Everything We Know About 'True Detective' Season 2 So Far

In an effort to get all my ducks in a row I decided to sit down and rewatch the first three episodes of this second season of “True Detective“, taking notes on each character, situation and the fictional city of Vinci.

Before getting to the dirty details, the nuts and bolts of the series begin with the murder of Vinci City Manager Benjamin Caspere, a murder that brings together Detective Ani Bezzerides (Rachel McAdams), Detective Ray Velcoro (Colin Farrell), Officer Paul Woodrugh (Taylor Kitsch) and career criminal attempting to go legit, Frank Semyon (Vince Vaughn).

Ray Velcoro is a drunk, troubled detective with an ex-wife looking for sole custody of their child and the misfortune of working the Caspere murder case while also having to answer to the corrupt Vinci police department, mayor and Frank Semyon. Semyon finds himself in a financial fix as a result of Caspere’s death as Caspere was a lynchpin in a land deal that was part of a $68 billion high speed rail up the coast of California that Semyon was organizing. However, with the death of Caspere, Semyon’s money suddenly disappears from the holding company and he’s left looking for financing so the deal can still go through. Problem is, he’s bleeding money and his casino can’t cover the cost of doing business in Vinci, which includes payoffs, one example being to the mayor.

Ani Bezzerides is a sheriff’s detective with a dark past including a passive father, a mother that took her own life and a sister whom she just caught working as a webcam sex solicitor. Ani, however, has her own sexual hangups, as do all of our main characters, and her ethics will be put to the test as the State is looking to her to not only solve Caspere’s murder, but get to the bottom of the corruption in Vinci at the same time beginning with Ray Velcoro.

Then there’s Paul Woodrugh, a war veteran and a highway patrol motorcycle officer, and, like everyone else, he has a dark past. His past includes working for the “nefarious military black ops” organization Black Mountain Security in the Middle East and he’s also dealing with his repressed homosexuality. These are two things he doesn’t wish to ever talk about and becomes hostile whenever either is tested or even referenced. He’s currently in a jam after an actress accused him of accepting oral sex in exchange for not giving her a traffic citation. He also may, or may not know Frank Semyon as evidenced by a run-in inside the club Lux Infinitum in the season’s third episode.

Then, of course, there is the city of Vinci itself, which is based on a real place, Vernon, CA, which exhibits corruption very similar to what’s taking place in the fictional Vinci. Some of what we know of Vinci from the show mostly comes from conversation between Bezzerides and Velcoro, such as it has 95 residents and a day-to-day influx of 70,000 people. To that point there has been a large focus on migrant workers and Vinci’s industrial sites.

Some are theorizing over a possible Native American angle the show may end up taking due to some of the production design (note the painting in Dr. Pitlor’s office) and the bird mask worn by our mystery man. Personally I’m thinking that’s more of a red herring than anything else. At the moment, I’m more curious about a brief glimpse of a sign we see in the opening seconds of the first episode that reads “Contaminated” as the camera pans over land set aside as a future construction site, a detail it appears the fourth episode will be getting into promptly. The sign is visible for only a second, but it can’t be a coincidence.

That said, just below are notes I’ve taken on each character to this point. Feel free to suggest additions in the comments below as I will update this post as the season carries on.

Benjamin Caspere

Vinci’s City Manager
Over the course of 7 years his salary increased 15% annually
Killed, eyes burned out with acid, crotch blasted with a shotgun
Banned salary limits for elected officials
Sex addict, weakness for young women
Seeing shrink, Dr. Pitlor (Rick Springfield), for three years

Detective Ani Bezzerides (Rachel McAdams)

