After last week’s lukewarm start, I’m hoping this series
begins moving at a brisker pace. The
characters and the main crime are in place and now it’s all about the tangled
process to discover the truth.
The episode opens with Frank staring at ceiling musing over
a water stain. Frank confesses he never
knew how to spend his money as he contemplates his legacy. Jordon doesn’t seem
to share his worry stating she being rich is better then the alternative. He begins to tell a story about his
childhood. His father was an alcoholic
who would lock up six-year-old Frank in the basement when he went on a bender.
(Presumably for his own safety.) On one
occasion, his father didn’t come back for days because he was arrested. Young Frank had to survive in the basement,
devoid of food and water and eventually plagued by rats. He tells his wife how on the fifth day he was
so angry he smashed a rat using his bare hands.
As revealing as this story appears to be, I sense a note of
artifice. Did this really happen or is
Frank trying to justify the man he has become? Jordon wonders about the other traumas in his
past he hasn’t revealed. Frank ponders
what would have happened if his father had never returned, stating, “It’s all
paper mache.”
The water stains on the ceiling meld into the burned eyes of
Ben Caspere. The medical examiner
reviews the findings of the autopsy to the detectives Ani and Paul. The man was bound upside down; hydrochloric
acid was applied to his eyes via and eyedropper then he was shot in the
genitals at point blank range with a 12-gauge shotgun. The toxicology report showed Xanax and alcohol
in his bloodstream. He died between 4am
and 9am and was placed in an upright position post-mortem. (As we observed in
last week’s episode when the victim was riding in the black Cadillac.)
There is a territorial dispute over the case involving Chips,
the LA Sheriff and the City of Vinci. Each
department has their motives for wanting the case. The Sheriff wants to expose the corrupt cop
from Vinci. (Velcoro) The City wants Velcoro to help keep hidden their numerous
criminal activities. Ray meets with
Frank to give him the autopsy report. Frank
is frustrated stating, “Deals are being done!”
Paul visits his mom in her mobile home. He tells her he has a special assignment.
Ani and Ray are uncomfortably paired and drive to Caspere’s
house. An appointment book shows the
deceased was seeing a psychiatrist. (This dude must be old to have kept a
non-digital calendar.) Ani vaps, and Ray
sneers that it this activity is “Like sucking a robot’s dick.”
Frank meets with a Catalast Corporation executive to discuss
the land deals he had in progress with the deceased. The plan was to buy the land near the
high-speed railway and sell it back to the federal government for a large
profit. The deal had not been finalized
and Frank’s five million dollar investment is gone. The executive states if he wants the deal it
is now seven million dollars. Frank
leaves the meeting upset, all his capital was in the hands of Caspere.
Ani interviews the Mayor Chessani about Caspere. He appears
intoxicated and continues to drink throughout the meeting. She hopes to discover the identity of his date
at a party where he was last seen alive. Paul works the case in a Quonset hut set up
for this joint investigation. A jaded
detective in a suit listens to his progress at “following the money.” (Paul
displays his homophobia in a rant about being “hit on” by the bank manager.
Boo!) Ani and Ray join the discussion. Paul has discovered a four thousand dollar
cash withdrawal made each month near the same date. They also discover he used a car leased by the
Catalast Corporation. Using the GPS from
the car, they discover the victim was in Northern California during the days
around these cash withdrawals. (North, where the land deals was supposedly in progress.)
Ray and his ex-wife fight in front of a school. She is disturbed by the reports of the fight
with the bully’s dad, which Ray denies.
“You’re bad, Ray!” she shouts.
She has decided to sue him for sole custody of her son and even
threatens to force a DNA test. (Which
will likely reveal he is the biological son of the rapist.) Ray begs her not to go through with it,
stating “It’s all I have in my shitty life!” His ex states he wasn’t “Strong enough to stay decent.”
A man is rear ended in a silver Mercedes. As he gets out of the car to confront the
other party, he is sprayed in the eyes with pepper spray. Frank approaches the man and asks, “What did
you do to piss off serious people?” The
“accident” is obviously Frank’s doing to put pressure on this man.
Ani and Ray visit the posh office and hospital where Caspere’s
psychiatrist works. (An amazingly tan and plastic looking Rick Springfield!) The doctor is reluctant to share about his
deceased patient. He states Caspere was
being treated for anxiety, trauma and guilt stemming from his sexual obsession
with young women. He had treated him for
three years and felt his impulses were lessening. The doctor refuses to say more. As they leave, he asks Ani is the daughter of
Elliot Bezzerides. Ani’s animosity towards her father is evident as she says she
has cut ties with her him. She says of
the five kids who grew up in the “Good People” commune; two are in jail, two
others committed suicide and one became a detective. (Herself.)
