There are more similarities to The Shield than the previous reviewer (A Mess - September) says. It's gritty. Mistakes happen, wrong decisions are made...just like real life. Some filming techniques are the same with the 'hand held' camera effect. Actors 'get in the way' of the camera moving around like people do instead of taking up a fixed position. The camera moves from actor to actor in dialog, just like you do when witnessing a conversation, instead of jumping from face to face. It's like the viewer is following the action rather than watching it. Language is more realistic for the kind of situations they are in. One final similarity...it's a really good show!