"I still put my panties on one leg at a time."
David Duchovny appeared in several episodes of the second season of Twin Peaks in a capacity that launched him into fame and fortune with The X-Files. However, many fans of Duchovny's Mulder character might not recognize him in Twin Peaks.
Duchovny comes to Twin Peaks to investigate allegations that Special Agent Dale Cooper (Kyle MacLachlan) was involved in some kind of drug smuggling operation during his border crossing into Canada to liberate Audrey Horne (Sherilyn Fenn) from One-Eyed Jack's. Agent Bryson is known to Cooper as "a tough but good, no nonsense man" and he feels pretty good about the fact that Bryson has been assigned to the case.
A surprise greets Cooper and Twin Peaks' finest when Agent Bryson arrives. The Dennis Bryson that Cooper once knew now prefers to be known as "Denise." Bryson has taken to wearing women's clothing, make-up and a wig that are fairly effective in turning Duchovny into a passable woman.
The portrayal of crossdressers and transvestites in film and television has often been as freaks and mentally unstable deviants. Denise Bryson is a character that goes against the grain and breaks it. Denise Bryson remains an effective, no nonsense DEA agent who just happens to prefer dressing and acting as a woman rather than a man.
Denise Bryson tells her story to Cooper after he brings himself to ask. She "likes to talk about it" and isn't ashamed of her disposition. There had been an assignment Agent Bryson worked on involving a drug dealer who protected himself by only selling to transvestites. In order to get inside the man's operation, Agent Bryson took to dressing the part and gaining his confidence. Following the case, Dennis Bryson found he was more comfortable and happier dressing as a woman and so adopted the identity of Denise Bryson as part of his regular lifestyle.
Denise Bryson also debunks the myth that all crossdressers are homosexuals. When Audrey Horne comes to Agent Cooper's room to provide him with the pictures that will put an end to the framing of Cooper, she is jealous of the presence of Agent Bryson. Believing Bryson is indeed a woman, she grabs and kisses Cooper on the mouth to assert herself while Denise Bryson looks on. After she leaves, Denise Bryson asks Cooper "How old is that girl?" and insinuates that Audrey is quite attractive and desirable. Cooper makes the mistake of stating that he didn't think Agent Bryson would have any interest in woman given his new predilection for being a woman. Bryson is rather amused by Cooper's deduction that he is now primarily interested in men. This assumption, made by so many, is one Bryson is familiar with and finds amusing.
"I still put my panties on one leg at a time."