BY MICHAEL GOODPASTER
You should watch Twin Peaks, but first let’s get the backstory of all of this.
I’m a huge nerd when it comes to film and television. I love the entire process; be it writing, directing, the acting, the editing, the music, the casting, the trailers, the posters, the trailers, and the deep rooted history of it all. I’m not claiming to be an expert on any of it, but I value my appreciation of the audio/visual arts. Right now we’re in a “golden age of television”. Some of the best television series ever made are currently on right now. The cable networks raised the bar with shows like Sopranos, Larry Sanders Show, Six Feet Under, and other “older shows”. From there it was like a trickledown effect. Basic cable soon joined in on the quality, AMC and FX especially. Now the networks are upping their game and the overall quality of television series in general is at an all-time high. Sure there are the Kardashians, Honey Boo-Boo, and things like that but it’s so much easier to completely ignore these fads now. I’ve never seen Jersey Shore and I take pride in that. There is more than enough quality programming to watch right now. This wasn’t always the case.
This all goes back to Twin Peaks. For years I’ve heard about it, read the name, and have heard the talks about how good of a show it was. I never watched it. I barely knew who was in it and knew pretty much nothing about it. I’ve taken in so many shows, but a show from the early 90’s on network TV that is often spoken of in the same sentence as “it sucks it got cancelled so early” did not seem all that appealing. I had nothing new to watch so I finally caved in to the peer pressure and the old school hype. It was only two seasons and a movie… why not? What is the worst that can happen?
Well, I watched Twin Peaks and it sucks it got cancelled so early. This show was so far ahead of its time that it’s going to always be considered a pinnacle in television history. This show was on ABC in 1990 and ended in 1991. They didn’t get much time, but what they did left a HUGE impact in the way people perceive television. It turned it into a cinematic art, kind of like an “independent film” feel because of how it was all put together and the style. It got huge ratings for a while but dropped off. This lead to ABC getting involved with their creative side of the show and forcing them to screw the pooch. This led to the show getting canned. The cult following lead to a 1992 prequel film that’s set before the television show’s time frame. How bad ass is that? This show, Firefly, and soon Arrested Development are the only shows I can really think of that have done this. Good company and they were first so good on them.
David Lynch put together a great world here. The show follows an investigation headed by FBI Special Agent Dale Cooper (Kyle MacLachlan) of the murder of a popular teenager and homecoming queen, Laura Palmer. The story intertwines the lives and stories of a whole bunch of interesting personalities and characters. It’s a small town with tons of creepy 1950’s surrealness. I think that’s what makes it easy to watch. An early 90’s show could be cheesy and dated, but the surreal blur of the times is one of my cool reasons this show was and is one of the best shows out there.
The cast is made up of all-star character actors getting to play some of the most entertaining and interesting characters of their careers. There are a slew of great actors involved. Kyle MacLachlan plays “Agent Cooper”, the lead, like a champ. He is uplifted, optimistic, practical, unjudging, and really smart and centered. I can’t think of many characters like his. Most writers and actors take these types to a more naïve route or they have them have some kind of weird kinky backstory. Nope. Cooper is just a nice bad ass cool guy who just so happens to get inspiration from dreams and an open mind. It doesn’t end there. Michael Ontkean is “Sheriff Harry S. Truman”. At first you think he’s going to be a lame “small town sheriff” that you’d see in a Murder She Wrote episode. Nope. Substance and depth. The same thing is said for all of the characters. You see people as their stereotypes and their crazy quirks, but the more you watch it the more you understand them. The character arcs and depth we get from just about every main character is outstanding and good enough to be leads of their own shows. In many ways they got their chance with this one because the stories, even the minor side stories, are as interesting as you’ll find in the best of shows. Along with these two were Mädchen Amick, Dana Ashbrook, Richard Beymer, Harry Goaz, Sheryl Lee, Peggy Lipton, James Marshall, Joan Chen, Eric Da Re, Piper Laurie, Everett McGill, Kimmy Robertson, Warren Frost, Michael Horse, Jack Nance, Russ Tamblyn, Kenneth Welsh, and the always awesome Ray Wise. Two others that stood out were Sherilyn Fenn and Lara Flynn Boyle. Fenn was great in this. I don’t understand how she didn’t become a huge huge star. Then Lara Flynn Boyle! I’m a huge fan of Wayne’s World so I had to say to myself “I don’t even own AH gun.” Every time I saw her. I got past this quickly because of how interesting of an actress she is and how weird her character was. I wanted to know more about where that was going for sure.
I won’t ramble too long. Twin Peaks is one of those shows that gets tons of “cult classic” hype and buzz. Shows like this get praised and acclaimed for a reason. The way people talk about “The Wire” after experiencing it is pretty much the same feeling here. You feel dumb for missing out, but enlightened and now part of a group of very cool viewers of a very cool show. I can’t stress enough how surreally really cool this show was. It takes you for a ride and doesn’t slow down. Sure there are a few pot holes on the road, but it’s a great trip. I dare anyone to watch this entire series and not have to give up at least a little part of themselves to “Bob”. Watch this if you haven’t! If you have… I know! Holy shit, right?!
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