It would appear that the S2 DVD is due out tomorrow (January 6) although posts on The Shield thread at FX indicate that someone bought it at his/her local Walmart yesterday (January 4).

I know what I'll be shopping for on my days off!

ee! Just got S2 in the mail as a late xmas gift. drooooooool. Now I gotta clean up this place so I can hook up my DVD player and watch. :D

I stumbled across this at a casting website. It's spoilery. Dunno which ep it's for, but it sure sounds fun!

ho boy, Lance! That name is just too funny, esp after GTA:VC and this -

[Homer] and you took all our good names! Bruce, Julian and Lance all used to be manly names! [/Homer] - from that John Waters ep, probably called something like Homerphobic/a.

I guess with the wait til March I can concentrate on work (pained smile). Growl. Want S3! Want want want! sniiffff.

Thanks for the link entigral. I'm especially looking forward to seeing Shane go undercover as a male prostitute. That should be comedy gold.

I'm already cracking up just thinking about it. ;)

From Filmjerk:

I'm hoping that they add a female team member to Vic's crew this year. I think that might really shake things up.

Here's something to maybe tide a few of you over until March.

The first issue of the comic book mini-series for The Shield will be out this week (Wednesday, if you wanna pick it up at your local comic shop). It'll be five issues in total. There's no guaranteeing that it'll be collected in one big trade paperback later on, it all depends on how well the series sells, so you may not wanna wait. IDW Publishing has it up on their website, in the links I've provided.

They've got a deal if you subscribe to the series, it's $4 less than what it would cost you to buy all five issues individually. However, there's a $9 shipping charge, so if you live near a comic store it'd probably be more worth your while to just buy it there. I'd only recommend getting it online if you live out in the middle of nowhere or if you want the luxury of having it delivered to your doorstep.

Interview with mini-series writer Jeff Mariotte. I've never read anything of his, but he seems to be heavily into TV adaptations. He co-wrote the second volume of The Watcher's Guide (Buffy the Vampire Slayer), a bunch of Buffy, Angel, and Star Trek novels (what I like to think of as glorified fanfiction that you have to pay for) and he writes comics (CSI, CSI: Miami, Gen 13, etc). Worth a try.

And here's an interview with Shawn Ryan, creator and writer. I wish I knew a way to convert that annoying Adobe to a basic text file for easier reading, but it was worth it anyway.

This show amazed me from the gitgo - I've called it the Poor Man's "Wire," but only because Ryan doesn't have the freedom that HBO gives. He thinks and cares about all his characters. Julien is the most fascinating, to me; here's a bit of what Ryan says:

Here's another article with an interview with Shawn Ryan, this one in Middlebury College's magazine. He's a 1988 alumnus of Middlebury.

That's a big surprise. How is he limited by having the series air on FX? The channels it airs on in Canada (Global and Mystery) don't censor it at all, so it seems just as honest as your usual HBO show. Is it censored on FX? They don't seem to be shying away from any subject matter, and I'm pretty sure they've allowed every cussword in the book.

Anyone pick up the first issue of the comic? Just wanted to hear some reviews about it. I went to the comic shop last week to pick up some other titles and saw one copy of it (either it sold out really well or the store only ordered the one). I left it there 'cause I'm more interested in getting all five of the issues in a trade paperback collection, if I hear that it's well-written.

That was another interesting interview, Joey B.

KRISAB,don't get me wrong. I love The Shield, and calling it The Poor Man's Wire is largely a compliment. When it first came out, I remember some of the critics being all agog over its "frankness," but that's not my reason. First (and maybe from Ryan's comments in the Middlebury interview this isn't the case) : was I mistaken in assuming that it would be scrapped if viewership was notably poor?

But primarily, seems to me it's structurally closer to Homicide (another of the Greats), and geared to shorter attention spans than The Wire. The Shield's characters were pretty well established early on. In The Wire, we came to know them a lot more slowly, as in real life, or a novel. Finally, Simon is consciously writing about major social problems facing this country - so far, the drug culture and the disappearance of decent blue-collar jobs; and I don't see how you can care about the characters without realizing how much of their fate arises from environments they can't change and can't always escape. Maybe I should switch and call Simon's show The Thinking Man's Shield instead, except that doesn't do justice, either!

I'll have to rent The Wire when it comes out on DVD at the end of April to see how the two shows compare. The Shield is the first cop drama I've ever liked, so I'm new to the genre.

