True Detective

Former Louisiana State CID partners Martin Hart and Rustin Cohle give separate statements to a pair of investigators about the murder of a prostitute 17 years earlier.

Under pressure to land a suspect in the Lange murder, Quesada warns Hart and Cohle that they might be replaced by three detectives from a new task force. The pair lobbies for extra time to follow up on a new lead.

A hidden image at the church leads Cohle and Hart to Joel Theriot, a minister whose parishioners finger a scarred "tall man" seen with Dora Lange. Hart gets sidetracked after Maggie sets Cohle up with a friend at a C&W bar.

Martin is faced with marital problems. The search for Reggie Ledoux leads the detectives to a motorcycle gang called the Iron Crusaders, which Rust previously worked undercover.

A violent denouement in the forest clears the Dora Lange case and turns Cohle and Hart into heroes. They settle into a healthier living regime as Hart returns to his family, and Cohle starts a relationship while gaining a new reputation.

Maggie revealed Cohle's activities in 2002 when his relationship with Hart fractured, and he quit the force.