Alone in the World (Fringe)

Plot

Walter struggles with hallucinations of Peter but refuses to discuss them with the Fringe team or his psychologist, fearing he will be deemed insane and recommitted. The team investigates two teenage boys found dead in a service tunnel; though missing less than a day, their bodies show advanced decomposition and fungal infection. A third boy, Aaron, is located and brought to Walter's lab. Walter learns Aaron lives with neighbors after his father's death and his mother's absence.

Walter bonds with Aaron, discussing the loss of his own son and the Peter from the parallel universe. The fungus on the corpses grows rapidly; Walter contains one outbreak, but spores from the other body kill two hospital staff. The spores leave tendrils heading toward drains. Ultraviolet light kills the spores, and the team finds a larger fungal network in the tunnel.

When they attempt to destroy it with UV and heat, Aaron develops a high fever. Walter realizes the network, which he calls "Gus," is a single organism functioning like a giant brain, psychically linked to Aaron. If the organism dies, Aaron will likely die. The network spreads over several city blocks, forcing the team to consider killing it regardless of Aaron's fate.

Production

This episode of Fringe marked the first script from co-executive producer David Fury, a veteran of Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Angel, Lost, and 24 who joined the show in May 2011. Director Miguel Sapochnik, known for House and Repo Men, helmed the installment. Guest star William Sadler returned as Dr. Sumner, Walter’s therapist from St. Clair’s, a role he had not played since the season one episode “The Equation.”

Cultural references and music

Bob Dylan's song "Quinn the Eskimo (Mighty Quinn)" as covered by Manfred Mann plays while Walter examines Aaron. Entertainment Weekly's Lanford Beard noted that the song's history of reinterpretation seemed a fitting metaphor for the current season. Walter tells Aaron "Toys are meant to be played with," a reference to the film Toy Story, and acknowledges he saw the movie with the talking toys and found it disturbing.

Reception

The episode was watched by 3.2 million viewers with a 1.3 rating in the adults 18-49 demographic, an 8% increase from the previous episode despite a decline in the preceding Kitchen Nightmares. Andrew Hanson of the Los Angeles Times expressed unease about child victims and questioned why Olivia and Lincoln removed their hazmat suits near the fungus center. IGN's Ramsey Isler rated it 7.0 out of 10, praising John Noble's performance and the special effects but noting that the first 90% felt like stretched material that could have been told in a half-hour.

He enjoyed the final minutes as an uplifting note that gave the characters explicit purpose. The A.V. Club's Noel Murray gave a B−, calling it a step down from the previous episode; he found the climax—Walter talking Aaron out of Gus's influence—unvisually dynamic and clichéd, though he liked an earlier moment between Walter and Aaron. Murray was surprised little was mentioned about the parallel universes.