Following up on new leads, Wayne and Roland track down a man who left the police force in the midst of the Purcell investigation. Amelia visits Lucy's best friend in hopes of gaining insights into the whereabouts of the mysterious one-eyed man.
In 2018, there were 495 scripted shows airing amongst the linear channels and streaming services. The way people are consuming content now is so different than it used to be. It happens according to one's own schedule. As such, there is less necessity to provide ample coverage of each specific episode in any given season from a show. Moreover, it is simply impossible to watch everything. As such, this site is making the move to shorter episodic reviews in order to cover as many shows as possible. With all of that being said, here are my thoughts on the next episode of HBO's True Detective.
"The Final Country"was written by Nic Pizzolatto and directed by Daniel Sackheim
With the number of bodies connected to the Purcell case, it's hard not to look at it as one giant conspiracy in which people are actively trying to cover up the crime so that Wayne and Roland can't solve it. So many of the pieces are starting to fall into place though. That is so invigorating and exciting. It ensures that there is a sense of momentum as the season comes to its conclusion. That was sorely lacking during the middle section of the season. But now, everything is coming to a dramatic end. The investigation in 1990 comes to an official close because Tom seemingly kills himself. The audience knows that not to be true. In fact, he was able to discover the connection to the Hoyt family and the secret room where Julie was probably kept long before any of the actual investigators. He was just killed before being able to share any of that information. He died not knowing exactly what happened to his daughter or where she is now. And yet, Wayne and Roland do make significant progress on their investigation. It's something they feel compelled to do because their bosses are already shaping the narrative to ensure that yet another dead man can take the blame for this central crime. The prosecutors just want to conveniently wrap everything up by pinning it on people who can't share their side of the story. Brett Woodard was condemned for over a decade despite being easily exonerated in 1990. Tom Purcell faces the same fate now. Wayne is the only person who notes that it's strange that Tom wrote in his note about being reunited with Lucy in the afterlife considering how much they hated each other. That's what fuels so many of Wayne and Roland's actions in 1990. They doubt that this is a choice that Tom made. Of course, there is still the suspicion that him losing the people who always believed in him could have pushed him over that line. Roland saved Tom's life countless times. But he wasn't there in the end. That's tragic. It's even more so knowing that all of this ends with Wayne and Roland killing a man. They connect Harris James to Lucy's death. He was in Las Vegas at the exact same time. Plus, Lucy received several calls that can be traced back to the Hoyt company. As such, all of this seems as if she died because she wanted more money from the people she sold her daughter to. Her cousin, Dan, was also in on the scheme. That's why he is so jumpy and paranoid. Tom didn't kill him. However, he does end up dead because he was in a vulnerable position and could be found by someone from Hoyt. But again, everything changes when Wayne and Roland once more decide to take justice into their own hands in order to get some answers. Instead, they only have a body they need to bury. This is the moment that officially splits the two of them apart as partners. Roland blames Wayne for putting him in this situation in the first place. He had no choice but to kill a man. And now, they are involved in their own cover-up. That's what the two have been trying to keep hidden in 2015. But every era of this story seems to come with the idea that they are always being watched. In 1990, the head of the Hoyt family reaches out to Wayne to prove just how powerful he can be. It's ominous when Wayne ends the hour in that car being driven away. In 2015, there is confirmation that someone is watching Wayne's house. He may just be a senile old man now. However, he's still learning new information about this case - like the rampant organized crime circles in the area as well as the Hoyt daughter losing a child and probably replacing her with Julie. There are still answers left up in the air though. The fallout of all of these actions are bound to be far-reaching for Wayne and Amelia. They are both passionate and dogged investigators. And yet, the clues they dig up are only threatening their personal lives more. As such, they may make a choice to commit to their family instead of investigate further. But even that would prove just how personal and corrosive police investigations can be while ensuring that some secrets are forever doomed to stay buried. Wayne is only investigating once more in 2015 because he has nothing more to do and is trapped in all of these old memories by his disease.
