Twin Peaks

I recently finished watching Twin Peaks for the first time.  Here are my thoughts:

Twin Peaks has aged really well, and that isn't something you can say about a lot of things that came from the 90's.  Historically, 70's and 80's television and movies have fared better in that regard.  Maybe the show is helped by the fact that Twins Peaks was actually born of that transitory period between decades and before the 90's had become truly ridiculous (check out an episode of Full House to see what I mean).  Obviously, the hairstyles and the attire are dated.  But content-wise the show itself wouldn't be too out of place on television today (it might be a better show, too, on HBO or some other modern cable network where many of the more adult themes that lay bubbling beneath the surface could be explored more in-depth).  Not to say that Twin Peaks was in any way tame television as is.  Even watching it in 2013, I was shocked by some of the content of the show.  Some of the murders are pretty shocking, and Maddie's death in particular stood out as very graphic (and lengthy).   

Grisly murders aside, there was also no shortage of drugs, sex, and violence (usually involving minors) in every episode.  Of course, most of this content was spoken of rather than shown explicitly, which gave the show a very soap opera-y feel.  In fact Twin Peaks was often essentially a very edgy soap, rife with enough love triangles, baby mama drama, hookups and breakups to satisfy any All My Children fan.  But of course, what made the show truly enthralling was its inherent weirdness.  Twin Peaks is a product of the mind of David Lynch, one of those directors (along with Quentin Tarantino for example) with such a singular style that when you watch something they've made, you know exactly what kind of thing you’re in store for.  For what it’s worth, Twin Peaks is probably the most “normal” David Lynch work that I've seen, but that isn't saying much, and the show is still pretty trippy by television standards. 

I mentioned earlier that Twin Peaks wouldn't be out of place on television today, and I meant that, but one thing that shocked me is the degree to which the show was well-known in its day; was a culture phenomenon it became.  Perhaps it’s a testament to the fact that there was simply less great television (and less choice) in that era.  But in this golden age of TV, I think a niche show like Twin Peaks would be struggling to find an audience.  The show does a good job of mixing in humor with the heavy stuff (something Lynch doesn't always bother to do in his movies), but Twin Peaks is often surreal, bordering on incomprehensible, and very dark.  I just couldn't imagine it capturing the attention of a wide audience today.  

What the show does have is a substantial cult following, which I think would only have been enhanced were it on the air today.  I could easily see Twin Peaks developing a Lost-like legion of obsessives who pore over every detail, and dissect the mythology of the show endlessly on internet message boards.  Perhaps that would have been enough to carry the show to more than two seasons today, but it’s hard to say.  As entertaining as Twin Peaks was throughout, it clearly lost its way to a certain extent after the Laura Palmer case was solved.  Perhaps it is better that Peaks only lasted two seasons anyway.  The “lightning in a bottle” aspect only adds to the mystique surrounding the show.

And of course, the legacy of Twin Peaks lives on today.  There are countless longer-lived shows that surely would never have existed without its influence (X-Files comes immediately to mind).    And Lost fans who are upset with the way that show ended should be required by law to watch the series finale of Twin Peaks.  Literally nothing is resolved and nearly every major character is involved in some cliffhanger at the conclusion.  But it’s hard to be upset about it because “Beyond Life and Death” is one of the highlights of the series and one of the most genuinely unsettling and terrifying hours of TV ever.  In other words, a damn fine end to a damn good television show.