One Star Classics

Yeah, I don’t even know…

What does one say about this episode? It was clearly conceived by Mark Frost — big on Twin Peaks mythology — but I can’t help but wonder if the script was five pages long, and the rest was up to Lynch. Actual mythology aside, the episode was certainly the most Lynchian, avant-garde art movie style since the third episode.

And I absolutely loved it.

Reading too much into anything right now is pointless, and I’m not sure if many questions will ever properly be answered. Nor if they should be answered. On face value, certain things can be considered on the nose, but I truly think there are too many layers to even start speculating what something like the inclusion of the first nuclear bomb explosion means. The birth of evil? That seems to be rather banal, and I highly doubt it was the actual intention of the scene. Did it open a rift between this world and the Black Lodge, letting a new type of evil in? Or was it simply David Lynch just liking the imagery? Stranger things have happened.

If the explosion launched Bob into the world (and into Sarah Palmer?), and The Giant sent Laura as a countermeasure, it all is still more complex than good vs. evil. Laura would have lost the battle, and quite likely was infested with Bob at any rate. Nothing in this episode explains much of anything, other than perhaps — perhaps — The Giant is an inhabitant of the White Lodge.

Frost and Lynch would not have glossed over a major plot point of the original show, where Leland remembered having seen Bob as a child. That would have been right around when Sarah Palmer (I assume it was her) had a bug crawl into her mouth. Again, making heads or tails from this is a lost cause, at least for now.

That potentially Lynch has created his own version of a shared universe, meanwhile, seems increasingly plausible. Not the Marvel of DC kind, but rather some bizarre parallel world type. Laura was in Mulholland Drive, and one can compare that movie’s monster behind the diner to The Woodsman here. Maybe. Either way, there certainly were a lot of visual and audible similarities with Lost Highway and Mulholland Drive.

All in all, though, once again, as abstract and strange and who knows as this all is, the overall story is fairly easy to follow. Falling into the trap of reading too much into things can dilute the overall point of the nuclear bomb, worlds potentially connecting, Bob being born or reborn… As far as understanding the gist of what’s going on, just grab on to what you see, and that’s really all you need to know. Details may or may not come later; getting into the nitty-gritty will likely require re-watching the entire season.

I love mythology, and this episode seriously creeped me out. That’s what’s important to me.

As far as writing goes, this was very much Mark Frost’s episode, but Lynch provided what was probably the scene of the show, so far. That slow, out-of-focus… who knows what it is… in the morgue, walking toward Lieutenant Knox?

That is some creepy, disturbing stuff.

I have no clue who or what it is, but echoes of the monster behind the diner in Mulholland Drive comes to mind.

Mark Frost clearly helmed the writing, and we got an episode relatively close to something from the original first season. Maybe part of it is the focus on Twin Peaks and its old characters. That served as a nice little gear change from the previous two slow-moving episodes.

That is not a slight. How everything seamlessly is stitched together certainly is something season two was unable to do.

Lynch seemed to have the time of his life both directing and acting in the episode. Be it small details like him turning up his hearing aid or calling Diane a «tough cookie», his Cole is quickly turning into the star of the season.

The stars of the episode, though, were all the women. Laura Dern delivered exactly what we had expected—awesomeness—and her Diane conveys a tough, damaged woman. What had happened between her and (one of the) Cooper(s—who knows which one) is anyone’s guess, but Dern sure as hell made it seem like something significantly awful.

Plus, «Fuck you, Tammy!» Perfectly timed delivery, to a lady who is back to functioning as something more than a trope.

Naomi Watts’s Janey-E is, for all intents and purposes, Dougie’s mouth as this point, and she delivered monologs to the police with flashes of brilliance, particularly about the hated «stolen» car.

Yeah, a lot was packed into this episode… Truman on Skype with Doc Hayward was a scene for the ages, if only for the monitor appearing from the desk. Andy? He made a mistake, but there was something more to what was going on… Why was it OK waiting two hours to see the owner of the truck which was involved in the hit and run? He showed more of a weary assertiveness than what we’re used to seeing from him, and there must be more going on than Andy being Andy, making mistakes.

Walter Olkewicz portraying his previous Renault’s twin cousin goes to prove they’re the sleaziest French-Canadian family in North America, and the long, long scene with only him and the cleaner, set to « Green Onions» was frustratingly both-love-and-hate-it awesome.

Finally, Richard Beymer’s Ben Horne is mixing up the over-the-top silliness of his original portrayal with a more intense Ray Wise quality. He’s quickly becoming my favorite returning second billed character.

So, so much happening in this episode. Dougie’s taking down Ike while receiving advice to (and I paraphrase) «rip off his hand» was… Odd. It also serves as a reminder that not one being from the Black Lodge is good.

Great episode, funny episode, creepy episode, and I have no idea where this will go next. I’m OK just being along for the ride.

«Fuck Gene Kelly, you motherfucker!»

God bless Albert for being Albert, and for Albert finding Laura Dern as Diane in Max Von Bar¹. I was in the camp that did not want the character to be revealed on screen, but if it had to happen, hell… What better choice than Dern, who already exhumes her inner femme fatale after only three seconds on screen.

