Confessions of a Walter Bishop Fan

At the recent New York Comic Con, Joshua Jackson had some interesting things to say about his character, Peter Bishop, on Fringe. He mostly talked about Peter’s relationship with his father, the crazy, wonderful, scary, Walter Bishop.

Now, I know that Walter is crazy, and that crazy can be a bad thing, but Walter is still my favorite character on the show. It’s not often that I have just one, single favorite. I usually can’t decide on just one. My favorite shows are favorites because the story keeps me interested, or the ensemble cast is fabulous all together, or, in rare cases, just a combination of both. But I keep coming back to Fringe for Walter.

Fringe is not an easy show for me to watch. With all its twists and turns and clues and hints, it makes me think too much. I really just want to be entertained while watching television. At the end of a long, busy day, when I have to make decisions and work out problems, I don’t want to have to work my brain any more during my down time.

But ah, Walter, the things I will endure for you! Exploding brains, eyeballs out of their sockets, creepy things wrapped around a man’s insides, and a cold virus the size of a football, to name a few. All these I sit through just to watch Walter try to play match-maker for Peter and Olivia, or to hear him work out a puzzling situation, then ask for a sandwich. The man makes me smile!

Walter can break my heart too. His fear of being trapped back at the asylum again, or just being left alone, is enough to make me pull out the largest box of tissues I own. I don’t care about Olivia’s problems with Agent Scott, or Peter’s parental issues, or that code that I’ll never be able to figure out anyway. But when Walter is confused or nervous about something, I’m biting my nails. If he’s upset in any way, I ready my poison pen to scratch out an angry, anonymous letter to J. J. Abrams.

So while everyone else is watching Fringe for the brilliant story line and intriguing puzzles, this Nice Girl has got your back, Walter.