Letters of Transit

The Glyphs

This episode's glyphs spell: Q-U-A-K-E

These glyphs foreshadow the earthquakes generated by Cortexiphan subjects in the next episode.

The Observer

Observers are featured in this episode.

Episode Clues

Previous Episode Clue

The security shack on one of the Liberty Island piers in 'The Consultant' says "CHECKPOINT 20-36", foreshadowing 'Letters of Transit' taking place in the year 2036.

Next Episode Clue

A flyer outside the nightclub in 'Letters of Transit' says "Experience the Epicenter Club", foreshadowing the earthquakes caused by Cortexiphan subjects in 'Worlds Apart'.

Items of Interest

This episode takes place in 2036.
The opening crawl is an homage to Blade Runner. (Image 1)
The opening scenes are a homage to the 1942 film Casablanca, which revolves around a nightclub owner, Rick, who obtains letters of transit in Nazi-occupied Morocco.
The Observers can read minds and wipe minds.
Walter ambered himself and his team in the lab on purpose.
The transit station has a food stall with Observer writing and images of chili peppers with many hot sauces available. (Image 2)
Walter's line "I am not a number! I am a free man!" is a reference to the 1967 British television series The Prisoner.
Etta was 4 the last time she saw her parents.
Walter was preparing a device to defeat the Observers before he was ambered.
Walter called Astrid 'Astro'.
Bell was trapped in amber with them.
Walter cut out Bell's hand. (Image 3)

Item of interest: Blade Runner — **Image 1**: Blade Runner
Timestamp: N/A

Item of interest: Hot sauces — **Image 2**: Hot sauces
Timestamp: 21:04

Item of interest: William Bell's hand — **Image 3**: William Bell's hand
Timestamp: 41:08

2036

"They came from the future. At first, they only watched. Arriving at key moments in human history. We called them Observers. But in 2015 they stopped watching... and seized control. Citizen uprisings proved bloody and futile. Those who survived became known as 'Natives.' In an attempt to show their allegiance, some Native factions became 'Loyalists' and were marked by the Observers. The original Fringe Team fought the invasion, but was quickly defeated. Fringe Division was allowed to continue at a reduced capacity, but only to police the Natives. The resistance was quickly overcome... or so they thought."
The Observers enforced a curfew to make Natives go to their homes.
Walter, Astrid, and Peter were ambered in the lab.
They eat 'coffee chews' instead of drinking coffee.
The fate of the original Fringe team was a myth/legend. Simon: "The original Fringe team didn't vanish, they aren't missing, they died 20 years ago. They aren't coming back to save us from the Observers, they aren't in a desert, or Peru, or immortal."
Walter ambered himself on purpose.
Central Park was almost completely destroyed.
The Observer invasion in 2015 was also known as 'The Purge'.
The Brooklyn Bridge was destroyed.

2036: Coffee chews — Coffee chews
Timestamp: 06:40

2036: Walter in amber — Walter in amber
Timestamp: 05:39

2036: Central Park — Central Park
Timestamp: 22:48

2036: Brooklyn Bridge — Brooklyn Bridge
Timestamp: 20:40

Walter's Food

Walter asked Etta and Simon for something to eat, ate a piece of red licorice, asked Simon if he had Ring Dings, admired a snack stand, stole a pack of Sesame Snaps, and said he ate brains once ("It was sweeter than you'd think").

Connection: Red licorice — Red licorice
Timestamp: 14:24

Connection: Sesame Snaps — Sesame Snaps
Timestamp: 22:46

Names for Astrid

Walter called Astrid 'Astro'.

Notable Quotes

"They came from the future. At first, they only watched. Arriving at key moments in human history. We called them Observers. But in 2015 they stopped watching... and seized control. Citizen uprisings proved bloody and futile. Those who survived became known as "Natives." In an attempt to show their allegiance, some Native factions became "Loyalists" and were marked by the Observers. The original Fringe Team fought the invasion, but was quickly defeated. Fringe Division was allowed to continue at a reduced capacity, but only to police the Natives. The resistance was quickly overcome... or so they thought."

WALTER: "They weren't all bad, you know. One of them even tried to help us. He was called September. What happened to him was... unexpected. He told me that in the year 2609 AD they finally ruined the planet. They poisoned it. The air, the water. And when it was fundamentally uninhabitable they traveled back through time and took our planet from us."

Connection Chart

A visualization of all the ways this episode connects to other episodes. Scroll down to see the actual connections.

Episode Connections

S1E01 - Pilot

OBSERVER in 'Letters of Transit': "Shoot first. I'll read them later."
This is a reference to the ability to interrogate someone's mind after they have died, which both Walter and Nina mentioned in 'Pilot'.
NINA in 'Pilot': "How long has he been dead?"
MEDICAL ASSISTANT: "Five hours."
NINA: "Question him."

