Oh True Detective, you are so loved by some, reviled by others. This show has truly managed to divide its audience through and through, yet I find myself fully entranced by this show. There's a wonderful story quietly coming to a head here and I like the fact that this is a slow cooking mystery that feeds us just enough. It harkens back to classic noir, where the clues arrived exactly when they needed to. 

Granted last night continued to grow the grand conspiracy revolving around Ben Caspere's death...but something quite special did happen...we finally got to know most of our characters. After weeks of dealing with this interesting band of anti heroes, we finally saw most of their true colors and what they are made of and I'll be damned if I wasn't impressed with that, and all the goodies that came about in last night's episode, "Church in Ruins". 

We actually picked up right where last week left off, with Ray furious at Frank for feeding him misinformation and playing him like a fiddle and well...I was completely and utterly wrong about Frank. There was no malice, or grand scheme to get Ray working for him, it was simply information that happened to horribly wrong. The tension between these two seemed to be buried for the time being, but it was the beginning of a fascinating dichotomy in this episode, the fact that our characters live in two different worlds. The people they truly are, and the ones that they choose to be. It was the little things that demonstrated this tonight, and it was quite nice to finally understand what makes Frank, Ray and Ani who they are today. 

The fact that Frank and Ray are even friends is a miracle unto itself but last night, watching Ray try desperately to save his relationship with his son and the genuine care he demonstrates for him was a big deal. Not to mention Frank's amazing job of comforting Stan's boy. These are two men who are haunted by their garbage relationships with their terrible fathers and while Ray has an outlet to do a better job and set things right, Frank doesn't...but the desire is there and his virtuous side speaks volumes to that. 

Ani has her issues as well, as we learned last night there were some horrible things that went on at that combine and they haunt her daily and no doubt explain her awful relationship with her dad. It's clear now why she blames him, but it's a shame all of this had to come flooding back in the middle of the case since she chose to attend one of the special parties by the California elite and well...that's when all kinds of goodies came to fruition. We found our missing girl and Paul was able to snag some important documents from the party before everyone made their escape. 

But alas, no answers tonight on what exactly is going on behind the scenes, we just know those answers are in Paul's hands and I have a bad feeling there will be big trouble for our intrepid detectives because of it. These wealthy men are no doubt connected and it won't take long to put two and two together. Not to mention, its obvious Frank's empire is still on shaky ground with the unfortunate deal he made with Santos' former drug associates and the fact they were willing to kill the girl who pawned the diamonds because she worked for the cops. That may not seem like a big deal but this is the most progress Frank has made on who is trying to bring him down and the fact that someone died before he could get some answers...is troublesome for sure. Either way, there's only two episodes left...and the end of this fascinating mystery draws near. 

Being held at gunpoint, Zeke and Glenn have to find a way to make their new captors understand that they are not there to hurt them.  As Glenn is being tied up by one of the locals, Zeke sees his opportunity and takes it.  Being able to escape, the two are looking for their plane crash site since that is where the rescue party would be sent, but without any food or water, they are fading quickly and even their sense of direction is failing them.  

Taking a break on the top of a hill, Zeke sees something in the distance heading down the road and makes a run for it to see if whomever in the car can take the two to safety, but passes out before he can speak with the driver.  Waking up in a furnished home, Zeke and Glenn have been delivered to safety and have been given the keys to the kingdom when it comes to food, but when Zeke asks about a phone, their hostess’ change their tune and it appears that the two Navy flyers have traded one bad situation for another.

Alex Talbot has done his job by delivering 80 million dollars to Raja and with the coup in place, he is ready to take a load off.  But when word comes from Rafiq’s mother that his sister is not answering the phone, Alex puts on his hero pants and leads the charge to find her.  Fareeda’s school looks like a war zone when the two men arrive and not knowing what happened they are very hesitant to head towards any sounds that they may hear.  Finding Fareeda alive and well, they also find seven of her students that need to be taken with the small group since there is no other place for them to go when the fighting starts.  Even though nobody seems to like the idea to go to the U.S. Embassy, Alex is able to convince them that the girls will be protected from the oncoming violence outside.  Being greeted by his Ambassador with open arms, Alex is in shock about the reception he has been given, but is no longer worried about being transferred to a different embassy.

