A brand new World
The Stars turn/Time Presents Itself
So we begin with those iconic titles which in truth are not that different, just a little more on the epic side. You can see quite early than Lynch has that extra money to play with. Another interesting detail is that we don't get the cast listed on the opening credits, more on this later. The first action we get is actually a repeat of the last scene in the red room from 26 years earlier with Laura telling Cooper I'll see you in 25 years....Damn you SHOWTIME!!
We then get a cool retro scene with Cooper and the Giant in the Red Room. I say retro because it is shot in crackling black and white. The scene shifts and jumps, like a record being played as if what we are seeing is from another time. During this scene we get a shot of some sort old fashioned record player. At which point we get a flashback image of Bob "The Man from the Other Place'.
The first time we see Twin Peaks the town is with an ageing Doctor Jacoby out in a non-specific location outside a trailer and talking to someone else. I will be honest at the time I didn't know it was Jacoby. And it is crucial that the conversation was off in the distance and we it is very hard to make out what is being said.
Lynch then switches to a more contemporary New York setting. Its night time, the camera hovers above a series of sky scrapers. There is a very cold, dead look to the city exteriors. There is little sign of life. Inside a high security building, one of those familiar low pitched hums often heard in Lynch's film work can be heard. A girl called Tracey played by Madeline Zima brings coffee for a smart looking guy. She seems into him, and he likes her, but is distant. He has been told he must guard a box. Back in Twin Peaks we get a cool scene at the Great Northern with Ben, Jerry and Ashley Judd of Double Jeopardy fame. The old charm is there between the brothers, its interesting how Ben used to be such a great sleaze and now is more likeable, maybe because of his partnership with his oddball brother. Ben retains that old sheen, Jerry on the other hand looks like he has been living in the wildness for years. The madcap joke is that they cover up a swear word changing it to "Skunk" in front of the innocent receptionist. Its a classic Twin Peaks comedy moment. More crucial padding comes with the comeback appearance of lovable receptionist nerd Lucy beautifully played by Kimmy Robertson. Her baffled response to the question "Is Sheriff Truman here" is pure joy, and the delivery of her response, "Which one" gives us a dramatic question mark, and of course is classic Lucy. We then get a glorious cut, some bad ass synth music with a thundering drum beat kicks, its the black of night and a car comes screeching into the driveway of a bar. Out steps a mean looking Kyle MacLachlan/Cooper looking like a renegade out of Mad Max, with his leather coat and rough looking features. He walks with a purpose and with pure evil entrenched in his eyes. I think that in this first part of the episode Lynch is highlighting the passing of time since the show last aired, and how the world away from Twin Peaks, both the real world and that within the fictional town has become darker and more sinister. That is why we get the small incidental scenes in the town, yes they may well be building to something, but they are also there to contrast with the colder, darker city scenes. That is part of the power of this darker version of Cooper. In the retro red room of the opening we seem the timeless quality of the original Twin Peaks universe. Lynch I think is interested in how language has been distorted by the modern world and the advancements of technology. The record player in the retro red room is a sign of his fondness for the past, and the switch to New York and the lack of communication between Tracey and the guy shows this too.
Speaking of Tracey and the box guy after a re-run of their earlier scene, this time around they got on a bit better, and they enjoy a cool Lynchian coffee moment! Then just as they are getting intimate they meet a untimely end. It was nice seeing Hawk as the new Sheriff in Twin Peaks, and a nice touch that Margret aka "The Log Lady" is helping him in solving a mystery involving Cooper... This scene was awkward, because Catherine E Coulson who played the Log Lady was so close to passing on as this was being filmed and I think that comes across in her scenes.
Jane Adams of Happiness, Eternal Sunshine and Hung fame and Matthew Lillard of black comedy's such as Dead Man's Curve, Serial Mom and the original Scream movie made the biggest impression of the new cast for me. Adams as the forensics expert investigating the case involving murders, which may or may not have something to do with Tracey and her guy. Adams is a wonderful character actress and I would love her to have a big role moving forward. And Lillard gives probably his best ever performance as a dodgy rich business man who is set up by his sinister wife to serve jail time. This plot seems to have something to do with Dark Cooper.
