"Episode 16" | |
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Twin Peaks episode | |
![]() Leland Palmer is comforted by Special Agent Dale Cooper as he dies. | |
Episode no. | Season 2 Episode 9 |
Directed by | Tim Hunter |
Written by | Mark Frost Harley Peyton Robert Engels |
Production code | 2.009 [1] |
Original air date | December 1, 1990 |
Running time | 47 minutes [2] |
Guest appearances | |
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"Episode 16", also known as "Arbitrary Law", [nb 1] is the ninth episode of the second season of the American mystery television series Twin Peaks . The episode was written by series co-creator Mark Frost, producer Harley Peyton and regular writer Robert Engels, and directed by Tim Hunter. It features series regulars Kyle MacLachlan, Michael Ontkean, Ray Wise and Richard Beymer, and guest stars Miguel Ferrer as Albert Rosenfield, Don S. Davis as Major Briggs, and Al Strobel as MIKE.
Twin Peaks centers on the investigation into the murder of schoolgirl Laura Palmer (Sheryl Lee), in the small rural town in Washington state after which the series is named. In this episode, following the discovery of Madeleine "Maddy" Ferguson (Lee), Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) Special Agents Dale Cooper (MacLachlan) and Albert Rosenfield, and Sheriff Truman (Ontkean) continue to search for the human host of the killer—the demon BOB (Frank Silva). With assistance from MIKE (Al Strobel), Donna Hayward (Lara Flynn Boyle) and The Waiter (Hank Worden), the three men discover that Leland Palmer (Wise) is BOB's host and form a plan to capture BOB.
"Episode 16" was first broadcast on December 1, 1990, on ABC, and was watched by an audience of 12.4 million households in the United States (about 15 percent of the available audience). Critical response to the episode was positive.
The small town of Twin Peaks, Washington, has been shocked by the murder of schoolgirl Laura Palmer (Sheryl Lee) and the attempted murder of her friend Ronette Pulaski (Phoebe Augustine). Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) Special Agent Dale Cooper (Kyle MacLachlan) has been sent to the town to investigate, [4] and has come to the realization that the killer was possessed by a demonic entity—Killer BOB (Frank Silva). [5] BOB's real human host, Laura's father Leland Palmer (Ray Wise), has murdered his niece Madeleine "Maddy" Ferguson (Lee) and disposed of her body. [6]
Meanwhile, Ben Horne (Richard Beymer) is still imprisoned under suspicion of Laura Palmer's murder, Lucy Moran (Kimmy Robertson) confronts Deputy Andy Brennan (Harry Goaz) and Dick Tremayne (Ian Buchanan) about her pregnancy, and Norma Jennings (Peggy Lipton) is surprised when her mother, Vivian Smythe Niles (Jane Greer) arrives in Twin Peaks with her new husband, Ernie (James Booth).
Cooper, FBI Special Agent Albert Rosenfield (Miguel Ferrer), Sheriff Harry S. Truman (Michael Ontkean) and Deputy Hawk walk through the woods outside of Twin Peaks the morning after the discovery of Maddy Ferguson's body. Albert gives forensic evidence to Cooper, concluding Maddy's killer was the same person who murdered her cousin, Laura Palmer. Sheriff Truman insists on contacting Maddy's uncle Leland Palmer, as he would be able to contact her parents. Cooper persuades Sheriff Truman to give him twenty four hours "to finish this." [7]
In the Double R Diner, Deputy Andy Brennan sits at the counter reciting the French phrase "J'ai une âme solitaire" ("I am a lonely soul"). [7] Donna Hayward (Lara Flynn Boyle) approaches Andy and asks if he had visited Mrs. Tremond (Frances Bay), whose grandson had said the same phrase to her during her Meals on Wheels round. Andy reveals that the phrase was included in Harold Smith (Lenny Von Dohlen)'s suicide note. Donna contacts Cooper and both of them visit Mrs. Tremond's home, only to find a completely different woman living there answering to the name of Mrs. Tremond. She gives Donna an envelope from Harold Smith, containing two pages from Laura Palmer's secret diary. The entries, dated February 22 and 23, reveal that Cooper and Laura had the same dream involving the Red Room and that Laura was aware of her imminent death.