Walter Larson is doing all that he can to fend off a military strike and get enough time for his guy Raja to take over the reins in Pakistan.  Being able to finagle himself into his old friend Talia’s office, Walter puts his foot down and will not leave until he is able to talk to the Prime Minister.  Although Talia is not used to the antics, she receives a call from the Prime Minister and Walter is able to convince the leader to give him five minutes to try and persuade the country from going to war.  Walter explains what he has working for him and the Prime Minister agrees that it is a good plan and is ready to put a hold on his attack for a few more hours and see how the Raja take over goes, but when Pierce arrives on the scene, the mood quickly changes as photos of Raja fleeing the country have surfaced. 

Military strikes are imminent now with Raja running away with his 80 million dollars and there is nothing that Walter is able to do.  Thinking on his feet has been his great gift up to this point and I don’t know what he will be able to do now, without his coup, and no backing from either side.  Alex does show he has feelings for Fareeda, even her school girls can see it and know he does not have a shot with the teacher.  Trying everything he could think of, getting the girls to the embassy was the greatest decision he could have made and making himself look selfless in the eyes of everyone, there is no better way to get someone to take a second look at you.  Poor Zeke and Glenn are now in the clutches of a pair of thieves that will not let them leave.  Being in the middle of nowhere, the two are stuck with no chance of rescue once again, but this time at least, they have air conditioning.  This series just grabs you and keeps squeezing until it is ready to let go and with five more episodes to go, I don’t know how the story is going to end, but am looking forward to it.

When all is lost and you need someone to console you and say that everything will be all right, who do you turn to? Your friends of course, since you know that no matter what you have done to them in the past, they will be there for you when you really need it.  It does not matter what you need, your friends will always bend over backwards to make sure you make it out of hard times without a scratch, even if you have made them mad at you for something stupid.  These are the people that you want to keep in your life at all times, because when times get tough, your friends will provide that extra muscle you need to move forward.

After finding his car all messed up, Ricky Jerret is back at the dealership waiting to get repaired but has found a new one to drive.  After talking to his girlfriend about the troubles he is having with Alonzo, he is not willing to come clean about what has happened with his teammate’s mother, but is given a great idea about how to squash the current tension between the two.  Inviting Alonzo to the strip club to talk, Ricky finds that the young man has brought all of his family and friends to partake in the fun and when Ricky tries to get real with him, the subject always tends to change and Alonzo finds something better to do.  But when Alonzo takes one of the strippers out to his car for some midday fun, a police officer comes along and is ready to arrest the Dolphins player, but lucky enough for him Ricky is walking out of the club at the same time.  The officer recognizes Ricky and lets the young buck off with just a warning and Ricky has become the hero of the day.  But Ricky has a little secret, as the officer is his girlfriend’s uncle and a set-up has taken place to gain some respect out of the young cocky teammate, and his number 18 returned.

Charles Greane is still getting text messages from his new fan.  As he is not able to get the latest picture out of his head, he is imagining about what it would be like with this girl, but does not want his wife to know.  After talking with Ricky at the club and breaking off the communications for good, Charles is having a hard time letting go of the picture.  After sending it to himself for safekeeping, he returns home with his errands done, but his wife has seen the picture as well.  Charles tries to explain his way of thinking about the situation, but with his wife saying the same thing about the picture as his best friend said at the club, Charles knows that he is fighting a losing battle.  Leaving the house to let his wife calm down, Charles will have an uphill battle ahead of him before being able to reconnect in his relationship.

Spencer and Joe are putting the final touches on signing Victor Cruz when an emergency call comes from Vernon.  Although Spencer has already put his foot down with his friend that there will be no communication between the two until the loan is paid back, Vernon has a blackmail problem starting.  Receiving a call from an unknown woman saying that she has pictures from the ‘Corporate Event’ Spencer and Joe held of him doing drugs, she is willing to make them go away for a price and will give the star defensive lineman the first opportunity to pay.  After getting a look at the pictures, Spencer takes the lead in the situation and pushes Reggie to the curb since it was his fault for Vernon being in the compromising position to start with.  Getting a call from the woman’s lawyer, Spencer and Joe will have to suit up and find out what she really wants.

