re: True Detective S2E3: "Maybe Tomorrow"

Compared to how I felt last week, this season isn't bad. But it's not great, either. It's not going to live up to Season 1 and I think we all knew that/know it now.

This episode was better. I felt like I got a better sense for who stands where and how events are beginning to affect each group. So, it seems like there's a plot now (find Caspere's killer before the other competing interests). The problem remains that it's not a terribly interesting one. By all accounts, Caspere was an old dude into kinky shite and crooked government. With Ferrell magically surviving a point blank shotgun blast (could of been full of black eyed peas and it wouldn't have mattered; people have died firing blanks that close to themselves), the body count remains at 2 bad guys. I mean, there's some level of intrigue just because it has turned into a serial killing (burning out the eyes) but there's no real threat to me as an audience member. Basically, don't be a crooked cop or corrupt politican and you're good. The show is basically asking me to root for a bunch of brooding people from the state police, the crooked micro-city, and a small time mob while they hunt down a vigilante like the Punisher or Daredevil.

All in all, it's at least going in a direction now. But the direction isn't very good and neither is the way it's being played out. I'll keep watching, but it's to the point that I'm going to have to set an alarm on my phone to remember to do so. It's just not arresting TV (likely for all the reasons mentioned throughout this thread - rushed writing, drop off in directing, etc.)