S1E02 - The Same Old Story

Walter's car in 'The Same Old Story' has a severed hand in a jar, and Peter jokes "Friend of yours?". Walter eventually cuts William Bell's hand out of amber in 'Letters of Transit'.

Connection: Hand in a jar — Hand in a jar
S1E02 - The Same Old Story
Timestamp: 21:01

Connection: Bell's hand in amber — Bell's hand in amber
S4E19 - Letters of Transit
Timestamp: 41:08

S1E19 - The Road Not Taken

When Olivia and Peter tried to get information on the victim in 'The Road Not Taken', Emmanuel Grayson said the coming war would be against the "Romulans, renegade Romulans from the future, here to change the timeline." They dismissed him as crazy, but the Observers did end up invading in such a way in 'Letters of Transit'.

S2E03 - Fracture

RAYMOND GORDON in 'Fracture': "They want to exterminate us. So they are studying us - our culture, our technology, our science - and they plan to use it against us. One way or another, we'll find out who they are. But by then, I suppose it won't really matter."
The Observers have invaded Earth in 2015 in 'Letters of Transit'.

Connection: The Observers invaded — The Observers invaded
S4E19 - Letters of Transit
Timestamp: 00:14

S2E08 - August

AUGUST about his binoculars in 'August': "They're from someplace far away."
We later learn in 'Letters of Transit' that the Observers and their tech are from the year 2609.

S2E10 - Grey Matters

In 'Grey Matters' Walter's brain pieces were stored the heads of living people. In 'Letters of Transit', in the altered timeline, they were stored in Massive Dynamic.

Connection: Walter's brain pieces in Massive Dynamic — Walter's brain pieces in Massive Dynamic
S4E19 - Letters of Transit
Timestamp: 24:46

S3E05 - Amber 31422

People in amber are not actually dead and Matthew Rose may have been the first person rescued from within amber in 'Amber 31422'. Etta and Simon rescued Walter, Astrid, and Peter from amber in 'Letters of Transit'.

S3E07 - The Abducted

The opening scenes of 'Letters of Transit' reference Casablanca (a man named Rick owning an upscale nightclub). Peter and Fauxlivia watched Casablanca together in 'The Abducted'.

Connection: Casablanca — Casablanca
S3E07 - The Abducted
Timestamp: 41:08

S4E08 - Back to Where You've Never Been

SEPTEMBER to Olivia in 'Back to Where You've Never Been': "I have come to tell you something, Olivia. I came to tell you I have looked at all possible futures and in every one the result is the same: you have to die."
In 'Letters of Transit', which takes place chronologically in the future, Olivia isn't present; only Peter, Astrid, and Walter are featured.

S4E15 - A Short Story About Love

SEPTEMBER in 'A Short Story About Love': "What I led you to is a Beacon. I needed you to activate it so I could find my way back."
The Beacon helps Observers find our world. The Beacon's appearance in 'The Arrival' may have been a test or preparation for the future Observer invasion as seen in 'Letters of Transit'.

Spoilers for future episodes below!

S4E22 - Brave New World (Part 2)

Etta clutched her necklace, a bullet, when she saw Walter for the first time and when talking about her parents in 'Letters of Transit'. This is the bullet Walter shot at Olivia in 'Brave New World (Part 2)'.
ASTRID to Walter in 'Letters of Transit': "William Bell, you just left him there?"
WALTER: "You remember what he did to Olivia. Even you can't be that compassionate."
Bell tried to use Olivia's powers to create a new universe in 'Brave New World (Part 2)'.

Connection: Etta clutching her necklace — Etta clutching her necklace
S4E19 - Letters of Transit
Timestamp: 04:47

S5E02 - In Absentia

Simon Foster was trapped in amber in 'Letters of Transit' and the Observers were experimenting on Simon's head in the Ministry of Science in 'In Absentia'.

Connection: Simon in amber — Simon in amber
S4E19 - Letters of Transit
Timestamp: 40:09

Connection: Simon's head — Simon's head
S5E02 - In Absentia
Timestamp: 28:16

S5E07 - Five-Twenty-Ten

Walter stole Bell's hand in 'Letters of Transit' to gain access to Bell's personal storage unit in 'Five-Twenty-Ten'.
Walter's password at Massive Dynamic is 0-5-2-0-1-0, the same as the combination to the Jacksonville daycare center and to Bell's safe in 'Five-Twenty-Ten'.

Connection: Bell's hand — Bell's hand
S4E19 - Letters of Transit
Timestamp: 41:08

Connection: Using Bell's hand — Using Bell's hand
S5E07 - Five-Twenty-Ten
Timestamp: 29:30

Connection: Code to Bell's safe — Code to Bell's safe
S5E07 - Five-Twenty-Ten
Timestamp: 24:37