Spencer and Joe get together and come up with a game plan about what is going to happen. With a fifty grand max number in their heads they arrive at the lawyers office and are ready for battle. But before they enter, Spencer gets a disturbing call from Jason, Vernon’s agent saying that the lineman’s deal has been put on hold.  Spencer knows that if these pictures come out, the deal will be squashed, along with any chance of a massive payday in the future.  After talking with the lawyer, Spencer and Joe are taken back with the number that has been named, at the tune of five hundred thousand.  The two do not currently have the funds to even consider paying this inflated number but before they leave, Spencer is able to get the name of the woman that is looking for her payday and from his past travels, Spencer knows exactly who she is.

It seems like any secret that anyone has attempted to keep as a secret in this series has come to light sooner rather than later and that does not bode well for anyone at this point.  Ricky has pulled out all of the stops to get Alonzo to leave him alone and be a teammate, but have him fake arrested by his girlfriend’s uncle...damn. It is great he is hooked up that way, but when Alonzo finds out, much less the department, someone is going to go to jail.  I would say that I feel bad for Vernon and the pictures of him doing blow and smoking weed, but at the same time, he was ready to bounce when his buddy Reggie begged him to stay.  He put himself in the situation and I am surprised that Spencer and Joe are ready to go to battle for him since there is no way they can spin it in a positive light.  Charles, Charles, Charles, what can I say to the man?  He should have just deleted the photo and gone on with his happy married life, but for some reason he was not ready to let go of the booty pic.  Even with the blowup between him and his wife Julie that was pretty epic, he could fix it by just saying he was wrong, and I think he knows that, but is he proud enough to admit it is the question.  Spencer and Joe are ready for war, but I don’t know how far they are ready to go to protect Vernon from what is coming next.  If Spencer knows the woman who is trying to blackmail the player, it could be an in, but if it is an ex-girlfriend or something like that, I am prepared to see Joe turn on the charm and try to rekindle the broken relationship.  I don’t want to look away, not quite yet as I am ready to see some resolution come through on one of these stories.

A week ago True Detective left us as it always does, devastated and uncomfortable as we were witness to one incredibly ugly shoot out that cost many a life of both decent hard working folks and human garbage alike. It left us with more questions than we would like to have on our minds halfway through the season.

Was the shootout a trap or a housecleaning of Vinci P.D. and undesirable officers much like our damaged trio? What is this grand conspiracy that seems to be happening behind the scenes? And the most important question of all, who the hell killed Ben Caspere? Well, with the help of a little time jump and a lot of surprises in last night's episode, the show is moving forward toward something big, making "Other Lives" one of the finest episodes of season two so far. 

This was an episode that dealt squarely in consequences and took the opportunity to show the true colors of one particular character, but more on that in a minute. For when we rejoin the story in this episode, months have passed since the Vinci shootout and wow, the fallout was epic. Velcoro left Vinci P.D. and is working security for Frank. Paul is a fraud detective and Ani is banished to the evidence room. Yet, clues are starting to show their head once again. Ani is pulled right back into the case of the missing girl from early in the series and what do you know...it leads back into those weird parties where girls are the party favor. It reactivates the case off the books since well...it's odd that the Attorney General closes the case and suddenly decides to run for Governor. Something bigger is going on and at last it felt like the conspiracy is finally taking shape, especially when Velcoro unleashes his fury without an official badge on that creepy ass doctor to learn a little more about the parties.

But the centerpiece of the episode...is the big reveal of how big of a piece of crap Frank turned out to be. I distinctly remember writing about how he seemed to be the only character looking to do some good in the world, especially by helping out Ray hunt down the creep that assaulted his ex wife. Except it turns out that was quite the opposite. We learned last night that the man Ray either took out or moved to some obscure part of the world was not the one who hurt his wife, he was merely a pawn in Frank's plan...just like Ray. The real culprit was caught after another assault and his DNA matched everything. It's sending Ray into another dark and ugly place and well...that ending where Ray shows up at Frank's doorstep can't be good...for either of them. 

