly enough. I'll have 50 milligrams please." - Walter

More Walterisms like the one above, as well as a few reveals and a nice cliff-hanger into the second part of this season, which picks up January 14. So far, every episode in this season of Fringe has psyched me up for what's to come, whether it's a seemingly stand-alone ep or something that carries us forward into the alternative universe. Things don't sound too good over there. In fact, it sounds a little apocalyptic. Now I'm curious to take a look myself.

I'm in a serious Fringe withdrawal, having had no episode to watch on Thursday night. So let's revisit "Dream Logic," the episode that aired last week. My favorite scene was near the end where Peter was yanked out of bed by ... I'm going to guess either the Walter from this universe (since we can see him in the photo above) or maybe The Observer.

There were some really great comments on my episode review, and BugKiller noticed that the poster in young Peter's room featured the Challenger Space Shuttle -- the 11th mission in 1984. Says BugKiller: "Challenger blew up during its 10th mission in 1986. This jibes with what Walter said: Earth-2 is about a decade or two ahead of us in terms of technology. It appears as if Earth-2 started their shuttle program earlier than ours, sometime in the 70's, because KENNEDY NEVER DIED on Earth-2, so they probably landed on the moon earlier, too."

In anticipation of the season two premiere of Fringe last week (read my review and your comments here), I revisited season one to refresh my brain. There are so many subtleties that connect seasons one and two, and it was good to go back and watch it again.

While there were a few creature-feature episodes that appeared to be stand-alones (but who really knows with this show?), for the most part, much of season one was devoted to weaving an intricate mystery and setting things up for season two. It's too much, really, for one small blog post, but a few things sprang to mind ...