The BIG Twin Peaks Guide

Season One Episode 1 – Original Airdate: 08 Apr 1990   Pilot (90 min)
The small northwest town of Twin Peaks, Washington is shaken when the body of Laura Palmer is discovered washed up on a riverbank, wrapped in plastic. FBI Special Agent Dale Cooper is called in when Ronnette Pulaski, who attended the same high school as Palmer, is found wandering on a bridge before lapsing into a coma. Cooper believes there is a connection between Palmer’s death and the death of another girl named Teresa Banks that happened a year earlier. Cooper discovers a small piece of paper with the letter “R” on it shoved under Laura’s fingernail. He tells Sheriff Harry S. Truman that under Banks’s nail he found a “T”. Meanwhile, the Palmer family and friends struggle to come to terms with her death, and wonder how it might have come about.

Believing that this is the same killer who struck the previous year, Cooper starts an official investigation. Meanwhile, the rebellious Audrey Horne ruins a business deal for her father Benjamin Horne (Richard Beymer); Sheriff Truman arrests Palmer’s boyfriend Bobby Briggs (Dana Ashbrook), who is secretly seeing a married woman named Shelly; Palmer’s best friend Donna Hayward (Lara Flynn Boyle) and Palmer’s secret boyfriend James Hurley discover a mutual attraction; and Laura’s mother is terrified by a vision.

Season One Episode 2 – Original Airdate: 12 Apr 1990   Traces to Nowhere
Cooper takes breakfast at the Great Northern Hotel, enjoying a “damn fine cup of coffee” as Audrey Horne (Sherilyn Fenn) introduces herself and begins flirting with him. He makes his way to the sheriff’s department, where he and Sheriff Truman (Michael Ontkean) discuss the day’s plans. They interview Dr Hayward (Warren Frost) who has had an autopsy conducted on Palmer’s body. They learn that Laura had had sex with at least three men the night she died.

Waitress Shelley Johnson (Mädchen Amick) is about to leave for work when her abusive husband Leo (Eric Da Re) demands she do more laundry. She finds a bloodstained shirt among Leo’s clothes and hides it before he notices. However, he later realizes that it has gone missing. When she returns home that night, he questions her about its whereabouts, and savagely beats her with a bar of soap in a sock.

Cooper interviews Hurley about a video of Laura and Donna Hayward (Lara Flynn Boyle); Hayward had denied him being present the day it was taken but Cooper notices a reflection of his motorcycle in the video. Cooper confronts Hurley about the affair he was having with Palmer, and about her cocaine habit. Hurley admits seeing Palmer the night she died but denies killing her. James’ uncle Ed Hurley (Everett McGill) comes to the sheriff’s department to pick his nephew up. Ed tells Truman that he was drugged the previous night at The Roadhouse, the town’s bar; he suspects bartender Jacques Renault (Walter Olkewicz) was responsible. Cooper takes a telephone call from his colleague Albert Rosenfield, who is on his way to aid the investigation. Meanwhile, Briggs and his friend Mike Nelson (Gary Hershberger) are in a jail cell, discussing money they owe to Leo. The $10,000 they were meant to pay him is in a safe deposit box owned by Palmer, which they can now no longer access. They are later released by Cooper, who warns them not to approach James Hurley.

Josie Packard (Joan Chen) and Pete Martell (Jack Nance) discuss Packard’s trouble with her sister-in-law Catherine Martell (Piper Laurie). Truman and Cooper arrive to speak with Packard, who had employed Palmer as an English tutor. Packard admits to sensing that Palmer was troubled but cannot help further; Cooper picks up on the fact that Truman has been having a relationship with Packard. Catherine calls Packard to tell her that the latter’s sawmill lost $87,000 the day before; Catherine is having an affair with Benjamin Horne (Richard Beymer), with whom she is conspiring a hostile takeover of the mill. That same day, Hayward visits Palmer’s mother Sarah (Grace Zabriskie), attempting to console her. However, Sarah has a vision of a sinister man (Frank Silva) crouching in the corner of the room, and panics. Meanwhile, Laurence Jacoby (Russ Tamblyn), Laura’s psychiatrist, listens to an audio tape she had made for him, and sobs as he toys with half of a golden heart necklace, the other half of which was found at the scene of the crime.

Season One Episode 3 – Original Airdate: 19 Apr 1990   Zen, or the Skill to Catch a Killer
The Horne family—Ben (Richard Beymer), Audrey (Sherilyn Fenn), and Johnny (Robert Bauer)—are eating dinner when they are interrupted by Ben’s brother Jerry (David Patrick Kelly). The brothers share brie and butter baguettes while Ben tells Jerry of Laura Palmer’s murder and the failing of the Ghostwood project. They decide to visit One Eyed Jacks, a casino and brothel across the Canada–US border, where Ben wins a coin flip to determine who will be the first to sleep with the newest prostitute.

Bobby Briggs and Mike Nelson (Gary Hershberger) drive into the woods to pick up a hidden delivery of cocaine, but are ambushed by Leo Johnson, who demands the $10,000 the pair owe him. Leo also hints that he suspects someone has been sleeping with his wife Shelly (Mädchen Amick), then scares the pair off. When Bobby visits Shelly at her home the next day, he discovers that Leo has beaten her.

Dale Cooper receives a phone call from Hawk (Michael Horse) about a one-armed man seen at Ronette Pulaski’s hospital bed. The next morning, Cooper gathers together Sheriff Truman (Michael Ontkean), Deputies Hawk and Brennan (Harry Goaz), and Lucy Moran (Kimmy Robertson) in a forest clearing to demonstrate his unusual approach to eliminating suspects from their investigation. As each suspect’s name is read from a list, Cooper throws a stone at a bottle placed 60 feet 6 inches (18.44 m) away. Each time he hits the bottle with a stone, he considers the previous name read out to be of interest to the case. The method points his suspicion at Leo Johnson and psychiatrist Lawrence Jacoby (Russ Tamblyn). Dale’s fellow FBI agent Albert Rosenfield (Miguel Ferrer) arrives later, while Truman and Cooper review evidence, and immediately causes friction between himself and Truman.

James Hurley and Donna Hayward (Lara Flynn Boyle) discuss their new relationship, and kiss passionately on Donna’s sofa. Elsewhere, Leland Palmer (Ray Wise), still mourning Laura’s death, dances in his living room, sobbing and holding a portrait of Laura as he does so. He breaks open the picture’s frame, cutting his hands, as his wife Sarah (Grace Zabriskie) screams at him to stop.

