Hi Everyone,
Monday! If it was any indication on how my week is going to be, I’m in for a bumpy ride. It’s a good thing I decided to get the last DVDs of, The Shield, from the library on Sunday. In order to understand this blog, I’m going to start at the beginning. Here’s today’s blog.
While at the annual, Word on the Street, in September last year, I came across a book called, The Revolution Was Televised. The subtitle is The Cops, Crooks, Slingers, And Slayers Who Changed TV Drama Forever, by Alan Sepinwall.
From all of the books I got for free, or dirt cheap, that day, I decided to read the above book on my way home. My thinking was I’m an Extra/Back Ground Performer for TV shows and movies. Due to a series of unforeseen circumstances, I lost a lot of days and couldn’t be on set last year. Reading a book about TV would educate me, fill in some blanks. I was right. Outside of my avidly watching, Lost, another TV show mentioned in the book, fiction TV hasn’t exactly been my thing for the last two decades. I decided to not only read, The Revolution Was Televised, I also decided to watch at least one TV series mentioned in it. Once I finished reading the book, the first one I chose was, The Shield.
After I read the chapter on, The Shield, I had to watch it. Shawn Ryan, the series creator/head writer/show-runner, was highly praised for creating it. The Shield was the first series for FX, a once unknown channel, and The Shield and its actors, writers and others have won a series of awards. The writing is fantastic because it really pushes the envelope. It challenges the audience because there is no predicting what is going to happen—ever. Anyone I have mentioned, The Shield, to who has watched it love (d) it. “The Shield was before its time,” is a common quote. I agree. It was.
The Shield also opened doors and groomed as much of their talent as possible. An example of this is Kurt Sutter. He acted as the character Margos, was a writer, director and executive producer for The Shield before he went on to create, Sons of Anarchy. Michael Chiklis, who played Victor Samuel Mackey, the main character, the anti-hero, went on to direct and produce several episodes too. There are more examples.
Another thing that Shawn Ryan did was have as many commentaries as possible. In one someone states that one scene of The Shield is now, (or was,) taught in acting classes. That scene is one of the best scenes The Shield has ever had, and there are many. Another commentary with Shawn Ryan’s wife, who plays Corrine, Vic Mackey’s wife, says that now with the success of the show, she feels more comfortable with the people she has known for years. I get that. Some people warm up to those they think can move them forward.
What I really liked about, The Shield, is that it is accurately depicts the human condition. That also means it is an excellent example of a moral laboratory on more than one level. You want deceit, murder, and watch someone you trust turn on a dime, to hide their real or supposed crime, watch, The Shield. If you want to learn about psychology, sociopaths, psychopaths and the ways that they will manipulate the people in their lives for their end game, for what they believe is right, even though society as a whole believes what they are doing is wrong, again watch, The Shield.
If you want to learn about character arcs and production watch an episode and then the episode with the commentary on. You’ll learn a lot. I did. In fact, I’ve learned more about writing and production by doing that, then being on set. I am serious. Sure being on set is cool and you get paid while being there, but there is only so much one can learn. Being on set has its limits.
Overall, I can honestly say that, The Shield, is addictive. The story lines/text and the sub-texts are phenomenal! I watched as many episodes as possible on Sunday night, and started watching it first thing Monday morning. Bingeing on The Shield wasn’t what I had planned for Monday though. Had I not blown a fuse, and woke up freezing cold, I would have been out of my door by 8 am at the latest.
I am of the belief that, my having heat in my apartment hasn’t exactly been first or last priority for my landlord or the building manager. If I wanted to ensure I had heat by the end of the day, I had to cancel all of my plans. Heat is a vital service. At this time of the year, with the wind howling and minus temperatures, I needed to get my heat back on ASAP. Having The Shield at the ready just made the uncomfortable more comfortable.
I have been watching the series since November and I wanted, needed to know, just how everything was going to play out. Was there going to be a Karmic back-lash? Who, if anyone would pay for their sins? Who would get caught in the cross hairs? Since I don’t want to spoil the ending for anyone, I’m going to suggest you watch it. And as a head’s up, if you decide to buy the book, The Revolution was Televised, by Alan Sepinwall, don’t watch the TV series right after reading the chapter on it. Each chapter fully outlines the whole show, including the ending. I read a few books before watching, The Shield.
Is this a rant? You bet it is! The rant is just buried in the text and subtext. Just read between the lines. For anyone who is interested, I was watching, The Shield, when someone in their supposed right mind, wouldn’t stop knocking on my door last Tuesday. While I’m at it, I don’t believe that it was a coincidence that I decided to get the last few DVDs of, The Shield on Sunday. I think it happened for a reason.
Here are some links that relate to this blog,
http://arebelsrant.com/wheres-the-heat/
http://arebelsrant.com/do-you-have-trust-issues/
http://arebelsrant.com/why-you-should-live-drama-free/
http://arebelsrant.com/you-cant-really-change-that/
http://arebelsrant.com/respect-your-elders/
http://arebelsrant.com/the-supposed-sane-people/
http://arebelsrant.com/do-you-know-a-little-boy/ (this one has a few links)
http://arebelsrant.com/word-on-the-street/
http://arebelsrant.com/knock-yourself-out/
http://arebelsrant.com/as-a-coincidence/
Thank you for reading, A. Rebel’s Rant! ;D
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