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Last Week In Twin Peaks Podcasts, Week of August 6th to August 12th

Part 13 seems to course-correct the issues people had with Part 12, and had much more to enjoy though the Roadhouse scene with THE James Hurley confounded us as much as ever.

You’re going to see new names in parentheses after a number of write-ups this week, and they’re names you’ll see regularly from now on because they’re the new team. I’ve gotten a team together starting this week to help out with our podcast coverage at 25YL, so next week we’ll finally be totally caught up. But this week had a ton of infrastructure and scheduling behind the scenes, so I’m still just as behind as last week.  If your show isn’t in here this week, it will be next week.

On To The Podcasts:

There Will Be Drinking Recaps Twin Peaks’ Cait & Murda – whose names sound like an awesome 80’s cop show – have a special guest for their coverage of Part 12: Chad.No, not that Chad sadly. They agree that Sarah Palmer is pretty weird, and there is confusion over the Fat Trout trailer park’s shifting location. Chad considers the Palmer house ceiling fan to be a portal, which is interesting, but not a theory I agree with [but I do – JB]. Cait makes a plea to the community for Coop and Truman romantic fanfic and they ponder if Hutch put his sniper rifle away while at the Wendy’s drive-thru. They make general fun of the Audrey scene and how really sleepy Charlie is, and assume the scene where Diane looks up the coordinates means that everyone is now going to converge on Twin Peaks for the final battle, but it just turns out to be a big surprise party for Mr C. As usual there is a lot of drunken hilarity, filth and laughsnorting interspersed throughout. (Matt Armitage)

How’s Annie covered Part Eleven with a traditional scene-by-scene recap focusing a lot on the Briggs family. They were thrilled by the scenes confirming Bobby and Shelly were married and that Becky is their daughter, but feel the way things are between them all today was heartbreaking—especially Bobby’s reaction to Shelly running off to be with Red. Bobby’s character development (and Dana Ashbrook’s performance) was a high point for them. They are also impressed with how Becky’s character seems a perfect mix of Shelly and Bobby’s character, noting that Becky’s anger reminds them of Bobby’s outbursts (ex. the jail cell barking) in the original series. They note that The Return still has many of the soap opera elements of the original series in terms of relationship drama, and that coexists with the supernatural elements such as the vomiting girl in the car (who reminds them of the girl who swallowed the frogbug in Pt. 8). But there are also still forces of good that serve as protectors of the town like Carl and the other Bookhouse Boys as well as Margaret Lanterman. They have come to love the Mitchum Brothers and Candie. The ending with DougieCoop and the cherry pie was another high point of the Part. They note that DougieCoop seems to bring joy and luck to everyone he meets (ex. Mr. Jackpots lady, Mitchums, Janey-E & Sonny Jim). They continue to wonder about Diane’s motivations, especially given her non-reaction to seeing the Woodsman kill Bill Hastings, and suggest that maybe she is working with Jeffries. They compared Miriam in the hospital bed and Ronette Pulaski, who also barely survived her attack. They note that the scene with the young boy shooting into the Double R and his near-identical father is an interesting commentary on American gun culture. (Ali Sciarabba)

Sparkwood & 21 covered Part Thirteen, beginning with all the 2’s littering the scene in Bushnell Mullins office with the Mitchums. Candie’s joy is infectious, the 8-bit casino music worked, and Dougie appears to be the equivalence of a Buddha Belly. The hosts equate Sonny Jim with the jumping boy in Fire Walk With Me, note skepticism followed with being really into the arm wrestling scene, and feel time is proven to be shown out of order. Richard Horne was probably reacting to the fact DoppelCooper makes Red seem like a low level chump, and the Fusco’s turn Cooper’s info into a small bet somehow instead of plot furtherance. The hosts wonder if Dougie was mimicking piano playing on the dandruff though they settle on it reminding CooperDougie of the starfield he fell through in Part Three. They note how Anthony’s more scared of the cops than Mr. Todd, how the boxing loop in the Palmer house is always the knockout blow, and that Audrey may be suffering from brain damage. No one else besides Nadine from the OG characters seems to be doing too well. Their follow-up listener feedback episode has literally every theory I’ve heard relating to the Part and it is amazing to behold. This kind of density never happens so it’s remarkable on a number of levels, not to mention it’s so easy and fun to listen to, not to mention it exists at all. Try this one out for sure.

