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[Dennis]

Life is just time passing while we wait for the next episode of True Detective.

 

[PBY]

I find all the "clue" hunting to be really frustrating. I think it cheapens the show to be honest, focusing mainly on who the killer is reduces the show to something fundamentally boring.

 

[Cornballer]

Content Roundup - Episode 5 - The Secret Fate Of All Life

Reviews:

- Onion A|V Club review
- Sepinwall's review
- NY Mag
- TV.com
- Nola.com
- Rolling Stone review
- The Atlantic on tonight's episode
- Daily Beast review
- Boing Boing
- IndieWire
- Slate.com
- Warming Glow on last night’s episode
​

Videos:

- Inside the Episode #5 - The Yellow King
- Inside the Episode #5
- Promo for next week's episode (please spoiler tag all discussion)
- Sneak peek clip from Sunday's episode (please spoiler tag any discussion)
- Remade intro with cats
- What the Flick? discussing this week's episode of TD on youtube
- Matthew McConaughey on Jimmy Kimmel Live PART 1
- Matthew McConaughey on Jimmy Kimmel Live PART 2
- Matthew McConaughey on Jimmy Kimmel Live PART 3
- Clips from McConaughey’s appearance on Inside the Actor’s Studio
- Full interview with McConaughey on The Queen Latifah show​

Other

who's a bad motherfucker..

And gifs:

- Music listings
- Screencaps
- More posters from Mondo
- Alyssa Rosenberg on the yellow king and Carcosa
- io9 on The King in Yellow
- Onion A|V Club: Beyond True Detective: 17 TV long takes worth your attention (spoilers for a few other shows)
- The King in Yellow is free to purchase on Amazon Kindle, if anyone wants to check it out.
- IndieWire interview: Michelle Monaghan Talks 'True Detective'
- Buzzfeed: A “True Detective” Reading List
- Warming Glow: Your Guide To The Meaning Behind Reggie Ledoux’s Tattoos On ‘True Detective’
- The Atlantic: Before True Detective: The Short Stories of Nic Pizzolatto
- NY Mag: Watch This Supercut of Matthew McConaughey Being a Downer on True Detective
- Grantland's True Detective Precap full of all sorts of craziness, comic book references, music listings, and anagrams
- ABQ Journal: Michael Potts finds his groove with ‘True Detective’​

 

[Solo]

Life is just time passing while we wait for the next episode of True Detective.

Your life is a flat sphere, Dennis.

 

[undu]

It's a top 10 bestseller on Amazon.

There's also a free Kindle edition here: http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00847UYWA/?tag=neogaf0e-20

Doesn't appear to be free to me.

Here's a free edition in gutemberg: http://gutenberg.org/ebooks/8492

 

[Suburban_Nooblet]

I have always been into movies/tv and have never ever found myself so obsessed with one before.

Researching and reading about the show everyday.

 

[Freakk5v2]

Life is just time passing while we wait for the next episode of True Detective.

I feel ya

 

[verbum]

The discussions going on about this show remind me of the discussions that were going on about "Lost" back in the day.

 

[Chuckie]

The discussions going on about this show remind me of the discussions that were going on about "Lost" back in the day.

Let us pray that it won't end like Lost

 

[Imm0rt4l]

Everytime I rewatch last episode the scene in marty's house strikes me as odd. When martie bitchslaps Audrey who then hits masie, Maggie says stay in your room, this doesn't concern you. I'm not sure that Audrey's behavior is a red herring but maybe the the failure being inattention is twofold.

The discussions going on about this show remind me of the discussions that were going on about "Lost" back in the day.

Lost is trash though

 

[Chuckie]

Everytime I rewatch last episode the scene in marty's house strikes me as odd. When martie bitchslaps Audrey who then hits masie, Maggie says stay in your room, this doesn't concern you. I'm not sure that Audrey's behavior is a red herring but maybe the the failure being inattention is twofold.

Could very well be. I was feeling sorry for Masie.

 

[Deleted member 22576]

Lost is trash though

Lost at it's very best is definitely better than True Detective. I don't think anything in lost was ever shot as well as true detective though, that show is not as filmic.

 

[Imm0rt4l]

Lost at it's very best is definitely better than True Detective. I don't think anything in lost was ever shot as well as true detective though, that show is not as filmic.

I disagree that it was ever better. Even at its best Lost is just stringing you along with hope of a satisfying answer to all the dumb shit happening on the island. True detective is more of a character study and a detective story that turns certain conventions on its head. IMO lost is really shallow in comparison.

