For the Adherent of Pop Culture
Adventures of Jack Burton ] Back to the Future ] Battlestar Galactica ] Buckaroo Banzai ] Cliffhangers! ] Earth 2 ] The Expendables ] Firefly/Serenity ] The Fly ] Galaxy Quest ] Indiana Jones ] Jurassic Park ] Land of the Lost ] Lost in Space ] The Matrix ] The Mummy/The Scorpion King ] The Prisoner ] Sapphire & Steel ] Snake Plissken Chronicles ] Star Trek ] Terminator ] The Thing ] Total Recall ] Tron ] Twin Peaks ] UFO ] V the series ] Valley of the Dinosaurs ] Waterworld ] PopApostle Home ] Links ] Privacy ]


Episode Studies by Clayton Barr

enik1138
-at-popapostle-dot-com
Twin Peaks: Slaves and Masters Twin Peaks
Episode 22: "Slaves and Masters"
TV episode
Written by Harley Peyton & Robert Engels
Directed by Diane Keaton
Original air date: Febr
uary 9, 1991

 

James is framed for murder; Albert fills Cooper in on Windom Earle’s recent activities while Leo becomes Earle’s slave; Eckhardt confronts Josie while Cooper uncovers damning evidence against her; General Lee leads the South to victory.

 

Read the episode script at Glastonberry.net

 

Didja Know?

 

For the titles of the Twin Peaks TV episodes, I have taken the unique approach of using both the episode numbers, which were the only titles given the scripts by series creators David Lynch and Mark Frost, and the translated German titles of the episodes that were assigned when the series aired in that country. Frequent readers of PopApostle know I like the aesthetic of actual episode titles, but I also wanted to honor the simple numbering used by Lynch and Frost, hence the expanded titles presented in these studies.

 

Characters appearing or mentioned in this episode

 

Evelyn Marsh

Malcolm Sloan

Deputy Frank

Bartender at Wallies

James Hurley

Donna Hayward

Ed Hurley

Sheriff Truman

Dale Cooper

Bobby Briggs

Shelly Johnson

Leo Johnson

Albert Rosenfield

Gordon Cole (mentioned only)

Windom Earle

Caroline Earle (mentioned only)

Norma Jennings

Nadine Hurley (née Butler)

Josie Packard

Pete Martell

Catherine Martell (mentioned only)

Jeanie Pombelek (employee of Clean and Save, mentioned only)

Thomas Eckhardt

Jones

Ben Horne

Johnny Horne

Audrey Horne

Jerry Horne

Dr. Jacoby

Jonathan Kumagai

Erik Powell (mentioned only)

Toad 

 

 

 

Notes from the Log Lady intros

 

When cable channel Bravo obtained the rights to air reruns of Twin Peaks in 1993, David Lynch directed all-new introductions to each episode featuring the Log Lady, portrayed by original actress Catherine E. Coulson. These intros also appear as options on the DVD and Blu-ray collections of the series.

 

"A death mask. Is there a reason for a death mask? It is barely a
physical resemblance--in death, the muscles so relaxed, the face so
without the animating spark. A death mask is almost an intrusion
on a beautiful memory. And yet, who could throw away the casting
of a loved one? Who would not want to study it longingly, as the
distant freight train blows its mournful tone?"

 

Didja Notice?

 

This episode opens on Sunday, March 19, 1989.

 

For some reason, Wallies has a tacky, large painting hanging behind the bar and another on a wall, depicting a couple hooking up at what appears to be Wallies itself. These paintings were not there in previous episodes. Also, the wood posts along the bar with people's names carved into them, seen in previous episodes, are gone.

 

An owl clock is seen behind the bar at Wallies at 4:09 on the Blu-ray.

 

When Donna calls Ed to ask for help for her and James at Wallies, a local deputy enters and walks past her, leading her to start a fake conversation on the phone with "Annette". Did Donna just come up with the name on the fly or does she know someone named Annette? Possibly it's a reference to the actress who plays Evelyn Marsh in this and recent episodes, Annette McCarthy. There may be some support to this theory, as the original script as Donna using the name "Janie" instead.

 

At 7:22 on the Blu-ray, notice that Bobby is wearing the same PLS cap that Toad was wearing in Episode 11: "Laura's Secret Diary"!

 

During the interrogation at the sheriff's station, Bobby fidgets with his lighter.