In Fire Talk With Me‘s coverage of Part 12, hosts Jeremy Smith and Allie Goertz weighed in on the general expectations and frustrations with the episode, ranging through the hype created with Audrey’s supposed and long waited return to the future implications created by the new mysteries introduced in this installment. Allie brings up Diane’s motivations and alliegance in their discussion about the FBI team scene, something that still sits in a grey area even with Albert’s and Gordon’s decision to deputise her. They note that maybe something bad is coming for Jerry Horne, who seem very disturbed by whatever he went through in the woods. Sarah Palmer’s grocery store meltdown must have had something to do with the turkey jerkeys brand logo in their opinion, as they note that the symbol strongly resembles the experiment’s (or mother’s) head shape and that the name Albatross could have some symbolic reverberations. Jeremy also associates the fan in Sarah’s house with her powerlessness with everything that happened in her life so far.
Talking about Carl’s interaction about blood-selling with his neighbour they underline that he is one of the only character who seems to be in a good place in life, in contrast with the others. Jeremy blows Allie’s mind by pointing out that next to Miriam’s sick bed lays a bouquet of blue roses. The hosts highlight Bérénice Marlohe quiet, yet hilarious performance as Gordon Cole’s french companion. Dr. Amp’s reused rant scene reinforces their belief in repetition and time as one of the season’s most prominent themes, which ties into their take about Audrey’s first scene: a anticlimactic moment that makes a lot of sense in the framework created so far in The Return. Even though they can’t keep up with every new name mentioned by Audrey, Charlie and the girls at the Roadhouse, they think this is an exemplification of the madness taking control of the town, and make a connection between Sky Ferreira’s part 9 character being a waitress to the spreading of a disease and the vomiting girl in part 11. (Maicon Firmiano)

The Lodgers’ Part Eleven podcast finds them joined by Joel Bocko, creator of the Lost in the Movies website and all-round Twin Peaks guru. Joel expresses how amazing it is just to have so much new Lynch-directed material, but is agnostic so far on how The Return is expanding the Twin Peaks story. The hosts thought the episode had really strong momentum from the off, and was pretty intense, at least for the first half hour. Kate also found the episode one of the funniest. There’s a lot of praise for Dana Ashbrook’s performance, and Joel mentions that the Briggs family scenes had a personal melodrama that has been lacking in The Return but was quite central in the original. They also see a common thread in the episode of inter-generational patterns and reflections. There is general bafflement over ‘melting zombie kid’ but they were pretty happy that it happened anyway. Simon and Joel have warmed somewhat to Tammy  – but not due to acting ability – enjoying the oddness of her presence in the dysfunctional FBI Scooby gang that is Cole, Albert and Diane. Belushi gets a shout-out for his portrayal of Bradley’s urgent impatience to kill DougieCoop, and everyone is in love with Amy Shiels’ character and performance. There’s a general discussion regarding DougieCoop, fan impatience and how Coop would have changed anyway over so much time, so the desire to have ‘old’ Coop back is somewhat unrealistic. It’s a good point, but there’s a large disparity between wanting an older, maybe less naive but still obviously ‘our’ Coop back and the fumbling, shuffling naif that is currently DougieCoop.  An interesting chat follows about the editing of Lynch’s movies and how The Return doesn’t seem to have the dreamy qualities of earlier work, especially those edited by Mary Sweeney, Lynch’s long-time collaborator and partner. For their Part 12 discussion The Lodgers are joined by Glenn Kenny, film writer and critic, who admits he hasn’t really been watching The Return critically but simply enjoying absorbing the atmosphere. They discuss the pre-broadcast hype of this episode, and the naming of the part ‘Let’s Rock’ by Showtime, considering it akin to trolling, and declare the episode one of the most frustrating. They see the Audrey scene as something of a return to the absurdist soap opera conventions of the original run which hasn’t been prevalent in The Return, and think that Lynch is pointing something out with this scene, but they aren’t exactly sure what. The French woman scene confirms for Kate that Lynch is deliberately using The Return and Cole to discuss the role of women in cinema, and Lynch’s own reputation regarding women. Cue an absorbing discussion I won’t attempt to summarize. They are delighted with Richard Beymer’s scenes and amount of screen time, want to give an award to Grace Zabriskie for being both sad and terrifying, and consider The Return somewhat bleak, but more hopeful and relatable than the extreme abstract expressionist point on the Lynch spectrum that is Inland Empire.  (Matt Armitage)