But all things aside, kudos to this episode for moving everything along in subtle fashion. It may have felt slow, but I think that's nothing more than a trick. The show is playing with us. Giving us little bits and pieces at a time to slowly digest in the back of our minds until surprise...something big will fall right into our lap. The weird kill room behind the house up north is no doubt something extremely important that felt played off on purpose and well...this conspiracy just plain feels creepy. Bunch of rich guys, doing as they please, blackmailing one another and death surrounds them. I dunno, there's something terrible going on here, and we are inching toward discovering it. Just not sure we will like it when our curiosity is finally satisfied. Until next time. 

Walter Larson’s health is not getting any better when he lands in India.  With his new friendly kidney stone causing plenty of trouble, will not be deterred by it and bypasses the hospital to meet with the Foreign Minister.  After not being able to convince Rakesh to pull back his troops from the border, Walter offers to be a human shield, so if Pakistan decides to strike, they will have to deal with the United States as well.  With a deal locked in place, Walter is rushed to the hospital to remove the kidney stone and after talking with the President, he knows there is something amiss, but will not be able to do anything while he is in surgery.

Zeke is starting to have mixed feelings about what he has promised his ex-wife, along with his soon to be baby’s momma.  Comparing himself to Bruce Wayne/Batman, he knows that he can make it work, but does not know how either of the two women will respond when they find out.  Getting called up to take recon pictures over Pakistan since Glenn shot down the only drone in area, the two are back in the air and contemplating what Zeke’s next move should be.  After receiving heavy fire, Zeke admits to himself that he will never be Batman since his new decision to take care of both families will have him working all of the time and he will not be able to be the father he is striving to be to any of his children.  Before he knows it, the plane gets hit and the two friends have to eject and wind up in a minefield, but that is far from their only problem.

The President is riding a fine line after receiving Raja’s wish list.  Thinking that Walter is not going to be able to keep Pakistan from starting a nuclear war with one of its bordering countries, he has come up with a plan of his own.  Even seeing the results that Walter has just delivered by becoming a human shield, he is still going to move forward with setting up an offensive strike against Zaman before it is too late.  When he receives word that Walter is ready to leave India and try to beat Pierce to his next meeting, he orders Walter to keep his feet on the ground and not to interfere with what is about to happen. 

Waiting for a call back from Walter Larson, Alex Talbot has already grasped the importance of his job.  Being the in between man between the United States and General Raja, Alex has just been given approval on most of the requests on the list and needs to deliver the information to Raja.  After Walter gives him some tips and sends him to pick up a bag of cash to present to the general, Alex is abducted by the Ambassador’s goons and will not be able to contact Raja or deliver his good news.  Being able to escape custody, Alex calls Rafiq’s house and finds out that the general's men are listening and set up a meeting time at the house.  Not wanting to get involved, Rafiq’s family is displeased, but if the deal goes sour, they will not be around long enough to care.

Talk about some back stabbing going on, on the U.S. side.  If you have been watching, you know that Pierce and Walter do not like each other one bit, but Walter has some sort of control over the President when he is around.  Now that he is overseas, trying to stage a coup that will remove the crazy Zaman from power, the President is listening to the other pair of lips in his ear and is ready to strike.  Alex is able to keep his head above water and even after Walter tells the Ambassador that Alex is basically in charge, the Ambassador is not going to back down from his recent threats.  Even though Alex is able to escape and meet with General Raja, he is still in danger, but with a couple thousand dollar bills in his possession now, he may be able to buy his way out of what comes next.  Walter Larson has a reach much further than anyone knows and when calling ahead to Israel to find out when his nemesis is going to arrive, you can tell that he has more than just some history there.

It is about to heat up, maybe even go nuclear when the next episode takes place.  A coup is promised within twenty four hours to take General Zaman out of power, but when Raja finds out that he is not going to get all of his demands when he takes the power, what will he have in store for the United States?  And if the coup does not work, what will that mean for the U.S. and more importantly, Rafiq’s family that has been helping Alex throughout the ordeal.  And now that Zeke and Glenn are grounded, in a minefield with guns being pointed at them, how will a rescue team make it out to bring them back to the carrier?  So many questions and no answers right now, we just have to wait and see what the next episode will bring to the table tonight.