Any mentions/reviews of The Wire that I've see have been positive, but it doesn't seem to be getting as much press as The Sopranos, Oz, or Six Feet Under did after two seasons. Do you think that's due to it belonging to a genre that's so common on network TV and not having a high-concept slant like SFU, Sopranos, Oz, and Carnivale?

Kris AB:

I'm fuzzy on "high-concept slant," so will only try a little more description. First, if I hadn't read some early reviews, I probably wouldn't have stuck with the show for the three or four episodes that took me (I'm not quick) to sort everybody out. A major difference is that time is divided between cops and crooks, and you get to known both equally well, and to recognize the similar problems they encounter in their respective organizations. Both shows feather the role of politics within organizations, and the difficult choices to be made. And, as I mentioned above, The Wire puts all its people in big-ticket settings - the drug culture, the decline of waterfront jobs.

There's also sex and some pretty awful violence - I don't mean to make the show sound preachy. Some of this "routine" stuff has a lot more wallop because you've come to know the people so well. (It reminds me of "Homicide" in its utterly natural-seeming integration of black and white characters, by the way. No wonder, since Baltimore-based Homicide is one of its cousins.) As in The Shield, characters are a natural mix of good and bad.

As for popularity: I followed all the HBO series you mentioned above; liked them all, though not equally. The Wire probably demands the most attentive viewing, and that may be against it. Or maybe its subject-matter turns people off. I rank it at the top, with the utterly different SFU. You'll just have to try it and see what you think. (I recommend sobriety for the first run-through. )

I was wondering if any of you guys can help me out. See, I live in Canada, which has it's benefits, for sure, but unfortunately the networks up here don't see fit to show the third season of The Shield until 2005. 2005, people. That's, like, eons away and I can't handle not seeing the show and remaining spoiler-free for that long.

So I was wondering if anyone would be willing to tape them for me and mail them to me. Of course I would pay for the tapes, S&H, and all that. Seeing as the season is only 15 episodes long, it shouldn't be too much of an inconvenience (6 eps per tape, three tapes, and as such, only three trips to the post office).

Failing that, is there anyone in Toronto who has satellite who wants a new friend? :)

I went out to IDW Publishing, and ordered a subscription of the series, as I seem to recall reading somewhere that there was no guarantee that it would be compiled into a graphic novel. Plus, they're signed by Jeff Mariotte who's writing the series, which I hoped might eventually increase them in value even if I didn't particularly like the comic.

Anyways, as for the first issue, it's kind of dull. But a lot of first comics are, as they're just entering the storylines, and getting you introduced to the characters. It's hard to tell where everything is going to go at this point, so maybe by the second or third issue, I can give a better assessment. The artwork is great, though. Very stylized and colorful. Wyms, Dutch, and Mackey are very well drawn, and instantly recognizable, while the other's likenesses suffer a bit. But you can still tell who everyone is.

ETA: I just got the second installment in the mail, and while the dialogue is still a bit wooden, the stories are definitely picking up speed. Stolen paintings, dead anchorwoman, hostage situations, they're definitely trying to pack as much into an issue as they can.

Entertainment Weekly has a review of the new season of the Shield in its new issue (haven't seen it posted online yet) -- Gave the new series an A- and was really positive about its ability to sustain drama in the new season. I CAN'T WAIT!!

Some tidbits: They said that Aceveda will try to hold on to his Captain position for a bit longer to rehabilitate his reputation, increasing tension between him and Claudette (nice! More of her would be great.) Dutch will be assigned to look into the Armenian mob robbery (double nice -- more Dutch vs. Mackey)

Does season 3 premiere this week?

Sorry, the third season premieres next week michelec.

Only one more week to go! [Kermit] Yaaaaaaayyyyyyy!!!!!! [\Kermit]

I got the best birthday present ever! The Shield returns!! On my Birthday!!!

I second the kermit-style "Yaaaaaaayyyy!"

My roommate was shocked that I would drop Queer Eye for the Straight Guy out of my rotation for "some cop show". Sigh. Some people just don't get it.

And what a great treat Gates!

It's perfect timing, as my other two shows are going down the crapper.

Bring on the strike team!

Does anyone know where I can find Shield recaps?

Phew! I was beginning to think I was the only one going nuts waiting for this damn show to start up again. Just 23:35 hours to go...

ETA: I haven't read any yet, so I'm not sure of how detailed they are, but this site has lots of 'Shield' stuff, including episode guides.

Thanks, scarletine!

