History Series / TheShield

* EvilVersusEvil: Vic against Shane, in the seventh season. Both are corrupt [[KilerCop killer cops]] desperately trying to escape justice for their crimes.

A hyperactive Shakespearian counterpart to the Dickensian ''Series/TheWire'', ''The Shield'' follows a team of police officers working at The Barn, an experimental police precinct situated within the fictional UsefulNotes/LosAngeles district of Farmington. Although the show revolves around corrupt detective [[AntiHero Vic Mackey]] (Creator/MichaelChiklis), it gained a reputation as an ensemble show as the series explored the goings-on within the Farmington Precinct (including the various power struggles and interpersonal drama surrounding Mackey in the midst of the chaos and intrigue).

[[caption-width-right:350: Just another day for the LAPD.[[labelnote:Characters]] From left to right: [[MoralityPet Curtis "Lem" Lemansky]], [[RabidCop Shane Vendrell (kneeling in front)]], [[BunnyEarsLawyer Holland "Dutch" Wagenbach]], [[BlackBestFriend Julien Lowe]], [[AntiHero Vic Mackey]], [[DaChief David Aceveda]], [[TheHeart Claudette Wyms]], [[TeamMom Danielle "Danny" Sofer]].[[/labelnote]]]]

Other aspects of the show deal with the rank-and-file members of the Farmington Precinct. The most notable of these cast members, detectives [[BunnyEarsLawyer Holland "Dutch" Wagenbach]] and [[TheHeart Claudette Wyms]], deal with non-gang-related instances of rape and murder within the district. They serve as the moral opposite of Vic Mackey and the Strike Team, which leads to tension between the two sides when they work together on related cases (or when Dutch and Claudette have to clean up the inevitable fallout from the Strike Team's corrupt antics while trying to prove Vic's corruption). Several patrol officers--including [[TeamMom Danielle "Danny" Sofer]], her protégé [[BlackBestFriend Julien Lowe]], and rookie cop [[HiddenDepths Tina Hanlon]]--find themselves struggling to advance up the ranks while dealing with the unappreciated job of keeping Farmington safe.

* FirstEpisodeSpoiler: Vic murders Terry Crowley.

* CopKiller: In the last few minutes of the [[FirstEpisodeSpoiler pilot episode]], [[spoiler:Strike Team newcomer Terry Crowley]] gets shot in the head by none other than [[spoiler:[[VillainProtagonist Vic]] [[CorruptCop Mackey]]]].

* ThrowTheBookAtThem: Vic has occasionally beaten up people using a DoorStopper.

''The Shield'' is an American CopShow which ran over seven seasons from March 2002 to November 2008 on [[Creator/FXNetworks FX]].

A hyperactive Shakespearian counterpart to the Dickensian ''Series/TheWire'', '''''The Shield''''' follows a team of police officers working at The Barn, an experimental police precinct situated within the fictional UsefulNotes/LosAngeles district of Farmington. Although the show revolves around corrupt detective [[AntiHero Vic Mackey]] (Creator/MichaelChiklis), it gained a reputation as an ensemble show as the series explored the goings-on within the Farmington Precinct (including the various power struggles and interpersonal drama surrounding Mackey in the midst of the chaos and intrigue).

* FelonyMurder: What ultimately dooms Shane and Mara. When Shane's attempt to rob a group of drug dealers goes wrong, she ends up shooting an innocent bystander by mistake. Regardless, this results in Mara facing a first degree murder charge.

** TheHero: Vic Mackey * Cough cough YMMV* The main character, head of the Strike Team and knows the dirty stuff.

* AllOfTheOtherReindeer: Dutch is largely treated as an outcast by the other cops at the precinct, with even his partner/best friend keeping him at arms' length most of the time. Strike Team member Ronnie Gardocki is also treated badly by his teammates: from making fun of his facial hair to his non-existent sex life, to being left out of the loop of many important decisions made by the Strike Team and largely treated as a gopher for Vic.

Much the same as ''Series/TheSopranos'', ''The Shield'' goes to great lengths in portraying how Vic and the rest of the Strike Team have both good and bad sides. In spite of his corruption and violent tendencies, many of Vic's criminal actions often result from the stress of his job (i.e. the unrealistic pressures placed on him to shut down crime in the district) and the desire to provide for his family (two of his three children have autism). Vic has some lines he refuses to cross, however, and he has absolutely zero tolerance for rape, pedophilia, and domestic violence. He also shows a great deal of loyalty towards his teammates and often preaches the message of team loyalty to bond the four men into a surrogate family.

** Ronnie's characterization might be considered a bit of EarlyInstallmentWeirdness, as he wasn't in every season 1 episode but becomes more and more important to the Team about midway through season 2.

* FromBadToWorse: The Money Train Heist in the season two finale: what should have been the Strike Team's crowning moment of awesomeness turning into the moment when things went off the rails and led to the destruction of the team and their friendships.
* GrandFinale: "Family Meeting." [[Awesome/TheShield And]] [[IronicHell what]] [[TearJerker a]] [[DownerEnding finale]].

* HumiliationConga: The series finale: What should've been Vic's CrowningMomentOfAwesome quickly spirals downward into the inverse: the last half of the episode is a Karmic smackdown of the highest order, in which he ultimately winds up alone and in a job that represents all of his worst fears, nightmares, and defects.

* SmugSnake: Shane, Claudette, and Billings qualify as the biggest examples. Subverted with Aceveda and Vic, as both men generally have better track records than the other three.

* YouAreTooLate: After seven seasons of turning a blind eye to Vic Mackey's corruption, Claudette Wyms finally goes after Vic after his ex-wife turns to Claudette with airtight evidence of his illegal activities as well as catching Ronnie Gardocki, Vic's partner on tape for aiding and abetting. Sadly, in typical Claudette fashion, she [[spoiler:doesn't seize the timing as far as flipping Ronnie for his testimony against Vic or arresting Vic on the spot. By the time she finally gives the order to arrest Vic, it's too late: Vic has used the delays to secure a Federal immunity deal, resulting in Claudette arriving mid-confession as Vic has already signed the paperwork.]] [[HumiliationConga She gets one hell of a consolation prize, though.]]

* BiggerBad: The unseen Armenian mob bosses during Season 3.

* ConfessToALesserCrime: After's Shane failed attempt to kill Vic and Ronnie, Weems goes to Ronnie to demand an explanation. Ronnie pulls a plausible explanation entirely out of his ass and pins everything on Shane, while confessing that he and Vic were doing an unauthorized investigation into Shane's murder (and leaving out all the murders they committed in the process) and that they arranged a meeting with the fugitive Lem (but only to convince him to turn himself in, claims Ronnie).

* ConfessToALesserCrime: When Shane tries to kill Vic and Ronnie, Weems goes to Ronnie to demand an explanation. He manages to pin all of the Strike Team's crimes on Shane, and reframes their own misdeeds as minor missteps -- for example, he confesses how they arranged a meeting with the fugitive Lem, but only to convince him to turn himself in.

* DidntThinkThisThrough: While Vic [[spoiler: pulls off the greatest trick of his career by getting immunity for all his crimes, it soon becomes apparent it's not all roses afterward. He didn't count on Olivia putting him on desk duty (which he isn't suited for) and being under such intense scrutiny (to catch him if he violates his deal). Also, thanks to him confessing his litany of crimes, there is no shot of him working in law enforcement ever again. He's basically a leper when (or if) he finishes out his deal with no violation. Moreover, it leads to Dutch and Claudette making sure his wife and children are entered into the Witness Protection Program and taken far away from Vic.]]