The Shield – Episode 7-13 Review

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No onion rings. No botched attempt at parking cars. No Journey soundtrack. No cut to black.

Shawn Ryan delivered on his promise that Vic Mackey would get a proper ending. And it’s exactly what he deserves. A veritable purgatory, if you will. Call it a metaphorical prison for a guy who thrived on the streets: rousting gang members, lying, cheating, abusing his power. Watching EVERYTHING crash and burn around him whilst he suffers the fate of being alone and miserable was much more satisfying than the “he dies” or “he goes to jail” theories spinning since he first put a bullet underneath Terry Crowley’s eye.

First, by signing the immunity deal, perhaps Vic should have paid a little more attention to the fine print. He’s now tethered to a desk, in a suit, without his gun and unable to work his mojo on the streets. Who knows what will happen when his three-year deal ends, but that’s three long years with nothing but his thoughts, and considering everything that happened to everyone else because of him, those thoughts are likely to keep him up at night.

It’s a testament to the power of this show that you feel so much sympathy for Shane. After he selfishly murdered Lem in the fifth season finale, I waited patiently for him to get his comeuppance. But they showcased how much of a pariah Vic was this season, and how Shane was merely Frankenstein’s monster. My stomach turned a cartwheel when Julien, Tina, Dutch and Claudette kicked down the door to his house just as he ate his gun. Then they show the haunting sight of Mara and poor Jackson, dead on the bed, made up to look beautiful.

Corrine got her wish tonight. She and her children are in another town somewhere, out of Vic’s life for good. Part of her immunity deal was the stipulation that she be planted elsewhere away from Vic and his horrible influence. Nice little cameo from Clark Johnson, who directed the Pilot and this episode, as the talkative Federal Marshall.

Finally, by confessing everything, Vic royally burned Ronnie Gardocki, who essentially took the fall for Vic’s crimes. The Money Train, covering up the murder of Terry Crowley, et al. Ronnie might have been a little morally wayward, but no way did he deserve the brunt of what he’s sure to get. Watching seven years of undying loyalty to Vic (and this guy has been EXTREMELY loyal from the very beginning) come crashing down when he was being arrested for Vic’s crimes was nauseating. David Rees Snell really belted out his last scene, too, as he screamed at Vic while the blues were dragging him away in cuffs. Poor Ronnie.

It was also nice to see Claudette finally acknowledge the sympatico relationship between her and Dutch. I particularly liked how she got what she wanted from the Vic fiasco: she can’t arrest him, so she’ll make him suffer and remember how he’s made everyone else around him suffer, first with the photos of Shane’s corpse, then with the arrest of Ronnie. I also liked that the Claudette/Dutch/Lloyd storyline had no discernable ending.

So, after seven years, I’d say the ending was well worth the build-up; certainly much more thought-provoking than Vic sharing a cell with Antwon Mitchell, or laying face down in a pool of blood.

The episode closes with Long Time Ago, by Concrete Blonde, over the credits with scenes from the past inserted to remind viewers of the seven year ride. And what a fun ride it was.

Joseph Henson is a film-critic and would-be screenwriter. If you enjoyed his observations, please feel free to leave him a comment or two.