 

[Deleted member 22576]

Now what do we do?!

 

[Cornballer]

Now what do we do?!

Discuss True Detective and complain about the fact that there isn't a new episode until tomorrow.

 

[Imm0rt4l]

I think its cool that mcconaughey is watching the episodes as they air and on repeat just like any of us. I know a lot of actors don't bother watching shows they're in.


I remember when Idris Elba said he hasn't watched a single episode of the wire, I was like "why?"

 

[talisayNon]

Yup, this has been me all week. Doesn't help that I'm talking an American Television Drama class either.

fuck same here.

 

[HeisenbergLannister]

After seeing all the praise for this, I finally started watching. Got through four episodes, and was like "decent, but I don't see the big deal". Just watched the fifth episode, and...

I'm on board! Can't wait for the next episode.

 

[Anton Sugar]

Lost at it's very best is definitely better than True Detective. I don't think anything in lost was ever shot as well as true detective though, that show is not as filmic.

I wouldn't agree that LOST is trash, but I don't know if I'd say it was better than what we've seen of True Detective. Probably way too early to say either way, but few characters on LOST were explored and acted out as well as Marty/Rust, IMO. LOST got away with some horrible writing because of the interesting premise/mystery, melodrama that was (at times) amazing, and Giacchino's score.

 

[RustyNails]

I think its cool that mcconaughey is watching the episodes as they air and on repeat just like any of us. I know a lot of actors don't bother watching shows they're in.


I remember when Idris Elba said he hasn't watched a single episode of the wire, I was like "why?"

Same thing with Johnny Depp. I think he said that he never watched any of his movies.

 

[Kadayi]

Discuss True Detective and complain about the fact that there isn't a new episode until tomorrow.

Replace Wii with True Detective episode 6

I remember when Idris Elba said he hasn't watched a single episode of the wire, I was like "why?"

Some actors are quite self conscious and don't enjoy watching themselves on screen.

I'm quite impressed the MM has been watching the show himself.

 

[wenis]

Replace Wii with True Detective episode 6

quick and dirty

 

[Kraftwerk]

quick and dirty

Amazing.

Spoiler

 

[Kadayi]

quick and dirty

Nice...but still Cmon already....

 

[Deleted member 22576]

I think it'd be cool and fun if videostores had television viewing parties.

When I was a kid the videostore was a huge destination, they had this big sort of pen in the middle of the store with bean bags for all the kids to hang out.. and the walls of that pen were all the shelves that held the videogames. They had a tv in a corner too. It was the best.

 

[aFIGurANT]

I think it'd be cool and fun if videostores had television viewing parties.

When I was a kid the videostore was a huge destination, they had this big sort of pen in the middle of the store with bean bags for all the kids to hang out.. and the walls of that pen were all the shelves that held the videogames. They had a tv in a corner too. It was the best.

Meh not me man. I kind of don't like watching TV with anyone more than my dog. When I got my parents into BB they ended up wanting to watch all of the last season together which was fine but I had to rewatch to feel like I was really able to pick up on everything and have more appreciation for the callbacks and allusions. I'm weird like that.

 

[real_slime]

Meh not me man. I kind of don't like watching TV with anyone more than my dog. When I got my parents into BB they ended up wanting to watch all of the last season together which was fine but I had to rewatch to feel like I was really able to pick up on everything and have more appreciation for the callbacks and allusions. I'm weird like that.

Nah I'm the same. With the exception of someone I'm dating at least semi-seriously, I need to watch things alone at least for the first time. And even with a girlfriend I still prefer to watch alone.

 

[wenis]

people just get in the way of things.

so if time is a flat circle and everything repeats, that means we've seen the entirety of True Detective already which means we already know how it ends.

How does it end?

 

[The Illiterati]

I really hope they don't find the killer, or that it is not anyone hinted or pointed at. That way anyone watching it for that reason alone can just leave for season two. I honestly don't think its about that at all.

 

[SamVimes]

I really hope they don't find the killer, or that it is not anyone hinted or pointed at. That way anyone watching it for that reason alone can just leave for season two. I honestly don't think its about that at all.

While i don't care for the identity of the killer (yet) do you really want people to drop the show because they enjoy it for different reasons?

 

[The Illiterati]

While i don't care for the identity of the killer (yet) do you really want people to drop the show because they enjoy it for different reasons?

