Appreciating the Ending of Twin Peaks

"WHAT YEAR IS THIS?" Let's dig in! *To view the full scene, click here: vimeo.com/937988193 With special guests Courtenay Stallings ("Laura's Ghost: Women Speak about Twin Peaks"), Patrick Mahan (Talking Backwards Podcast), John Thorne ("Ominous Whoosh: A Wandering Mind Returns to Twin Peaks"), Joel Bocko ("Lost in the Movies"), Andrew Cook (Salmon Shirts Forever Productions), and “Agent” Alison Ivy. Please join in below with your own thoughts and impressions.
1:15 - initial reactions to the ending scene
8:15 - story vs. discourse and stuff to look at (slides here: tiny.cc/bktwxz)
12:55 - watching the scene with film elements in mind (*This section had to be removed due to copyright)
13:06 - observations & thoughts (performance, camera, sound, editing, props)
41:57 - Cooper’s final question
47:10 - storytelling elements to think about
1:01:59 - the final scene in a larger context
1:07:44 - Fun thoughts, abandoned notions, etc
1:18:29- characters (trapped) in stories: them and us
1:31:13 - what do you love most about this show?
1:34:03 - is this scene easy to summarize?
1:46:51 - persuasion and hypnosis in this show
1:53:56 - the enjoyment of talking TP
1:58:51 - closing thoughts on the ending scene
To watch the scene in black-and-white, click here: vimeo.com/940374474
Connect with:
- Courtenay / courtenaycal
- John / thornewip
- Andrew / mastermastermnd
- Joel / lostinthemovies
- Patrick / patreeeek
- Alison / agent.ivy
- Anthony / tpgrammar
Theme song: "Circle to the Highest Home" by Josef Polydoros

[@MarvinFalz]

Great talk! Gave me a lot of new ideas about The Return and especially the ending which seems to connect with Fire Walk With Me and the original series in a circular way. Another element that blew my mind when I first discovered it is Carrie's scream is an almost exact coy of Laura's scream in Fire Walk With Me when she realizes that Bob is her dad. It's like The Fireman pulled a switch to redirect Evil Cooper to the TP sheriff's station and Judy answered this move by redirecting Dale Cooper and Carrie Page back to 1989, the day Laura had died.

[@TwinPeaksGrammar]

Thanks for taking the time to write. Interesting.

[@clintvanderklok7269]

so glad I found this. Loved listening to other fans of the show. I don't know anyone in my circle who liked the show so I have to search out things like this. Loving your chatter. Will look for more from ya'll.

[@TwinPeaksGrammar]

Really appreciate you taking the time to say this - and I can very much relate. I wanted (needed, lol) to talk about this show, eventually turned to twitter, and have happily found some great people along the way. Keep in touch.

[@clintvanderklok7269]

@@TwinPeaksGrammar will do. maybe if you guys do another one announce it ahead of time because I'd love to shoot you an email with various ideas about the show and a couple of theories I find fascinating. If you find the topics worthwhile you could bring it up with the others and talk amongst yourselves? lol anyway, thanks again. I told some online pals about ya'll.

[@TwinPeaksGrammar]

@@clintvanderklok7269sounds great, thank you

[@LostInTheMovies]

Love the intro and outro you added, almost makes it feel like a piece of video art.

[@TwinPeaksGrammar]

Thank you. Credit to Josef P there. He’s definitely elevated the last few videos with great ideas, editing, music, and helpful feedback.

[@findlaura3543]

fell a victim

[@LeoOrientis]

I don''t appreciate _The Return_ at all. I think it's just another example of Lynch using the technique of the bully on his audience: « _Oh, you like my quirky, small-town characters trapped in a noir with supernatural undertones? Well, too bad, suckers. You get more_ Eraserhead! » If he just wanted to make more _Eraserhead,_ then he should have turned down Showtime's offer. Mark Frost's _Secret History_ was a magnificent prequel to our beloved series. They should have made that version of _The Return._ Instead, we get this horror. Lynch could have produced his poignant miniseries on the disintegration of the American dream with completely original characters and situations. Not trod all over our fond memories with his unrestrained nonsensical abstractions. The bits I most enjoyed were episode 8, and maybe the glass box segments. Neither had anything to do with _Twin Peaks._ I'd have gladly lapped up 13 episodes of that original story, rather than endured Lynch's destruction of everything that was worth saving in his glorious little town that time forgot. The ending... Obviously, it's an echo of season 2, epidode 9, _Lonely Souls._ When Cooper followed Donna to the house of Harold's next-door neighbours - the old lady and her grandson, who was learning magic - they found a woman they did not recognize, calling herself Treemond. In _Fire Walk With Me,_ that old lady and her grandson were identified as _The Chalfonts._ In _The Return's_ final episode, the lady in Sarah Palmer's house identifies herself as Mrs Treemond, and says she bought the house from _The Chalfonts._ So what? Treemonds replace Chalfonts. The Chalfonts were probably some neighbours Lynch had in 1952, when he was 6. They moved out unexpectedly, and boy-Lynch was traumatized by running out to play in their former front yard, then seeing an unfamiliar and unfriendly face watching him from their doorway. It's just an in-joke. A personal reference he'll never let us in on. But let's not dance around in circles to Lynch's infernal music. It means nothing, other than the « _interesting idea to think about_ » that struck him in that particular moment. And whose meaning is probably trite and long forgotten. If it were otherwise, there'd be no reason for him to be so cagy with us. He'd just say what he meant, if it were worth knowing. We fell for that man's malarkey. Hook, line and sinker.

[@TwinPeaksGrammar]

Thanks for weighing in. Don’t agree but still nice to hear others’ thoughts.