The first season of Twin Peaks began airing during the 1989–90 United States network television schedule on April 8, 1990. It consists of eight episodes. The pilot opens with the discovery of the plastic-wrapped body of popular high school student Laura Palmer, an event which moves residents of the small town of Twin Peaks, Washington. Sheriff Harry S. Truman investigates Palmer's murder in conjunction with Dale Cooper, an eccentric FBI agent. As Cooper settles into his life in Twin Peaks, he meets the town's residents, who each prove bizarre and quirky in their respective ways. As the series progresses, the seemingly normal appearance of the town begins to fade, revealing various secrets that expose Twin Peaks as the disturbed, unsettling town that it is.
Season 2 (1990–91)
Before the season began, a companion book, The Secret Diary of Laura Palmer, was published. Some but not all of the diary entries mentioned during the season were in the book. The second season premiered on September 30, 1990, during the 1990–91 United States network television schedule. It consisted of 22 episodes. Lynch directed the first two, as well as the season's seventh episode, where Laura Palmer's killer is revealed. He also directed the season finale. In February 1991, Robert A. Iger, president of ABC Entertainment, announced plans to put Twin Peaks on hiatus; By May, Iger said "it's unlikely that Twin Peaks will return". The season continues Cooper's investigation of Laura Palmer's murder. He receives some clues from a mysterious "giant" that appears to him in a dream. A new murder leads to the discovery of Laura Palmer's killer. Later, Cooper is suspended by the FBI due to his participation in an unauthorized raid on the One Eyed Jacks casino. Cooper's former partner, Windom Earle, escapes from a psychiatric hospital and comes to the town for a confrontation with Cooper. As the town prepares for its "Miss Twin Peaks" contest, Cooper tries to uncover the secret of the Black Lodge with help from Sheriff Truman.
''Twin Peaks: Fire Walk with Me'' (1992)
Twin Peaks: Fire Walk with Me is a prequel to the TV series. It tells of the investigation into the murder of Teresa Banks and the last seven days in the life of Laura Palmer. Director David Lynch and most of the television cast returned for the film, with the notable exceptions of Lara Flynn Boyle, who declined to return as Laura's best friend Donna Hayward and was replaced by Moira Kelly, and Sherilyn Fenn due to scheduling conflicts. Also, Kyle MacLachlan returned reluctantly as he wanted to avoid typecasting, so his presence in the film is smaller than originally planned. Lynch originally shot about five hours of footage which was cut down to 134 minutes to allow the film to have a mainstream release. Many of the cut scenes were later released as in 2014. The film was a box office bomb upon release and was widely panned by critics; however, it has developed a cult following over time and has been critically reevaluated. The release of the third season in 2017, which made many references to the events of the film, led to renewed interest in the film.
Season 3 (2017)
The third season is a limited series set 25 years after the events of the season two finale. All episodes were written by David Lynch and Mark Frost. The series was originally planned to have nine episodes, however, after re-negotiations between Lynch and Showtime, the episode order was doubled, with Lynch confirmed to direct all episodes. The season premiered on May 21, 2017, and consists of 18 episodes identified only by number, with short quotes from each serving as both de facto titles and short synopses; no additional episode information was released in advance.
Episode titles
For the original series, creators David Lynch and Mark Frost assigned no episode titles, only episode numbers. When the series aired in Germany, titles were assigned, which were then translated to English. The episodes are untitled on the DVD sets, but the titled episodes appear on the official Twin Peaks CBS website and on Netflix when streaming the episodes. Episode 2, known as "Zen, or the Skill to Catch a Killer" is also known as "Zen and the Art of Killer-Catching". When episodes 29 and 30 aired in Germany, they were aired as a single broadcast, with only episode 30 being assigned a title. Fans then decided to title episode 29 "Miss Twin Peaks", which is how the episode is titled both on the CBS website and on Netflix. However, when episode 29 was re-run in 1996, it was assigned an alternative title which translated to "The Night of the Decision".