It sucks that the Tues 10 p.m. time slot is so crowded. I remember last year I was juggling Queer Eye, Law & Order: SVU, Nip/Tuck, and MI-5…thank God for overnight encore presentations. But yeah, The Shield is definitely on top of the pecking order and as of tonight Queer Eye gets relegated to VCR duty.

I saw the promo where Aceveda does that 180 with Claudette. Uh-oh. Things look to get real ugly.

I, for one, am a little tired of Claudette's sanctimonious attitude. Call me unscrupulous, but I would sleep better at night knowing there was a Vic Mackey walking the beat on my street than a Claudette Wyms.

Claudette's bungling didn't help Jenny Reborg (thanks Vic) or the little girl that Armadillo left his mark on. What "big" cases has she cracked? If she has cracked some, they aren't bigger than Vic's collars.

I really hope someone puts her in her place. Whether its Aceveda or Vic.

See you after the show.

WORD. I mean, I respect Claudette, and I'm not usually into law-benders, but the cops' hands are usually so tied in how they can enforce laws and protect the public, that I'd let Vic slide on some things. The thing is, Vic hates criminals and he does care about innocent people and crime victims. I feel like he would protect me. In fact, he and Shane, Lem, and Ronnie can protect me any day!!

I am so excited for three hours from now!

NEW SEASON!!! YAHAHAHAHH!!!!


"Look what the Dutchman found."

Oh, god, I love this show.

I still get a kick out of that. Cletus....Van Damme.

"You gave an alias as the same name you rented the storage space?"

"Well, Lem laughed at it."


I had almost forgotten about delicious feet.

So the money's marked. Nothing is ever as good as it seems. As soon as Acevedo said stop by an ATM, you knew Vic was going to use the money from the train to buy the guns. Can't wait for next week and Mara.

I don't see how the whole Armenian money train theft thing can ever work out okay for the Strike Team. No way possible! And stupid Cletu...er..Shane is going to buy that chick her damn car and stupid Vic is going to use the money in the bait. How many laws can Vic break in one day? Sheesh! I like that Corrine is going to go back to work and get out of that house for once. Its telling that just as his family is getting their stuff together, things are getting more complicated for Vic at work.

Those feet, ewwww. Looks like a Forensic Files episode. Which I love.

I sort agree about Wyms, I just like her attitude and its pretty damn shitty was Acevedo did. He's so smarmy and doesn't give a crap about helping the community or solving/preventing crimes. Whatever looks good for him is okay.

Loved the episode, welcome back the Shield!! I missed ya!

But that's where the slippery slope with Vic starts. He went from bending some rules to protect innocent people to facilitating drug deals, robbing people and even murdering a cop whose only "crime" was investigating the Strike Team's illegal behavior.

I have no doubt that Vic sees himself as a good guy and genuinely believes that he's in the right every time, but those kinds of people are the most dangerous. Give a guy a badge, a gun and a license to do whatever he wants, and you are just asking for trouble -- especially since most of those guys won't even be as decent as Vic.

Great premiere, and Vic and the Strike Teamers are 100 percent screwed if they ever try to do anything with the money train cash. They'd be better off following the lead of the guy from "A Simple Plan" and just burning it all now before it destroys them. (Though "Simple Plan" guy waited too long to get burning.)

I'm confused. Is the rapper on both gangs? I'm excited for the 2nd strike team to come in, let the sparks fly! :)

Not much to say about tonight's episode, but I've missed Dutch the most, though Shane cracks me up too.

Was that a Robert Di Nero impression Vic was doing in the car? Not bad, although it seems like everybody has a Di Nero impression these days.

The episode ran over the hour.

What happened in the final minutes?

I have to add that the "gun and run" scene with Mackey and the Army guy was my absolute favorite from last night. It was just such classic Vic, and the look of menace on his face as he dares the guy to run just blew me away. Michael Chiklis makes me totally buy this rather unbelievable character.

Great season premiere. Moved at a good clip, and did a better job than some other recent season premieres of seamlessly integrating the cliffhangers while setting things up for the season (*cough*Sopranos*cough*).

I see that Aceveda has graduated to being a full-time smarmy bastard. I mean he was a smarmy bastard the last couple of seasons, but before I could completely jump on the hate train he would always do something to redeem himself. Doesn't look like that's gonna happen this year.

Say what you will about Claudette, but Aceveda did screw her over. Putting her in charge of both the Strike Team and the new undercover squad is pure genius, just for all the conflict between her and Vic.

