Subject: Re: ``Wait here''revisited:That was no Mountie!!!
From: hans@Software.Mitel.COM (Hans Johnsen)
Date: 1990-12-19, 06:24
Newsgroups: alt.tv.twin-peaks

In article <90351.095817ADMN8647@Ryerson.CA> ADMN8647@Ryerson.CA (Linda Birmingham) writes:

> >That was no Mountie!  RCMP officers do not  wear those silly uniforms
> >when on official duty, only at ceremonial functions or at tourist
> >sites (they wear very stylish brown tunics with black pants :>) ).
> >I was waiting for him to start singing "I'll be seeing you, ooooooo"
> >They would never be refered to as "Mountie whatever his name was".  The
> >RCMP is a paramilitary police force, a sort of combination FBI/CIA.
                                                                ^^^
Slight correction. the role of the CIA in Canada is now taken by the
Canadian Security and Intelligence Service (CSIS). Minor Point.

> >He would have been either inspector or major.  I hope this whole scene
> >was either the writers' sense of humour or a clue that this chap was
> >not a mountie.

> >[justified comments about American TV's ignorance of Canada deleted]

Actually, I have detected a pattern in TP. Lynch seems to like to set
up stereotypes so that he can knock them down. Perhaps this fits into
that category. Perhaps he is (very subtly) poking fun at some Americans'
general ignorance of the world outside of the US. It would seem
unlikely that DL hasn't had some contact with Canada, since many films
are partially or completely shot there.

> >LINDA

Anyway, more on the stereotype theory. Think about some of the
examples. Coop is a stereotypical police officer who turns out to use
very unconventional methods. Albert is a stereotypical intellectual
snob, but this stereotype is blown away with the 'sultan of sentiment'
speech and others. Lucy is the 'typical' dumb weak female receptionist
who turns out to be both strong and intelligent. Nadine is also a
'typical' weak female who is now surprisingly strong :->, and self
confident (she is talking about 'breaking up with' ed). Donna was a
'typical' innocent teenage girl.

Look for these stereotypes to be broken in the future:

Dick: Typical shallow salesman type.

Jean Renaud: Typical 'no redeeming qualities' bad guy.

the mountie: I'm not sure how they'll resolve this one without doing
something obvious like having Jean Renaud say "You stupid americans!
don't you know that mounties don't wear those ridiculous uniforms
anymore?" (Of course in his 'typical' french-Canadian Accent)


btw: The comment about 'the territory'. I took it in its more broad
meaning, like the territory around OEJ's.

Hans