The Road Not Taken

Season 1, Episode 19, Aired
EDIT

Episode Summary

Olivia begins seeing visions while awake that aren't really there. She uses these visions to help solve the case of a woman who spontaneously combusted. Meanwhile, Walter tries to prove that Bell isn't involved with the ZFT, while sightings of the Observer increase.
9.3
out of 10
EPISODE RATING: Superb
520 votes
  • Your Rating: 10
    "Perfect"
  • Your Rating: 9.5
    "Superb"
  • Your Rating: 9
    "Superb"
  • Your Rating: 8.5
    "Great"
  • Your Rating: 8
    "Great"
  • Your Rating: 7.5
    "Good"
  • Your Rating: 7
    "Good"
  • Your Rating: 6.5
    "Fair"
  • Your Rating: 6
    "Fair"
  • Your Rating: 5.5
    "Mediocre"
  • Your Rating: 5
    "Mediocre"
  • Your Rating: 4.5
    "Poor"
  • Your Rating: 4
    "Poor"
  • Your Rating: 3.5
    "Bad"
  • Your Rating: 3
    "Bad"
  • Your Rating: 2.5
    "Terrible"
  • Your Rating: 2
    "Terrible"
  • Your Rating: 1.5
    "Abysmal"
  • Your Rating: 1
    "Abysmal"
Rate It

Watch Online

Amazon
Buy
iTunes
Buy
VUDU
Buy/Rent

Cast & Crew

See All EDIT

Fan Episode Reviews (16)

See All

  • Great

    8.5
    "Great"
    By dreamgoat, Jan 26, 2012 Report Abuse
    Well great episode. A lot of clues are now coming together, like always Peter is still in the dark of whats going on. Olivia and Walter seems to have a good grasp to whats going on. I like the epic end of that damn Sanford, gets annoying. Unfortunately, I have put up with him on The Mentalist ;(. Well anyway the observer came for Walter and said it's time to go. I wonder whats that all about, can't wait for the next episode.moreless

    DO YOU AGREE?

    0 0

  • Jacksonville children.

    8.5
    "Great"
    By becksdakex, Sep 25, 2011 Report Abuse
    This week a woman suffer a self combustion and the Fringe group investigates. As the story move forward we learn that the woman and her twin (who manages to control her fire) was in the same Jacksonville drug trial Olivia was in. Olivia's specialabilities evolve and she seems to switch realitiesuncontrollably, she think she is going crazy. This doesn't stop superwoman Olivia though, when she get's a sudden opportunity in the "other" world, she takes it and the fringe's solve the case.
    We finally get rid of Harris in a mostsatisfying way. Somehow he always was a follower to the ZFT, I thought he just was regular creep.
    Finally Oliviaconfronts Walter with the drug trial, asking him how he could do experiments with children andwhat really went on. Walter starts to cry, saying that he doesn't remember.
    I really wonder how Walter was back in the day, I can't figure out if I should be mad or feel sorry for him. Did Belly use him or maybe even damaged his brain to make him forget? How bad is Belly and Massive Dynamic?
    Nina seems really upset, something is very wrong.....Total surprise end. Hope she survives.
    One of my favorites shows himself again, The Observer. Where are they going?
    Next one!!moreless

    DO YOU AGREE?

    0 0

  • A decent episode with a good amount of information revealed, just not as good as it could have been. Warning, spoilers contained below

    8.5
    "Great"
    By Dark_Davis, Oct 30, 2010 Report Abuse
    Another pretty good episode. These visions Olivia has, when explained made sense, but they really don't make it easy for her if she can't control them. We find out also in this episode that Harris is working for ZFT, but we don't really find out much else other than that because he is killed due to his own experiment (well sort of). Really good way to take out that sucker, I always hated the guy. What I didn't like watching, but what I knew was going to happen and what had to happen, was Olivia confronting Walter about what he and Bell did to her and the other kids. Even though what Walter did seems un-forgivable, somehow I think Walter really didn't mean any harm, and that Bell might be the kind of guy that takes things too far. Also in this episode near the end, the Observer takes Walter away somewhere, and Nina is shot. Nina being shot probably has something to do with what she said to Broyles, but it still doesn't explain what exactly she did tell him.moreless

    DO YOU AGREE?

    1 0

  • Outstanding!

    10
    "Perfect"
    By OrangeCrushers, Sep 06, 2010 Report Abuse
    Easily one of the best shows of the season and a perfect set up for the season finale. This show has so many similarities with the X-Files. Like the X-Files, the shows that deal with the main mythology are without a doubt the best shows and that is why the 2nd half of the season took this show to a whole new level. The idea of parallel universes just gets more and more intriguing especially now that we know Olivia actually has the ability to see or travel between them. This show just gets better and better with each passing episode. I cant wait to see the finale!!moreless

    DO YOU AGREE?

