Rating: 
Summary: art collides with television
Review: Twin Peaks rates as one of the most singularly innovative additions to network telelvision. David Lynch's obsession with making the everyday middle-american world beautifully strange (the word "awe" with its horrific element intact is useful here) and Mark Frost 's (St Elsewhere) quirky writing meld seamlessly in this soap opera that exposes to much beneath its surface. The episodic nature of television often strains to create new episodes that maintain sturdy characters while repeatedly playing the same scenario over and over. In this case the characters are superficial, common and quirky. But rather than falling into the dull routine of love triangles and deceit (although TP has these in abundance) Lynch and Frost immediately disrupt quiet american life with a murder--a dead prom queen, Laura Palmer, floats up to Pete Marshall shattering his early morning fishing routine. The town is cast into chaos. FBI agent Dale Cooper, played perfectly by Kyle MacLachlan, enters the town wide-eyed and appreciative of its tranquil simplicity. Using holistic methods, Cooper unravels the black underbelly that provides the illusion of innocence. Playing between superficial soap opera moments and some of the most horrific and surreal moment ever shown on TV, Lynch and Frost use the weekly format to delve deeply into the dark forces and evils which exists within beauty. And the show is ultimately beautiful in its raw exploration that reveals fear is always obliterated by love--not justice or truth. The show's inteligence survived its first season by hiding behind the murder mysery of Laura Palmer. Lynch and Frost planned to leave this mystery unsolved indefinitely in order to explore all corners of Twin Peaks. Unfortunately, the network forced the team to rush towards a solution in the second season fearing that ratings were dropping because viewers needed closure (actually Twin Peaks was losing the soap opera element as they realized the world of Twin Peaks was more complex and real than most prime time viewers were prepared to patiently stomach). Without its central nexus and Lynch leaving to complete Wild at Heart, the show floundered until Lynch's return. However, the show snapped back into brilliance following Lynch's return. But it was too late. The show met the same fate of all brilliant American network shows that shined too brightly before its time--it was cancelled. The team put together a final TV movie that "ended" the show in the manner it began. Lynch followed it with a dreamlike prequel in the theaters called Fire Walk With Me (a creepy mantra pulled from Laura's phantom killer). All of this if assembled adds up to a work of visual art that was way ahead of its time and dismissed as quirky and silly--but its rough end was probably caused by people expecting to be entertained by quirkines, but kept safe from the show's more awesome yet brutal spectacles. Still the entire work (if one can find it all and watch it in order) stands as a challenge to network programming need for dumbed-down product. First time viewers and skeptical fans should bravely revisit this fragmented masterpiece.
Rating:
Summary: The best presentation of Twin Peaks
Review: I won't try to sell you on the series in this review. I just want to say that this is, flat out, the best that Twin Peaks has ever looked (unless of course you were David Lynch and had the original master copies.) Before the series was released on DVD, we had two options: We could either watch the high quality VHS version of the first season, or we could watch the low quality VHS version of both seasons. The first season boxed set was pretty good--you even got to see the "previously on Twin Peaks" montage, but it only covered the first seven episodes of the show. The complete box set had quality issues as all of the episodes were crammed onto 6 tapes--gone were the "previously on Twin Peaks" montage and there were issues with the picture/sound quality. Boo! But I have received the DVDs and just love them. The show looks outstanding. If you want to share Twin Peaks with someone this DVD set is the way to do it--just a spectacular looking picture with great sound and no picture issues. Overall, Artisan did a great job and I would highly recommend the set to anyone looking for a high quality copy of the first season.
Rating: 
Summary: Pilot not an option,... but Pricetag is
Review: Ok. The pilot's not there. Get over it. The problem here is that Warner is the copyright holder of the pilot movie, so artisan can't release it without buying the rights. If you check out the box set of vhs as well, you'll find the pilot missing. There is enough acclaim of the content on these disks that you should either know what it is, or get your butt out and see the series. For content, all of Twin Peaks gets a 5 (with possible exception to the "James runs away" subplot.)
The real decision is if its worth your bucks to buy up the whole DVD set or if you should just get the VHS. Rumour has it that the spectial SP encoding they used for the DVDs takes up alot of room, but even considering that, it seems four DVDs for seven 45 minute episodes is pushing the border of fair play in the accounting department. So aside from better picture quality, what do you get for your investment? The special features are: 1) online screen notes that describe (in words) deleted and altered scenes [taken from the fanzine]
2) Log Lady intros for each show [taken from the Bravo syndication]
3) A really hard to figure out and pointless phone-directory type character game
4) A couple of useless featurettes (In my opinion, finding out who the real-life owner of the Mar-T (RR diner) was is entertaining, but 10 minutes of her rambling about her 15 seconds of fame gets rather tiresome quickly. As does "the man from another place" reading lines from the "red room" clip backwards.) and of course what DVD is complete without: 5) A garden variety of unimportant interviews which take a lot of words to say much of nothing. Lynch stays completely absent, and Mark Frost is only present via a previously taped phone interview with the guys from the fanzine filmed years ago. There's also a big rising round of David Lynch butt-kissing, mostly by the actors and actresses whose careers peaked (no pun intended) with the show. If you're expecting a big cast-reunion here, you'll be dissapointed to see less than half of them are present. If you've never seen them before, the online notes may interest you slightly, and completists will no-doubt find enjoyments in the set; but otherwise, you're burning alot of dough for some picture improvements. And why isn't there a way to turn off the "Previously on twin peaks" starters, those get on my nerves. How could I have missed the episode? I bought the whole set???
