So, I have two things I want to discuss and get feedback from al of you concerning Cooper's dream in the second spisode of season 1.

1- What the Hell is that slightly square shadow that moves slowly along the red curtains. It was put there for some reason but I still can't fugure it out after 16 years.

2- I don't buy the theory that the woman who looks almost exactly like Laura Palmer, and when the LMFAP says "she's my cousin", are referring to Maddie. Here's why. All people (in the Twin peaks universe) have a duplicate, or their evil half in the Black Lodge. So this is Laura's dark side (wearing a black dress) who could be considered the LMFAP's cousin because the evil duplicates in the Black Lodge are related in a way.

It makes perfect sense that the Laura in the dream would be Laura's doppelganger, but to me that doesn't negate the idea that the little man's comment is still a veiled reference to Maddie. Both could absolutely be true.

As for the flying thing, it's anyone's guess. My guess is that it was not put there for a specific reason other than to satisfy some intuition/vision on Lynch's part. It conveys feeling but not necessarily meaning. While it would be great, in a way, to think every single detail like that holds some significance, that can't always be the case.

I think it's important to keep in mind that the first dream sequence was probably not shot with the intention of putting it in a series episode later on. It was part of the European/home-video pilot's ending, which anyone who's seen it knows makes little sense. I think it's great that what was probably just an experiment on Lynch's part turned into such an integral part of the series; but I think the detail of that flying object probably has little, if any, meaning.

it's not supposed to make sense

Of course it´s supposed to make sense! How can you people say that???

The dwarf is giving Cooper clues to help with the investigation, not just doing magic and talking nonsense.

A few of us here, belive that the flying object could be a page of Lauras diary. Telling Cooper to look for Lauras diary.
And I don´t think that the beautiful woman is lauras dopp. Her eyes are clear (unlike the dopps) and she´s acting friendly and teling Cooper who killed her...

Right! I gotta go. Sorry for the short reply...

Ditte

It makes perfect sense that the Laura in the dream would be Laura's doppelganger, but to me that doesn't negate the idea that the little man's comment is still a veiled reference to Maddie. Both could absolutely be true.

As for the flying thing, it's anyone's guess. My guess is that it was not put there for a specific reason other than to satisfy some intuition/vision on Lynch's part. It conveys feeling but not necessarily meaning. While it would be great, in a way, to think every single detail like that holds some significance, that can't always be the case.

I think it's important to keep in mind that the first dream sequence was probably not shot with the intention of putting it in a series episode later on. It was part of the European/home-video pilot's ending, which anyone who's seen it knows makes little sense. I think it's great that what was probably just an experiment on Lynch's part turned into such an integral part of the series; but I think the detail of that flying object probably has little, if any, meaning.

Besides inhabiting people, the spirits like BOB and Mike move in the real world through electricity and owls, there are many theories. The floating shadow seems to me a link to something similar, perhaps a spirit moving around, checking what's happening or whatever.

Its existence seems justified and really part of the thing although no explanation is required, which is often the case in DL's productions.

It makes perfect sense that the Laura in the dream would be Laura's doppelganger, but to me that doesn't negate the idea that the little man's comment is still a veiled reference to Maddie. Both could absolutely be true.

As for the flying thing, it's anyone's guess. My guess is that it was not put there for a specific reason other than to satisfy some intuition/vision on Lynch's part. It conveys feeling but not necessarily meaning. While it would be great, in a way, to think every single detail like that holds some significance, that can't always be the case.

I think it's important to keep in mind that the first dream sequence was probably not shot with the intention of putting it in a series episode later on. It was part of the European/home-video pilot's ending, which anyone who's seen it knows makes little sense. I think it's great that what was probably just an experiment on Lynch's part turned into such an integral part of the series; but I think the detail of that flying object probably has little, if any, meaning.

And since he also says he's the arm...would that make L Mike's cousin? Now I'm confusing myself!

Still I think he's refering to Maddy, since the dream are ment to be a help for Cooper. He also says that she looks like Laura Palmer (almost exactly like) and doesn't Maddy fit that comment!? 
 