Cooper retires to bed at his hotel room, and experiences a strange dream featuring the one-armed man, who identifies himself as MIKE, and BOB, who vows to “kill again”. Cooper then dreams he is in a room hung with red curtains. The Man from Another Place (Michael J. Anderson) and Laura Palmer speak to him in a jarring and disjointed manner, before Laura leans over to whisper in his ear. Cooper wakes up, telephones Harry, and declares that he knows who the murderer is.

Season One Episode 4 – Original Airdate: 26 Apr 1990   Rest in Pain
Cooper and Audrey Horne (Sherilyn Fenn) share breakfast, as he realizes she had slipped a note under his hotel room door; the note referred to One-Eyed Jacks, a brothel over the Canada–US border. When she leaves, Cooper discusses his dream with Sheriff Harry S. Truman (Michael Ontkean), believing it to be a coded solution to the murder.

Cooper’s colleague, Albert Rosenfield (Miguel Ferrer) wishes to conduct a further post-mortem on Laura’s body, but it is due to be released for the funeral that day. As the argument grows more heated, Truman ends it by punching Rosenfield and knocking him down. Later, Rosenfield shares what he has found; Laura had been bound when she was killed, had been addicted to cocaine, and had been clawed by a bird. An unidentified plastic shard was also found in her stomach.

Leland Palmer (Ray Wise) is at home when he is visited by his niece, Madeline Ferguson (Lee). Ferguson is identical to Laura save for having black hair, not blonde. At the same time, Cooper and Truman question Johnson about Laura’s death, believing him to be lying when he denies knowing her. Later, Hurley arrives at Laura’s funeral late, watching from a distance. Briggs begins to accost the mourners, accusing them of doing nothing when they knew Laura had been troubled. Hurley intervenes and the two begin fighting; Leland falls on the casket as it is being lowered into the grave, sobbing uncontrollably.

That night, Cooper, Truman, Deputy Hawk (Michael Horse) and Ed Hurley (Everett McGill) meet at the RR Diner. Truman explains that someone has been smuggling cocaine into town; he suspects that Jacques Renault (Walter Olkewicz), bartender at the town’s Roadhouse Bar, is involved. He also explains that the woods around the town seem to contain a “darkness”, and reveals that there is a secret society of men gathered to stand watch against this: the Bookhouse Boys. Truman and the others bring Cooper to their headquarters, where James has Jacques’ brother Bernard (Clay Wilcox) bound and gagged. They question Bernard but he denies any crime.

Elsewhere, Jacques realizes his brother is in trouble, and calls Johnson for help. When Johnson leaves, his abused wife Shelley (Mädchen Amick) hides a gun in a secret drawer. Meanwhile, sawmill owner Josie Packard (Joan Chen) tells Truman, her lover, that her sister-in-law Catherine Martell (Piper Laurie) is scheming to take over the mill. Packard knows there are two account books, one fake and one real, but cannot locate the real one Martell has been hiding.

Season One Episode 5 – Original Airdate: 03 May 1990   The One-Armed Man
Sarah Palmer (Grace Zabriskie) describes her vision of Killer Bob (Frank Silva) to Deputy Andy Brennan (Harry Goaz), while he sketches the man’s face. She also describes a vision of someone taking Laura’s heart necklace; Donna Hayward (Lara Flynn Boyle) winces at this, as she is the one who hid it.

Cooper interviews Laurence Jacoby (Russ Tamblyn), a psychiatrist who had been seeing Laura. Jacoby does not wish to breach his confidentiality agreement, but admits that he struggled to understand Laura’s problems. He also casts suspicion on a man driving a red Corvette—Leo Johnson (Eric Da Re).

Gordon Cole (David Lynch) calls Cooper at the sheriff’s station, offering insight into Laura’s autopsy. Brennan brings in his sketch, which Cooper identifies as the man from his dream. He also receives a call from Deputy Hawk (Michael Horse), who has located the one-armed man they believe is somehow involved; the group find him at a motel. The man, Philip Michael Gerard (Al Strobel) is a traveling salesman, who denies any involvement or that he knows BOB.

At the same motel, local businessman Benjamin Horne (Richard Beymer) meets with Catherine Martell (Piper Laurie); the two are having an affair and planning to burn down the town’s sawmill. The mill is owned by Josie Packard (Joan Chen), the widow of Martell’s brother; Packard is spying on the couple in their motel room. Later, Horne meets with Leo Johnson (Eric Da Re), a violent truck driver, to arrange having the mill destroyed.

Norma Jennings (Peggy Lipton) travels to a parole hearing for her husband, Hank (Chris Mulkey). She is uneasy about helping his case as she is seeing Ed Hurley (Everett McGill), but promises him a job at the diner she owns. Meanwhile, Johnson’s wife Shelley is having an affair with Briggs; she shows him Johnson’s bloodstained shirt. He takes it, promising to rid them of Johnson for good.

Cooper, Truman and Brennan visit a veterinarian connected to Gerard; they find twine there of the type used to bind Laura. They believe that the bird that clawed her body is one of the animals being treated there, and confiscate the practice’s files in order to locate the owners of birds being treated there. They learn that the scratches have been caused by a myna, and that drug smuggler Jacques Renault (Walter Olkewicz) owns one. They raid Renault’s home, interrupting Briggs, who is planting Johnson’s bloodied shirt. He flees, undetected; however, the shirt is recovered as evidence.

At the RR Diner, Hurley meets Madeline Ferguson (Lee), Laura’s identical cousin; the two seem instantly smitten. Norma finds out that Hank has been released from prison; that evening Packard receives a brief phone call from him that leaves her shaken.

Season One Episode 6 – Original Airdate: 10 May 1990   Cooper’s Dreams
Cooper is woken early by the sound of a raucous party in the Great Northern Hotel. He leaves to meet Truman, while Jerry Horne (David Patrick Kelly) meets his brother Benjamin (Richard Beymer) to discuss the new Icelandic investors in their property developments. Leland Palmer (Ray Wise) arrives, disoriented and wishing to return to work, but the Hornes send him home. Cooper, Truman and Doctor Hayward (Warren Frost) discuss Johnson’s bloodied shirt, learning that the blood is not Laura’s but that of drug smuggler Jacques Renault.

