dartmonkey

That's similar to how I read it. Cooper isn't Cooper yet so he doesn't get Badalamenti - he gets the mainstream, done-to-death version as he gets back into his groove. The problem is Take 5 works too well in the scene to be classified as the 'Starbucks' version. It's too groovy to read as a commentary on a Dougiefied suburban, sleepwalking life. I think Lynch just liked how the track worked.

With so little context it's tough to say, but I felt strong echoes of the Nadine/Ed relationship. Also, they're taking care to establish Harry Truman's illness but keeping the character 'in' the series. What's the purpose? Again, it makes me wonder how they'll address Donna and Annie.

Yahtzee! It's a different experience being so into the lore this time round and having some context for the surreal aspects - there's something about that shoe idea that is almost too cyclically logical! My radar for what's weird or not is a bit off.

Mike! I didn't realise until you wrote it! So many details in this episode. As JustFlo noted, that strange sound when the the drug addict woman woke up was disconcerting. A great effect. And in terms of special effects, I think this episode perfectly encapsulates every facet which has been a prolonged talking point on the forums. The BOB mirror shot was SO subtle I had to close the blinds and skip back to make sure I wasn't seeing things. Skipping in 5-10 second chunks made the change obvious but watching with daylight on the TV screen, I wasn't sure if it wasn't just Kyle MacLachlan grimacing. And then on the other end of the spectrum was the reverse shot of the kid when the car exploded that looked like I did it! I love the eclectic choices made and it feels inspiring. Young filmmakers don't need cutting edge CG - they can use the oldest tricks in the book and still capture the emotional truth(!). Tammy Preston and BadCoop's prints - I expected her to compare them and find BadCoops 'reversed'. purps mentioned that this makes the Missing Pieces canon because we go to Buenos Aires - for me, the Missing Pieces are the same as the extra scenes in the international pilot. If Lynch wants to go back and cherry-pick the juiciest parts of that unused material, then fantastic. But until it's actually seen in the series, I wouldn't say it's canon. I'd be fine with seeing Bowie's Missing Piece included, but that doesn't mean Cooper's crappy conversation with 'Diane' is legit

So I watched the international pilot last night and two things struck me in relation to S3: - Cooper is much more impish and less boyscout than I remember! I'm really hoping we get to see that Coop again before long. - Lucy and Andy used to be useful! As Jake mentioned (I think), she's doing a great job in the pilot. Even Andy feels like a cop when he's interrogating Bobby. Less so when he's crying at the crime scenes, but he doesn't feel like a caricature. I really hope they get something to do soon.

I think season 2 established that Cole has form with younger women with Shelly, no? He was a mid-to-late-30s professional star-struck by a girl 20 years his junior. It was played very sweetly (as I recall) but it was still questionable on paper. His conversation with Denise could be calling back to that.

If you rearrange the letters of 'Wally Brando owes Marlon' you get 'Windom Earle's my owl bro'.

Okay, this is probably extremely common knowledge but tell me who you see...

Okay, I had a couple more thoughts after a rewatch. - I enjoy how Cooper brushes the falling coins with his fingertips as he gets a jackpot. - I recognised one of the actors in the casino (the one who guides Cooper into the office) from various things (like Batman Begins where he played a guard in Arkham?) He crops up everywhere and has a certain quality where he always looks unhinged. Nothing to add, but I liked seeing him here. - Owl flyover and the lo-fi overlay when Cooper sees Mike in the bedroom. Man, second time round it really stood out. The way she walks is straight up Bayonetta levels of insane. For some reason I got into my head that Laura Dern would be Tammy Preston so I listened to The Secret History audiobook imagining her. It has taken me a while to adjust! Re. the woman Gordon and Albert need to talk to - from the cut, she drinks at the Roadhouse, no? I doubt Sarah Palmer has ever been there. I assume it must be a resident of Twin Peaks. I don't see how Audrey could give any insight because her interactions with Cooper were fairly limited after Leland was revealed as the killer (although maybe BadCoop saw her after returning from the Lodge.) Annie makes most sense to me - she was the last person to see GoodCoop and was with him in the Lodge. She is/was a resident of Twin Peaks. Diane would be another possibility - someone with an intimate knowledge of Cooper and his personality quirks, and who could give valuable feedback on BadCoop...but why would she drink at the Roadhouse? Or have I completely misread that final cut?

