After many months, I have finally finished making my way through Twin Peaks, a show which up until now I considered to be one of my new favorites.

And holy crap, that was literally one of the worst endings I have ever seen, for anything. I knew to expect some loose ends--considering the show is basically a glorious convoluted knot of loose ends from episode one, it would be impossible NOT to have a few--but I didn't expect a deliberate slap in the face to anyone that's grown to care about the show's characters. Now, any time I think about Twin Peaks, all I'm going to remember is having the rug pointlessly and unceremoniously ripped out from under me at the end. It has very nearly ruined the show for me.

That new 9 episode series has a lot of explaining to do, and I expect a little more wrap up than just 40 minutes of dancing midgets and people talking backwards, and a cheap cliffhanger.

This, ladies and gentlemen, is why I hate the "oh, you have to piece everything together and create your own interpretation of events" school of storytelling with a fiery passion. Too often it means that everything else gets thrown away in favor of irritating narrative puzzles.

When you say ending, do you mean the TV series or do you include "Fire Walk with Me?"


EDIT: The original series wasn't supposed to get THAT weird. NBC forced Lynch and the producers to reveal Laura's killer early due to stagnating ratings at the end of season 1/ the beginning of season 2. The rest had to be made up somewhat on the spot after that was pushed.

I have not seen Fire Walk With Me. And unless it resolves a hell of a lot (which it doesn't, from what I've heard), I probably won't be seeing it.

It doesn't resolve a lot, but there are some answers there. See my edited post above.

Right, I know. And I think even before the end, Season 2 is much weaker as a result. That doesn't excuse the ending, though. Again, I expected loose ends. I would have been ok with that. But the ending also left me with a very bad, unfulfilled taste in my mouth.

I just watched the whole Twin Peaks on Hulu for the first time a few months ago. I loved the show and the whole journey, but yes, there were so much left unresolved. But the whole production had issues, with many plot details being changed, Lynch and Frost being forced to do things like reveal the killer so soon, etc. I actually sort of wish the third season was some kind of reboot the way Lynch and Frost would have originally done it without so much studio executive intervention, but I do want resolutions. And kind of interesting timing, considering early in season 1 had


SPOILER
Cooper's dream with a 25-years older version of him in the Black Lodge.
END SPOILER

I remember reading somewhere that Lynch deliberately left so many loose ends hanging in the final episode. Anyway, I was never pissed off at it. Have you seen a Lynch movie? Nothing, NOTHING ever gets resolved, so... I was used to it. That said, I can't wait for the new season!

I'd rather talk about Eraserhead.

No, I haven't. I was planning on checking out some of his other stuff, but I probably won't now, if they're all going to be like that.

There's a difference between leaving plotlines unexplained--which I expected--and totally screwing over anyone who wanted some semblance of closure. Hell, the ending is actually ANTI-closure. I would have felt better if I'd quit the episode before. The real ending seems determined to leave you feeling as rotten and unfulfilled as possible.

Originally I was going to quit after the murderer was revealed, and now I wish I had. That episode was a much, MUCH better ending.

Just saw that for the first time too around the same time. :) And Jack Nance is in Twin Peaks too. It was a weird one, but I'm not sorry I watched it.

Yeah, not sure what you expected. David Lynch is the king of not explaining things.

Season One is television at its best, in my opinion. Once Laura's killer is revealed in the 16th episode ("Arbitrary Law") its all downhill. I believe Lynch left to work on a film (maybe "Wild at Heart"?) because he was disenchanted with the show when the network (ABC) forced them to reveal Laura's killer. The killer wasn't supposed to be revealed until the very end if at all.
Personally I think the finale is wonderful, just as good as season one. Its obtuse, challenging and does not have a happy ending, or even an ending at all. Its typical Lynch, but one of the things I love about him.

I do not feel challenged, I feel scammed.

I've also been watching Twin Peaks recently for the first time, haven't watched Fire Walk With Me yet either. And yes, I was rather disappointed by the ending. I would also like to add to what paladin181 said that that cliffhanger was also left unresolved because the series was discontinued, it should have had a third season. All in all, while it has been as a whole kind of disappointing, I'm glad I saw it. As a mystery series, meaning something like putting all the pieces of the puzzle together, detective style... it's very weak. A lot of things are resolved by chance or by this dork Cooper doing weird mystical and intuitive shit. But then again, Dredd is a modern film with like the most simplistic story ever and it uses a psychic Judge in place for detective work and nobody complains (she's in the comics, I get it). Still, all that was pretty unconventional back then and still is now, and that's part of the charm. And the other part of the charm were the extremely loveable and quirky cast, and that also was pretty much absent for the whole final episode. It probably is one of those things that I like less than a lot of the things it has inspired, and it left a bittersweet taste.
There's not too much to piece together about that ending and final episode: this evil spirit called BOB is responsible for the heinous acts of Leland Palmer. He comes from this astral plane place called the Black Lodge. Windom Earle wants to summon him. BOB steals his soul and when Coop enters to save Annie, BOB comes outside instead of him, so we are stuck with a doppleganger instead of the real Cooper. I really don't know how they could pull off a continuation after that and after so many years. How many years would Cooper have been possessed by BOB since the hiatus?

Yes, I believe that was intentional. If you're not into that kind of stuff, don't look into Lynch's films. I personally worship him (well, except for Wild at Heart BECAUSE OF GODDAMN NICOLAS CAGE and Inland Empire, because, well, Inland Empire was a love it or hate it film, I hated it). You could watch some of his more... normal stuff, I guess. The Straight Story is an EXCELLENT drama.

I won't then.

I have no patience for people who think doing that sort of thing is an acceptable way to end their story, or an acceptable way to treat their viewers.

If that's his schtick, I may not even watch the new series. Fool me twice and all.