Posted by Eden Crow in Twin Peaks Week

The pilot episode of Twin Peaks reviewed for Twin Peaks Week.

Introducing Twin Peaks Week

I have never watched anything by the famous David Lynch, including his cult TV show Twin Peaks. With the announcement on Saturday that he is back to working on its revival, I thought that now would be the best time to jump in and give it a try. As I lack knowledge on almost everything to do with the show, I thought that it would be worthwhile to document my thoughts for each episode. So, for the next week, I will watch an episode-a-day of the first season as part of Twin Peaks Week, releasing a review for each one, every day from Monday to Monday. Every review will contain critique and discussion on the episode, including whether newer episodes have impacted my thoughts on older ones. So, without further ado, here is my take on the pilot episode.

Atmosphere and Plot

For a completely new TV show to have a feature length pilot revolved around the reveal of a murder is rather brave. With practically no build-up we are thrown straight into the thick of it, only after the fact do we get to be introduced to the location and its characters. Twin Peaks itself seems to be its own character too, with the cinematography wonderfully displaying how this seemingly normal place is shrouded in darkness. Everyday places such as a home or workplace are dripping with dark ambience that manages to stay rooted within the walls of realismc. Some rather visually appealing shots are occasionally used, yet for the most part scenes are without too much visual flare which helps to balance the creation of an interesting atmosphere within the normal world. While this style may be very intriguing, it isn’t without the problem of being slightly dated now. However, it does make me look forward to how the upcoming season will look. Over the next few episodes though, what interests me the most is the way that the plot has created its own complexities already. Many characters have secrets and I’m sure more of them will be discovered as the series continues.

Characters

For the most part all of the characters that have been shown so far seem to have a reasonable amount of depth to them, of which we as an audience have only just scratched the surface. All of their dialogue again shows these signs of being thought-out and realistic to a certain degree, allowing for me to be quickly captivated by them. What also has helped is how quirky many of them are, with perhaps my favourite being Special Agent Dale Cooper. The way in which he has such interest in discovering certain details, whether it be about the case or just what type of trees grow in the area, makes for a character who feels like a knowledgeable narrator from a novel. Something that would perhaps be difficult to pull off without seeming obnoxious and annoying to watch, yet the acting here just works. There is certainly a specific acting style that everyone in the show is aiming for, which in the first few minutes grated with me slightly, but I quickly got used to it and it was again another aspect that just helped to draw me in even more. In fact, it is the characters that are making me want to watch more of the show as opposed to the problems within the case so far. I’m very interested to see what will happen to them when I watch the next episode.

Final Thoughts

I’m rather surprised to the amount of which I’ve actually been enthralled by the pilot episode of Twin Peaks and am very much looking forward to watching the next episode. Surprisingly, even though detective stories are something that always seems to catch my interest, it’s actually the characters and the setting itself that I’m most looking forward to seeing over the coming episodes. Their quirks and the way in which these quirks are shown on-screen just seem to be something different than what I’ve ever really seen before.

Make sure you check back here tomorrow on Eden Reviews to see what I think of Traces to Nowhere, the next episode in the series. For now though I will leave you with my favourite little moment from the episode:

To find out when the latest episode review is up, or to follow along with me watching the latest episode, follow me on Twitter, where I will be tweeting all week with #TwinPeaksWeek.

Also, please feel free to leave your thoughts and opinions about this episode in the comments below. Please refrain from posting spoilers from future episodes!

Read the last review: Bored to Death (2009-2011)

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