True Detective

:

Season 2
  • Network: HBO
  • Series Premiere Date: Jan 12, 2014
Season #: 4, 3, 2, 1
User Score
6.4

Generally favorable reviews- based on 837 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 479 out of 837
  2. Mixed: 192 out of 837
  3. Negative: 166 out of 837
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  1. NavyBean
    Jul 7, 2015
    3
    Characters are not likable and there are too many of them. Rachel McAdams trying to act tough is laughable. Pizzolatto read too many of his reviews for season 1 and it's all coming undone. Pretentious and slow with characters we've seen before saying things that are neither profound nor interesting. Zzzz.
  2. TravisFinn
    Aug 11, 2015
    0
    I remember seeing the first episode of the season and laughing my ass off at how embarrassingly bad the writing, story and casting seemed already. But I decided to give it time because Season 1 was a masterpiece of southern gothic and noir themes mixing into a great crime drama.

    What a waste of time though. Nic Pizzolatto originally wanted to create Season 1 as a novel but luckily    I remember seeing the first episode of the season and laughing my ass off at how embarrassingly bad the writing, story and casting seemed already. But I decided to give it time because Season 1 was a masterpiece of southern gothic and noir themes mixing into a great crime drama.

    What a waste of time though.

    Nic Pizzolatto originally wanted to create Season 1 as a novel but luckily got the chance to transform it into a TV series because what he wrote was better than some penny novel you might pick up at an airport shop if you're bored. The producers and him knew that story was special. Along the way however, the idea of making it an anthology show also gave it reason to become a TV series instead of a film.

    Needless to say he was pretty arrogant thinking he could strike gold twice. Season 2 feels like the most rushed piece of petty crime crap you can find on public cable. It's like a goddamn Law & Order special with a bigger budget.

    The cast in this season is irredeemable; not only can they not function and work off each other in meaningful and interesting ways, but alone, they almost fail as characters themselves. Colin Farrell, Rachael Adams and Taylor Kitsch play **** up cops and Vince Vaugn plays the dumbest looking and weakest punk-ass gangster I've ever seen. His presence as a 'power-player' in this series is a joke. The character development in this story is so sloppy and unfavorably depressive. What ultimately kills it however as I just said, they do not work off each other. Each is the same as the last, corrupt to the tooth and too sad-sack for anyone to give a **** about them.

    The story is confusing, muddled, and ultimately unsatisfactory. We know off-the-bat that the city is run by corrupt police and officials. So who did the crime? Take a goddamn guess anyone who seriously thought this was going anywhere. No secret societies, no hint of maybe-supernaturals going on, and no references to anything we can research on and discuss. The story is cut and dry, you get whats explained if you follow the mumble-jumble spouted by each character when something needs explaining.

    No mystery.

    For anyone who might disagree for my references to season 1 because it somehow shouldn't have any bearing on why I was hyped for a second season, well you're just stupid. And that argument is stupid.

    The fact of the matter is that I set high precedents for this show because it was so good. That should be expected by everyone. Unfortunately, it is all too clear Mr. Pizzolatto isn't as great as a writer as I thought he is.

    Nothing intrigued me in this show. The days of searching Carcosa on the web and hunting down details of literary and iconic references blind to McConaughey and Harrelson are gone. Instead, a standard police drama was made, and oh boy, its as dry and unpleasant as an old unmarinated steak cooked on an unwahsed grill.

    If THIS is what a true detective does and is what to be expected from now on, than I guess Mr. Pizzolatto should save his manuscript for a season 3 and stick it on the dusty shelf located in the very back of the book store, never to be read or picked for **** HBO of all channels ever again.

