Say what you will about the second season of True Detective (and the Internet has expressed a wide array of opinions), Nic Pizzolatto and company have proven undeniably adept at delivering some seriously intense white-knuckle finales.
Of course, whether they’re nothing more than cheap shocks used to distract us from the lack of a compelling central storyline is another issue.
Though certainly not as technically impressive as the first season’s mid-season single-shot housing project set piece, the graphic shootout at the end of True Detective Season 2 Episode 4 was wildly thrilling and promises to be a game-changer.
(Then again, we all thought the "death" of Velcoro would take this season in an entirely unexpected direction, and obviously, that hasn’t been the case.)
But before we get to that midday massacre and its long-term repercussions (RIP to W. Earl Brown’s Teague Dixon – a man of few words, and many loaded facial expressions), let’s try to make sense of our weekly dose of esoteric imagery and maddening red herrings.
Velcoro’s green and black aura, Woodrugh’s missing bike/masculinity, Bezzerides’ renewed interest in her messed-up family…What does it all add up to?
On most shows, the bigger picture would be slowly coming into focus with just four episodes left in the season, but if the adventures of Rust and Marty taught us anything last year, it’s that TD will keep us guessing until the end…and it may never deliver the sort of payoff we’d hoped for.
While the big bloodbath and the actual hint of detective work (finally!) that led to it will receive most of the attention, character development (yet again) took center stage last night.
If there was a central theme to "Down Will Come," it was family. And as usual, we were bludgeoned over the head with it.
We opened with another argument over Frank Seymon’s (that name!) fertility.
Then, there was another clash between Ani and her wayward sister. (She claims she’s "walking" after two more months of sex work, so it’s safe to assume she’ll be dead soon.)
And of course, Velcoro gave his dad’s badge to his estranged son in a moment that was telegraphed last week, but has added resonance now that we know Ray’s desire to turn his life around is genuine.
Does all this familial battling and bonding have anything to with our murder victim who was stripped of his organs of generation? Maybe, but again, trying to predict where TD is headed is like betting on a race run by housecats.
We’re treated to another dreary-acoustic-folk-scored meeting between Frank and Ray – scenes that have thus far yielded the season’s most memorable dialogue and arcane SAT words. (Last week, we had "apoplectic," this week it’s "louche.")
Finally, after another meeting with the Chessani family (they sure do love their ganja) and a painfully ironic scene in which Ani reprimanded for sexual harassment, the big guns come out. Literally.
A clue leads our detectives into a firefight that could’ve taken place in the streets of Woodrugh’s old stomping grounds in Fallujah (…or Chicago. Timeliness! Social commentary!), and once again, the show reminds just how much television has changed in the 21st Century.
There was a time when such a scene could only have been pulled off by a massively-budgeted theatrical release. Now, we have a relatively middling HBO drama that’s delivered Michael Bay-style boom and bang twice in as many seasons.
Again, this one wasn’t executed as masterfully as last scene’s 10-minute shoot ’em up, but it also suffered from the the dual disadvantages of not being the first of its kind, and lacking the technical mastery of Cary Fukunaga’s direction.
Some have even suggested that by attempting to pull off a similar scene at the same point in the season, Pizzolatto is taking yet another petty jab at Fukunaga. (See True Detective Season 2 Episode 3 for more behind-the-scenes passive-aggression.)
More importantly, like the birdman mask on Velcoro’s assailant in episode two, the shootout has bolstered theories that there’s some connection between TD’s first and second seasons.
Is it possible that our detectives are unwittingly prying into the same conspiracy investigated by Hart and Cohle?
Possibly, but again this is True Detective we’re talking about. You’d be better off wagering on the results of Superbowl XCIII than trying to guess the outcome of this season.
If nothing else, things just got significantly more interesting on the strength of one seriously harrowing scene.
As always, you can watch True Detective online at TV Fanatic to get caught up in time for what’s sure to be an explosive second half.