I think they are seeing mystery where there is none, and they are bound to be disappointed. The vast majority of these articles are overthinking what is a character study at its base. The backlash WILL be huge if people are not enjoying the show for the right reasons, as far as I'm concerned. But it's too late for that now.

If this were an eight episode version of Zodiac, I'd find it both highly disappointing and hypocritical if most people would hate the show by its end. I think people are setting themselves up for disappointment.

 

[RustyNails]

How are they going to resolve the 2012 murders in 3 episodes? That's what's bugging me. I'm 100% convinced that Rust is researching the case lone wolf style. There's no way they can start and finish the 2012 murders under 3 episodes. There has to be material.

Also, did the 2012 detectives say the murders stopped after Tuttle died?

 

[sammich]

How are they going to resolve the 2012 murders in 3 episodes? That's what's bugging me. I'm 100% convinced that Rust is researching the case lone wolf style. There's no way they can start and finish the 2012 murders under 3 episodes. There has to be material.

Also, did the 2012 detectives say the murders stopped after Tuttle died?

Gah which Tuttle died again? There were 2 of them, the sheriff, and that giant ogre that was on for like 30 seconds in the first episode.

 

[Sickbean]

Gah which Tuttle died again? There were 2 of them, the sheriff, and that giant ogre that was on for like 30 seconds in the first episode.

It was the giant ogre - Rev Billy Tuttle, that died in 2010.

 

[RustyNails]

Gah which Tuttle died again? There were 2 of them, the sheriff, and that giant ogre that was on for like 30 seconds in the first episode.

The Evangelist one.

 

[charlequin]

I think they are seeing mystery where there is none

Dude, I get that the character study is important, that the personal interplay is the core of what the story is about and what makes the show tick, but it's called True Detective. People are seeing a mystery where a mystery actually is.

Discussion of this kind of show is going to focus on the mystery because that's the part that's most amenable to this sort of back-and-forth, obsessive-watching treatment, but the fact that people are enjoying that doesn't mean they're not also enjoying the show on a character level or that the overall success of the show will be judged solely on the resolution of the mystery.

 

[Imm0rt4l]

people just get in the way of things.

so if time is a flat circle and everything repeats, that means we've seen the entirety of True Detective already which means we already know how it ends.

How does it end?

Rust says "this is a world where nothing is solved". Maybe he

Spoiler

suffers the same fate as his fellow priest?

. I'm kinda thinking we'll see what happened to his daughter to enforce that time is a circle. But who knows.

 

[Bam Bam Baklava]

What if they have some kind of live twitter thing or texting where the viewers pick the ending.

What if the case isn't solved at all? Not every mystery has an answer. I can see anything happening at this point.

 

[Sickbean]

So we're all agreed that Rust isn't gonna be the killer? It's important because my wife thinks he sounds like me when he starts soliloquising, and she hopes I'm not the murdering type.

 

[Imm0rt4l]

What if they have some kind of live twitter thing or texting where the viewers pick the ending.

What if the case isn't solved at all? Not every mystery has an answer. I can see anything happening at this point.

I have a feeling it wont be.

 

[Sickbean]

I have a fweling it wont be.

I'll eat my hat if this all gets resolved nicely.

 

[Drazgul]

How are they going to resolve the 2012 murders in 3 episodes? That's what's bugging me. I'm 100% convinced that Rust is researching the case lone wolf style. There's no way they can start and finish the 2012 murders under 3 episodes. There has to be material.

Also, did the 2012 detectives say the murders stopped after Tuttle died?

You're assuming that they get resolved at all. Life usually doesn't wrap into a neat package like season finales do.

 

[Imm0rt4l]

So we're all agreed that Rust isn't gonna be the killer? It's important because my wife thinks he sounds like me when he starts soliloquising, and she hopes I'm not the murdering type.

I dont think so. But he certainly has the qualities of a sociopath. Or at least to those who listen to his nihilistic rambling. His home is void of any belongings aside from books on murders and his ledger full of grizzly crime scene depictions. I can see exactly why the detectives in the present might think he's good for it. We viewers are privy to what hart and cohle say and what they actually do since these arent always one in the same;as we find out in episode 5.

But maybe they are just trying to force a narrative and its there task to do just that which seems to be what Rust was implying. "How'd you manage to keep her out the papers?"

 

[HalfBakedProphet]

How are they going to resolve the 2012 murders in 3 episodes? That's what's bugging me. I'm 100% convinced that Rust is researching the case lone wolf style. There's no way they can start and finish the 2012 murders under 3 episodes. There has to be material.

why? Just under 3 hours worth of material, that's like 2 standard movies. Sheeeeit.

