And I’m finally, finally on board with season 2 of True Detective. It’s an idea that unites the two seasons as a series and hopefully we’ll continue to see more of this. They may be bad men (and women), but they serve as a guardian and protector against people with too much self-interest. What I like most about True Detective is the idea that these detectives are “true” to their investigation of the case, and committed to solving and exposing as much as possible of the truth. It’s revealed in this episode (as many people had guessed) that Semyon gave Velcoro the wrong information on the man who raped his wife thus, Velcoro’s servitude and debt have all been for naught. Whereas Velcoro is someone whose entire life and career has been controlled by a very powerful Semyon. See also 'True Detective' Recap: Is Velcoro Alive or Dead? Ani’s sexual harassment case was only brought to attention because she pissed off the higher-ups in Vinci (and, as she rightly notes, this would have never happened if she was a man). Paul is forced to settle into a career as a detective of insurance fraud because a drugged-up actress had the resources to bury him in court and access his military and police records against him. The three of them have been royally screwed by the likes of people with power. We keep the other men at the door.” That’s what our detectives are: the guardians of people with too much self-interest and power. As Rust Cohle once said, “The world needs bad men. They aren’t noble people - each has their own self-interest - but at least they care (on some level) to fix it. No one cares that there’s a cover-up, that a girl went missing, that a shootout killed dozens of innocent people - except our detectives. True Detective Recap: Could a Bloody Shootout Cost Andi Her Badge? >Īnd nobody cares that these people are causing these wakes of destruction. It’s the people like Frank who see every twist and turn as an opportunity the people like the Attorney General who used the state investigation to launch a bid for governor the people like the mayor of Vinci’s family, who are embedded in a criminal and political enterprise. After a clunky introduction to the seedy world of intersectional bureaucracy and police investigations, True Detective has finally echoed its earlier (and superior) season by connecting it to its earlier one.Īs Semyon notes in this episode, “Other Lives,” people’s biggest motivation is in self-interest, and the characters of True Detective with the most preserved and motivated self-interest are the ones who want power. Five episodes in and I can completely, unironically say I’m invested in the case and most of the characters.

True detective season 1 synopsis