10 Things You Need To Know About Twin Peaks: The Return

2. Fire Walk With Me Isn't Just Canon; It's Crucial

Dale Cooper twin peaks
New Line Cinema

Twin Peaks: Fire Walk With Me alienated critics and infuriated fans upon its 1992 release.

It was a stark stylistic departure from the original series. The warm, nostalgic colour palette was colder, harsher. Characters swore, away from the confines of network television. The opening act didn't even take place in the town itself, but rather its grim doppelgänger Deer Meadow. Series protagonist Dale Cooper played only a minor role, owing to a late change of heart. The point of view was switched to Laura Palmer and her last seven days, something fans felt the minutiae of which had been explored (and exhausted) extensively.

But FWWM demands your attention, if you are to comprehend Dale Cooper's epic odyssey - pointedly, the very elusive Lynch has reserved his few morsels of publicity to underline that - but it's also worth revisiting entirely on its own merits.

The film is a masterpiece - a brutal exploration of incest in which Leland Palmer is recast as collaborator more so than patsy, lending Laura's life and death an almost unbearable - but far richer - dramatic heft. The grey northwestern skies of the pilot were replaced, serendipitously, with harsh sunshine - literally exposing the ugly id of the town obscured by the relatively woozy events of the series.

The terrifying expansion of the mythology, hinting at collaboration between worlds and a more pervasive reach, might yet conflate further.

Lynch might not keep Judy out of this...

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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!