Southland

Southland turned out to be better than the ads for it made me believe. The ads seemed a little over the top, heavy handed even, but the show itself worked very well.

Michael Cudlitz's Officer Cooper has that nice combo of jaded and cynical but still obviously caring. His character seemed most likely to be over the top from the commercials, but in the context of the show came across about as close to perfect for the moment as you could ask. Looking forward to more with this character.

Benjamin McKenzie as Officer Ben Sherman also did very good. We didn't learn a whole lot about the character in the Pilot, but that makes sense in the debut as we will most certainly be learning more about him. Well acted by Mckenzie and has a nice rapport with Officer Cooper, that will by nice to watch develop.

Everything else in the show worked, and apart from a couple of moments that didn't quite jibe with the reality of the rest of the episode, makes me optimistic for the rest of the series.

I think Southland deserves to be considered amongst the great series: The Sopranos, The Wire, Breaking Bad, Deadwood, Better Call Saul, Rome, Dexter, Oz, Lilyhammer, Boardwalk Empire, Game of Thrones, Ray Donovan and Peaky Blinders. It is also, arguably, the most underrated. It should never have been on NBC, which NBC realized, and then it went to cable at TNT. It flourished creatively, in its 4 seasons there, but never found it's audience. If this show had been on HBO, I think more people would have found it and sung its praises. Even Emmy didn't see what an incredible cast the show had and what brilliant writing it employed. Also, unlike so many long-running series, it's final Season 5 was its best. It was not supposed to be its final Season, TNT decided to cancel it, which only goes to show the unfulfilled promise that lay ahead.

There was not a single bad performance with any cast regulars, but Michael Cudlitz and Regina King stand out, closely followed by Shawn Hattoy and Ben McKenzie. C. Thomas Howell blows it out of the water in a supporting role and Lucy Liu and Gerald McRaney nail it in guest spots. The scenes with Cudlitz and McRaney, S5 E7, Heroes, is the stuff that should be taught in acting classes and should have garnered both Emmy nominations.

Best Season: 5 Best Episodes: Season 5, E7, 8, 9 and 10.

To start I have to say that the pilot episode was amazing and the show only got better until the season finale.

I have been policing for some time now and have yet to find a show that depicts policing as accurate as Southland. Sure there are some scenes in this series that are a bit over dramatized, as in any show; however, the attitudes, behaviours and problems officers face are very real.

Many of the messages Cst. COOPER says to his "rookie" Cst. SHERMAN are very valid in policing today and are often utilized. SHERMAN's responses to things that he has to see and experience are spot on.

The fact that many of the terms used in Southland are not sugar coated, as in other TV series, blows my mind and is what keeps me watching. I see far too much in other series where the characters actually seem awkward as their language doesn't reflect what their behaviour is showing or the producers want to appease the censors and use softer language.

Having two separate views of cases may distract some people, but this is exactly what it is like in reality. There are detectives in the same division as the front line officers and although they may work together on some incidents, often go about their day on different paths.

The finale is and what will make me a dedicated viewer because of how close it hits to home. As an officer you tend not to try and get involved in your neighbours business, this is a reality in today's world where anything can happen if you choose to do so.

All in all amazing acting, real characters, real settings and scenarios. I recommended this show to all my co-workers and anyone else interested in television shows depicting policing as it really is.

9/10 (Only reason I didn't give a 10 is because I don't believe anything is ever perfect).

Southland is one of the best and most underrated police series to ever be put on television! Everyone knows that there are thousands of cop shows out there to choose from but this is among the best and most original I've ever seen. It's a surprisingly fresh take on the cop show genre. Every episode is compelling and will hold your interest. Just read through the reviews to see what people really think of it. The cast is excellent and make it a very believable show. It's just such a gritty and realistic show about cops. It's a shame that it ended when it did because it should of went on for a few more seasons. With all the crap shows they revive these days I'd love to see them bring this show back.

Southland is absolutely one of the best cop dramas to ever be made! There are thousands of cop shows out there to choose from but this is among the best and most original I've ever seen. The cast is excellent and make it a very believable show. It really is one of the more underrated shows in television history!