Denise Origins

James says he's leaving! Everybody cheer! Now Donna can do... literally anything. Unfortunately that seems to be getting caught up with Windom Earle's latest confounding chess move...While we're not exactly thrilled with the direction of the plot and especially how Josie's plot is being handled, the end of this episode does imply we're getting back to some original flavour Twin Peaks weirdness soon!Support the show

Finally! An entertaining James subplot episode! Mostly because of some real, real weirdness in and around the bar Evelyn spends most of her time.Elsewhere we talk about Windom Earl and Leo's acting - and how interesting it is to see Leo's role and participation in the series get completely reframed.Support the show

Leo's back! He's risen... From the slaaaaaaaaab.Not sure how coming back from brain-death turns you into Frankenstein's monster but here we are!Regrettably James's subplot is ongoing, but at least the Lana - or the Twin Peaks succubus - plot seems to be coming to an end.Support the show

As part of Checkmate, we get a little side-tracked into how The X-Files could almost be a spin-off from Twin Peaks - still staring Duchovny with Anderson, but with Duchovny remaining as Denise.Possibly better we got the series' as we do.Alas, we are stumbling into Twin Peaks' infamous troubled season 2 period where the soap opera aspects ramp up and things get weirder. Just not in the sense we would want...Support the show

Content Warning: the episode of Twin Peaks discussed contains depictions of transphobia and domestic abuse/violence against women.zzzzzzzzzzWait! Ignoring the James scenes, the episode is still fun if a little distracted. We discuss Bobby being terrible (what else is new?) and a theoretical otherworld where meeting Denise irrevocably changes Audrey's entire career.Also the Black Widow does her thing. Maybe. Though witchcraft tends not to show up in autopsies.Support the show

Content Warning: the episode of Twin Peaks discussed contains depictions of transphobia.Seeing as its the episode somewhat confusingly titled Masked Ball, it means David Duchovny is here! We talk a lot about his role as Denise and how Twin Peaks manages to largely side-step a lot of problems with how she is depicted and treated in the episode.We spend a lot less time on James' new sideplot, which... yeah...Support the show

So... now what?Well, the series needs to keep Cooper in town, so there's a very abrupt owls coming home to roost moment for the wildly illegal stuff he's pulled previously in the series.But we also have other plotlines that won't just end... Though the series does seem to have completely forgotten Maddy even existed.Support the show

Well. We're here. Now the cast catch up with the viewer and the whole who killed Laura Palmer part of the plot is resolved. But there's another 13 episodes to go...Outside of murder, the other plots from the series continue...Support the show

Something of a dramatic reversal into comedy after the darkness of the last episode... We discuss why some people aren't keen on this, but get into the likely reason why Twin Peaks is like this..Support the show

Content Warning: discussions of sexual abuse, violence against women, murder of women, abuse of minors and yellowface.So, we come, inevitably, to the horse in the Palmer household. With all the horrors that entails and all the reveals. Please bear in mind the content warnings - we don't dwell on the details but do touch on what happens and the associated discomfort.Apart from the unmitigated horrors, there are nice moments of levity and continued soap opera shenanigans. And of course, the answer to the question posed by the pilot.Support the show