Eagle-eyed viewers noticed a strange detail in the latest episode of the TV series True Detective, which featured a pair of laughably generic poster designs for fictional bands. Fans took to X to share their thoughts, with most believing that the posters were AI-generated due to strange characterless design and bizarre typos.
While a showrunner aimed to quell the controversy, fans were still insistent that the posters – AI or otherwise – were a strange move that didn't make sense for the plotline. There are plenty of AI art generators available and most are fairly efficient, yet we're still treated to the occasional AI fail that reminds us that graphic designers are still a necessity.
The posters feature in the background as part of some feeble set dressing to the simple bedroom. One poster appears to be for an imaginary K-pop group, featuring a somewhat legitimate-looking logo in the top right corner alongside a shot of the group.
The true design crime is the genetic 'METAL' poster that seems to be an amalgamation of every 80s rock band. Besides the band's rather obvious name, the design is a blatant ripoff of the Metalica logo. The poster also features copy that reveals the band will be performing their "2st LIVE" show on May 31. Yes, you read that right, "2st".
While people took to X to poke fun at the posters, True Detective showrunner Issa López attempted to defend the strange designs. "The idea is that it's so sad up there that some kid with AI made the posters for a loser Metal festival for boomers," she tweeted in response. Regarding the odd K-pop poster, López claims that "There was a line in the scene about his daughter liking K pop-- but it just dragged the scene down, so I cut it."
Many felt that López's justification was a little convoluted and some fans were understandably disappointed by the oversight. One fan called the move "offensively lazy" while another called it a "Lack of care!" adding that it "Feels like details don’t matter as much as we believed. Takes some fun out of the experience."
As we've seen countless times in recent months, not only is AI use getting more prominent, but so are people's detection skills. With Midjourney's leaked artist database causing controversy and Magic the Gathering catching similar flack for careless AI use, companies are increasingly getting called out. While it's unconfirmed if the posters are actually AI, it certainly serves as a reminder to hire a competent graphic designer next time.
