Home > True Detective > Season 1 « TV Series Page True Detective : Season 1 (2014) SEASON: Season 1 Season 1 Season 2 Season 3 Episode List All Critics | Top Critics TOMATOMETER 87% Average Rating: 8.86/10 Season Reviews: 81 Fresh: 67 Rotten: 14 Critics Consensus: In True Detective, performances by Woody Harrelsen and Matthew McConaughey reel the viewer in, while the style, vision and direction make it hard to turn away. 81% Average Rating: 9.19/10 Season Reviews: 37 Fresh: 30 Rotten: 7 Critics Consensus: No consensus yet. Critic Consensus: In True Detective, performances by Woody Harrelsen and Matthew McConaughey reel the viewer in, while the style, vision and direction make it hard to turn away. AUDIENCE SCORE 97% liked it Average Rating: 4.7/5 User Ratings: 5411 ADD YOUR RATING - NOT INTERESTED + WANT TO SEE Share on Facebook Post Want to See Not Interested Add Rating My Rating × Want to See Not Interested Post Share on Facebook Episodes 1 100% The Long Bright Dark Air date: Jan 12, 2014 Investigators take another look at a 1995 murder when a similar case occurs in 2012 in this drama, which begins with Martin Hart and Rust Cohle, former partners in Louisiana's Criminal Investigation Division, looking back on the original crime and its effect on their personal and professional lives. More 2 100% Seeing Things Air date: Jan 19, 2014 Pressure to land a suspect in the Lange murder brings a warning from Quesada that Hart and Cohle might be replaced by a new task force, but they lobby for extra time to investigate a rural brothel and a burned-out church. More 3 100% The Locked Room Air date: Jan 26, 2014 An obscured image in a church leads Hart and Cohle to a tent-revival minister, whose parishioners point to a man they believe was seen with Dora Lange, but when a sex offender who matches their description is interrogated, Cohle dismisses him, even though he offers a confession. Meanwhile, Maggie sets Cohle up with a friend; and old case files reveal a connection to a woman who drowned years ago. More 4 94% Who Goes There Air date: Feb 9, 2014 Cohle revisits a dark chapter of his past to track down a possible link to prime suspect Reggie Ledoux, but he needs to make sure a distracted Hart has his head in the game. More 5 100% The Secret Fate of All Life Air date: Feb 16, 2014 The spoils of a solved case are shared by Hart and Cohle; troubling new intelligence is revealed by Papania and Gilbough. More 6 69% Haunted Houses Air date: Feb 23, 2014 Cohle's activities in 2002, when his partnership with Hart disintegrated and he quit the force, are recalled by Maggie. More 7 92% After You've Gone Air date: Mar 2, 2014 Hart and Cohle call a truce to investigate a series of disappearances that may be related to the Dora Lange murder and the Tuttle family. More 8 83% Form and Void Air date: Mar 9, 2014 Season 1 ends with Hart and Cohle finding a new lead in their 17-year-old case thanks to a detail that was overlooked. More True Detective : Season 1 Videos True Detective: Season 1 Episode 8 Preview 0:35 True Detective: Season 1 Episode 6 Preview 0:35 True Detective: Season 1 Episode 7 Preview 0:35 True Detective: Season 1 Episode 5 Preview 0:35 True Detective: Season 1 Episode 4 Preview 0:35 True Detective: Season 1 Episode 2 Preview 0:35 True Detective: Season 1 Episode 3 Preview 0:30 True Detective: Season 1 Teaser 0:15 True Detective: Season 1 Teaser - Crime 1:31 True Detective: Season 1 Opening Credits View All Videos (10) True Detective : Season 1 Photos View All Photos (17) Tv Season Info New Orleans native and novelist Nic Pizzolatto ("Galveston") wrote and created this crime drama that focuses on a pair of homicide detectives in Louisiana and a trail of murder, mayhem and mystery that spans 17 years. Featuring the music of T Bone Burnett and directed by Cary Fukunaga, the series opens in 1995 as good ol' boy Martin Hart (Woody Harrelson) and his brooding, Texas-born partner, Rust Cohle (Matthew McConaughey), are called to the scene of a gruesome, ritualistic killing of a young woman, who was posed by a tree, adorned with deer antlers on her head and accompanied by strange symbols. Fast-forward to 2012, Hart and Cohle are grilled by another pair of detectives (Tory Kittles, Michael Potts) who are investigating a case that bears striking similarities to the one before. In between is a glimpse of 2002, when Hart and Cohle struggled to deal with their inner demons in separate but equally destructive ways. With Michelle Monaghan, Kevin Dunn, Lili Simmons and Shea Whigham. Genre: Drama Network: HBO Premiere Date: Jan 12, 2014 Creator: Nic Pizzolatto Exec. Producers: Steve Golin, Nic Pizzolatto, Richard Brown Cast Matthew McConaughey as Rust Cohle Woody Harrelson as Martin Hart Kevin Dunn as Ken Quesada Michelle Monaghan as Maggie Hart Alexandra Daddario as Lisa Tragnetti Tory Kittles as Det. Thomas Papania Michael Potts as Det. Maynard