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DVD Reviews:  The Shield the complete First Season


The Final Say!

Review Score
10/10
Extras
10/10
Reviewed by Tory Favro
Review Date: February 2004
Distributed by:
Columbia Tristar
Running Time: 555 minutes

 

 

 

 

This series didn't even last the first season on television in Australia and to the people who make that decision all I have to say is shame on you. A hard hitting storyline where the good guys are actually the crooks, The Shield revolves around the world of Vic Mackie and his somewhat corrupt Strike Team and his captain David Aceveda, a man with political aspirations who knows that Vic is a threat to the clean image he is trying to generate for the station. The problem is that despite the goings on, Mackie and his Strike Team do get the job done.

This show is compelling viewing, each and every episode. Character development is brilliant and the fact that I can't get my head around is that how much I like the Vic Mackie character when you just know he is not entirely a good person. It's hard to state why without giving away key parts of the story, especially after the very first episode, you can take my word for it though that it is a very full on show with some quite confronting story matter.

It was very easy to watch this series as each and every episode essentially made itself must watch viewing. Nothing is as it seems and at any moment the unexpected could and usually does happen. Anyone who knows me, knows that I love cop shows and this series is unlike any other I've seen before. Normally our cops are either clear cut heroes or villains, not like this mix that The Shield presents us with.

The acting in this show is stellar and the cast are to be commended. It's funny, whilst Vic Mackie and David Aceveda are your two standout characters, you'll find that the rest of the cast are also given almost equal airtime and have stories tailored to them as well that will make viewers look forward to everyone's ongoing tale. There are thirteen action packed episodes in this season and these are their titles:

Pilot
Our Gang
The Spread
Dawg Days
Blowback
Cherrypoppers
Pay in Pain
Cupid & Psycho
Throwaway
Dragonchasers
Carnivores
Two Days of Blood
Circles

I highly recommend this as a must have set for fans of hard hitting cop dramas. It's not what you expect in the slightest, and certainly not for the faint of heart. Gripping story and brilliant acting make this great entertainment.

Video

We're running a 16:9 aspect ratio for this feature so those with widescreen TV's should be happy. The feature does suffer from grain throughout in the darker areas and whilst this isn't a fault of the transfer as far as I could see, it certainly wasn't intentional on the part of the movie makers. I would have to sum it up as a good video transfer but not a great one.

Audio

Dolby 2.0 is the way it goes here and despite this the use of sound is really effective and sounds great.

Extras

Wow! This thing is packed with goodness and is a must for the fan. Every single episode has a commentary which is something I have never seen on a television series disc. All main characters and crew have something to say and the information is well presented and well worth the listen for additional entertainment.

We have a humour season epilogue here with Michael Chiklis and Shawn Ryan that runs for a short amount of time. It's more tongue in cheek and a fun watch.

Deleted scenes is exactly what you'd expect.

Cast auditions takes you behind the scenes and shows us the original auditions  of the main characters. As I said before, this disc is packed and fully deserves the perfect score I gave it.

Behind the scenes doesn't take a rocket scientist to figure out and is a lot of fun to watch. Add to that the fact that it runs for about twenty one minutes and you've got yourself a great little featurette.

The FX featurette is a very short presentation on the special effects used in the show. It's too short and feels like an ad.

 

Extras

  • Audio Commentaries

  • Season Epilogue

  • Deleted Scenes

  • Cast Auditions

  • Behind the Shield

  • FX Featurette

 

 

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