    Maybe thats too harsh I guess. I think The CW could take it in perhaps, maybe even TNT if he's lucky.    … Expand
  3. AContext
    Aug 9, 2015
    2
    I stayed until the end; through all 10 mumbling, convoluted, glacier-paced, dark, Twin Peaks stealing, too convenient episodes. Can I get these 10-and-a-half hours of my life back? Sadly, no. This was an intentionally confusing piece of pulp fiction, but without the wink and a nod that says, "Hey, we're really just playin' around here." This was supposed to be serious drama. It wasn't. II stayed until the end; through all 10 mumbling, convoluted, glacier-paced, dark, Twin Peaks stealing, too convenient episodes. Can I get these 10-and-a-half hours of my life back? Sadly, no. This was an intentionally confusing piece of pulp fiction, but without the wink and a nod that says, "Hey, we're really just playin' around here." This was supposed to be serious drama. It wasn't. I almost gave it up after episode 8, the party piece where - in a 40-room mansion - Taylor Kitsch manages to end up outside the very room where the bad guys are discussing their dirty deeds. And the cop arrives just in time to hear the bad guys talk about exactly what's taking place, what the critical information is and who's involved. Puh-leeze, Did Pizzolatto realize in episode 8 that he had too much story yet to tell and only two episodes left in which to accomplish that feat? I was expecting so much more after the McConaughey/Harrelson tour de force....but noooooo!!… Expand
  4. ryanbrad10
    Aug 11, 2015
    3
    What a massive shame. The first season was certainly one of the best shows in dramatic TV history. In season 2, the plot was convoluted, a complete mess; there were too many characters, and most of them were pretty hammy and terribly acted. Scenes with Vince Vaughn and Kelly Reilly were just so cringeworthy, an am-dram interpretation of Bacall and Bogart. However, Colin Farrell redeemedWhat a massive shame. The first season was certainly one of the best shows in dramatic TV history. In season 2, the plot was convoluted, a complete mess; there were too many characters, and most of them were pretty hammy and terribly acted. Scenes with Vince Vaughn and Kelly Reilly were just so cringeworthy, an am-dram interpretation of Bacall and Bogart. However, Colin Farrell redeemed himself with some credible moments.… Expand
  5. Striper
    Jul 28, 2015
    1
    Season 2 so bad that it's hard to define. The plot is jumbled and hard to follow and the acting is pretty bad. Leave it to Hollywood to throw the glamorous but trouble female into the mix.
    It's so bad that I now watch Ray Donovan and record TD for watching when I need help getting to sleep.
  6. EL-Kaza
    Jul 28, 2015
    1
    Of course, it should not be compared with season 1, since they opt to have a totally different style, and we accept and are glad for hat. However, the story is not coherent. It feels like we are going around and did not pass the overture. The dialogue has a lot of dead meat, banal, and not engaging. The acting, except for Ray, is not convincing and cliche. They try to be intellectual andOf course, it should not be compared with season 1, since they opt to have a totally different style, and we accept and are glad for hat. However, the story is not coherent. It feels like we are going around and did not pass the overture. The dialogue has a lot of dead meat, banal, and not engaging. The acting, except for Ray, is not convincing and cliche. They try to be intellectual and engaged but sorry it did not work.… Expand
  7. maxor92
    Aug 6, 2015
    3
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. After hearing that they would use a new cast for the second season, I was sceptical that the second season would live up to the first. Cast seemed and seems decent enough (except for Vince Vaughn), but after 6 episode the plot is not interesting and one doesn't even know what this season is supposed to be about. The characters are all f***** up in some way. I can't wait to write a review anymore.

    Plot: Boring, not catching, all over the place and not interesting. Especially since this show airs every week, every time I tune in to watch the show I really need to think about what happened in the previous episode. Ultimately not a lot happens each episodes in terms of the overall storyline. There are a few scenes that are supposed to add a "shock" value, but they do seem out of place. I enjoy shocking scenes if it elevates the stakes, but these just seem to be randomly placed in an episode to at least deliver some kind of entertainment.

