After scoring big
with the money train, the
Strike Team (Michael Chiklis, Walton Goggins, Kenneth Johnson,
David Rees Snell) plays it cool to avoid arousing suspicion as
Dutch (Jay Karnes) and Claudette (CCH Pounder) investigate the
robbery and murder of two Armenian gangsters. Tensions are
stretched even further when Vic finds himself at odds with his
team as they face a bitter rivalry from the new Decoy Squad. But
hostilities are quickly forgotten when Captain Aceveda (Benito
Martinez) reveals that the Strike Team is the target of an
Armenian mob hit.
CRITIQUE
Last time on The
Shield, Vic Mackey (Chiklis) and the Strike Team struck gold
with their money train heist, ripping off the Armenian mob. Season
3 explores the aftermath of their actions, which focuses on the
character's tensions and decisions about what to do with the
money, how to keep it safe, and not cause any suspicions with
Aceveda and the federal agent who shows up looking for marked
bills. Also, the Armenian mob seeks retribution, causing murder
victims with their feet cut off to appear in the Farmington
district.
Other developments
include the addition of detective Tavon Garris (Brian J. White) to
the Strike Team which means the other guys need to watch what they
say and do in front of Garris since they're such a tight-knit team
that frequently bends the rules, the introduction of the Decoy
Squad, the romance between Shane (Goggins) and Mara (Michele
Hicks) that later intensifies after $7,000 disappears from the
storage locker where the money train cash is kept, Claudette being
assigned to command the Strike team, Dutch searching for a rape
suspect, and much more, including the difficult and shameful
situation Aceveda finds himself in after two criminals subdue him.
The Shield
doesn't let up in its third season, the action keeps the
adrenaline going and the writing is solid. With respect to that,
one really neat aspect about this season is the expansion of the
episode order to fifteen. In terms of storytelling, the main story
threads in each episode work well and tell interesting stories,
except the D stories involving Julien (Michael Jace) and Danny
(Catherine Dent) that are frequently lost in the shuffle yet don't
drag down the show. An interesting surprise occurs in when David
Mamet (Wag the Dog, Spartan) directs Strays,
which among other stories brings Dutch face to face with the
elusive rapist he's been chasing. It goes without saying, I think,
that The Shield is an exciting and cool cop show drama.
The third season's
fifteen episodes spread across four discs as follows:
Disc 1:
301 - Playing Tight
302 - Blood And Water
303 - Bottom Bitch
304 - Streaks And
Tips
Disc 2:
305 - Mum
306 - Posse Up
307 - Safe
308 - Cracking Ice
Disc 3:
309 - Slipknot
310 - What Power Is
311 - Strays
312 - Riceburner
Disc 4:
313 - Fire
In The Hole
314 - All In
315 - On Tilt
THE VIDEO
Fox presents The Shield in
the original 1.33:1 fullscreen format, however, I've read
elsewhere the show is shot in widescreen. Interestingly, Fox's
retail website lists the aspect ratio as 1.78 though I'm betting
it'll be changed soon. The picture is noticeably grainy and not
always very detailed. Sharpness is fine, however, and the colors
vary between crisp and fleshed out depending on the light source
in the scenes. Optional subtitles include English and
Spanish.
THE AUDIO
Fox presents The Shield
in English Dolby Digital Surround. Dialogue is clear and
easy to understand, as is the music and the sound effects.
Overall a pretty standard but effective audio presentation.
THE EXTRAS
The Season 2 DVD
offered only four commentaries after the first season set
contained tracks for every episode. This time, the DVD set
offers eight commentaries, which is double from last time, yet
the downside is creator Shawn Ryan participates in only two
tracks (incidentally they're the best). The remaining
commentaries offer general to interesting information, but also
include silence and dry comments. Either way, here are they are:
Bottom Bitch
by director Scott Brazil, writer Adam E. Fierro, and actors
Michael Chiklis and Michael Jace.
Mum by
creator/writer Shawn Ryan, writer Kurt Sutter, and actors Walton
Goggins, Michelle Hicks and Benito Martinez.
Cracking Ice
by director Guy Ferland, writer Charles H. Eglee, and actors
Matt Gerald, CCH Pounder and Gareth Williams.
Slipknot by actors
Michael Chiklis, Walton Goggins, Kenneth Johnson and David
Snell.
What Power
Is by director Dean White and actors Benito Martinez, Michael
Jace and Jay Karnes.
Strays by
Shawn Ryan, writer Glen Mazzara, and actors Catherine Dent and
Jay Karnes.
Fire in the
Hole by actors Catherine Dent, CCH Pounder, Nicki Micheaux
and Cathy Cahlin Ryan.
All In by
writer Scott Rosenbaum and actors Michael Chiklis, Kenneth
Johnson, Jay Karnes and CCH Pounder.
Breaking
Episode #315 is a brilliant, very well edited 79-minute
documentary by Marc Ostrick (who also did the kick-ass 24
documentary on the Season 2 DVD as well as the "Wrap Day"
documentary on The Shield's Season 2 DVD). The docu
focuses on the making of the season finale from
conception in the writers' room to shooting on location and on
set. Very good stuff.
Also available are
a total of 38 deleted scenes with optional commentary by
Shawn Ryan. The material contained
in these scenes is generally good and Ryan's comments point out
the obvious, the reason for the cuts was time constraints but
also because some scenes repeated information or character
notions.
FINAL THOUGHTS
The third season of
The Shield is strong and intense, making for great entertainment.
The four-disc DVD set features a great documentary but overall less
bonus material than the previous season set, but still comes highly
recommended.
