I’ve long maintained that THE SHIELD is the most underrated (and, arguably, most important) show of the Golden Age of TV. Read David Polansky here to get a sense of why @MichaelChiklis’s Vic Mackey deserves his spot in the pantheon of TV greats. https://www.rebellermedia.com/original/the-shield-is-the-best-cop-show-you-never-watched

Why most important? Because it showed you could do HBO-style stuff on networks other than HBO. THE SOPRANOS was HBO’s first huge hit, but it wasn’t their first show of that sort.

But THE SHIELD showed you could do that sort of thing on FX. And FX’s success (with THE SHIELD and NIP/TUCK and others) showed you could do that sort of thing on AMC and elsewhere.

Informed viewers understand the importance of THE SHIELD; @sepinwall dives into its influence in his great book on our era of TV, “The Revolution Was Televised.” I highly recommend picking it up as you’re sifting through streaming choices. https://amzn.to/2w9UGUQ 

And this is no small thing: THE SHIELD earns your 75 hours or so of viewing by totally and absolutely nailing the ending. The final few shots are among the most haunting things I’ve seen from a TV show, ever. Just devastating work by Walton Goggins and Chiklis at the end.

Anyway! Read this piece. Then watch THE SHIELD. (It’s streaming on Hulu right now!) Then tell me how right I am. I like to hear that. I need to hear that. “Sonny, you’re right, as always, why didn’t I listen to you sooner?” https://www.rebellermedia.com/original/the-shield-is-the-best-cop-show-you-never-watched

You’re right it is cheap! It’s literally free for two months and then only $2 a month after that! https://shop.cinestate.com/products/rebeller-free-2-month-trial