(Warning - Spoilers Ahead) When Season 3 of Fringe ended on such a compelling cliff hanger, it was obvious that they would have to come back with a bang. Unfortunately, Im still on the fence about whether they have. Show runners Jeff Pinkner and J.H. Whyman had said that they wanted to treat the Season 4 premiere like a new pilot, undoubtedly to hook in new viewers after declining ratings. Mid way through Season 3 the show was moved from Thursday night to the Friday night slot of death but despite this, Fox thankfully ordered a full 22 episode Season 4. I dont think anybody was expecting that Peters (Joshua Jackson) disappearing act would be resolved by the end of the premiere, and in a show with a pretty complicated plot, its natural that we would be left with even more questions than when we started. Quite surprisingly however, my biggest question was not what happened to Peter, or in fact when he would return, but rather how much had his disappearance altered the shows reality. For the first few episodes, it seemed like not a lot had changed, and that Peter had simply never existed. Sure you could tell that his absence had changed Walter (John Noble) and Olivia (Anna Torv), but as far as events leading up to the Season 3 finale, it seemed like we werent dealing with a new reality. Fast forward to Episode 4 and suddenly we are bombarded with evidence that things are very, very different, and I really cant decide if I like that or not. To kick things off, Olivia awakens to find a strange energy field hovering above her bed an energy field with a taste for flying metal objects. The subsequent investigation reveals to the viewer some major changes to previous aspects of the series mythology. If you didnt read the Spoiler Warning, turn back now Firstly, two things that are still the same; Walter and Olivia still met three years ago when she recruited him to Fringe Division and secondly, Fauxlivia (Olivia from the other Universe) still infiltrated this side while Olivia was held prisoner over there (Season 2 finale). This was confirmed when Walter mentions it in the Season 4 premiere. Now for the changes: 1) Walter hasnt left his lab in the three years he has been with Fringe Division. This was suggested by the fact that he is sleeping there but was explicitly stated in Episode 4 when he leaves for the first time; a sad contrast to the old Walter who relished a fresh crime scene like a child on Christmas morning. 2) Nina Sharp (Blair Brown) also makes her first appearance this season and naturally with Walter back to his crazy self she is the big boss at Massive Dynamic. Theres clearly much more animosity between the two as well. 3) Most shockingly, her and Olivia now go way back, they even make jokes about prom! I really struggle to see how they could have ever been friends, but now shes apparently some sort of Aunty figure to Olivia. 4) Perhaps the hardest to digest, is that Astrid (Jasika Nicole) doesnt seem to remember anything about Olivia and Walters involvement with the Cortexiphan drug trials, a major part of the series mythology. Did she miss a meeting? She clearly still has the same security clearance as before, but professes ignorance when the subject is raised in Episode 4. A new Cortexiphan character is also introduced this week in the form of Cameron James (Chadwick Bosman) which leads to the puzzling revelation that 5), the Fringe team has never encountered any Cortexiphan children in this alternate reality. Now thats a paradox if Ive ever seen one. As I mentioned earlier, Walter confirmed that Fauxlivia infiltrated this side while the real Olivia was trapped over there. The other Cortexiphan children played a major role in getting Olivia over there in the first place, since Olivia alone couldnt generate enough energy to cross over. Presumably then, in this new reality, Olivia is much more powerful, however she has yet to demonstrate any of her abilities so far this season. So those are the discrepancies revealed in Episode 4 between the Post-Peter reality and the old reality and to be honest, I cant say that I much care for them. With such major changes it kind of feels like my avid viewing of the first three seasons was all for nothing, since a substantial amount of major plot points are no longer true. Whats even more disappointing is that I have the sneaky suspicion that they are doing this for the new viewers, which means they wont ever need to change back. Kind of insulting if youve been following the show for three years. Thank you Fox. Back to this weeks plot, Cameron James assists the team in chasing down the strange energy disturbances. James has the ability to disperse the energy with his Cortexiphan powers, but not before Olivia realises it is the strange man she and Walter have been visited by. The man as we know is the corporeal form of Peter, who finally returns in the flesh with a splash at, where else? Reiden Lake (the site of Walters original trip to the other side, when he stole the boy Peter from over there). By now you might be wondering why I rated this episode 4 out of 5 despite my obvious misgivings about what has been changed. Well petty semantics aside, the most rewarding episodes in a show like Fringe are the ones with revelations, and Episode 4 hands them out like raffle tickets. My desire for closure after the Season 4 premier about the state of the new reality was stronger then my interest in what happened to Peter. Basically, closure achieved. My remaining praise goes to the development in character of Walter and Olivia. Its great to see how they have changed due to the absence of Peter. Its clear that a massive void is festering inside both of them; Walter is slightly madder and much more reclusive and Olivia seems even more despondent to human interaction than even before she knew Peter. Despite all this, there is a much deeper connection between them now then there was before and its clear that Anna Torv and John Noble are enjoying these new versions of their characters. Ill be hanging out for next week to see how they react to the return of Peter. Be sure to tune in.