Attorney general Geldof (C.S. Lee from Dexter) announces his
formal investigation of the City of Vinci.
Meanwhile, Frank talks to the mayor about his “favors” he’s done for the
City over the years. The mayor is
unmoved. Frank threatens to expose the
dirty deals unless the mayor gives him the funds to renew his land deals. Chessani is upset at the blackmail and makes
no promises to Frank.
Ani and Ray discuss the case as they continue to carpool. They theorize the murder may have been the
work of a pimp-prostitute arrangement that soured. Ray suggests Ani may be able to help check out
the escort world by going undercover. Ani asks about Ray’s history. Ray is vague and states he went to Vinci for
better pay. He knows she’s probably heard the rumors about his past; he killed
his wife’s attacker, he has been accused of being dirty. Ani speaks about her own struggles being a
petite female officer. She vows if any
man lays a hand on her would bleed out in under a minute. Ray asks he about her father. Ani reveals she grew up in a commune near
Guerneville. (Near the Russian River in Northern California, however she
doesn’t pronounce the town name like the natives, Guuurrr-Nee-Ville, is how
I’ve always heard the locals say it.) Ray muses, "We get the world we deserve" referring to the himself and the choices he's made. Finally, Ray
is frank with Ani, stating this joint investigation is “not supposed to work.” Ani responds, “How comprised are you?” Ray
doesn’t answer.
Paul’s girlfriend is upset about learning of his legal
problems with the actress through the tabloids. Paul is elusive. She is also upset to learn he worked for
“Black Mountain.” Paul replies stoically,
“I don’t talk about the desert.” Fed up
with his stonewalling, she decides to end their relationship. Paul states he’s on a special assignment in L.
A. She tells him not to return.
Frank visits a strip club. He speaks to the overweight Asian proprietor. Frank used to run the club. He’s trying to find information about women
Caspere may have used from his club. There
is a young woman with a Russian accent who remembers, “dating” him. She describes him as “Kind of weak and
passive.” The Asian man smiles,
revealing a golden grill that states “Fuck You."
Ani is searching Internet escort sites for possible leads. Her partner Elvis calls to update her on the
missing person’s case. He tells her Vera
was last in Guerneville. Ani doesn’t seem to realize the connection with her dad’s
old commune. Ani stares at the screen as
we are treated to super close-up of a mole under her left eyebrow! Is trolling
websites of thousands of escorts really going to help with the investigation or
is she just curious?
Paul looks down from his new place at partiers parading down
the street. Next he sees a young hustler
get out of a blue car. Is he secretly gay?
Why is focused on this kid? He did seem rather indifferent to the break-up with
his girlfriend.
Frank and Ray meet in their seedy bar as the depressed
female singer drones on in the background. Ray sips the strategically placed Modelo beer.
Frank has found the address where
Caspere entertained his prostitutes. Frank
promises if this goes well, he could make him chief of police of Vinci. Ray is completely dejected about the potential
loss of custody. He alludes to a wish to
kill himself. Frank orders Ray to buck
up and check out the lead. “Don’t talk like that again.” He orders Ray as he departs. A woman with a large facial scar sits down
with Ray. She thinks he just a vacation.
Ray replies fatalistically that he can’t live without his work and he’s too old
to change careers.
There is a shoot of the L.A. freeways at night. Ray arrives at the Caspere house. He easily breaks into the place through a
glass-paned door. The kitchen sink is
overflowing ominously. Ray notices some
dark liquid on the floor, possibly blood. Music plays in the background, “I
Pity the Fool” sung by the late, great, Bobby Bland. (Which just made me think of Mr. T!) Animal
heads adorn a sound proof wall. He opens
another door to hear electronic ticking and possibly a camera capturing his
movements. A man with a raven mask
approaches him with a 12-gauge shotgun. He
shoots Ray in the stomach and chest. Has
detective has become a victim?
The most interesting part of the episode was the last
minute. I confess to some difficulty in
viewing Vince Vaughn as a dramatic actor. The acting and dialogue lacks the intensity
shared by last year’s stars McConaughey and Harrelson. The two remain the executive producers of the
show, but I’d rather see them on-screen. So who is the raven killer? Is he going to target the other detectives or politicians?
Is True Detective simply taking a page from Game of Thrones and killing off the
most sympathetic characters? If so, who among these damaged souls should we
turn to solve this case? The plot definitely thickens…
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