The Shield - The Complete Fourth Season - DVD Review

Everybody steps it up a notch for The Shield's fourth season which has stronger direction than previous entries and is more satisfying than any other season before it, other than maybe season two. A large contributing factor to this is are the two new big players added; Glenn Close as Monica Rawling, the Barn's new captain, and Anthony Anderson as manipulative drug-lord Antwon Mitchell. Both of these actors bring their all, and in the case of Anthony Anderson it's a very pleasant surprise to discover his exceptional dramatic acting chops.

With Acevada taking a city council position Monica Rawling (Glenn Close, Damages, a role procured for her after her TV stint on The Shield) takes over as captain with a very different approach to David. She wants to implement a seizure plan that takes drugs and drug-bought items and places the money from them into an increased budget for The Barn and also funnel some of it through to the fledgling community. She's happy to please and as a first order of business fixes the male toilets at the Barn which is met with admiration. After the disintegration of the Strike Team Vic finds himself with no other option but to play it straight and get in the new captain's good graces. Surprisingly, he does this easily as she too plays it rough and fast at times in order to get a result. That said, she is a very different cat with a different approach to the morally-questionable political antics of Acevada. And she would never be like him, that's the point, that's her. Things seem to be going well, but with drug-lord Anthony Anderson wrapped up in dealings with Shane and his new junior partner Army (Michael Pena, Observe and Report), Vic trustingly invites them back into a new drug team at the Barn commissioned by Rawling. Before long, the ties that bind become very stretched and a tangled mess starts to grow, in which they are all involved.

Acevada's story continues from where it left off last season and is the other satisfying arc this season. He is understandably taken to another low-point and you just have to wonder what season five has in store for him. As opposed to Dutch's romance with Vic's ex-wife Corrine which was never given enough scenes to build up any weight and thus comes off a little silly.

This is a very strong season with a satisfying conclusion. But more than that, this is the first time I have been totally and completely on-board with the show. From the second or third episode of the season I was entranced and enthralled and this never let up until the end of the season. I cannot say that for the other seasons, although the second was fantastic. Perhaps, the weight of the characters and their stories have built up enough for me to just be along for it all and engrossed in the show. Not to detract from the season itself which was just well-constructed; the twisting and turning plotted carefully with the audience in mind, along with the dazzling acting performances all across the board.

Video

1.78:1 Anamorphic Widescreen just like the others, and for the show's visual style it looks just as good as the other seasons.

Audio

Dolby 2.0 like the other seasons. A more involving 5.1 would be great but what we have here is very sufficient with no problems to note.

Extras

Special Features:

• Audio commentary by the cast and crew on selected episodes

• Never-before-seen deleted scenes

• 'Under The Skin' behind-the-scenes documentary on the making of season four

Eight of the episodes have commentary and they feature a wide range of the cast and crew which should be very satisfying. There are about half an hours worth of deleted scenes which are a bonus if you're interested in an episode's sub-plot that may have been a little thinner than you would have liked. The hour-long documentary is the best extra any of these sets have had. The whole production of the season is discussed at length with a very broad range of the cast and crew.

4 single-sided dual-layer discs make up season four in a neat and minimal single DVD case like the other seasons. There are also English subtitles. This season clocks in at 593 minutes.

Yes, Dutch and Claudette got a little short-changed over the season, and some people believe it gave season four less focus on the other cast. But honestly, I didn't mind. A lot went on and I was excited to be along for the ride. A great season and a great example of one of the first successes in the now common cable channel move of grabbing big-name movie actors for single-season arcs in their dramas.

Friday Night Lights - The First Season - DVD Review

I'd been anticipating the Region 4 DVD release of the first season of Friday Night Lights for quite some time, due to the resumes of those involved and the glowing reviews from critics. I certainly wasn't disappointed. One introductory point I'd like to make which has never been a problem for me - but can be for many, is the show's premise - or what the show is about. This is not a football show. Firstly, a scripted prime time drama primarily about a sport isn't realistic or sustainable, so I'm not sure how people get these ideas into their heads. Obviously, the sport is going to be secondary to character or plot - and in the case of Friday Night Lights the fact is glaringly obvious, as the show is exceptionally character-driven, as opposed to plot-driven or even sport-driven.

Anyway, the series is helmed by Jason Katims who wrote for such shows as Roswell, My So-Called Life, Relativity, and the new ABC show Parenthood. This is important because the show continues the tradition of very personal shows that never get bogged down in plot - I can't really say that about Roswell - but that show has a complex behind-the-scenes story. The show was developed for television by Peter Berg who directed the feature film based on a book that this series is based on. The show maintains the hand held visual style and the beautiful, atmospheric guitar-driven music from Explosions in the Sky that the movie had. Although not scored by Explosions in the Sky, W.G. Snuffy Walden adapts their style of music for the show, fantastically.