 

At 8:27 on the Blu-ray, notice that the markings on the map of the cities to which Windom Earle has sent articles of Caroline's bridal clothing form a "C", probably standing for "Caroline" since he is sending her clothing items, but could also be "Cooper". Albert tells Cooper and Truman that the map was found taped to the bottom of a table at the power station in Twin Peaks sabotaged by Earle.

map

 

Albert explains to Truman that rigor mortis in a dead body goes from head to toe, but after two days leaves the body from toe to head. Rigor mortis does set in after about two hours, roughly from head to toe. And it does leave the body after about two days, but I've been unable to confirm that it leaves "toe to head".

 

Albert states that Earle placed the body in Truman's office and then "played Zeus" at the power station. Zeus was the mythological father of the Greek Olympian gods and the god of lightning (electricity).

 

The tune being played by Windom Earle on his flute at 10:23 on the Blu-ray is "Questions in a World of Blue" by Julee Cruise, first published as a song on her 1992 album The Voice of Love. The music queues at 26:55 (when Truman reveals the name of the dead transient) are also from that song. The song is also prominent in Fire Walk With Me and appears on the soundtrack album of that film.

 

At 10:46 on the Blu-ray, notice that there are several very large rocks inside Windom Earle's commandeered cabin in the woods. Why?? Did he drag them in there himself? For what reason?

rocks

 

Earle tells Leo how he cleaned his wounds, "removed the proverbial thorn from your paw", and calling him "Leo the lion". Earle is referring to 1) the folktale of the ancient Greek Androcles' "The Shepherd and the Lion", in which a runaway Roman slave removes a painful thorn from the paw of a lion, thus earning the lion's undying friendship, and 2) the constellation Leo (Latin for "lion").

 

Earle tells Leo, that 13th Century samurai in Japan, stripped of their weapons, found that the aged and treated bamboo of their shakuhachi flutes made an excellent cudgel. The samurai were a noble warrior class in Japan from the 7th-19th Centuries. A shakuhachi is a Japanese end-blown flute, traditionally made from bamboo, but sometimes made from other woods or plastic in modern times.

 

Regretting the time they've lost together the past 20 years since high school graduation, Norma tells Ed that she "...tried not to think about it. I just spent more and more time in the diner trying to make the place work because I had nothing else. We were open every day so I wouldn't have another life. No birthdays, no Fourth of July, no Christmas." But Twin Peaks: An Access Guide to the Town states that Norma bakes fruit pies for Eagle Scout Troop #294's annual July 4th pie-eating contest. So, she has to experience certain holidays through the necessity of running her restaurant.

 

Normal tells Ed that she bought him a present last Christmas that she wasn't able to give him, a turquoise and onyx bolo tie. Ed is known for wearing bolo ties in several episodes.

 

At 15:58 on the Blu-ray, notice that a number of stuffed animals are seen in Ed's bedroom, undoubtedly Nadine's. In fact, the entire house seems to be dominated by Nadine's personality, with little-to-no masculine touches from Ed.

 

Nadine tells Ed that she got all the way to the district finals for wrestling in Knife River, only to find the airplane slam is illegal. Knife River likely refers to either Knife River, Montana or Knife River, Minnesota. An "airplane slam" is a move performed in professional (fake) wrestling, which is why it's illegal in amateur (real) wrestling; Nadine also performed some questionable moves in her wrestling tryouts in previous episodes, suggesting she is something of a fan of pro wrestling and assumes she can perform the same maneuvers in her renewed high school life.

 

At 18:00 on the Blu-ray, notice that a live beetle is crawling on the desk at Blue Pine Lodge as Truman and Cooper confront Josie.

 

At 18:44 on the Blu-ray, notice that multiple containers of the same foodstuffs line the shelves of the Blue Pine Lodge in the background as Cooper looks for a pot of fresh coffee. Notice also in this scene that Cooper opens the coffee pot lid and takes a deep sniff of it before poring a cup; he probably wants to ensure there's not another fish in it like last time (Episode 1: "Traces to Nowhere")! Also notice that Cooper takes his handkerchief from his back pocket to use as a pot handler for poring from the hot coffee pot.

 

At 19:11 on the Blu-ray, a tree painting similar (but not exactly the same) to the one in the lobby of the sheriff's station is seen in the kitchen storage room at Blue Pine Lodge.

 

Pete tells Cooper he's just picked up the dry cleaning from the local Clean and Save, where he dealt with an employee there, Jeanie Pombelek, from Budapest. Clean and Save appears to be a fictitious business. Budapest is the capital city of Hungary.

 

Pete remarks that the only words he knows in Hungarian are paprika and goulash. These are both Hungarian words, paprika being a spice (though it originated in the New World), and goulash being a type of soup or stew.