Chopping Wood Inside began the week with a Part 13 Preview show. For Tom, the two most compelling scenes were the Sarah Palmer scenes and he and Murphy spend a while discussing those scenes.  They propose the idea that Diane could have been involved in the manufacturing of Dougie Jones, because she is clued in to the Woodsmen, Las Vegas, and other things that she seems to not just be finding out.  They also bring up a viewer theory that Diane and Albert could be working together to flush out Gordon as a double agent.  Murphy drops a Grease reference, wondering if Darya, Gersten Hayward and others are forming a Twin Peaks “Pink Ladies” gang, with their matching pink jackets. (Brien Allen)  They covered Part Thirteen first pointing out the resonance of “It’s no good eating alone.” They question Mullins’ illegal payoffs, note the plainness of the Las Vegas insurance plot and the magical nature of the gym set, shared their thoughts on Jeffries and the Dutchman, and talk about the mechanics of Ray being absorbed into the lodge (and that Parsons must be there as well) as well as mentioning it’s a big fuck-you message from DoppelCooper to Phillip Gerard. They think Richard Horne has a “father?” vibe in the Farm, that the Fusco’s Cooper trash can toss is a laugh out loud joke, and Anthony’s poison acquisition is a time-weird moment. The dandruff on the coat = a star field, they loved Nadine since the original, the shovels MAY actually BE important after all, what story WOULD Charlie end, and Ed burning that paper adds to the emotion of where we’re at.
Twin Peaks Peeks covered Parts 12 and 13 in separate podcasts. In Part 12, they’re not ready to see Audrey anymore after a scene that heavily implies she’s in a coma. There’s an upset car honking in the background as the hosts voice frustration over the French girl scene, and they talk about Lynch and Frost’s responsibility in casting the particular newcomer to acting in the pivotal role of Tammy rather than blaming Bell for any inexperience issues, and then they tackle what is and isn’t weaponized feminism. They wonder if Sarah’s having psychic premonitions or a human-level breakdown, and credit the character for never apologizing for her state. Harry’s absence is hugely important. Audrey’s intro is one-note and actively playing with our expectations, wanted more ability to display Sherilyn Fenn’s abilities, and there’s a hysterical tangent Matt goes on involving Mr. Todd and Hutch and Chantal pulling up at the same time to the same Wendy’s drive-thru and the killers have to deliberate whether to do their job or to eat and the DRAMA therein would be intense. In Part Thirteen, the hosts note the large amount of movement here beginning with that delightful conga line. The gym set scene was half Vegas showmanship and half nostalgia like the Horne brothers flashlight scene. Chris Pine could’ve been Red. They think we need a scene with Albert explaining to Janey-E that “he looks like your husband but he’s not your husband.” Starting position is the line for the whole show. Dougie is a passive force and DoppelCooper changes reality around him. Walter is with Norma so Drape Runner Corner is a safe segment! Except that OTP is in trouble because of star-crossed Nadine and Jacoby. Donna officially exists thanks to a picture in the Palmer living room, and the Audrey scene seems to operate on dream logic. The hosts say the show gets metatextual when existentialism is brought to it and brings our attention to the fact that we’re watching something. Or it could be about the stories we tell ourselves. Audrey needed to create her story in season one, so “reclaim your agency, Audrey!” The overblown James announcement was mostly successful though the hosts not liking it. “The show did that to us.” They end by going through the large list of open plots waiting for answers.
Counter Esperanto released their Episode No. 17 – The 12th Secret (parts 9 – 12). They discuss The Woodsman, including drawing parallels to the UFO phenomenon Men in Black.  This is, by their own admission, a pretty random episode. They have starting off points of Audrey scene, and Hawks living map, but those take them down tangent says far as nuclear testing and Lynch’s control over the series.  The Briggs family scene leads to a discussion of temporal dislocation, where they point out that the purposeful removal of time markers could be to make the editing process easier, or more likely to give a sense of being out of time.  As always, their take on events is on another level, bringing in some of the possible influences on Frost and Lynch that add to our viewing of the show. (Brien Allen)

The Gifted and The Damned covered Part Thirteen after they went through their normal reviews section. The hosts want characters with a story and active wants (a post by Joel Bocko got them thinking along this line). Pete was never this kind of Active character, Leland wasn’t in season one either, and most of the characters in the Return are also light in active wants. The hosts don’t think there’s a reason to invest in Norma’s new man Walter, Audrey was frustrated but more vulnerable (a good thing), and they and Renee enjoyed James singing because happy moments between characters is welcome. the Big Ed eating scene would be a sweeping scene except it’s Big Ed. The arm wrestling setup was silly but became damn compelling, they wish Anthony would’ve changed more or earlier, and the hosts agree unpredictability doesn’t necessarily give an audience something to enjoy. That spotlight on Sonny Jim’s gym is OMINOUS.

