Twin Meh

I finally finished watching Twin Peaks. And now I know why people told me to stop watching after the main mystery was solved.

The show was absolutely brilliant and there were times when I was completely entranced with what I saw on screen. The writing was amazing, the storylines were exceptional, and the acting was just fantastic.

(Have I used enough positive adjectives, or what?)

The series begins with the murder of the town sweetheart, high school senior Laura Palmer, (basically the main draw and the way that the show was marketed) and her killer is not found until sixteen or seventeen episodes in. Apparently, the creators of the show, David Lynch and Mark Frost, weren't sure that they were ever going to reveal Laura's killer, but network brass at ABC eventually forced their hands.

And this was the main problem of the second season. Once Laura's murderer was unveiled, in one of the best final scenes of all of the episodes, I lost interest. I still loved the cast and the acting, but the new mystery (basically a continuation of Laura's murder, but with more twists) was taking too many left turns with far too few rights. I still watched, because I just couldn't quit the show like that, but I can see why people became annoyed with the meandering storytelling when it originally aired. I think that it also has to do with the way the network moved the show around, making it difficult for people to know when to watch - the death knell of so many good shows. Ah, the days before DVR...

The final episode was a fantastic cliffhanger, with several storylines left unsolved and new, captivating questions introduced. Like Veronica Mars (a show that was widely compared to Twin Peaks), the viewer was left hanging and upon cancellation, totally unfulfilled.

The thing is, it's still worth watching. Of course, it also depends on how you deal with weirdness. It definitely gets weird. And some people just don't deal well with weird.

So take it or leave it, but I would at least give the first season a shot. It's only seven or eight episodes, and by the time you get through the first few episodes, I have a feeling you'll be hooked.