True Detective: The Complete Second Season [Blu-ray]

Brilliant series. I prefer this to Season 1, though both are equally brilliant. It's not really right to compare them. They are very different to one another. The opening theme music is Leonard Cohen's brilliant "Nevermind". The lyrics match what goes on in the series. The aerial shots and general vibe remind of David Lynch's "Lost Highway". And, in an homage to Lynch, the first episode features a car with a dead body being driven onto Mulholland Drive. The theme of it all being a kind of Dream appeared in Series 1 (Rust Cohle). This theme is reprised here in Season 2 when Frank Semyon notices the two rain stains on his ceiling and wonders the same. He muses is his life like papier mâché? Is it about to begin to implode by forces he cannot see? His intuition is correct. In a nice shot the image morphs from the two ceiling stains to the two now eyeless sockets of the corpse in the morgue. And so it all begins... Later, over coffee, he notices the same stains on the table - and hurriedly tries to cover both of them with his cup. There is also the weird Dream of Velcoro where he meets his prophesying father. Some memorable performances here - in particular from Colin Farrell who excels. Rachel McAdams gives a tremendous performance as agent Antigone (Ani) Bezzerides. And what a great character she is! Vince Vaughn and Kelly Reilly also deliver. Taylor Kitsch gives a memorable performance as motorcycle cop turned detective, Paul Woodrugh. And I liked the poker faced "Nails", Frank's loyal bodyguard, who sees much and says little. There is so much going on in this series. Even the "minor" scenes such as where Velcoro and Semyon meet in the bar, as the musician sings "This is my least favourite life", are laden with atmosphere. (The singer's name is Lera Lynn, in case you're interested.) The music keeps on playing and we now see Bezzerides in the casino, drinking heavily and losing at her table. And finally we see Woodrugh, on his bike and dangerously speeding down the highway, as he attempts to deal with his own inner demons. This sequence stamps the four main characters onto our awareness. The plotline is often deep so some episodes are worth watching more than once to get the full story. Hence I would recommend the viewer get the DVD version. An outstanding series. Stylish with a capital S. Six Stars.

Four RELENTLESS Stars. Season 1 of the “True Detective” anthology was a gruesome case in Louisiana starring Woody Harrelson and Matthew McConaughey as the 2 main detectives. Season 2 has a raw, uncompromising, multi-layered plot in California with completely new cast members. It centers around 4 main detectives working a puzzling case. But there is a new second perspective from the criminal point of view, for good measure. And while not 'the darling' of either critics, the network, or some of the fans, nonetheless Pizzolatto creates a very interesting, complex plot that challenges the viewer to ‘pay attention’, featuring an excellent cast that was laying it all on the line throughout the show. In the plot, a missing person sparks a relentless search that sets off tensions in many locations and the search is on by a very conflicted detective quartet with different interests in solving it. I found it mesmerizing, drawing the viewer deeper into the mystery just like the detectives who refuse to stop chasing the shadowy criminals. The first few episodes of this season deliberately build deep characterizations of the conflicted main protagonists and that takes up a lot of valuable time while it lays out the mysteries leading up to the awesome, explosive 4th episode that I watched a number of times, especially the end. From episode 5 to the end, there are many surprises and all of the loose ends are tied up, albeit unconvincingly. Starring Colin Farrell, Rachel McAdams, Vince Vaughn, Taylor Kitsch, Kelly Reilly, David Morse, and many more, but the compelling McAdams steals the show, over and over. Music by T Bone Burnett. Created by Nic Pizzolatto. Violence, Nudity, and Language. Very Definitely Recommended as a binge-worthy series. Four DETERMINED Stars. The good news is that there will be a 3rd installment of "True Detectives".

The first season was really captivating and had interesting characters and a plot that kept you hooked. This season maintains quality acting, cinematography and direction, but lost its way in plot and characters. There's too much going on, the pace is way too slow, and there are more characters dividing focus while none are as interesting as the first season's. It's not a bad story, but it never had a chance to live up to the first. I think it may be better remembered in years time, but as an immediate follow-up to the brilliant first season, it didn't come close to meeting expectations. The blu-ray itself is very high quality with perfect picture and sound and plenty of bonus features to keep you interested beyond the episodes themselves. If you liked this season, don't hesitate to buy this blu-ray version of it. If you're a fan of season 1, be aware that this will probably live up to the quality of that, and you might still enjoy it.

I found the plot easy to follow, especially since I watched the whole season on Blu-ray in a single day. I was spellbound. I'm a great lover of film noir and own every noir that was every released on DVD. True Detective 2 has a true film noir script, more complex, of course, but with the same dark feeling, with people, no matter how hare they may try, rushing desperately toward their inevitable demise. At the very end, when everything is said and done, after several, shocking surprise revelations, an unlikely group of survivors, starts a new life together in Mexico. Beautiful and moving, after an almost unbearably intense and odyssee through the darkness of the human soul.

Before watching this new season of True Detective, all i heard from the internet were complaints. Casting seemed weird next to the dynamic McConaughey/Harrelson dream team, and the show's writer had much less time to prepare his story/scripts than before. That kept my expectations low. So as i watched the second True Detective outing, I was actually shocked by how complex the narrative actually was. Perhaps if it had been scaled down some, others would agree. Performances, direction, music-- all were on point. The story was a little "blink and you'll miss something," but otherwise quite good.

After the critical praise for the first season there was a lot of hype for Season 2 of True Detective. Unfortunately, it seems like the producers could of used some more time to make some editing choices. Story feels rather bloated, overfilled with backstory, that slows down the plot. Of course, coming from HBO, production values are fantastic with a high quality blu-ray set. PQ and AQ are crystal clear. Got an amazing deal on Black Friday so I couldn't resist!

I know many people were disappointed in the second installment to this series. It's a rather good sophomore effort and I think only appealed to people who really can understand the genre that "True Detective" tries to follow. I found that some episodes dragged in parts, but the writing really did fit the atmosphere of this series. I was shocked to see it inside my Best Buy store for $17.99 Blu-Ray, so it made the decision easy to pick it up to go with my season one copy.

Season 2 is a good, but not great season. If not compared to season 1, it's a good show in its own right. Unfortunately because it is season 2, it has to be compared to season 1 and in that right it's a little disappointing. The story is....convoluted. I found it hard to know what was happening all the time. It is always an entertaining show and I found myself liking the characters more as the show went on. Still worth watching, perhaps before season 1.