 

At 20:35 on the Blu-ray, notice that a painting of an owl is seen hanging on the wall of the Blue Pine Lodge as Catherine listens in on Josie's phone call.

 

At 20:53 on the Blu-ray, notice that a painting of what appears to be a Playboy bunny is hanging on the wall at the Great Northern as Thomas Eckhardt speaks with Jones.

 

According to the script, the foreign language spoken between Eckhardt and Jones is Afrikaans, the official language of South Africa. The script prints their lines in English, however. Eckhardt is saying "She's become predictable," and Jones says, "I warned you not to trust her." When Jones is arrested in Episode 25:_"On the Wings of Love", she asks to speak to the South African consulate. Is this an indication that she, and maybe Eckhardt as well, are originally from that nation?

 

At 21:04 on the Blu-ray, General Lee (Ben) relates having spoken to Stonewall Jackson about someone fleeing up to Canada and joking about wanting to be "the Duke of Montreal." Thomas "Stonewall" Jackson (1824-1863) was a general for the Confederacy during the U.S. Civil War. Montreal is a city in Quebec, Canada.

 

As Ben laughs at the retelling of Stonewall's joke, he nearly falls off his beast of burden, which appears to be a stuffed mule. Grabbing hold to stay on, he says, "Whoa! Whoa, Traveller!" General Lee's horse during most of the Civil War was named Traveller.

 

At 21:54 on the Blu-ray, notice that Dr. Jacoby's tie is printed as a large fish! He wore the same tie in Episode 1: "Traces to Nowhere".

Dr. Jacoby's fish tie

 

Audrey politely threatens her Uncle Jerry that if he doesn't help bring her father back to sanity, he'll be selling baseboard heaters at the local Cash & Carry. The series was fond of promoting Cash & Carry for some reason! The store chain is mentioned in several episodes.

 

Dr. Jacoby tells Audrey he thinks it's time to implement the Appomattox scenario. This refers to the Battle of Appomattox Court House, where General Lee was outfought by the Union army of General Grant and he surrendered, effectively ending the Confederacy's war to be a separate nation from the U.S.

 

Shelly has her right arm in a sling in this episode, presumably having sprained it during the altercation with Leo in the previous episode, Episode 21: "Double Play".

 

Bobby refers to Leo as "Leostein", an obvious reference to the Frankenstein monster of the classic horror novel and numerous films.

 

When Bobby shows up at the Great Northern for Ben's "therapy" session with the rest of the Great Northern gang, he apologizes for being late, claiming a couple of bikers tried to take his Confederate Army jacket. This seems unlikely! Maybe he's just late because he was at the sheriff's station with Shelly to report on Leo's reawakening and assault against them.

 

Ben tells his assembled listeners that Stonewall is gone now, cut down in a hail of Yankee (Northern) lead. In reality, Jackson was shot accidentally by his own forces.

 

As he did in Episode 21: "Double Play", Ben again sings "Dixie", to Bobby's accompaniment on bugle.

 

At 23:45 on the Blu-ray, notice that there is an owl statuette sitting on the bar at Wallies.

 

At 25:37 on the Blu-ray, notice that the slides of two thread samples from Josie's vicuna coat are literally exactly the same image, just slightly rotated from one another!

 

During his evidence presentation to Cooper, Albert reveals that Jonathan's last name is Kumagai.

 

At 26:37 on the Blu-ray, Truman is using the dart board seen in his office in earlier episodes.

 

This episode reveals that the transient killed by Windom Earle and left in Truman's office was named Erik Powell. Cooper says that "Powell" was Caroline's maiden name.

 

At 27:20 on the Blu-ray, one of the portraits of President Truman in Sheriff Truman's office is sitting atop the file cabinets, propped up against the wall instead of hanging on it as usual.

 

This episode reveals that Pete is a chess master. He claims he owes his skill to José Raúl Capablanca. Capablanca (1888-1942) was a Cuban world chess champion. Presumably, Pete learned from Capablanca through books, because Pete would have only been 8 years old when Capablanca died, according to Pete's birth date of June 28, 1934 as stated in the Twin Peaks collectible card set.

 

Audrey uses the alias of Scarlett McLean during the "Appomattox scenario". Possibly, she picked the name "Scarlett", as well as her attire, for its association with the character of Scarlett O'Hara in the classic 1936 novel and 1939 film Gone with the Wind. She also used a literary alias, that of Hester Prynne from Nathaniel Hawthorne's 1850 novel The Scarlet Letter, in Episode 6: "Realization Time".

