Leaving the Red Room

I just finished watching Twin Peaks. This is one of those things that many people had told me about and I've certainly heard of in many cultural references (my favorite being the simpsons) but none of them have ever been able to explain what the appeal was.

Well, I'll tell you.

First, Twin Peaks has a charming and innocent sense of humor about it that made me laugh out loud more than most things on television. Agent Dale Cooper's wide-eyed lovel of the simple things (ie pie and coffee) is the most refreshing thing I can imagine on the screen. It's so genuine, yet so absurd... Taking that quality even farther is Lynch himself, in the role of Agent Gordon Cole - the FBI official whose trade is secrets but, due to a hearing problem, constantly yells everything he says. I was in hysterics every time he came on screen.

I was not expecting this levity to the series, and for me it was what will stick with me most. What I was prepared for, was the abstract and eerie dark side of Twin Peaks - though I don't know if even my preparations steeled me enough. There were some nights where I went to bed fighting thoughts of Bob and what he represents. The unresolved and meandering nature of Twin Peaks would have been immensely frustrating to a weekly viewer.

But ultimately, it is the abstract nature of the show that lets it endure. It's got a mystique that sticks with you. You'll never really understand it, but like all things we don't understand, we are compelled to try to figure it out. If something is easily dealt with, it is easily made safe and forgotten. There is something dangerous about the persistent unknown of Twin Peaks.

I don't yet feel enough distance to comment on what it means to me. The themes of good and evil are in no way limited to lodges of black or white. If you've seen the series, we should chat about it sometime.

- Thank you for reading.