Johnson’s wife Shelly is having breakfast with her lover Bobby Briggs; the two roleplay the idea of shooting Johnson, while they toy with Shelly’s pistol. When Deputy Andy Brennan (Harry Goaz) arrives to enquire about Johnson, Briggs hides and Shelly attempts to make Johnson seem deeply involved in Laura’s death and Renault’s disappearance. Elsewhere, lovers Ed Hurley (Everett McGill) and Norma Jennings (Peggy Lipton) meet to discuss their spouses. Jennings’ husband Hank (Chris Mulkey) has been released from prison, while Hurley’s volatile wife Nadine is increasingly becoming mentally unwell. Jennings leaves, feeling that things are going nowhere, leaving Hurley crestfallen. Meanwhile, Audrey Horne (Sherilyn Fenn) is interviewed for a job at her father’s department store and blackmails the interviewer into giving her a position at the shop’s perfume counter—where Laura and Ronette Pulaski worked before their abduction.

Madeline Ferguson (Lee) meets with James Hurley and Donna Hayward (Lara Flynn Boyle) at the RR Diner. They discuss Laura’s death; Hurley and Hayward believe Laura hid a diary at her home and want Ferguson, who is now staying there, to look for it. They leave as Jennings and Shelly arrive; Hank is seated at another table and pulls Jennings aside to ask to start working in order to regain her trust. Meanwhile, using a photograph from Renault’s home and the clues from Cooper’s dream, the investigators find a log cabin in the woods that they believe to be the scene of the murder; on the floor Cooper finds a fragment of a One Eyed Jacks casino chip that matches the piece found in Laura’s stomach, and Truman finds Waldo, the caged myna bird.

That same afternoon, Bobby attends family counseling with Dr. Jacoby (Russ Tamblyn), the town psychiatrist who also saw Laura as a patient prior to her death. Bobby is initially dismissive of Jacoby’s attempt at analysis, but once he is isolated from his parents, he breaks down and confesses that Laura had told him that she wanted to die—and that she had pressured Bobby into dealing drugs so that she could use them herself.

At a party in the Great Northern to welcome the new investors, Benjamin and Catherine Martell (Piper Laurie) secretly discuss their plan to burn the town’s sawmill and buy the land cheaply. Leland begins sobbing hysterically when a piece of music begins, and Martell escorts him away. Meanwhile, Shelly waits at home with her gun, as Johnson arrives back. Hank attacks him beside his truck, threatening him; Johnson returns home and lashes out at Shelly, and she draws the gun and shoots him.

Coming back home to the sound of the Icelanders singing, Agent Cooper is suspicious of someone in his dark room. He points his gun and says to turn on the light. Audrey Horne is naked in his bed, and she begs him to let her stay.

Season One Episode 7 – Original Airdate: 17 May 1990   Realization Time
Cooper returns to his hotel room to find Audrey Horne (Sherilyn Fenn) waiting in his bed; he cautions her about being unable to get involved with her due to his position and goes to the hotel restaurant to get malts and fries for them both. The next morning he and Sheriff Truman (Michael Ontkean) plan to pay an undercover visit to One Eyed Jacks, a casino and brothel over the Canada–US border, to which Renault is connected. They bring along Ed Hurley (Everett McGill), with Cooper having requisitioned $10,000 from the FBI to pass as high-stakes gamblers.

Johnson, alive but injured, is spying on his own home, watching Briggs visit Shelly. Shelly is terrified that Johnson will return and kill her; but Briggs reassures her he will take care of things. Johnson is also listening to a police radio in his truck, and hears that Renault’s myna bird is being considered a witness as its ability to mimic speech might provide a clue; he drives off immediately. That night, he shoots the bird dead through the sheriff station’s window. However, a voice-activated tape recorder had been left by the bird’s cage; Cooper is able to find the words “Leo, no!” among the phrases it had repeated that evening.

James Hurley, Donna Hayward (Lara Flynn Boyle) and Madeline Ferguson (Lee) listen to cassette tapes found in Laura’s bedroom; they are all monologues addressed to psychiatrist Laurence Jacoby (Russ Tamblyn). One dated to the night of her death is missing; the group plan to use Ferguson’s resemblance to Laura to distract Jacoby long enough to steal it from his office. Jacoby falls for the ruse long enough; however, Hurley and Hayward are watched from afar by Briggs, who is in turn being spied on by an unseen party. Briggs hides a bag of cocaine in the gas tank of Hurley’s motorcycle.

Audrey, meanwhile, has begun working at her father’s department store, in a position both Laura and Pulaski occupied before their abduction. Audrey spies on another coworker being showered with gifts and offered a job in “hospitality” by the store’s manager, and later finds both Laura’s and Pulaski’s names in the manager’s private ledger. Having found an address for One Eyed Jacks, Audrey visits and applies under a false name. The brothel’s madam, Blackie O’Reilly (Victoria Catlin) is hesitant to hire her but is convinced when Audrey ties a cherry stem in a knot with her tongue.

Catherine Martell (Piper Laurie) learns that a new life insurance policy has been taken out in her name, by Josie Packard (Joan Chen) and Benjamin Horne (Richard Beymer). Martell had been planning with Horne to burn down Packard’s sawmill in order to cheaply purchase the land it occupies. Packard speaks to Horne over the telephone, cooperating with the sawmill arson, but arranging to burn it down with Martell inside. As Packard hangs up, it is seen that the recently paroled killer Hank Jennings (Chris Mulkey) has been beside her.

Season One Episode 8 – Original Airdate: 23 May 1990   The Last Evening
James Hurley (James Marshall) and Donna Hayward (Lara Flynn Boyle) sneak into the office of psychiatrist Laurence Jacoby (Russ Tamblyn), hoping to find out more about Laura, whom he had been treating. They find a cassette tape she sent him. Meanwhile, Jacoby is distracted by an offer to meet Laura’s cousin, Madeline Ferguson (Lee), who has disguised herself as the dead girl; before they can meet, however, he is attacked by a masked man and left unconscious.