Damn Fine Podcast covered Part 13 with Corinna Bechko (who was a high schooler and fan when Twin Peaks aired). She was initially dissatisfied with the Audrey scene but now she’s willing to see where it’s going. After all, she likes Dougie now (and Tom is still going through the seven stages of acceptance with him). They celebrate this Part as the return of the Hurleys, think the original version of Just You and I was used and remixed for the Roadhouse scene, and that Walter kissing Norma was heartbreaking because that means nothing’s happening with sad lonely Big Ed. The Boxing event was looping like “This is the water, this is the well,” and may possibly be Bushnell? They don’t know if Sarah knows the TV is in a loop, happy that Norma franchised but sad her ingredients quality may be leveraged, debated whether Bob was in DoppelCooper giving him super strength, wondered if Richard Horne is the diseased corn, and noticed the lodgelike spotlight on the gym set and the jumping man style of Sonny Jim. They noted Dougie’s redemption of Anthony in the list of things proving Dougie is a force for good, and think that Audrey scenes are likely in her head. Rather than time travel etc, the host think scenes are merely asynchronous. And they warn of previous ratings battles recurring: Carol Burnett has a new project greenlit by Netflix.

Formica Table covered Part Twelve but could have been watching Game of Thrones. They found the Part was a stopgap episode rather than filler, but the final third of the episode soured them on the whole thing. The Part deepened mythology but was equally frustrating. Sarah’s expression of extended trauma was masterful, Carl Rodd’s revision in the Return makes him feel white lodgy, the hosts have mostly made peace with Tammy, and it would’ve been equally interesting if Bob had taken Sarah rather than Leland. They care about Marian because they’re on the hunt for people to care about, feel that Diane was introduced as an audience surrogate but she’s just a plot character now, this Part was full of people in rooms sharing information, and they’re convinced the French girl scene is pure filler.

Afterbuzz’s Twin Peaks After Show covered Part Thirteen and pointed out the Sonny Jim and Dougie playing catch was probably out of order, while Sonny Jim goes through the gym in a cycle like a current. They knew DoppelCooper was going to win at arm wrestling but not to what degree, coffee and pie was a theme this week, Dougie’s massage triggered Anthony, and they remind us Nadine’s high school fantasy was supported so why wouldn’t Audrey’s if she’s going through mental problems. They were positive towards Just You and I being included, noticed Renee’s number tattoo while her crying reminded them of Laura Palmer, and wondered if Big Ed burned a note he was going to give to Norma. And one host is still convinced aliens are part of this.

Diane covered Part 13 and noticed Dougie’s redeemed the whole town. The conga line’s officially turned the Mitchums into the Hornes, the gym set proves we’re officially seeing things out of time, and Anthony gets his poison from a “perfectly awful Charles Bronson ‘stache bad cop.” They equate Anthony’s dandruff with white powder and therefore sparkle while Dougie accidentally unlocks an energy point in Anthony leading to a payoff of genuine sincerity. They note the difference between Dougie (receptivity and negative space) and DoppelCooper (will in action, he breaks reality around himself constantly). They assume the Montana farm is where the sparkle is, explain how if you follow mood and symbols (rather than time) you can follow what the show is doing. Literally, Jacoby is right as Walter the businessman is turning Norma’s pie to shit, Jacoby/Nadine are worth shipping, poor Big Ed is still fantastic, and violence is literally on a loop in the Palmer House. Audrey is Snow White asleep and lost in the woods, Big Ed’s reflection is hard to tell if it was done on purpose or if they left it in on purpose, and characters are stuck in deranged patterns while James sings that song from long ago. The gas farm has never looked more like the convenience store. The station feels unsafe and DoppelCooper will be coming from the road.

The Brad Dukes Show covered Parts 11 and 12 in a single podcast with guest Irina Schaffer, who was at Twin Peaks Fest last week same as Brad. Bobby, Shelly and Becky are reminiscent of the Briggs family in Season One, during the Becky gun scene Stephen is holding a flash drive, Diane isn’t what she seems nor evil, the fingerprints of the Fuscos will hit on Dale, and the host watched those Sarah Palmer scenes in the Palmer house during Twin Peaks Fest. That had to be surreal. The Warden Murphy scene missed its mark, they don’t want any more Dr. Amp commercials, and Audrey is likely in a therapy session which is a logical enough future for a spoiled rich girl who got into her own mysteries. Despite having issues with the Return, they know they live in special times.

