Next, we're shown the Alaskan landscape on December 17th, which is the last sunset of the year. As we head into the two weeks of darkness in which our show takes place, a herd of elk appears to lose their collective mind as they jump off a cliff with the setting of the sun. These dudes apparently know something bad is coming, and they're not about to stick around for it.
We cut to the Tsalal Arctic Research Station, where we observe members of the crew going about their day. When one of them appears to be having some type of seizure, he says, "She's awake," and the lights go out. We then cut to a delivery driver approaching the Station three days later. The driver enters the facility, calling for someone to help with the delivery but isn't finding anyone until we see a figure cut across the screen in the shadows. At one point, he drops his keys in the kitchen, and as he bends down to get them, he finds a human tongue on the floor.
After the intro, we meet one of our main characters, Detective Evangeline Navarro, played by Kali Reis. She's called to a local crab business to deal with a guy who hit a woman, and she appears to receive a call about the research station. Next, we meet our other main character, Liz Danvers, played by Jodie Foster. Liz shuts down the TV playing "Ferris Bueller" on repeat, and we see a shelf behind her holding all the movies. At first, it looks like this, but when we cut away and cut back to her, we can see the 1982 film "The Thing" is now front and center.
Liz is getting intel from Peter about the research station. Peter says the supply guy found the station empty, and the last contact with town was a week ago. Liz asks who funds the research center, and Peter says he'll look into it. He goes on to say they've been operating for 18 years, researching geology, biology, and the impacts of climate change. Peter gives a rundown on all of the men that were working at the research station and the roles each of them had there.
Liz asks what they're looking for under all the ice, and Peter says he thinks the origin of life. Liz then finds a whiteboard that says, "We are all dead," which definitely wasn't there the last time we saw it. Peter says they also found all the cell phones in the station, and at this point, Liz says they need to call search and rescue to begin looking for the men. Based on the age of the sandwich and the stench of the laundry, Liz estimates the men have been gone for at least 48 hours. She moves on to the tongue on the floor and, based on the markings, believes it belongs to a native woman who had been licking threads of fishing nets. She asks Hank, who we learn here is Peter's father, to see if a body has turned up that goes with the tongue.
Next, we see a lady named Rose gutting a wolf or a dog or a wolfdog. Anyway, she turns and greets a ghost man named Travis and asks what he wants. Then we cut back to downtown Inis, where Liz heads into the office and finds Navarro waiting for her. Liz immediately says it's not her tongue, but Navarro presses to see it anyway because she feels it belongs to a woman who was brutally killed in a case she worked six years earlier. Liz says Navarro can't see it because she's not part of APF anymore and was kicked off the case. After Navarro leaves, Liz tells Peter to pull the cold case files for Annie. As she receives a call from an angry parent regarding some trouble with her daughter Leah, Liz goes to meet this mother and learns that Leah was filming sex tapes with another teenage girl. As Liz is driving them home and laying into Leah for her poor choices, a drunk driver nearly hits them and crashes into a telephone pole. Liz gets out of her car, and as she's approaching the vehicle, she steps on some shattered glass, and we see a very brief flashback. Based on the tennis shoes and jeans. As Liz pulls Stacy from the vehicle, she seems overly angry about the entire situation.
Next, Navarro meets with a man named Ryan, who we learn is the brother of Annie Kotak, and they talk about Annie's involvement in protests against the local mines. At one point, Ryan asks Navarro if she believes in God, and she says yes. He asks her why, and she says, "My last tour," and we see an insane flashback of her holding a wounded soldier who whispers "listen" in her ear. The conversation wraps up when Navarro receives a call from another cop, Cooper, who says, "It happened again," and Navarro heads out to meet him. He tells her that her sister hysterically called in, saying someone was in her apartment, even though the doors and windows were locked, and she was alone. Navarro enters the apartment and finds Julia, who apologizes and proclaims that she's nothing like their mother. Navarro says they can discuss options, presumably for drug use, but Julia refuses, saying no hospitals.