Cooper visits MIKE (Al Strobel), who is inhabiting Philip Gerard, at the Great Northern Hotel. Cooper tells MIKE that he and Laura had the same dream on separate occasions and he needs to unlock the answers. MIKE mentions a "golden circle" and his connection with The Giant (Carel Struycken), telling Cooper that he must summon The Giant to receive answers. Upon leaving MIKE's room, Cooper encounters the Waiter (Hank Worden), who tells him that he's "getting warmer now." [7]
Elsewhere, James Hurley (James Marshall) gives Donna a ring, Norma Jennings (Peggy Lipton) has an altercation with her mother, Vivian Smythe Niles (Jane Greer), in the Double R Diner, and Lucy Moran tells Andy Brennan and Richard Tremayne about her plans for a blood test to determine which of them is the father of her baby. Mr. Tojamura visits Ben Horne (Richard Beymer) in jail, and reveals himself to be Catherine Martell (Piper Laurie) in disguise. Ben signs the Ghostwood Project contract over to Catherine in exchange for an alibi in the murder case.
Meanwhile, Donna visits Leland Palmer to deliver a tape of a song she, James and Maddy recorded together. Leland, while inhabited by BOB, asks Donna to dance with him and becomes aggressive, before being distracted by a knock on the door from Sheriff Truman. He informs Leland there has been another murder and asks him to come to the Roadhouse. At the Roadhouse, Cooper assembles all of the people he suspects might be BOB's host. While there, the Waiter offers people sticks of gum and tells Leland "that gum you like is going to come back in style", prompting Cooper to remember his earlier dream of the Red Room. He determines that Leland is BOB's host, but arrests Ben Horne to distract BOB. While Ben is about to be imprisoned again, Cooper and Sheriff Truman throw Leland into the interrogation room, where he goes into a manic fit.
Inside the interrogation room, BOB confesses through Leland's body that he murdered Theresa Banks, Laura Palmer and Maddy Ferguson. When Cooper, Albert, Sheriff Truman and Hawk leave, BOB chants a poem ending with the phrase "fire, walk with me." [7] The water sprinklers turn on, triggered by smoke from Dick Tremayne's cigarette, and BOB forces Leland to commit suicide by ramming his head into the door. BOB vacates Leland's body, and Leland becomes aware of what BOB did while in his body and reveals the nature of his possession as he dies. Cooper comforts Leland through his last moments by reciting a paraphrase of a passage from the Bardo Thodol , [8] and Leland dies after seeing a vision of Laura.
Cooper, Rosenfield, Sheriff Truman, and Major Garland Briggs (Don S. Davis) walk through the woods discussing Leland's possession and death. Rosenfield concludes that BOB is simply "the evil that men do", and Sheriff Truman questions where BOB might have gone after leaving Leland's body. An unseen character then runs through the woods, and an owl flies out from a large white light. [7]
"Episode 16" was written by Twin Peaks co-creator Mark Frost, producer Harley Peyton and regular series writer Robert Engels. [7] [9] Frost co-wrote two further episodes of the series, "Episode 26" and "Episode 29." [10] Engels co-wrote a further four installments — "Episode 22", "Episode 25", "Episode 27", and "Episode 29" — and Peyton co-wrote seven later scripts.
Although credited, Mädchen Amick, Sherilyn Fenn, Jack Nance, and Joan Chen do not appear in this episode. Ray Wise leaves the regular cast after this episode.
Leland Palmer's final moments in "Episode 16" feature spiritual themes. In The Philosophy of David Lynch, Simon Riches draws comparison between Cooper guiding Leland to "find the light" as he dies and his use of the "Tibetan method" of divination [8] in "Episode 2". Using an extract from Desire Under the Douglas Firs: Entering the Body of Reality in Twin Peaks, a critical essay by Martha Nochimson, Riches argues that Cooper acts as Leland's "spiritual guide", which is "a narrative realization of Cooper's Tibetan Method." [11]
"Episode 16" was originally broadcast on the American Broadcasting Company (ABC) network on December 1, 1990. The initial broadcast was watched by 12.4 million households in the United States—which represented 15 percent of the available audience and 7.9 percent of all households in the country. [12] The ratings denoted a further decline since the revelation of Laura Palmer's killer in "Episode 14", which attracted 17.2 million viewers. [13] The preceding episode, "Episode 15" was seen by 13.3 million households [14] and the following episode, "Episode 17", suffered a further decline, attracting 11.1 million households. [15]
Critical reception to "Episode 16" has been positive. Writing for The A.V. Club , Keith Phipps said that the installment "feels rushed" but suggested that "there's still a lot [...] that works." He further added: "'that gum you like is going to come back in style,' remains an endlessly quotable line and Palmer's death scene is well handled with, again, some superb Ray Wise acting. And while I fully accept that Twin Peaks wants us to buy into its woodsy-mystico mythology of good and evil, I like that Wise plays it as if it might be all in his head to the end" but stated that the final scene was "clumsy." [16] AllRovi's Andrea LeVasseur referred to the episode's ending as "a final chaotic conclusion." [17]
Twin Peaks is an American mystery serial drama television series created by Mark Frost and David Lynch. It premiered on ABC on April 8, 1990, and ran for two seasons until its cancellation in 1991. The show returned in 2017 for a third season on Showtime.
