StealThisCorn

Just to clear this up, Leland says that the neighbors on the one side of his summer home at Pearl Lakes were the Shelberts, but on the other side was a white house. Hawk investigated that boarded up house and interviewed two lesbian schoolteachers over chamomile tea to find out that the former occupants of that house were the Kalispells. What that has to do with Leland's experiences with "Mr. Robertson" is beyond me. You know I have seen people repeat this over and over, but you know what's funny is that ever since I first saw that scene I didn't feel like Lynch was poking fun at his fans at all, but I thought he was trying to say that Twin Peaks, the series and the film, has a lot of seemingly strange, nonsensical imagery, but that if you pay attention and think, there is actually a deeper symbolic meaning to things. Of course maybe that just means I'm guilty of being "that fan" haha!

Wait Chris and Jake...in this episode you were so hung up on how awful it was for Cooper to call Josie a "hardened criminal". Except that's what she is. First off, she shot "Mr. Lee/Cousin Jonathan" in the head and it's obvious it wasn't her first kill because normal, emotionally healthy people have an instinctual aversion to taking a human life. Not saying he wasn't a scumbag and she wasn't just trying to survive but still But she fucking shot Cooper three times in cold blood with no reaction at all because, in her own words, "he came here".

I won't do a long review--because others have already pretty much expressed my general thoughts on this episode. It is definitely one of my favorites--masterfully directed, full of emotion and truly chilling. It uses the some of the most effective techniques of horror to convey a sadly pedestrian everyday, garden-variety horror that goes on in far too many homes across the world, while at the same time appealing to my love for lore, mythology and some of the conventions of supernatural genre fiction. I've learned by now that the hosts of this podcast tend to emphasize the craftsmanship aspect of the show, the production process, the mechanics of story construction and show design etc., but I personally get the most out of analyzing the story and the characters within it in terms of the fictional reality of their own world and, just above that, the real world inspiration, coincidences, conception and compromises that lead to how that story plays out. That said, just a couple of things that I found the most perplexing in that vein for this episode: Why didn't Cooper and the Twin Peaks Sheriff's Department go to the Great Northern that night at the end of last episode when "Mike" told them that Bob was there? Because of the way this show insists on having each episode more or less be a separate day, it really does feel silly how it opens up with "Mike" repeating the exact same lines that he said at the end of the last episode, about Bob being in "a large house made of wood with many rooms..." while the police all just look on and sip their coffee. It almost seems like he's just been saying this over and over again waiting for them to do something abou it but they insist on weirdly waiting till the next day even when it makes no logical sense within the story. Margaret the Log Lady tells Cooper that there are "Owls in the Roadhouse" which leads everybody to head over there after they've arrested Ben Horne. And then, while there, the Giant appears just to tell them "It. Is. Happening. Again". Cooper checks for his ring only to realize, as the whole room seems to fall into a deep sadness, that he has failed. But yet if "the Owls" wouldn't have pulled Cooper away to go wait at the Roadhouse, I would think that after reading the scraps of Laura's diary about how she was molested and abused from an early age by Bob, who she calls 'a friend of her father's', the next logical place for Cooper to go would be to the Palmer household to ask Leland some hard questions, thus causing him to catch Leland in the act and possibly save Maddy's life. So is the Giant *really* a positive force as he had seemed to be, when all he does here is get Cooper's attention in order to get him somewhere else other than where he actually needs to be to stop the crime the Giant is announcing? Also, isn't it weird that I can't think of a single instance where Cooper has ever directly interacted with Maddy on screen the whole run of the show so far? Especially when all the way back in Episode 3, the Little Man in Cooper's dream expressly said, "She's my cousin but doesn't she look almost exactly like Laura Palmer?" which directly preceded the next episode where Maddy Fergusson first arrives in town for the funeral and it seems like, because of the dream, she will be signficant. And even later, Maddy starts having visions like the bloodstain on the carpet where she met her demise in this episode or her terrifying vision of Bob coming at her at the Hayward house, which we later learn Sarah called to tell Cooper about offscreen, yet Cooper never once goes to talk to her or think that perhaps she is in danger. I have always wondered why he referenced so many clues from his dream but never followed up on the "cousin" part of it.

