"It's brilliant!" exclaimed Homer Simpson when asked about the show, "But I have absolutely no idea what's going on!". In many ways, it's astounding that Twin Peaks was ever broadcast- this was 1990 and Lynch was attempting avant-garde 'dream sequences'. Dealing with uncomfortable subjects like incest, drugs and murder with a macabre wit and genial tone, Twin Peaks flits between horror and humour with a surrealism that has become the director's calling card. It is far from 'easy viewing', but approach with an open mind and you'll uncover one of the most rewarding series of recent time. Everyone has secrets and even the most pleasant of locales can hide the very darkest of truths.
Twin Peaks doesn't have a central figure or storyline as such, but it underpins it's multitude of characters and plots through a thrilling murder mystery. The intro sequence lulls you into pleasant thoughts: forests, shots of birds in trees, a lumber mill, Angelo Badalamenti's dreamy soundtrack- but not a minute into the pilot episode and high-school kid Laura Palmer (Sheryl Lee)'s naked corpse is discovered floating down a river, wrapped in plastic. Immediately, the cosy veneer is shattered and excusing recent dramas Lost and The Wire, no other TV series was ever so instantly engrossing. The 'whodunnit' moves backwards, allowing us into the lives of all the town's residents as they speculate, gossip and grieve- revealing a web of hedonism, violence and evil.
There's Laura's peers- a group rapt in melodrama and lovesickness. The icy Donna Hayward (Lara Flynn Boyle) and confused boyfriend James Hurley (James Marshall). Laura's ex, Bobby Briggs (Dana Ashbrook) a coke peddling wise-cracker. And the iconic Audrey Horne (Sherilyn Fenn)- a coy but manipulative 'rich girl'. Family lives are explored, as are the business relationships of entrepreneurs Ben Horne (Richard Beymer) and Leland Palmer (Ray Wise), Japanese gansgters and the seedy underworld of casino/brothel 'One Eyed Jacks', run by the shady Renault brothers. But it's FBI Agent Dale Cooper (Kyle MacLachlin)- a quirky, polite but brilliant detective assigned to solving the murder who is the real star of the show. Cooper experiences the world through curiosity and wonder, and is the vehicle through which Lynch can speak his mind.
If these residents of Twin Peaks seem normal enough, there are a wealth of eccentrics and crazies. Deputy Detective Andy Brennan (Harry Goaz) is an endearing simpleton, lumberjack Pete Martell (Jack Nanse) is the softest of old fools, the bizarre Margaret Lanterman (Catherine E Coulson), known as the "Log Lady" for her insistence on carrying a block of lumber in the belief that it talks to her. But for these characters' comic relief- there is a horrifying evil in equal measure. Apparitions terrify through dreams and demons lurk in the recesses of the subconscious. The sight of Bob, a lank-haired demon, hiding behind the Palmer's sofa, is one of the show's most affecting images. As the mystery unravels, Cooper is led to a hellish alter-realm, 'The Black Lodge', a place where demons thrive. It's the stuff of nightmares.
But for it's dark theme and scenes of violence and horror, Twin Peaks maintains a charm throughout. Although it was was cancelled midway through it's second series (forcing the writers to 'wrap it up'), the show was originally intended to play on like a soap. But a third series never materialised and the show ended on the grandest of cliffhangers, leading audiences to ask: what would happen next?
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