Shield, The (TV Series): The Complete Series Collection (DVD)
APPROX. 0 MINS. - PROD. YEAR: 2009 - MPA RATING: NR
" ...one of the most consistently engrossing dramas to hit television in decades.
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"Good cop, bad cop left for the day. I´m a different kind of cop."
Those words were uttered by Chiklis in a memorable ad promoting the upcoming debut of "The Shield" on FX. The description, ´different kind of cop,´ was an understatement. The gritty subject matter made "The Shield" one of the most consistently engrossing dramas to hit television in decades. As cop shows go, "The Shield" (along with "The Wire") completely blows away the numerous "CSI" and "Law & Order" spin-offs and imitators that clutter the airwaves. With its documentary-like shooting style, the series dropped its audience right into the morally gray world of lead character Vic Mackey, played to perfection by Michael Chiklis. The "Shield" star earned both an Emmy and a Golden Globe for his performance and deservedly so.
Detective Vic Mackey walked a thin line between good and evil, doing things we´ve seen countless times before on other shows and movies. Assigned to the fictional L.A. district of Farmington, Mackey was head of a special Strike Team tasked with the growing narcotics industry and gang violence. He wasn´t above beating a confession out of a suspect or planting evidence. He stole drugs from evidence and made arrangements with drug dealers for a slice of the profits. Yet, he was a devoted family man with a wife and three kids, two of whom were autistic. He believed through and through in justice and protecting the innocent. The main thorn in Mackey´s side at the time was then-precinct Captain David Aceveda (Benito Martinez), a character loosely based on Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa. Aceveda is a politician through and through, always looking for a way to further his career whether by taking down Mackey or working side by side with him.
While Aceveda was against Mackey, surely, there were plenty of viewers who sympathized or even glorified him for his behavior. However, Mackey crossed the line at the end of the show´s pilot when he murdered fellow officer, Terry Crowley (Reed Diamond), who had been undercover gathering incriminating evidence against Mackey and his Strike Team.
In the second season, the show hit a bit of a sophomore slump as the Strike Team plotted to rob the Armenian mob of millions of dollars in cold, hard cash. The third season dealt with the fallout of the Team´s successful heist as Vic and his cohorts desperately try to evade the grasp of a ruthless hitman played by series writer Kurt Sutter. Season four introduced Glenn Close as Farmington´s new precinct captain Monica Rawlins. Capt. Rawlins introduced several controversial policies in an effort to arrest a new crime lord named Antwon Mitchell (Anthony Anderson). "The Shield" kicked it into a whole other gear in season five with the addition of Forest Whitaker to the cast. Whitaker played Lt. Jon Kavanaugh, an Internal Affairs officer intent on bringing Mackey to justice for the murder of Crowley. Their dangerous game of cat and mouse turned intensely personal leading to the murder of Strike Team member Curtis Lemansky (Kenneth Johnson) by Mackey´s partner and best friend, Shane Vendrell (Walt Goggins). A wedge is forever driven between them which forms the backbone of the show´s conclusion in its seventh and final season.
The first few episodes deal with Mackey and Aceveda once again forming a tenuous alliance against a corrupt businessman secretly working with the Mexican drug cartels to blackmail powerful government officials. However, the real interest lies in the continuing deterioration of Vendrell who takes his pregnant wife and son on the run after failing to kill Mackey. Meanwhile, Vic not only has to find Shane, but find some way to escape prison time as the litany of crimes he has committed begin coming to light. Many fans have speculated that Vic Mackey would be fitted for an orange jumpsuit or even killed. His eventual fate doesn´t follow conventional paths. Instead, it is a surprising and ironic end.
Oh, there are other characters as well. Claudette Wyms (CCH Pounder) continues to hide her growing illness while doing everything she can as precinct captain to clean house. Her partner Det. Dutch Wagenbach (Jay Karnes) investigates a teenager he suspects of being a serial killer. The final member of the Strike Team, Ronnie Gardocki (David Rees Snell) works with Vic to find Shane and cut a deal with the feds for immunity. Aceveda continues his rise to power in political circles while Vic´s ex-wife, Corrine (Cathy Cahlin Ryan), turns against her former husband. The supporting cast has always been a strengthening thread to the tapestry of "The Shield," but it really is the Vic and Shane show this time around. Chiklis may have received the lion´s share of attention during the show´s run, but Walt Goggins truly stepped his game up bringing heart wrenching closure to the character of Shane Vendrell.
