True Detective

[HodgePodgeRogerDodger]

I enjoy Marty over Rust. I can’t take nihilists seriously.

 

[AnOminous]

I enjoy Marty over Rust. I can’t take nihilists seriously.

The show would have been completely pointless without both of them.

 

[Overly Serious]

I enjoy Marty over Rust. I can’t take nihilists seriously.

Well the show doesn't require you to side with him. And the end suggests he has changed his position. He's the epitome of someone who has spent his life staring at the worst of humanity and inflicted suffering and still chooses to fight it. That's what makes him compelling. Plus Matthew McConaughey's performance is superb.

 

[HodgePodgeRogerDodger]

The show would have been completely pointless without both of them.

i enjoy their back-and-forth. I can’t take nihilists seriously.

Well the show doesn't require you to side with him. And the end suggests he has changed his position. He's the epitome of someone who has spent his life staring at the worst of humanity and inflicted suffering and still chooses to fight it. That's what makes him compelling. Plus Matthew McConaughey's performance is superb.

It’s not about siding with him or a personal disagreement with the philosophy. I just don’t take it seriously.

 

[AnOminous]

Well the show doesn't require you to side with him. And the end suggests he has changed his position.

He was a philosophical nihilist and so walled-off from his own emotions that he was basically crazy, but he was still a human being. Even despite fairly obviously being an antinatalist, the one thing that would send him into an absolutely berserk rage was harming a child.

If he really had given up on life as much as his philosophical outlook would suggest, why did he even bother to do any of the things he did? He could have just crawled off and drank himself to death.

 

[Overly Serious]

If he really had given up on life as much as his philosophical outlook would suggest, why did he even bother to do any of the things he did? He could have just crawled off and drank himself to death.

Something which Marty straight-up asks him in the show.

 

[TheHarbinger]

If he really had given up on life as much as his philosophical outlook would suggest, why did he even bother to do any of the things he did? He could have just crawled off and drank himself to death.

He explains that he is suicidal but his programming doesn't allow him to directly kill himself. So he slowly drinks and drugs his way into poor health. And later takes extreme risks against his own life like breaking into mansions or illegally entering property for his own private investigations. He nearly gets stabbed to death and once he wakes up in the hospital he realizes that he would rather live than die (a common trope in crime stories where someone has a near death experience).

This is how lots of characters on The Sopranos are written. They slowly eat, drink, and drug themselves. Get into shootouts. Then wake up in the hospital after nearly being killed and tell everyone "each day is a gift". Then within a year of being recovered are back to being pessimistic or addicted and miserable.

 

[AnOminous]

Then within a year of being recovered are back to being pessimistic or addicted and miserable.

Which is probably how Rust ended up after the show and the "happy ending" (actually severely bleak and pessimistic ending with just the tiniest trace of hope left).

I still love Rust, though. Goddamn what an insane badass. (Also, remember why Marty is sniffing his fingers?)

Something which Marty straight-up asks him in the show.

One of my favorite scenes between them other than the utterly intense fight they had after Rust did the unforgivable (cucking him).

Basically Rust expresses his philosophy, Marty is like "wtf is WRONG with you?"

 

[Rust Chole]

The Dream