Federal Bureau of Investigation special agent Dale Cooper (Kyle MacLachlan) has come to the town to investigate, and initial suspicion has fallen upon Palmer's boyfriend Bobby Briggs (Dana Ashbrook) and the man with whom she was cheating on Briggs, James Hurley (James Marshall).
[3] Cooper takes breakfast at the Great Northern Hotel, enjoying a "damn fine cup of coffee" as Audrey Horne (Sherilyn Fenn) introduces herself and begins flirting with him.
Waitress Shelley Johnson (Mädchen Amick) is about to leave for work when her abusive husband Leo (Eric Da Re) demands she do more laundry.
Ed tells Truman that he was drugged the previous night at The Roadhouse, the town's bar; he suspects bartender Jacques Renault (Walter Olkewicz) was responsible.
Meanwhile, Briggs and his friend Mike Nelson (Gary Hershberger) are in a jail cell, discussing money they owe to Leo.
The scene fade cuts into a short clip from the VHS tape of Palmer dancing outdoors, and pauses on a close up of her face.
Dunham felt that the central mystery in the series—the murder of schoolgirl Laura Palmer—was simply a "MacGuffin" to compel what he saw as the real focus, the interaction of the large ensemble cast.
[13] Dunham retained the frequent use of static cameras seen in "Pilot", something he saw as a hallmark of Lynch's directing style;[14] describing the result as "like framed pictures".
[15] He also continued the use of a "warm" reddish tint to the footage, using soft coral filters and carefully selected props and costumes to obtain this coloring.
[16] This tint was considered important enough that Lynch sent a representative to the network to ensure they understood it was deliberate and not a mistake, for fear that they might correct the saturation to be more "realistic" before broadcasting it.
Phipps also felt the sound design in the episode was impressive, commenting positively on the blurred distinction between diegetic and non-diegetic music.
[24] Television Without Pity's Daniel J. Blau felt that the episode showed series composer Angelo Badalamenti to have limited range, repeating several similar musical cues throughout.
He also considered Eric Da Re's performance as Leo Johnson to be unconvincing, finding it difficult to believe that the character was as feared and menacing as was implied.
However, Blau described the introduction of Killer Bob as still seeming powerful and frightening even several years after first being seen, considering it a potent and disturbing scene.