What makes the new Twin Peaks so darn weird? Read on and find out, but be warned – full on spoilers for both of these two episodes abound!

If episodes one and two of David Lynch and Mark Frost’s revival of Twin Peaks played towards Lynch’s more ominous, sinister side, then the following two chapters definitely brought back some of the whimsy and absurdist humor of the original show. Having said that, the opening sequence from Chapter 3 definitely falls into the classic Lynch surrealism category, and is creepy, dark and disturbing as all get out. And it tops our list of the seven most Lynchian moments from episodes 3 and 4.

 Cooper’s Escape From The Other Side

The opening twenty or so minutes of chapter three of Twin Peaks has to be some of the weirdest stuff David Lynch has ever produced for the screen, and that’s saying quite a lot. It makes the dancing dwarf dream sequence from the end of the third episode of the original series look like Teletubbies. We are in pure Eraserhead territory here with this one, guys.

This sequence starts with Agent Cooper (Kyle MacLachlan) falling through space and into a strange metal building surrounded by a purple ocean. From there, we get an eyeless woman who communicates via strange clicking noises, Cooper and said woman standing on top of a metal box in space to get away from something that’s banging down the door, a moment where the floating head of Major Briggs floats by (using archival footage of the late Don S. Davis) and a cameo appearance by a backwards talking Ronette Pulaski (Phoebe Augustine), the victim who witnessed the murder of Laura Palmer. Ultimately, Cooper escapes this crazy dimension by travelling through a giant electrical socket. Because why not.

All of this happens while both Evil Cooper and Coop’s other doppelganger, the newly introduced Dougie Jones, resist the pull back to the Black Lodge by throwing up toxic cream corn everywhere. Seriously, it doesn’t get more out there, or more Lynchian, than this sequence.

Is It All About The Bunnies?

In a scene emphasizing Lynch’s penchant for absurdist humor, Deputy Chief Hawk (Michael Horse), per the cyptic instructions of the Log Lady in the previous episodes, lays out all the information they have on the missing Agent Dale Cooper by bringing out the case files from his stay in town over 25 years ago, when he was investigating the murder of Laura Palmer. Among the evidence from the Palmer case is a box of chocolate bunnies that belonged to Laura, which Agent Cooper comically referenced way back in the original pilot episode.

With one chocolate bunny missing, a hysterical and tearful Lucy (Kimmy Robertson) confesses that 25 years ago, she actually ate the evidence, because she read somewhere that chocolate is good for helping with having gas. Could the vital, missing clue from the old case files for finding Agent Cooper be all about the missing chocolate bunny?? Hawk knows that’s nonsense…unless maybe, it really is all about the bunny??

No, it’s not about the bunny.

Dr. Jacoby And The Golden Shovels

In the first episode of the new season, one of the first scenes is our reintroduction to Dr. Lawrence Jacoby (Russ Tamblyn), now living in a trailer in the woods, receiving a shipment of shovels, but for just what purpose we don’t know. Then, in episode 3, we see he’s built a rather complicated contraption that allows him to spray paint all these shovels at once the color gold. Why? Lynch isn’t telling us yet. Heck, we may never know. But these long moments of Jacoby spray painting shovels is pretty classic Lynch.

“Mr. Jackpots”

Agent Cooper, finally released from the Black Lodge into the real world after 25 years, winds up in a Las Vegas casino, of all places. He’s replaced his second doppelganger,  Dougie Jones, an overweight schmoe seemingly created by the evil Coop as a decoy. Cooper emerges from his 25 year exile a little worse for wear, with what looks from the outset to be brain damage. He wanders into the Casino, where he witnesses a man win the jackpot big and scream out “Helloooo!” as the coins poured out.

From there, he follows a small, floating window into the Black Lodge which hovers over every winning slot machine, resulting in the brain-addled Cooper cleaning out the casino and earning the name “Mr. Jackpots” from a decrepit old woman, who is straight from Wicked Witch central casting. And every time he wins a jackpot, he mimics the guy he saw win the first time, by screaming out “Helloooo,” and it never stops being funny.

Bobby Briggs Has An Emotional Moment

He wasn’t in the premiere episodes, but in episodes 3 and 4, we finally get our first glimpse of former bad boy/drug dealer Bobby Briggs, played once again by Dana Ashbrook….and he’s now a Sheriff’s Deputy! It may seem crazy at first, but then think back to all the jerks you knew in high school who grew up to be cops, and it makes sense.

In one scene, Bobby walks into the conference room, where Hawk has all the items from Dale Cooper’s time in Twin Peaks…including the famous photo of Laura Palmer, who happens to have been Bobby’s girlfriend. In a moment almost parodying the original series, Bobby wells up with tears at the sight of his beautiful, long-gone girlfriend, as “Laura Palmer’s Theme” swells.  It’s a wonderful homage to one of the tropes of the original show, and also purely Lynchian.

Wally Brando

Given that during the original series, the character of Lucy Moran was pregnant with Deputy Andy Brennan’s baby, we knew that said baby would now be 24 years old. Turns out, Lucy and Andy have a son named Wally Brando, named after Marlon Brando, with whom he shares a birthday. Wally Brando is played by Michael Cera, in a long, awkward and hilarious cameo.

It seems Wally takes his namesake very seriously, and appears to speak in a perpetual, terrible Brando impersonation, and dressed as his character in The Wild One. Some fans might hate this moment, which could be the only appearance of Wally Brando for all we know, but it is truly absurd,  comedic Lynch at his finest (and most awkward).

Dougie Jones’ Pancake Breakfast

Our seemingly brain-damaged Dale Cooper is now living the life of his “manufactured” doppelganger, Dougie Jones, which includes living in a suburban home with wife named Janey-E (Naomi Watts) and a pre-teen son named Sonny Jim (seriously, only Lynch could come up with these names). Despite the radical change in appearance from Dougie to Coop, his wife doesn’t seem to suspect this isn’t the same person she’s married to, but his kid seems to know there’s a new weirdo in the house.

When Coop comes to breakfast, while wearing a tie on top of his head, Sonny Jim introduces him to wonders of pancakes while the 1950s era jazz classic “Take Five” plays. Most importantly, Coop takes his first sip of hot black coffee in this episode. This is all extremely silly and charming in a purely Lynchian way. And who knows, maybe all Coop needed was good cup of joe to get him back to his normal self.

What were the weirdest parts of the new Twin Peaks for you? Be sure to let us know down below in the comments.

Images: CBS / Showtime