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Television
The Shield - The Complete First Season

The Shield - The Complete First Season

List Price: $59.98
Your Price: $44.99
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Rating: 5 stars
Summary: "The Shield" is simply awesome
Review: Fantastic TV show from top to bottom. I first became interested in this when I heard that Michael Chiklis had won the Golden Globe - anyone beating Pres Bartlett and Tony Soprano to an award had to be from a helluva show! Here in the UK we have never heard of the Shield, and after reading a few online reviews, I dived right in and bought the box set. And I'm sure glad I did. Corrupt Strike Team leader Mackey is the show's dark, fiery heart, and you can't help rooting for Vic as he takes on the bad guys and fights off the do-gooders in the LAPD, even though we know he's no angel himself. High end production values, super-realistic violence, outstanding acting performances all round in a very well fleshed out cast (no dead wood on the screen, ever.) and totally intriguing plot lines make this riveting viewing from Ep1 right through to the end of season finale. Its gonna be a long time until Season 2 comes out on DVD!!!

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Mercilessly unflinching L.A. police drama!!
Review: Thank God for cable TV!

"The Shield" is the most intense new cop series in a decade. The action centers around an proto-experimental police precinct in South Central L.A. The action is violent and intense and pulls no punches. Series lead Michael Chiklis stars as Vic Mackey, leader of an elite squad within the precinct. Mackey is corrupt, amoral, but a great and effective cop. Even when you want to hate him you can't help but root for him. The precinct house's new Lieutenant makes no secret about wanting to bust Mackey as part of his political aspirations, but Mackey isn't going down without a fight. And he certainly has the fight in him.

The final scene in the first episode set the tone for what kind of cop Mackey can be. But throughout the whole first season viewers are treated to a level of grittiness and action rarely seen on television. Always intense!

One particularly satisfying story arc in the first season centers around one of the precinct's new detectives trying to catch what he thinks might be a serial killer. He eventually gets his man, and some unexpected respect from his fellow officers, but the psychological price he pays is what will resonate long after the case file is closed.

And "The Shield"'s visual style (namely the art direction and use of color) is unlike any other cop show you've seen before. That sounds kind of odd if you haven't already seen the show, but it gives the show a distinctive look to go with its already distinctive sound and feel.

Watching this show gives me the same charge I got from watching the first season of "N.Y.P.D. Blue" -- the David Caruso season.
That whole first season is also available from Fox TV on DVD in early 2003. Too bad the "...Blue" box set won't also contain the first four episodes from Season 2, the episodes that wrapped up David Caruso's character story line through his exit from the show.

**** Easy instructions for watching "The Shield - Season One" on DVD:
Point, click, buy, watch, enjoy, pick jaw up off floor.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Sheild season 1
Review: This is one of the better shows TV which certainly lives up to it's tag line of being 'too intense for network TV', and indeed it is. The show's seasons are a little shorter than the usual series; but that's ok, it dosn't have to streach a premise out too far. L.A.P.D. detective Vic Mackey (Michael Chiklis) is the leader of the Strike Team from the Farmington District (a fictional part of Los Angeles), the worst part of the city. Mackey is a lot of things, and corrupt among them. His whole Strike Team is crooked, in fact. They sell drugs and perform the occasional murder, they also bend the rules to get major arrests. His boss, Capt Acevada (Benito Martinez), wants Mackey off the streets, but not because it's right, because it's good for his aspiring political career. This season is loosely connected by several plot lines, a gay police officer's struggle with other bigit cops; a young smart detective trying to get a little respect; Mackey and his team trying to get away with the murder of another police officer; and many other story threads that work together better than you'd think. Michael Chiklis won an emmy for his role, and he certainly deserved it. Vic is both protaginist and antagonist, both good guy and bad guy. This is a series with a lot of violence, cursing, and extream sex. Not for children.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Super Show
Review: This show is the reason why I go running home after work. The shield has me at the edge of my seat through out the whole show.
The cast is one of the best actors on the job. Definitely the best show on T.V.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: The Shield Rocks!
Review: I didn't watch "The Shield" when it was shown on TV its first season, but when Michael Chiklis carted home the Best Actor Emmy for his performance that season, I took notice. I decided to purchase the first season DVD set and I was hooked! This is a rare show where I like every single character in the cast. All of the cast, from Chiklis' Vic Mackey to CCH Pounder's Claudette Wyms to Jay Karnes' Dutch Waggenbach to Cathy Dent's Danny Sofer (and the others I haven't named), all have significant roles in the story and you can sympathize with them all, even when they are not on the up and up (especially Mackey's Strike Team).