The statue inside the room (with arms) behind the armchairs is the Venus de' Medici. The one missing arms is the Venus de Milo and that's usually in the red curtained corridor between the rooms. I hadn't made the connection but the doppelganger arm does seem to take that statue's place before screaming "NON-EXISTENT!" I just rewatched ep3. A couple of things stood out this time. On a very personal level, the section in the mauve area really helped me bridge the gap between '91 Dale Cooper and the '17 version. As Chris noted in the podcast, Kyle MacLachlan looks great after 25 years but there has been a disconnect for me between classic Coop from the old show and the stoney-faced older Cooper we've seen up to now. My brain was constantly noting the new lines on his face and how weird it was to be back in the same place (the same exact chair!) after so long from an aesthetic POV. I was watching him until now on that intellectual, 'wow, everyone's worked super hard to nail the details' level. The bleached out contrast of the new area blurred out those wrinkles and sort of linked the old character to this older version, for me. I recognised his silhouette and his guileless expression and, on an internalised level, I really felt like I was watching the same person for the first time. Also, I realised how I loved the lighting in the room where Dougie disappears/Coop materialises. The shadow that creeps along the wall as Cooper's black smoke line stretches out of the plug really communicates that this thing definitely isn't a dream or a vision (unlike, say, the guy in the prison cell fading away which is more ambiguous) but concrete and material. The same with the vomity garmonbozia stuff sitting on the shagpile. I saw a tweet that captures what I mean, and amplifies the '70s vibe the room (and Dougie) had going on.

T. Yoshisaur MunchiCoopas it is, then. 😉 Edit. That's a nice little interview. It make sure me wonder what sort of behind-the-scenes extras the bluray will have. It'd be easy to fill it with hours of puff-piece interviews but I imagine Lynch/Frost would want something more akin to the last box set. Also, without getting too gossipy, it's a shame that Michael J. Anderson didn't return. In terms of the show itself, I think the evolution of the Arm fits in nicely but reading Anderson's Facebook shows he seems to have issues with both Showtime and Frost.

I think Lynch himself refers to BadCoop/DoppelCoop/KillerCoop as Mr C (as did Otis in episode 1.)

I guess you're referring to things like Josie in the doorknob? I remember not quite understanding what that was supposed to be, which might be a real signifier of failure. The only effect I've really questioned so far this series is in Episode 4 because I felt it could have been something subtler. Maybe they wanted something a bit gaudy to mirror the environment. A big pointing finger or the one-armed (!) man's face or something might have been better. It didn't hamper my enjoyment so who cares, I guess. It just felt a little cheap. Edit. I just went back and watched the Josie doorknob (actually a chest-of-drawers knob) and actually it's fine. I mean, it's crazy, but it's not a confusing effect like I remembered it. The video of her tortured face morphs to an early '90s CG face model which moves a bit and freezes when the credit appears. She's quite clearly trapped in a wooden knob. Obvs! I still don't get it, but not because of the shot.

Is it possible NotPhillipJefferies is Mike or somebody phoning from the Lodge? I'd always thought doppelgangers were vessels that occupied the Black Lodge exclusively - Leland's came up to Cooper and said he didn't kill anybody (because the real Leland did, while Bob was driving him.) I mentioned in the ep2 thread about doppelgangers - it's tough to discuss them without knowing more about what they are (empty vessels unable to exist outside the lodge/malevolent mirror versions/etc.) DougieCoopClone raises tons of questions. Wally Brando was great for that scene but he should be used sparingly. As should Lucy and Andy - I started siding with the new Truman when my patience was wearing thin. And I like new Truman too - he slides comfortably into the cast. I really enjoyed the sinister, manipulative thumbs up from DoppelCoop during the meeting. He knows Cooper's vocabulary but can't deliver it appropriately. Also Lynch's performance and the subsequent scene between Albert and George. Edit. George? Who's George?! Gordon.

Chris and Jake discussed the difference between Bob occupying Leland and occupying Cooper on the 'cast. While I'd agree that the FWWM was a little more ambiguous regarding Leland's agency when Bob takes over, I think it's difficult to compare without knowing precisely what a doppelgänger is. Leland wasn't one but BadCoop is. Is it just an empty vessel that needs to be occupied by a Red Room entity to exist in the real world? Is it literally a mirror of Cooper with malevolent tendencies? Do doppelgangers routinely reside in the real world? Are all doppelgangers in the Black Lodge bad? Laura seems alright for the most part. Leland didn't kill anybody, and now seems much more Leland-like. The arm states that he himself has a doppelgänger, no? So I assume BadCoop came to the real world with all GoodCoop's knowledge and skills. It'll be fun to see how much they explore BadCoop's history over the past 25 years. The Secret History book gave us a glimpse of Major Briggs' impression of BadCoop. Edited 'Leyland' to 'Leland'😉

I loved that. I'm assuming someone has already put Chopsticks over it.