Federal Bureau of Investigation Special Agent Dale Bartholomew Cooper, portrayed by Kyle MacLachlan, is a fictional character who is the protagonist of the ABC television series Twin Peaks and its 2017 revival series by Showtime. He also plays a supporting role in the prequel film Twin Peaks: Fire Walk with Me.
Laura Palmer is a fictional character in the Twin Peaks franchise and the primary focus of the series. She is portrayed by Sheryl Lee and was created by the series creators David Lynch and Mark Frost. She first appears in the ABC original series Twin Peaks. A high school student whose death is the catalyst for the events of the series, Palmer is the protagonist in Lynch's prequel film Twin Peaks: Fire Walk with Me (1992), which depicts the final week of her life leading up to her murder. Laura also appears in the novels, Twin Peaks: The Return (2017), and a variety of merchandise based on the series.
Bob is a fictional character in the ABC television series Twin Peaks, played by Frank Silva. He is an interdimensional entity who feeds on pain and sorrow. An inhabiting spirit, he possesses human beings and then commits acts of rape and murder in order to feast on the suffering of his victims. In the film Fire Walk With Me, this suffering is called "garmonbozia" and can manifest in the form of creamed corn.
Donna Marie Hayward is a fictional character in the Twin Peaks franchise. She was portrayed by Lara Flynn Boyle in the television series Twin Peaks (1990–1991) and by Moira Kelly in the film Twin Peaks: Fire Walk With Me (1992) and its deleted and extended scenes compilation Twin Peaks: The Missing Pieces (2014). She was created by David Lynch and Mark Frost. Making her debut as a main character in the original series, Donna is introduced as the best friend and classmate of Laura Palmer, who tries to solve the mystery of her murder. Donna has a supporting role in the prequel film Twin Peaks: Fire Walk With Me, which depicts the final week of Laura's life. Donna is referenced numerous times in Jennifer Lynch's novel The Secret Diary of Laura Palmer. The novel Twin Peaks: The Final Dossier by Mark Frost reveals some of what happened to her after the events of the show's second season.
Leland Palmer is a fictional character from the television series Twin Peaks, created by David Lynch and Mark Frost. He also appears in the prequel, Twin Peaks: Fire Walk with Me. He is portrayed in all his appearances by Ray Wise.
Madeleine "Maddy" Ferguson is a fictional character in the Twin Peaks franchise. She was created by the series creators David Lynch and Mark Frost and portrayed by Sheryl Lee. Introduced in the fourth episode of the first season, Maddy is the older cousin of Laura Palmer who comes to Twin Peaks to help her aunt and uncle cope with the death of their daughter. Over the course of the series, Maddy forms a close friendship with Donna Hayward and James Hurley, Laura's closest friends, and assists them in their investigation into her death. Originally, she was not intended to be a part of the series but was created by David Lynch so that Lee could have a larger role in the series.
"Episode 29", also known as "Beyond Life and Death", is the twenty-second and final episode of the second season of the American mystery television series Twin Peaks. Episode 29 served as the final episode of Twin Peaks for over 25 years, until Twin Peaks: The Return was aired in 2017. Upon its original airing in 1991, the episode was paired with episode 28 to form the second hour of what was then billed as a two-part series finale. The episode was written by the series co-creator Mark Frost, producer Harley Peyton and regular writer Robert Engels and was directed by series co-creator David Lynch, who rewrote parts of the script. It features series regulars Kyle MacLachlan, Michael Ontkean, Richard Beymer and Kenneth Welsh; and guest stars Frank Silva as Killer Bob, Michael J. Anderson as The Man from Another Place, Carel Struycken as The Giant, and Heather Graham as Annie Blackburn.