    Characters: Colin Farrell's character is pretty cliche, Rachel McAdam's character is not very convincing, Taylor Kitsch's character actually has a lot of potential (he is pretty badass), but you can't figure out what the character is about. These characters are all ok, but Vince Vaughn's character... From the moment I saw that he was cast in this TV show, I was worried. Vince Vaughn can only act in one way and has a very monotone voice, that ultimately only fits into comedy. Cutting it short - he isn't a very good bad guy. His scenes are painful to watch.    … Expand
  8. Marrr
    Aug 10, 2015
    3
    I thought the acting was fine. The atmosphere was creepy and the corruption was palpable. I even liked the stylish cinematography and the noir-ish dialog. What I did not like is the fact that the plot is nigh incomprehensible. Did you memorize all the names of the characters briefly mentioned but not necessarily shown within an episode? Did you memorize their motivations or whether theirI thought the acting was fine. The atmosphere was creepy and the corruption was palpable. I even liked the stylish cinematography and the noir-ish dialog. What I did not like is the fact that the plot is nigh incomprehensible. Did you memorize all the names of the characters briefly mentioned but not necessarily shown within an episode? Did you memorize their motivations or whether their actions took place 20 years ago or in the present. I hope you did, because if you didn't you won't know what the hell anyone is talking about the next time the show decides to spring an unsuspecting "detective" scene on you from amongst a slew of aimless subplots about the main characters. There are a few good set pieces in the season, most notably, an awesome bloody shootout at the end of one of the episodes, but good god was the finale disappointing. There's not enough here to spend a full seasons time watching.… Expand
  9. Metacritit
    Aug 10, 2015
    0
    The whole season is easy to describe: The visuals are nice and the plot is there, it just doesn't make sense at first, but it promises to make up for it.. just later, you know... be patient, ok? We're mid season? Don't worry about it, the plot will make sense later... and then oh, you're at the last episode, suddenly the plot grabs a gun and shoots itself in the face in front of you.The whole season is easy to describe: The visuals are nice and the plot is there, it just doesn't make sense at first, but it promises to make up for it.. just later, you know... be patient, ok? We're mid season? Don't worry about it, the plot will make sense later... and then oh, you're at the last episode, suddenly the plot grabs a gun and shoots itself in the face in front of you.

    You're sitting there with pieces of its brains all over your shirt and thinking what the hell just happened.

    The second part of the last episode, which was supposed to be the climax and the denouement of the whole story - is something so utterly stupid and unrealistic, so uncharacteristic of the characters it was written for, it felt like Pizzolatto imagined the ending with his morals in mind and then attempted to fit a cube into a round hole. He wrote the ending, he wrote the characters, and the two were incompatible, so suddenly all characters who were smart started acting like idiots, just so Pizzolatto could get them where he wanted them to end up.

    He didn't write an ending for THESE characters, he just wrote AN ending. The sudden "exfoliation" of the plot when Pizzolatto made his characters act unlike themselves, made me suddenly lose all emotional attachment to the series. By the time the credits hit the screen, I was thinking about how the quality of the plot was making me feel and not the plot itself. I was surprised, I never though writing could turn so bad so quickly.    … Expand
  10. Plissken23
    Aug 11, 2015
    1
    Season 1: True Detective, Season 2 : True Disaster.

    8 Episodes which some of them lenght between 1h and 1 hour 20 mins, The whole season is just blah blah blah, long dialogues that lead nowhere, 4 characters that never got well developed in 8 EPISODES, the shooting scenes are just rushed, it seems that the writer just wanted to mess up the show, (lets just write a bunch of random crap    Season 1: True Detective, Season 2 : True Disaster.

