Hello!
I am someone who watched a stupid, shameful amount of tv and I thought I was someone who has watched everything legendary that tv has to offer. I was so wrong!
I really really hate crime/cop shows and thought this recommendation was a fantasy show haha. I love my rule of going completely blind into shows. What a great first ep!
It is the perfect mix of The Wire & Sopranos & Breaking Bad.
Idk if The Shield got lost when it was airing. But my god. It has aged like fine wine and as a modern viewer not once did it feel comically unrealistic, poorly paced, stuffed with filler arcs/episodes or that characters had excessive plot armour.
Initially, I hated everyone immediately for different reasons. But I also immediately could see, and understand their motives, their values and why they did what they did. Their choices didn't feel random it's so rare that writers put that much effort into crafting motives within a show. That was a real stand out to me.
The acting, the world building felt real because I could instantly feel that this was rooted in real anecdotal events or something, after looking it up, I was right, the characters & squad were based on real people & squads.
Just an honourable mention to the sexual assault of a male character. It was so well done. The randomness and brutality of it plus the extra sting of it being recorded, the reaction of compliance of the victim, the shock and disgust of trusted family members after finding out. It's so realistic and humiliating.
I just finished the end and I feel physically sick to my stomach. I LOVE that the MCs family has a beautiful new beginning, but the ending was so messy, and government coded and I love how angy/sick it made me, but that goes to show how well done the whole thing was.
I saw 7 seasons and was convinced that it was going to get random, drawn out, slower, stupider, but I saw the low episode count for the decade it was made and stayed cautiously optimistic. And it really did get better as the show went on! More detailed, more callbacks, higher stakes, the wolves closing in. It was perfect.
If the creators/cast ever read this, WELL DONE! You did something only a handful of shows ever do, you created a piece of art that will forever stand the test of time. I loved all the care out into the side characters, the minor roles & the villains. The lack of plot holes. You made an incredibly unlikeable cast of characters interesting and layered enough to keep people glued for 7 seasons. It was so perfect. Thank you for making this, thank you for making me feel like this.
Sorry if it's long! TLDR : was freaking good, I'm mad no one puts this on the same level as other "greats"
