'True Detective' recap: Starting over, yet again

Spoiler alert! The following contains spoilers for Sunday’s episode of True Detective.

As an anthology series, True Detective was tasked with starting over from its much-lauded first season with a new group of actors, a new location and a new mystery -- essentially making it a new show. And since this new show has had a lot of trouble living up to its predecessor so far, the massive shootout that closed last week's episode was seen by many as a chance for the season to pick up some speed, to become more vital and to surprise us the way the first season did. So it was surprising (in a decidedly negative way) that the aftermath of the shooting -- 66 days after, to be precise -- brings the show to a stand-still that lasts for nearly 45 minutes of this hour-long episode.

In a lot of ways "Other Lives" was one of the most frustrating episodes of the season so far. It pushed apart characters the show spent so much time bringing together, only to slowly drag them back again without a lot of logical reason. It spent an inordinate amount of time on plots that are hard to care about (raise your hand if you were happy to see the speeding actress again) while only inching forward on the parts of the narrative that were truly intriguing (more time with Jordan please, kthanksbye). But it did give us an interesting cliffhanger, one that could propel the show forward in better ways than our cliffhanger from last week. Here's to hoping.

One very big mistake

Important update on Ray, guys: The mustache is gone. Along with his mustache Ray has lost the "cop" half of his dirty cop persona, as he is now working for Frank full-time, intimidating rent from impoverished families and the like (this guy, right?). He's also right back where we saw him in the season's first episode: Embroiled in a losing custody battle, willing to do anything to get his son back.

That desperation to get his son back is what gets Ray back into the "unofficial investigation" that's being launched with our three true we-have-to-call-them-something-other-than-detectives. The state investigator offers to intervene with family services if Ray helps nail the Vinci corruption, and she also casually drops the bomb that Ray murdered the wrong guy all those years ago, since his ex-wife's rapist was just arrested alive and well. Ray is a little miffed (to put it mildly) about Frank having tricked him, and after taking out some tension on that gross plastic surgeon, he shows up at Frank's door looking for some answers. Next week being the sixth episode, I think it's not unreasonable to suggest that one of these men may die in this confrontation. What a choice of stand-up guys to root for.

Oh and add this to the inevitable coffee-table book of Ray's fatherly advice: "Pain is inexhaustible. It's only people who get exhausted." Heartwarming stuff, Ray.

On vacation

The sexual harassment seminar Ani is forced to attend at the start of this episode is exactly what I'd expect a sexual harassment seminar scripted by True Detective to look like. I'd have more to say about it if I wasn't actively trying to erase it from my memory.

But other than forced to endure the "compliments" of her fellow sexually deviant officers, Ani has been demoted since the shoot out, literally put in a cage as she's in charge of evidence lock-up. But that's not stopping her from pursuing the missing girl we met back in the first episode, who -- surprise! -- turns out to be tied to Caspere and the whole Vinci deal. That's enough to get her back on the unofficial investigation, and it's a good thing, too, because who else would have thought to check out what was under some circling birds? Really why the state investigator thought they needed anyone on this team besides Ani is beyond me (especially Ray, because why on Earth would she want Ray?).

'A good-looking white man'

A massive shootout, a new job, a messed-up mother, a troubled service record and a baby on the way was just not enough plot for Paul, so the show felt the need to revisit the actress he pulled over in episode one who made the false sexual harassment claim on him. The show's hatred of female characters is never more apparent than in this scene, where the actress is just so disdainful and Paul is just so righteous. This scene serves little other purpose than degrading her and giving Taylor Kistch plenty of opportunity to act through his teeth.

Things are not going much better for Paul in his personal life than in his professional one at the moment either. His mother, still as creepy as ever, has gambled away his nest egg (that he apparently stole from Afghanistan, so he maybe he shouldn't be so righteous), which is a bummer because he's going through with his plans to marry his pregnant beard. Joining the unofficial investigation is an excuse for him to get back in the field, which I guess is just what we're going to have to accept, given how all over the place his characterization has been. Bonus points for figuring out that the sweaty alcoholic cop was dirty, though! Never saw that coming!

Getting it all back

As the season progresses, Frank continues to see-saw with his wealth and status, moving back into his less-than-legitimate business practices and moving out of his mansion into a still probably very-expensive suburban home. Given that the investigation into Caspere's death is "closed," there's pretty much no prospect of Frank getting that money back, and that's a fact he's having trouble accepting.

Jordan doesn't like their new/old life. She doesn't like the crime, she doesn't like that they've put plans for a child on hold and it seems like she just doesn't like her husband at the moment. This marriage continues to be one of the most interesting and dynamic elements of the season, and so it's fitting that in such a stagnant episode it's here where we see real movement. Frank comes to terms with the idea of adoption by the end of the episode, while Jordan begins to accept that he will do what he feels he has to to get his life back. It would almost be a happy moment for the pair, if Ray hadn't chimed the doorbell at that exact moment. We'll see how good the marriage is next week.

Miss last week's recap? You can read it here.