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- Nov 19, 2011
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When I heard Michael Chiklis was returning to TV for the first time in long while I knew I wanted to check it out. The Shield, Chiklis's most successful series, is my #2 series of all time. Add to that, the setting of southern California in the desert with border patrol and mexican characters reminds me of Breaking Bad, my #1 favorite series of all time. And its on a streaming platform so they can include R-rated material.
The plotline is pretty basic... experienced border patrolman who just retired is being blackmailed into helping the cartel, or his family is murdered... but basic plotlines can still be awesome if the execution is awesome.
So... is the execution awesome? No.
The whole feel of the show seems like it was originally supposed to be on CBS but with swear words tacked on and the small levels of gore could have been easily edited out. After I watched all 6 episodes I discovered it was originally supposed to be on Paramount Network, but for whatever reason its now on CBS All Access. So the mature content is very half-assed as if they hoped it could be cut out in the editing room so it could make network TV.
Michael Chiklis is good in the role, but nothing anywhere close to what earned him a Golden Globe on The Shield. Can't say any of the other cast had impressive performances either, all very stock, but that's because the script are good... not great. There's nothing impressive on the page for the actors to give a great performance to.
The pacing feels like they wanted to make a drama but with some action scenes, but at many points it gets really slow like a typical drama. This is perhaps the show's biggest flaw... with a show about a man and his family is being threatened there's absolutely no excuse for it being BORING at times.
Although its a short 1st season at only 6 episodes I was expecting some resolution and a twist to get excited for a 2nd season... and there was one interesting development in the last scene... it didn't seem like an ending but like they stopped shooting halfway through what they thought was going to be a 10-episode 1st season. (Wikipedia says Paramount greenlit a 10-episode 1st season, and there's no explanation why there's only 6).
So I went into this series with high expectations because it has elements of my two favorite TV series of all time, and without the censors those shows had to work around. And... it does not come close to exceeding those expectations. I'd recommend watching this only if you're a huge fan of The Shield & Breaking Bad, and perhaps other people should check it out later if it gets a 2nd season.
Initial rating - 6/10. Good, not great.
Additional note I just realized as I'm typing this review... I mentioned it has elements of The Shield and Breaking Bad, but there's one additional show they COULD have added elements into to make it awesome... 24.
If they had fixed the pacing by making it a more action-focused show about a man doing favors for the cartel, taking on his own border patrol co-workers, being labeled a traitor, and trying to find his family that's been kidnapped it would have made this show from being a 6/10 CBS AllAccess show to being a top-rated CBS PrimeTime show on Sunday, Monday, or Tuesday.
Oh, and also I saw some promotional articles implying this show was going to have a political/social issue themes regarding immigration, and I can usually smell those subliminal messages a mile away but I didn't get that feeling at all while watching the show. In fact the show's antagonists actually send the message we need to keep those bastards out of the country.
