unanswered questions / mistakes / etc.

General discussion on Twin Peaks not related to the series, film, books, music, photos, or collectors merchandise.

Moderators: Brad D, Annie, Jonah, BookhouseBoyBob, Ross, Jerry Horne

Post Reply
Brie and Butter
Roadhouse Member
Posts: 35
Joined: Thu Nov 01, 2007 2:14 pm

unanswered questions / mistakes / etc.

Post by Brie and Butter »

The USC retrospective (which is my first time watching all the way through in a couple of years) inspired me to post something about "oops" moments in TP, and also list some things that either never get resolved or don't quite make sense. I'm sure there are plenty more, but for starters...

MISTAKES
Audrey's letter to Cooper is addressed "My Special Agent," then "Agent Cooper," then back to "My Special Agent"

When Andy steps on the loose plank at Leo's, Albert can be seen in the background removing his sunglasses; there's then a close-up shot of Albert where he, you guessed it, removes his sunglasses

When Cooper speaks with Jacques at One Eyed Jack's, Jacques gulps down the beer, but when he leaves the table, the mug isn't empty

During the Icelandic Ghostwood reception at the Great Northern, we see a silhouette of Josie in Ben's office. A few moments later, Catherine soaks Ben's shoe and he tells her to meet him in his office...but Josie's not there. They leave, and later, Ben returns to his office, where Josie is in the same spot where we saw her before.

When Cooper describes his initial dream to Harry and Lucy, he says he had a vision of Hawk sketching Bob's picture, but Andy ends up doing so

Doc Hayward says the blood on Leo's shirt (which Cooper says is Jacques') is AB-, but later, Albert/Cooper say the killer's blood type (from the FWWM note) is AB- and that it doesn't match Leo's or Jacques'

Hank's domino changes throughout season two

UNANSWERED/HUH? MOMENTS
Who is with Leo when he meets with Mike and Bobby in the woods?

Who beats up Dr. Jacoby, and why? (Frost has hinted that it's Leland, but why wouldn't have he have worn the ski mask in the hospital too? More importantly, wouldn't he have freaked out after seeing Maddy, who was dressed up like his dead daughter?)

Cooper's recap of his initial dream to Harry and Lucy makes much more sense after you see the "foreign ending" to the pilot. Why were some things Cooper mentioned cut from the previous episode (or, alternately, left in the script for him to recap)?

Audrey tells Donna that Jacoby said he was seeing Laura when he was with Johnny before Laura's funeral, but we don't see/hear that, even though we see Audrey watching them. Why?

When Coop wakes up in his room after the Black Lodge adventure, Doc Hayward is there. Shouldn't he be in custody?

After killing Jacques thinking that he murdered his daughter, Leland is downright friendly to Ben after he's arrested for his daughter's murder. I know the Bob/Leland lines get a bit blurry here, but why would Leland want to get Ben out on bail and tell him that everything's going to be OK?
bosguy1981
Great Northern Member
Posts: 608
Joined: Fri Mar 11, 2011 3:03 pm

Re: unanswered questions / mistakes / etc.

Post by bosguy1981 »

A few mistakes off the top of my head...

Late in season 2, Donna follows her mother to the Great Northern where she's secretly meeting Ben Horne. Then Donna approaches Audrey at the reception desk to ask her some questions. Throughout this sequence, notice that Lara Flynn Boyle has a big dangling earring in some shots, then it disappears in other shots, then it's back. The disappearing/reappearing jewelry.

There are some minor editing "mishaps" during Leland's wake in episode 17 where the placement of Donna and Big Ed are concerned. We see Donna scooping food into a plate while Big Ed chats with a man in the background. Seconds later, Donna and Big Ed are standing together in another part of the home talking about James. Seconds later, Donna's back at the table scooping the food into the plate.

There's another instance like this during the Milford Wedding in episode 18 where the Log Lady magically moves from the wedding cake to her seat at the table in the blink of an eye.