Drink Full and Descend covered Parts 12 and 13 in two separate podcasts. Part 12 plays with frustration, is the lull before the climax. The hosts talked through the problem of Jeffries selecting Cooper for the Blue Rose task force when Cooper had never met Jeffries before. The scene where they deputize Diane and toast is all about allegiances,  since Frank’s aware that means Chad stole the wrong letter, and the hosts wonder who actually raised Richard Horne. There are cheesy jokes in the French girl scene but then it may get meta and Lynch worries about Ferrer. After the repetitions maybe we’re supposed to feel that the Dr. Amp rhetoric isn’t going to fix anything, and then Audrey’s just there in a scene. The hosts try to link all the names in the Audrey scene, wonder if the fabric of reality rules are breaking down, and they think even the chords of the Chromatics song is probably referencing something because Twin Peaks is that kind of show.  Part 13 shuts up a lot of complaints others had with the previous Part. Sonny Jim’s Gym is one big loop and Swan Lake is in thematic line with all the lodge stuff. The burner phones make the hosts wonder if Diane knows who’s texting her, the mechanics of the owl ring are noted, it’s crazy that the Fuscos get genuine Cooper info and turn it into a $1 make-a-basket bet, and Todd (and therefore DoppelCooper) is working closely with Las Vegas cops. No indications of lodge assistance with the dandruff scene, the Becky/Shelly scene’s probably happened out of chronological order, Bushnell seems to have a master plan, and Bobby’s usual at the RR is spaghetti (so my boys have something to talk with him about). Dr. Amp’s comment about poisoned food continues to be relevant as Norma’s pie recipe is under assault from The Man, as well as Norma being had by another smooth talker, and it was noted that Norma and Ed together was subverted immediately after we saw them. The actual accidental connection between Jacoby and Nadine was great, and Nadine enlisting as his shoveling soldier makes conflict and showdown implied at every show level. Sarah’s always watching violent competition, the Palmer house is haunted, and maybe there was a real time loop in the Hawk/Sarah scene and it was actually Sarah in the kitchen moving those bottles around. Are Sylvia and Johnny living in Ghostwood Estates? Charlie’s to mean to be a psychologist and the Audrey scene is too complicated and interesting than “she’s just in a coma” though the key to unlock it isn’t here yet. The music in the Roadhouse seems to have magical properties, Sarah and Big Ed are eating yellow food as they suffer, and might the gas station be the convenience store without Ed knowing? Between the mill burning, Sam Lanterman’s death, all that gasoline, there’s so much to imply combustion around Ed as he lights that paper in the credits.

The Bicks of Bickering Peaks begin their coverage of Part 13 with Mrs Bick serenading a horrified Mr Bick with a rendition of ‘Just You’, neatly encapsulating the complex mirrored emotions that James causes in viewers when he gets his croon on. Something about the Sonny Jim gym-set scene troubles them: the spotlight, the swan lake music, and they think it might be a portent for things to come. They note that Mr C’s behaviour and speech is very simplistic, like Dougie’s, and suggest it could be that losing BOB has left him somewhat empty, but then decide he has always had very basic behaviour, and that he and Dougie are definitely both missing something vital. Richard turning up at the gang HQ and how he behaves when he sees Mr C on the screen has made them 90% certain that he is Mr C’s son. They note that Janey-E is obviously quite materialistic given how delighted she is now she has the new car and money in the bank, although personally I think the change happened after she rocked Dougie’s world – she was still pretty grumpy before that, despite the massive influx of cash. They note that Dougie is hugely affecting people’s lives –akin to an angel– without really doing anything at least consciously, and that this is a fascinating approach to the portrayal of a hero figure. The Shelley and Becky scene provokes a discussion around scenes being shown out of order. Lindsay thinks the non-linear sequencing will be vitally important to the plot, but Aidan is more of a mind that it’s a stylistic device. There is righteous sorrow that Ed and Norma aren’t together and some suspicion from Lindsay that Dr Jacoby’s show might be some kind of unconventional therapy device, which Aidan disagrees with. They contemplate that Sarah is in some kind of liminal space, being affected by some kind of lodginess leaking from the house, but suspect this is something that will become clearer as the show progresses. The ‘end your story’ line in the Audrey scene along with her mention of ‘Ghostwood’ leads them to surmise that Audrey may indeed be in a coma, or in a dream state, trapped in the Lodge. They love James singing in the roadhouse, but are aware that it may also be a trolling from Lynch & Frost to further educate the fans as to how cool James actually is. They are concerned about Ed playing with fire and that his reflection is doing different stuff to him, obviously he is infected by black lodge gasoline. (Matt Armitage)

