The Owls Are Not What They Seem

I've been rewatching Twin Peaks. Again. I've talked about my love for the show and its characters. Needless to say I am positively giddy thinking about the new episodes that begin Sunday. It has been a long twenty-five years since we last visited that town "both wonderful and strange."

As I rewatch the show, I find myself increasingly drawn to two characters in particular. All of the characters are intriguing and special, but these two have claimed my undying love — Deputy Andy Brennan and Agent Albert Rosenfeld.

I'll talk about Andy first. I loved him from the very first time I saw the show in April 1990. He wore his heart on his sleeve and had a strong sense of justice and moral character. He weeps at the sight of Laura Palmer wrapped in plastic. Harry Goaz is so sincere in his portrayal of Andy that you can't help but adore him. He's so sweet, and he tries so hard. How can you not love a law officer who openly mourns the victims of crimes?

He may not be the brightest bulb in the box, but his heart is in the right place.

Albert is another officer of the law, but that's about all he and Andy have in common. Albert is argumentative, stubborn and judgmental. He does not suffer fools, and he thinks everyone is a fool until they prove themselves otherwise. Miguel Ferrer is brilliant playing this pugnacious FBI agent. 

While we meet Andy in the first five minutes of the first episode, we only hear about Albert who Agent Cooper says "has a little more on the ball" than Sam.

Albert finally makes an appearance in the third episode and immediately antagonizes Sheriff Truman and the entire Twin Peaks Sheriff's Department, not to mention the hospital staff and town citizens. He even takes a punch from the sheriff!

His methods seem cruel to Twin Peaks' residents. They knew Laura, after all, and hate to see her treated so cruelly in her death (never mind her treatment in life). But, as Agent Cooper says, "Albert's path is a strange and difficult one."

Andy's and Albert's journey takes them from adversaries to allies. I cannot wait to see what's in store for these two law men in the upcoming episodes.

Thank you to Harry Goaz and Miguel Ferrer for bringing these two indelible characters to life. And thank you to David Lynch and Mark Frost for creating such indelible characters in the first place.

Who other than these four geniuses could gift us with a scene like this?

Twin Peaks and the Power of Character

Last month, I was in Washington at the Twin Peaks Festival, a celebration of all things Twin Peaks and David Lynch. For those of you who may not remember or know Twin Peaks, it was a television series created by Lynch and Mark Frost that aired on ABC for two seasons in the early 1990s. The show began with the central plot revolving around the murder of the homecoming queen.

The fictional town of Twin Peaks was a place 'both wonderful and strange.' It was a town 'full of secrets,' and viewers' guide to navigating those secrets was FBI Special Agent Dale Cooper played by the perfectly cast Kyle MacLachlan.

While viewers learned more about Laura Palmer, the murder victim, and the other residents of the town, we were also treated to extraordinary side stories, beautiful scenery and terrific dialogue.



Ultimately, many of the stories in Twin Peaks deal with serious issues such as abuse, extortion, arson, murder and violence.

Why have people gathered in celebration of this?

The Twin Peaks Festival has been an annual occurrence since 1993. Fans travel from all across the globe to meet in North Bend and see the filming locations, meet cast members who come to the Fest, and visit with other fans who become family.

Gary Hershberger, who played

Mike on Twin Peaks, and Sara

at Twin Peaks Fest 2015.

This was my first year attending Twin Peaks Fest, and it was gratifying being around others who were just as obsessed with the show as I was. While I've been a Twin Peaks fan from the first night it aired on ABC (with limited commercial interruptions), what did surprise me was the number of fans at the Fest who discovered the show on DVD or Netflix, long after it went off the air.

Except for the vehicles and the telephones, there is a timeless quality to Twin Peaks. The high school students wear leather jackets or plaid skirts and sweaters. Not a lot of dated slang words are used, and there are no chain stores seen on screen. Twin Peaks exists in a bubble.

One of the other fans I spoke with at the Fest said she thought it was amazing that people were such fans of what was, essentially, a dark show. As I said, the subject matter is disturbing. The scene where viewers become privy to what, precisely, happened to Laura Palmer when she was murdered is still one of the most terrifying scenes I've ever seen on television, network or cable.

Twin Peaks tells a dark story in a unique way, though. The character of Agent Cooper is a brilliant creation. He is a man who is focused and dedicated to his job, a brilliant detective who concedes he has weaknesses, and someone who is able to combine amazement at the world around him without losing sight of the important job ahead of him.



It's important to have characters to root for and empathize with and love. But it's also important to make characters complex. Those characters make Twin Peaks appealing to many. I know they're the reason I keep coming back to the show after 25 years. Everyone, even minor characters, has depth and layers. I've already mentioned Agent Cooper, but there's also

• Laura Palmer, the homecoming queen whose murder kicks off the show - she isn't what she seems, but even her secrets hide a darker secret

  

  Ian Buchanan, who played

  Richard Tremayne on Twin

  Peaks, and Sara at Twin

  Peaks Fest 2015.

• Deputy Andy Brennan, local law enforcement - in his first scene, he weeps while photographing the dead body, but he has a strong moral center despite certain intellectual difficulties
• The Log Lady - although a bit odd, her own story is heartbreaking

This is just a small sample of the wonderful, weird and wacky characters in Twin Peaks. They keep entertaining me year after year. I can only hope my own characters prove just as entertaining and touching to readers.

Twin Peaks is returning to television. I, for one, can't wait to see my old friends again and look forward to making new acquaintances.