In the "Things that Annoy Me" category... right after Donna gets upset with Ben Horne in episode 28 backstage at the Miss Twin Peaks pageant ("You're my father..."), she's then seen back onstage waiting for the results and smiling and jumping around when Annie is announced. Quick recovery from the paternity bombshell melodrama!
bosguy1981
Great Northern Member
Posts: 608
Joined: Fri Mar 11, 2011 3:03 pm

Re: unanswered questions / mistakes / etc.

Post by bosguy1981 »

Another thing... the Packard Saw Mill fire. In season 1, Josie tells Sheriff Truman that Ben Horne and Catherine are planning to burn down the mill. Audrey overhears Ben Horne and Catherine plotting to burn the mill. But then a few episodes later, when it burns, it seems like Truman & Co are perfectly happy to say Leo did it all on his own, and Ben and Catherine don't face any investigation for it. Is it just me or did that get glossed over in a very unrealistic way?
Smiling Bag
Roadhouse Member
Posts: 31
Joined: Tue Jun 29, 2010 11:19 pm

Re: unanswered questions / mistakes / etc.

Post by Smiling Bag »

Another item that bugs me is that in the early part of Season 2 (2 eps before Killer is revealed), during the Police room recap with Albert/Andy confrontation Albert says "You'll recall the killer placed a letter "T" under Theresa Banks finger". That is NEVER mentioned in the series but is assumed the audience knows it. Only with the European ending would we know that which is not truly part of the story so to speak.
User avatar
garethw
RR Diner Member
Posts: 437
Joined: Wed Jan 31, 2007 8:48 pm
Location: Deep River

Re: unanswered questions / mistakes / etc.

Post by garethw »

Brie and Butter wrote: When Andy steps on the loose plank at Leo's, Albert can be seen in the background removing his sunglasses; there's then a close-up shot of Albert where he, you guessed it, removes his sunglasses
Actually, if you watch closely, Albert takes off the glasses *three* times!

My two unanswered questions are less insightful than yours:

1. What of the damned cat who got a new collar on Feb 6? Always jumps out at me as kind of a casual "lets write something -anything at all - banal in here". that makes me think of a lazy prop department, not the diary of a teenager. I guess the cat doe make an appearance in the Secret Diary.

2. What are Lucy's terms of employment, given the extraordinarily long hours she appears to work?
The Dream Man
Roadhouse Member
Posts: 42
Joined: Sun Mar 03, 2013 11:06 pm
Location: Portland

Re: unanswered questions / mistakes / etc.

Post by The Dream Man »

One thing that really bugs me is how Cooper can never seem to get the "love of his life's" name right. At one point it's Caro-line, and in the next episode it's Caro-lyn. C'mon now.
User avatar
Brad D
Global Moderator
Posts: 1070
Joined: Thu Apr 12, 2007 11:56 am
Contact:

Re: unanswered questions / mistakes / etc.

Post by Brad D »

How does Tremayne afford a BMW with the salary of a clothing salesman?
How does Diane get the tapes from Cooper?
How did they never find the drug dealer that Bobby killed in the woods?
What happened to the One Armed Man after Ep. 16?
B..
New Member
Posts: 20
Joined: Sat Nov 19, 2011 5:14 pm

Re: unanswered questions / mistakes / etc.

Post by B.. »

Why is there football practice in February in Twin Peaks?

Is coked-up, 120 pound Bobby Briggs really the quarterback?
User avatar
TheArm
Great Northern Member
Posts: 542
Joined: Mon Oct 01, 2007 2:27 pm
Location: Los Angeles, CA

Re: unanswered questions / mistakes / etc.

Post by TheArm »

- Cooper's hair in ep 16 in the jail cell after Leland dies (he pushes it back from his forehead in the WS, but then in the CU it's still flopped down).

- Where does Sylvia Horne disappear to between episodes 3 and 29? (I remember the first time I saw the finale, when she reappeared at the Hayward house, I couldn't for the life of me remember who she was!)

- Ditto Harriet and Gersten Hayward after episode 8.

- The siren lights on Truman's jeep when they're going after James near the end of the pilot (they're flashing, they're not flashing, they're flashing, they're not flashing).

- Denise - probably the one truly great addition to the cast of all of the random mid-Season 2 additions (Evelyn, Nicky, Lana, etc.) - has unceremoniously and abruptly left town without saying goodbye to anyone in the next episode. Not a blooper per se, but this always annoyed me.