    8 Episodes which some of them lenght between 1h and 1 hour 20 mins, The whole season is just blah blah blah, long dialogues that lead nowhere, 4 characters that never got well developed in 8 EPISODES, the shooting scenes are just rushed, it seems that the writer just wanted to mess up the show, (lets just write a bunch of random crap and lets let the episode roll like that, with all due respect for people that defend this season, i would suggest you to watch the first one again without messing any detail, and later watch this one again and compare!!! Season 1 was a true detective show, this crap isn't even about "Detectives" isn't about a "Case" this is just a crap that could be like Training Day... some people give this 10? i give 1! and i'm being generous!!!..    … Expand
  11. Denis_IRL
    Aug 26, 2015
    3
    Way too difficult to follow and a script that just became parody. Who talks like that?? Too many times we were asking the question Who are they talking about? or even What are they talking about? The actors did not match the amazing performances of Season 1.
  12. SirBill
    Feb 3, 2016
    0
    If you enjoyed True Detective Season One, you should cherish that memory and stay away from season two. It has a slow start, seems like it might be going somewhere in the middle but then never does.... the behaviors of the writers seemed to think that they could emulate character growth by the characters behaving inconsistently, the ending is awful leaving many loose ends, unrealisticIf you enjoyed True Detective Season One, you should cherish that memory and stay away from season two. It has a slow start, seems like it might be going somewhere in the middle but then never does.... the behaviors of the writers seemed to think that they could emulate character growth by the characters behaving inconsistently, the ending is awful leaving many loose ends, unrealistic actions and generally all around unsatisfying. Not to mention they make you think there may be some supernatural elements as in S1, but those never come to fruition. This is a waste of good TV time that you could literally fill with ANY other TC show to better effect. In the end I was left wishing I had never watched it.… Expand
  13. asmanraj
    Oct 3, 2015
    0
    After the brilliance of season one, the deadly dullness of season two is just depressing. I sat through all eight episodes and thought doing so was a chore. This season had no redeeming qualities. This is easily the worst show of 2015 that I've seen so far. After this tragedy of a season, I hope there's no season three. A Metascore of 61 is way too generous. I hope this season doesn't getAfter the brilliance of season one, the deadly dullness of season two is just depressing. I sat through all eight episodes and thought doing so was a chore. This season had no redeeming qualities. This is easily the worst show of 2015 that I've seen so far. After this tragedy of a season, I hope there's no season three. A Metascore of 61 is way too generous. I hope this season doesn't get any award nominations, especially when there are brilliant shows that get snubbed every year. When I heard that Vince Vaughn was cast in a dramatic role, I was immediately skeptical, and I was right to be. As Rolling Stone wrote, this season is "True Defective". Avoid.… Expand
  14. ak2381
    Jul 19, 2015
    1
    It pains me to be as generous as to give this a "1".
    What pains me even more is how frustrated I am at myslef for continuing to come back to this piece of garbage every week, in the hopes it will (like many other HBO shows) develop into something worth the inital time spent.
    At this point, I have no one to blame but myself. The acting is just god-awful but in truth, I feel bad for these    It pains me to be as generous as to give this a "1".
    What pains me even more is how frustrated I am at myslef for continuing to come back to this piece of garbage every week, in the hopes it will (like many other HBO shows) develop into something worth the inital time spent.
    At this point, I have no one to blame but myself.
    The acting is just god-awful but in truth, I feel bad for these actors as I can sense them trying their best to work with the drab, pointless, direction-less dialogue that has been given to them.
    That said, i think ironically what bothers me the most about this season is the music. Sounds crazy, but the Composition here is actually brilliant; it did wonders for setting the dark and creepy ambiance that defined the first season. The music once again is brilliant, but theres nothing creepy or dark or remotely intriguing about this story, so it too is useless! The music leads you to believe that something incredible is going to happen and all you end up doing is looking at your watch to find out when the pain will be over.
    I cannot recollect another TV series in history that had a such a huge divergence in quality between the first and second season.
    Please HBO...I cant do it myself as I am apparently a complete slave-like-idiot....take this damn show off the air. I beg of you.    … Expand
  15. avan1976
    Jul 21, 2015
    2
    So disappointing to see such an exciting franchise crippled in its second season. The characters are cliched (all with their own run-of-themill demons, including a gangster grappling with fertility issues), the dialogue stilted (with characters often announcing 'who they are' to the audience, just in case we missed it) and the story line overly complex. I simply did not care enough to trySo disappointing to see such an exciting franchise crippled in its second season. The characters are cliched (all with their own run-of-themill demons, including a gangster grappling with fertility issues), the dialogue stilted (with characters often announcing 'who they are' to the audience, just in case we missed it) and the story line overly complex. I simply did not care enough to try and decode the investigation. Except for Vaughn (who needs to practice his ominous/inner turmoil face at bit more), the actors do an admirable job of injecting at least some life into a cardboard script.… Expand
  16. night4
    Apr 26, 2016
    0
    Terrible story, mumbling actors, unlikeable characters and forced drama sum up this season. It's a shame, too, because season 1 was really compelling, if not exactly earth-shattering.
  17. Beermonger7
    Aug 10, 2015
    3
    True Detective season 2 is a birthday present with nothing in it. The gift wrap looks great and the bow is nice. The card you open first is one of those good quality ones that plays music. Then you open the gift and theres just nothing in there, mabye a pet rock or something extremely lame.

