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Amazon.co.uk Review
Teeming with gang-bangers, perverts, rapists and killers, The Shield is unabashedly adult TV drama; and even liberal viewers may flinch at plots involving child pornography and serial murder. The first series of this uncompromising police drama focuses on pugnacious detective Vic Mackey (Michael Chiklis), whose amoral Strike Team employs dubious tactics in the crime-ridden (and fictional) Farmington district of Los Angeles. Mackey and his maverick partners are at odds with seasoned detectives and beat cops, escalating tensions with precinct Captain Aceveda (Benito Martinez), a Latino with flexible scruples and a political agenda.
The series invites viewers to form their own judgments regarding Mackey's volatile behaviour, which includes killing an undercover cop in the electrifying pilot episode. While each episode stands alone, the arc of the series incorporates Aceveda's campaign to end Mackey's career, the self-loathing of a homosexual rookie (Michael Jace) whose partner (Catherine Dent) is Mackey's occasional mistress, a straight-laced detective (Jay Karnes) yearning for respect, Mackey's compassionate attempt to rehabilitate a crack whore (Jamie Brown, giving the season's finest guest performance), the autism of Mackey's young son and the recklessness of his closest partner (Walton Goggins) and the vigilant stoicism of Det. Wyms (CCH Pounder), who's as sensibly upright as Mackey is corrupted. The Shield is excellent TV for those who can grasp its complexities; all others beware. --Jeff Shannon
DVD Description
Set in a tough LA neighbourhood populated by gangsters, immigrants, hookers, pimps and pushers, The Shield is the story of an inner city LA Police precinct, where Detective Vic Mackey (Chiklis) leads a corrupt, but highly effective Strike Team against paedophiles, necrophiliacs, white racist serial killers and gang beatings. In a tough, morally ambiguous world, the line between good and bad is crossed every day.
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
54 of 56 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Once it gets going - outstanding!,
By Mr P (UK) - See all my reviews
This review is from: The Shield - Season 1 [DVD] [2003] (DVD)
I recently moved house and was looking for something to entertain me whilst without tv coverage (long story). I have already quite a few tv series (including The Wire, Sopranos, 24, Firefly) and so was not too hopeful of finding something else as entertaining, thinking I'd already seen the good stuff.
I had read a lot of the reviews here, saying how great The Shield is, but I was under the impression that this was more of a CSI type show with one episode storylines, rather than a 'proper' series like The Wire, where the story advances through each episode. I am a big fan of The Wire by the way. I was wrong to dismiss The Shield.. It is true that each episode deals with a different sub plot, eg a murder, but each episode also advances the overall story arc, and will go back to earlier stories and give further developments. Perhaps more importantly each episode also fleshes out the characters in the show. In amongst all the action and gritty violence and dodgy dealings and stress and heroism that goes on in this cop show, you really start to learn about the characters, and care about them, to a degree that really surprised me. This is proper drama, with action. You won't get bored.....apart from perhaps in the first couple of episodes which seemed slow to me as they basically just set up the series. Once it gets going, you won't want to stop watching. I have had a fair few late nights staying up..just to watch one more episode...and then another... The end of the Series is great. I am now into Series 2 and can attest to it being brilliant also, since I stayed up after midnight last night watching it!
27 of 29 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Tension-filled action show,
This review is from: The Shield - Season 1 [DVD] [2003] (DVD)
When I first read about the Shield, I figured that the idea of a more gritty, violent police drama that "pushed the boundaries" was simply a way to get more sex and violence on tv. It's not exactly a massive leap, is it? Therefore, I didn't really bother with the show until I caught the start of the season 1 finale and decided to give it a chance. I wasn't disappointed. The big wad of 'previously on' at the start was a good sign that this wasn't a cop show which liked to wrap everything up in 60 minutes a la CSI. In fact, at times it seems to go out of its way not to wrap everything up. Anyway, back to the DVD. It contains all 13 episodes of season 1, which is a very good season. I can't really highlight any 'key' episodes because they're all of pretty much the same quality, and almost all contain character development. Obviously because of the nature of the show Vic Mackey is the central character, gets the most time on screen and is probably concentrated on in articles and reviews, but him being a 'bad cop' isn't what makes this show good. What makes this show good is the writing - all the characters are deep and fairly complex. For instance, Vic Mackey isn't a 'bad cop'. He breaks the rules and he does bad things, but it is all wrought from the desire to do good (and make money on top of that). Which is why Mackey's battle with Captain David Aceveda is so interesting throughout season one. Vic Mackey is doing the wrong things for the right reasons, while David Aceveda is doing the right things for the wrong reasons. He doesn't want to nail Mackey because he believes Mackey is a bad cop and wants him off the street, he wants to nail Mackey because it will help his political career. I really find the moral undertones of the show interesting - it doesn't judge anybody, instead leaving the viewer to analyze the situation. Perhaps the best character of the bunch is 'Dutch', a homicide detective who yearns for the respect of others. He is a very cerebral detective, using psychology to catch and interrogate criminals. In an early episode, he picks up on an attack on a prostitute and tries to prove that the attack was part of a serial killer on the loose. Flash forward a couple of episodes and it turns out he was right. Stories and guest characters are frequently brought back throughout the season. The boxset really is very impressive. While elsewhere people might just be content to stick the episodes on DVD with a few extras, The Shield includes a commentary on every episode and plenty of deleted scenes. The commentaries are fairly varied, ranging from humourous banter to more in-depth discussion. The Shield's creator, Shawn Ryan, commentates on most of the episode and is usually joined by at least three other members of the crew. It really seems as though they got anyone who ever worked on the show to do a commentary - one of the episodes is commentated on by the cameramen and director of filmography, while another is commentated on purely by the team of writers. The cast members also put in their fair share of commentary. At the risk of sounding like some cop show addict (yes, my two favourite shows of the moment are both cop dramas), this comes highly reccommended if you're a fan of the show.
21 of 23 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
The Most Gripping TV Drama Ever,
By
This review is from: The Shield - Season 1 [DVD] [2003] (DVD)
I bought season 1 of The Shield based purely on the rave reviews I read online. I'm so glad I gave it a chance as it is probably the best drama to ever come out of the US. The Shield is set in the crime ridden streets of Farmington, Los Angeles from the point of view of cops working out of a satellite police station called 'the barn'. The main character, Vic Mackey is the head of an anti-gang unit, The Strike Team. Vic and his teams corrupt, amoral behaviour is contrasted niceley by Dutch and Claudette, two experienced detectives who prefer to go by the book. The whole Barn is under the command of Captain David Aceveda who has his own political agenda to worry about.
The Shield really absorbs the viewer as Vic and his team murder, steal and broker drug deals as a means to try and remove the scumbags from the streets of Farmington. Although Vics actions are shocking you still find yourself rooting for him as he juggles supporting a family he loves with avoiding being taken down by Aceveda and trying to stay alive on the streets. The Shield has strong scripts, good direction and great characters and you will not be dissapointed after paying less than £15 for so much entertainment.
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