The Good: Weird, Well-written, Well-acted, Well-directed, Everything
The Bad: None (requires some patience, I suppose)
The Basics: When Agent Dale Cooper begins to utilize unorthodox methods in the investigation of the murder of Laura Palmer, Twin Peaks truly begins to become memorable and original and great!
[IMPORTANT NOTE: As I proceed through the episodes of Twin Peaks with reviews, it is absolutely impossible to discuss some of the episodes without revealing some of the surprises I will work hard to keep while reviewing earlier episodes. No matter how careful I am, it is impossible to write about some of the later episodes without letting slip that some of the characters were (ultimately) not the killer of Laura Palmer or killed, etc. I shall do my best to minimize that, but given how serialized Twin Peaks is, it is almost impossible to do even a minimal plot summary without some nuggets slipping out. These reviews may be ideal for fans of the series who are sitting down to watch individual episodes and want to have a guide as to which episode did what, because Twin Peaks episodes do not have names, just episode numbers!]
One of the wonderful things about Twin Peaks that made the short-lived series such an instant hit and a masterpiece that was worth watching was that it was so dramatically different from anything that came before (and mostly, anything that has come since). Despite not having individual episode names and being heavily serialized, the show has become a series of some reputation and renown in the circles of people devoted to paranormal shows, drama, murder mysteries and general science fiction. It was truly a cross genre series and as it progressed, it did not lose that flavor, it expanded on it. The first knock-it-out-of-the-park episode that clearly defined the lengths of surreal and just plain weird that Twin Peaks would go to was "Episode 2," which focuses on the night of the second day after Laura Palmer's body was found and the day after that.
When Benjamin Horne's brother returns from trying to court investors for the Ghostwood project, he and the powerful businessman take off for a bordello on the Canadian border, in pursuit of gambling and sex with barely legal girls. As they frolic, Pete Martell assists Josie Packard in getting access to Catherine's books for the saw mill and she discovers Catherine is keeping two sets of books. Eager to keep her late-husband's mill under her control, Josie becomes convinced Catherine is working against her.
Dale Cooper continues his investigation into the murder of Laura Palmer using one of the most unorthodox detective techniques ever illustrated. Convinced from a dream that the people affiliated with Laura whose names have a "J" in them, Cooper sets up a rock-throwing intuitive arena to try to discover who might have killed Laura. Baffled, but going along with it anyway, Sheriff Truman begins to see the value in it when one of the people he suspects most is implicated by the broken bottle of Cooper's rock throwing experiment. Cooper goes to sleep that night and had a dream of profound significance, one that leads him to become convinced he knows the identity of Laura Palmer's killer!
"Episode 2" is the ultimate vision of what Twin Peaks can be in many ways. It starts off with one of the funniest sequences in the series when Benjamin Horne is visited by his brother. In that sequence, we are introduced to the talented David Patrick Kelley, who plays the younger Horne brother, Jerry. Jerry comes bearing gifts in the form of giant baguettes. What makes the sequence absolutely hilarious is the subtle and very real way that the scene proceeds. Benjamin ignores his wife and two children to focus on absolutely devouring the baguette. In a scene where actor Richard Beymer is forced to stuff inhuman amounts of baguette into his mouth and then talk around it, Beymer succeeds admirably at expressing a new side of Benjamin. Going from ruthless businessman to hedonist on a dime, Beymer makes Benjamin instantly more intriguing and real.
And creepy. The trip up to One-Eyed Jacks - the Canadian casino and bordello - puts Benjamin Horne in the middle of a circle of girls his daughter's age, competing with his brother for which one gets to deflower the new virgin! It is twisted and intriguing and funny in a very black comedy way.
"Episode 2" also progresses the James Hurley and Donna romance and puts Donna Heyward and Audrey Horne in a scene where they begin to realize they are both desperate to solve Laura's murder, but for entirely different reasons. Once more, Audrey dances her hypnotic, swaying dance and intrigues the viewer with the idea that there's some quality to her that has remained untapped that Agent Cooper's presence might be bringing out.
But in true soap opera fashion, Twin Peaks dabbles in the melodrama and the awkwardly over-emotive. In "Episode 2," this takes the form of Nadine Hurley, who has two scenes with her husband, Big Ed. In the first, Ed drips motor oil on her rug and she becomes furious in a way that embodies the anger of the cyclops she alludes to with her prominent eye patch. She is a ball of nagging fury and is difficult to watch. But her next appearance, where she has realized her dream of silent drape runners (yes, this is weird, but definitively Twin Peaks), she is over-the-top loving and truly ecstatic at seeing Ed. It makes for a disconcerting character statement about Nadine and - because we see Big Ed with Norma, who loves him, in between - a profound character statement about Ed's devotion to his promises and his wife.