    This show pulled me in with rays violent outburst in the first episode. I felt like I had to keep    True Detective season 2 is a birthday present with nothing in it. The gift wrap looks great and the bow is nice. The card you open first is one of those good quality ones that plays music. Then you open the gift and theres just nothing in there, mabye a pet rock or something extremely lame.

    This show pulled me in with rays violent outburst in the first episode. I felt like I had to keep going. The rest of the show was just a bunch of people talking softly in depressing tones set to depressing music. There was not enough material for each 1 hour segment so there were a lot of shots of freeways and urban landscapes. I still remember the ending of the season finale a couple of characters were walking through a crowd for about 5 minutes to more depressing music.

    The only thing I even cared or liked was Bezzerides at the party. She was very vulnerable being a drugged female cop who did not want to "attend" the party. I liked the whole scene. Honestly I could just watch that one episode and get everything I needed out of the season.

    The finale was just plain predictable, slow, and boring. I expected some major payoff for my time investment but the show sort of changed from crime solving to escape. Two characters manage to shoot out an entire gang. Then one character gets killed by the other gang like he forgot they even existed. The other character, a trained capable cop cant lose a tail?

    Ultimately who give a F about any of the characters or the story? I tried to care about the characters and the story but half way through the season I was on my smart phone for most of the show and I no longer cared.    … Expand
  18. Mazmorrero47
    Aug 9, 2015
    3
    I've been defending this show for the last 8 weeks, but wow! the finale was a huge middle finger towards the audience and made me think I've been wasting my time all along. Nic Pizzolatto is officially the M. Night Shyamalan of television.
  19. MediaCollector
    Jul 11, 2015
    0
    Absolute garbage. I don't understand how a show can go from so good to so bad in just a few months. The acting is wretched and completely unrealistic. I could not force myself to watch passed the first two episode, both of which put me to sleep on the first viewing.
  20. grandier
    Jul 21, 2015
    0
    Unbelievably bad. Extremely boring. Lack of rhythm to the narrative. The plot is weak, simply not catching. We are now halfway and nothing really relevant has happened yet, at least nothing other than what was pretty predictable we would see after the first half of the first episode.
  21. jenwithapen
    Jul 23, 2015
    0
    It's such a disappointment. The dialogue is painful. Farrell is a friggin' champ, offering up grim and, at times, eviscerating drivel on subjects his character knows NOTHING about, like fatherhood, being a good husband, or contributing something of substance to the moral fabric that is Vinci California!

    But at least CF believes he is who is. He _believes_ in his character. Vince    It's such a disappointment. The dialogue is painful. Farrell is a friggin' champ, offering up grim and, at times, eviscerating drivel on subjects his character knows NOTHING about, like fatherhood, being a good husband, or contributing something of substance to the moral fabric that is Vinci California!

    But at least CF believes he is who is. He _believes_ in his character. Vince Vaughn is a TRAINWRECK. Calamityville Horror, holy crap. The man can't deliver a line, and it's UTTERLY clear he doesn't know WHAT to do with his character. It's like he's not even acting. Just floundering though stale and trite diatribes that go nowhere. Sure, they're filled with self-loathing, but besides that... there's just nothing there.

    Vaughn and his "wifey" are in the top five of TV's most boring couples to watch. Their average night revolves around sitting together in various dirty holes, **** about their barrenhood. Oh, there was that scene where they were on the couch... **** about their barrenhood. Ugh. It's unwatchable.

    One of the biggest disappointments in TV history.    … Expand
  22. madskull505
    Aug 10, 2015
    0
    Sucks Big Time. HBO just wanted to cash in the name of the series.
    Flaws in this season:
    1. Simple story stretched to 8 episode 2. Diluted Overcomplicated Unengaged story 3. No psycho killer (bumper) 4. Overcomplicated script 5. Not the top notch cast 6. Very Very Very bad finishing. And no true mystery thus true detective. This is just a cash in series for Matthew McConaughey    Sucks Big Time. HBO just wanted to cash in the name of the series.
    Flaws in this season:
    1. Simple story stretched to 8 episode
    2. Diluted Overcomplicated Unengaged story
    3. No psycho killer (bumper)
    4. Overcomplicated script
    5. Not the top notch cast
    6. Very Very Very bad finishing.