As I said before, I think it's important to keep in mind that the first red room scene was shot most likely before Lynch and Frost had figured out what a lot of that imagery would come to mean. Some of it, such as "Laura" touching her nose, obviously points to something understandable. But most of it, I'm guessing, was just Lynch's intuition - him being free and abstract with the imagery - and much of the meaning attached to it wouldn't come until later in the series.

1- What the Hell is that slightly square shadow that moves slowly along the red curtains. It was put there for some reason but I still can't fugure it out after 16 years.

I've always seen the flying object as a shadow of Saturn, it looks like the planet is tilted to the right  (if you tilt your head to the right while watching this scene it look like a circle with a ring around it). The same planet is sitting on the table next to coop, it tends to make sense to me, I've never seen anything else. I'll try an find a screen cap to prove my point.

I hope this has helped but i get the feeling alot of people will see alot of different things, good luck. 

GREAT ideas about Saturn, Novi - I haven't seen that before!

As far as the whole Maddy debate is concerned, I think people are too attached to the idea that if you look hard enough, there is a singular, "truthful"interpretation to the events of TP. I disagree with this - for me, part of the beauty of the show is that much of it is open to interpretation. So, the beautiful girl from Coop's dream could be the MFAP's "cousin", but the references could also be a way of helping Coop in his investigation. Certainly, some of the things said in the dream have an obvious interpretation (eg - "sometimes my arms bend back"). But I think some of that stuff is deliberately ambiguous. And don't forget, when Cooper finally remebers what she whispered in the dream, we discover that she said "my father killed me" - NOT "my uncle killed me". I think the girl in that dream is Laura, 25 years after her death, still trapped in the lodge and trying to help Coop

 Another thing: it appears that nobody can really agree on whether the MFAP is good or evil. Is he the one who enters Coop's mind that night? Is it Laura? Somebody is trying to help Coop - who do you guys think that is?

I agree that it's intentionally ambigious.  I took "she's my cousin" to mean that the lodge dwellers are like a family who are all privy to it's mysteries.  

I always thought the shadow was a bird. "The birds sings a pretty song and there's always music in the air."  It looks like a seagull in flight to me. 

And not long after, Waldo comes into the picture. In the dream Laura put her finger against her nose...isn't that after the shadow passes by?? Possibly meaning that a bird is they key? Could the bird have been an owl? No...too small...hmmm.

http://www.lynchnet.com/tp/tp02.html   here you go.   (it looks like all the shooting scripts are here on glastobury grove, too http://www.glastonberrygrove.net/texts/

It just seems so obvious to me.

Of course it´s supposed to make sense! How can you people say that???

The dwarf is giving Cooper clues to help with the investigation, not just doing magic and talking nonsense.

without going into details, I would like to point out that this was a DREAM and not a REAL MEETING between Cooper and the Dwarf. Little Man was real indeed (and that was a phenomenon of Coop's visions, that he was able to see things which existed but which he had never seen) - yet the scene from Ep.2 was only a dream, not a report of a real meeting these two have experienced.

So IMO it would be more precise to say that more than Dwarf was giving Cooper clues, it was Cooper's subconscious giving him clues with the words and gestures of a cerain Dwarf that Cooper was able to see even though he had never met him.

Perhaps that's why the Dwarf's clues are so abstract and difficult to read (therefore sounding like nonsense). What the Giant later said was much clearer and easier to decipher (not to mention MIKE's words).

I know the script says it a bird flying by. But I've watched it MANY times over and I don't see any resemblance to the shadow of a bird.

I don't buy it. 

Ok, follow me on this one.

The little man says; "I am the arm," implying that he is Mike's arm that he cut off. His arm could represent his next of kin, some sort of asexual reproduction. Mike and Bob were like brothers. Bob inhabits Leland. Laura is Leland's daughter. Therefore in some strange way Bob is Laura's father, Mike is her uncle and the arm is her cousin.

Ta Da!

I just thought of that just now!
Also, I think that it is definitely a reference to Maddy, since everything in Twin Peaks has a twin or cousin, why not accept two explainations.

I always imagined that the thing floating across was a flying sting ray. I don't know why.