10 Things We Learned From Twin Peaks: The Return Part 8

6. Experiment = Mother

Evil Coop Woodsmen
Showtime

Within that batsh*t sequence, we see the androgynous figure that eviscerated Sam and Tracy in the two-hour premiere floating in a blank void, arms outstretched (reminiscent of the manner in which Cooper was suspended in the glass box in New York City, having been plunged into "nonexistence" by the Evolution Of The Arm's doppelgänger).

We see this figure - credited, for now, as 'Experiment' eject...something. We are dealing with something literally alien, indefinable by physical concepts. To the human eye, it echoes the mushroom cloud itself, an instantly-fossilised, translucent, frozen stream of grey matter within which there are multiple small eggs (hosting the blackened, hobo-like spectres?) and a sac - unquestionably - bearing the visage of BOB.

In the original series, Philip Gerard/MIKE suggested that (by 1989) BOB had been with us for "over forty years". This sequence is self-evident - BOB's face emerges from an amniotic sac - and the math all but confirms that this is the birth of BOB, the evil that men do.

Therefore Experiment = "Mother": the unseen, door-pounding entity from which Cooper narrowly escapes in the mauve world of Part 3.

Contributor
Contributor

Michael Sidgwick is an editor, writer and podcaster for WhatCulture Wrestling. With over seven years of experience in wrestling analysis, Michael was published in the influential institution that was Power Slam magazine, and specialises in providing insights into All Elite Wrestling - so much so that he wrote a book about the subject. You can order Becoming All Elite: The Rise Of AEW on Amazon. Possessing a deep knowledge also of WWE, WCW, ECW and New Japan Pro Wrestling, Michael’s work has been publicly praised by former AEW World Champions Kenny Omega and MJF, and current Undisputed WWE Champion Cody Rhodes. When he isn’t putting your finger on why things are the way they are in the endlessly fascinating world of professional wrestling, Michael wraps his own around a hand grinder to explore the world of specialty coffee. Follow Michael on X (formerly known as Twitter) @MSidgwick for more!