For many of us the second season of HBO’s True Detective felt like a bad dream.
The show took a prolonged hiatus, but returned last week with
Mahershala Ali fronting a new southern gothic tale based around the disappearance of two children in Arkansas.
Where the Second Season felt quite disjointed and tonally all over the place, this third run keeps a fairly linear structure across multiple timelines, much the same as the first series as well as keeping with a fairly bleak storyline.
Whether it’s the modern day Wayne Hays, as a widow losing his memory or going back to the 80’s where he looks to solve the case of the missing children, Ali is truly mesmerising in the role.
A good lead requires backup though and Stephen Dorff works surprisingly well as his partner investigating the case. Much the same as Woody Harrelson and Matthew McConaughey, they have differing personalities but have great on-screen chemistry.
The opening two episodes have laid out the basis of the season and with masterful direction from Jeremy Saulnier (Green Room), it feels like writer Nic Pizzolatto has gone back to what works with True Detective and learned from the mistakes of Season 2.
What did you think of the opening of True Detective season 3? Let us know in the comments.
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