True Detective (HBO) Official Thread

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First episode dropped last night. So far, I'm all in.
I will be there as soon as I sort out my life.
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I’m here only on Mondays, Wednesdays & Fridays. That’s why I’m here now.



First episode is ok.

WARNING: "Spoilers" spoilers below
Did anyone catch The Thing reference? Was quite cool as there are obvious parallels.

I liked the episode but didn't love it. The creepyness and dread of it all was great. But I feel it was let down by some of the worst CGI I've seen recently. Most notably the Caribou and the external shots of the ice sttaion. Just awful. It was shot in Iceland - did they not have the budget to just shoot actual buildings and snow etc?

This is what was so great about the first season - Cary Joji Fukunaga just shooting organic shots with massive tension and amazing camerawork. I feel that this season has already been hyped up massively and some critics are saying it's better than season 1. On the evidence of the first episode, that is not going to materialise.

There is however enough to keep me coming back. I like the character of Navarro. And the murder mystery is intriguing.

Guesses - John Hawkes character is baaaaaaaad. He did some murdering.




The Adventure Starts Here!
First episode is ok.

WARNING: "Spoilers" spoilers below
Did anyone catch The Thing reference? Was quite cool as there are obvious parallels.

I liked the episode but didn't love it. The creepyness and dread of it all was great. But I feel it was let down by some of the worst CGI I've seen recently. Most notably the Caribou and the external shots of the ice sttaion. Just awful. It was shot in Iceland - did they not have the budget to just shoot actual buildings and snow etc?

This is what was so great about the first season - Cary Joji Fukunaga just shooting organic shots with massive tension and amazing camerawork. I feel that this season has already been hyped up massively and some critics are saying it's better than season 1. On the evidence of the first episode, that is not going to materialise.

There is however enough to keep me coming back. I like the character of Navarro. And the murder mystery is intriguing.

Guesses - John Hawkes character is baaaaaaaad. He did some murdering.

I purposely did not rewatch any earlier seasons precisely because I just don't think anything is gonna live up to season 1. I enjoy just about anything Foster is in--she has the right intensity and grit for the part she's playing (even if she is a tiny little thing that doesn't physically scare me or anyone the size of Navarro).

So for now I'll let Foster and Hawkes and the creepy constant-night vibe carry me along. If there was a specific reference to The Thing (except for the obvious stuff), I missed it. And yeah, the CGI of the caribou was pretty pathetic, but I'm not going to let that override my enjoyment just yet.

The outside shots of the station did sometimes look a little cheesy, but I wasn't completely sure if they were real or just some sort of scale mockup. Again, I'm gonna let the story override any technical issues like that. If the story continues to grab me, I'll allow a little cheese.



I purposely did not rewatch any earlier seasons precisely because I just don't think anything is gonna live up to season 1. I enjoy just about anything Foster is in--she has the right intensity and grit for the part she's playing (even if she is a tiny little thing that doesn't physically scare me or anyone the size of Navarro).
Did you see Nyad? She stole that movie from Annette Benning.



Watched episode 1 on MAX tonight. Didn't bother with episode 2 even though it was available. Too much going on and too many characters being introduced in a headlong rush to introduce as many plot threads as possible. They couldn't be trying for red herrings this early on. Just like one episode is too soon to be judging an entire series on. I'll keep watching.



That's the critics. Viewers weren't as enamored and gave it a combined 69%. I do love the cast though. Foster is usually reliable and I had no idea Hawkes was in it.



The Bib-iest of Nickels
I recently re-finished the first season of True Detective. I binge-watched it on my day off because my wife had never seen it. It's still terrific and Matthew's performance remains one of my favorites for a miniseries. I have always put off watching Season 2 and 3, but I am thinking it is about time I dive in. I don't expect a whole, whole lot, but I'm trying to keep my expectations in check (I know a lot of people hate the later seasons).



The first episode was at best banal. I also saw no character that was either likeable or remarkable, and events like the sex scene were cringey. Maybe it'll get better.



The first season is still the best, except for the ending which causes the whole thing to fall apart as it fails to tie up several subplots and throws away the buildup of the theme about esotericism.


I lasted two episodes for the second season.


The third season got bogged down after the first episode, but at least the ending of the season's OK.



The first episode was at best banal. I also saw no character that was either likeable or remarkable, and events like the sex scene were cringey. Maybe it'll get better.
Why do you have to like the characters? They live in darkness 24 hours a day, someone acting like a court jester would be ridiculous. You're not supposed to like them and want to take them for coffee.

Plenty of films and tv shows have no likeable characters.



The Adventure Starts Here!
Episode 2. I'm still in for the duration. Sure, they introduced a ton of characters in episode 1, but now I'm seeing a lot of subplots branching out, and they're all interesting enough to keep me watching.

Cautiously optimistic.



Episode 2. I'm still in for the duration. Sure, they introduced a ton of characters in episode 1, but now I'm seeing a lot of subplots branching out, and they're all interesting enough to keep me watching.

Cautiously optimistic.
I have to watch episode 1 again. Every time we turned around another character entered the stage. Six episodes so it’s not too long.



Why do you have to like the characters? They live in darkness 24 hours a day, someone acting like a court jester would be ridiculous. You're not supposed to like them and want to take them for coffee.

Plenty of films and tv shows have no likeable characters.

I don't mean taking them out for coffee but characters you either like or can say a lot about (hence, remarkable) because they're well-written. Examples of the latter include Travis in Taxi Driver, Ratso in Midnight Cowboy, Sonny in Dog Day Afternoon, and Rust and Marty from True Detective.



I don't mean taking them out for coffee but characters you either like or can say a lot about (hence, remarkable) because they're well-written. Examples of the latter include Travis in Taxi Driver, Ratso in Midnight Cowboy, Sonny in Dog Day Afternoon, and Rust and Marty from True Detective.
There's plenty of that in Danvers, Navarro and Prior in my opinion, especially Prior - who seems like he has a very dark side to him.



The Adventure Starts Here!
I have to watch episode 1 again. Every time we turned around another character entered the stage. Six episodes so it’s not too long.
To be fair, by the end of episode one, I realized that...

WARNING: "Spoilers" spoilers below
...pretty much all the characters in the Tsalal Station end up dead anyway, so no need to really differentiate them too much.



I watched the first episode. I'm resisting watching more until all episodes are available. I like watching back to back - a week between kills the continuity for me.



To be fair, by the end of episode one, I realized that...

WARNING: "Spoilers" spoilers below
...pretty much all the characters in the Tsalal Station end up dead anyway, so no need to really differentiate them too much.
That's not quite right is it? At least one of them has very strong connections with the case.