What Happened on 'Twin Peaks' Last Night? Even Superfans Aren't Entirely Sure

After a 25-year break, the third season of Twin Peaks premiered on Showtime last night, and it's even stranger now than it was back in the early '90s. The new episodes are only partially set in Twin Peaks, and by the third episode, there's even a scene in outer space because: David Lynch.

To give you some idea of the off-the-scale weirdness involved, take into account that, this time around, Agent Cooper has at least two doppelgängers (one of whom closely resembles Glenn Danzig); there's a glass box in an apartment building in New York City that appears to be a portal for violent evil; there's a talking twig dispensing advice in the Black Lodge; the Black Lodge is now accessible in casinos in South Dakota; Bobby is a cop; and Lucy and Andy's son happens to have grown up to become Michael Cera doing a Marlon Brando impersonation.

In an attempt to grapple with all of this, it seemed best to get in touch with some experts. Regular attendees of the Twin Peaks Fest have turned obsessing over the original show into a bonafide art form, so we tracked some of them down to see what they think of the show's new direction.

Brian Linss is an artist based in Beaverton, Oregon, and has been attending the fest for six years now. Having watched the first two episodes of the new season, he remains considerably less confused than most viewers. Of the different locations this time around, he says: "The story is Cooper's return to Twin Peaks, so the new locations were expected." He believes that the glass box is "probably two coordinates where ley lines cross, creating a rift between two worlds." And of that amazing talking twig, Linss says, "It is the evolution of The Arm, or in other words, the replacement for the Little Man from Another Place."

Another Twin Peaks Fest regular, writer Lori Savageau, wishes the new season stayed within the confines of the small town, and is having a hard time adjusting to current day Twin Peaks. "It jumps around so much and seems to be trying so hard, without establishing that small town feel I so loved in the first one," the Grass Valley resident says. "I feel like such a downer about it because all my friends seem to love it. For me, it feels too much like David Lynch being... modern. I probably need to watch it again."

Savageau's friend and fellow Fest-goer, Mary Hütter, disagrees. "I don't really know how I feel about the new Twin Peaks season yet," she explains. "It's beautiful and touching and complicated and hilarious. It's also going to take some digesting. I love it, but it leaves me at a loss for words that make sense. As Twin Peaks has always been, it's more of a feeling."

When asked if he has any series-related predictions to share, Brian Linss says simply: "I predict these 18 hours will not be the last we hear of Twin Peaks."

Even if the show does end after Season 3, we predict the internet will be having fun with all this for a long time to come.