[Royce]

Yeah, I guess I should watch it again, since that accent is pretty thick:)

[Callan S.]

Have to admire that it keeps to genre/keeps to things the heart cares about, in how the murderer really matters when people mention the story. I can't write about murders myself - I'm kinda blocked from it somewhat like robocop is blocked from shooting OCP employees - just a rule in the way.

Not only are the characters so deep, even their interactions just layer on each other, episode after episode.  The contrast of Cohle's nihilistic honesty against Hart's self-delusion and hypocrisy is fantastic.

Is there a theme in these types of stories that characters are named in relatively transparent ways - Cold and Heart? May as well have characters name that are a variant on Callous and Academic! Still, it keeps to the roots of Aesopic fables, which is good.

[Francis Buck]

I actually interpreted Cohle as Coal. So Coal and Heart. I have no clue what the intention is. I don't necessarily think there's an intention behind it at all, other than what might be called an artistic flourish? Who knows.

[Callan S.]

Oh, coal - like getting a lump of coal for christmas? Yeah, that probably on the money!

I'd suspect, as I alluded to with the Aesop reference, it goes down to the roots of our storytelling.

[sciborg2]

Is the area they live in supposed to be Carcosa, or is the idea that the Lovecraftian forces -or at least themes- are seeping into the world as it marches forward technologically?

Not sure what's going on with Hart's kids if there's not an implied supernatural explanation. Maybe a huge number of people in the area are part of the cult?

[Madness]

Finally watched it. Amazing.

I'm not really sure what more to say. Four more episodes. EP4 starts "Act II."

[Madness]

Interesting article from io9.

The One Literary Reference You Must Know to Appreciate ​True Detective

[Wic]

That is very interesting.  Lends credence to the idea the Cohle actually is responsible for the most recent murder, when you think about all the protagonists in Lovecraft stories that end up seeing the truth/horror they were trying to track down, losing their minds and then becoming complicit.  Alan Moore has a two-shot comic Cthulhu mythos-style called The Courtyard that, if Cohle's the new killer, somewhat parallels True Detective.

I do hope they don't introduce supernatural features to TD though.  Unless they do it really well.

[Madness]

I have thoughts about this connection but:

Gutenberg: The King in Yellow

[Royce]

Also free on kindle, if that is your drug of choice.

[Srancy]

The only issue I had with the scene were the throwaway thugs that were like B movie henchmen

[Francis Buck]

The only issue I had with the scene were the throwaway thugs that were like B movie henchmen

Yeah, Cohle definitely turned into a little bit of a super-hero there, but the overall effect of the scene was spectacular enough that I forgave it.

So excited for tonight. The creator/writer said that episode five is his personal favorite.

[Triskele]

Does anyone have any idea if Bakker had heard of The King in Yellow?


Very nice parallel to the Inverse Fire. 


I do find the concept of a play that drives people insane kind of awesomely macabre and creepy. 


Tonight's episode was great, but I don't think any of them have been anything short of that.  I do want to know who the Yellow King actually is, and I suspect we will. 

I wonder what was up with LeDoux's comment about how "it's time" or "it's happening."  I forget how he put it.  This was right before he started getting into the time stuff, but it sounded almost like he believed in a prophecy.  Made me wonder if it's anything to do with his cult, but it could have just fit in with his whole belief about how everything that happens has happened before.

[Madness]

That is very interesting.  Lends credence to the idea the Cohle actually is responsible for the most recent murder, when you think about all the protagonists in Lovecraft stories that end up seeing the truth/horror they were trying to track down, losing their minds and then becoming complicit.  Alan Moore has a two-shot comic Cthulhu mythos-style called The Courtyard that, if Cohle's the new killer, somewhat parallels True Detective.

I do hope they don't introduce supernatural features to TD though.  Unless they do it really well.

I wonder what your thoughts are after the EP5. Will probably watch it tonight. +1 the bold and the "do it really well."

Does anyone have any idea if Bakker had heard of The King in Yellow?

As far as I understood it, Bakker was literature major who made the jump to philosophy (literature studies often include most of the philosophic texts but they aren't constrained to those in their studies - a couple friends and I often debate the history, philosophy, literature relation and their intimate intertwining). Possible, Trisk.

I do find the concept of a play that drives people insane kind of awesomely macabre and creepy. 

Yeah, I really enjoy the thoughts that they are going Lovecraft with it.

Tonight's episode was great, but I don't think any of them have been anything short of that.  I do want to know who the Yellow King actually is, and I suspect we will. 

I wonder what was up with LeDoux's comment about how "it's time" or "it's happening."  I forget how he put it.  This was right before he started getting into the time stuff, but it sounded almost like he believed in a prophecy.  Made me wonder if it's anything to do with his cult, but it could have just fit in with his whole belief about how everything that happens has happened before.

Must not respond until I see episode .

The only issue I had with the scene were the throwaway thugs that were like B movie henchmen

Yeah, Cohle definitely turned into a little bit of a super-hero there, but the overall effect of the scene was spectacular enough that I forgave it.

I was actually giving this a lot of thought watching E4. I'm actually probably going to do some reading about it. Because it is a marvel that an "undercover officer" can tolerate all that neural debauchery and still maintain, what I'll call until I learn otherwise, the 'undercover neural network,' which basically allows for that clarity of thought that enables Cohle to grab Ginger and navigate the fucking warzone at the end to get to Hart's car, despite being high as a kite and all the neural affectations that entails.

I actually found another interesting article last night... oh, gall... I shouldn't have even looked for it. Found out some spoilers for last night's EP .

So excited for tonight. The creator/writer said that episode five is his personal favorite.

Given what I just read, I am even more curious now.

[Wic]

I wonder what your thoughts are after the EP5. Will probably watch it tonight. +1 the bold and the "do it really well."

I no longer suspect Cohle has switched sides even a little bit.  He's playing a longer con.  I also think it's getting much closer to Lovecraftian.  This is a quote from the writer about Cohle's monologue in this episode, doesn't reveal much, but I'll hide it anyway:

(click to show/hide)

"Is he a man railing against an uncaring god? Or is he a character in a TV show railing against his audience? Aren't we the creatures of that higher dimension? The creatures who can see the totality of his world? After all, we get to see all eight episodes of his life. On a flat screen. And we can watch him live that same life over and over again, the exact same way.

That, along with the King in Yellow being a fictional play within a collection of fictional stories...Jesus.

Every episode makes me say 'this was the best episode', but...this was totally the best episode.

I wonder what was up with LeDoux's comment about how "it's time" or "it's happening."  I forget how he put it.  This was right before he started getting into the time stuff, but it sounded almost like he believed in a prophecy.  Made me wonder if it's anything to do with his cult, but it could have just fit in with his whole belief about how everything that happens has happened before.

I think it might give the appearance of something prophetic, but will be revealed (or implied) that everything was very mundane - the powers that be recognized that he was going to find Ledoux, he was made to be a sacrifice ('don't worry, my son, you'll come back around...'), everyone deeply involved is utterly devout, totally manipulated.  'It's time' possibly means he knew that if the detectives found him, the cult is going to take off the gloves and go after them savagely.  Maybe they even do try to turn Cohle, thinking a man with nothing left is an easy mark for a cult, but I can't imagine what they do with Marty's family to break him.