The Shield focuses on a group of cops. But these guys aren't normal cops. They're more like The Sopranos with badges. Detective Curtis Lemansky (Kenny Johnson), Detective Ronnie Gardocki (David Rees Snell), Detective Shane Vendrell (Walton Goggins), and their leader Detective Vic Mackey (Michael Chiklis) make up the Farmington division's special squad known as the Strike Team. Their job is to work on the most difficult cases involving the gang of Los Angeles. Just dealing with all the gangs alone would be a very dangerous job. But the Strike Team tends to take danger to a new level. They're not exactly the good guys that you want cops to be. I think Vic says it best when he tells a perp, "Good Cop and Bad Cop left for the day. I'm a different kind of cop." Sometimes they protect specific drug dealers just to get a cut of the profits, but then in doing so they're also keeping the crime on the streets down, so you really can't say they're all bad for it. Of course that's just the beginning of their troubles.
These guys could really learn a lot about dealing with things before they become a huge problem. In the very beginning of the series, they pull off a job stealing money from the Armenian mob; at least they think they got away from it clean. This job is just one of the many stunts that have repercussions throughout the entire series, but it really is one of the more important ones since it is the turning point for the trust in the team to break down. These four guys have everything riding on being able to trust each other 100%. If they can't do that, things are going to get bad!
Of course the rest of life is going to try and interfere with the team, especially family. A major theme in the show is family. The team consider each other family, but what happens when their families come between the team. Then there are the other officers to contend with as well. From the very beginning, Captain David Aceveda (Benito Martinez) does not like the strike team. He knows they're dirty, and he's determined to prove it, but Vic and company always seem to be one step ahead of him. Throughout the series, Detectives Holland (Dutch) Wagenbach (Jay Karnes) and Claudette Wyms (CCH Pounder) will find themselves at odds with the strike team. Dutch is probably one of the smartest officers on the force, but he also takes a lot of abuse over some of his crazy theories. They really should listen to him more though, and eventually do, because a lot of the time he is very correct. Then there's Officer Julien Lowe (Michael Jace). Julien is really going to go through a lot of changes as the show progresses. Personally I didn't always like the direction they took the character, but in the end I liked him a lot.
It seems like there's so much I'm leaving out about this wonderful show, but it's one of those things that if I tell you much, it ruins the series in the end. Speaking of which, the final season of the show is wonderful. They manage to wrap up all the open plot lines, tie in everything from the beginning, and leave you feeling like it truly is a complete series, which is a very rare thing lately it seems. Overall, it's probably one of the best series from beginning to end I've ever seen. The action starts from the very beginning and it just never lets up!
Since this is all being released in one complete set, I have to say that I think it is the coolest box set I have ever seen. If you can't tell from the cover, the DVD case is a book, almost like a scrapbook. The shield on the cover is embossed and really does look like they packaged a real badge in the box. As you turn the pages of the book, you get pictures of the show on each page like you would in a real scrapbook. The DVDs are tucked into the top of the pages so they don't fall out easily at all. My only problem with it is finding a place it fit it on the bookshelf, but then something this awesome needs to be displayed instead of just tucked away on a shelf! As you can tell by the list at top, all of the special features from each season are also available here. There are hours of deleted scenes alone, plus several featurettes on each season! There is also a bonus disc that takes a look at the inspiration for The Shield in the "Rampart" Featurette. Additionally, they take a look at the set that it was filmed on for so many years in "A Place We Called Home." Both of these featurettes are new for the Box Set.
If you've never seen The Shield, you're missing out on one of the best written and most entertaining shows on TV. Even if you have some of the other seasons on DVD like I do, you're going to want this entire collection. It's just something that you have to own. You should all go buy it today!