I knew that Vic was only going to go by the book but so long because he's so used to doing things his own way. Even if the money wasn't marked you know that no good is going to come out of the heist. That kind of wealth has a way of destroying partnerships, and before long things will get strained between the guys. Not to mention that Tavon is going to start feeling resentful about being the odd man out.

And it's good to know that in these uncertain times you can always count on Shane to be a jackass.

Can't wait for next week!


ETA Carlos the Dwarf all you probably missed was the rapper shooting the rival gang leader in a drive-by, Shane going to the car dealership with his girlfriend, and Vic going to the storage place to take some of the money.

Love the idea of Wyms over the Strike Team and Undercover Decoy team.. God, the fireworks are going to be great.

Ronnie with a beard? Hmmm.

Julian is digging himself a whole. Anyone else think a suit against him is in the offing from the homophobe prick?

Loved that they added Tavon without making a big deal about it. I like him a lot. I wonder if he'll get into the inner circle or remain an outsider. I already think he's more valuable to the team than "Cletus Van Damme."

Aceveda is a manager... and a self-serving one at that.

This creates an interesting comparison between Aceveda and Mackey. Aceveda's methods are no more "moral" than Vic's. A screws people over, steals their ideas for his own, and pursues his own agenda.

Vic uses violence to achieve his agenda (most of which are probably the same as Aceveda's).

Any one else think that Danny may end up on the other team?

Great ep! My one complaint? Why didn't Julian have any obvious bruises and/or pain from his beating? This was clearly only a few days after the end of season 2, and it seems like he would still be feeling the physical effects of that beating.

I felt like it was at least a month or two after the end of season 2. Vic's kid's work with the tutor had advanced, Myms was just days from taking over from Aceveda, and, yes, Julian was all healed up.

Also, there was some mention made of more dead bodies missing feet than just the ones we've seen.

The problem with setting a show in LA is that all the seasons look exactly alike.

I totally can see Danny joining the new team. When Aceveda said go to an ATM I thought for a second that maybe he knew about the heist. I agree that no good will come from this. And in honor of Lem rocking the camo pants, I wore mine today.

ETA: Vic saw the sparks or potential for sparks b/w the tutor and Corinne but then Matthew blazed by him and he was more hurt by that then suspicious of the tutor. But if you look at his face when they meet, he knows that something could be up. If that makes sense.

If the S3 premiere's any indication, The Shield 's back in great form! Looks like this season's gonna be as exciting as the first. My thoughts:

*Re Vic, it was definitely a mixed bag. While the Strike Team *did* manage to pull of the money train heist, they've also got the Armenian mob to worry about. Put Aceveda, Claudette, the Feds, the Bizlats & Curran in the mix & Vic's got headaches galore. The "gun & run" scene with PoorMan'sColmFeore was hilarious. OTOH, Matthew's talking is great news. His tutor's cute, too. If Corrine wanted a little action with him, I wouldn't blame her. After all, what's good for the goose....

*Thanks to circumstances beyond her control, Claudette got screwed & not in a good way. Claudette had every right to be pissed at Aceveda for stealing her job & her idea, IMO. As for Claudette's attitude, since she is the show's moral compass, according to TPTB, I've got no problem with her being preachy at times. At least she walks it like she talks it. Putting her in charge of the ST & the Undercover Decoys is pure genius. Let the angst begin.

*While Aceveda's self-serving actions re Claudette pissed me off, he does get cool points from me for helping Dani, unlike Vic, who let her get thrown to the wolves for Amadeo's murder, which she had nothing to do with, plus he was willing to risk his career & rep to take responsibility for his actions, also unlike Vic. Since Aceveda's redeemed himself before, he'll do it again, IMO.

*Something told me that Psycho Armenian Jesus had something to do with the footless corpses connected to the Armenian mob, as Dutch realized. It was also smart of Dutch to connect at least some of the dots re the Money Train robbery. Unibrowitness coming along & recognizing Lem was more good luck for Dutch. As for the Greek government's refusal to cooperate with the PAJ investigation, any future blood shed by him belongs on their hands, not Dutch's, as far as I'm concerned.

*Between this week's ep & the previews, I've got the feeling I'm gonna say "Shut up, Shane" so much I might get laryngitis. Shane's jealousy of/bigotry toward Tevon's irritating, to say the least. The sooner Shane accepts that he's not Teacher's Pet anymore, the better, IMO. Tevon's not perfect, but from what I've seen so far, he's twice the cop & twice the *man* Shane is. Hopefully, he'll stay that way. Shane's new girlfriend's a vast improvment over Tulips, which means she deserves way better than Shane. Then again, what else can be expected from a guy who smokes at the gas pump & spends some of the robbery loot prematurely? For practice: "Shut up, Shane."