EW’s A Twin Peaks Podcast covered Part 13. Jensen and Franich considered last week’s part their least favorite, but consider Part 13 a major comeback and one of their favorites–“like getting the world’s most gentlest massage on dandruff covered shoulders.” Never did they think to have a Jessica Szohr close-up (watching James sing) be one of the series’ highlights. It’s clear now the show is self aware of its own mortality, with characters’ feeling the same sense of “unsettled-ness,” most notably Audrey. “We’ve been adrift in this symphony with lots of different instruments playing, and suddenly there is a taiko drum on a carriage slowly entering the auditorium.” Charlie literally said last week “I don’t have a crystal ball” with a crystal ball sitting in front of him. The Farm finally brought us an appearance of Western Montana, and with it a “fincher-esque…Project Mayhem” esque squad reminding them of New York’s watching of the glass box with The Experiment coming out to kill everyone. Mr. C’s treatment of the gang is like that of Lynch’s mastery of filmmaking. It starts farcical, slow burn, playing with them, and then all of the sudden SMASH all of our expectations are met and exceeded simultaneously. Why does he need those cell phones? Is Ray staying out of jail or out of the Black Lodge? Is Ray a doppelgänger? Are there lots of doppelgängers running around, is the farm a hub? Laura avoided BOB’s possession, but was doomed to live in the Red Room forever…so is Ray getting the same? Is Dougie different, a “golden floating orb” inside? Did the ring returning via Ray not Mr. C just reset the game? Does Ray know BOB no longer lives inside of Mr. C? What else would “they” want inside of him? Did Mr. C and Richard Horne connect through the TV? The spotlight on the playground was quite unsettling, as it recalled BOB killing Maddie, which would also occur later in the episode when James Hurley sings. Lots of characters stuck in a moment, most notably Audrey and Sarah Palmer. What is Audrey’s reality? Is Sarah experiencing something supernatural? Time is non-linear. Bobby says “today” referring to a few episodes ago, and RR is at night again, clearly different night than the gunshot incident. Becky calls her mom seemingly before Stephen had run off with Gersten. Sarah purchased a lot of vodka last episode, but is out now. Is the entire show a living breathing emotional consciousness inching us toward a psychic break? Lynch felt he sold out on Dune, and this episode reflected versions of that experience through Norma, Dr. Jacoby, and James Hurley. Artists did a thing in the past that works really well, but are now doing it in a way that is less true and beautiful than before. Norma moving more people w her pies but they’re not really hers. Nadine moved by Dr. Amp, but does he buy into his own shit? Renee moved by James’ song, but does she know the true context of it? None understand what the artist is doing but connect nonetheless. What does this say about the nature of art, the artist and its consumer? What does “end your story” mean and what other stories has Charlie ended? Can anyone explain the ring? (Sean Glass)

Who Killed Laura Podcast covered Parts 12 and 13 in two separate podcasts.
Existentialism 101, this Part is a basic course in it. They’re doing a Blue Rose Task Force T-Shirt giveaway. If Bushnell is such a man of integrity, why is he accepting these gifts? Returning the ring is one step toward returning balance. What do Norma’s alternative backgrounds contrasted between S2, S3 and the book mean?  Does Sarah Palmer watching this boxing match on loop represent that she is the only one not caught in a time loop, while everyone else in Twin Peaks is? Is Audrey a multiple personality disorder case? The pacing of Game of Thrones, which needs to wrap up a tremendous amount of story in its final season, leads to exciting episodes but quick dealings with events we’d otherwise love to spend more time on. Will this happen in the final episodes of Twin Peaks? Will we get enough time for resolution? The Blue Rose Task Force. The opening confirms a lot of what we already knew, that the Blue Rose Task Force was created to work in secret around the other secret Project Blue Book task force. They did not mention this to Diane. The hotel room has red drapes, quite abnormal. Lynch has written himself the best character on the show, and done right by it with his performance as Gordon Cole. Sarah Palmer lives where nobody will ever forget what her husband did, nor what happened to her daughter. Lynch and Frost have changed characters like Carl Rodd and Ben Horne, is this due to them thinking more highly of them over the years, or are they writing them to have become more altruistic over the years? Rodd was confirmed by Frost on Twitter to be an original Bookhouse Boy. Bookhouse Boys and Blue Rose Task Force are similar, with Bookhouse Boys “there to protect against something happening in the woods.” Ben Horne seems to be respected by the law, whereas the past seasons he wouldn’t have been, must have improved himself. Ben is regretfully contrasting his paternal relationship with Richard’s lack thereof. Ben has become altruistic in his older age, but is Audrey, now same age as Ben would have been in original, going dark? Or is did she awake from a coma different? Is Charlie a reporter? What’s all this work he has to do? Some characters want to move things along, but is Lynch giving us a meditation on slowing down into the moment? The Wendy’s scene exhibits their clear lack of concern for human life. Diane had a mnemonic device to remember coordinates, which lead to Twin Peaks. In Twin Peaks, women are beautiful and men less so. With all of these character threads opening, especially from the Roadhouse, will they get resolved? Are they important? Will they star in Twin Peaks: The Next Generation? (Sean Glass)
Twin Peaks The Return continues to be an engaging listen with really insightful theorising and unpacking of the episodes with two extremely personable hosts and consistently great guests. They Covered Part 13 with guest and film critic Sarah Ward who noted that she is going to be heartbroken when the run of The Return ends in 5 episodes time but until then she has been avoiding all discussion and meta and trying to absorb the show as is. Andy noted that the conga line at Lucky 7 was an odd tonal shift for The Return but that it would have fit perfectly with Season 2. The team very much enjoyed Tom Sizemore’s performance as Anthony, particularly when he broke down crying with Dougie Coop and Andy wondered if the dandruff looked like the stars that Cooper fell through in Part 2/3 . There was much talk about the fracturing that is happening in Twin Peaks, and the fact that things are just not right with any of these people. Hayley was troubled by the notion that Audrey has become “another of Twin Peaks’ traumatised women” and that while Sherilyn’s performance is wonderful it is very hard for Hayley to watch. Sarah felt that the changes in Twin Peaks relate to the discrepancies in The Secret History of Twin Peaks. Andy noted that there are two scenes that utilise reflections in a way that are not normal (Audrey’s and Big Ed’s) and that there are several scenes that seem to be happening in a non-linear fashion. Timelines figured heavily in this week’s podcast episode and the “theory fish” of the week from Donovan Renn provided some great discussion. Both Sarah and Andy agreed with Donovan’s theory that the characters in Twin Peaks are experiencing time non-linearly and the only person who can sense the strangeness of time is Sarah Palmer, hence her freakout at the Turkey Jerky. The other theory that Dr. Amp is being used by The Woodsman to brainwash the residents through radio was embraced by all the team: given the significance of the radio station in episode 8 I would agree with them! As usual, a really thought-provoking and entertaining experience. (Yvette Giles)