Gilbough Elizabeth Reaser as Laurie Perkins Lili Simmons as Beth Brad Carter as Charlie Jay O. Sanders as Billy Lee Tuttle Glenn Fleshler as Errol Childress Michael Harney as Steve Geraci Charles Halford as Reggie Ledoux Joseph Sikora as Ginger Ann Dowd as Betty Childress Shea Whigham as Joel Theriot Carol Sutton as Miss Delores Kelsey Scott as Fiona Todd Giebenhain as Tyrone Clarke Peters as Minister Davi Jay as Gordon DiCillo Show More Cast News & Interviews for True Detective : Season 1 9 TV Shows You Should Binge-Watch This January Which Movie Star Fared Best on TV? Julia Roberts in Homecoming and More Small-Screen Debuts The Scariest TV Episodes Ever View All True Detective : Season 1 News Episodes 1 100% The Long Bright Dark Air date: Jan 12, 2014 Investigators take another look at a 1995 murder when a similar case occurs in 2012 in this drama, which begins with Martin Hart and Rust Cohle, former partners in Louisiana's Criminal Investigation Division, looking back on the original crime and its effect on their personal and professional lives. More 2 100% Seeing Things Air date: Jan 19, 2014 Pressure to land a suspect in the Lange murder brings a warning from Quesada that Hart and Cohle might be replaced by a new task force, but they lobby for extra time to investigate a rural brothel and a burned-out church. More 3 100% The Locked Room Air date: Jan 26, 2014 An obscured image in a church leads Hart and Cohle to a tent-revival minister, whose parishioners point to a man they believe was seen with Dora Lange, but when a sex offender who matches their description is interrogated, Cohle dismisses him, even though he offers a confession. Meanwhile, Maggie sets Cohle up with a friend; and old case files reveal a connection to a woman who drowned years ago. More 4 94% Who Goes There Air date: Feb 9, 2014 Cohle revisits a dark chapter of his past to track down a possible link to prime suspect Reggie Ledoux, but he needs to make sure a distracted Hart has his head in the game. More 5 100% The Secret Fate of All Life Air date: Feb 16, 2014 The spoils of a solved case are shared by Hart and Cohle; troubling new intelligence is revealed by Papania and Gilbough. More 6 69% Haunted Houses Air date: Feb 23, 2014 Cohle's activities in 2002, when his partnership with Hart disintegrated and he quit the force, are recalled by Maggie. More 7 92% After You've Gone Air date: Mar 2, 2014 Hart and Cohle call a truce to investigate a series of disappearances that may be related to the Dora Lange murder and the Tuttle family. More 8 83% Form and Void Air date: Mar 9, 2014 Season 1 ends with Hart and Cohle finding a new lead in their 17-year-old case thanks to a detail that was overlooked. More Critic Reviews for True Detective Season 1 All Critics (81) | Top Critics (37) | Fresh (67) | Rotten (14) It's about whether our lives really matter at all. That's scarier than the scariest monster. Jan 10, 2014 | Full Review… Tim Molloy TheWrap Top Critic McConaughey and Harrelson don't just fill out these characters, they disappear into them, delivering two of the best performances you'll see in TV or film this entire year. Jun 13, 2018 | Full Review… Brian Tallerico RogerEbert.com Top Critic It's a winner. But it's also an oddball, and a weirdo, and an interesting-cum-strange companion, and someone - um, something - you won't mind spending time with. Jun 13, 2018 | Rating: B+ | Full Review… Verne Gay Newsday Top Critic It has the feel of an indie film spread over eight episodes starring two of the best character actors in the business. Jan 10, 2014 | Full Review… Eric Deggans NPR Top Critic True Detective is a marvel of craftsmanship, storytelling and performances. Jan 10, 2014 | Rating: A | Full Review… Ed Bark Uncle Barky Top Critic In an effort that has the potential to be one of the best and boldest new TV dramas of the year, two film stars exhibit on the small screen the advantage of working in an extended serial. Jan 10, 2014 | Full Review… Joanne Ostrow Denver Post Top Critic There is so much that the first season of True Detective gets right. Oct 23, 2018 | Full Review… Brian Wilson What Culture True Detective absorbs you from the first minute and never lets go. [Full Review in Spanish] Sep 23, 2018 | Full Review… Natalia Marcos El Pais (Spain) There are hints of a more pervasive and pernicious evil at work in rural Louisiana. Despite these hints, the narrative doesn't go deeper than an episode of Law and Order: SVU. Aug 20, 2018 | Full Review… Kathryn Reklis The Christian Century You may find it a little slow, and the Deep South accents sometimes cry out for explanatory surtitles, but you're liable to find it seeping into your consciousness like a troubling dream you can't shake off. Jul 23, 2018 | Rating: 4/5 | Full Review… Adam Sweeting The Arts Desk View All Critic Reviews (81) Audience Reviews for True Detective : Season 1 ½ So, this was quite an