My Thoughts on the First Two New Twin Peaks Episodes; See the Main Titles
Jonathan Barkan
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We can officially go from saying “It is happening again” to “It has begun.“* After more than 25 years of waiting, David Lynch and Mark Frost’s “Twin Peaks” has returned to television in the form of an 18-episode revival season on Showtime.
It’s been a long time coming, and fans of the series may finally be able to get answers to the cliffhangers that dominated the end of the second season back in 1991. But do these two episodes that just aired bring back that same atmosphere, that same magic that the original two seasons gave us? As a longtime fan of the series, I want to weigh in with my thoughts on what the world was just gifted.
Read everything below, but be aware that there are HEAVY spoilers for the first two episodes.
https://youtu.be/ujDB5ao1JCg
Right away, let me be clear that there’s no way to write out a synopsis of these first two hours. It’s impossible to do so because there essentially wasn’t a traditional story. Rather, these first two episodes were more of an introduction back into the world of “Twin Peaks,” a way to clue us in to what has been happening with many of the characters we’ve already met as well as a means to introduce new characters and premises.
Some characters that we meet again are Dr. Jacoby, who is still wearing his red-and-blue sunglasses. He lives in an almost RV/tent situation where he was delivered a couple boxes of shovels. Why, you ask? It doesn’t matter because it cuts away and we don’t see him again for the rest of the two-hour block. We meet Benjamin and Jerry, the former still running The Great Northern Hotel while the latter has entered the world of legalized marijuana…and certainly looks the part. The Giant, the One-Armed Man, Leland Palmer, Laura Palmer, Sarah Palmer, Shelly Johnson (I’m guessing her last name is different now), James Hurley, Margaret the Log Lady, Deputy Hawk, and Lucy and Andy Brennan each make an appearance throughout the run time, making this two-hour experience feel like a return home. I have to be honest… when I saw Kyle MacLachlan and Sheryl Lee in the Black Lodge together, both older but no less suave and dignified, I became emotional. These characters mean so much to so many, and now we get to welcome them back into our lives.
The new characters that we meet revolve heavily around Agent Cooper’s doppelgänger and are, to put it delicately, a rather unsavory group of individuals. They are embroiled in violence and obviously up to nothing good, although we’re not yet certain of what their end goal is. Meanwhile, we also have a new line to follow where someone wants Cooper’s doppelgänger dead and is willing to pay a hefty sum for it.
The show almost immediately sets itself apart by venturing out of Twin Peaks, taking us to locations such as Las Vegas, Nevada; Buckhorn, South Dakota; and New York, New York. By doing this, and by seeing Cooper’s doppelgänger travel in different locations, it feels like the mystery and strangeness of Twin Peaks has found a way to leak out into the rest of the United States. There is no outrunning the Black Lodge.
In New York City, we’re introduced to what appears to be a scientific experiment to find… something. The concept is that a young man has to sit and watch a glass box, which is being monitored and recorded by several cameras. When one of those cameras fills up its memory card, the young man replaces it and stores the original. During one night of his work, a local woman whom he obviously knows and has interest in (a feeling she clearly reciprocates) comes up with two coffees and manages to convince him to allow her into what is supposed to be a Top Secret, classified experiment. Soon after entering, they proceed to have sex; and the glass box, which has remained empty the whole time, suddenly starts seeing activity. When they stop, they see that there’s the outline of a person in this box, an outline that becomes increasingly violent and agitated. It suddenly bursts through the glass and assaults the pair, blood flying everywhere.
I bring this up because I want to address something about this revival of “Twin Peaks”: It is, without a doubt, the most violent and aggressive we’ve seen the show. There are genuinely terrifying moments throughout and the gore is surprisingly effective and shocking. There is a sense of pure aggression and rage at play here and it’s not only effective but it’s deeply disturbing. That being said, there is still that trademark Lynch humor in these episodes. There are dry, subtle moments that are wildly funny in the moment, mostly because of how absurd they are.
Another thing that should be mentioned here is that Lynch clearly has no concern about time. With 18 episodes at his disposal, he makes use of long, one-take shots, often ones where nothing of immediate interest is happening, allowing our eyes to wander and take in the strange oddness that he is known for. Furthermore, the style of storytelling at play here is unconventional, as one would expect from Lynch. Nothing seemingly connects the storylines at play here but each thread is so fascinating that the hook has been set, the bait taken.
I really want to hammer the point home that this revival is not concerned with holding your hand. There is an already established mythos upon which we are seeing everything and we must recognize that we won’t be given the answers we seek right away, if ever. All we can do is wait and connect the dots ourselves. By being on Showtime, Lynch has been given the freedom to take “Twin Peaks” into a far more outlandish and bizarre world. Unconstrained by worries of TV execs banning cursing, violence, nudity, or seemingly unfollowable storylines, “Twin Peaks” now will delve into territories we never could’ve possibly imagined.
For as much that is different and strange, these episodes felt like returning home. This is a “Twin Peaks” that is going to be far more polarizing than what we’ve already been given. However, I feel it will ultimately be far more rewarding.
Welcome back, “Twin Peaks.” It’s good to have you in our lives again.
https://youtu.be/VQB1NZ8jxRI
https://youtu.be/2k1FjNTh6Iw
*With apologies to Mortal Kombat.
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