Cooper and Ed Hurley (Everett McGill) are undercover in One Eyed Jacks, a Canadian brothel and casino. Cooper speaks to drug smuggler Jacques Renault (Walter Olkewicz), whom he believes is connected to Laura’s death. Posing as a drug financier, Cooper persuades Renault to meet him in the US; Cooper learns that Renault and Johnson were with Pulaski and Laura on the night she died. Later that night, when Renault arrives to meet Cooper, he is arrested for Laura’s murder. Renault resists and is shot; he is taken to a hospital where he accuses Johnson of attacking him the night of the murder, claiming to have been unconscious while the killing occurred. Laura’s father, Leland (Ray Wise), learns of the arrest; he travels to the hospital and fatally smothers Renault.

Johnson’s wife, Shelley (Mädchen Amick), is at home when he returns and assaults her. He drives her to the sawmill, ties her up, and rigs a timed device that will set the building on fire. Meanwhile, Packard meets with recently paroled Hank Jennings (Chris Mulkey) to give him US$90,000; it is revealed Packard paid Jennings to serve eighteen months in prison. This ensured that neither of them would be implicated in the death of Packard’s husband, from whom she inherited the mill. Jennings later calls Martell to lure her to the mill. As Martell arrives, the device explodes, engulfing the building in flames. At the same time, Johnson attempts to kill Shelley’s lover, Bobby Briggs (Dana Ashbrook), but is shot by Jennings.

Cooper returns to his hotel room and orders room service. Before he can read a note that was left earlier by Audrey, Deputy Brennan calls him to inform him that Johnson has been shot. However, a knock on the door draws him away from the phone. When he opens the door, an unseen figure shoots him three times.

Season Two Episode 1 – Original Airdate: 30 Sep 1990   May the Giant Be with You
Dale Cooper lies on the floor of his hotel room after being shot in the stomach. In the background, Deputy Andy Brennan calls out for Cooper from the telephone and The Waiter (Hank Worden) enters Cooper’s room. He places a glass of warm milk on the table, hangs up the telephone and cannot understand Cooper’s request to call a doctor. He leaves the room and re-enters twice, giving Cooper a thumbs up. A mysterious, semi-transparent figure enters the room and The Giant (Carel Struycken) appears above Cooper. The Giant tells Cooper three things: “there is a man in a smiling bag”, “the owls are not what they seem” and “without chemicals, he points.” He asks Cooper for his ring and tells him he will return it to him when he discovers the meaning of his clues. He vanishes after giving a fourth clue: “Leo locked inside a hungry horse, there is a clue at Leo’s house.” After The Giant vanishes, Cooper begins recording a message into his tape recorder for Diane, revealing his dying wishes. During his speech, Sheriff Truman (Michael Ontkean), Deputy Hawk (Michael Horse) and Deputy Brennan enter Cooper’s room with weapons drawn and bring him to the hospital.

At the hospital, Cooper awakes and learns of Jacques Renault’s murder, Leo Johnson’s attempted murder and the Packard Sawmill fire. He recovers and brings Sheriff Truman, Deputy Brennan and Hawk to Leo’s house to search for clues. Hawk finds a blanket doused in gasoline and Truman concludes Leo started the Packard Sawmill fire. FBI Special Agent Albert Rosenfield (Miguel Ferrer) arrives at the scene and Deputy Brennan, while alerting Cooper, steps on a loose plank, revealing an abundance of cocaine.

Meanwhile, Audrey Horne is working undercover at One Eyed Jacks and realises her father, Ben Horne (Richard Beymer), is the owner. Audrey hides behind a mask and almost has a close sexual encounter with her father before he is brought away by his brother Jerry (David Patrick Kelly). At the Palmer household, Madeline “Maddy” Ferguson (Lee) tells Sarah Palmer (Grace Zabriskie) of a dream she had. Leland Palmer enters the room, singing “Mairzy Doats”, and both women are shocked to discover his hair has turned white overnight. Sarah leaves the room and Maddy has a vision of blood spewing across the living room carpet. Maddy later meets Donna Hayward (Lara Flynn Boyle) at the Double R Diner and tells her about Leland’s hair and sudden upbeat mood. Donna is given an anonymous letter by Norma Jennings (Peggy Lipton) telling her to look into the Meals on Wheels program.

Back at the Twin Peaks Sheriff Department, Deputy Brennan discovers the answer to one of The Giant’s clues, revealing Leo was locked in a jail in Hungry Horse, Montana on the night Theresa Banks—the girl murdered by BOB a year before Laura Palmer—was murdered. Laura’s secret boyfriend James Hurley (James Marshall) brings Sheriff Truman a cassette tape of Laura speaking to Doctor Jacoby (Russ Tamblyn). At the hospital, Cooper and Truman question Jacoby about Laura and Jacques Renault’s murders. While at the hospital, Cooper sees Jacques’ bodybag, which appears to be smiling, yielding another answer to The Giant’s clues. Bobby Briggs (Dana Ashbrook) visits Shelly Johnson (Mädchen Amick) in hospital and later visits his father, Major Garland Briggs, who shares a story of his vision with Bobby, bringing Bobby to tears. Sheriff Truman visits Pete Martell (Jack Nance) about Josie Packard (Joan Chen)’s disappearance following the mill fire. Ben and Jerry Horne question Hank Jennings about Leo’s shooting. At One Eyed Jacks, Blackie O’Reilly, the brothel/casino’s manager, berates Audrey Horne about not sleeping with the owner. During a dinner at the Haywards’ home, Leland Palmer sings and suddenly collapses.

Later that night, Cooper is visited again by The Giant. The Giant informs him not to search for all of the answers to his clues at once and that “a path is formed by laying one stone at a time.” He also informs Cooper “one person saw the third man” and he is known to Cooper. He ends his visit by telling Cooper that he forgot something. The Giant shines a light on Cooper and at the hospital, Ronette Pulaski enters a spasm in her coma. Ronette has flashback visions of Laura Palmer being murdered by BOB. After murdering Laura, BOB laughs maniacally.

Season Two Episode 2 – Original Airdate: 06 Oct 1990   Coma
In the midst of the murder investigation and the aftermath of his shooting, Cooper receives the grim news that his insane former partner, Windom Earle, has escaped from a mental asylum. Meanwhile, Donna’s first day as a Meals on Wheels volunteer leads to an eerie meeting with an old woman and her grandson. Audrey uncovers more about Laura’s double life at One Eyed Jacks, while her investigation becomes increasingly dangerous.