Friday Night Lights is about life in small town America, and it takes an even-sided approach, looking carefully at the good and bad. The Texan town of Dillon, in which the show is set, is driven by high-school football. It connects the entire town and brings all of the characters together through a common interest. This is quite a beautiful thing and shows the great aspects of small town life. The show centers around Eric Taylor, (Kyle Chandler, Early Edition) his wife Tami, (Connie Britton, who also played the coach's wife in the Friday Night Lights feature film) and daughter Julie (Aimee Teegarden, 90210) who move to Dillon when Eric takes a head coaching job for the high school football team. They find out very quickly how seriously the town takes football when they go from love for the coach to hate as quickly as a final game buzzer. Among the other characters are boozing footballer Tim Riggins (Taylor Kitsch, The Covenant), star quarterback Jason Street (Scott Porter, Prom Night), cheerleader and boyfriend to star quarterback, Lyla Garrity (Minka Kelly), slut with little self-respect, Tyra Collette (Adrianne Palicki, Supernatural), and many more. My point is that these are all very stereotypical characters. However, the thing Friday Night Lights does amazingly, is add extra dimensions to these characters and allows them to grow and become layered. I can comfortably say that about every one of characters in the cast. The show uses some improvisation in scenes to enhance the show's realism as well as multiple cameras so the cast can freely develop scenes without extensive blocking. This was a very wise move by the producers as it gives the show a unique edge over a lot of what is currently on television. The scripted dialogue should also be mentioned as it is usually perfect. Whenever the show does take a rare misstep in plotting, the dialogue and performances still retain emotional truth and naturalism. It really is a testament to the show's cast and crew when such a huge aspect of the show never falters.

The strongest episodes of the first season are in the first half which is near-perfect. Later on in the season, as if the writers hadn't heavily outlined a full 22 episode season, some plot-lines are put on characters, as opposed to them growing organically from the characters. As I said, even when this is the case the show is still compelling and I really hope the rest of the series lives up to the greatness achieved in the first sixteen or so episodes. I'm not going to discuss the plot or any events that happen over the season just because the show is very light on plot and the wonderful moments on the show are the little things; the interactions, the small changes in character - so I'll leave you pure.

Audio

The Dolby 2.0 is clear and sounds great, however, I wish that 5.1 was used as is in the U.S. release.

Video

The video is in 1:78:1 Anamorphic Widescreen and looks absolutely wonderful. I love the show's visual style and some may find the flat colours and grain annoying, but I think it adds to the shows huge emotional resonance along with the beautiful score and music.

Extras

There are no special features on this release which is a damn shame, considering the U.S. release did come with some. Oh well, let's hope for the season 2 release to step up and git'er done.

If you like cable drama or some of the great but few downbeat network dramas like My So-Called Life and Once and Again then please watch this show as enough people don't. Screw you NBC for ruining yet another one of your dramas and thank you DirecTV for picking the show up and giving it a second lease on life.

Breaking Bad - S03E01 - No Mas

This season opener 'No Mas' is a direct continuation from the last season, as opposed to a new beginning. New beginnings are certainly being suggested at, but they aren't here yet. This was an unusual - but by no means bad - plotting move, as cable dramas tend to wrap up a seasonal storyline and start anew, with some character threads running over as well as maybe a cliffhanger or two. The newly introduced plot that stands out this episode was delivered through the teaser - so characteristically it was packed with ambiguity. Similarly to last seasons 'pool and teddy bear' teasers, the sequence had a distinct visual style. In a yellowish tinge, two tough guys who look like twins ritualistically crawl all the way through a Mexican village up to a small temple. In the room contains a sketch of Walt wearing sunglasses and his awesome hat. What follows asserts them as definite contenders for big bad's this season. That said, I hardly think Gilligan would reveal everything so plainly without having an array of mind-fucks and plot-twists planned for the teasers following the opener. The obviousness of the scary Mexican brother-guy's coming after Walt to kill him just invites me to question it. Hey, maybe they're finding Walt to help him. Probably a stretch to make predictions with so little information - nonetheless, I'm excited to analyse the next teaser sequence and I found this one very unsettling.

I will be back next episode for a more in-depth review as things between Walt and Skylar should escalate and we can see where this season is taking Jesse.