On January 15, 2024, after a five-year break, a new season of the anthology "True Detective" started on the Max streaming service. It is plot-wise unrelated to the previous ones, so you can safely start watching right from it.
In this case, the novelty can be considered a separate series altogether. The creator of the first three seasons, Nick Pizzolatto, was not involved in the development of the sequel. The main screenwriter and director of all episodes was Issa Lopez, the author of the crime horror "Tigers are not Afraid." For the first time, the new "True Detective" even has a separate subtitle — "Night Country".
However, judging by the first episode, the fourth season still retains the atmosphere of the original series.
One of the employees of a research station in Alaska has a seizure, and a few days later the entire small team of employees disappears without a trace. Detective Liz Danvers (Jodie Foster) from the neighboring town of Ennis takes over the investigation. Her colleague Evangeline Navarro (Cali Reis, better known as a professional boxer), who was demoted to the posts, really wants to help her. The fact is that a cut-off tongue was found at the station. This may be related to an old case, because of which she lost her position.
The first thing that surprises in the new season of "True Detective" is the mysticism of what is happening. Even the opening scene is more attuned to the mysteries of nature or supernatural events than to a realistic story. Already in the first episode there will be cries of "She's awake", ghosts prompting details of the investigation, and other elements related more to horror than to detectives.
Considering that Lopez has previously combined a crime thriller and the supernatural in the film "Tigers are not Afraid," sometimes there are doubts whether the series will stay within the framework of a classic murder story. Moreover, Lopez does not hide the fact that her approach to work differs from Pizzolatto.
But still, what is happening is probably a hoax. Mystical elements, if they remain in action, will rather act as a reflection of the subconscious of the characters. At least, I want to believe it.
Although there is a possibility that the series will turn into a new version of Fortitude, with which it still has too much in common. Both are dark detective stories about closed, cold towns. But in Fortitude, some explanations have remained far from reality. By the way, Christopher Eccleston, known for the first season of Doctor Who, plays in both series.
On the other hand, this approach adds a new layer of intrigue. The viewer, along with the detectives, will not only have to solve the mysteries, but also try to understand what is really happening from what is shown, and what is the mind games of individual characters.
During the development of the series, Issa Lopez was inspired by These 2 Real Events Inspired True Detective: Night Country two real cases: the story of the ship "Maria Celeste", which was found completely empty in 1972, and the mystery of the "Dyatlov Pass", when a group of tourists were found dead in the mountains. Both of these incidents are still being discussed, coming up with realistic and not very good explanations.
But, in addition, the first episode of "Night Country" is literally packed with a lot of interesting details and references. Even the epigraph to the episode sounds like that for a reason. The phrase is signed with the name of Hildred Kastein, a character in Robert Chambers' book The King in Yellow. Those who watched the first season of "True Detective" probably remember the references to this work.
What is even more interesting is that the quote is not actually from the book, it was invented by Lopez herself. So this is not a coincidence, but an obvious Easter egg. As well as the appearance of Lone Star beer in the frame, which was so loved by the hero Matthew McConaughey.
Then interesting details come up literally one by one. Among the discs at the Tsalal station, for example, you can notice the film "Something" by John Carpenter — in this picture, the inhabitants of the station in Antarctica are attacked by an alien monster. One of the missing was reading Cormac McCarthy's "Bloody Meridian," a book about the murders of Native Americans.
And the name "Tsalal" itself is taken either from the "Tale of the Adventures of Arthur Gordon Pym" by Edgar Allan Poe, or from his sequel "The Ice Sphinx" by Jules Verne — rather the latter, since they also told about the disappearance of people.
There are probably many more interesting details — you can write about your observations in the comments. And, in the end, Jodie Foster returns to the role of a detective investigating murders — how can I not remember "The Silence of the Lambs".
The seasons could tell about different crimes and characters, but they were united not only by riddles and time jumps (they are not yet in the "Night Country"). "True Detective" has always been a slow-paced drama about lost and traumatized people who are looking not so much for the truth as for redemption.
Issa Lopez is trying to talk about something of her own again ‑ other characters, a completely different atmosphere, even the annoying heat was replaced by permafrost. There are even almost no philosophical conversations here yet — only harsh everyday life.
But the new "True Detective" shows unhappy characters again. Liz Danvers and Evangeline Navarro are deeply traumatized people, and they also dislike each other.
The first one has difficulty coping with her adopted teenage daughter, has nightmares, and at work she has to fight with an unpleasant colleague. The second one cannot let go of the problems of the past and arranges lynching for the man who attacked his girlfriend. They are surrounded by the same battered people. Perhaps "Night Country" will become the darkest season of the anthology at all.
Although the sequel differs from the previous plots of "True Detective", it still keeps close to the general spirit of the series. This is again a sinister story of investigation, and at the same time the study of the injuries of the main characters. The viscous atmosphere, tied either to mysticism or to the mysteries of the past, fascinates from the first episode. So the expectations are the best.
