History YMMV / Fringe

** Altivia, Bolivia, Fauxlivia, or, to some especially uncharitable Peter/Olivia shippers, Holivia. It's worth noting that the fans are fiercely divided on which FanNickname to use. The series has decided on 'Bolivia'. Walter has decided on Fauxlivia, however.

** And now there's [[spoiler: Belivia]]. Really.

* EvilIsSexy: Newton falls into this one as well.

* TheScrappy: Sanford Harris, the DHS consultant brought in to oversee the Fringe team during the latter half of season one. He clearly has a vendetta against Olivia due to her prosecuting him for ''three'' counts of sexual assault pre-series and spends every single appearance getting in the way and undermining the team's efforts to solve their cases. Very few tears were shed when Nancy Lewis [[KickTheSonOfABitch set him on fire]].

* SpiritualSuccessor: To Series/TheXFiles. In addition to both being paranormal investigation shows that alternate between MonsterOfTheWeek stories and an ongoing series MythArc, they both aired on the same network.

** Creator/EbonMossBachrach from ''Series/{{Girls}}'', ''Series/ThePunisher2017'' and ''Series/TheBear'' guest starred in the Season 1 episode "Power Hungry".

---> "She tricked my son with her carnal manipulation and he fell right into her ''vagenda!''"
---> (Watching WesternAnimation/SpongebobSquarepants with Gene and Astrid) "It's surprisingly profound... for a narrative about a sponge."
---> (smiles) "I just got an erection. Oh, fear not. It's nothing to do with your state of undress. I just simply need to urinate."
---> "Hello, Peter. This is me... your father... Walter Bishop."
--->"Don't be such a prude Peter, I'm sure Agent Dunham knows what a penis looks like!"

** [[WesternTerrorists David Robert Jones]], the head of [[Characters/FringeZFT ZFT]] utilizes bio-attacks with the Pattern, showcasing the danger of different types of powers via the innocent lives that are taken. Seemingly well-intentioned, Jones later [[NotSoWellIntentionedExtremist completely abandons any pretense]], happily murdering those in his trail, including the shapeshifter he supposedly "loved" just to make a point on how dangerous he is. Assisting William Bell, Jones plots to obliterate all of two timelines, leaving only the template for Bell's new world without any of Bell's more positive qualities or intents.
** Seasons 4-5: [[TheDreaded Captain Windmark]] is an [[Characters/FringeObservers Observer]] who led his kind to invade Earth in 2015. Conquering Earth, Windmark would oppress the humans living there for 21 years, [[PlayingWithSyringes conducting torturous experiments]] on them and making the planet's air toxic for them, causing many to become deformed or dying. When the Fringe team escape from their amber hibernation, Windmark {{mind rape}}s numerous people in his pursuit of the team, and murders Peter and Olivia's daughter Etta. When Windmark learns of the team's plan to use the Anomaly, Michael, to prevent the invasion from happening, Windmark capture Michael with plans to [[WouldHurtAChild disassemble him]], and mind rapes Phillip to near-death when he learns of his allegiance to the Fringe team. While most Observers use cold logic to justify their actions, Windmark admits [[ThePowerOfHate pure hatred]] is the reason behind his, ending the series as one of its vilest villains.

** [[TheDreaded Captain Windmark]], the BigBad of season 5, is an [[Characters/FringeObservers Observer]] who led his kind to invade Earth in 2015. Conquering Earth, Windmark would oppress the humans living there for 21 years, [[PlayingWithSyringes conducting torturous experiments]] on them and making the planet's air toxic for them, causing many to become deformed or dying. When the Fringe team escape from their amber hibernation, Windmark {{mind rape}}s numerous people in his pursuit of the team, and murders Peter and Olivia's daughter Etta. When Windmark learns of the team's plan to use the Anomaly, Michael, to prevent the invasion from happening, Windmark capture Michael with plans to [[WouldHurtAChild disassemble him]], and mind rapes Phillip to near-death when he learns of his allegiance to the Fringe team. While most Observers use cold logic to justify their actions, Windmark admits [[ThePowerOfHate pure hatred]] is the reason behind his, ending the series as one of its vilest villains.

* CriticalResearchFailure: [[spoiler: Walter describes a clearly single celled organism as a Virus. He even answers in the affirmative when asked if it is a single cell. Viruses are less than a cell, being simply genetic material in a protein sheath. As such it would not be able to move under its own power.]]

* WhatDoYouMeanItsNotSymbolic -- The {{Eye Catch}}es show a peculiarly changed item, such as a cross-section of an apple with fetuses (feti?) as the seeds, or a frog with the Greek letter Phi, or Φ, printed on it, along with a point of light. Wiki/TheOtherWiki says Phi is used as a symbol for several interesting subjects, such as electric or magnetic flux in physics, a shorthand representation for an aromatic functional group in organic chemistry (which relates directly to the pilot episode), and a sentence in first-order logic.

