Approaching Twin Peaks

Though it lasted just two seasons, Twin Peaks (1990–1991) raised the bar for television and is now considered one of the great dramas in TV history. Its complex plots and sensational visuals both inspired and alienated audiences. After 25 years, the cult classic is being revived.
This collection of new essays explores its filmic influences, its genre-bending innovations and its use of horror and science fiction conventions, from the original series through the earlier film prequel Twin Peaks: Fire Walk with Me and subsequent video releases.

Eric Hoffman, a poet and essayist, is the author of sixteen books and lives in Connecticut.
Dominick Grace, a professor of English at Brescia University College, has published numerous articles on subjects ranging from medieval and early modern literature to contemporary popular culture. He lives in London, Ontario, Canada.

Edited by Eric Hoffman and Dominick Grace
Format: softcover (6 x 9)
Pages: 212
Bibliographic Info: notes, bibliographies, index
Copyright Date: 2017
pISBN: 978-1-4766-7127-7
eISBN: 978-1-4766-3005-2
Imprint: McFarland

Table of Contents

Acknowledgments vii

Introduction. “A place both wonderful and strange”: The Legacy of Twin Peaks 1

Surreal and Surrealist Elements in David Lynch’s Television Series Twin Peaks (Nicola Glaubitz and Jens Schröter) 15

Intercourse Between Two Worlds (John J. Pierce) 30

Smashing the Small Screen: David Lynch, Twin Peaks

and Reinventing Television (Kyle Barrett) 47

“I’ll see you in the trees”: Trauma, Intermediality and the Pacific Northwest Weird (Rachel Joseph) 65

Beyond Angels, Beyond Demons: Post-Christian Dissociative

Rhetoric Within Twin Peaks (Gavin F. Hurley) 81

“These old woods”: Spiritual Ambivalence, Moral Panic and Unsettling Legacy in Twin Peaks (Elizabeth Lowry) 101

Leland Palmer Was Not Alone: The Lucifer Effect and Domestic Violence in Twin Peaks and The Shining (Michail Zontos) 111

David Lynch’s American Nightmare (Siobhan Lyons) 128

Evil and Vampirism in Twin Peaks: Fire Walk with Me (Martha L. Diaz) 143

How Twin Peaks Brought Viewers Existential Mobsters and Advertising Doppelgängers (Donald McCarthy) 154

Twin Peaks: The Entire Mystery and the Narrative Experience (Fabian Grumbrecht) 168

Doppelgänger: Fire Walk with Me’s “Missing Pieces” (Scott Von Doviak) 184

About the Contributors 195

Index 197

“This new collection of essays on the original series will enrich and expand discussions and debates about one of television’s most controversial, confounding, innovative and bizarre shows of all time. This scholarly collection will open up many new realms of exploration”—Pop Culture Classics.