Ventura County detective
Failed marriage
Sexually adventurous
Partner is Elvis Ilinca (Michael Irby)
Arms herself with several knives
Father is Eliot Bezzerides (David Morse), a guru of sorts at Panticapaeum Institute
Mother killed herself by drowning herself in a river(?) — This detail I’m not entirely sure of as I cannot get straight just how many siblings Ani has. It sounds like her father suggests her sister, Athena Bezzerides, is her only sibling, but in a conversation she mentions she lived with four others, two of which committed suicide and two others that are currently in prison.
Sister is Athena Bezzerides, selling sex online and tells Ani, “Not everyone has a problem with sex”

Detective Ray Velcoro (Colin Farrell)

Deputy in LA sheriff’s dept before becoming Vinci detective
Dirty cop in the pocket of most of Vinci’s higher ups including the Mayor and his Lieutenant, Jeff Burris (James Frain)
Ex-wife is married to Richard Brune and is looking for sole custody of their son, Chad, who may or may not be (most likely not) their son and the result of his wife being raped.
Frank Semyon tipped him off to the man that raped and beat his wife Gena (Abigail Spencer) when he worked for LA police, putting him in Frank’s pocket
Killed the man that raped his wife
Lives right next door to the police department
Beats up Los Angeles Times journalist writing eight-part expose on Vinci at Frank’s request
His father (Fred Ward) is an ex-cop, who sits at home drunk and smoking weed
Was shot, not killed, by the man in the bird mask with rubber bullets, the kind riot police use

Officer Paul Woodrugh (Taylor Kitsch)

Motorcycle cop
Veteran of the Afghanistan war
Was a mercenary for the “nefarious military black ops” organization Black Mountain Security in the Middle East. He tells his captain, “We were working for America sir”
Closet homosexual
Accused of accepting a blowjob from an actress to avoid giving her a traffic citation
Kitsch has confirmed the scars on the left side of “his hip up to his shoulder are shrapnel scars.”
Girlfriend is Emily (Adria Arjona)
Being followed by Velcoro’s partner, Detective Teague Dixon (W. Earl Brown)
His mother (Lolita Davidovich) was a dancer in Vegas and loves Clint Eastwood
Grew up with his mother in a one-bedroom trailer
May or may not know Frank Semyon as evidenced when the two bump into one another at the club Lux Infinitum

Frank Semyon (Vince Vaughn)

Former crime lord and current casino owner attempting to go legit with a $68 billion high speed rail up the coast of California called the California Central Rail Corridor.
His deal goes bust after Ben Caspere is killed and the holding company with his money turns up empty
Grew up in Chicago
Struggling with impotency (most likely brought on by stress) and attempting in vitro fertilization with his wife, Jordan (Keilly Reilly), a former D-list actress and something of a Lady Macbeth figure
Seen paying off the mayor

Jordan Semyon (Kelly Reilly)

Former D-list actress and Frank Semyon’s wife
Attempting in vitro fertilization
A bit of a question mark in the series so far. Could she be the head of the snake, working behind Frank’s back? Who, more than her, knows about Frank’s every business move and has already shown she may be just as, if not more, ruthless than Frank? Or, at the very least, more cunning?

Vinci Mayor Austin Chessani (Ritchie Coster)

Wife is Veronica Chessani
Lives in Bel Air
Has a drug-addicted son

Tony Chessani (Vinicius Machado)

Vinci Mayor’s son
Has a drug-addiction
Flaunts his ability to mimic several accents
Refers to himself as some sort of event organizer, which we can read into as much as we like

Betty Chessani (Emily Rios)

Vinci Mayor’s daught
Seems to be on the up-and-up and may perhaps aid in bringing down her father by the end of the season

Lieutenant Jeff Burris (James Frain)

Lieutenant in the Vinci police department and Ray Velcoro’s superior
Is he hiding something? Did he take part in Caspere’s murder or is he simply attempting to cover his tracks?
Could he be the man in the bird mask?

Man in the Bird Mask

Throughout first episode is driving the car with a dead Ben Caspere in the back the entire time
Second episode shoots Ray
Third episode is assumed to be the one that torches the car

CURRENTLY PRESUMED SUSPECT