I have mixed feelings about Bobby Briggs, I mean, I love the character and how Dana Ashbrook plays him, it was a great nostalgic moment to watch him in FWWM walking through high school with that music that always goes with him ("The Bookhouse Boys" 0:59 - 1:59) and kissing Laura's photo... His walk and music theme are a landmark symbol of the series, as much as Coop's coffee or Audrey's dances...

What I mean is that I can't decide if I think Bobby is just an asshole, a future Leo or that he has some goodness and positive things in him... I love his scene with his father where the major explains the vision he had of his son and his future, I see love in his eyes in a couple of scenes with his parents and when Shelly is in the hospital... But on the other hand I already hear him saying things like "Bobby's in charge", threating Shelly not much differently that I guess Leo threated her when they met, even lying to her, and being a rebel for the sake of being rebel when it's clear that his father, though strict, is a wonderful person and truly loves him... Not to mention that he hates James for seeing Laura behind his back when he's doing the same thing...

But this is Twin Peaks, where everyone has two sides, and that's how Bobby is, not bad or good, but bad AND good... He hit the nail in the head in Laura's funeral ("We all did!"), showed great vulnerability when he explains to Jacoby things about Laura, and killed Deputy Howard and wanted to kill James... I guess that the point is that he's just a kid, give him more years and let's see if he turns into a Hank or as Briggs put it, lives a life of deep harmony and joy...

Bobby is a complex character which provides a lot to the show; besides, I don't believe he was ever involved in a truly bad subplot..... Opinions?

Bobby Briggs is a very sweet boy.I don't think he's a bad character.He's a little bit naive and rude,but he has a good soul,and truly loved Laura.For me the best scene with Bobby Briggs was when he shouted "You all killed Laura" on her funeral,it was very powerful scene.I like him:)

Beware of BOB

When I call out no one can hear me,when I whisper he thinks the message is for him only..my little voice inside my throat,I always think there must be something that I've done or something I can do...But no one no one comes to help,he says,a little girl like you...

In Laura's Secret Diary, she paints him as a sweet boy that she corrupted. In the diary, he is a slave to her love and she just laughs at him. So, is it possible that over time, even though he loved her, he hated her as well? He wanted to help her but she was just too far gone, and before long he became that way himself?

Gordon, you hit it right on the head when you say that Bobby is good AND bad.., but I think by the end of the series he is slowly prgressing back towards goodness, even f he is kind of an ass to Shelly and starts flirting with Audrey....but once Shelly starts canoodling woth Cole...(one of my favorite scenes)...he is a lot better to her and even proposes to her. My theory about Bobby is that Laura humiliated and degraded him until he turned bad, and after her death he slowly came back to be good.

I think Bobby's fall into badness is a good example of Laura's power and what attracted BOB to her. I mean, look how many people she brought to their knees. Leland, Bobby, James, Ben (for some reason I see Ben as the begging type with a girl like Laura), Jacoby (in the FWWM script he begs her for a kiss), Josie (according to the Secret Diary)...and probably countless unnamed others. Bobby fell under the spell, but was released after Laura "checked out" on him.

I think other than Ben Horne, the character to go through the most transition is Bobby Briggs. More later, just popping up to see what was going on.

"Every day holds a new beginning and every hour holds the promise of an Invitation to Love." 

Albert to Bobby: "Get a life, punk!" 

When the show begins, we kind of don't like him because he was cheating on Laura, but he's forgiven becaue he has Shelly and Laura had James.  We must remember Big Bad Bobcat's a reluctant drug dealer.  He's like, this misguided sweetheart.  Donna calls him a "loser" and "a goon," but we've all got to experience one (or many!) of those before we kiss our princes. One of my favorite Diary moments is when Laura and Bobby are little and he pulls her pigtails on the playground "super hard" and Norma asks if they've set a date for the wedding yet.  It's young love- not the real thing, but irrepressable.

There a point in the show that I don't like him. When he blows off Shelly, saying he can't keep telling his parents he's sleeping over at Mike's, and gets that selfishly ambitious chip on his shoulder, even flirting with Audrey.  Also, in the Diary, he shoots someone in the chest in Low Town after a bad drug deal.  Counting Deputy Cliff in FWWM, his body count is two... Is he more "bad" than "good?" 

I think Bobby has a good heart, but wants to be tough. He is very scared for Leo. But he's very good for his girlfriends. In Laura's Secret Diary she says she doesn't want to let him go, but she has to. He's not one of my favorite characters, and probably never will be, but he has had some great scenes. I was watching the funeral scene you talked about the other day... amazing. His "conversations" with his dad are also great.

