What is the deal with Mr. Stripey Tomatoes?
The variety I bought from Burpee was Mr. Stripey, which I had never grown before (I have a long raised bed and usually do 6-7 plants, each a different variety). I bought it as a plant, not seeds. The Mr. Stripey was hit particularly hard by heat waves and too much sun in June and July, until I got shade curtains, so it only started showing fruit in August (7a). I put a LOT of work into this plant, but I got about 18-20 tomatoes, all picked at the end of September.
Problem is they all looked like the picture - orange, smooth and zero stripes. They also are terrible eating tomatoes, with zero sweetness and little flavor. Easily the worst tasting tomato I have grown.
At first I thought the issue was cross pollination, as this plant had an Orange Napoleon right next to it (which did very well). Then I started looking around online, and found it to be a lot more widespread than I thought. When I look at the 20 reviews on Burpee's website, four of them complain about getting smooth orange/yellow tomatoes with zero stripes (two from 5 years ago, one 4 years ago and one last year). It comes up in reviews on Home Depot and Amazon too.
People have repeatedly posted in this sub with the EXACT same issue, going back several years: [https://www.reddit.com/r/tomatoes/comments/1naebzu/they\_probably\_are\_not\_mr\_stripey\_i\_started\_a\_new/](https://www.reddit.com/r/tomatoes/comments/1naebzu/they_probably_are_not_mr_stripey_i_started_a_new/)
[https://www.reddit.com/r/tomatoes/comments/1evbkr2/is\_this\_really\_a\_mr\_stripey/](https://www.reddit.com/r/tomatoes/comments/1evbkr2/is_this_really_a_mr_stripey/)
[https://www.reddit.com/r/tomatoes/comments/1v7bh2k/any\_guesses\_on\_what\_variety\_this\_tomato\_is\_not/](https://www.reddit.com/r/tomatoes/comments/1v7bh2k/any_guesses_on_what_variety_this_tomato_is_not/)
[https://www.reddit.com/r/tomatoes/comments/1lspn3z/mr\_stripey\_mixup\_2yrs\_in\_a\_row/](https://www.reddit.com/r/tomatoes/comments/1lspn3z/mr_stripey_mixup_2yrs_in_a_row/)
[https://www.reddit.com/r/gardening/comments/1mtwvo2/harvest\_early\_or\_leave\_it/](https://www.reddit.com/r/gardening/comments/1mtwvo2/harvest_early_or_leave_it/)
What the hell is going on here?!?! How is the variety having the same problems, going back 5 years, both when bought as seeds or as plants, and when bought from different places?