Subject: Re: Laura or not Laura (was Re: Who Killed Emerald Palmer?)
From: dd@sei.cmu.edu (Dennis Doubleday)
Date: 1990-05-14, 08:13
Newsgroups: alt.tv.twin-peaks

Well, it appears that Madeleine is going to try to help James and
Donna solve the mystery, which wouldn't make sense if "Madeleine" were
really Laura and she had engineered the real Madeleine's death in her
place.  However, how about this theory:

It's already been theorized that the "Day One" entry in the diary
could refer to Laura and Madeleine switching places for kicks.  We
also know that "Laura" was like two different people, on the one hand
doing lots of volunteer work and being very good in general, on the
other hand involved in drug trafficking and prostitution.  Suppose
that *Laura* was actually the good one.  She switched places with
Madeleine on Day One.  Madeleine is wild--she gets involved in all the
shady stuff while pretending to be Laura, stuff which eventually gets
her killed.  Laura (still posing as Madeleine) returns to Twin Peaks
to try to find out what happened to her cousin.

This could fit nicely with much of what we've seen.  Madeleine could
have seduced Leland Palmer, who is now filled with guilt because he
thought he did it with Laura.  The dream Laura said "I feel I know
her" just as "Madeleine" did in the last episode.

In any event, there is no doubt that "Madeleine Ferguson" is a
reference to "Vertigo", since the Kim Novak character was named
Madeleine and the James Stewart character was named Scotty Ferguson.
Also, in the previews for this week we see Madeleine in a blond wig,
being "remade" as Laura, a la "Vertigo".

It could still be a red herring, though.

-- Dennis Doubleday (dd@sei.cmu.edu) _ /| Software Engineering Institute \'o.O' Carnegie Mellon University ACK! PTHFT! =(___)= Pittsburgh, PA 15213 (412)268-5873 U