I think Bobby is basically a good person, but his experiences with Laura corrupted him a great deal and add to that the horrendous way Leo treats Shelley. So, he could see the drug trade and drug addiction from many different angles and although he was involved for a few reasons (impressing Laura mainly and eventually using his knowledge against Leo after Shelley finds the bloody shirt)somewhere he made a conscious effort not to get so immersed into that world that he would lose himself like Laura lost herself. And later on, when he tries to blackmail Ben Horne (not exactly a nice thing to do)he uses it for positive gain after Ben takes him under his wing and Ben eventually turning to good might have rubbed off on Bobby a little.

favorite Bobby scenes.

1) the scene when he comes home and finds his mother crying and they talk about the Major right before he returns.

2) the scene in the diner when the Major shares his vision with him.

3) The scene in Jacoby's office when he breaks down.

4) His tirade at the funeral (and discussing it with his father in an earlier scene)

5) When Bobby and Audrey discuss what they can do to help bring Ben back from his Civil War fantasy world (Don't worry, baby, Bobby's on the case.")

more later...

"Every day holds a new beginning and every hour holds the promise of an Invitation to Love." 

The dubious thing about Bobby is that he is both a total asshole (yes, TOTAL ASSHOLE! only his so called friend Mike is a bigger moron of all the characters), he is all the same a wonderfully performed character. By that I mean that he is just as he was intended to be (at least that's how I feel).

Now why he is an asshole: most of all, his most favourite words: Shelly, baby, Bobby Briggs is gonna take care of everything... we won't have to worry about Leo anymore... Leo Johnsson is history - obligatory followed by his shitting in his pants at the very sign of Leo approaching. Summing up, he's a boasting jerk who is no more than a coward but knows how to impress his dumb girlfriend. Plus, of course, what Gordon said: ... (leaves lots of saliva on Shelly's mouth and other body parts)... that James Hurley... (more saliva) ... was seing Laura behind my back... (smack) ... I'll fix him... I like that scene of course, it's good and very hotttt as well but hey, what's that supposed to be...?!

Perhaps even worse that being an asshole he is about to become a future Leo. I've just noticed for the first time what he says to Shelly in one of the early episodes: you don't need to know! And this is no coincidence because these are the very words that Leo barked to her when she asked him where he was going...

(btw, can anyone help me out with when Bobby said that exactly.. I can't remember te scene at the moment)

But... there are also scenes which show a good side of Bobby's. Or the hurt one at least. The funeral is very strong and it's perhaps the only moment when he says something really reasonable. They all knew she was in trouble.. That is Bobby's best moment in the series. His dad's vision, and the session with Jacoby are great but it is to some extent due to Major and Doctor. At the funeral Bobby is the chief character.

Bobi 1 Kenobi

B. Beware
O. Of
B. BOB 

He says that, "You don't need to know", when she shows him the bloody shirt (ep. 4?). Later he places it at Jacques home... BTW, he lies to her too in that scene about the drugs, saying Leo and Jacques are selling them at school when he's obviously VERY involved...

The biggest one?  You sure about that? ;)  Who's the runner up, then?

mo·ron    ( P )  Pronunciation Key  (môrn, mr-)
n.

1. A stupid person; a dolt.
2. Psychology. A person of mild mental retardation having a mental age of from 7 to 12 years and generally having communication and social skills enabling some degree of academic or vocational education. The term belongs to a classification system no longer in use and is now considered offensive.
   

He and Shelly were made for eachother.  I mean, could you see Shelly dating sweet, respectable gentlemen like Cooper, or Jack or Andy?  She wants a little harmless deprecation from her men.  It's a perfect match.

biggest what? I couldn't find the word 'biggest' in my post so I'm not sure what you're referring to... :-)

And yes, they might have been made for each other but that doesn't make them much brighter, does it? ;-)

Bobi 1 Kenobi

B. Beware
O. Of
B. BOB 

Sorry, you said only Mike was a bigger moron, so Bobby then fills the number 2 slot.  I stand corrected.   

And yes, Shelly and Bobby are both dumb as rocks. 

Mike has no competition really, does he? :-)

I can perfectly understand someone liking Bobby, he's got his charm even if it is all a lie. Also, he's really well-designed and performed as a character.

Mike...

Bobi 1 Kenobi

B. Beware
O. Of
B. BOB 

But Mike's interst in fossils may lead to a career as an arcaheologist

Bobi 1 Kenobi

B. Beware
O. Of
B. BOB 

Don't worry, Mr. Nelson will have his own thread soon, dedicated to you, I know you can't hardly wait...

Don't be nervous, Donna...