Season Two Episode 3 – Original Airdate: 13 Oct 1990   The Man Behind the Glass
Blackie holds Audrey hostage, and plots with Jean Renault; James and Madeleine become close, to Donna’s dismay; Lucy lunches with Dick Tremayne; Dr. Jacoby undergoes hypnosis, leading to an arrest; and Nadine wakes from her coma a changed woman; Donna finds a diary of Laura’s at Harold Smith’s house.

Season Two Episode 4 – Original Airdate: 20 Oct 1990   Laura’s Secret Diary
Cooper and Truman arrest Leland after he confesses to the crime of murdering Jacques Renault in the hospital. Hank asks Norma to tidy up the Double R Diner when he is informed that a shady food critic named M.T. Wentz may be visiting Twin Peaks. Meanwhile, Jean Renault shows a videotape of Audrey Horne being held captive to Ben, demanding a $125,000 ransom for her return, and Cooper to be the drop-off man. Upon returning to One-Eyed Jacks, Jean murders Emory Battis for mistreating Audrey. With help from Truman, Cooper prepares to investigate Audrey’s kidnapping. Josie returns, claiming to have been in Seattle on business, learning from Pete that Catherine died in the sawmill fire. Later, a Japanese businessman, Mr. Tojamura, checks into the Great Northern Hotel.

Season Two Episode 5 – Original Airdate: 27 Oct 1990   The Orchid’s Curse
Cooper and Truman stage a raid on One Eyed Jacks; Leland’s court hearing begins; Donna and Madeleine plot to steal Laura’s secret diary from Harold Smith; Ben gets a business proposition from the mysterious Mr. Tojamura; and Shelly and Bobby reignite their relationship, even as the catatonic Leo lives under the same roof.

Season Two Episode 6 – Original Airdate: 03 Nov 1990   Demons
Shelly and Bobby host a “welcome home” party for Leo; Cooper’s boss, Gordon Cole, visits Cooper to warn him of threats from the insane Windom Earle; Josie strikes a deal with Ben; the one-armed man reveals some information about BOB; and Leland returns to work.

Season Two Episode 7 – Original Airdate: 10 Nov 1990   Lonely Souls
Ben is brought in for questioning after Audrey confronts him about One Eyed Jacks and passes the information to Cooper; Andy ponders the meaning of Harold Smith’s suicide note; financial pressures strain Shelly and Bobby’s brief happiness; Pete learns Tojamura’s plans; Ed’s life continues to bewilder, as amnesiac Nadine decides she is a teenager; the Log Lady leads Cooper to the Roadhouse, and a devastating message; and Laura’s killer is finally revealed.

Season Two Episode 8 – Original Airdate: 17 Nov 1990   Drive with a Dead Girl
Jerry tries to arrange a defense for Ben, who is in jail for Laura’s murder. Cooper is skeptical of Ben committing the crime, which Truman contradicts. Later, Pete visits Ben with an audio message from Catherine, who is willing to back up his alibi, on terms that he surrenders all of his property. Meanwhile, the real killer, Leland, under possession by Bob, stuffs the dead Maddie Ferguson in his golf bag, leaving more evidence to implicate Ben. Elsewhere, Norma’s estranged mother Vivian Smythe, arrives for a visit with her new husband, while Hank reappears after several days. Lucy arrives back in Twin Peaks with her older sister, Gwen, where Lucy is approached by Andy who wants to get back together with her. Later, the one-armed man escapes from police custody, warning them that Bob is nearby.

Season Two Episode 9 – Original Airdate: 01 Dec 1990   Arbitrary Law
Cooper, FBI Special Agent Albert Rosenfield (Miguel Ferrer), Sheriff Harry S. Truman (Michael Ontkean) and Deputy Hawk walk through the woods outside of Twin Peaks the morning after the discovery of Maddy Ferguson’s body. Albert gives forensic evidence to Cooper, concluding Maddy’s killer was the same person who murdered her cousin, Laura Palmer. Sheriff Truman insists on contacting Maddy’s uncle Leland Palmer, as he would be able to contact her parents. Cooper persuades Sheriff Truman to give him twenty four hours “to finish this.”

In the Double R Diner, Deputy Andy Brennan sits at the counter reciting the phrase “J’ai une âme solitaire”—French for “I am a lonely soul.” Donna Hayward (Lara Flynn Boyle) approaches Andy and asks if he had visited Mrs. Tremond (Frances Bay), whose grandson had said the same phrase to her during her Meals on Wheels round. Andy reveals that the phrase was included in Harold Smith (Lenny Von Dohlen)’s suicide note. Donna contacts Cooper and both of them visit Mrs. Tremond’s home, only to realise that Mrs. Tremond does not exist. However, another woman by the name of Mrs. Tremond gives Donna an envelope from Harold Smith, containing two pages from Laura Palmer’s secret diary. The entries—dated February 22 and 23—reveal that Cooper and Laura had the same dream involving The Red Room and that Laura was aware of her imminent death. Cooper visits MIKE (Al Strobel), who is inhabiting Philip Gerard, at The Great Northern Hotel. Cooper tells MIKE that he and Laura had the same dream on separate occasions and he needs to unlock the answers. MIKE mentions a “golden circle” and his connection with The Giant (Carel Struycken), telling Cooper he must summon The Giant to receive answers. Upon leaving MIKE’s room, Cooper encounters The Waiter (Hank Worden), who tells him he’s “getting warmer now.”

Elsewhere, Donna and James Hurley (James Marshall) become a couple, Norma Jennings (Peggy Lipton) has an altercation with her mother, Vivian Smythe Niles (Jane Greer), in the Double R Diner, and Lucy Moran tells Andy Brennan and Richard Tremayne about her plans for a blood test to determine which of them is the father of her baby. Mr. Tojamura visits Ben Horne (Richard Beymer) in jail and has concerns over their agreement for the Ghostwood Project. During the encounter, it is revealed Tojamura is Catherine Martell (Piper Laurie). Ben signs the Ghostwood Project contract in exchange for an alibi from Catherine.

Meanwhile, Donna visits Leland Palmer to deliver a tape of a song she, James and Maddy recorded together. Leland, while inhabited by BOB, asks Donna to dance with him and becomes aggressive, before being distracted by a knock on the door. Sheriff Truman informs Leland there has been another murder and urges him to come to The Roadhouse. At The Roadhouse, Cooper assembles all of the people he suspects might be BOB’s host. While there, The Waiter offers people sticks of gum and tells Leland “that gum you like is going to come back in style”, words Cooper previously heard in his dream. Cooper once again recalls his Red Room dream and determines that Leland is BOB’s host but arrests Ben Horne. While Ben is about to be imprisoned again, Cooper and Sheriff Truman throw Leland into the interrogation room, where he goes into a manic fit.