Sometimes you just need someone to be on the lookout for you, since there might always be someone looking to get you.  Usually you can count on your friends to keep you out of trouble, but there could be times when they are looking to take advantage of you as well. I have always had a hard time in trying to figure out who to let in, friendship wise and who to keep at an arm’s length.  Even today, you never know who will want to take advantage of their friendship benefits with you and how far they will take you before you find out what they are really up to.

Charles Greane is quickly recovering from Spencer and Joe’s party the night before.  With his sister and her kids playing around the house, Charles and his wife know what they want out of life, but have not been able to get pregnant just yet.  But before Charles is able to sit down and get a bead on his day he receives a text message from a young woman that wants to be more than just friends.  Finding out that his buddy Ricky passed his number on to the woman, Charles has to figure out what he really wants in life, and the young woman is not making it easy for him as she is looking for a little one on one action.

At a morning meeting with Vernon, Jason and Spencer are trying to get the best deal in place for the top rated defensive tackle in the game, but Reggie still has his friend’s ear.  Wanting more money than J.J. Watt is getting paid, Reggie makes it clear that any offer that does not hit this mark will not be acceptable and the two will hold out for free agency.  With both agent and money manager making it known that this is not possible, Jason hits the phone again with the Dallas GM to get more money and a shorter contract approved, but when he is able to make the world move, it is not enough for Reggie and there will be no further talks until his number is met.

Ricky Jerret comes clean to his teammate about what has happened between himself and Alonzo’s mother.  Wanting to make it known about how badly he wants to win, Ricky tells his teammate that the relationship is over and he hopes that they can be more than teammates on the field, but friends as well.  Alonzo seems to take the news well and the two are appearing to bond, but the younger receiver is not going to let a dead dog lie and relocates Ricky’s car.  Knowing that there is trouble brewing between the two, Larry comes into the picture and pulls Ricky aside and wants to make sure that his pick will be able to hold it together with all of the childish antics that are going on.  Doing a breathing exercise, Ricky is able to calm down and thinks that he will be ok, but when he sees what happened to his car, there is very little that deep breaths can do to keep his rage from foaming over.

After the party, Joe is still on the boat and surveying the damage.  When his boss’s captain shows up and tells him and his friends they need to leave, Joe finds out that he is not alone.  Telling the two girls that are still on the boat with him to leave, he finds out that they have invited some good friends to come and partake in the goodness.  Finding out that one of the friends is Victor Cruz, Joe hijacks the boat for the afternoon to try and sign one of the hottest receivers in the game.  Knowing that he is a dead man when making landfall, Joe is able to get a verbal commitment for a meeting with Victor, but that may not be enough since the boss was wanting his yacht back for the entire day.

Spencer is thinking that life is great, waking up next to his ex after a successful night.  Since she knows that he has been hiding something from her, she begs him to go and get checked out by a neurologist to make sure that his concussion symptoms have not gotten any worse.  As any player would say, he is fine, but goes to get checked out and before he gets his MRI to make sure everything is fine, he gets a call from Jason.  Running down to restaurant that Vernon and Reggie are having lunch, Spencer pulls his friend aside and lays into him.  Knowing that Vernon cannot get better money than the best defensive player in the league, he would still be the highest paid tackle in the game and needs to take the current contract.  Although Vernon does not agree and thinks that free agency is the way to go to get paid, he does not understand the chances of getting injured and possibly not being signed by another team again.  Making sure Vernon knows his stance, Spencer comes out and says that once his friend is able to pay back the three hundred thousand dollars that he was loaned, Spencer will be out of his life for good.

