Theology, Religion, and Twin Peaks

Reading a new collection of original and illuminating essays on the over-eviscerated, hyper-analyzed Twin Peaks is quite rare, but this is precisely what this book offers. With its eighteen chapters focusing eclectically on different theological and religious aspects of the three seasons of the series (from Biblical readings and Animism to Apocalypticism and Apophaticism), this volume certainly provides its readers with new, clear, and well-researched interpretations that further unveil the mysteries of one of the most debated TV programs ever. * Dr. Antonio Sanna (editor of Critical Essays on Twin Peaks: The Return, Palgrave Macmillan 2019) *
Twin Peaks has long intrigued and confounded viewers with its slippery realities and unresolved mystery. This “damn fine” collection offers a definitive set of texts that illuminate the esoteric, spiritual nature of the series and clearly introduce complex religious theory and theological discourse along the way. The town of Twin Peaks is home to quirky characters and figures of primeval evil at play in a cosmic landscape that is ripe for religious and theological investigation. David Lynch and Mark Frost created a surreal and interconnected set of media that Dunne and Song have given another rich layer of conversation. * Elizabeth Rae Coody, associate professor of Religious Studies, Morningside University, Sioux City, Iowa *
Twin Peaks remains ineffable. Over thirty-five years, this fictional town has continued to expand, revealing itself by turns abject and transcendent, comforting and horrifying. This volume, strange and wonderful in its own right, offers a most welcome academic companion. The woods of Twin Peaks are alive with demons, dreams, and matters of the spirit. So too is this book, as its authors encounter mystery, and step into it. * Rosie Grey, writer and host of Diane: A Podcast about Twin Peaks *
Over three decades have passed since David Lynch and Mark Frost asked audiences the question, “Who killed Laura Palmer?” A feature film, several tie-in novels, and third season have not satiated the popular or scholarly interest in Twin Peaks. The volume you are holding, published the same year as Lynch’s passing, exhibits insights from many talented academics. Mining the mythos for themes ranging from Jungian psychology, Transcendental Meditation, Demonology, Christology, Time and Apocalypticism, to name a few, I can draw only the following conclusion: that editors Dunne and Song have offered up the most definitive scholarly work on Twin Peaks to date. * Mario Baghos, Senior Lecturer in Theology, The University of Notre Dame Australia *
The collection is an effective interdisciplinary introduction to religious and theological meaning and experience in Twin Peaks, shining a light into the depths of one of television’s most complex imaginaries. Chapters examine how the show’s surreal imagery, uncanny characters, and cosmic mysteries engage with Christianity, Buddhism, classical mythology, transcendental meditation, and indigenous spiritualties. From biblical intertextuality, questions of time, and human agency, to the nature of good and evil and apocalyptic revelation, the book is a tapestry of styles and approaches to Twin Peaks in its various media manifestations. * Joel Hawkes, University of Victoria *