- The idea that Leo and Shelly would have a washing machine outside in Washington state is absurd.

- Gordon tells Cooper that Albert is not coming back to Twin Peaks in episode 13 - and then Albert comes back twice (in eps 16 and 22).

- Also in episode 13, Maddy tells James by the lake that she's going home tomorrow. She must have changed her mind and put the trip off by a day, as at the beginning of episode 14, she tells Leland and Sarah that she's going home tomorrow, again.

- When we first go into the Roadhouse and we hear Julee Cruise singing "Falling" in the pilot, the establishing shot is of the Bookhouse, not the Roadhouse.

- I would love to know exactly how Leland's death was explained to the town in the press such that they all show up for his funeral and are so supportive, considering he was probably also simultaneously revealed to have raped and/or murdered at least 3 women, 2 of whom were his own family. Granted, one could explain this as the townsfolk being there for Sarah, but still!!

- Obviously there are dozens of continuity problems between the series & FWWM, but I always find it bizarre to see Norma suddenly with short hair in the Double R in the film.

- In episode 16, when Cooper is explaining the clues as to Leland being the killer to Truman, he tells him that after killing Jacques, Leland's hair "turned gray overnight," just like the "gray-haired man." I know this nitpicking, but Leland's hair pretty clearly turned white, not gray ("Uncle Leland's hair turned white!") and doesn't really resemble BOB's hair color at all.

- James gets on his bike and takes off in episode 16, and then 4 days pass until we see him again in episode 18 at Evelyn's. Yet he doesn't really seem to have gotten very far, since a few episodes later when Donna goes out there to help him, she gets there in less than a day.

- What happened between Ernie and Vivian? Vivian disappears after episode 17 (or 18, I can't remember) when Norma tells her (quite rightly) to get lost, so we assume that she has left town, but Ernie is still around until episode 20 and Vivian is never mentioned again. Did Vivian leave without him? Where does she think he is?

- What does the real MIKE look like? We of course see plenty of BOB's physical form, but all we ever see of MIKE is Phillip Gerard, his host.

- By the middle of season 2, both Audrey and Bobby seem to be more or less working for Ben full time at the Great Northern. Did they both drop out of school? (I know Audrey says that school "numbs my buns," but still.)

- Also when Mike asks Donna for help with Nadine in either ep 18 or 19, Mike asks Donna to pretend to be his girlfriend. When did they break up? Granted, after the way he treats her in the pilot, I would dump him too if I were her, but I don't think we were ever told that they break up, it's just assumed.

- And the one that really kills me, at Dead Dog Farm, Cooper pulls a gun on Jean Renault and shoots and kills him at point-blank range, when he could have just as easily apprehended him. If Renault had resisted arrest, then shooting him might have made sense, but he doesn't even try. This always struck me as *wildly* out of character for Coop.
"Fire...walk...with...me...MEEE!!!"
Smiling Bag
Roadhouse Member
Posts: 31
Joined: Tue Jun 29, 2010 11:19 pm

Re: unanswered questions / mistakes / etc.

Post by Smiling Bag »

Wow, some of the points above I never caught........Most intriguing and not to be taken lightly is the Cooper not trying to "hault" Renault............I still can't believe no one else thinks the "T" under Theresa's nail finger not "really" being mentioned in any episode until Season 2 is odd considering Albert says "You'll recall the killer placed the letter T under Theresa Banks nail etc. etc.".


I always felt as though the directors forgot that the scene with Mike telling Cooper about that in the Euro Pilot ending never actually aired to the "normal" TV audience.


This is a FANTASTIC thread BTW, and has robbed me of an opportunity to go episode by episode and find the stuff that is "off". Thanks to the OP, I won't have to get a divorce now due to watching the series with my wife yet again. :oops:
User avatar
TheArm
Great Northern Member
Posts: 542
Joined: Mon Oct 01, 2007 2:27 pm
Location: Los Angeles, CA

Re: unanswered questions / mistakes / etc.

