In 1980, partner detectives Wayne Hays (Mahershala Ali) and Roland West (Stephen Dorff) as they investigate a macabre crime involving two missing children, Will and Julie Purcell.
In the episode, Hays and West make a last attempt in finding closure to the case, including interrogating a figure of their past.
According to Nielsen Media Research, the episode was seen by an estimated 1.38 million household viewers and gained a 0.4 ratings share among adults aged 18–49.
The episode received extremely positive reviews from critics, who praised the performances, character development, and directing.
Police Chief Warren (Gareth Williams) and Kindt (Brett Cullen) are furious for the statement and confront Hays (Mahershala Ali) and West (Stephen Dorff).
Hays and West question James' widow, who works at a nursing home, about the black man with the milky eye.
In the mansion, they discover the pink room in the basement, which contains a painting on the wall with three figures: "Princess Mary", "Sir Junius", and "Queen Isabel".
The next day, Hays reads an excerpt from Amelia's book, where she talks in detail about Mike Ardoin, one of Julie's neighbors.
The site's consensus states: "While viewers may be split by how 'Now Am Found' concludes the central mystery of this True Detective incarnation, most will agree that the richly emotional finale brings closure to Wayne Hayes' story, ending on a bittersweet, gently optimistic note that is refreshing for a series known for its unblinking nihilism.
Club gave the episode an "A−" grade and wrote, "'Now Am Found' delivers everything I expected from a True Detective finale: two hardbitten men having a talking like this contest, a perversely cheerful dungeon for a kidnapped child, and a last-minute revelation in the form of that conspicuous landscaper and his scampering daughter.
"[6] Alan Sepinwall of Rolling Stone wrote, "Pizzolatto is still iffy on plot, but with this season he reestablished the series as one of TV's most preeminent acting showcases.
"[7] Lanre Bakare of The Guardian wrote, "The first good TV show of the year came to a head, but was the pay-off too silly and simplistic?
"[9] Darren Franich of Entertainment Weekly gave the episode a "C" grade and wrote, "True Detective season 3 tried hard to challenge Wayne, but the show felt his desk job as a vivid punishment: Truly, a worse Hell than Long-Range Recon.
The show couldn't escape its own broseph sensibility, a sanctified way of worshipping its tragically awesome heroes and the truth of their detection.
"[10] Amy Glynn of Paste gave the episode an 8.5 out of 10 and wrote, "After the relentless dreariness of much of the season, it's not amiss, and it's tempered by the way the protagonist finds this out and then fails to realize he knows what he knows.
"[11] Emily St. James of Vox wrote, "There is a dark force animating the True Detective universe and our own, and all you might ever see is this narrow strip of light where you stand.
"[12] Stephen Kornhaber of The Atlantic wrote, "In any other crime show, leaving out some details about the protagonist's family might seem standard, but in this case, doing so short-circuited the supposed profundity of Wayne's personal journey.
"[13] Keith Phipps of Vulture gave the episode a 4 star rating out of 5 and wrote, "And what's true of the back half of this finale is true to the season as a whole, which started strong, dipped precipitously, then came back with a string of episodes that made it all worthwhile, and made it easy to wish it won't be another four years before we get a fourth season.
"[14] Tony Sokol of Den of Geek gave the episode a perfect 5 star rating out of 5 and wrote, "In the first season, the first glimpse we got of the serial killer was him cutting a crooked circle in a patch of grass.
In a shorter season, True Detective's efforts would have been an intriguing interplay — perhaps still not entirely profound, but interesting and loaded enough to provoke thought.
"[16] Scott Tobias of The New York Times wrote, "No one has to say, 'The light's winning', as Rust Cohle does at the end of Season 1, but Pizzolatto generously implies it.