But this distinctive character work is nowhere near as important as the two most memorable scenes in "Episode 2," which are directly related to the Laura Palmer murder investigation. Taking the staff of the sheriff's department out to a lightly forested field, Cooper explains his love of the nation of Tibet to the Washington State officers. He then proceeds to throw rocks at a bottle after suspects names are spoken aloud in an attempt to intuitively divine who Laura Palmer was referring to with the "J" in her diary. When Cooper begins the exercise, he begins with an explanation that prompts Truman, Deputies Hawk and Andy and the office manager to lean forward intently for his explanation. The audience is so drawn in by the disconcerting mix of reality and dream explanation that we find ourselves leaning forward, eager to hear what comes next as well. And the scene pays off. Indeed, once one sees it, it is hard not to go back and rewatch the scene multiple times.
And "Episode 2" was what video or DVD was made for in its climax. The dream sequence is so laced in metaphor, imagery and foreshadowing that it needs to be rewatched. Indeed, it is a scene that alludes to sequences that recur, are referenced and provide clues that lead up to the revelation of Laura Palmer's murderer as well as the final events of the series finale! That takes vision. It's a disturbing dream sequence that is subtitled for convenience and it is iconic Twin Peaks and represents one of the truest bits of David Lynch's brilliance.
But more than just the imagery, the structure of the dream sequence reveals a profound understanding about how dreams and sleep work. As Cooper descends into the dream state, the images are fractured, as if coming from many sources. Right around when he would enter a deep sleep, his dream becomes consistent and stable as well as profoundly revelatory.
And the further brilliance of "Episode 2" is in the idea that against these scenes of oddity and surrealism comes an exchange of very true and solid reality. Bobby Briggs and Mike have to meet with Leo Johnson over the fact that Laura Palmer died with thousands of dollars of Leo's drug money. This is a harsh scene dripping with the implication of violence and it paints Leo as someone capable of killing, making it an uneasy scene to watch.
"Episode 2" furthers every character in it, but the most profound character revelation is actually the most subtle. While Agent Cooper exposits on his methodology, Sheriff Truman is naturally skeptical. But there comes a moment when Truman pulls Cooper aside and asks him about the exercise and its source. When Cooper informs Truman that it truly did come to him in a dream and that it has - historically - led him well, a looks crosses Truman's face and he suddenly begins to implicitly trust Cooper. It's a subtle moment, but it turns everything and begins to forge an almost unbreakable bond between the two men.
This would not have been possible were it not for the acting talents of Michael Ontkean, who plays Truman. He has the ability - perfectly executed in this episode - to say so much without even speaking and he is amazing at characterizing Truman as an ordinary guy who is willing to accept the extraordinary from someone who is in touch with that sort of thing. Moreover, he plays off Kyle McLachlan great and the two of them have an on-screen chemistry that ought to be "required reading" at the University Of Buddy Relationships (certainly for the majors in "Buddy Comedies" and "Buddy Police Dramas")!
"Episode 2" also contains the first appearance of the surreal dwarf character who appears in Cooper's dreams. I first recognized Michael J. Anderson and his talent in an episode of Star Trek: Deep Space Nine ("If Wishes Were Horses," reviewed here!), where he played Rumplestiltskin. I was thrilled when I saw him in Twin Peaks and based on his performance in "Episode 2" (and actually commentary he did on the DVD release of it) the fact that he was attached to Carnivale made me pick up the first season of that show (reviewed here!). Anderson takes the smallest bit parts and makes them extraordinary and memorable and in this case, he plays a figment who informs Cooper and dances and haunts the viewer long after they have finished the episode.
"Episode 2" is best appreciated by those who have seen the pilot and episode 1, but those who have not will not be entirely lost by seeing just this episode. I don't throw around the word "perfect" too often, but this is a perfect hour of television and one that justifies the effort of tracking it down to see it. This will be enjoyed by anyone who likes drama, crime stories, surrealism, mysteries, comedy and serialized television. In fact, only people who are looking for television for the purest form of lowest common denominator entertainment might not enjoy this.
For the rest of us, it's worth getting some coffee, a slice of pie and sitting down to a damn fine hour of television!
[Knowing that VHS is essentially a dead medium, it's worth looking into Twin Peaks - The Complete First Season on DVD, which is also a better economical choice than buying the VHS. Read my review of the groundbreaking debut season reviewed here!
or check out the entire series, available in the Gold Box Definitive edition, reviewed here!
Thanks!]
For other works featuring Madchen Amick, please check out my reviews of:
Priest
Gilmore Girls - Season 3
Gilmore Girls - Season 2
“The Dauphin” - Star Trek: The Next Generation
10/10
For other television show reviews, please visit my index page by clicking here!
© 2011, 2008 W.L. Swarts. May not be reprinted without permission.
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