Al Filo del Deber

Being a cop for 37 years I have seen changes in policing. With the advent of modern technology, being a cop has changed everything in the police world.

The first scene in the pilot episode we bear witness to a female police officer shot during a traffic stop. After she was shot we observe her lying in the middle of the road while onlookers are recording on their phones her dying in the street. None of them are helping or attempting to render aide. All they do it record on their phones. Shockingly, this is real life.

The young actors do a great job portraying police officers in their office (patrol car). They tug on their vests, constantly look from side to side and try to carry on a conversation while listening to radio and scanning plate numbers on their mobile data. True life. You watch as they get out of their cruisers and turn on their body cams, or forget to shut them off when they're having a "private" conversation.

This series shows the "thin blue line" unlike other cop shows that tend to lean towards romance or off duty time.

This is probably the best police drama since Southland or The Wire.

I teach Criminal Justice classes at a local college. One thing I stress to students who want to become police officers is location, location, location! In a scene from the pilot, the training officer gives her rookie a lesson in "where are we"? He failed. I'm going to use this clip in my class.

This show is true to life. Not all police work is a constant grind. There is a ton of down time, followed by high intensity stress, followed by a ton of paperwork. This show doesn't show that side of police work, if they did, who would watch?

I highly recommend this show. 10 stars.