Things are going to pick up a lot, I think. The last episode and a half will be a race to the finish, imo

Lost at it's very best is definitely better than True Detective.

this explains so much

So we're all agreed that Rust isn't gonna be the killer?

zero percent chance. None. Nada. Zilch

 

[Sickbean]

I dont think so. But he certainly has the qualities of a sociopath. Or at least to those who listen to his nihilistic rambling. His home is void of any belongings aside from books on murders and his ledger full of grizzly crime scene depictions. I can see exactly why the detectives in the present might think he's good for it. We viewers are privy to what hart and cohle say and what they actually do since these arent always one in the same;as we find out in episode 5.

But maybe they are just trying to force a narrative and its there task to do just that which seems to be what Rust was implying. "How'd you manage to keep her out the papers?"

Is it likely they are part of the suggested conspiracy involving the task force etc? Worried that Rust has been getting too close to the truth?

 

[Real Hero]

Whatever you think of LOST (I loved it) there's a definitely some similarities to how people are watching this show and LOST, stuff like expecting a spiral in martys house to have direct plot relevance rather than being their just for thematic or tonal reasons is exactly how people read into LOST when they saw stuff like the numbers popping up, then being annoyed when it was never directly explained .

 

[Imm0rt4l]

Is it likely they are part of the suggested conspiracy involving the task force etc? Worried that Rust has been getting too close to the truth?

Your guess is as good as mine. I think its likely that Guy Francis guards are though.

 

[PBY]

What if they have some kind of live twitter thing or texting where the viewers pick the ending.

What if the case isn't solved at all? Not every mystery has an answer. I can see anything happening at this point.

Shiittt I think I'd prefer if the case went unsolved. Not in a killing-esque YOLOCOMEBACKNEXTYEAR fashion, but in a way that resolves the character arcs and provides some thematic conclusion.

 

[charlequin]

I'll eat my hat if this all gets resolved nicely.

I am pretty confident it won't all get "resolved nicely" if "resolved nicely" means "every piece of ambiguity is resolved, the meaning of every event is plumbed to the depths, and the timelines of obscured events are revealed in detail."

I am absolutely certain it will all get "resolved nicely" if "resolved nicely" means "we know which human being committed the 1995 and 2012 murders and some inkling as to why."

The comparisons people are making to Zodiac are kind of facile given that Zodiac very purposely delves into the theme of how sometimes it's impossible to know the truth of what happened. If anything, True Detective is hitting a somewhat opposed, somewhat complementary theme to that: that you can know exactly what happened in some horrible circumstance but that knowledge brings no comfort and fixes nothing.

Shiittt I think I'd prefer if the case went unsolved. Not in a killing-esque YOLOCOMEBACKNEXTYEAR fashion, but in a way that resolves the character arcs and provides some thematic conclusion.

You kind of can't actually resolve Rust's character arc without finding out to some degree who is actually involved in these events, though.

 

[PBY]

I am pretty confident it won't all get "resolved nicely" if "resolved nicely" means "every piece of ambiguity is resolved, the meaning of every event is plumbed to the depths, and the timelines of obscured events are revealed in detail."

I am absolutely certain it will all get "resolved nicely" if "resolved nicely" means "we know which human being committed the 1995 and 2012 murders and some inkling as to why."

The comparisons people are making to Zodiac are kind of facile given that Zodiac very purposely delves into the theme of how sometimes it's impossible to know the truth of what happened. If anything, True Detective is hitting a somewhat opposed, somewhat complementary theme to that: that you can know exactly what happened in some horrible circumstance but that knowledge brings no comfort and fixes nothing.



You kind of can't actually resolve Rust's character arc without finding out to some degree who is actually involved in these events, though.

Yeah, Rust's character is tied closely to the case- like he said, its his programming that made him right for the job. But I think given the way his character has evolved, there could be some event/life change that shifts the emphasis of his character away from the case. He looks even more detached in 2012. Then again we have the photos of him at the crime scenes.

I'm just really dreading a scenario where the ONLY kind resolution we get is the killer. Because a name, a conspiracy, whatever- is gonna leave me cold.

edit: I also keep coming back to his monologue about accepting death/welcoming the darkness. I can kind of see him letting go of the case in the same way if he realizes that prosecuting the killer is futile for something like political reasons.