awesome ride wasn't it? Not much because of the whodunnit case, but more thanks to the deeply flawed but interesting characters we're given. We see this case consume them, how they can be complete assholes and not fix their flaws, on how they refuse many chances they're given to correct past wrong doings and this is all so very human, isn't it? That's what makes True Detective rather special. They're no heroes, they can be complete assholes but we understand them and their drive. The mistery is appropriate and it's riddled with details to turn you into a true detective as well, which I guess was the intention all along, with an appropriate doomsday feel mistery cult surrounding the case, that doesn't have huge twists but is much more grounded in reality. True, many things are left unfinnished by the end but if the conclusion was too neat and tidy, it would've contradicted the tone of the show. Francisco G Super Reviewer This is the best series Iâ??ve watched in years, richly deserving all the accolades awarded to it. Not having HBO, I missed TD on its initial run, and got the DVDs based on reputation. The story, direction, and especially the acting will blow you away, nothing else quite like this on tv. The best dramas are plot driven- here the search for a serial killer, and also act as character studies- here what drives the two detectives and how do the search and the darkness affect them. As explained in the bonus features, this is an examination of light vs. darkness at its heart, both externally and internally. The eight episodes telling the story feature a non-linear technique. This moving in and out of different time periods, which I donâ??t always enjoy, work well here. The viewer has got to be patient though. The seventeen year journey to the climax is exceptionally crafted. Whoever thought to combine the talents of McConaughey and Harrelson hit a home run. As partners who have nothing in common, even hate one another, this partnership trumps all others. Having survived his rom-com era, Iâ??ve loved McConaughey in Dallas Buyerâ??s Club, Mud, etc. more recently. His appearance changes, mannerisms, speech are astonishing here. â??Mesmerizingâ?? is an appropriate description for McConaughey performance; I canâ??t imagine any other actor in this role. McConaugheyâ??s Rust Cohle is a philosopher-detective like no other. Louisiana is the perfect local for this moody yet intense drama. The creepiness is palpable at times, especially when Marty and Rust first arrive at the scene of the horror in episode 8. Iâ??m stopping short of any spoiler. Bottom line: these two characters are flawed men who confront great evil in their own unique ways, and that conflict affects each deeply, but to say more would be to give too much away. Prepare to be engulfed by a gripping intensity seldom seen in television; this kind of praise is too often just hyperbole, but itâ??s all too real here. You may think the assertion this is the true golden age of television is all hype, but dramas like this prove the point. ClintusM Super Reviewer This is one of the greatest series' I have seen in a long a time. This season is made completely with love and have some brilliant writing by Nic Pizzolatto and brilliant directing by Cary Fukunaga. This is such a dark show, but it really helps when it comes to pulling in the viewer, because in many of the scenes, you really can't look away from the screen. The performances from Matthew McConaughey and Woody Harrelson are un-describable. They play so well off each other and off the other characters in the show, which consists mostly of Michelle Monaghan, Michael Potts and Tory Kittles. If anyone doesn't like this season, you have either not seen it or just don't like McConaughey or Harrelson and if that's the case; what's wrong with you?! LasseG Super Reviewer One of the best crime dramas I've ever seen on TV. Skillfully made in all aspects. Although the first three episodes are very slow, and brutally depressing, I was hooked from the fourth episode and on when the pace picks up very quickly. KevinM Super Reviewer View All News & Features 150 Erotic Movies Ranked worst to best! 2019's Most Anticipated 63 movies coming up this year 200 Essential Movies Chosen by RT staff! Best of Netflix Movies and shows to binge now More News & Features TOP HEADLINES The Best 100% Certified Fresh TV Seasons – Rotten Tomatoes Dwayne Johnson Owe $12 Trillion in Fake Movie Damages – Rotten Tomatoes Which Real-Life Couple Made The Best Movies Together? – Rotten Tomatoes 24 Worst Movie Remakes According to the Tomatometer – Rotten Tomatoes 30 Great Scenes in Rotten Movies – Rotten Tomatoes 19 Niche Streaming Services To Up Your Binge-Watching Game – Rotten Tomatoes Comedians Pick Their Favorite TV Comedies – Rotten Tomatoes Every Upcoming Video Game Movie Adaptation – Rotten Tomatoes More Headlines View All Results Go back More trailers