Hey Matt, Daniel here. Welcome to the forums! It's pretty cool that there are so many Twin Peaks podcasts popping up now. I counted 6 on Itunes last I checked.

After all that trouble, it is ridiculous to me that Donna still doesn't manage to get the damn diary away from Harold. Also if you pay attention, it's kind of funny that when James bursts in to Harold's house, he grabs Maddy and runs out, leaving Donna to fend for herself. But then when it cuts to outside the house, James has run ahead of both girls. Oh James indeed... From that shot of the Bookhouse, it looks like ALL the bikers in Twin Peaks are in the Bookhouse Boys. Also, why the hell does Cooper bring a near-overdosed Audrey to the Bookhouse rather than the hospital? All the same, it is a very sweet moment between Cooper and Audrey. When Cooper tells Ben Horne that Audrey is recovering from a drug overdose, it seems to be the one moment in the coversation that actually gets through Ben's slimy veneer and causes him actual concern. That was the most awkward hug ever though between him and Cooper. The health inspector tells Bobby and Shelly that everything seems to be in order. At the Johnson house, where half of it is unfinished plywood beams and plastic sheeting! It's very strange how Donna tells Truman that she never really saw Laura's secret diary, when she clearly did! It's also dumb how Truman seems reluctant to follow up on this lead all of the sudden when this is something the police should definitely be interested in. And it's not like Donna's "investigations" haven't been legitimate leads, even if they have been pointlessly secretive and reckless. It annoys me the way they scripted that scene. I would have loved to see a scene of the seethingly awkward car ride with Cooper, Audrey and Ben. Well I guess Josie will even (as James would say) do it with her "cousin" Jonathan, as implied by the scene with them both putting their clothes back on. It would have been hilarious if Donna had walked in just one more time to roll her eyes when Maddy has her hand on James' knee by the lake or when she kisses him on the cheek. It was pretty sweet of Maddy to condescend to this school boy's level though. The snide pissing contest and banter between Josie and Ben is one of the few times I actually enjoy Josie's character on screen. While I really enjoy the comedy, I don't understand the way Bobby delivers his lines about Leo in the 'welcome home' party scene. He sounds way too genuine in the way he tells Leo they are going to do everything they can to make him feel as safe and happy as possible. I can't tell if he's supposed to be saying that because he's afraid Leo might be aware or if he's supposed to come off as sarcastic. I think he needed better direction delivering those lines, or maybe I'm just missing something. Some of the strange phrases Gordone Cole says to Cooper like "you remind me today of a small Mexican chihuahua" may seem like non sequiturs now but Cooper definitely displays some amount of recognition on his face in response to it. WIth Ben and Leland's history together and the fact that even though Leland keeps screwing up, yet Ben keeps bringing him back in to work, you have to imagine that Leland must already be aware and have a history of helping out with Ben's shady business dealings, or why else would he give him so many chances? Makes you wonder if Leland got to enjoy any One-Eyed Jacks behind Sarah's back. I love how even when Ben is trying to talk business, Leland's mind starts to wander again to the white stuffed fox behind him. So much for being 110%. It is interesting to note that when reminded of his first interrogation by the police in Episode 4, where he denied recognizing Bob at all, even when they showed him his sketch, and asked why he lied, here Gerard fearfully tells them, "It wasn't me! Don't you understand, it wasn't me?!" Does this mean that when they first questioned him, "Mike" was actually in control and deliberately lied to get them off his trail? Mike refers to Bob as his "familiar", implying Mike was originally in charge with Bob acting in a servant role. Also, Mike refuses to explain where Bob comes from, which shows that, while he is willing to help them them stop Bob's host, he is still holding back information concerning the whole picture, which makes me suspicious of this "spirit's" true agenda. It's a little chilling when Mike looks directly at us through the camera as he says, "and the damned."

