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Southland: The Complete Second, Third and Fourth Seasons  Review by Suzanne Lanoue 2/13/13

I've watched every episode of "Southland" since it started, and I've really enjoyed it. Initially I only watched it because I loved Ben McKenzie after his work in "The O.C.", but I fell for the show as well and have kept watching. I do have to say that I liked it best the first few seasons. They have kind of ruined it, in a way.

When the show first started, it was a good, realistic show about police in L.A. It reminded me of the old show "Adam 12".  I guess someone thought that was boring because ever since then, they've been adding more and more action and violence, and making the characters lives interfere with their jobs like a soap opera. It's too bad they felt that they had to take away the one thing that made this show so unique.  It's now the ER of cop shows. Fun to watch but completely unrealistic and over-the-top, and getting worse every season.

The show has had a rocky history. It started out on NBC, and it got decent ratings, so NBC renewed it. Then they changed their minds and canceled it. This was the year they decided to put Jay Leno on every night at at 10:00pm. What a stupid idea that was. But in order to make room for Jay, they had to cancel ER, Southland, and some other shows, and pull Law & Order from the schedule. Eventually they did bring back Law & Order for a while before canceling it. I am still upset that they canceled this show and ER. Fortunately, TNT grabbed Southland and has been airing it ever since.  The strength of the show has always been the actors, the characters they play, and the gripping police stories.

I don't know why they decided to put seasons 2-4 on one set, but I'm glad they did! It saves me from having to go buy 3 sets. Since it's cable, there are only 26 episodes for the whole set.

In the second season, Lydia gets a new partner, Ben goes out on his own, and Sammy has marital problems. In the third season, Sammy moves in with Nate, who ends up getting killed. Cooper's back problems get worse, as does his addiction to pain killers. Sammy goes back to patrol after the birth of his son and is paired with Ben. In the fourth season, Cooper is paired with Lucy Liu's Officer Tang. Lou Diamond Phillips appears in a small role. The squad gets a new captain. Lydia gets pregnant and has to deal with her physical limitations. Ben keeps getting in trouble.

It's definitely a show worth watching. I just wish it had lived up to its early potential.

There are many great features on the DVD. There are many unaired scenes, and quite a few behind-the-scenes extras about the show and about L.A. It's a good set to have if you are a fan of the show.

MORE INFORMATION:

ATTENTION: ALL AVAILABLE UNITS! 

WARNER BROS. HOME ENTERTAINMENT

GROUP RELEASES

SOUTHLAND: THE COMPLETE

SECOND, THIRD AND FOURTH SEASONS

ON DVD FEBRUARY 5, 2013 

“Southland has blossomed into a procedural with the soul of a serial drama. Every crime — murder, bank robbery, changing lanes without signaling — is a mini-masterpiece of L.A. noir.” – Entertainment Weekly

“More thrilling than any ride-along, watching Southland is like being in the uniform, inside the wildly thumping chest of a cop who doesn't know if he or she will live past the next few seconds. Southland…deserves a category of greatness all its own.” – The Wall Street Journal

BURBANK, CA (October 24, 2012) – Delving into the lives of cops, criminals, victims and their families, the acclaimed police drama Southland — from John Wells Productions — presents an authentic look at police work in Los Angeles unlike any other. With their lives on the line every day, these cops and detectives sometimes triumph, and sometimes fail — but always fight to try and make a difference. Warner Bros Home Entertainment Group (WBHEG) will release Southland: The Complete Second, Third and Fourth Seasons on DVD February 5, 2013, just in time for the show’s fifth season broadcast premiere on TNT.  This 6-disc DVD release contains all 26 explosive episodes from Seasons Two, Three and Four, plus over one hour of bonus extras, all priced to own at a $59.98 SRP. 

Created by Ann Biderman (NYPD Blue) and executive produced by John Wells (ER, The West Wing), Christopher Chulack (ER, Third Watch), and Jonathan Lisco (K-Ville, NYPD Blue), Southland: The Complete Second, Third and Fourth Seasons contains 26 episodes of the gripping, lightning-paced series about the courageous men and women who live their lives on a jagged edge, confronting criminals, victims and a sprawling city laced with vice and seething with danger. From the beaches to Beverly Hills, Hollywood to South Central, Southland gets underneath the skin of Los Angeles, with a police unit comprised of bold rookies and hardened veterans. From gangbangers to murder and drug deals gone wrong, sometimes the poison they live with on the job comes home with them. Police action hits hard in Southland, and fans get to experience all the victories and all the anguish with an unrestricted look at the LAPD.

“Southland is one of the most dramatic, emotionally engaging and authentic police dramas on air with its realistic and raw storytelling,” said Rosemary Markson, Senior Vice President, TV and Special Interest Marketing of Warner Bros Home Entertainment Group.  “We are thrilled to finally release Southland: The Complete Second, Third and Fourth Seasons on DVD for fans of this critically-acclaimed series.”

In its fourth season, Southland was the #1 primetime program for the season on TNT and a Top 10 show in its time period among Households, Total Viewers and Adults 25-54.* 

Starring Michael Cudlitz, Shawn Hatosy, Regina King and Ben McKenzie – and Kevin Alejandro, Arija Bareikis, Clifton Collins, Jr. and Michael McGrady in Season Two – Southland is from John Wells Productions in association with Warner Bros. Television. Created by Ann Biderman, the series’ creative team has included John Wells, Christopher Chulack, Biderman, Jonathan Lisco and Andrew Stearn.

*Source: Nielsen Galaxy Explorer, Live+Same Day Total US ratings.  #1 claim and  Top 10 time period claim = 1/17-3/20/12.

Season 2

1. Phase Three
2. Butch & Sundance
3. U-Boat
4. The Runner
5. What Makes Sammy Run?
6. Maximum Deployment

Season 3

1. Let It Snow
2. Punching Water
3. Discretion
4. Code 4
5. The Winds
6. Cop or Not
7. Sideways
8. Fixing a Hole
9. Failure Drill
10. Graduation Day

Season 4

1. Wednesday
2. Underwater
3. Community
4. Identity
5. Legacy
6. Integrity Check
7. Fallout
8. God’s Work
9. Risk
10. Thursday

DVD Standard Features

•         6 DVD-9s

•         Audio:  Dolby Surround 5.1

•         Language:  English

•         Subtitles:  ESDH, French Parisian

•         Aspect Ratio: 16 x 9

DVD Special Features

•         Southland: Redefining the Cop Drama –  Producers and Cast Reveal the Story Behind Creating a New Series About the LAPD (From Season 2)

•         Backing the Badge: Selected Scene Commentary – Stories Behind Some of the Season’s More Powerful Sequences (From Season 2)

•         A Crime Tour: Southland’s Crime Map – Revisiting Shooting Locations (From Season 2)

•         Unaired Scenes (From Seasons 2, 3 and 4)

About Warner Bros. Home Entertainment Group

Warner Bros. Home Entertainment Group brings together Warner Bros. Entertainment's home video, digital distribution, interactive entertainment/videogames, direct-to-DVD production, technical operations and anti-piracy businesses in order to maximize current and next-generation distribution scenarios. WBHEG is responsible for the global distribution of content through DVD, electronic sell-through and VOD, and delivery of theatrical content to wireless and online channels, and is also a significant worldwide publisher for both internal and third party videogame titles.

Proofread and Edited by Brenda

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Page updated 2/13/13