True Detective

[Eric]

The first episode of season 2 had its moments but I haven't yet seen season 1 so there isn't anything for me to compare it to.


Hard to believe Ray (Colin Farrell) could even stand up after finishing Frank's bottle of Johnnie Walker Blue.

The CHiPs parody was kinda amusing.

Anyone else watching it this season?

[wufwugy]

s2 will probably be good but i can already tell that s3 will be better. s2 will probably involve a lot of stuff they'll later figure out they shouldnt do.

[boost]

Well, that escalated quickly.

[Renton]

true detective, more like TROLL detective!

[Deanglow]

Two episodes in and this may be the worst show I've ever seen and will probably watch all the way through.

[boost]

I'm thoroughly enjoying it :-\

The only thing that is bothering me is the directing. They are clearly trying to ape Fukunaga's style for continuity, but I just don't think they're pulling it off, and many shots feel like they'd fit in somewhere in the CSI franchise.

[Eric]

Holy Shit, Ray!

[wufwugy]

Two episodes in and this may be the worst show I've ever seen and will probably watch all the way through.

yep

I'm thoroughly enjoying it :-\

The only thing that is bothering me is the directing. They are clearly trying to ape Fukunaga's style for continuity, but I just don't think they're pulling it off, and many shots feel like they'd fit in somewhere in the CSI franchise.

the dialogue is awful too. plus i think the bad directing is partly out of low budget. they're not capturing angles and the environment like i feel like they normally would.

[aubreymcfate]

Just watched first episode last night. Floored by how terrible the dialogue is. Colin Farrell's character is like a parody of the raging machismo of Harrelson's character (the latter being rendered much more believably). And I intensely dislike the Rachel McAdams storyline. I don't think it's bad in theory, but it's terribly executed.

I get the sense that a lot of this dialogue would be totally passable in a book, but just doesn't translate well to screen. Good authors get away with bad dialogue all the time, so that's probably what's happening here, given that Pizzolatto is primarily an author.

anyway, I'll keep watching. We're a rubbernecking culture, after all.

[aubreymcfate]

Also interesting: Pizzolatto seems to be doubledowning on the use of female sexuality as a motif. Like last season, there's already a conflict between those who want to protect women from sexual exploitation and those who want to defend women's sexual agency. Aside from the conflict between the two sisters, there was also the way McAdam's character was introduced (some random hook-up surprised by her kinkiness), and all the sexual imagery in Casper's apartment.

I'm curious about what his motives are for that. Hopefully as the plot unfolds it will be cleverly integrated into the overall theme (but I'm afraid it will end up being a dead-end road where a bunch of character have monologues about their grand opinions on the matter and nothing more).

[Eric]

Not enjoying this show as much as Games of Thrones.

[boost]

e03 was downright bad. If this keeps up, I might jump ship before the finale.

[Renton]

I think e03 was the best episode yet, though it's not saying a lot. I think the big suck about this season other than what people keep bringing up (bad dialogue, bad Vince Vaughn), is the setting. It's not that LA isn't interesting or great for noir, it's just been done too many times. Part of the reason season 1 was so good is because the setting was practically the main character. They should have picked another unconventional locale like a rust belt city, maybe Cleveland or Detroit or somewhere.

[Eric]

It's not that LA isn't interesting or great for noir, it's just been done too many times.

Agreed. On a side note, just saw Vince Vaughn in Unfinished Business last night. He's one of my favorite actors.

[Renton]

He's not a bad actor, I just don't think they gave him much to work with in the script dept.

[rong]

I've never thought of vince vaughn as being a big guy. And he's not intimidating enough for the role.

[rong]

That said, the fight scene was pretty cool.

[rong]

Just googled it, he's 6'4, that's big enough.

[Eric]

Walked by him in Vegas once - seemed very tall so the 6'4" description sounds right.

Yeah, that fight scene was cool. The comment about leaving the rings on and the pliers for the grill were highlights.

[Renton]

That henchman was johnny-on-the-spot with the pliers. That scene was pretty ridiculous. I buy a gangster having an impromptu 1 on 1 fist fight to gain respect if this was taking place in Tokyo or Hong Kong, but I'm pretty sure the modern American criminal enterprise doesn't follow that honor code anymore.

[Eric]

Yeah, the on-the-spot pliers weren't realistic but it was entertaining.

[wufwugy]

it's gotta be a parody. who writes this shit?

"you got this roger moore thing, huh. johnny unflappable."

"this web shit. those outfits. you fall in with some bad people."

"do you feel all this manpower is warranted?"
"better safe than something else."

the only reason im watching ep 5 is because the shootout was cool. other than that im looking to jump ship.

[Renton]

The shootout was retarded. I'm not saying its never correct to have that much gratuitous carnage, but a show needs to earn it, and one of the main characters needed to die or be seriously maimed in it.

The show is doing a terrible job of creating intrigue with the murder mystery as well. I have trouble following their leads. It's always some off screen bullshit like "a CI tipped us to this < plot-affecting subsequent scene > ." In contrast, season one gave us a clear, visually compelling thread to follow with the investigations, with excellent one-off scenes like when they interrogated Dora Lange's ex-husband in prison ("talking bout she met a king").

And now that they've upped the ante to a bloodbath in the middle of the street caused by a bunch of methheads (who were apparently erstwhile ISIS militants) who are now dead, who honestly gives a fuck who killed Caspere? I'm not even blaming the actors anymore. Vince Vaughn is probably doing the best he can with this turd. That said I'm potstuck at this point, so I will be finishing it.

[boost]

Wow, this has to be one of the greatest sophomore slumps in television drama history. I think I gave it the benefit of doubt the first few episodes because, despite the ending, season one was near perfect. At this point, the only way I'm going to continue is to hate watch with a little reserved hope that things will turn around.