Rating:
Summary: Public service announcement: Pilot easily obtainable
Review: "Twin Peaks" enthusiasts should know that a decent international/all-region DVD of the "Twin Peaks" pilot is easily obtainable from several venues, principally E-Bay and many specialty DVD retail sites. For a very reasonable price, I purchased a new, sealed copy from a vendor on E-bay. Though it may possibly be trimmed a few minutes from the edition that originally ran on network TV (as the running time is ninety minutes exactly, instead of the 100 minutes or so that most TV movies run without commercials), this international edition flows nicely, has great image quality, and DOES NOT have the cheap tacked-on ending "resolving" the mystery that other foreign editions reportedly do. It has the same creepy cliff-hanger fans remember (Mrs. Palmer screaming and the mysterious gloved hand digging up the hidden necklace). Just make sure you get the edition I'm talking about; the cover of the DVD I purchased shows photos of five or six of the main characters suspended above a black-and-white tiled floor. So, those who are hesitating to get the season one box set from Amazon or another source because the pilot is missing shouldn't worry. Just grab the pilot from one of the places I mentioned and you'll be all set for season one!
Rating:
Summary: Greatest Television series ever made.
Review: I have only recently seen the majority of Twin Peaks (three final episodes + fire walk with me to come! - Don't you wish you were me?) on a friend's English video version (much better than the current American video boxset, I am led to understand) but still substandard for a series shot on film. I don't even own a DVD player but I would buy one just to watch the whole series in a high-resolution, sharp and permanent format. However, apparently there are a few problems with the upcoming version, which I will probably end up investing in. 1) No pilot episode. This in itself is not necessarily a problem, according to my friend who owns an early European version of the pilot on video - he recommends watching series, fire walk with me, then pilot episode - so it would make sense to release the last two on individual dvds, once the copyright problems are sorted out, I guess. Especially since the "new" version of pilot episode available in U.S. has additional footage from later in the series added. 2) Only episodes 1 - 7. Does that mean that there will or will not be a completist boxset in future. Will the second series be divided into two sets of, what, 11 and 12 each? Or will the other episodes all be released together? Somehow I think water and testing come to mind. This is a natural series for the DVD format. Like the Prisoner it is a series that works by word of mouth & is easy to become addicted to. The more copies that are out there, the bigger the market will get. It is also a series which benefits from multiple viewing. Please. The whole series on DVD, in seperate installments if you must, but do let us know in advance.
Rating:
Summary: Wow, Bob, Wow !
Review: This is a superb DVD-set. A must-have for all Twin Peaks afficionados. I already had the UK-release on videotape, but these were extremely poor quality. I could not believe my eyes when I saw it was getting a re-release on DVD. The image-quality is outstanding and far better than any DVD-release of any tv-show before (much better than X-Files or the Sopranos), the sound is awesome. I especially love the DTS-soundtrack. Of course a lot of people are (understandably) upset about the missing Pilot episode. However, I did find it (on DVD) at scarecrow.com. I have ordered it, but not yet received it, so I am not too sure this is the real deal. The only thing which puzzles me, is the fact that only 7 episodes are in season 1. In the Netherlands, where I live, the first season stopped when the killer was discovered. The second season over here was the Windom Earle-season. If there were only two seasons, the second season must have had many more episodes than the first one. The special features on the 7th disc are also quite cool, which some nice interviews with the old cast-members.
Rating:
Summary: ~ Best thing since sliced white bread!
Review: This is just great! Twin Peaks was probably the best show on television ever and I shudder to think that I will probably never witness a television show as good for the rest of my life. Twin Peaks changed my life. Period. The DVD presentation is top-notch, with enlightening commentary tracks by key people (introduced by Michael Anderson, the midget). The DTS audio is fantastic! If you have an AV Receiver with DTS capability, make sure you select this option on the DVD! The video quality is just superb. The David Lynch directed episodes are just great, especially the Red Room sequences. Wow Bob Wow! Just get this DVD! Heck, you gotta own DVDs of the best TV series ever. And the extras make it that much more worthwhile. I agree that it would have been nice to have the pilot included too. However I'll take what I can get. I hope that someday the pilot will be released as a separate DVD-I will buy it. I'm also hoping for the 2nd season to be released on DVD.
