And so it begins. HBO’s brand new television series True Detective kicked off last night, which exclusively stars Woody Harrelson and Matthew McConaughey in leading roles, while taking place in New Orleans, Louisiana. The show starts with officers Martin Hart (Harrelson) and Rust Cohle (McConaughey) being interviewed separately, 17 years after their investigation of Dora Kelly Lange, an ex-prostitute who was found in somewhat of a ritualistic murder in 1995. Their experience is asked for due to a similar situation occurring in 2012 at the present time of the interview. Throughout the episode, viewers are given an insight into not only the story, but the relationship between both characters.
Hart appears to be the more grounded of the two, whereas Cohle has a mischievous sense about him, who often ponders the meaning of life and reveals odd reflections. Cohle may be more of the silent type, but when given the chance to speak his mind, there’s no stopping him. They call him the taxman, because of the fact he carries a large ledger, in comparison to other workers carrying a small notepad. The closest we see both detectives is when Hart invites Cohle to have dinner with family, but due to Cohle’s inability to let people into his personal life, Hart doesn’t know that it’s the date of his daughter’s birthday, who happened to pass away and essentially put an end to his marriage. As someone who has trouble with alcohol, Cohle turns up to the meal in a drunken state, leaving Hart to have a quick conversation with him to make sure he is stable enough to meet his family.
The original investigation concerning Lange spins off finding her body with deer antlers and a strange symbol on her skin, who is found to have LSD and crystal meth in her system, along with the finding of an apparent bird trap hanging from a tree. The two then look into past cases that involve the disappearance of a young girl five years prior named Marie Fontenot, along with another situation surrounding a girl being hunted through woodland by a “green-earned spaghetti monster.” Later on in the episode, the two visit the uncle of Marie and find an array of twigs that relate to the bird trap in their prime investigation.
The current police force recognize the relations and predict that the same murderer has decided to strike again. But if the person was believed to be caught in 1995, that doesn’t appear possible, much to Cohle’s interest. Himself and Hart haven’t spoken in 10 years since falling out, with the episode ending on a cliffhanger regarding how the investigation will continue.