HBO’s ‘True Detective: Night Country’ Episode 5 Review - Bad Mine, Dirty Cop

Some of the characters in the fifth episode of True Detective: Night Country have had enough. They have lost every bit of patience with people who irritate them. One of these characters is Kayla, Prior's wife, who gives Prior his bag and tells him to vacate the premises. As far as she is concerned, he can sleep at the police station, given how he has always prioritized not his family but his job. The other character who reaches the breaking point is Liz Danvers. When Leah is found and beaten up at a protest, Liz orders Navarro to put her in the cell. "She needs to get how vulnerable she's makin' herself," explains Liz to Navarro.

Episode 5 finally reveals the dirty deeds of the villain: Silver Sky Mining. Apparently, "the mine bankrolls Tsalal, and then Tsalal pushes out bogus pollution numbers for 'em." Liz thinks she has found solid evidence (thanks to Prior), but her path is obstructed when she is told to accept that the scientists died due to a weather event (Slab avalanche). The tension between the mine and the local people was there from the beginning. During the protest scene, things get chaotic, and a police officer starts hitting Leah. "She's a fucking kid!" Navarro interferes. This is not the only visual related to "violence against a kid" here. Ennis has had its share of stillbirths - a revelation that leads Liz to a graveyard, where she notices a tiny coffin. The dead in this episode are used for sentimental purposes, which makes sense given the episode opens with Navarro hugging the ashes of her sister, Julia.

While we still don't know what exactly happened to the scientists at Tsalal, we do now know that the titular Night Country refers to the underground ice caves and that those spiral signs we saw throughout the show were used to warn hunters about the "places where the ice would swallow them whole." We later, through a characters' reminiscence, learn that ice literally swallowed someone as a kid once. I am talking about that scene where Hank tells Prior about the time he rescued him with an ice axe. A story like this should make a son see his father as a hero, but Hank and Prior's relationship shows no signs of improvement. And then, there is that scene towards the end where...

With just one more episode to go, I am excited to see where this story will end. How will the supernatural blend with human corruption? Will some relationships undergo maintenance or get permanently dissolved? Liz and Navarro drive into a blizzard. Will they come out with satisfying answers? Let's wait and watch.

Final Score - [8/10]