The title of this episode is spot on, heads will definitely roll after everything that is going on.  Ricky is going to beat the ever loving crap out of Alonzo for what was done to his car and there is nothing that anyone is going to be able to do about it, but I don’t think that Alonzo is working alone in what is happing right now.  Charles is tempted, very tempted by this young woman and is left questioning his choices, even about getting married, it is just sad, even though he wants to break it off before anything actually starts.  There is no telling what is going to happen to Joe after stealing his boss’s boat for the afternoon and not having a new client to show for it, but he is a talker and should be able to get away with just a slap on the wrist.  The Spencer and Reggie story is going to be the biggest blowup and it is going to happen soon.  Even though Spencer is trying to keep himself calm around Vernon’s friend, Spencer is going to lose it and pound the man into the ground if he does not keep his mouth closed.  Vernon’s eyes are started to be opened by what Spencer has told him and I can see him leaving his boy in the dust, but there is always the worry about what happened on the yacht the previous night and pictures of him doing things that he was convinced to do.  Reggie seems to hold all of the cards, even though nobody is willing to let him play them…just yet.

In the short time I've been watching True Detective I have to say I'm quite impressed with the particular feel that each episode seems to bring to the table. Sometimes it is horrendously bleak, leaving me wanting a hug or a new puppy to try and lighten the mood. Other times it is simply intense, leaving my heart racing.  

But up until last night, I never felt paranoid watching the show, and the little and giant surprises that came together in last night's episode "Down Will Come" have me now wondering quite a few things when it comes to the plot and exactly where we are going. I don't mean that in a bad way, I know some folks didn't find last night interesting until the final ten minutes of the episode and that's okay, but I personally thought last night's episode to be utterly enthralling because well...let's get right down to it. It feels like there is a bigger conspiracy at work here than any of us previously thought. 

We know Caspere was about as dirty as they come in every sense of the phrase but we have to look at the events that are happening here...starting with Frank. He said something last night to his suspicious assistant that caught my ear, the fact that someone was drawing him out onto the street and he is right in that. I mean, we watched this guy go from a man who was clearly about to get out of a life of crime and suddenly he is drawn right back into the underworld he so desperately tried to escape. Not to mention what the mayor said about other folks waiting in the wings to take over the casino.

While that may seem on the surface like oh well, it's crooks screwing over other crooks, let's not forget Frank is connected to the Caspere case just like our task force and well...it's interesting to see how those dots are starting to connect as well. Specifically with Ani and how suddenly her father seems to know a lot of the men she is either investigating or working for at this point in time. It's just too perfect a coincidence if you ask me, and even Velcoro has his suspicions that their work is much ado about nothing until someone benefits with a lovely monetary incentive package.  

But the paranoia I felt last night came to its peak with the gunfight that happened in the heart of Vinci. Paul's fine work led to a suspect and before they could close in and arrest him, gunfire rained down on the task force and the resulting and intense fire fight ended with our suspect and plenty of everyday civilians left dead and more questions that answers. After all, why did the suspects detonate the third level floor of their building? Was it someone as simple as drugs or something more? I ask that, because, it seems like they were prepared and waiting for the task force, almost as though someone tipped them off.

Not to mention the strange behavior of the primary suspect, who had the upper hand against Velcoro and Paul and chose to give up and let the two of them blow him away. Either way, it's clear to me that Caspere was the tip of the iceberg and some strange forces are at work here for all of our characters. Who and why aren't clear yet, but with half the season in the books, it's clear we are headed toward the truth in impressive fashion. Until next time. 

It is so easy to find yourself in a situation that you should not be in.  It is more difficult to leave the situation when your friends are begging you to stay and enjoy.  Sometimes it is just better to know when to say when and walk away, if they are really your friends, they will understand.  So many people succumb to pure pressure and worry about what others think about them, when they should be focused on being their own person and making their own decisions, the right decisions.

Spencer and Joe are looking to expand their business by signing more sports stars and have the perfect meeting and a great idea in mind.  Renting a house and taking their boss’ yacht, they are ready to show their perspective clients the bling that being part of their roster can bring.  With everyone that is anyone in Miami showing up, Spencer is happy that the little plan worked but now he will need to close some deals, but worrying about his current clients is his primary concern when he hears that his friend Ricky has gotten into trouble once again.