** Some fans thought the vibe between Rachel and Olivia was [[RelationshipWritingFumble not at all "sisterly."]]

* UncannyValley: The Observers. They're pale and hairless, speak in a CreepyMonotone and have an odd way of staring at people. They're more in the "off-putting" rather than "scary" part of the Valley. That is, with the exception of [[FauxAffablyEvil Captain]] [[SoftSpokenSadist Windmark]].

* ShockingSwerve:
** "Of Human Action" has some jarring twists:
*** The kid [[spoiler:turns out to be behind everything]].
*** The [[spoiler:anti-mind control headphones turn out to not work]].
*** Moreover [[spoiler:it turns out there are several Tylers]].
** ''"6:02 am EST"'' was full of these.
** The season three finale. [[RetGone Yeah.]]

* FunnyAneurysmMoment:
** Most of the humor in "Brown Betty" is negated when you look at Walter's story as an allegory for the entire series so far. Especially the part where [[TearJerker Walter says Peter took his heart when he left and Walter will die without it, and the storyteller seems to think this is the fate he deserves.]]
** At the beginning of ''"Concentrate and Ask Again"'', a guy comments that he never wants to hear his friends sing again after they sing "Happy Birthday" for him. Yeah... he doesn't last past the opening theme.
** "You're bald! [[StageWhisper I think he's an Observer.]]" Oh, Peter...
** A lot of people like to think Broyles' stint in "Lysergic Acid Diethylamide" was one big SugarWiki/{{Funny Moment|s}}. That is, until he starts "seeing death" - starts seeing ''himself.'' Seeing his alternate self's mutilated corpse at the end of "Entrada" scared and scarred him more than he'd ever admit.

*** And a case of fridge horror, [[spoiler: can you imagine what it must have felt like, for September to get up, and suddenly be hit with raves of emotions? And also to live must of his life as Observer and to suddenly have all that taken away?]]

* WhatAnIdiot:
** What would ''possess'' someone to create a wasp/snake/bat hybrid creature? In what ''universe'' is that a good idea?! Ours, apparently.
*** Darwin Awards are also in order for the [[GenreBlindness morons]] [[AnimalWrongsGroup who let it out.]]
** September, [[ShipperOnDeck we love you and everything]], [[NiceJobBreakingItHero but why the hell didn't you just tell Walternate the cure was working?]]
** Characters seem to have a giant blindspot for their friends being replaced by impersonators:
*** Pretty much everyone for not noticing that Fauxlivia was acting odd. After a mission to an alternate universe. Where they know there is an alternate version of her. Also shapeshifters who can look like anyone. Not a single red flag.
*** Similarly, no one checking to make sure Charlie... was Charlie after he was replaced by a shapeshifter. When they knew they were fighting a shapeshifter. Seriously, guys...
** More a case of [[LoveMakesYouStupid Grief Makes You A Dumbass]], but there is not a chance that Peter [[spoiler: inserting Observer tech into his brain without knowing a thing about it]] is a good idea.

* CrazyAwesome:
** Walter. This man cured a virus that wiped out the mammoths with ''horseradish''.
** William Bell. Planned his little BodySurf ''months'' in advance.
** Peter has his moments. He used the amount of adrenalin in a woman's brain to calculate where she had been killed.

* ShipTease
** Rachel and Peter had a few moments of flirtation in Season 1. [[DieForOurShip There was disapproval.]]
** Nina and Broyles. [[spoiler: They kiss in Season 2.]] This is never brought up again.
** It was suggested that Nina had a thing for William Bell throughout the series. [[spoiler:Considering he tried to use her adopted daughter to destroy the two universes and made no attempt to save her life, the ship has probably sunk.]]
** [[OddFriendship Walter and Fauxlivia]] have their moments of [[CrackPairing not-to-be-taken-seriously-but-kinda-hilarious]] flirtation in season 4.

* SeasonalRot:
** Season one was a moody, atmospheric thriller with a strong throughline of biotechnology running amok that made the most of its New York tax credit to create very striking cinematography. Then they lost that tax credit, shifted production to Canada, and had all but one of the producers drop out. The first two-thirds of season two can charitably be described as "X-Files lite", since it looked and felt like every other sci-fi procedural on TV.
** Not as pronounced as in a lot of cases but for some people the fourth season's [[spoiler: switch to an alternate timeline]] and the confusion as to whether we should see these characters [[spoiler: as those we knew for the first three years or merely alternate versions]] caused problems and emotional distance from the storyline.

---> "She tricked my son with her carnal manipulation and he fell right into her ''[[GettingCrapPastTheRadar vagenda!]]''"