*Re Julien, while his attackers deserve to be punished, I hope he doesn't carry the Avenging Angel bit too far, otherwise they might try to sue him, the assholes.

I know, you're right. I think I give Vic too much slack because of my thing for authority figures. Vic is dangerous, and the more he feels backed into a corner, the more willing he is to sacrifice someone.

I have come to love Dutch so much! That earnestness and his obliviousness to Mackey's machinations.

Best line of the night: "If I sound superior, it's because I'm American and you're Greek!" BWAH!

Julian is such a mess. I don't think the cop will try to sue Julian because then the whole blanket-party would come out. But Julian needs help, and his go-it-alone stoicism is starting to bug. Open up to someone and get some help!

Shane, Shane, Shane. It's a race to see who spends a marked $50 bill first, he or Vic. How is Vic gonna get out of that???

I think Julian was just taking Mackeys advice. If that guy shows up with a broken arm it might generate a little respect for Julian around the station house.

Corinne will definetly be banging the tutor sooner than later.

Shane is and always will be a tool but he's our tool so we live with him.

I'm looking forward to Dani coming back. Especially since she has a good idea that it was Vic that screwed her. I hope they put her and Julian back together.

Covers up that burn Armadillo gave him. I like Tevon - I hope they give him more stuff to do.

There are a bunch of links regarding the show available at http://tvtattle.com/. Scroll down to Tuesday and you'll find some stuff about upcoming episodes. I think it's true what one critic says about how we all know everything there is to know about Mackey but we love watching him do his thing. In that way, the comparison to Tony Soprano is quite favourable.

This show messes with my morality. I found myself thinking "oh shit," when the treasury guy showed up, "now the ST's going to get caugt." They should get caught, they stole the money. But they only stole it from drug dealers. Gah!

What have you done to me Vic Mackey? Or Shawn Ryan (isn't it scary how much Ryan and Chiklis look alike?).

I definitely felt the pre-cursor to sparks with Corrine and the tutor. Poor guy, Vic's gonna make him cry like a three-year old if sleeps with his wife.

I saw Aceveda stealing Claudette's ideas coming a mile away. Also, I've been Claudette in too many scenarios. Not anymore, baby!

Shane, Shane, Shane. Wow! You're an idiot. When his girlfriend said she needed a Lexus I wanted to smack both of them with the other's hand.

Funniest line: "I think I just broke the code."

I totally thought that Aceveda knew about the heist when he said "go to an ATM." But then I don't know how he could of. YET, he did tell Dutch he would hold onto the serial numbers of marked bills and told Dutch to keep Vic out of the loop. Yeah, like that'll last long. Aceveda's a schmuck, but he's not a dumb schmuck.

I forgot about yay Dani!! She deserves wayyy more than to be a lame security check point at some school. She rocks. The thing that bugged me is that Asseveda did it more for him than her, he needed her to help get HIS numbers down to look good. I also got a hint that he knew about the heist in the ATM comment, but then I thought it could be more general. He knows Vic does shady stuff and has money as a result.

I was wondering if Ronnie would even be able to grow a full beard after being burned so severely. He almost died, no?

So do I. My hope is that Shane gets fired somehow, by the brass and Tavon gets his spot

I think Acaveda is very calculating this season. Also, that thing he did to Claudette seemed out of character. He usually doesn't stifle someone in the ass (no pun intended) like that, especially Claudette, whom he respects.

I think Acaveda was being such an ass about the money because he was baiting Vic to use the money train cash, ala "go use an ATM". He wants Vic to send those marked bills out, and get his hand caught in the cookie jar.

The Shield is BACK! I watched every S1 and S2 episode to get myself ready. The Shield is the only show that my husband and I both enjoy--and I can't wait to see what happens this season!!

I hope Dani gets back to the farm soon...because that Sheriff's uniform does nothing for her. I really think she's gonna kick ass and take numbers this time around. Vic has really betrayed her...sleeping with her, tossing her aside, and then leaving her ass out to dry. I wonder what she's going to do about it.

I love Dutch more and more each episode.

Shane is such a dumbass. But kind of endearing at the same time.

Aceveda is going to get on my nerves. He's made the transition from "somewhat respectable police captain" to "asshole politician."

Overall, a great start. I'm already looking forward to next week.