    And no true mystery thus true detective.
    This is just a cash in series for Matthew McConaughey and HBO, very disappointing and has no re-watchable value.    … Expand
  23. escfromit
    Aug 9, 2015
    0
    Finished watching the this second season of the series and it feels like the author had a ghost writer(s) or something. There's an inconsistency with the writing level in season 1 and 2. I'm very disappointed that the network green-lit this and rushed the season in order to fill the slot. One thing that peeved me is that horrid constant with the bar. Druggie guitar player in theFinished watching the this second season of the series and it feels like the author had a ghost writer(s) or something. There's an inconsistency with the writing level in season 1 and 2. I'm very disappointed that the network green-lit this and rushed the season in order to fill the slot. One thing that peeved me is that horrid constant with the bar. Druggie guitar player in the background. Why? The shift in directors was very obvious. There was no continuity in tone. At first I was skeptical of the new cast (Rachel, Collin, Vince, and Taylor) but they once again proved their talent but it couldn't save the writing. I'm on the fence for season 3 if it comes around. I just hope they take their time with it.… Expand
  24. Bertoflyingfox
    Aug 11, 2015
    3
    What a disappointing season. The story didnt entertain, the characters were dull, and the episodes suffered from really bad pacing. It's strange to go from season1 where the characters felt unique, then going to season2 where they all conveniently fit into tropes that were used as cheap plot devices.
    I wont spoil the ending but it all culminated into something a cheap cop-thriller from    What a disappointing season. The story didnt entertain, the characters were dull, and the episodes suffered from really bad pacing. It's strange to go from season1 where the characters felt unique, then going to season2 where they all conveniently fit into tropes that were used as cheap plot devices.
    I wont spoil the ending but it all culminated into something a cheap cop-thriller from the 70's would've covered in much quicker time than 8+ hours.    … Expand
  25. RepentHarlequin
    Aug 10, 2015
    1
    True Detective Season 2 or: Why True Detective Has Always Sucked...

    To understand why True Detective Season 2 was doomed from the onset, first we need to take a little trip down memory lane. The year is 2013, Breaking Bad is ending, a show that came out of nowhere and dethroned HBO as being the only oasis of quality television dramas (see 'The Wire') in a desert of network procedurals    True Detective Season 2 or: Why True Detective Has Always Sucked...

    To understand why True Detective Season 2 was doomed from the onset, first we need to take a little trip down memory lane. The year is 2013, Breaking Bad is ending, a show that came out of nowhere and dethroned HBO as being the only oasis of quality television dramas (see 'The Wire') in a desert of network procedurals and Battlestar Galactica. HBO, seeing an opportunity to steal back its throne enlists Nic Pizzolatto for... reasons; a novelist whose career to this point is already pretty inexplicable, maybe because he'd worked on a couple episodes of The Killing, and getting any AMC talent on the payroll seemed like a good idea to HBO execs. They give Nic a gaunt, physically transformed Matthew McConaughey who is already working on Dallas Buyers Club and is hungry to escape his shirtless dudebro Wooderson reputation and show he has some acting chops. So Nic churns out a fairly pedestrian southern murder mystery with superfluous Woody Harrelson and equally superfluous occult elements and bikers because hey, Sons of Anarchy is a thing. What makes it work? A pile of dialogue and plot elements literally plagiarized from mostly public domain sources. Why Thomas Ligotti didn't outright sue HBO is a question with an answer known only to the reclusive Ligotti, but I digress...

