BeDrinkable
Joined Mar 2006
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Reviews9
BeDrinkable's rating
In any television season, there are usually two or three new cop shows that crop up. In the last several years, these usually fell into one of two categories: the procedural that follows criminal from crime to prison - a la Law & Order and the far more common (over the last few years) forensic detail – CSI and its offspring and ilk.
In this light, Southland is a bit of a throwback. The show follows uniforms and detectives working in L.A. and, as you would expect, encountering gritty and disheartening situations. It seems to focus on two groups: a uniformed crew (people by some older, jaded cops and their younger idealistic partners), and a group of detectives (who lack the individual interest of the uniforms). The main story seems to involve a rookie (Ben McKenzie) who is stumbling through his first day under the tutelage of his experienced trainer (the enjoyable Michael Cudlitz). There was another story introducing us to the detective crew (Regina King, Tom Everett Scott, et. al.), but for me this lacked the interest of the uniforms.
We'll start with what's good. The show should be commended for avoiding the popular models mentioned above, instead aiming for a more traditional cop show. The visual style is also interesting; the show apparently was filmed on HD hand-held cameras in a faux-documentary style. The performances are good, for the most part. It also seems to avoid the gloss-over storyline. In the first episode a young victim of gang violence is not just another face, but peripheral family characters are introduced.
Unfortunately there is much that's not so good. As I mentioned, it should be commended for its throwback nature, but at times this can seem like a re-treading of Colors. The dialogue is a bit stilted ("You do what they tell you in the academy, you die.") and a couple of the actors specialize in scene-chewing. The vast contingent of characters can cause me to lose interest in the other story-line and some of the elements only serve to remind me of better shows; the gritty nature makes think of The Wire; the visual style reminds me of Boomtown; the moral ambiguity reminds me of The Shield. I don't know if NBC will give this one time to find its footing, but networks don't have a good track record.
With so many cop shows out there, the best bring a new element to a tired genre (Life, The Wire). So far this one doesn't have anything to add.
In this light, Southland is a bit of a throwback. The show follows uniforms and detectives working in L.A. and, as you would expect, encountering gritty and disheartening situations. It seems to focus on two groups: a uniformed crew (people by some older, jaded cops and their younger idealistic partners), and a group of detectives (who lack the individual interest of the uniforms). The main story seems to involve a rookie (Ben McKenzie) who is stumbling through his first day under the tutelage of his experienced trainer (the enjoyable Michael Cudlitz). There was another story introducing us to the detective crew (Regina King, Tom Everett Scott, et. al.), but for me this lacked the interest of the uniforms.
We'll start with what's good. The show should be commended for avoiding the popular models mentioned above, instead aiming for a more traditional cop show. The visual style is also interesting; the show apparently was filmed on HD hand-held cameras in a faux-documentary style. The performances are good, for the most part. It also seems to avoid the gloss-over storyline. In the first episode a young victim of gang violence is not just another face, but peripheral family characters are introduced.
Unfortunately there is much that's not so good. As I mentioned, it should be commended for its throwback nature, but at times this can seem like a re-treading of Colors. The dialogue is a bit stilted ("You do what they tell you in the academy, you die.") and a couple of the actors specialize in scene-chewing. The vast contingent of characters can cause me to lose interest in the other story-line and some of the elements only serve to remind me of better shows; the gritty nature makes think of The Wire; the visual style reminds me of Boomtown; the moral ambiguity reminds me of The Shield. I don't know if NBC will give this one time to find its footing, but networks don't have a good track record.
With so many cop shows out there, the best bring a new element to a tired genre (Life, The Wire). So far this one doesn't have anything to add.
