Opinions on The Shield

[JoeGKushner]

Shane...I'm still waiting for that guy to get his.

I thought that his problems were just with the girlfriend when I was watching season three on F/X, but man, watching season one on DVD opens up a whole new level of Shane's inability to be even a good corrupt cop!

 

[FCWesel]

I didn't watch much of it becuase I hate crooked cops.

Then you will like the Shield is my guess. Believe me, they do not celebrate the fact that they are crooked cops. Do the crooked cops "win" at times. Yup, they do. Just as they would in real life. Will these cops fall, yup they likely will. Very hard. These guys pay a price for what they do. Thier life and thier choices are destructive, and it shows in the TV show.

Also...the use of crooked is somewhat loose...there's a lot of folks that would go along with most of what these guys do...but there's a line that's crossed right at the beginning of the series...

 

[Storm Raven]

I didn't watch much of it becuase I hate crooked cops.

Then you'd probably like the series, since being crooked cops is pretty much what is ruining the lives of Vic, Shane and all of the other members of the strike team. They aren't heroes, and their shenanigans are hurting them more than helping them.

 

[Flexor the Mighty!]

Maybe I'll check it out then. From the stuff I heard I thought it was going to be a show that makes a hero of the cop who gets the job done by breaking the law and violating everyones rights. I hate that and refuse to support the glamourization of bad cops. If this isn't like that I'll probably enjoy it.

It's a similar conflict I have with Mob flicks. Some are very well done, but part of me hates someone glamourizing thugs and murderers. I love The Godfather regardless.

 

[ShinHakkaider]

I find it pretty funny that several people have pointed out that they dont like the "gangsta/rap" element yet they can tolerate shows like THE SHIELD and THE SOPRANOS. There's a certain subtext there that I find a little ugly...

I watch both shows and between the two THE SHIELD is the better show by far.
IMHO though, there is a show that is head and shoulders above BOTH of those shows and that is THE WIRE. It's intelligently written densely plotted, the characters are layered and complex both the criminals and the cops that are persuing them. If you are more comfortable with a white washed version of cops and robbers (Law & Order, CSI:Mars or whereever they are this season), this is probably NOT the show for you as more than half the cast is made up of people of color some of them portraying "gangstas". As I said before though even these gangstas are well written and fleshed out. Also as it airs on HBO, they tend to get away with a lot more than what THE SHIELD can. Let me put it like this, I watch the THE SHEILD to tide me over when THE WIRE is not on. No disrespect to THE SHIELD it's just that THE WIRE is that good.

 

[JoeGKushner]

The Wire eh?

I'll have to check that out.

I can't speak for Rus, but for me, my dislike of the whole Rap/Ghetto thing is that most of the people, at least where I've seen it, who profess this lifestyle, have 0, zilch, nothing, etc... in common with them. They're like lost children.

 

[ShinHakkaider]

The Wire eh?

I'll have to check that out.

I can't speak for Rus, but for me, my dislike of the whole Rap/Ghetto thing is that most of the people, at least where I've seen it, who profess this lifestyle, have 0, zilch, nothing, etc... in common with them. They're like lost children.

Fair enough. It's just a common attitude that I see on boards like this one and I tend to make my own snap judgements about people with that particular attitude myself, nobody's perfect.

A word of warning about THE WIRE. When I said that the show is layered and complex, I meant just that. You literally cannot miss an episode and come back later and expect to be caught up. There are things that I missed upon my first viewing that I caught in my second and suddenly the little things that were and had bee nhappening during the course of he show made a whole lot more sense. It's a show that rewards the active viewer.

 

[JoeGKushner]

Sounds like a real winner then. I tend to enjoy shows that reward the repeated viewer.

Any word on the series Cracker? It's supposed to be a fairly good cop show. (Curses lack of funds this week while waiting for bi-weekly paycheck!)

 

[ShinHakkaider]

Sounds like a real winner then. I tend to enjoy shows that reward the repeated viewer.

Any word on the series Cracker? It's supposed to be a fairly good cop show. (Curses lack of funds this week while waiting for bi-weekly paycheck!)

Cracker? the BBC show with Robbie Coltraine?

D00d...that show is FRENCH FRIED GOLD.

 

[Morrus]

I find it pretty funny that several people have pointed out that they dont like the "gangsta/rap" element yet they can tolerate shows like THE SHIELD and THE SOPRANOS. There's a certain subtext there that I find a little ugly...

Eh? I'm not sure I like the implication there. I stated fairly clearly that the "gangsta/rap" element detracted from my enjoyment of The Shield. And The Sopranos has no gansta/rap element at all - it deal with the American Italian Mafia, which is about as far from "gangsta/rap" as you can get. Thus, I prefer it to the Shield.

Maybe it's where I live - gangsta/rap neighbourhoods are a US phenomenon and I have nothing to identify it with at all; they may as well be Martians (although I think the "gangsta" culture is starting to cross the Atlantic). It's totally foreign to me, whereas the Italian elements of Mafioso types are at least recognisable if not familiar. Italy isn't as far away as America is, and I've been there many times, whereas I've been to the US only twice (and still never saw any gangsta /rap stuff, although I saw plenty of Italians in Italy....)