Time For Cherry Pie and Coffee (a subheading of the Time For Cakes and Ales podcast) coverage for Part 13 began with discussion about timelines, both Becks and Eason wondering why events are shown in a deliberately non-linear way. If only one reality is taking place (recognising that Audrey might be outside it) then days in different plots are not lining up. They conclude that it could be for stylistic or plot-related reasons. Turning to Vegas, they thought it interesting to see Tony Sinclair reversed from an intimidating character earlier in the season, to someone cowering behind a desk. They also noted that by the end of the episode his plot arc seemed to have reversed from being damned by his actions to being redeemed by his confession. Discussing the scene with Sonny Jim’s gym set, both hosts noted the spotlight has been previously associated with supernatural Lodge activity. Becks enjoyed an entertaining tangent about Swan Lake, as the music in this scene is from the ballet. The plot, she explained, features a white Swan Queen and a black swan, who is basically evil. Both swans are traditionally played by same ballerina, which obviously has interesting parallels in The Return. They noted the Swan Queen only becomes human in the closing moments of the ballet. Moving on to Mr. C’s arrival at The Farm populated by “thugs, goons and hoodlums”, they discussed what an immense arc Ray had been on, for a supporting character. They felt the arm wrestling scenario was like the opening to a really weird fairy tale or a baldy boss baddy battle from Double Dragon. They thought it was interesting to be rooting for the totally evil Mr. C. Is his super punch evidence that BOB is still present? It acted as an effective reminder of how dangerous Mr. C really is, they felt. But why does Mr. C needs all the phones? Does his evil plan involve using up all their precious minutes and data? The hosts wondered if Jeffries giving Ray the Owl Cave ring indicated he might be working with Mike? Was this a plan to get Mr. C back into the Lodge? The hosts wondered how Richard Horne came to be part of this group – a ‘Sparkle’ gang perhaps? They noted the show deliberately toys with audience – keeping us guessing about Richard’s parentage. They wondered if the reference to “the Dutchman’s” could link to the Flying Dutchman – a legendary ghost ship, which can’t come into port. Perhaps a metaphor for being stuck on a different plane/reality? The hosts discussed the apparent step back in time in the Twin Peaks plots around Becky, Shelly and Bobby. They agreed all this action seemed to take place before Becky’s gun rampage, shown in Part 12. Discussion turned to the Entertainment Weekly covers, released before the series. The hosts agreed they were subversive. The photos teased us with familiarity and past character relationships. They were designed for “nostalgia and misdirection”. But they felt the show had done something original and unique, choosing to tell a new story rather than treading old ground. They questioned the timing of Sarah Palmer’s scene – did this occur before her DoppelJerky freakout? They felt the looping TV show was a sign of the torture she’s suffered for 25 years. The hosts discussed Audrey’s scene, noticing the setting was different from the previous week. They felt Audrey was lost somehow. But is it a coma? A role play therapy? Or a “split psyche” as seen in Lynch’s films? The biggest shock of the episode was James Hurley at the Roadhouse! The hosts felt the sequence was, in many ways, ridiculous, but agreed the song seemed less cloying now he’s older. They spoke about Big Ed eating alone, burning paper, and pondered possible links to the gas station seen in Part 8. They spoke about the strange reflection glitch and feared it might be another bad omen for Ed. The hosts found it hard to predict how all the plots will resolve with so little time left. Both hoped the finale wouldn’t feel rushed. They’re worried that Battling Bud and Dougie-Coop have same car now and with assassins on way, mistakes could be made. They wondered about Bud having “Chekov’s fist” – surely he has to land a punch, but who will be on the receiving end? (Mat Cult)

