Sue - To answer your questions ...
Depending on location, some pods turn brown while others turn a paler green. I had one today that did that and should have taken a photo before I pulled the pod off. It had started to open. That is a good sign that the seeds are ripe and you can collect them from the pod.
A mis-formed pod could mean no seeds, just one seed, etc. You won't know until it ripens. Leave it until it cracks open to reveal it has ripened.
When a dead and dried flower won't release from the pod, I usually cut the top of the dead flower off after it dries and just leave the bottom part around the pod. I do that so the wind (or anything else) doesn't snap the pod off the scape.
If "tet" is before the name of a cultivar that is labeled a dip, then it is a diploid converted to tetraploid. You will likely need another tet cultivar to cross with it to pollinate it to create viable seeds and the pollen needs to be crossed with another tet cultivar.