I thought the mirrors behind Sarah Palmer looked like an owl but I didn't notice any camera. Before the series I wasn't sure they'd bother following up the 'How's Annie?!' question, but as/when Good Dale does escape the Lodge, I now think it will probably come up. Re. the colour blue, I originally thought it was significant that BadCoop was wearing blue pyjamas when he woke up, but GoodCoop always wore them throughout the series.

So, if Phillip Jefferies is mentioned, might we catch up with Judy? Or Chet Desmond!?! 👌

Wow! Well, that's going to filter out a certain section of the audience! I felt my brain chewing on every single thing and really enjoying it but I think anyone coming to this fresh will find it an interminably slow start. After 15 minutes my wife said she knew why it was 18 episodes long. Still digesting it but highlights include Ben Horne (I thought Richard Beymer wasn't returning!), the languid opening with the glass box, the beat that introduced Bad Dale as he drove along the track at night, the evolution of the Arm(!)...in fact, thinking back there were many, many highlights. It felt uncompromising, which I admire. And I didn't realise Catherine Coulson filmed her scenes - they really got me, as they did everyone, it seems. It was interesting to hear a certain FWWM character mentioned (I watched 1&2 as a supercut - not sure where the divide was) - I wonder if any of the missing pieces might show up here. I thought Lynch struck the tone perfectly here, giving fans some flashback glimpses while really carving out some new plot lines/characters too. I'm feeling very positive! Though I imagine new viewers will be utterly '???'.

Do you think there'll be some sort of Invitation to Love substitute? A reality show, perhaps? I've spend the evening listening to the Firewatch 😉 With Me soundtrack - it's a real winner. While the TV show soundtrack may be a little too Invitation to Love-y to stand on its own, the movie score is generally far subtler and works well without the film. Also, it features Julee Cruise singing Lynch's lyrics dreamily on a song called Questions In A World Of Blue... Everything is blue now! Like Laura Palmer's eyes...

Blue pyjamas! I hadn't considered that. Basic cinematic details like this just don't turn up much on TV, even now. These elements seem to come with Lynch. Fantastic to hear the podcast again - after years of ads I finally registered for my 30-day Audible trial so I can listen to The Secret History over the weekend 👍 I also found this on sale: and it arrived this morning. It's a beautiful thing! I'll probably watch Fire Walk With Me and/or the season 2 finale as a series a warmer, too. I feel like I've arrived at an evolved state where my expectations are tempered but I'm still excited to devour every morsel - because at the very least, the choices will be interesting. What's picked up again, what's referenced, what's expanded upon, what's just dropped - interesting is certainly the right word here😉 I've glanced at the cast list before quickly closing Wikipedia. I'm excited to have 18 fresh hours to chew on. The big Q is: Will the name Windom Earle ever again be uttered?

It's coming to Switch too. Think I'll wait for that version.

Soooo, I've been playing some old games. On Switch I've got King of Fighters '98 and I downloaded Garou over the weekend. They're both incredible looking and they're great games to play with my wife because we're both indiscriminate button mashers. Also on Switch, Wonder Boy. You should definitely try it out if you're at all interested in 8-bit games. I got Wave Race 64 for 1.99€ - man, what a fantastic game! It looks primitive but Nintendo nailed the controls and the waves. There's no fiddly boost or anything; in fact, you can play it one-handed. Blue Storm on Gamecube prettified the whole package but 64 really had it down. I really think (and have written before) that Nintendo need to bring back this B-tier of games on Switch. 1080, Excitebike, F-Zero and Wave Race were all great back in the 64-bit era and we haven't really had any of them since the Gamecube (the underrated ExciteTruck notwithstanding). Anyway, Wave Race 64 After taking delivery of the last of my gear from my parents' loft, I finally have my Dreamcast here! Now to decide if I can dedicate time to Shenmue 2. If so, I'll be using a walkthrough. I'm going to try and do Chrono Trigger on DS over the summer, again with a walkthrough. Perhaps it's a shame but the reality is either use a guide to play the game, or never play the game. No contest really. Also, that Retroblox console I mentioned has been delayed due to a name change. Some concerned company contacted them after the reveal and they decided to rebrand. A shame as the name/logo tied in nicely to the concept. I imagine the console will be cropping up again somewhen in the next month or two - I don't know if E3 would be a good time to launch that kickstarter or not.