Is True Detective Destined to be a One Hit Wonder?
All eyes are moving to True Detective season three, but is the series destined to always be remembered for the first?
True Detective is in the middle of rescuing its reputation. In order to help facilitate this, Michael Lombardo took the blame for season two and Nic Pizzolatto has stayed silent. Although his silence is not anything new, in this particular case it feels almost calculated.
It’s also worth remembering that the man doesn’t exactly have a good relationship with the press.
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Even if viewers return for True Detective season three with open arms, would it ever be possible for it to escape the shadow of season one? The first season was so insanely popular (even though season two scored better ratings) it became a non-stop talking point.
It would be near-impossible for True Detective to be able to recapture that moment in time.
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It’s possible that things may have been a bit different if the reaction to season two hadn’t been so abysmal. That only served to place season one higher on its pedestal, making it feel as if it would truly remain untouchable.
If one of the worst things to happen to season two was the success of the first, than it stands to reason that season two’s failures had the opposite effect on the public’s perception of season one.
True Detective will never have a season like the first, and it will never see that level of success and extreme cultural saturation again. Even if the ratings continue to climb, season one will remain True Detective’s golden moment.
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In that sense, True Detective will never be able to move beyond season one, even if later seasons surpass it. That could be a tough pill to swallow, and is likely something that Pizzolatto has already considered.