Back at the station, Hank tries to let Stacy, the drunk driver, go because of the racket she's making in her cell, but Liz says she can't let her go just because they've hooked up before. Hank says he's engaged to a Russian girl who's coming for Christmas, and they're going to be married. Liz tells Hank she needs the Kotak files that he took home after a flood, and he says he'll see if he has them.
Next, we see Peter at home, finding a disturbing drawing his kid did of a person with what looks like their eyes and fingers removed. He asks his wife Kayla about it, and she says it's a local legend from their culture that their grandmother had told their son. After this conversation, they start kissing, and when Peter's phone rings, Kayla appears to try to take a bite out of his neck. He pushes her off and takes the call from Liz, who says she needs him to go to his dad's and retrieve those cold case files from his house.
Peter heads over and finds his dad preparing a room for his new Russian wife. He sneaks into the other room to toss the files out the window just before his dad comes in. Cut back to Rose, who again sees Travis, the Barefoot ghost, outside her window. She begins following him into the dark.
Back at Liz's place, Peter eyes the files and asks for details about the case. Liz begins going through the files, saying Navarro was the first on the scene, and that her name was Annie, but most people called her Annie K. She had been stabbed 32 times.
Liz continues that the murder weapon was a sharp unidentified object that left a star-shaped wound, which was never found, and that her tongue had also been removed and never recovered. Liz says they left the missing tongue part under wraps so it didn't get out to the public. She goes on to say Annie was a midwife, activist, and protester fighting the mine and driving everyone nuts, leading to a lot of haters.
Peter says Liz lied to Navarro because she clearly does know the case, and that she did, in fact, study it. Liz said it's because Navarro was obsessed with the case and wouldn't let it go. She started bugging the wrong people and a person named Kate McConaughey, which got her in a lot of trouble, and Hank had to take her off the case. When Liz came to town, they started working together, and Navarro asked Liz to reopen the case, but she wouldn't do it because she said Innis the Place killed Annie. No killer was going to be found.
Next, Navarro visits a man named Eddie for some grown-up playtime. She later discovers his SpongeBob toothbrush and takes it with her as she's leaving.
Next, Leah is talking to Liz about the drunk drivers and says it's really stupid that we never talk about that day. Liz deflects by talking about Christmas plans, and Leah says, "You know you don't have to be my mom, Liz. I think my dad would have understood."
We cut to Liz asleep in her bed, and a child says, "Mommy." As the kid's hand touches Liz's shoulder, she says she's awake, which is the same thing the man said at the research station at the beginning of the episode. Liz then picks up a stuffed animal of a one-eyed polar bear and has a bit of a fearful look on her face.
Navarro has headed home while on a call with one of Annie's friends and asks if Annie ever mentioned the Tsalal station. Then Navarro hears she's awake through some interference or feedback on the call, and at that moment, she slams on her brakes as a one-eyed polar bear steps in front of her car.
We're back with Liz as she's laying out pictures of the men who were working at the research station. As she's sorting through everything. Liz also pulls out Annie's files and finds a picture of her wearing a coat very similar to one being worn by Raymond Clark, one of the station workers. But he had a patch on the shoulder where a tear was located in Annie's picture.
Liz is back at Tsalal and finds Navarro snooping around. They discuss the coat Liz had been looking at in her files, which signals to Navarro that Liz had looked into the case after all. They look through Raymond's things but are unable to find the coat. They also discuss Annie again, and Liz tells Navarro to let it go. Navarro says she can't do that because of how brutally she had been murdered.
Liz receives a call saying Rose had found something on the ice, and they head out to see what it is. Upon arriving, Navarro asks how she found it, and Rose said Travis showed her. To which Navarro says, "Travis is dead," and Rose says, "I know."
True Detective Season 4 Episode 1,ends as we see three frozen men who appear to have been petrified by whatever it was that put them there.
- Series Title : True Detective
- Season : 4
- Total Episodes : 6
- Release Date : January 14, 2024-E1
- Language : English
- Genre : Drama, Mystery
- OTT Platform : HBO, MAX
- Runtime : 55 Minutes
- Origin of Country : US
- Rating : 8.6 IMDb
- Cast :