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New York - Twenty-five years ago, a dark murder-mystery unfolded every week on television in the peculiar little town of Twin Peaks.
Tuesday, 23 May at 21:30 on M-Net channel (DStv 101), a new season of Twin Peaks will immerse fans in a fresh era of dark mystery, helmed by acclaimed director David Lynch.
See a trailer here:
Here are 10 things you need to know about the show:
1. A TV experiment
It's been aptly described as "one of the most talked-about, but least-watched, TV experiments of the early '90s," whose "eerie, nonlinear visual and narrative quality left many initially intrigued viewers wondering 'what's going on here?' — just before they changed channels."
2. The most talked about show
Twin Peaks gave the public something to talk about with its 1990-91 ABC run, followed by a 1992 feature film, Twin Peaks: Fire Walk with Me.
3. The follow-up
It's still being talked about a quarter-century later as Showtime launches an 18-episode limited-series follow-up that premieres on Tuesday, 23 May at 21:30.
4. Murder mystery
The original Twin Peaks centred on (and tormented viewers with) the question "Who killed Laura Palmer?" after the nude body of this 17-year-old homecoming queen was discovered wrapped in plastic on the bank of a river outside the hamlet of Twin Peaks, Washington.
5. Crimes of a similar nature
FBI Special Agent Dale Cooper was dispatched to investigate Laura's killing as well as that of another Washington girl the previous year who seemingly was murdered by the same person.
6. There's more to Laura
As with so many things in Twin Peaks, little about Laura was quite what it seemed. Turns out she had been living a double life as the girl next door and a cocaine-addicted prostitute.
7. The killer
Laura's killer was eventually revealed to be her father, Leland, who had sexually abused her for years while possessed by a malevolent entity named Killer BOB.
8. Soap opera traditions
In the best tradition of soap operas, Laura had an identical "twin" — in this case, her cousin Madeleine (portrayed, as was Laura, by Sheryl Lee) — who was also murdered by Leland/BOB (Ray Wise).
9. Bizarre figures
Twin Peaks, and hence Twin Peaks, was populated by numerous bizarre figures, such as the Log Lady (who was never seen without a log cradled in her arms) and Nadine (the shrill, eye-patched wife of gas station owner Ed who had a fixation on living-room drapes), and by campy tropes, such as Agent Cooper's delight over cherry pie and "damn fine coffee," and his affliction with weird revelatory dreams about dancing dwarfs and towering giants.
10. Showtime mum on new series
Few details about the new Twin Peaks have been disclosed by Showtime, but the return of three key figures assures, for better or worse, more of the same titillating weirdness: Co-creators David Lynch and Mark Frost, and, one among many returning cast members, square-jawed leading man Kyle MacLachlan, back as Agent Cooper.
