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Because Twin Peaks isn’t complex enough, I’m jumping into "Episode 3" this week in lieu of analyzing “Episode 2.” That’s because I thought I’d seen ”Episode 2” already. Turns out I hadn’t, and so I’ve managed to fumble my coverage just weeks into recapping Twin Peaks.

Truthfully, my Sunday morphed into something a heck of a lot busier than it ought to be, and as such I’ve been branded with my flub. Otherwise I would have tried getting away with a quick “Episode 2” view and review. Treat next week’s recap, then, as a flashback episode.

What I find interesting, I guess, is how seamless the transition was from “Episode 1” to “Episode 3.” I felt like all order was maintained; nothing seemed out of place. Anything new introduced was simply that - it was new. The narrative was as easy to follow as would have been expected from the conclusion of “Episode 1.”

With that said, Lynch and Frost laid a few more niblets that seemed to hint that Agent Cooper is an otherworldly creature. What I can’t wrap my head around is how excited he gets about the simple things, like the taste sensation of maple syrup meeting a slice of ham or, quite literally, ducks swimming in water.

To be fair, I take pleasure in an observant person noticing birds doing something simple and natural, but to cut off a Harry Truman monologue in favor of a moment of ducks on the lake just seems so strange to me. It’s like he’s experiencing things for the first time. And I don’t know that we only have a sheltered upbringing totally to blame.

The same is true of Cooper’s partner-in-crime, Albert, who was new to me this week and very well may have been introduced in “Episode 2.” Over the span of one episode, Hayward accuses him of not being human after committing Laura’s body to a series of tests instead of allowing it to be buried right away. As well, after Harry thinks an animal was behind a series of claw marks on Laura’s face, Albert said the strangest thing: “Look it’s trying to think.” As if he’s a more intelligent being mocking Harry’s simpleton brain.

Also in the episode, Cooper outlines a dream he just had that he thinks is a code to solving the mystery death of Laura Palmer. Solve the code, as he says, and break the crime.

The dream: Sarah had a vision of her daughter's killer, and Hawkes sketched a picture. Cooper got a phone call from a one-armed man named Mike. Killer's name was Bob. Mike and Bobby - different from the ones we already know - lived above a convenience store and had tattoos that read: “Fire, walk with me.” Mike couldn't stand the killing anymore so he cut off his arm. Bob vowed to kill again so Mike shot him.

Dream then picks up 25 years later, with Cooper, aged some, sitting in a red room. A woman dancing around looks almost exactly like Laura, and she leans in close to whisper the name of Laura’s killer. Cooper doesn’t remember, however, what the look-alike said, and therein lies the rub.

Harry didn’t know what to make of the dream, and at this point, neither do I.

A little Twin Peaks mythology broke free about halfway through, and I think it’s a significant chunk of story that’ll be brought up and discussed regularly from here on out. It’s the Bookhouse Boys, a secret society of men - of which Harry Truman is a member - who’ve been working closely together for about 20 years in an effort to reduce the evil lurking in Twin Peaks’ woods.

That touch of wicked loitering in the town’s green was set up oh so perfectly by Harry, who for some reason felt it appropriate to
introduce Cooper to his exclusive club of good over an afternoon meal. Their first assignment: To get Bernard to spill the beans on his brother’s drug running. Based on the encounter, the boys aren’t afraid to use a little tied-up torture. I do wonder how the group will factor into the investigation.

“Episode 3” ended on an odd note, but what else is to be expected from an episode of Twin Peaks? Cooper gets talking about the soul, and his buddy says he believes we not only have souls, but we have several of them. They give life to the mind and body, and dream souls, in particular, wander to far away places. Laura’s body is for sure in the ground. But her soul? Anyone’s guess.

Cut to her father, Leland, who cuts a rug on the dance floor before encountering some kind of attack. Like Lynch and Frost are making the argument that Laura’s soul could be anywhere, including inside her alive father’s body. If that’s the case, then is Laura Palmer really dead, or has her essence been transferred elsewhere?