The Next Episode of ‘True Detective: Night Country’ Is Dropping Early

If you have a hard time seeing value in the Super Bowl (it’s the Oscars of football), perhaps this news will do the trick: HBO is releasing the next episode of True Detective: Night Country early to avoid competing with the big game.

HBO made the announcement following the premiere of episode 4 on February 4. Episode 5, titled “Part 5,” will stream early on Max this Friday, February 9, at 9:00PM ET / 6:00PM PT. (That’s 8:00PM for my neighbors in the best time zone, Central Standard.) The episode will still air at its usual time on Sunday night, when most of America will be tuned in to the Super Bowl—whether for the ads, the Halftime Show (it’s Usher this year, FYI), the possibility of seeing Taylor Swift cheering for her football boyfriend, or the actual game itself.

This is great news for fans of True Detective: Night Country, especially following “Part 4,” which ended with our newest person of interest, Otis Heiss, making a gnarly declaration: After telling Danvers (Jodie Foster) that suspect Raymond Clark “went back down to hide”—whatever that means!—he says, “He’s hiding in the Night Country … We’re all in the Night Country now.” Yeah! Welcome to Night Country, bitch!

On a more serious note: I’ve been consistently struck by the comfortable pacing and structure of each episode, and impressed by showrunner Issa López‘s ability to combine visceral, personal storytelling with a thrilling mystery—one that isn’t getting hung up on whether or not ghosts are real. While much of episode 4 was a bummer, there were some moments of reprieve: Jodie Foster drunk as a skunk, Christopher Eccleston lounging in bed with a teeth whitening tray in his mouth, and the revelation that every man in Ennis, Alaska is depressed and watching Elf on Christmas Eve.

With only two episodes left, we’re all anxious to see how López lands this creepy-ass plane. Episode 6—the finale—will air at its usual time on February 18.

(featured image: HBO)