Post by TheArm »

Another thing - while I absolutely adore episode 14 and think it's one of the greatest hours of TV ever created, I will never understand why Gerard freaks out and collapses when Ben appears. I realize this is intended to be a red herring and misdirect us and Cooper towards suspecting Ben, but it still doesn't make logical sense why this would happen when Leland was safe at home having coffee with Sarah and Maddy. If Gerard was freaking out for some other reason (haliperidol withdrawal or whatnot), this was never clarified.
"Fire...walk...with...me...MEEE!!!"
Brie and Butter
Roadhouse Member
Posts: 35
Joined: Thu Nov 01, 2007 2:14 pm

Re: unanswered questions / mistakes / etc.

Post by Brie and Butter »

Well done, Arm!

One other thing that I find funny is that in the finale, while the town goes to hell (bank explosion, Miss Twin Peaks public scare aftermath, Ben [fatally?] injured, etc.), Harry's just chilling out in the woods. Shouldn't the sheriff be out there doing, y'know, sheriff stuff?
bosguy1981
Great Northern Member
Posts: 608
Joined: Fri Mar 11, 2011 3:03 pm

Re: unanswered questions / mistakes / etc.

Post by bosguy1981 »

TheArm wrote: - Also in episode 13, Maddy tells James by the lake that she's going home tomorrow. She must have changed her mind and put the trip off by a day, as at the beginning of episode 14, she tells Leland and Sarah that she's going home tomorrow, again.
Also, we see Maddy driving a car in the series and doesn't she tell Leland and Sarah in episode 14, "I'm driving back to Missoula tomorrow," but then after she disappears, Leland tells her mother (by phone), "I dropped her off at the bus station myself," or words to that effect?

Wouldn't Maddy's mom be wondering why she didn't drive her own car back?
User avatar
TheArm
Great Northern Member
Posts: 542
Joined: Mon Oct 01, 2007 2:27 pm
Location: Los Angeles, CA

Re: unanswered questions / mistakes / etc.

Post by TheArm »

Another thing I just randomly thought of - in episodes 15 and 16, the Sheriff's Dept. basically has the One-Armed Man on lockdown and under house arrest at the Great Northern, with an armed guard, the windows all locked and nailed shut, etc. I get that they have a supernatural entity in their possession and want to use him to find the other one out there wreaking havoc, but legally, could they really do this? I meeean, Phillip Gerard himself hasn't really done anything wrong to warrant being held prisoner in such a manner by the police. If anything, it feels like it should have been a Bookhouse Boys thing rather than the official Sheriff's dept. (and would have been a great way to work the Bookhouse Boys back into the story since they never really have very much to do).

And yeah, it has always bothered me that Gerard/MIKE vanishes altogether after Leland's death and is never mentioned again. Couldn't they have sought him out again to try and find the Black Lodge when they're in a race against Windom Earle? To be fair though, after episode 16, it's amazing how much big plot stuff from the first half of the series they really drop altogether. After Leland's funeral at the beginning of ep 17, the Palmers as a whole are almost never mentioned ever again until the finale, despite Laura's face still looming over the end credits in almost every ep. And it's a long time before BOB re-enters the picture (granted, the Lodges are a big plot point, but it takes a while to realize that BOB and the Lodges are connected; the first time I watched, I just thought the Lodge business was an entirely new mythology).
"Fire...walk...with...me...MEEE!!!"
bosguy1981
Great Northern Member
Posts: 608
Joined: Fri Mar 11, 2011 3:03 pm

Re: unanswered questions / mistakes / etc.

Post by bosguy1981 »

TheArm wrote:To be fair though, after episode 16, it's amazing how much big plot stuff from the first half of the series they really drop altogether. After Leland's funeral at the beginning of ep 17, the Palmers as a whole are almost never mentioned ever again until the finale, despite Laura's face still looming over the end credits in almost every ep.
Yes!! I only thought about this recently but I think, aside from the obvious end of the murder mystery, another thing that is a huge loss for me in the second half of the series is the total absence of the Palmers. To lose Sheryl Lee, Ray Wise, and Grace Zabriskie in one fell swoop was a huge loss. Fantastic actors, outstanding characters, and each very central to what I think about when I think about Twin Peaks.
Post Reply