TCTTS said:
Props to all the Ringer folk on this one. They didn't bow down or capitulate at all. Not that any of them do consistently, but every so often they can get a little too chummy with directors, showrunners, actors, etc, pull their punches, and not be quite as harsh as they probably could or should be.
Agreed, I think CR and Andy did a great job critiquing the series objectively. I haven't listened to the one from the Prestige TV podcast with Joanna and Rob. I think Joanna has been viewing the series through rose-colored glasses more than some of the other reviewers there, but sounds like even she was disappointed in the end product.
Though I disliked the series as a whole I will say one thing in Isa Lopez's defense, we don't know what this show was supposed to be before she agreed to have it shaped into a season of True Detective. This season of TV was not originally written to be a season of True Detective, but she and HBO ended up agreeing to turn her story into what we saw. Maybe what she wrote makes more sense when allowed to stand on its own before all the forced connections to season one were introduced. I have my doubts about whether it would be good, but I at least want to acknowledge we don't know how far her original story was distorted into the final product. This could be something where she publicly disassociates herself some time down the road.
That being said, I am quite disappointed in the last four episodes after such a strong start. There are way too many loose ends left. Way too many things left unexplored that could have been. Way too many times I rolled my eyes at what was happening. Way too many scenes that felt shoe-horned in that served no purpose. I can't figure out if the show was too long or too short, I feel like the argument can be made either way. Based on the first two episodes, the structure e there to make something good, better than what we got in the end.