    So True Detective season 1 gets held up entirely by McConaughey's hypnotic melancholy monotone musings on nihilism and existentialism thrown against Woody's palooka corn-pone straight man, musings completely plagiarized I should remind you. From the ratings success of this watery jambalaya a second season is ordered. But wait, Nic can't just write a replica of the first season, or people will soon catch on to his hackneyed writing and thievery from his betters. Initially he was going to go with some kind of exploration on the "occult origins of the US transportation system" featuring "hard women"... Instead he just pulls out all of the LA crime tropes he can find and crams them into one nonsensical pile of over exposition and cheap dramatic tricks with a sprinkle of Lynchian metaphor that is about as subtle as a jackhammer waking you up on a Sunday morning. The network throws him a couple of actors teetering on the brink of the B-list, and HBO viewers tune in expectantly after several months of speculating about how maybe Vince Vaughn won't suck the life out of this mess.

    Now I can explain the plot of Season 2 for you if you have time to sit down with a pen and paper or otherwise provide a white board for me to use ~that's nothing on you~ there are simply too many tangled threads, secondary, tertiary, and yes even quaternary characters to go through that I feel I'd need visual aids to keep it all straight. Once you strip that away though you quickly reveal there is no meaningful plot, just a lot of cliches, unbelievable coincidences, characters endlessly explaining their backstories, and generally lousy pacing being passed off as "character development". This show is Bad Writing 101 and it is so neurotic as to be constantly groan worthy: Oh we're going back to the bar where it's always that same chick with the bruised knees on the mic moaning about how we can't escape our pasts for more exposition? Gee I wonder if after some exposition Taylor Kitsch can act disinterested toward his girlfriend whose only contribution to the show is to service him sexually whilst he stands (yes stands) angrily getting a beej, and then she can harangue him about keeping secrets after. Oh but apparently he loves her so much that he's going to have a kid with her and change his entire life and apparently even his sexual nature for her. If we're lucky, between the tedious exposition, most of which leads absolutely nowhere, we'll be treated to 5 or 10 minutes of Vince Vaughn being a badass... That's the show. Thank god it's over. May it not be renewed for another agonizing season that I am apparently powerless against watching. Good night.    … Expand
  26. leaveit
    Jul 7, 2015
    2
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. "Don't do anything out of hunger - not even eating." "He looks half anaconda, half great white." "By the strident dialogue, I'm going to guess you're drunk." "Not strident, apoplectic." "I'm feeling a little apoplectic myself." "Alright Semyon, you wanna squab?"

    Every character has reproductive issues. Ray sterile. Paul gay. Ani noncommittal. Frank impotent. Jordan Semyon barren. Is there some kind of significance to this or is it just so we can make ordinary HBO scenes more "noir?"

    Ray survives something that should have been impossible to survive. Remember when Rusty needed a lengthy hospital visit to recover from the season finale last year? This should have been about as bad, but no.

    The characters seem to have no motivation whatsoever for being officers of law. Do they not understand that they're just pawns of the cliched mafia? How do they not understand this? Is this supposed to be a plot twist later or something?

    The dialogue is truly horrible. Even with captions on so that I can manage to understand precisely what everyone is saying, it sounds like LiveJournal. There is no balance to it like in the first season. When Rusty went on his noir thing, Hart would tell him to stop being pretentious. Now when someone goes on a Noir thing with dark lighting and face closeups, we cut instantly to a police department office with entirely unemotional dialogue that means nothing, yet is far more important to the plot. When the viewer looks back, they're going to remember looking at Vince Vaughn's face while he gave a dialogue, not the significance of Colin Farrell's character in the investigation. Thus in addition to terrible dialogue, it is terribly edited as well, a double-whammy of tedium.

    The music doesn't fit anymore because this is LA, i.e. the cradle of half of the American entertainment industry practically. At least the more successful noir examples like LA Confidential get this atmosphere right rather than affixing a weird alien soundtrack to a place that we should probably be familiar with in some tryhard-nihilist fashion.

    So far, the season is pretty cringeworthy.    … Expand
  27. jferreir
    Jun 29, 2015
    2
    Season 1 was known for its creative and convincing dialogue with moving performances. Season 2 is so bad it makes me wish True Detective was never created in the first place. The casting is downright terrible -- Ferrell is his predictably cliched 'detective with a moustache', while Vaughn ominously walks around screen trying to look serious as the viewer patiently waits for the punchSeason 1 was known for its creative and convincing dialogue with moving performances. Season 2 is so bad it makes me wish True Detective was never created in the first place. The casting is downright terrible -- Ferrell is his predictably cliched 'detective with a moustache', while Vaughn ominously walks around screen trying to look serious as the viewer patiently waits for the punch line/Owen Wilson. Dialogue isn't nearly as interesting or deep, the characters aren't nearly as developed, and the entire story-line feels like it was thrown together at the last minute to meet some arbitrary deadline. There is literally nothing about this show that makes me want to continue watching it.