Inside the interrogation room, BOB confesses—through Leland’s body—that he murdered Laura Palmer and Maddy Ferguson. When Cooper, Albert, Sheriff Truman and Hawk leave, BOB chants a poem ending with the phrase “fire, walk with me.” The water sprinklers turn on and BOB forces Leland to commit suicide by ramming his head into a steel door. BOB vacates Leland’s body and Leland, in his dying moments, reveals the nature of his possession. Cooper comforts Leland through his last moments and Leland dies after seeing a vision of Laura.

Cooper, Albert, Sheriff Truman and Major Garland Briggs (Don S. Davis) walk through the woods outside of Twin Peaks discussing Leland’s possession and death. Albert concludes that BOB is just “the evil that men do” and Sheriff Truman questions where BOB might have gone to. An unseen character then runs through the woods and an owl flies out from a large white light.

Season Two Episode 10 – Original Airdate: 08 Dec 1990   Dispute Between Brothers
Friends gather around Sarah, as Leland is laid to rest. Cooper says his goodbyes, but an unexpected turn of events keeps him in Twin Peaks. The publisher of the Twin Peaks Gazette argues with his brother, the Mayor; Renault recruits Hank and Ernie to frame Cooper; Nadine enrolls in high school; and Major Briggs, fishing with Cooper, has a strange encounter in the woods.

Season Two Episode 11 – Original Airdate: 15 Dec 1990   Masked Ball
Cooper is investigated by the FBI and the DEA for his role in the raid on One Eyed Jacks; Nadine falls for teen Mike Nelson; James gets room and board for helping a beautiful blond; Hank confronts Ben; Tremayne becomes Big Brother to a terror; Catherine forces Josie to become her maid; Cooper’s old friend Dennis Bryson arrives in town with a change of appearance; and Andrew Packard turns up alive.

Season Two Episode 12 – Original Airdate: 12 Jan 1991   The Black Widow
Cooper finds cocaine at a deserted house that Renault uses; a mentally decaying Ben has Bobby tail Hank; Dougie Milford dies under unusual circumstances; super strong Nadine joins the wrestling team; and, even as Major Briggs returns, the investigation into his disappearance reveals a presence in the woods near Twin Peaks.

Season Two Episode 13 – Original Airdate: 19 Jan 1991   Checkmate
Cooper is held hostage by Renault; Andy and Tremayne pry into Nicky’s past; Ben slips into a fantasy life as a Civil War general; James succumbs to Evelyn, who has a deadly secret; Ed and Norma succumb to their decades-old passion; Hank confronts Big Ed; and Cooper’s ex-partner Windom Earle leaves a gruesome scene at the Twin Peaks Sheriff’s Station.

Season Two Episode 14 – Original Airdate: 02 Feb 1991   Double Play
Cooper confides to Truman his past experiences with Windom Earle; Leo awakens from his coma and finds a new cause in life; Audrey strikes a business deal with Bobby, as they attempt to save Ben’s sanity; when Evelyn’s husband is killed, James realizes he has been set up; Thomas Eckhardt, who is Josie’s former lover and the man who attempted to kill Andrew Packard, appears; Windom Earle is revealed.

Season Two Episode 15 – Original Airdate: 09 Feb 1991   Slaves and Masters
Cooper finds some evidence about who shot him, and gets help from Pete, the town’s resident chess master in matching wits with Windom Earle in the deadly chess game; Donna makes a desperate plea to save James, who is suspected in the Marsh murder; Shelly returns to work; Nadine breaks up with Ed in favor of Mike; and Catherine uses Josie to lure Eckhardt.

Season Two Episode 16 – Original Airdate: 16 Feb 1991   The Condemned Woman
Ed proposes marriage to Norma; James and Donna break up; Audrey is reunited with a handsome, wealthy admirer from her past; Earle mails a poem to Audrey, Shelly and Donna; Hank is arrested for Leo’s murder, but points a finger at someone else; and Josie is forced to meet with Eckhardt – an encounter that ends in tragedy.

Season Two Episode 17 – Original Airdate: 28 Mar 1991   Wounds and Scars
Norma’s sister Annie leaves the convent and comes to Twin Peaks, where Cooper becomes enamored of her; Truman sinks into depression; Catherine is left a mysterious puzzle box by Eckhardt; plans get underway for the Miss Twin Peaks pageant; and Ben finds an ingenious way to stop Catherine’s development – saving an endangered pine weasel.

Season Two Episode 18 – Original Airdate: 04 Apr 1991   On the Wings of Love
Cooper and the Sheriff’s Department go spelunking in Owl Cave; Truman awakens in the murderous embrace of a naked woman; Audrey and John Justice Wheeler start a relationship; Windom Earle insinuates himself into the lives of potential victims; Audrey and Donna see Mrs. Hayward meet with Ben.

Season Two Episode 19 – Original Airdate: 11 Apr 1991   Variations and Relations
Cooper and Truman try to decipher the hieroglyph from Owl Cave; Pete and Catherine obsess over the puzzle box; Annie and Cooper bond; Gordon Cole falls for Shelly; Tremayne holds a wine tasting at the Great Northern Hotel; and Windom Earle makes his next move.

Season Two Episode 20 – Original Airdate: 18 Apr 1991   The Path to the Black Lodge
Windom Earle captures Major Briggs to interrogate him to how much he knows about the Owl Cave paintings; Cooper receives a message from the other side; Donna makes a discovery on her birth certificate; and Wheeler leaves town suddenly as Audrey looks for him to say goodbye.

Season Two Episode 21 – Original Airdate: 10 Jun 1991   The Night of the Decision
Thanks to Andy, Cooper and Truman decipher part of the secret of the Black Lodge. Cooper helps Annie prepare for the Miss Twin Peaks beauty contest. Major Briggs escapes from Earle with a little of Leo’s help. Catherine continues her battle to open the black box. Ed breaks up with Nadine, as he and Norma decide to move ahead with their plans. Lucy chooses Andy to be the father of her baby. The Miss Twin Peaks contest goes from frivolity to terror when Windom Earle crashes the event disguised as the Log Lady.