"Episode 2", also known as "Zen, or the Skill to Catch a Killer", is the third episode of the first season of the American mystery television series Twin Peaks. The episode was written by series creators David Lynch and Mark Frost, and directed by Lynch. It features series regulars Kyle MacLachlan, Michael Ontkean, Ray Wise and Richard Beymer; and introduces Michael J. Anderson as The Man from Another Place, Miguel Ferrer as Albert Rosenfield and David Patrick Kelly as Jerry Horne.
"Episode 1", also known as "Traces to Nowhere", is the second episode of the first season of the American mystery television series Twin Peaks. The episode was written by series creators David Lynch and Mark Frost, and directed by Duwayne Dunham. "Episode 1" features series regulars Kyle MacLachlan, Michael Ontkean, and Richard Beymer.
"Episode 3", later also known as "Rest in Pain", is the fourth episode of the first season of the American mystery television series Twin Peaks. The episode was written by Harley Peyton, and directed by Tina Rathborne. "Episode 3" features series regulars Kyle MacLachlan, Michael Ontkean and Ray Wise, and introduces Sheryl Lee's second role, Maddy Ferguson.
"Episode 14", also known as "Lonely Souls", is the seventh episode of the second season of the American mystery television series Twin Peaks. The episode was written by series co-creator Mark Frost and directed by series co-creator David Lynch. It features series regulars Kyle MacLachlan, Michael Ontkean, Ray Wise and Richard Beymer; and guest stars Frank Silva (uncredited) as Killer BOB, Hank Worden as The Waiter, Julee Cruise as Singer, and David Lynch as Gordon Cole.
"Episode 5", also known as "Cooper's Dreams", is the sixth episode of the first season of the American mystery television series Twin Peaks. The episode was written by series co-creator Mark Frost and directed by Lesli Linka Glatter. "Episode 5" features series regulars Kyle MacLachlan, Michael Ontkean and Richard Beymer, with guest appearances by Chris Mulkey and David Patrick Kelly.
"Episode 4", also known as "The One-Armed Man", is the fifth episode of the first season of the American mystery television series Twin Peaks. The episode was written by Robert Engels, and directed by Tim Hunter. "Episode 4" features series regulars Kyle MacLachlan, Piper Laurie and Richard Beymer, and introduces series co-creator David Lynch in the role of Gordon Cole.
"Episode 6", also known as "Realization Time", is the seventh episode of the first season of the American mystery television series Twin Peaks. The episode was written by Harley Peyton, and directed by Caleb Deschanel. "Episode 6" features series regulars Kyle MacLachlan, Sherilyn Fenn and Eric Da Re, with guest appearances by Chris Mulkey and David Patrick Kelly.
"Episode 8", also known as "May the Giant Be with You", is the first episode of the second season of the American mystery television series Twin Peaks. The episode was written by series co-creators David Lynch and Mark Frost, and directed by Lynch. It features series regulars Kyle MacLachlan, Michael Ontkean, Ray Wise and Richard Beymer; and guest stars Grace Zabriskie as Sarah Palmer, Chris Mulkey as Hank Jennings, Miguel Ferrer as Albert Rosenfield, Don S. Davis as Major Garland Briggs, and Victoria Catlin as Blackie O'Reilly.
Twin Peaks: The Missing Pieces is a 2014 feature-length compilation of deleted and extended scenes from Twin Peaks: Fire Walk with Me, a 1992 film directed by David Lynch and written by Lynch and Robert Engels. It was released over twenty-two years after the movie and the original series ended and three years before the revival, Twin Peaks: The Return, aired.
"Episode 9", also known as "Coma", is the second episode of the second season of the American mystery television series Twin Peaks. The episode was written by Harley Peyton, and directed by series co-creator David Lynch. It features series regulars Kyle MacLachlan, Michael Ontkean, Ray Wise and Richard Beymer; and guest stars Chris Mulkey as Hank Jennings, Miguel Ferrer as Albert Rosenfield, David Patrick Kelly as Jerry Horne. Don S. Davis as Major Garland Briggs, Victoria Catlin as Blackie O'Reilly, Don Amendolia as Emory Battis, Frances Bay as Mrs. Tremond, Grace Zabriskie as Sarah Palmer, and Catherine E. Coulson as the Log Lady.
"Part 17", also known as "The Return, Part 17", is the 17th episode of the third season of the TV series Twin Peaks. It was written by Mark Frost and David Lynch, directed by Lynch, and stars Kyle MacLachlan. "Part 17" was broadcast on Showtime along with Part 18 on September 3, 2017, and seen by an audience of 254,000 viewers in the United States. It received widespread acclaim.
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