5) It began in mid-to full-stride
The major difference between a show like True Detective and previous great series like Breaking Bad is that even Breaking Bad took a couple of seasons to really implement its original vision with maximum effect. While some of this was a result of the show taking on the personality of Walter White and changing in tone as he transformed into Heisenberg, much of it must also be attributed to the outstanding work of cinematographer Michael Slovis, who made the look of the series one of its defining features.
Fukunaga and Arkapaw hit the ground running in terms of finding a distinct, unified style and tone for this series. Its premiere episode takes some patience because it isn’t terribly interested in making these characters and this setting overly accessible as they’re introduced to us.
It’s also able to do this because of the nature of the series, functioning almost more like a miniseries in its anthology format—in the same style as American Horror Story, it’s designed for each season to be a self-contained story. So its beginning and ending with these McConaughey and Harrelson characters are far more clearly defined than in other TV shows. This allows it, as stated before, to build its story toward a distinct, preconceived endpoint—Pizzolatto doesn’t have to think too far ahead from the opening when it comes to the conclusion, and neither does the audience, which allows for more exploration of story earlier in the series.
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Published: Feb 13, 2014 11:14 am