There isn't a clunker in this 13 episode set. Highlights include Dutch's obsession with finding a serial killer, the Strike Team's reaction after Mackey kills a cop who he finds out is out to help shut him down and the struggles of rookie cop Julien Lowe (played by Michael Jace) to figure out his sexuality. The chemistry of the various cliques (the Strike Team, Claudette and Dutch, Danny and Julien) makes this show riveting.

This is a great DVD set to have as there is cast and crew commentary on every episode. Just about every actor in the cast makes at least one appearance for commentary and show creator Shawn Ryan is very informative about the various goings on with the show. Plus they seem to have fun together which probably helps explain the show's success.

Season 2 was great as well and I can't wait for Season 3 which heats up soon!

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: A reason to stay home and watch TV
Review: After much hype by FX, the Shield debuted on cable television last year. It quickly became a hit, with its gritty and controversial characters, top-notch writing, and superb acting. There have been many attempts to do police dramas, but the Shield elevates the bar. With Michael Chiklis plays the lead role of Vic Mackey, the leader of a special strike team that does things in legal and not so legal ways at times to get the job done.

One of the most interesting aspects of the show is wondering what Vic will do next. He does some questionable things at times, but you can't help root for him and his team. With a Captain out to expose Mackey for the "dirty" cop that he is, every episode has you hooked and eagerly anticipating the next. Rounding out the superb cast, is the mentioned Captain, two detectives that get to solve many interesting cases, and two patrol officers, one a female training officer teaching the job to a new rookie. Intertwining them all is expertly done, and each actor knows their character so well, that you can feel it each time they speak.

The Shield pushes the limits of what can be shown on TV, though not as blatant as the Sopranos (which has to be shown on HBO), it has it's share of swearing and some brief partial nudity, as well as dealing with subject matter that is not for the kids. It's about time that a police drama is shown this way. NYPD Blue touched on this, but The Shield in the first season manages to take it up a notch.

The DVD set of the first season includes 4 discs containing the 13 episodes of season one, and includes a making of documentary and commentary on the episodes. Video quality is fairly good, but at times some artifacts are present. All in all, a good set and the quality of the show itself makes this set shine brightly. An award winning show with an Emmy and two Golden Globes (best Drama series and Michael Chiklis, Best actor Drama), you can't go wrong here.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: this show is the best
Review: it is the best show on tv.

Rating: 1 stars
Summary: How can anyone watch this?
Review: The storyline sucks. The dialogue sucks etc....How can anyone watch this when there are good shows out there like 24, West Wing and the Sopranos. This show doesn't even come near...

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Amazing series! Really does show you how bad network TV is
Review: I rented the first four episodes of this series because of the hype I had heard about it. After viewing the first four episodes I went out and bought the entire first season and watched the rest in one sitting. This show really is that good! I really don't watch that much TV and the little I do watch isn't one hour dramas but I do watch and like the Sopranos. Ever since I watched The Shield though the Sopranos seems dull to me. The Shield has charecters that grow as the series moves on and they are deep and rich in personality. Every episode has action and will keep you at the edge of your seat, just waiting to see what happens next.

I HIGHLY recommend this series to anyone who likes action/drama and I have yet to meet anyone who has seen this show and does not love it.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: The best cop show ever
Review: This show is so intense. I usually don't get into too many cop shows, but this one grabs you and holds your interest. Some of the characters are so crooked, but you can't help like every single character. It's a very good show, worth watching and worth owning.


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