I have no idea what the producers of The Shield were trying to do, but the result speaks for itself: The Shield is practically unwatchable.<br /><br />Supposedly the performances on The Shield are great...<br /><br />In reality, the show is so badly put together that you can't even really see the performances. For instance, the editing cuts away from reaction shots before they've had their full impact.<br /><br />I don't know what intellectual rationale there is for that, but it robs the show of all emotional impact.<br /><br />I'll give The Shield one point for ambition in its subject matter, but that's pretty much all I can give it.<br /><br />It's a shame to see a number of talented performer waste their gift on something so strangely badly filmed.