Oh I forgot to say the way this episode is such heavy plot, plot, plot and suspense makes it feel to me more like a Mark frost directed episode, reminding me of how the Season 1 cliffhanger was so jam packed.

I am really curious to know why, when the series first aired in Germany, this episode was given the title 'The Orchid's Curse'. What does that have to do with anything in the episode? I mean sure Harold raises orchids and he does seem weirdly trapped in that house so maybe he's cursed? I guess? Is that bizarre scene where his hand begins shaking uncontrollably 'the curse of the orchid'? I would love to know the stories or thoughts behind some of these episode names. The beginning of this episode makes abundantly clear that, once again, Hawk does all the real police work in the Sheriff's Department while Sheriff Truman stuffs his face with donuts and coffee, taking all his hard-earned information, telling him good work and giving him more shit to go out and do. The plight of the Native American indeed. When selling his wacky chair contraption, Mr. Pinkel says, "you got to be tough with these things. Sometimes you gotta hit it hard. You know a machine is like a woman, we always say at the machine shop...". That line is really dark when you realize he is saying that to Shelley, of all people, in the Johnson house, where Leo repeatedly beat and hit her. The fact that they are holding court IN A BAR and even drinking while in office, is one of those little "country law" quirks that makes this town Twin Peaks I suppose. Note the striking red curtains in the background though, very evocative of Cooper's dream. And it's nice to see Sarah Palmer again, if only briefly, as it seems she's been completely absent the past several episodes. Oh and that's Mark Frost sitting in attendance in the back row as well I believe. No spoilers, but just remember that weird scene where Harold's hand begins shaking. We will see something like that again much later in the series. Ok, do you see Mr. Tojamura's aide standing beside him, the one holding the briefcase? That is the same odd gentleman who appears in a brief scene with Audrey all the way back in Episode 7 of Season 1 ('Realization Time') when she catches his eye as he is checking in to a room at the hotel just a couple doors down from Cooper when she is leaving to go to One-Eyed Jacks. Why does it seem like Bobby is following Hank in that brief scene at the Great Northern? What is with all those names on the piece of paper Ben drops into the suitcase of money he sends with Cooper? I find it hilarious that Jean Renault want to do Cooper in 'Assassin's Creed' style rather than just, you know, having him riddled with bullets. James acts like such a nosy creep to Maddy when he's pestering her in the diner. It would seem whatever youthful charm she saw in him has completelely worn off for this adult woman by now. Donna's story is a little unsettling when you think about it, albeit beautifully delivered by the actress. Two thirteen year old girls getting naked and making out with three twenty year old guys? Danger. Something curious about One-Eyed Jacks, the wallpaper. I LOVE how Cooper waits for just the right moment and has no qualms about punching Nancy straight in the gut and taking her down cold. I like it when heroes are smart rather than dumb. Also, I don't think it's a spoiler to say that Cooper's punch takes Nancy right out of the show; we never see her again. Hawk is a BADASS! I'm just glad the writers didn't make him throw like a tomakawk with an eagle feather tied to it or something. That would've been too much. Harold says what the ultimate secret is and that Laura knew it. He says it's the secret of knowing who killed you. Does Harold, in fact, know who killed her?

I really hate what this episode does go Hank. I liked Hank when he seemes like he would be a significant villain with his own ominous theme music, providing a darker manipulative villain without the silliness of the Horne brothers. But in this episode he gets weirdly excited about decorating the diner and there doesn't seem to be a reason for it and then he gets so easily beat up by the stereotypical Asian martial arts gangster while at the diner. At night. In his frickin pajamas! So disrespectful to that character.

