In week 3, Justin once again posts on a Friday after promising the roundtable would go up by Thursday, Issa López refuses to stoop to Nic Pizzolatto’s level, and we spend some more time with Annie
Before we dive into this week’s episode, let me first remind everyone… there will be spoilers. So let this serve as a SPOILER WARNING and if you’re caught up with the show, we hope you’ll stay, share your theories, and let us know what you think about True Detective: Night Country. We’ll be posting every week with our latest thoughts on what happened and what we think is going to happen. If you’d like to join in next week’s post, you can submit your thoughts to me at [email protected] by 11:59 PM EST Tuesday.
As the Internet dude bros continue to feel emasculated by the strong women at the front of this season’s cast and can’t stop complaining, this week saw series creator Nic Pizzolato join the Reddit crowd by absolving himself of “blame” when it comes to the season 1 connections. Despite this, Issa López refused to snap back when approached for comment – which is no surprise, since she’s been a queen from the moment she hit the scene with Tigers Are Not Afraid.
As far as the actual show goes, it continues to unravel with clues and enthrall in the process. We see more of the Danvers/Navarro relationship and their history, with a cover up incident not unlike what happens in the first season. In their past, we know that Danvers and Navarro reported a suicide that didn’t really happen. As Danvers shares the story, we hear the story she is telling alongside the visuals of what actually happened – though, at this time, we can’t be sure which one of them pulled the trigger and which one did the covering up. On top of this story, we also got to spend some time learning about Annie and get some more clues on what happened to her.
There’s a ton left to unfold and only 3 more episodes to go. The back half of this season is sure to bring a ton of answers, but probably not before raising some more questions.
For this week’s discussion, Sarah and Brooke were unable to join us, but Brad and Brendan share some extremely interesting thoughts on what we’ve seen and where it’s all going…
Brad Milne
The feminine energy continues to abound. This time right from the jump on the episode. Navarro going to arrest a living version of the ghost that haunts her Annie, who was working as a midwife. Navarro in flashback watched Annie deliver a baby, before arresting her for destruction of mine property. The sense of camaraderie is palpable throughout the birth of the baby who nearly dies before it had a chance to live. The love and compassion on the faces of the other women, for the mother as she questions why her baby isn’t crying, before Annie and another aide bring the baby back from the brink to the relief and joy of everyone around.
As it has in the earlier episodes the cold remains a constant companion, as the search for Raymond Clark begins. You can see it on the actors faces the snow swirling around them, even dressed for the elements everyone seems chilled to the bone.
The tied back to season one also become evident yet again. Danvers is telling the younger prior how things came to be so raw between her and Navarro. Describing the case that caused the rift as a murder suicide, which we the audience see was a lie. William Wheeler playing the Reginald Ledoux character in this scenario. We don’t see exactly what happened, but conclusions can be drawn.
It’s nice to see Navarro and Danvers working the case together. The pair along with possibly the younger Prior being the only officers worth their salt around. I like Navarro’s playful relationship with Prior as well calling him freshman. It’s a nice contrast with the relationship Danvers has with Prior, who despite Hank’s insinuation that the relationship is improper their relationship while occasionally antagonistic is purely professional. Season four continues to keep me hooked with the unfolding parallel mysteries of what happened with Annie, as well as what went down with the research crew.
I am in for the long haul on this season, and the only disappointing thing is that it’s only 6 episodes not the usual 8, which I assume is the fault of the guy running things at the former HBO.
(@BradMilne79 on X)
Brendan Foley
The corpsicle investigation continued aplomb this week, but for the me the biggest revelation was the glimpse we get of Navarro and Danvers working together, a partnership that’s only been teased thus far. Both women are so combative in their interactions with every single other person, it seems hard to believe they could have ever had a honeymoon period of steady cooperation, but it equally makes sense that two hard-headed, tough-as-nails ladies like these two could work well ONLY with someone just as prickly.
We now know the partnership came to an end over an incident in which they came across a man having recently killed his girlfriend after a prolonged history of abuse. In telling the story, Danvers asserts that both man and woman were dead when she and Navarro arrived, but the brief flashback makes it clear that the guilty party was very much alive.
So who killed the jackass? The immediate thought goes to the tempestuous Navarro, but my hunch is that we will learn that Danvers pulled the trigger, but only because of some impulsive action that Navarro took. That’s why Danvers is so adamant about keeping Navarro at arm’s length, and it’s why Navarro is deferential towards Danvers in a way she isn’t with any other living soul.
Can’t wait to see how the show continues to unpack this and the rest of its growing list of mysteries.
(@TheTrueBrendanF on X)
From the great “Mrs. Robinson” joke to the horrific screams, this episode may have been the best yet. I have theories… and comments… and more Internet trolls to yell at, so come back next week to hear all of that. Or you can come back to read people with better thoughts and ideas than mine. Either way, we’ll see you back here next week!