I was hoping Cooper of yore would have returned by now, but you know… The pacing still works for me. Here we are in the sixth episode, and while Cooper is slowly (slowly) coming back to life, I really enjoy the Mr. Jackpot shell. It’s interesting to see old Coop stuck in Dougie, yet still showing glimpses of his real self with Cooper-isms and all. What did his ladders and stairs mean? Who knows, but it clearly meant something to Dougie’s boss, and that’s what matters.

I am still doubling down on a larger transformation next week; multiple plot twists suggest the actual Cooper has to return to stitch together the increasing number of sub-plots. The glue is Dougie, but now that the Twin Peaks traffic light is turning red again, something is about to happen.

Hawk — and Michael Horse is hitting a home-run with his portrayal — made what, going by Fire Walk With Me, likely is the discovery of Laura’s hidden diary pages², the ones where it is revealed Cooper is stuck in the Black Lodge. Somewhat amusingly, after the Log Lady suggested he had to search for something related to his heritage, he found them in a Nez Perce-labeled toilet stall doors.

And other than that, the episode seemed to consist mostly of some pretty graphic carnage. One of the scenes seemed unnecessary to me, but we at least got to see Harry Dean Stanton (last/first seen in Fire Walk With Me) make a rare gentle performance.

Ike «The Spike» Stadtler taking out Lorraine seemed apt to the main arc. Having been nervous during last episode after hearing Dougie was still alive, it is clear Mr. Jackpot is a valuable target, further suggesting Mr. C (as we apparently still call the Bob infested Cooper) to be on top of the pyramid. The man really does not want to return to the Black Lodge.

In the end it was kind of a slow individual episode. I’m not so sure judging these individually makes sense, though. The flow certainly has little in common with the original series. Being too analytical is difficult with what is more or less looking like an 18 hour movie, and while it’s easy to complain we’re not seeing enough of the Twin Peaks residents — the most common gripe I keep seeing — we still have 12 hours to go. The town’s increased screen time suggests the geographical scope is about to change.

For consideration: How many Black Lodge doppelgängers, other than the Coopers, have we seen so far? Red seems likely, and I maintain Richard Horne does too. Somewhat disturbingly, Sonny Jim is a contender, which makes Janey-E another real possibility. A whole family of doppelgängers, good grief.

The season might be slow as molasses, then, but I will unapologetically admit to loving every minute of it.

¹ An obvious reference to Max von Sydow, who was featured in Lynch’s Dune.

² This must be, what? The sixth set of hidden pages?

Take a step back, and think about it — Dougie has only been around for 25 years. That was established in episode four, and exactly why the Black Lodge created this Cooper doppelgänger is a bit of an unknown, but either way… The man has over this period managed to get not one, but two gangs on his back. In addition, Mr. Jackpot Cooper hasn’t made life easier for him with his $400,000+ winnings.

And let’s give the casting of the casino managers a pause and a loving clap. One thing was pulling in Jim Belushi, who does an admirable job, but throwing Robert Knepper into the mix? Inspired. To me, he is a regular Ray Wise, and I’m sure many feel the same. His inclusion was as fitting as it could be.

Meanwhile, learning he owes the mob $50,000, Naomi Watts unceremouniosly and literally kicks Dougie out of a car to get him to work. This is when we start seeing Cooper ever so slowly start waking up. How long until he sheds Dougie? My guess is episode seven. We are seeing Cooper’s basic instincts kicking back in — the sight of a gun, «case files» being mentioned, spotting a lie¹… I suppose it’ll suck for Dougie’s friends and family when he’s gone, but from a story-arc perspective, episode seven would be a perfect place to get some real sembelance of Cooper back.

Dougie’s place of employment is the Lucky 7 insurance company, and… This might just be me, but doesn’t the employees there serve as doppelgängers of Twin Peaks inhabitants? Yes, it’s easy to read too much into these things, but come on! Bob Stephenson’s Frank is a dead ringer for Jaques Renault.

Conversely, does the scene of him drinking tea remind anyone of Angelo Badalamenti spitting out espresso in Mulholland Drive? This is kind of the polar opposite of it.

Elsewhere, in Evil Land, it is becoming increasingly possible that Bob and Cooper are meshing into one being, one that sheds both previous personalities. Proof is Mr. C (as we apparently call him) looking into the mirror, flashback showing how Bob should be showing in the reflection, yet nothing happens. Then the line, «You’re still with me. That’s good.» For how long? Who knows.

We also meet Benjamin Horne’s son, Richard, smoking away, and being as cool as only a Lynch character can be. It doesn’t take long for him to grab a girl and threaten to do all kinds of Bob-like things to her, when it kind of hits… Is this another person possessed by a Black Lodge inhabitant? Is he possessed by Bob? It doesn’t seem impossible, and whatever or whomever he is, Richard seems more Bob-y than Mr. C.

And on that note, let’s end on a…

Bonus fact!

The band playing Bang Bang Bar is Trouble, headed by David Lynch’s son, Riley.

Until next time, you may or may not want to check out the Twin Peaks Rewatch podcast. It’s… well, better than something not good.

¹ Which adds another word to his vocabulary: «liar».