The beginning of this episode has always confused me. How did the killer get in to put a letter under Ronette's fingernail when Truman explicitly stated there was a 24 hour guard? Why would the killer decide to put a letter under her fingernail now, after not giving her one the first time, when she still isn't dead? Why was the IV tainted with blue dye? How do the new viewers react to Harold Smith? I've watched 'Peaks' several times with new people and some people seem to get creeped out by him whilst others find him sweet. I really could have done without Albert's speech to Harry. I like Albert serving a similar role to Cooper in that he has provided the audience with an outside perspective into the town, in his case, snidely calling out the quirky, secretive town and it's ineffectual (save for Hawk, of course) Sheriff's Department. He provides a vent for some of the reactions that modern viewers especially have to some of the more ridiculous, hammy and unprofessional actions of the local police and townsfolk, and, in some cases, this actually makes it seem more sympathetic rather than cheesy melodrama, such as the case with Ed's story about how he and Nadine got together whilst Albert laughs and mocks him. But this speech about his pacifism and "loving Sheriff Truman" all the sudden seems to be there purely to soften his character, when I feel there is no need to at all. Albert should just stay being House, since that's pretty much who he is, several years too early. Also, when he is on his way out of the Sheriff's Station, there is a great little moment where he deliberately slams his shoulder into James. Some pacifist. WIth the arrival of Dick Tremayne to the station, we realize the show's increased budget is introducing a lot of new characters into the mix. While it is pure fluff and takes the show more towards the campy side of the scale, I actually do find it amusing how completely oblivious he is (he lights a cigarette right in front of the no smoking side, prattles on while Lucy is obviously uninterested), how he acts like such a stuck up dandy and fancies himself high society when he, in fact, really just works at a department store. This should just be noted again and again, but Hawk is the best. I love how he is insulting Dick to his face, while at the same time coming up with more words containing B, T and R for Lucy's scrabble game. There is nothing he does not excel at. Has it been mentioned yet on the podcast how it seems like so often Harry and Cooper just sit in the Sheriff's Station and eat donuts and drink coffee or talk while they send Hawk off to go do the actual work of investigating? When the new series airs, I want Hawk to be the Sheriff. It's really funny how Leland actually lights up a match and throws it in a Sheriff's Station no less to make his point, perfectly making it into the ash tray. But did anyone notice the posters hung up on the wall behind him?! There is a hilarious one that might explain how Andy got his job--it says "Is your job a bore? Not any more! Become a Deputy Sheriff". So good. It looks like the demo James, Maddy and Donna recorded already made it on to the Double R Diner jukebox. Oh joy. It has been made clear that Maddy is an adult woman with a car, her own house and a job back in Missoula, Montana. She just came here for her cousin Laura's funeral and to help her aunt and uncle get through it. Why in the world is she hanging out with these high school teenagers investigating mysteries and even flirting around with James, an underage boy? Maddy says running away won't solve anything, but because James is one of the worst characters for me, and his storyline is so odious ( ), I'm pretty sure him running away right now would solve a lot of things in the show for me. I love Maddy's "hand caught in the cookie jar" face when Donna walks in though. I love how Cooper sees right through Shelly's scheme and sends her on her way with an evil, knowing grin. It's weird, there's a lot of "damn good questions" going around in the Sheriff's Department, like who shot Cooper, who all is involved in the conspiracy to burn down the sawmill and Shelly's insurance scheme, that they acknowledge but then don't seem to put any more effort into answering. It must be a very lacksadaisical police department. The unsettling, creepy scenes with Gerard in the bathroom, having what looks like some kind of schizophrenic episode off his medication are both enlightening and effective. And the french horns or whatever those are on the soundtrack really add to it. I love the metallic effect on his voice too. It seems he does know something about Bob after all, despite what he told the police the first time he was questioned at the motel in Season 1. How do the new viewers interpret this? During his hypnosis session, Dr. Jacoby clarifies that he smelled the scorched engine oil smell in that park when he was assaulted, not in the hospital when Jacques died. I love the brief shot where we see Harry starting to fall asleep under Cooper's hypnosis too and he has to gently call him out. I do find the scene where Donna shouts all her frustrations at Laura's grave pretty effective. One, it reminds us that Donna isn't really as nice a person as she might have seemed in the pilot. Or maybe she's just very immature. And two, it keeps the effect where the ghost of Laura seems like a character in her own right. I love that about this show, the more we learn about her life and her fate, the more real she seems to us. The scene with Maddy and James at the Palmer house is very weird. First, James just walks in. I know he was Laura's friend, but wasn't that a big secret? So Leland and Sarah probably wouldn't know who this kid was right?. I mean I guess Maddy's allowed to have house guests over. Hey Maddy, kissing him isn't going to put out that fire, honey. But then Donna also just appears inside the Palmer house. Ok, she's her childhood friend whatever. Then James freaking smashes the Palmers' living room lamp in a rage! And Leland finally comes down to see what all the ruckus is about. Talk about a rude house guest! The scene where he screams "WHY?!" at Donna peeling away in her car is equally ridiculous, as if the answer is hard to understand. Well, maybe for him it is. When Maddy is crying about how she isn't Laura and Leland tries to comfort her, I half expect Leland to hug her and be like "I know. There there, Laura, oops!". She really has become like his surrogate daughter. I think this scene might have also been done to go against a pretty popular crazy theory at the time, that Maddy was, in fact, secretly Laura in disguise, through some weird scheme or mixup. So they wanted to double down on the fact that, no, Maddy isn't Laura. But then Sheriff Truman and Agent Cooper just walk into the Palmer house! Apparently, James left the door wide open. I think the Palmers need to lock their doors. It's just really weird to me when you think about how all these people just stroll into the Palmers' house and even break their stuff without a thought. So Laura had a second diary, one the police didn't find when they searched her bedroom. And this mystery man Harold Smith has it.

