It's always interesting to read fan theories on a successful show. In True Detective: Night Country, we follow Jodie Foster's Chief Liz Danvers as she looks for the killer of the Tsalal researchers. One crazy theory is that it was the cleaning ladies in True Detective season 4 who did it.
But what is this crazy fan theory, and is there any truth to it? Why would the women go to such lengths? Here's what we know.
Spoiler Warning: This article includes spoilers for True Detective: Night Country, so proceed with caution.
What Is the Crab Factory Theory? Who Are the Cleaning Ladies in True Detective?
Avid fans of the show hopped on Reddit to discuss their theories behind the killer in the series.
While some thought it was Danvers who killed the scientists, some proposed a "crab factory theory" wherein the cleaning ladies in True Detective were behind the murders.
The theory comes from one of the earlier episodes when Danvers investigates a call for help over domestic abuse happening at the Blue King Crab processing facility.
In this episode, we meet a couple of cleaning ladies who help each other out. One of the ladies, Blair (played by Kathryn Wilder), was abused by her ex-boyfriend at work.
After Danvers makes an arrest, Blair moves in with her colleague, Bee (played by Diane E. Benson).
The two women were suspicious at the time because they acted weirdly when Danvers showed them the spiral symbol.
Another reason fans came up with the crab factory theory is that Blair only had three fingers, which matches the prints found at the corpsicle crime scene.
Fans also theorized that the scientists were killed by the workers of the crab factory in retaliation to Annie Kowtok's (played by Nivi Pedersen) murder.
The scientists were "flash frozen" in the flash-freezing process used on the crabs.
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Who Killed the Scientists in True Detective: Night Country?
Although True Detective: Night Country kept pushing the supernatural angle to its fans, it turns out there was nothing supernatural about the deaths of the Tsalal researchers.
As revealed in the finale of True Detective season 4, the cleaning ladies at the crab factory were behind the murders.
Taking her opportunity, Bee (played by Diane E. Benson) gathered a group of Iñupiat women in the middle of the night. They led the scientists outside and ordered them to strip off their clothes at gunpoint.
Although this was almost close to the crab factory theory, the women did not use flash freezing to kill the men. Instead, they forced the scientists to keep walking until they froze to death.
As it turns out, the women discovered that the Tsalal researchers were behind Annie K's murder six years ago. Thus, they are referred to by the showrunner, Issa López, as "The Justice Ladies."
In an interview, López says:
"These women are invisible, which is a tremendous disadvantage socially, because justice is never going to be served to them. But at the same time, it's their superpower. They have access and can do things that nobody will suspect them of doing. That includes a big murder."
And if you're wondering, no, Danvers and Trooper Evangeline Navarro (played by Kali Reis) did not arrest the Justice Ladies. Danvers simply shrugs this admission as "Some questions don't have answers."
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