In classic Lynch fashion we get a number of plots working at the same time at it takes its time. But the vision is there, and it is building to something big. The stuff with in the lodge with good Cooper who finds out from the One Arm Man and his a talking arm tree, that the evil Cooper is his doppleganger and that Bob has taken the form of evil Cooper. More importantly Cooper is told that he cannot leave the lodge until his double returns. The talking arm to me was just a classic monster effect which was a nod to Lynch's roots as an art student back when he had hardly any money, or his first feature Eraserhead. Whatever it is a freaky WTF moment like only this director can do. There is some surreal fun in the Red Room sequences, such as Cooper's conversation with Laura, who is unclear on just who she is meant to represent. Meanwhile, Dark Cooper/Bob is bad, and boy is he brutal. The scene where he disposes of the woman who has betrayed him is very chilling. As part of the on going mystery the dark half of Cooper starts researching Philip Jefferies who was a unstable FBI agent played by David Bowie in the movie Fire Walk With Me. The Jefferies side of things is one of the rare things that didn't work for me in FWWM, but then it was all a bit random and not given space to breath. This has me intrigued. This development sends things delightfully ape shit in red room, and suddenly Cooper the good version comes crashing back to earth, landing on the glass roof of the building in New York. He floats there, and we get a shot of the young lovers from before. So are they really dead or not, you tell me... This and the ending gives us just a little taste of the old Twin Peaks. The ending itself feels like a classic moment but with an update added to it. We Shelly and James in the bar, and they share a moment through a look, but there seems to be another guy in Shelly's life. With the Chromatics playing a powerfully lush, dreamy number live in the club, this is kinda a up lifting statement of intent,but with that slight twist of mystery, and uncertainty hanging in the air. Whatever, its a pure and cinematic final note of an intriguing opening. As always it seems like music will play a important role in this universe. Another twist was how they had the cast credits play out over the end with the band playing. It was such a cool trip to end. Like classic Lynch there are plenty of questions, and it has more psyched for more.
Episode MVP - Dark Cooper/Bob
This was Cooper and MacLachlan like we've never seen them before. Part of the beauty of the character originally was how it took the blank slate which was MacLachlan and placed this quirky twist on the naturally deadness, making it funny, in an oddball persona. Because of his polished looks, and dark broody eyes, MacLachlan makes for a natural villain, and here it is taken to a wicked extreme. MacLachlan steps up to the plate and is just unforgettable. Another distinct Lynch villain.
Verdict
Without the old network television restrictions Lynch has free reign to experiment, and to match his dark vision from his films. Much of this opening double episode was very subtle, with the director playing on the power of suggestion, and again using visual metaphors to slowing build his world from the ground up. Once again we see why Lynch is one of the best horror directors, never to officially be a horror director. The way this played out suggests that what we are going to get over the next 18 episodes is like 18 mini-Lynch movies which just happened to be part of the mystery of Twin Peaks. It is for hardcore Lynch fans, I'd say, at least in this opening episode. It has all the classic Lynch elements, but feels like a bold new chapter of Twin Peaks. There are some playful little slices of TP, but they are all part of whole new universe and mystery. There some promising new characters, we still have plenty to come and we've barely touched upon the old characters. I am keen to spend some more time with Ben and Jerry. I need to find out just who this other other Truman is. I've always had a soft spot for Shelley and hope she plays a strong role in this new series, and of course there is one of the great ever television characters in Audrey Horne yet to grace us. Sherilyn Fenn has never shined more on screen, and doesn't have to worry about escaping Audrey's shadow, at least not for awhile. Sunday night's/Monday mornings may never be the same again...
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IGUboLZx3Tk