"J'ai une âme solitaire" Which, translated from French means "I am a lonely (solitary) soul". Given that Mrs. Tremond says that "Mr. Smith does not leave his house" (hypocrisy much?), it seems like the grandson's non sequitur is a reference to his implied agoraphobia.

What bothers me is that, in the pilot, I feel like James has the potential to be an interesting, non-traditional kind of character. I do agree with you that there are some well-acted parts coming up for Donna, and maybe some of the behind the scenes information about the actor's influence on the show further colors my view of her negatively, but sometimes it doesn't seem like she was Laura's sweet and loving best friend at all, more like a bitchy jealous shadow of her. And she wants to find out who killed Laura but she is constantly telling the others not to go to the police, for really no reason at all. Donna just frustrates me I guess.

Although LostInTheMovies, I think, truth be told, wouldn't a show today that had the kind of ratings Twin Peaks did, even in it's decline, still have a big chance at staying on the air? Funny thing is I feel the opposite from what, apparently, the general viewing public thought at the time. I do really like the first season, I like all the little clues and introductions to the quirky cast of characters and how everything seems ominous and filled with grief and dread. And it is somewhat disappointing how much turns out to be mere red herrings and things that never pay off (though knowing that Lynch originally intended to *never* reveal the killer, it makes sense that this is the case). I like the breathing room that is left to imagine how it all fits together. But the show doesn't really become the show I love until the high strangeness start's taking center stage with the Red Room, Bob, the Giant, the creamed corn disappearing etc. I love that dark, spooky tone whereby there seems to be these supernatural goings on beneath the surface, taking a small town murder mystery and placing it in the context of a just being a part of a much larger cosmic horror story almost incomprehensible to the human mind. If I hadn't known something like that was coming I probably wouldn't have sat through the James and Donna melodrama or soap opera elements.

