White Tulip/Theories

See Theory Shell and Theory Policy for details.

1. As evidenced by the first scene of the episode, when jumping back in time, Peck does not merely 'step inside' his own past. He enters a place where he previously had not been.
2. As such, he is materially transported back in time, body and mind. This is not merely an instance of sentience transference to a past self.
3. Therefore, the Peck Prime that went back to the date of his wife's crash, whether or not he arrived at the field before the original Peck arrived (thereby either killing his previous self (PARADOX!), or the flash of light from his time jump causing the original Peck to notice it and 'spend the entire day' there, in accordance with the [[[Novikov self-consistency principle]]]), was physically the mechanics-encased-in-flesh Peck that we saw in the future.
4. A person with all sorts of machinery underneath their flesh is something apt to be noticed by a Medical Examiner, following a crash.
5. If a Medical Examiner had perused the remains and discovered the gears, electronics, and machinations, it is certainly something that Fringe Division would have been called in to consult on.
6. This would have brought Peck to their attention sooner, thereby affecting future causality.
7. Therefore, the remains were never discovered or examined.
8. The Observer known as September was seen in a doorway at the end of the episode, watching the fatal car crash.
9. The only way that the remains would not have been in the car when police, paramedics, etc. arrived on the scene, would be if he was removed.
10. As the Observers are not supposed to interfere, and the only explanation is, in fact, their interference … are they perhaps required to interfere in something such as a paradoxical time loop?
11. As the Observers seem to view time as a concrete whole, how would something such as a time loop appear to them?

1. The Observers up to this point have espoused non-interference, except when to set the timeline back on track after their own error.
2. They (to our knowledge) have committed no error, and as they do not seem to be the guardians of time (not from Gallifrey), it does not seem that they would be willing to protect the timeline from its own inhabitants mucking it up.

1. In the beginning of the episode, Walter gets pretty agitated listening to Peter's voice calling to pick him up to Peck's investigation just as he was finishing the letter. This behavior might had lead him leave in a hurry, without time for deeper philosophical reflections, thus carrying the letter into his pocket.
2. At the end of the episode, Walter don't get interrupted by Peter's call (there's no investigation). He seals the envelope at no rush at all. He then looks at his picture with Peter and have time to think clearly. Then he makes the decision of throwing the letter into the fire.

1. The only connection of Walter to Peck is the white tulip. Walter throw out the letter before he picked up and received the message from Peck.