Ricky Jarret is trying his best to fit in on his new team.  Since he only wants to play and win, he is hoping that everyone else on the team is feeling the same way, but he quickly discovers that one teammate is not willing to jump on his band wagon.  After finding all of his possessions soaked in the cold tub, Ricky knows who to blame and shoves his Jordans in the young receivers face and starts a little spat in the locker room.  With Spencer confronting him about his short fuse problem, Ricky finds out what his teammates beef with him really is, Ricky is sleeping with his mother.  Listening to everyone tell him what to do about the situation, Ricky will not allow anyone to tell him what to do and since he likes the woman, he is going to continue with his current ventures.

Vernon is happy to be at the party and of course he brings his manager Reggie along for the festivities.  Reggie will not leave his friend's side and has decided to make the most of this opportunity at the party to rag on Spencer for what is going down.  After the only adult at the party leaves, everyone jumps into over drive and when Vernon meets some new fans and sees them doing coke, he wants to bounce, but his boy Reggie convinces him otherwise.  Drinking, smoking and doing blow, Vernon is having the time of his life with his friend, but pictures are taken and even though he knew what was right at the time, Vernon is going to be put in a very uncomfortable situation.  Reggie is trying to get a piece of his good friend out of Spencer as well, but the retired NFL star will not be pushed around and makes it very well known that he will not back down from his responsibility.  

Charles Greane and Joe are having the times of their lives at the party, although in their own different ways.  Charles is starting to remember how much he loved the game before he hung it up and lets loose when the sun goes down.  Dancing, drinking and puking, he feels like he is back in his prime and seems to be ready to get back on the field.  Joe has taken an alternative route and tries to get his new hook ups by becoming one of the boys.  Playing dice and not shying away from anything that comes to the table, Joe has found his niche and has formed bonds with possible clients that he normally would not have. Feeling comfortable to the point of yelling something out to the crowd that he shouldn’t have, Joe knows that this is the night of his life and wants make the most of it.

When the Dolphins Head Coach leaves the party, everyone goes into overdrive and makes the most of the night.  The drinking is not the only thing that is keeping everyone going as all of the drugs come out of the woodwork as well.  With people doing whatever they want at will, it is easy to see how things could get out of hand and any feelings that have been kept deep down inside are starting to surface.  Without being able to control themselves, it easy to see that some of what is happening at the party will be on the news or TMZ within the following week.

Ok, I admit it.  I was not a huge fan when the show started, but now I am bought in.  With more of a natural feel and the characters starting to matter, it has truly grown on me.  I cannot wait to see what comes out from Ricky messing around with his teammate’s mother and what wild and crazy thing that Reggie is going to do to try and mess with Spencer.  Even with these two great story lines going on, I am dying to see Charles suit up, either at his house or on the field since he is starting to have remorse about his retirement.  What will happen next?  Who knows, but I am sure that there will be a bombshell dropped and someone will be on the news, or be fired, or starting a blackmail scheme.  

The uprising in Pakistan is far from over and there is little anyone from the President’s office can do about it.  Walter Larson is ready to get on the plane and fly over the pond to get his feet on the ground and talk some sense into General Raja, but he is having some problems of his own. Not feeling right and almost passing out from the pain in his lower extremities while talking to the President, Walter is battling a kidney stone.  Turning back to the states to get surgery before his libido is erased, Walter gets a call from Alex Talbot informing him of the demands Raja has to take down the new regime.

Zeke and Glenn have been put in a holding cell on the carrier and are awaiting their court martial.  Zeke gets a special visitor, Lt. Sweet who is baring his child.  With her mind made up, she will keep the child and does not care if Zeke is around or not, but Zeke is not willing to give up on this relationship just yet.  After a cover up story has been put in place for the roofied flight, both Zeke and Glenn are off the hook for accidently shooting down a drone.  With a clear head, Zeke puts in a call to his ex to tell her that he is coming home, but before he leaves, he needs the biggest shipment of goods that she can get her hands on to have enough startup money to make a new life for themselves in California.

