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Twin Peaks: My First Love

Image courtesy of Showtime

“Who killed Laura Palmer?” was a question asked worldwide in 1990. The homecoming queen and small-town darling was filled with secrets that came out after her lifeless body was discovered wrapped in plastic. The murder mystery captivated the world in a time when cable was in its infancy and people still gathered at work or school to talk about what was on television the night before. TV was safe at the time, filled with countless nighttime soaps and family sitcoms and nothing really pushed the envelope the way maverick film director David Lynch did with Twin Peaks. Lynch entered the world of television because he wanted to tell an ongoing story, unlike in film where everything is wrapped up in two hours. Little did the world know that television would never be the same again after Twin Peaks.

I remember being a child and seeing the commercials. “It’s a nice place to live but you wouldn’t want to die there” the narrator said over the ad, months before the show’s debut. I was scared out of my mind, but still intrigued. When my parents sat down to watch the first episode, I joined them, at the tender young age of 5. I watched every week with them until they quit watching after the murder mystery was resolved, but I didn’t stop. I watched every episode after, usually by myself up until the season two finale, which turned out to be the show’s finale as well. The show was Mayberry on the surface and a horror film at its core, lead by an intuitive FBI Agent who found himself literally dealing with forces out of this world. The show’s ’50s charm was a perfect counterbalance for its sheer brutality and heartbreaking subject material with the sci-fi horror elements as the cherry on top of that delicious piece of pie.

The night the final episode aired I ran upstairs and hid after it was over. I was six at the time and more scared than I had ever been before. Truthfully, I remained terrified of the show’s main villain, BOB until I was a senior in high school. BOB gave me more nightmares than I can count and often lead to me checking under my bed and in my closets. My senior year of high school, I decided to face my fear.

Along with a group of curious friends we watched the series over a weekend, marathon style with few breaks in between. I had faced my fear and fallen in love with the show although now I was old enough to understand it. As a child, I really think the biggest reason I watched the show is because its the only time I remember my parents being in the same room. When they quit watching, I kept watching in hopes that they would rejoin me. They didn’t, but I didn’t stop trying. As a teen, however, I fell in love with the show itself and was hooked for life.

After watching the series there was one more thing to do: Finally watch the prequel film, Twin Peaks: Fire Walk With Me. The film came out after the show had ended and just the sight of a commercial for the film or seeing the VHS tape at a Blockbuster gave me chills as a kid. I had heard that the film was a cult classic but was despised by many fans of the show. I was hooked after watching the series, so I HAD to see this prequel film. It turns out it was drastically different from the show but I loved it. It was haunting, scary, sad, sexy and completely captivating. I have since watched the film more times than I care to count and the same goes for the series.  I became that fan over the years that obsessed over every story relating to the show, hoping for any new material in that world. Every book, every DVD release – they all offered something new. The holy grail for a fan like me was the deleted scenes from Fire Walk With Me. There had rumors for years that Lynch wanted those to be restored and released. I always dismissed the stories that the series would return, but the idea of seeing additional material from Fire Walk With Me seemed realistic. It turns out I was half right.

The past few years have been a whirlwind for Twin Peaks fans both new and old. We did finally get the deleted scenes from the film in a beautiful Blu-Ray set that includes the pilot, both seasons of the series, the film and more. Being able to finally see that was a dream come true but much to my surprise, Lynch and Frost were already hard at work writing a return to the town where nobody is innocent. The announcement was made not too long after the release of the Blu-Ray set.  Flash forward a few years, and I’ve been riding the same emotional roller coaster many of you probably have as well. When Lynch briefly pulled out of the project, my heart sank. It worked out for the best though. Not only did he return to work but he also got an increased episode count and an increased budget. I kept asking myself if this was really happening. Then we got casting announcements, teasers, events; the Entertainment Weekly covers—this is real. The show that grabbed my attention at such a young age IS coming back. It’s coming back in the age of the internet where I get to experience it with people worldwide who love that world just as much as me. It’s coming back at a time when I can work on a project like this site, which is a labor of love. A place to share all of the things we love about Twin Peaks with each other. To say I’m excited would be an understatement. To say I’ve been waiting most of my life for this would be completely accurate. Thanks for reading and I hope you enjoy this site and our return trip to a town called Twin Peaks.

 

Written by Andrew Grevas

Andrew is the Founder / Editor in Chief of 25YL. He’s engaged with 2 sons, a staunch defender of the series finales for both Lost & The Sopranos and watched Twin Peaks at the age of 5 during its original run, which explains a lot about his personality.

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