“We were never a show 30 percent of the people were watching. We were a show that 3 percent thought was the best show on TV. I’m fine with that. I’d rather have that fanaticism than casualness.” - Shawn Ryan, Creator of The Shield

The Shield is perhaps the most “complete” viewing experience in the history of television.  This can now be officially stated with the conclusion of the 88th and final episode last night on F/X.  Anytime you’re watching TV and saying, “this could be better”, if you haven’t watched The Shield, it’s your own damn fault for watching Heroes instead.  There are arguments swirling as to the ambiguous nature of several arcs occurring in the finale, but the fact is that this story is over. 

Vague spoilers follow.

This program, which paved the way for smarter television and original cable content, has covered a lot of ground in seven seasons.  Some complained before the end was in sight that perhaps the dirty cop anti-hero Vic Mackey had won the “no win scenario” too many times.  I had the good fortune of viewing the entire series for my first time over the last two months (and I must thank Bryan Peters for pushing me to join that lucky 3%), only catching up to television within the last seven episodes… meaning that the last seven weeks were the first times I’d ever had to wait between episodes (for a period longer than Netflix’sspeedy shipping) and further last night’s finale was the first time I had watched the show live with commercials.  While this “slowed” the experience for me, there is no doubt that the show was incredibly paced.  While the ante upped, it became clear to me that this wasn’t a heist– this wasn’t the story of how a group of characters got off.  This was a story about quicksand.

That doesn’t mean it wasn’t a LOT of fun.  I can think of few shows that were as funny and damn near none that were as exciting as the continuing adventures of the Los Angeles “Barn” police force.  But the thing about fun is… well, you have to pay for it.  And pay we have.  My favorite individual season, season four, was the intersection of the lawless joy found in watching the Strike Team crack heads with the looming sense of “we’re not going to make it”.  Glenn Close and Anthony Anderson (easily the best thing he’s ever done) were able to step in as more recognized stars without any fuss, delivering goods on an epic scale.  The following seasons have been a sort of awe-striking hurt.  Brutal betrayals, shocking confessions, and a looming sense of dread have made for must-see viewing.

Last night’s finale was the cap on all of this.  The penultimate episode’s haunting reciting of everything that Chiklis’ “different kind of cop” has done set the stage for a lingering question as to “what will he do next?”  And the brilliant answer was “nothing”.  As much as Vic kicked and screamed in the finale, it was too late.  Suppression was the theme of the ending episode, in every way possible.

The suppression of Andre Benjamin’s Robert Huggins.  The suppression of Julian’s (Jace) possible happiness.  But mostly, the suppression of Vic.  It is fitting that the two men who have inflicted the most pain, Aceveda (Martinez) and Mackey, come off “the best” in terms of a worldly win.  But existentially, there is a sort of perfection to Mackey’s fate.  The total amount of “what if” as to his role in Shane (Goggins delivering the episode’s title was the spookiest TV will ever be) and Ronnie’s (Snell, who gives an understated performance that defines “tragic”) respective fates is enough to make one sick to their stomach… several times over.  While Lem’s (Johnson, who was nicely worked into the final scene’s) scream of “SHANE!” has become iconic, the crying “so shitty” from Ronnie minutes before Vic’s scream of “RONNIE!” are even more so.  While the last notes given to Dutch (Karnes) and Wyms (Pounder) were touching and satisfying– giving some closure to the two best supporting characters in the HISTORY of television, and giving a closing ending to one of the most fantastic sets in TV history.   All of this lead to an end was something… different.

The final scene is a bit of everything– haunting, nostalgic, funny, and baffling all at once.  What works is that it is true to everything that comes before.  Vic has lost everything; his friends, family, and power.  There is nothing left for him.  So what does he do?  He mounts up.   But to what end?  The glorious fact is that it doesn’t matter.  Vic has been suppressed to a final degree, but even with that suppression… for some reason he will not quit.  Maybe he is a “hero”; someone who will find a way to bring down more monsters.  The more likely truth is that he himself is so monstrous that nothing can stop him from ”livin’ the good life”. There was no doubt that this was an ending.  But I feel to some extent that it is the ending of a book… that more could be written with these characters in a different time and on a different topic.  I doubt there will be any more given to us, but there’s nothing wrong with that.  A yearning is for more with the characters, but the fact is that the story is over.  From the opening salvo we asked what would happen to this style of police squad, and we got the answer.  Not everyone may like it, but it’s true.  Some had to die, some had to go to jail, and some got off without a scratch… or did they?

The arguments as to the merits and demerits of this ending will be argued as nauseum for years to come, but I feel like it’s hard to argue against the work displayed.  The pilot and this ending go hand-in-hand– this is where things were bound to be three years later.  While not as filled with bravado as a Joss Whedon finale, the show at least recognized all of the plates they had kept spinning in a logical fashion… and it did so without a “Buffy goes to college” or “Angel has a son” season you have to work through.  Never before have I seen something so effortless… which means it must have been really, really hard to make.  Kudos to one of the most amazing ensembles casts ever assembled and a writing staff that was willing to take risks for making something worth remembering.