‘True Detective’ episode 7 review: Did Martin and Rust meet the killer?

“True Detective” has taken us on a thrill ride all season long, whether or not that means telling character driven stories, or one related to the case at hand.

Within the first few minutes of Sunday night’s new episode, the show did a good job of establishing where Rust and Martin have been since their fight in 2002. Rust has been in Alaska for the most part, while Martin has lived a lonely life, and hasn’t really spent a large amount of time with either his ex-wife Maggie or his children. A real model citizen, this guy is!

From here, though, the investigation into the murders press onward with Matthew McConaughey and Woody Harrelson’s characters serving as a team once again. Cohle convinced his former partner that he had something, and it was a conspiracy that led all the way up to the sheriff. Martin actually had to go undercover in order to protect him, mostly because it was pretty darn funny to see him actually have him forced to be someone’s friend. Not exactly his strong suit.

This was the episode that likely had the strongest cliffhanger of the entire season; just when it felt like Rust and Martin were starting to finally make the progress with a suspect (thanks in part to a gun), the story was over for them aboard a boat for a time being. Meanwhile, the editors gave a very strong inclination as to who the true killer could be in the closing seconds, as Gilbough and Papania briefly questioned a man who has made quite a habit out of mowing yards in important places as of late. (That sounds like the most mundane, and yet suspicious, thing ever.)

One fact remains the same after watching this “True Detective” episode: This remains a heck of a show. This episode feels too incomplete to love it as much as past ones, but it still did a heck of a lot right. Grade: B+.

What did you think about tonight’s “True Detective” episode? Share your thoughts below.

(Photo: HBO)