The Barbershop Quartette in the background provides more fun little bizarre “Lynchian” window dressing to the scene. All the directors seem to enjoy staging quirky little events or conventions going on in the background, but I feel Lynch always takes the cake. Note: Albert mentions that he personally questioned the “world’s most decrepit room service waiter”, so we can safely say he is a real person employed at the hotel and not some ghostly hallucination brought on by Cooper’s blood loss after being shot. The mysterious man spying on Cooper in a less than inconspicuous manner provides another possible suspect for Cooper’s shooting. Note, however, that he is *not* the same Asian gentleman seen by Audrey checking in to the room across the hall from Dale’s in ‘Realization Time’ just before leaving for OEJ. The surreal scene where Donna delivers food to Mrs. Tremond and her grandson is one of my favorites in the whole series. Donna seems like she is either hiding her unease very well or doesn’t find it particularly strange when the grandson clearly makes the creamed corn physically teleport from the plate to his hands and then completely disappear without a trace, while Mrs. Tremond brushes it aside as a mere magic trick. Like in the episode preceding it, we find that Lynch once again pushes the envelope with the supernatural goings on being more explicit. Most probably already know this, but little boy in the tuxedo was played by David Lynch’s son Austin, which is why he looks like such a perfect miniature clone of Lynch. Cooper and Harry having to figure out how to work the stool before they can question Ronnette is one of those nice little natural but awkward moments that Lynch excels at leaving in. I love how Major Briggs keeps looking over at Andy struggling to tape up the wanted poster for Bob and he almost seems to want to get up and go help him. The energy created by the Log Lady and the Major being being together is really something. Hank was once a Bookhouse Boy. One of the best, in fact, ‘before he turned to evil’ (sound familiar?). When Jerry asks if this is “real or some strange and twisted dream”, I cannot help but hear David Patrick Kelly, portraying T-Bird in ‘The Crow’ (1994), saying “this is the really real world man!” I see a few different possibilities for the identity of the person on the phone with Lucy trying to get in touch with Sheriff Truman but who won’t give their name. 1) The man who has been watching Cooper, trying to call Truman about something related to Josie. 2) Leland Palmer, calling to tell the Sheriff about recognizing Bob in the wanted poster from his childhood summer home. 3) Philip Gerard, the one-armed man, just because we saw him skulking around before trying to get in to see the Sheriff and sell him some shoes without an appointment. Audrey is such a badass here, though I’m not sure why she doesn’t just try to escape immediately after she gets the info she wanted out of Battis. Surely she doesn’t think he won’t report this after she takes that cord from around his neck. Clearly neither the Sheriff’s Department nor even Albert made a very thorough sweep of Cooper’s room for evidence after he was shot because Audrey’s damn note is still (!) barely an inch under his bed. Whether its General Hammond on ‘Stargate SG-1’, William Scully in ‘The X-Files’ or Major Briggs here, Don S. Davis always seems to play the same character. Here Major Briggs functions as a mouthpiece for the Giant’s second clue, “The owls are not what they seem”, but it is frustrating that, though this is referenced, what it might mean is not any more explained. It is noteworthy that the Major simply says they maintain the monitors, implying that the monitors are actually located on Earth and merely pointed towards space. The “Just You And I” demo being cut on Hayward’s living room floor is one of the most excruciating but yet comically hilarious moments in the show, because it really drives home that nothing like this would ever happen on literally any other tv show. And it also serves as such a great set up almost lulling you to relax and be amused before surprising the hell out of you by what happens next as poor Maddy sees Bob simply stroll into the house, climb over the freaking couch and assault her mind in one of the most disturbing visuals. Once again the Giant seems to appear in Cooper’s room at the end, waving his hand over his sleeping form to transmit some kind of knowledge to him through his dreams. With the image of the owl superimposed over Bob’s face, it would seem there is some kind of sinister connection between the owls and Bob. .

Wikipedia probably just means that Norma brought Donna the note. But someone mailed the note to the diner for Donna Hayward and, on the phone, with Mr. Smith she says "I received yours." . Since he doesn't leave his house, it makes sense he would mail it the only place he knew (being part of the Meals On Wheels program and all)--the Double R Diner.

Something else I forgot to mention. There is something a little strange and off about Dr. Hayward's children. First off, we barely ever see any of them except Donna, even at most family dinner scenes. Then there is Christine's speech in this episode about her talents and grades in school and how she "doesnt have to be ashamed anymore". What are Dr. Hayward and Eileen doing to their children?? It kind of reminds me of the family cultures of some real world like fundamentalist Christian homeschooling families or something and how weird it looks to people on the outside. Maybe Doc Hayward is a tyrant who pressures his kids to be these overachievers or else be mysteriously absent for family functions. I'm joking of course, but there is something a little strange there.