    8 1

  • More questions than answers - per usual.

    8.5
    "Great"
    By saleblanc, Jun 14, 2010 Report Abuse
    One of the things that really stuck out in this episode for me was Walter. I saw glimpses of the Walter but tonight's Walter was more intense and thoughtful. Tonight's twist that Harris was at the basis of the "test subjects" "outing" and "coming into" their abilities was great as well as explosive. Olivia is being being more puzzle pieces but I think she's also finding connections. Those connections are individuals like herself and maybe through them she can help herself. Olivia has more questions and is looking for answers from Walter. One of the things that I really struggled with was Peter getting voices out of the glass.moreless

    DO YOU AGREE?

    2 2
 

Trivia, Notes, Quotes and Allusions

See All

  • Trivia

    ADD TRIVIA
    • Trivia: The glyph for this episode is VISION. Edit

  • Notes

    ADD NOTES
    • Music: Traveling Riverside Blues (Robert Johnson) Edit
    • Injoke: When viewing the charred remains on the street, Walter is holding a Slusho drink. Slusho is a fictional beverage created by J.J. Abrams and has appeared in the TV shows Alias and Heroes and the movies Cloverfield and Star Trek (2009). Edit
    • Injokes: As well as featuring a sneak preview commercial of the Star Trek movie directed by J.J. Abrams that premiered three days after this episode first aired, there are several references to Star Trek. Emmanuel Grayson has the same last name as Spock's mother, Amanda Grayson, he refers to himself as Spock, son of Sarek, and he references both Khan Noonian Singh from the original series episode "Space Seed" and the second Star Trek movie. Finally, his description of Romulans traveling back in time to alter history is the plot of Abrams' movie. Actor Clint Howard, who played Grayson, appeared in the original series, Deep Space Nine, and Voyager as different characters. Grayson's apartment address is 1701, a reference to the Enterprise's ID number of 1701. Edit

  • Quotes

    ADD QUOTES
    • Walter: It's possible we're dealing with a case of spontaneous human combustion. Peter: I thought that was just a myth. Walter: Oh, a myth is just an unverified fact. Edit
    • Walter: Matter is just energy waiting to happen. The average adult at rest contains enough potential energy to explode with the force of five very large hydrogen bombs. Peter: You know, theoretically, you're actually right. Walter: Ho ho ho ho! My son finally agrees with me. Agent Farnsworth, take a note of that. Edit
    • Astrid: You know, Walter, working with you, it's amazing the sort of things you get used to. Walter: You're not the first person to tell me that. Edit

  • Allusions

    ADD ALLUSIONS
    • Title: Referencing the poem "The Road Not Taken", by Robert Frost. "Two roads diverged in a yellow wood, And sorry I could not travel both And be one traveler, long I stood And looked down one as far as I could To where it bent in the undergrowth; Then took the other, as just as fair, And having perhaps the better claim, Because it was grassy and wanted wear; Though as for that the passing there Had worn them really about the same, And both that morning equally lay In leaves no step had trodden black. Oh, I kept the first for another day! Yet knowing how way leads on to way, I doubted if I should ever come back. I shall be telling this with a sigh Somewhere ages and ages hence: Two roads diverged in a wood, and I- I took the one less traveled by, And that has made all the difference." Edit
    • Peter: There's something strange in your neighborhood. Walter: Who you going to call? Referencing the 1984 movie Ghostbusters and the theme song of the same name, sung by Ray Parker Jr. and nominated for an Academy Award. Edit

Show Forums

See All
Last Activity
Replies

Watch Fringe Full Episodes

See All

Related Shows

Season 1 Episodes

See All
Ep 20
There's More Than One of E...
Ep 19
The Road Not Taken
Ep 18
Midnight
Ep 17
Bad Dreams
Ep 16
Unleashed
Ep 15
Inner Child
Ep 14
Ability
Ep 13
The Transformation
Ep 12
The No-Brainer
Ep 11
Bound
Ep 10
Safe
Ep 9
The Dreamscape
Ep 8
The Equation
Ep 7
In Which We Meet Mr. Jones
Ep 6
The Cure
Ep 5
Power Hungry
Ep 4
The Arrival
Ep 3
The Ghost Network
Ep 2
The Same Old Story
Ep 1
Pilot

Contributors

Become a contributor
More
Less

TV Listings

Full Listings
BROWSE | Shows | Videos | News | Listings | Forums | People | Photos | TV.com Blog

CBS Entertainment | About TV.com | About CBS Interactive | Jobs | Advertise

© 2012 CBS Interactive Inc. All rights reserved. | Privacy Policy | Ad Choice | Terms of Use