Alex Talbot is waiting to see what his fate has in store for him.  After talking with General Raja and knowing that Walter Larson is the key to over throwing the crazy General Zaman, Alex is given a message that must be delivered before it is too late.  Calling on his friend Rafiq one more time, Alex has to get to the embassy and contact Larson using the ambassador’s private line.  Being turned away, Alex and Rafiq come up with a plan to sneak into the office and after talking to the ambassador’s assistant, they are all in agreement that he has lost it completely and are ready to see the world come to an end.  Getting through to Walter Larson, Alex is able to list off all of the demands and get the ball rolling for a siege to get General Zaman out of power.

Talk about a set up episode for something bigger to come.  Zeke is going to try to be in his current kids lives and his future kids life as well, I can see the ex-wife and the girlfriend having to fight over who gets the oversized pilot once he gets his final score.  Alex Talbot has become very essential for being the go to guy, and I will admit that I am a little bit surprised that he was released from the prison, but I do see how it was not beneficial to having him locked up.  Walter Larson seems to be primary story line in this episode, having to continue his normal battle of wits with the other members of the war room and trying to convince the President that he is doing the right thing.  But Walter has his problems at home as well since he has not been able to talk to the President about his wife being appointed to the Supreme Court. 

There is just so much and a ton of little things, it is hard to even imagine what will happen in the next episode, but I am looking forward to it.  I want to see what happens with General Raja when his demands are met and he is not really looking to remove his crazy half-brother from power.  Walter Larson has his own medical problems going on and has turned back to Pakistan, how will he be able to stand and talk with any of the people he needs to when being in so much pain?  I am pretty sure another misunderstanding will happen due to this, but who knows how far it will go.  Hope you are enjoying this series as much as I am.  I can tell you, I am hooked and have a hard time waiting to see what happens next.

Turns out that last night was the first time in a long time that I stood up and shouted at my television because of the complete and utter hell True Detective put my emotions through with the games it decided to play with my heart in the opening moments of the show. After all, at the end of the last week, Detective Velcoro was shot dead abruptly and we were left to digest that moment.  

Oh but guess what? Turns out Ray wasn't dead after all! Yup, that's right "Maybe Tomorrow" decided to surprise us with a meta moment that appeared to be his final seconds on this earth that turned out to be nothing more than a bad dream as Ray awakens to discover he was blasted with rubber bullets and he made it out alive of Ben Caspere's second home/sex dungeon with a few broken ribs and some shattered pride over pissing his pants, and that pleasant surprise is why I shouted at my television because I spent a week prepping my feels for the show to continue without one of its major lead actors. That's just cruel to play with us like that, but I'm glad Ray's okay and I digress.  

That stunning moment set the tone for one dark episode from the show, and as Velcoro took a little time to heal and continue his journey toward sobriety, the case to find who killed Ben Caspere continued, and well...not much happened there last night outside of the final moments of the show where we witnessed our masked man setting fire to the vehicle that Ben's mutilated corpse traveled in back in the first episode, so we won't spend much time talking about the case today. Instead we are going to shift gears to the incredible darkness the show brought forth...courtesy of Frank.

Now Frank's journey last night was just...disturbing. After all, his money is gone, he's having trouble with the wife at home and there's a feel as though his empire and all he's built is completely and utterly crumbling. But matters only get worse when the body of a member of his crew turns up and Frank turns to the old friends he used to run with in the streets for help. Santos feels that he owes Frank nothing and it leads to one brutal fist fight between the two of them. Yet the regret over this that's evident on Frank's face upon returning home speaks volumes to something we have seen in the show before. It's clear that Frank wants to be a legit businessman. He wants to be a good man, and perhaps someday a father and is filled with angst anytime he has to unleash the man he used to be.

Otherwise, I was quite surprised to see a transition/filler episode this early in the season. Not a bad episode by any means, we got a lot of insight into the weirdness of the Vinci mayor and his garbage family, but not much else and the rest of the darkness this episode oozed from Ray and his regret for how his life has turned out but outside of that, we are sadly no closer to learning more about the potentially bigger picture that is slowly building here. Caspere and his death still remain a mystery, the masked man is still out there and well...I'm hoping I'm not the only one who noticed that it looks like the guy who died from Frank's crew, looks like he had his eyes melted out with acid as well. Until next time.