The seemingly inexhaustible Twin Peaks Unwrapped hosts kick off their Part 13 podcast talking about the message from David Lynch, delivered by Charlotte Stewart at the Twin Peaks Festival – “One chair leads to another”. They thought this week’s Audrey scene made it clearer that something is not what it seems with Audrey. Their rewatch of Part 12 made Bryon dislike it less than before, but Ben definitely still thinks Lynch was messing with the viewers. They both liked Part 13 much more. They are also now pretty convinced that some scenes are being shown out of order deliberately, whether for story purpose or just a whim of Lynch they’re not sure yet. They’re confused by what the dandruff means to Dougie, and think the Dougie storyline could wrap up in the next part, but then they always say that! There’s some excitement at the prospect of Nadine and Dr Jacoby getting their romance on at some point, but no confirmation despite grilling Wendy Robie at the festival. There’s a theory that Sarah is using the booze to keep dark forces at bay, but due to running out in the scene in her house something gets through or seeps in. They postulate that the supermarket scene may actually be after this in the timeline, and shows Sarah after something has happened to her here. Doesn’t sound too crazy. Bryon’s theory about Audrey is that she is unaware of having a son, or has blocked it out, maybe had a nervous breakdown, and is being kept from hearing things about Richard to protect her. Ben is going with the coma theory. They’re fascinated by the final scene with Ed and don’t think it was a production accident that the reflection is out of sync with Ed, and that it could be yet another time glitch. Their guest is Josh Minton from the Red Room podcast who explains his tool to getting your head around The Return – The Skeleton Key and joins Ben and Bryon in another round of theorizing. (Matt Armitage)

Wrapped in Podcast covered Part 13. They note that the Rancho Rosa logo is green not red. They think this is sign of good coming back over bad, but they don’t realize it’s actually different every week. They think the mountain is listening post alpha and we’ll see it soon. Congo line music was edited Twin Peaks music. Candie is their favorite character. They think “Have a slice of cherry pie” is end of Mike’s poem “fire walk with me…” Spotlights are bad hopefully nothing happens to Sonny Jim. Music is Swan Lake. Critical failure when released…later regaled…Tchaikovsky said never do it without my music. Evil owl like figure casts spell on Odette who has an evil double. Maybe a parallel or ten? 7th Heaven…9th circle of hell…Dante…or Islamic? Show is non-linear…Dougie catch definitely didn’t happen in time. They LOVE the arm wrestling. Kyle gives amazing performance. Is Bob still in him? What does Ray know? What does Philip Jeffries know? Ray said he saw something in him he didn’t say it left. “Amniotic BOB ” is great quote. Flying Dutchmen is a phantom ship that can never dock and is a sign of impending doom if you ever see it. They speculate Flying Dutchmen is some kinda way station between white and black lodge…or floating on the purple sea? Ring hitting floor into Red Room is the hum in great northern? Reno 119 coming? Two hours for the poison…four hours and three hours referenced previously we thought this was a countdown…if someone mentions one hour next episode hopefully Coop wakes up. Dandruff evoked memory of cocaine residue in LP investigation? Stretch. More like human touch…moment of tenderness. Could Coop not wake up? Should we think about the virtues of Dougie? Coop failed his journey through the lodge. Faced it with “Imperfect courage”. Was mortally wounded with challenge of facing Caroline. Was trapped there. So he served his 25 years and now he’s out and he’s Dougie and he’s perfectly loving and foiling assassination attempts left and right. Lots of blue everywhere alongside red and yellow. Blue is substituting the usual green. We all hope Walter dies like his character in Northern exposure. Maybe Dougie needs a real Norma cherry pie to wake up not a knock off. They want chronological order edit of entire series including FWWM…the fireman with senorita dido already has it obviously. Does anyone know what boxing match this was IRL? James is 4th returning Robin. The threes are turning into fours. (Sean Glass)

Written by John Bernardy

John Bernardy has been writing for 25YL since before the site went public and he’s loved every minute. The show most important to him is Twin Peaks. He is husband to a damn fine woman, father to two fascinating individuals, and their pet thinks he’s a good dog walker.

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