So just finished my first re-watch since maybe late 2017, so almost 4 years. I kind of started to doubt my initial reaction that this was a great piece of art, because I had not felt compelled to do a rewatch during all of COVID quarantine, even though I had plenty of opportunity. Turns out I just needed more time to view with fresh eyes.
I have to say I enjoyed it even more 4 years later.
I still have a couple of issues. Still do not like Wally Brando, not a huge fan of Becky almost killing her mom then being forgiven like it was nothing, and the arm wrestling scene was also over the top for me, although I enjoyed that one a little more than I did in 2017.
But other than that, I was really transfixed and could not wait to jump to the next episode. The biggest surprise for me is that Robert Forster made me glad that Ontkean did not sign on. I never thought I'd say that but I saw how much more he brought to the table as Sheriff than Ontkean ever did. And I like Ontkean, but Forster is just several levels above.
So, some realizations I came to that may or may not be true:
-Red is not a lodge creature IMO. Richard is so freaking high on drugs that the magic that Red pulls is enhanced. I believe Red is an illusionist, but really Richard's time perception is thrown off by the drugs.
-Although I would like to have seen more of Red, it's possible that nothing he could have done later in TP:TR would have topped that scene with Richard. That scene harkens back to Bobby and Mike meeting Leo in the woods in Season 1, and that truly was the apex of Leo's character in TP. Perhaps Lynch/Frost didn't want to make the same mistake with Red and have him as a vegetable in a wheelchair by the end
-I still have not figured out why Red references The King and I unless it's just this simple: he doesn't 'know' Richard, and this is a 'Getting to Know You' session
-The drug storyline did not become a big storyline because...been there, done that. I also think it was about subverting expectations. Every big confrontation we anticipate: Red vs Bobby, Cooper vs Mr C, Laura vs Sarah ends up not happening. Those were choices, and I thought they all worked very well.
-I'll say it here and now in front of God and everybody: the best cinematic scenes in the Twin Peaks universe all occur in The Return. Nothing in the original series can touch the Mauve Room or Episode 8 of S3. The only competition would come from FWWM, but I still think the aforementioned S3 scenes beat anything in FWWM.
-Dougie is even funnier 4 years later. When Anthony is giving his confession about working with Duncan Todd, and Bushnell reveals 'Dougie told me all about it', it was the super big payoff to the Dougie doodling scene. I laughed out loud.
-Little Girl Who Lives Down The Lane. Maybe this was already decided, but in this rewatch I saw this as a foreshadowing that Laura/Carrie had a dead body in her house, an abuser whom she killed. Which makes me wonder if The Return can be seen as Laura's dream or Laura's coping mechanism. Where she finally fights back and takes control, and each character, or maybe just Audrey, is really just Laura. Something to ponder.
-The beginning scene with the Giant, which might actually be the end, or even the middle, makes me think it is Laura's dream/fantasy. Does 'it all cannot be said aloud now' reference Sarah not wanting to hear about Laura's abuse at the hands of her father?
-I just love the storytelling method here. Dang, we have to wait until the last two of eighteen hours to find out what the plot is! And yet when we do find out Judy is the endgame, everything we saw before makes sense.
What a great ride. I hope some of those who did not like it on first viewing will give it another chance someday.