Dale Cooper - Character Arc

Character Arc

Born on April 19, 1954, Cooper is a graduate of Haverford College. He is also revealed to be something of an introspective personality, due to his profound interest in the mystical, particularly in Tibet and Native American mythology. Much of his work is based on intuition and even dreams; this is in contrast to other fictional detectives who use logic to solve their cases. On joining the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Dale Cooper was based at the Bureau offices in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. It was here Cooper was partnered with the older Windom Earle. At some point, Cooper would be placed under the authority of FBI Chief Gordon Cole, which sometimes meant being handed the mysterious 'Blue Rose' cases. Some time after Cooper joined the Bureau, Earle's wife, Caroline, was a witness to a federal crime. Earle and Cooper were assigned to protect her, and it was around this time that Cooper began an affair with Caroline. However, one night, whilst in Pittsburgh, Cooper let his guard down - and Caroline was murdered by her husband. Cooper's former partner had "lost his mind", and was subsequently sent to a mental institution. Cooper was absolutely devastated by the loss of the woman he would later refer to as the love of his life, and swore to never again get involved with someone who was a part of a case to which he was assigned.

Three years before his arrival in Twin Peaks, Cooper has a dream involving the plight of the Tibetan people, and revealed to him the deductive technique of the Tibetan method. Deeply moved by what he saw in this dream, it is indicated it was this event that formed the basis of his unconventional methods of investigation. Cooper reveals to his boss, Cole, of the portents of a strange dream. While in the meantime Special agent Chester Desmond disappeared while investigating a bizarre murder case. Cooper picks up the case, but is unable to find any evidence which could lead to the discovery of what happened to Desmond or Theresa Banks, the murder victim. Roughly a year later, in 1989, Cooper tells Rosenfield in the Philadelphia offices of how he senses Banks' killer will strike again soon, and that his victim will be a young woman, who has blonde hair, is sexually active, using drugs, and is crying out for help. Rosenfield is quick to dismiss Cooper's notion.

On February 24, 1989, Cooper comes to the town of Twin Peaks to investigate the murder of Laura Palmer. He eventually helps the Twin Peaks Sheriff's Department in investigating other cases as well. While in Twin Peaks, he learns of the mysterious places called the Black Lodge and the White Lodge and the spirits inhabiting them. In the final episode of Twin Peaks, Cooper enters the evil Black Lodge to rescue his love interest, Annie Blackburn. In the Black Lodge, he encounters his evil doppelganger, who eventually leaves the Black Lodge while Cooper remains there, his ultimate fate unknown.

The feature film Twin Peaks: Fire Walk with Me subtly expands on the events of Cooper's fate in the series finale, while at the same time functioning as a prequel that details the last week of Laura Palmer's life. At one point while experiencing a strange dream involving the Black Lodge and its residents, in the non-linear realm Laura encounters Cooper at a point after he has become trapped there. Cooper implores her not to take "the ring", a mysterious object that gives its wearer a sort of connection to the Black Lodge. Shortly thereafter, Laura also has a vision of a bloody Annie Blackburn beside her in her bed, who tells her: "My name is Annie. I've been with Laura and Dale. The good Dale is in the Lodge, and he can't leave. Write it in your diary." (While it is unknown if Laura did in fact transcribe this to the diary in her possession at the time, one of Twin Peaks' head writers, Harley Peyton, suggested in a later interview that she did. Reconstructing interviews from those intimately involved in the TV series seems to confirm that a Season Three story arc would have included the finding of Laura's diary entry and a rescue mission, headed by Major Briggs, to retrieve Cooper from the Black Lodge.)

At the film's conclusion, Laura's spirit sits in the Red Room, and is looking up at Cooper whose hand is resting on her shoulder, and is smiling at her. Shortly thereafter, Laura's angel appears and the film ends. Although the film's final image of Laura cast in white indicates that she has ascended to the White Lodge, the meaning behind Cooper's presence alongside her, and indeed, his ultimate fate—if he ever escaped the Black Lodge—is unknown.