Rating:
Summary: Public service announcement: Pilot easily obtainable
Review: "Twin Peaks" enthusiasts should know that a decent international/all-region DVD of the "Twin Peaks" pilot is easily obtainable from several venues, principally E-Bay and many specialty DVD retail sites. For a very reasonable price, I purchased a new, sealed copy from a vendor on E-bay. Though it may possibly be trimmed a few minutes from the edition that originally ran on network TV (as the running time is ninety minutes exactly, instead of the 100 minutes or so that most TV movies run without commercials), this international edition flows nicely, has great image quality, and DOES NOT have the cheap tacked-on ending "resolving" the mystery that other foreign editions reportedly do. It has the same creepy cliff-hanger fans remember (Mrs. Palmer screaming and the mysterious gloved hand digging up the hidden necklace). Just make sure you get the edition I'm talking about; the cover of the DVD I purchased shows photos of five or six of the main characters suspended above a black-and-white tiled floor. So, those who are hesitating to get the season one box set from Amazon or another source because the pilot is missing shouldn't worry. Just grab the pilot from one of the places I mentioned and you'll be all set for season one!
Rating:
Summary: art collides with television
Review: Twin Peaks rates as one of the most singularly innovative additions to network telelvision. David Lynch's obsession with making the everyday middle-american world beautifully strange (the word "awe" with its horrific element intact is useful here) and Mark Frost 's (St Elsewhere) quirky writing meld seamlessly in this soap opera that exposes to much beneath its surface. The episodic nature of television often strains to create new episodes that maintain sturdy characters while repeatedly playing the same scenario over and over. In this case the characters are superficial, common and quirky. But rather than falling into the dull routine of love triangles and deceit (although TP has these in abundance) Lynch and Frost immediately disrupt quiet american life with a murder--a dead prom queen, Laura Palmer, floats up to Pete Marshall shattering his early morning fishing routine. The town is cast into chaos. FBI agent Dale Cooper, played perfectly by Kyle MacLachlan, enters the town wide-eyed and appreciative of its tranquil simplicity. Using holistic methods, Cooper unravels the black underbelly that provides the illusion of innocence. Playing between superficial soap opera moments and some of the most horrific and surreal moment ever shown on TV, Lynch and Frost use the weekly format to delve deeply into the dark forces and evils which exists within beauty. And the show is ultimately beautiful in its raw exploration that reveals fear is always obliterated by love--not justice or truth. The show's inteligence survived its first season by hiding behind the murder mysery of Laura Palmer. Lynch and Frost planned to leave this mystery unsolved indefinitely in order to explore all corners of Twin Peaks. Unfortunately, the network forced the team to rush towards a solution in the second season fearing that ratings were dropping because viewers needed closure (actually Twin Peaks was losing the soap opera element as they realized the world of Twin Peaks was more complex and real than most prime time viewers were prepared to patiently stomach). Without its central nexus and Lynch leaving to complete Wild at Heart, the show floundered until Lynch's return. However, the show snapped back into brilliance following Lynch's return. But it was too late. The show met the same fate of all brilliant American network shows that shined too brightly before its time--it was cancelled. The team put together a final TV movie that "ended" the show in the manner it began. Lynch followed it with a dreamlike prequel in the theaters called Fire Walk With Me (a creepy mantra pulled from Laura's phantom killer). All of this if assembled adds up to a work of visual art that was way ahead of its time and dismissed as quirky and silly--but its rough end was probably caused by people expecting to be entertained by quirkines, but kept safe from the show's more awesome yet brutal spectacles. Still the entire work (if one can find it all and watch it in order) stands as a challenge to network programming need for dumbed-down product. First time viewers and skeptical fans should bravely revisit this fragmented masterpiece.
Rating:
Summary: Buy It!
Review: This is arguably the greatest Television program in history. You don't have to take my word for it, I don't really agree with this, but if it is not the best, it is definetely one of the best.
If you love a great story you'll love this and if you don't then you'll love it anyway.
Twin Peaks is fantastic. The script and story was adapted from the short book "The secret diary of Laura Palmer" and it was done to the best it possibly could have been.
David Lynch is not fully responsible for the birth of this great television series, however he is the person most talked about for being part of it.
The episodes he directs all seem so real that you feel like you know the town of twin peaks and the people in it. He is a genius when it comes to directing, and it certainly shows in this.
The series is perfectly orchestrated, you will never get bored, you will be biting your nails and sitting on the edge of your seat, It's funny where necassery and the cliffhangers will leave you desperate for more.
Do yourself a favour and buy this. You won't regret it and you will also decrease the treacherously long gap that is constantly increasing over the production of season 2.
So save your money, put any ideas about getting season 8 and 9 of The X Files on hold (forever), don't bother with the latest dragged out and hollow Buffy seasons and buy this. It's brilliant!
The story follows the unravelling of the mystery of Laura Palmers death. Thier are many twists and turns along the way that surprisingly never lose thier tension and appeal when you watch them more than once.(Unlike 24) P.S
I reccomend getting your hands on the English version since it contains the pilot episode that the U.S version doesn't. It is overpriced (Just like everything else in my crappy country) but it is the best version you can get.
If you do take my advice and buy either the English or U.S version DO NOT WATCH THE SPECIAL FEATURES if you havn't seen all of the show before.
Whoever designed the set left in features that give away major twists that happen much later in the show. Take my advice on this, you will be very angry at whoever designed this set if you watch them and haven't seen all of twin peaks before. (They aren't very good special features anyway)
I hope this review has been useful, now scroll back to the top of the page, and click buy.
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