Whatever else you think about the ending (and there are many possibilities... most of which I seem to be feeling all at once), I think what's certain is this was a sincere effort to tell a story about the Twin Peaks world.

What I'm comparing this to is the X-Files reboot. I was only a casual X-Files fan and therefore no authority on whether the reboot was any good. (So I'm sure there's someone out there who vehemently disagrees with me.) But my overwhelming reaction halfway through the first new X-Files episode was that NO ONE's heart was in this. Not the writers, and not the actors. I pictured them all trooping to the bank en masse to cash their checks; that was about it. Had no interest in watching more.

My feeling on Twin Peaks was the opposite. Lynch was all in. Frost was all in. MacLachlan was certainly all in. I can't think of any actor in this series, however small the part, who didn't seem to be all in. I'm processing the finale like everyone else (and I'm not naïve enough to think paychecks have nothing to do with it). But above all I think this was an artist being true to his vision - however cheesy that sounds - and believing in it strongly enough to inspire a lot of other people to come along for the ride.