Torsion Bars install???

This is probably a dumb question, does it matter when installing the torsion bars
that the R and L face forward or to the rear of the car?

No, it doesn't matter, as the bar loads in the same rotational direction either way, but convention is that the numbers go to the rear.

For some reason, it seems like if you flip the bar around, it would be twisting
the opposite direction. ?????

Twist something and try it, swap ends and retest. report back what you find.

Easiest to put the marks at the back with the flathead-looking slots aligned with the floor. That's how my old bars came out and my PST bars went in.