Twin Peaks - Like Mother, Like Daughter

I got the “gold edition” of Twin Peaks for Father’s Day and I have been revisiting the first season, finishing the third episode tonight (where we enter the Black Lodge, meeting Michael Anderson’s “man from another place”, his “cousin” who is identical to Laura Palmer, and Phillip Michael Gerard, “Mike”, the “One-Armed Man” as Cooper sees them and Bob (who says he’ll kill again) in visions). I never spend too much time theorizing. I’ll leave much of that to the experts. I saw on Reddit the other day that there are fans even putting together these diagram charts linking characters and subplots. A LOT of extensive time and effort that I respect—mad props to such work—but couldn’t even imagine attempting that. I don’t try to obsess too much on every detail. I do take it all in. The third season I’ve been watching each episode at least three times. Not because I just gotta make sure I catch every single thing or else but just because I have enjoyed Lynch’s mad vision. It is fun to read the different articles that scrutinize and praise everything from individual scenes to wardrobe. Yes, I just noticed an article on what Laura Dern was wearing in the character of Diane. That and just everything about Diane’s experience with Cooper (both Coopers). This new season of Twin Peaks has turned out even better than I could have imagined because his work gets people to talking, to thinking. Anyway, the third episode had Cooper using a Tibetan technique in order to develop a lead towards who might have killed Laura Palmer. The vision of the Black Lodge at the end left a nice hook for the next episode as Cooper had told Sheriff Truman he knew who killed Laura. Tossing rocks at a glass bottle with help from Truman, Hawk, Lucy, and Andy in determining who might have been Laura’s killer. Characters with the name starting with “J”, chalked on a blackboard, eventually breaking the glass when Leo’s name is mentioned. So there’s that.

Rambling and pointless my scribbling can be. In the second and third episodes Shelley Johnson (Mädchen Amick) absorbs abuse from her wretched trucker husband Leo (Eric DaRe). She’s also seeing rotter Bobby Briggs (Dana Ashbrook). It’s the old expression, isn’t it? “She sure knows how to pick ‘em.” But these early episodes provide insight that ties to 25 years later as an older and wiser Shelley sees her daughter fallen in the same trap. Borrowing money from her mama, guest-starring Amanda Seyfried has found herself in with some dopehead. This dopehead is shown a bit earlier from that point trying to get a job, failing miserably after his resume left much to be desired (his interview goes awry in the worst possible way as the potential boss crucifies his resume). He needs her to go to mother for some free cash (they’re good for it…riiiiiiight) and Seyfried gets to nose some coke for that euphoric high. Leaving the diner, Shelley looks on knowing what it is like to latch on to that albatross, hands to shoulders and a sigh of understanding that her daughter will make her mistakes and hopefully live through them as well.