Twin Peaks: Season 2, Episode 7 "Lonely Souls" Review

 "It is happening again."
-The Giant



"Lonely Souls" begins with Agent Cooper (Kyle MacLachlan) and Sheriff Truman (Michael Ontkean) taking MIKE (Al Strobel) to the Great Northern.  They start having every guest in the hotel stand in front of MIKE so he can tell them if they are the vessel of BOB (Frank Silva).  The experience is overwhelming to MIKE and he collapses.

Deputy Hawk (Michael Horse) goes to the house of Harold Smith (Lenny Von Dohlen) and finds him dead via suicide and Laura Palmer's (Sheryl Lee) diary torn to shreds.  Cooper goes over the diary and finds repeated mentions of BOB and descriptions of abuse and molestation at his hands.  He is referred to as a friend of Leland's (Ray Wise).  She also mentions that one day she plans to tell the world the truth about Ben Horne (Richard Beymer).

Bobby Briggs (Dana Ashbrook) and Shelley Johnson (Mädcen Amick) attempt to figure out how Shelley is going to survive since she has to quit her job in order to take care of Leo (Eric Da Re).  Suddenly, Leo screams out and starts saying the words, "New shoes."  Later, Bobby checks a pair of Leo's boots and finds a tape hidden in the heel.

Audrey (Sherilyn Fenn) confronts her father about owning One Eyed Jacks and reveals that she was the new girl he tried to sleep with.  Ben confesses that he knew Laura worked there, that he slept with her, and that he loved her.  Audrey tells Agent Cooper everything.  He and Truman take Ben into custody.

Tojamura sneaks into Pete's (Jack Nance) house and kisses him and reveals he is actually Catherine Martell (Piper Laurie).

The Log Lady (Catherine E. Coulson) approaches Cooper and tells him there are owls in the Roadhouse.  They and Truman go to the bar and watch the singer.  Cooper has a vision.  The singer vanishes and is replaced by the Giant, who tells him "It's happening again."

Sarah Palmer (Grace Zabriskie) has a vision of a white horse in her living room before collapsing.  Leland is staring into a mirror and adjusting his tie.  His reflection...is BOB.  Maddy Ferguson (Sheryl Lee), who told Sarah and Leland her plans to go back to Montana earlier, enters the room.  Leland/BOB attacks her and violently kills her before putting a letter under her fingernail.

At the Roadhouse, Cooper, Bobby, and Donna (Lara Flynn Boyle) all seem to know something bad has happened.


What Works:

Wow, this is a brutal episode.  Amazing, but brutal.  Let's start with the big reveal.  The person who killed Laura Palmer was her own father.  Sure, he was possessed by Bob, but it was still Leland.  Out of all the suspects, it ended up being the worst option.  It's so awful, but Ray Wise and Frank Silva absolutely nail the reveal.

Maddy's murder is utterly horrific.  A lot of TV deaths are quick or they don't show it all onscreen.  No such luck here.  We see it all as Maddy is attacked by Leland/BOB.  It's brutal, upsetting, and horrifying.  This show doesn't delve into horror super often in the original run, but when it does, it doesn't hold back.

The end of the episode is wonderfully done and showcases a beautiful horror.  We get to see Cooper, Bobby, and Donna all knowing something is wrong.  Their performances and the music are the perfect way to end the episode.

I love the scene where Ben Horne is taken into custody.  It's darkly hilarious.  I love Ben's state of denial as he tries to tell the cops to go away and tries to leave to get a sandwich.  It's very funny.

Finally, while I don't like the Tojamura storyline, it is creepy seeing him in the house with Pete and the way it's revealed that he is actually Catherine is very funny.


What Sucks:

I got nothing for you.


Crystal Coffee:

The Crystal Coffee Award goes to the most competent character of the episode.  For "Lonely Souls," this Award goes to Audrey Horne for finally confronting her father, getting a bunch of information from him, and passing it all on to Agent Cooper.  This is her 2nd time winning this Award.


Verdict:

The finale of this episode is some of the best stuff on the entire run of the show.  It's horrifying on so many levels and the killer reveal is burned into my brain.  I love everything at the Roadhouse.  It manages to have some beauty in contrast to the horror of Maddy's murder.  The episode also has some funny moments with Ben and Catherine.  You couldn't ask for much more in an episode of television and "Lonely Souls" has absolutely got it going on.

 10/10: Amazing 

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