This is one of my criticisms.
The original mystique of the Black Lodge and its stewards was that it was local and unknowable. Harry tells Coop that there is something out there in the woods, and its the price they pay for all the good parts of living there, and that generations of men from the town have guarded its inhabitants from this frightening and corrupting force that leeches from the trees.
This distinct sense of location, that something haunts the surrounding woods of Twin Peaks specifically, was something I was really attached to. It was something built on local legend, influenced by the geography, and defined what made the town of Twin Peaks so mysterious and strange. It made it feel like something could be lurking in the caves, or the cabins, or the wildlife, or the trees of the landscape. Twin Peaks, as a town, was a haunted house.
I have to disagree.
It wasn't just an eerie town, by the end of season 2, and more importantly with Fire walk with Me (even more so with The Missing Pieces), it was clear the whole thing was way bigger than Twin Peaks itself.
You can't have those themes (afterlife, purgatory, heaven) and have it relegated to a small town in 'Murica. This cheapens the whole thing.
Twin Peaks allowed the direct connection, which is still rather important, but I'm glad they didn't stick with the small scope of having it all happening because of that place only.
The new episode removes the importance of Twin Peaks in favor of a dimension that exists independently from it. An ignition point for the whole story was a nuclear bomb test in New Mexico in 1945. This is pretty different from a strange and otherworldly presence specifically among the Douglas Firs. It used to feel like the town Twin Peaks was hiding something, now the whole thing is so much bigger than Twin Peaks that the town doesn't seem to really matter. It's a blip on the fabric of space-time.
But it still is. It still has a direct link to this realm. Of course it existed independently from Twin Peaks, this is a bit preposterous to assume it wasn't when you see other cases and supernatural events had occurred in other cities.
This episode precisely links those other occurrences together as having a common source.
And even if they come back and explain that Twin Peaks is some sort of grand portal or nexus, the damage is done. The Black Lodge and its lore used to be part of the town. It was something out there and in the woods. Now the town is part of the Lodge. Now there is a monstrous and faceless creator laying eggs in the desert in 1945. The energy is all over the world and unleashed at a specific point in time.
There has been a clear emphasis on "energy" and "electricity" being tied to the world of spirits, I like the fact that an atomic blast was the key for this evil realm to trespass into our world. It also legitimizes 'Murica being the place where it happened, they committed awful acts (morally and in actuality) with their hydrogen bombs. The fact that it literally allowed evil to get in is quite damning.
Laura's "birth" is going to be a major role, and she was in Twin Peaks, so let's wait and see how they tie it all up together.
I feel like Laura will be the face of Twin Peaks in this story. The place, her role, it will be explained in upcoming episodes I believe.
I can understand you dislike a monster given physical form like that, but the season had at least teased this was coming.
The previous confines of the lodges and the alternate dimension were much more intimate and claustrophobic. They were cracks in the town you could slip in and out of that had been both guarded and exploited by entities for an unknown span of time.
The new lore is still interesting. But it can be a tough pill to swallow. It can be defeating to have your closely-held understandings unwound. There is some merit to challenging preconceived notions, but you have to be willing to let it all go. I'm still working on that,
I think you have to see this episode as a one time thing though, to me it doesn't take away anything from Twin Peaks because it was there before that blast, and was there after.
It's the key to what will lead to Bob's defeat.
Edit :
And speaking of which, we still don't know what Bob is. How did his soul get into the evil realm, who he was before that etc... those questions remain. All we know is that "mother" gave him new life and sent him into the real world. But we also know he's gonna get back in there eventually. Or maybe that was a way for him to access and infect the Red Lodge ?
