True Detective might be dying, but its memes can live forever

The Hollywood Reporter published a profile of HBO's incoming head of programming Casey Bloys this morning, one that suggests Nic Pizzolatto's anthology series True Detective is unlikely to return for a third season. The writing's been on the wall regarding the show's fate for a few months at this point: HBO avoided mentioning renewal when it announced it had signed Pizzolatto to an exclusive deal through 2018, and Pizzolatto himself once said that he couldn't imagine doing more than three seasons of the show because of the heavy workload. A few eagle-eyed observers also noted that HBO's pre-Game of Thrones sizzle reel referred to "the complete series" of True Detective rather than "every episode," a subtle indication no further episodes were in the pipeline. (THR's sources suggest Pizzolatto is working on a new project for the network.)

If you're sitting at your desk and lamenting the show's untimely demise — and maybe that's unlikely, given how season two's miserable slog thinned the ranks of true believers — I'd urge you to reconsider, if only because this gives the show its best crack at eternal life. True Detective was at its best when it was serving as fodder for pure, uncut memes, and its greatest spawn was #TrueDetectiveSeason2, a hashtag that was inescapable for a few months last year. The premise was simple: you pick a picture of your favorite duo and suggest they'd do a fine job exploring a tiny piece of America's maybe-magical criminal underbelly. The Golden Girls? Sure! Drake and Rob Ford? Why not! Michael Jackson and E.T.? Have at thee, internet!

Season three will live in our hearts and minds

The furor died down once the cast of True Detective's second season was actually announced, and the disappointing nature of that season has rendered #TrueDetectiveSeason3 a little more quiet. (Game of Thrones' Tormund and Brienne seem to be popular contemporary choices.) But if True Detective's third season never comes to fruition, its namesake meme can live forever. There's no starry cast announcement on the horizon that promises to spoil the fun; there's no joyless writing in the distance that'll make you ashamed for watching the show in the first place. #TrueDetectiveSeason3 can live within our hearts and minds, assuming its rightful place as both a source of cheap laughter and an indicator of some kind of strange bond. Every new use of the hashtag has limitless potential. And if you need to see it in practice to understand, here's a recent example featuring The Verge's Lizzie Plaugic and Kaitlyn Tiffany:

#truedetectiveseason3 https://t.co/0mR3HyKMqx pic.twitter.com/IHhkbSpPuj

— Sean O'Kane (@sokane1) May 25, 2016

• ViaVulture
• SourceThe Hollywood Reporter