Right now, the world is buzzing about the return of Twin Peaks. Will Agent Cooper ever escape the Black Lodge? What’s going on in New York? Will the delicious taste of Georgia Coffee finally lead Ken to his wife Asami?
Wait, what?
No, you didn’t miss a plot twist. Twin Peaks was so popular in Japan that in 1993, a short series of commercials was commissioned featuring a new short story. A Japanese man named Ken comes to Agent Dale Cooper in search of Asami, his missing wife. Cooper and the locals follow a trail of red origami cranes while piecing together obscure clues. Along the way, Cooper sings the praises of Georgia Coffee — “damn fine coffee,” indeed.
Intrepid YouTuber Kaz Vlad has pieced all the spots together for those who want to see for themselves:
Fans of Japan’s special brand of advertising (or of Bill Murray’s Lost in Translation) know that it’s not uncommon for American actors to appear in Japanese commercials. But it’s not often you see a full cast pulled together with original sets and the original director on board. Yes, you read right: David Lynch directed these commercials himself.
Fortunately for Ken and Asami, it only takes four commercials for Agent Cooper to put the clues together. So her time in the Black Lodge is relatively short. A second set of commercials was planned, but response to the first set wasn’t as high as expected, so it was cancelled.
Incidentally, as far as we know, you don’t have to watch these to be prepared for Season 3. We could be wrong. But so far, we haven’t seen any references to origami cranes or canned coffee in the revival. Anything’s possible in the world of Twin Peaks, though, so you might want to catch up just in case!
Featured image: YouTube/Kaz Vlad
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