Good, because we’ve got some.
The storytelling roamed a spectrum of pitched, singular tones with striking emotional impact.
There were also many deadpan jokes about donuts.
Credit: ABC Photo Archives/ABC via Getty Images
One mood ruled them all.
Lynch’s favorite mood: mystery.
The tagline of the ad campaign that launched the show was “Who Killed Laura Palmer?”
Lynch’s mesmerizing artistry captured our imagination for the question.
We watched for the answer.
We even tried to solve it.
I treated the story like a crime scene.
I actually took notes during the pilot.
Maybe I should have served snacks.
Twin Peakswas a phenomenon of bygone TV era.
What I would have given back for an immediate Q&A with Lynch to explain my #DancingGuyRedRoomDoppelgangerWTF?
But there were online services back in 1990.
And there were “bulletin boards” where the curious and perplexed gathered to debate and speculate.
Lynch can attest to this.
He’ll also tell you he loved it.
There were no pictures, there was just typing," he says.
“And the papers they showed me, it was just people talking about the show.
It was a beautiful thing.”
Today, cultural conversation about television is as voluminous and instantaneous as TV itself, if not more so.
We even have pictures!
With podcasts, the TV talkback industrial complex has entered the talkie era.
Coming soon to EW.com: James Hibberd’s Smell-o-Vision VR recaps ofGame of Thrones.
Can’t wait to get a deep whiff of The Hound!
But not all analysis is equal.
Last year was a banner year for theorizing, with shows like Mr.
Robot andWestworldinspiring their viewers to obsessive forensic engagement.
I believe another word for this is “hypocritical.”
My attitudes tend to shift when I’m under the influence of some intoxicating mystery.
Doc Jensen emerges, more drunk nerd-clown than detective.
How do I do that?
Should I take that posture with any story?
Are you actually encouraging me to be a couch potato?
Playing detective with mystery fiction is part of the enjoyment of the genre.
Just as romance fans ship, mystery nerds theorize.
(Yes, I consider fandom an improvable discipline.)
And theories that are wrong?
(“It could be,” he says coyly.)
It’s a surface thing.
You watch it, bang, you’ve got it.
Then there are other shows where there might be things to wonder about."
“This whole thing of leading people astray is interesting,” he says.
“But I always say, we all see something different in a story, and I love that.
If things like this happen withTwin Peaks, it’s a great thing.”
“Some people don’t like not knowing things.
They like a concrete thing, something that is what it is,” he says.
“Other people love room to dream.
They don’t mind getting lost in a mystery.
It makes them think and feel, and this is a beautiful thing.”
We at EW think talking, wondering, and theorizing aboutTwin Peaksis a beautiful thing, too.
(Listen to the first episode, above).
If you have theories, tweet us at@EWDocJensenand@DarrenFranich, or email us attwinpeaks@ew.com.
We look forward to taking the journey with you.
