The Belated Saving Throw

Clues continue to accumulate on the new season of True Detective in its third episode, clues not only about the mystery of the missing girl but also just what kind of mystery it is. Its tone and pacing continue to keep it engaging as does its atmosphere and shooting locations, which are pretty in spite of the blue/amber colour correcting.

Spoilers after the screenshot

The story picks up in all three of the time frames; the early 80s, the early 90s, and 2015. Even having some information from the two later segments so far hasn't killed the suspense in the 80s segment. There's a suggestion of possible time travel, or some hint that Wayne (Mahershala Ali) is experiencing events in a non-linear fashion. I wonder if this is due to the influence of Twin Peaks' third season. This article at Vanity Fair gives some of the literary allusions so far in this season, including the full poem which Wayne and Amelia (Carmen Ejogo) bond over;

Tell Me a Story by Robert Penn

Long ago, in Kentucky, I, a boy, stood
By a dirt road, in first dark, and heard
The great geese hoot northward.

I could not see them, there being no moon
And the stars sparse. I heard them.

I did not know what was happening in my heart.

It was the season before the elderberry blooms,
Therefore they were going north.

The sound was passing northward.

Tell me a story.

In this century, and moment, of mania,
Tell me a story.

Make it a story of great distances, and starlight.

The name of the story will be Time,
But you must not pronounce its name.

Tell me a story of deep delight.

Another hint that time is going to be involved. We also got another sign that Dungeons and Dragons will be involved when Wayne finds some dice in the woods:

I noticed the four sided die changes from resting on 2 to 3 between shots but the other two dice visible in both shots don't change.

If this were Twin Peaks, that would definitely have some significance (remember how important numbers were in the third season). This may simply be a continuity error here, though.

I loved Amelia seducing the cops for info though I don't know if I believe Wayne getting so jealous about it. But I guess it's a way of establishing how hard he finds it to talk through issues. Him panicking in the Wal-Mart reminded me of Roy Scheider in Jaws running around the beach when he loses sight of his kids for a moment. The job is affecting his personal life.

Ali is growing on me though I still think this kind of dialogue needs star power more than acting ability. I find myself hoping there will be some genuine supernatural element, I'm not sure the three time frames will be quite as fulfilling otherwise.

Twitter Sonnet #1198

Selective shades report a diff'rent bed.
A single room diverged from good hotels.
Returning stars rebuilt a blue from red.
With all the dust a beam of light entails.
A morning kestrel claimed the rusted rail.
A pair of birds could share a single stone.
The lips of fish combined to make a tail.
In human eyes is ev'ry dream alone.
A single shoe repeats a hundred feet.
A thousand yards construct a normal house.
In shaded lamps the bulbs'll surely meet.
Along the pipe is ev'ry waiting mouse.
The stepping roots affect the rocks below.
A hidden hound emits a long hello.