    In short, Season 2 is such a flop that it makes Rachel McAdams appear less attractive by extension. Someone deserves to lose their job over this.    … Expand
  28. snagglepuss
    Jun 29, 2015
    2
    Meandering character development of characters that feel fake and phony. Just take the darkness and grumbling from Season 1 and slap it onto season 2 - none of the magic or what made season 1 any good. None of the characters are even that interesting and that's why they doubled up and have given 4 of them now. Rachel McAdams likes rough sex - why is this info I needed when the audienceMeandering character development of characters that feel fake and phony. Just take the darkness and grumbling from Season 1 and slap it onto season 2 - none of the magic or what made season 1 any good. None of the characters are even that interesting and that's why they doubled up and have given 4 of them now. Rachel McAdams likes rough sex - why is this info I needed when the audience first meets her? Vince Vaughn was eaten by rats as a kid. Lame. Day 2 he ran out of food day 3 the light bulb went out day 4 the rats came. Just bad exposition and lame character dev.. Really had high hopes for the show but now after watching episode 2 - I can tell that with 20% of the show now out - I don't know why anyone would want to continue with this really unnecessarily convoluted but not interesting storyline with characters that are all dark/depressing/cynical.… Expand
  29. 15MaxCharacters
    Jul 16, 2015
    2
    Halfway through the season, and I still don't care about any of it. The first season was slightly above mediocre, but this one is way below what I had hoped for. Every episode needs to give you a reason to keep watching, but these don't.

    Laziness is the key word here. It's even set in L.A.!!!! Are the actors and director too lazy to even go somewhere else to shoot? Acting, pacing,    Halfway through the season, and I still don't care about any of it. The first season was slightly above mediocre, but this one is way below what I had hoped for. Every episode needs to give you a reason to keep watching, but these don't.

    Laziness is the key word here. It's even set in L.A.!!!! Are the actors and director too lazy to even go somewhere else to shoot?

    Acting, pacing, and plot are slow and lumbering. I find myself spending more time playing games on my phone than watching when it's on. I really wanted something interesting to watch so I can procrastinate a bit, but I think at this point I might prefer actually scrubbing the grout in my shower to procrastinate from watching this.

    I blame the director—almost any script can be made interesting if you know how to tell a story.    … Expand
  30. Psyche2
    Jul 6, 2015
    1
    The dialogue doesn't ring true because the male characters are speaking Deadwood, Nic Pizzolatto's linguistic invention, more tolerable in fictional speakers from another century. Characters and plot are dull. Nothing like the spellbinding relationship created by the virtuoso acting of Matthew McConaughey and Woody Harrelson. I'm tuning it out.
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Awards & Rankings

4
#4 Most Discussed TV Season of 2015
56
#56 Most Shared TV Season of 2015

Critic Reviews

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Metascore
61

Generally favorable reviews - based on 41 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 20 out of 41
  2. Mixed: 21 out of 41
  3. Negative: 0 out of 41
  1. Wall Street Journal
    Reviewed by: John Anderson
    Jun 23, 2015
    50
    True Deetective is both underwritten and over-plotted.
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  2. The Lincoln Journal Star
    Reviewed by: Jeff Korbelik
    Jun 22, 2015
    75
    It’s difficult to like or root for any of the four, making this one difficult watch. Still, creator and writer Nic Pizzolatto has a knack for storytelling and character development. Especially intriguing is Farrell.
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  3. Kansas City Star
    Reviewed by: Sara Smith
    Jun 22, 2015
    60
    Although it was wise not to try to repeat the double interrogation format of the first season, there are clever nods to those closed-room confessionals, and the show eventually eases into rewarding drive-and-talks between Farrell and McAdams.... What keeps this Detective from being quite as compelling as the first is the lack of early focus.
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