Season Two Episode 22 – Original Airdate: 10 Jun 1991   Beyond Life and Death
Andy and Lucy console one another in the aftermath of the Miss Twin Peaks Pageant, where Annie was kidnapped by Windom Earle. Cooper, Harry, and Hawk contemplate the chalkboard map, as Cooper says quietly, “Fire walk with me.” Pete Martell enters the police station exclaiming, “Grand theft auto!” and says the Log Lady stole his truck and drove off toward the woods. There were “…twelve rainbow trout in the [truck] bed.” Truman recalls a circle of twelve sycamore trees in the woods: Glastonbury Grove, where Hawk found the pages torn from Laura’s diary. The Log Lady arrives carrying a jar of black oil given to her by her husband before his death. Cooper informs Pete that Windom Earle stole his truck. The Log Lady says, “This oil is an opening to a gateway.” The oil smells like scorched engine oil. Hawk brings in Ronnette Pulaski, who recognizes the odor from the night of Laura Palmer’s death.

Windom arrives in a dark, wooded grove with Annie, who is quietly reciting Psalm 141. They reach a circle of young trees with a dark pool at its center. Upon entering the circle, Annie becomes catatonic, and Windom recites a fragment of poetic verse. A ghostly red curtain appears behind the pool. They pass through the curtain and vanish.

At the Hurley house, Ed, Norma, and Doc Hayward bandage Nadine Hurley and Mike Nelson’s injuries. Nadine suddenly regains her memory, and is horrified to see Ed with Norma. She hollers about the missing drape runners and bursts into tears. Mike apologises to Ed for letting his affair with Nadine “get out of hand.”

At the Hayward house, Donna is distraught, having learned that Benjamin Horne is her biological father. Ben and Donna’s mother try to console her. Doc Hayward arrives and orders Ben to leave. Ben’s wife arrives and yells at him. An enraged Doc Hayward attacks Ben. Ben slams his head on the fireplace and collapses, twitching and bloodied.

At the Blue Pine Lodge, Andrew steals the safe deposit box key from the pie plate and sneaks off, though Pete sees him.

Cooper and Harry find Pete’s truck in the woods. They walk deeper into the forest. Eventually Cooper says he must continue alone and leaves Harry behind. Cooper hears an owl, then sees the pool of oil in the circle of trees. Harry watches from a distance as Cooper enters the circle and passes through a red curtain which materializes behind the pool. The curtain glows for a moment then disappears, along with Cooper.

Cooper passes through a red-curtained hallway and finds himself in the Red Room from his dream. The Man from Another Place dances into the room and sits in a velvet chair. A strobe light flickers as Jimmy Scott croons a plaintive jazz ballad, “Sycamore Trees.”

Andy arrives in the forest and joins Harry. Ten hours pass, and morning arrives, but Cooper has not returned. Andy asks Harry if he wants some food from the Double R Diner.

Meanwhile, Audrey walks into the Twin Peaks Savings & Loan bank and chains herself to the bank vault, in protest of the Ghostwood project and its environmental effect on the forest weasel. The elderly bank president, Dell Mibbler, fetches Audrey a glass of water, but fails to understand what Audrey is doing. Andrew and Pete arrive with the safe deposit key, intending to open the box left by Thomas Eckhart. Andrew asks Dell for help in identifying the correct box in the bank vault, which he does, albeit very slowly. As Dell ambles away, Andrew opens the box to reveal a bomb, along with a note: “Got you, Andrew! Love, Thomas.” The bomb explodes, blowing out the bank windows. Dell’s glasses and some dollar bills fall on a nearby pine tree.

At the Double R Diner, Bobby proposes marriage to Shelly. Shelly reminds Bobby that she is still married to Leo, who is still in the woods caught in Windom Earle’s tarantula trap. Nearby, Major Briggs and his wife are sitting in a booth, happy to be reunited. Dr. Jacoby arrives with a worried Sarah Palmer, who delivers a message to Major Briggs in a distorted voice not her own: “I’m in the Black Lodge with Dale Cooper. I’m waiting…for…you.”

In the Black Lodge, the Man from Another Place tells Cooper, “This is the waiting room,” and offers Cooper some coffee. The Man from Another Place tells Cooper, “When you see me again, it won’t be me.” Laura Palmer appears, saying, “I will see you again in 25 years.” She makes a strange pose, says, “Meanwhile,” and then is gone. The elderly waiter from the Great Northern appears and brings Cooper a cup of coffee, repeating, “Coffee!” He places the cup beside Cooper and is replaced by the Giant, who sits down and says, “One and the same.” The Man from Another Place rubs his hands together, and a ringing tone is heard. Cooper attempts to sip the coffee, only to find it frozen solid. He tips the cup forward, and some of the coffee spills out. He tips it again, and now it is thick as syrup. The Man from Another Place says, “Wow, Bob, wow.”

The Man from Another Place says, “Fire walk with me.” A massive explosion of flames is seen, and then the waiting room turns dark with strobes. Cooper leaves the room, entering another room that looks exactly the same. He returns to the first room, where The Man from Another Place says, “Wrong way.” Cooper goes back to the second room and finds The Man from Another Place twitching and laughing maniacally, saying, “Another friend.” Maddy Ferguson enters and warns, “Watch out for my cousin,” then disappears.

Cooper returns to the first room to find it completely empty. The Man from Another Place appears at Cooper’s left, grimacing and twitching, his eyes white cataracts, and says, “Doppelgänger.” A menacing Laura doppelgänger appears, holding the same pose as before. She says, “Meanwhile,” shrieks, and charges Cooper. Cooper briefly sees the face of Windom Earle over Laura’s and flees the room in fright. Now in the prior room, Cooper finds a fresh stab wound in his stomach. He stumbles back to the first room, following a trail of his own blood, and sees Caroline in a floral dress lying on the floor beside his own bloodied body. He calls, “Caroline”, but the woman turns into Annie. Annie sits up, covered in blood, dazed and wide-eyed. Cooper calls out to her, but the room turns dark, strobes flash, and the bodies disappear.