 

Jerry plays Scarlett McLean's father, Wilmer McLean, in the scenario. Wilmer McLean was an actual historical figure, in that he was a Virginia grocer on whose property one of the first battles of the Civil War took place (the First Battle of Bull Run in 1861) and where General Lee's surrender (in 1865) took place. It has been said that the Civil War "started in his front yard and ended in his front parlor". As far as I can find, he did not have a daughter named Scarlett.

 

Dr. Jacoby plays General Ulysses S. Grant in the "Appomattox scenario", in which General Lee accepts his surrender. General Grant (1822-1885) was the head general of the Union Army, who, in the real world, accepted General Lee's surrender at Appomattox.

 

Ben (as General Lee) asks Jacoby (as General Grant) if he remembers that they met during the Mexican War. It is true that the two soldiers did meet and fight together on the American side (with lower ranks at the time) during the Mexican–American War of 1846–48.

 

"General Lee" tells "General Grant" that he has no love of war, and even less for politicians. Of course, Grant became the ultimate politician, the President of the United States, in 1869.

 

During the surrender ceremony, Jerry plays the harmonica for a couple brief moments, and plays it fairly well, unlike Bobby's playing of the bugle. Does he play the harmonica as a hobby?

 

When Ben recovers from his delusion about the Civil War, he looks at his assembled family and associates and says, "I had the strangest dream. You were there, and you, and you..." This is similar to Dorothy's statement after awakening back home from her Oz adventure at the end of the film Gone with the Wind.

 

At 32:49 on the Blu-ray, Evelyn sets her drink down on top of a record album cover, but I haven't been able to identify it. As she draws her fingers across the surface of the cover, the camera pans over a portion of another cover with a sexy woman's face on it; at 43:00, we see that this is Kiss of Fire, a 1957 album by Waldo de los Ríos (1934-1977), an Argentine conductor and composer, on the floor next to James' unconscious body. Several other record albums are seen on the floor as well, but this is the only one that has a readable title onscreen.

 

The poem lines that Earle is having Leo write out are from "Love’s Philosophy" by Percy Bysshe Shelley from 1820. They only write a couple of lines here, but the entire second stanza is received by Audrey, Donna, and Shelly in a later episode. Cooper reveals in Episode 26: "Variations on Relations" that he once sent this poem to Caroline Earle:

 

The fountains mingle with the river
And the rivers with the Ocean,
The winds of Heaven mix for ever
With a sweet emotion;
Nothing in the world is single;
All things by a law divine
in one spirit meet and mingle.
Why not I with thine?

See the mountains kiss high Heaven
And the waves clasp one another;
No sister-flower would be forgiven
If it disdained its brother;
And the sunlight clasps the earth
And the moonbeams kiss the sea:
What is all this sweet work worth
If thou kiss not me?

 

At 41:31 on the Blu-ray, after Earle kisses Leo on the cheek, notice that his carefully-applied false mustache is starting to peel away!

 

At 42:34 on the Blu-ray, notice there is a painting in the Marsh mansion that appears to be a portrait of Evelyn.

 

After Evelyn shoots Malcolm, the scene goes into slow-motion and a distorted grunting/laughing sound is heard, similar to that of BOB when he killed Laura in the flashback of Episode 8B: "Answers in Dreams" and when he killed Maddy in Episode 14: "Lonely Souls". Was BOB present for this altercation at the Marsh mansion? Was he feeding on the pain and sorrow there?

 

At 44:20 on the Blu-ray, we see that Cooper keeps a photo of Caroline in his wallet.

 

When Cooper enters his hotel room, he hangs up his jacket. And then he adjusts his black suit which is hanging there next to it. He is probably anticipating the time he can wear it again as a restored agent of the FBI.

 

Earle's recorded message to Cooper at the end of the episode refers to Pittsburgh, where Caroline was killed.

 

Memorable Dialog

 

I'm worried about Coop.wav

fashion suicide.wav

I am partial to that.wav

I turned all my Christmas's into a week full of Mondays.wav

all that time.wav

some advantages to leaving him insane.wav

he was good at two things.wav

pointless and stupid.wav

our sheriff's got a serious problem with his girlfriend.wav

I never beat him.wav

a chess expert.wav

I'd be proud to serve.wav

welcome back.wav

a cat or a dog.wav

how can I place a value on something so precious?.wav

did you expect an apology?.wav

you're good and you're honest.wav

Leo, for Heaven's sake!.wav

pretty words for pretty girls.wav

 

Back to Twin Peaks Episode Studies