Cooper walks into a room with a black marble table. Annie appears wearing the floral dress and says, “Dale, I saw the face of the man who killed me: It was my husband.” Cooper is confused. Then Annie turns into Caroline. Caroline is replaced by doppelgänger Laura, who again shrieks, and then turns into Windom Earle. Annie materializes in her black pageant gown, and watches the confrontation between Windom and Cooper. She disappears, and Windom cackles. Windom tells Cooper he will let Annie live if Cooper gives him his soul. Cooper agrees without hesitation, and Windom stabs Cooper in the stomach. Cooper collapses, and then there is another explosion of flames. Cooper’s stabbing is reversed as we hear Bob screaming. Bob appears, holding Windom Earle captive. Bob screams to Windom, “Be quiet!” then says to Cooper, “He can’t ask for your soul. I will take his.” Windom screams as Bob takes his soul, leaving Windom ashen and still. Cooper leaves the room as Bob cackles. A doppelgänger of Cooper appears from behind a curtain and joins Bob. The two cackle together.

The doppelgänger Leland Palmer, with partially greying brown hair, appears in the hall between the two rooms and says to Cooper, “I did not kill anybody.” The doppelgänger Cooper comes into the hall and snickers with Leland, then gives Cooper chase. Cooper flees but is caught by his doppelgänger just before he can escape. Bob appears, smiling into the camera.

It is nightfall again in the woods. The gateway to the Black Lodge glows for a moment and disappears. Harry finds Cooper and Annie lying in the circle of trees. Annie’s face is bloodied.

Cooper wakes up in his bed at the Great Northern Hotel, with Harry and Doc Hayward watching over him. Cooper asks, “How’s Annie?” Harry replies that Annie is at the hospital and will be all right. Cooper gets up out of bed, announcing he needs to brush his teeth. In the bathroom, Cooper begins to put toothpaste on a brush, but then squeezes the tube’s contents into the sink. He rams his head into the bathroom mirror. Bob stares back at him from the shattered mirror. Harry and Doc knock on the door, concerned. As blood drips from his forehead, Cooper repeats in a mocking tone, “How’s Annie?” and laughs maniacally.

FBI Regional Bureau Chief Gordon Cole (David Lynch) sends agents Chester Desmond (Chris Isaak) and Sam Stanley (Kiefer Sutherland) to investigate the murder of drifter and teenage prostitute Teresa Banks in the town of Deer Meadow, Oregon. Desmond and Stanley view Teresa’s body at the local morgue. They notice that a ring is missing from her finger and a small piece of paper printed with the letter “T” has been inserted under one of her fingernails. Later, Desmond discovers Teresa’s missing ring under a trailer. As he reaches out to it, he is taken by an unseen force.

The following day at FBI headquarters in Philadelphia, Cole and Agent Dale Cooper (Kyle MacLachlan) experience a brief vision of their long-lost colleague Agent Phillip Jeffries (David Bowie). He tells them about a meeting he witnessed involving several mysterious spirits—the Man from Another Place, Killer Bob, Mrs. Chalfont (Frances Bay) and her grandson. Agent Cooper is sent to Deer Meadow to investigate Desmond’s disappearance. He finds no answers but is certain Teresa’s killer will strike again.

One year later in Twin Peaks, high school homecoming queen Laura Palmer (Sheryl Lee) and her best friend Donna Hayward (Moira Kelly) attend school. Laura is addicted to cocaine and is cheating on her boyfriend, the arrogant and ill-tempered jock, Bobby Briggs (Dana Ashbrook), with the biker James Hurley (James Marshall). Laura realizes pages are missing from her secret diary, and gives the rest of the diary to her friend, the agoraphobic recluse Harold Smith (Lenny Von Dohlen).

Mrs. Chalfont and her grandson appear to Laura. They warn her that the “man behind the mask” is in her bedroom. Laura runs home, where she sees Bob. She rushes outside in terror and is startled to see her father, Leland (Ray Wise), emerge from the house. That evening Leland’s behavior is erratic—he accusingly asks her about her romances then tenderly tells her he loves her.

Laura has a dream about entering the Black Lodge. Cooper and the Man from Another Place appear in her dream. The Man from Another Place tells Cooper that he is “the arm” and offers Teresa’s ring to Laura, but Cooper tells her not to take it. Laura finds Annie Blackburn (Heather Graham) next to her in bed, covered in blood. Annie tells Laura to write in her diary that “the good Dale” is trapped in the Lodge and can’t leave. When she wakes up, Laura sees the ring in her hand.

The next evening, Laura goes to the Bang Bang Bar to meet her drug connections and have sex with strange men. Unexpectedly, the normally chaste Donna shows up. They all go to the Pink Room. Laura discusses Teresa Banks’ murder with Ronette Pulaski (Phoebe Augustine), and Ronette says that Teresa was trying to blackmail someone. When she sees a topless Donna making out with a stranger, a distraught Laura takes her home and begs Donna not become like her. The next morning, Leland drives Laura home. On the way home, Philip Gerard/Mike (Al Strobel), the one-armed man who is also possessed by a demon, pulls up alongside Leland’s car and shouts at Leland that “the thread will be torn”, and shows Teresa’s ring to Laura, but Leland and Laura become frightened and drive away.

Leland recalls his affair with Teresa. He had asked Teresa to set up a foursome and invite some of her friends, but fled when he discovered Laura was among them. Teresa realized who he was and plotted to blackmail him, and he killed her to prevent his secrets from being revealed. Laura realizes that Mike’s ring was the same one from her dream, and was also worn by Teresa.

The next night, Bob comes through Laura’s window and begins having sex with her only to transform into Leland. The next morning she warns him to stay away from her. Upset, Laura uses more cocaine and has trouble concentrating at school. When Bobby realizes Laura was only using him to score cocaine, he breaks off their relationship. Subsequently, Laura breaks up with James, then goes to a cabin in the woods to have an orgy with Ronette, Jacques and Leo. Leland has followed her there and, after attacking Jacques and Leo, takes Laura and Ronette to an abandoned train car.

Laura asks Leland if he is going to kill her, but Bob appears and tells Laura he intends to possess her. Mike has tracked Leland/Bob to the train, but when Ronette tries to let him in, Leland beats her unconscious. Mike manages to throw in Teresa’s ring. Laura puts it on, which prevents Bob from possessing her. Enraged, Bob stabs Laura to death.

Leland/Bob places Laura’s body in the lake. As her corpse drifts away, he enters the Red Room where he encounters Mike and the Man from Another Place who announce they want their share of “garmonbozia.” As Laura’s body is found by the Sheriff’s department, Agent Cooper comforts her spirit in the Black Lodge.