The Shield Television Program

Michael Chiklis always knew the end of FX's "The Shield," which revolves around his portrayal of a corrupt renegade cop, would come. But how it would end constantly weighed on him. Would his Vic Mackey get his comeuppance? Would he pay a price for his evil deeds, including murdering a fellow detective in cold blood, or would he get away? Would he live? Die?

Michael Chiklis always knew the end of FX's "The Shield," which revolves around his portrayal of a corrupt renegade cop, would come. But how it would end constantly weighed on him. Would his Vic Mackey get his comeuppance? Would he pay a price for his evil deeds, including murdering a fellow detective in cold blood, or would he get away? Would he live? Die?

In the end, it was pen and paper that did what the police, drug dealers, murderers and family members could not. In last week's episode of "The Shield," the last before this week's series finale, Vic Mackey (Michael Chiklis) sat in an antiseptic room and confessed to his myriad sins, all of them -- the systematic lying, the casual killing, the stratospheric behind-the-scenes manipulation of Los Angeles' various criminal outfits.

In the end, it was pen and paper that did what the police, drug dealers, murderers and family members could not. In last week's episode of "The Shield," the last before this week's series finale, Vic Mackey (Michael Chiklis) sat in an antiseptic room and confessed to his myriad sins, all of them -- the systematic lying, the casual killing, the stratospheric behind-the-scenes manipulation of Los Angeles' various criminal outfits.

Viewers tuning in to the finale of FX's groundbreaking cop drama "The Shield" on Tuesday can count on a few things: There will be no parking difficulties, no plate of onion rings, no Journey song, and no sudden cut to black. Shawn Ryan, creator of "The Shield," said the end of the drama, which premiered in 2002, will unfold without an ambiguous or mysterious meaning -- the kind that distinguished the series finale of "The Sopranos."

There were times several months ago, when the writers strike was roaring, that Shawn Ryan was channeling Vic Mackey. Ryan, who created TV's ferocious, all-in-one good-cop-bad-cop, isn't anything like the lead character of "The Shield." But, as Mackey has proven through six seasons, everyone has his limits. Ryan found himself reaching his while serving on the Writers Guild's negotiating committee. Like everyone else on the picket line, he had a lot riding on the negotiations. When he stopped working, the fate of his moderately rated CBS drama "The Unit" hung in the balance; "The Oaks," a pilot he was producing for Fox, was shot without his supervision; and the series finale of "The Shield," the cop drama that turned Ryan into one of the medium's most prominent producers and launched FX as a destination for cutting-edge original programming, also was filmed without him. Many of his peers would later say they wouldn't have had the fortitude to make the same sacrifices.

To justify a rookie's killing of a dog to the assistant police chief, Det. Vic Mackey points to a gun he placed near the animal's paw and explains, "The dog was reaching. It was kill or be killed." Vic's new captain, whom none of the officers has met, appears unannounced and, without missing a beat, chimes in, "Oh, come on, Ray, the dog had a piece, and he was going to use it." The captain leaves the scene, and patrol officer Danny Sofer asks what everyone is thinking: "Who was that?"

The season finale of powerhouse police drama "The Shield," which premiered Tuesday night on FX and repeats Friday and Sunday, felt awfully like a new beginning. It had been under consideration for the series to end permanently with this recent batch of episodes, which were filmed as the second half of Season 5 but ultimately aired as their own separate season. But with the events set in motion during the last 10 weeks and the twists that came into play last night (a Dutch and Danny love match?

Shawn Ryan remembers well the furor that erupted when "NYPD Blue" premiered in 1993. Ryan, the creator of FX's new gritty police drama, "The Shield," is from Rockford, Ill., home to one of the numerous ABC affiliates that initially refused to air "NYPD Blue" due to its bedroom scenes, violence and nudity. Station managers, religious leaders and several advertisers felt the show went too far.

After a wait of what seemed like forever to its die-hard fans, the series that is widely considered one of television's best dramatic series, anchored by the small screen's most explosive antihero, returns this week. Welcome back, "The Shield."

Viewers tuning in to the finale of FX's groundbreaking cop drama "The Shield" on Tuesday can count on a few things: There will be no parking difficulties, no plate of onion rings, no Journey song, and no sudden cut to black. Shawn Ryan, creator of "The Shield," said the end of the drama, which premiered in 2002, will unfold without an ambiguous or mysterious meaning -- the kind that distinguished the series finale of "The Sopranos."

There were times several months ago, when the writers strike was roaring, that Shawn Ryan was channeling Vic Mackey. Ryan, who created TV's ferocious, all-in-one good-cop-bad-cop, isn't anything like the lead character of "The Shield." But, as Mackey has proven through six seasons, everyone has his limits. Ryan found himself reaching his while serving on the Writers Guild's negotiating committee. Like everyone else on the picket line, he had a lot riding on the negotiations. When he stopped working, the fate of his moderately rated CBS drama "The Unit" hung in the balance; "The Oaks," a pilot he was producing for Fox, was shot without his supervision; and the series finale of "The Shield," the cop drama that turned Ryan into one of the medium's most prominent producers and launched FX as a destination for cutting-edge original programming, also was filmed without him. Many of his peers would later say they wouldn't have had the fortitude to make the same sacrifices.

The season finale of powerhouse police drama "The Shield," which premiered Tuesday night on FX and repeats Friday and Sunday, felt awfully like a new beginning. It had been under consideration for the series to end permanently with this recent batch of episodes, which were filmed as the second half of Season 5 but ultimately aired as their own separate season. But with the events set in motion during the last 10 weeks and the twists that came into play last night (a Dutch and Danny love match?

Forest Whitaker and "The Shield" are finding it difficult to say goodbye. Whitaker, who scored a best actor Oscar this year for "The Last King of Scotland," was supposed to make his final appearance in the role he began last season on the acclaimed FX police drama, in which he plays the obsessed internal affairs detective determined to bring down corrupt Det. Vic Mackey (Michael Chiklis).

After a wait of what seemed like forever to its die-hard fans, the series that is widely considered one of television's best dramatic series, anchored by the small screen's most explosive antihero, returns this week. Welcome back, "The Shield."

To justify a rookie's killing of a dog to the assistant police chief, Det. Vic Mackey points to a gun he placed near the animal's paw and explains, "The dog was reaching. It was kill or be killed." Vic's new captain, whom none of the officers has met, appears unannounced and, without missing a beat, chimes in, "Oh, come on, Ray, the dog had a piece, and he was going to use it." The captain leaves the scene, and patrol officer Danny Sofer asks what everyone is thinking: "Who was that?"

Forest Whitaker and "The Shield" are finding it difficult to say goodbye. Whitaker, who scored a best actor Oscar this year for "The Last King of Scotland," was supposed to make his final appearance in the role he began last season on the acclaimed FX police drama, in which he plays the obsessed internal affairs detective determined to bring down corrupt Det. Vic Mackey (Michael Chiklis).

The title character of ABC's 1990s drama "The Commish," paunchy police commissioner Tony Scali, never let chasing a criminal get in the way of a good meal. "Chases usually lead to ... injuries, but no one ever got hurt by a bowl of linguini," said Scali, as played by Michael Chiklis. So guess what Chiklis is doing in the opening scene of his new FX show, "The Shield," in which he plays a hard-driving and hard-living police detective? One clue: There's not a strand of linguini in sight.

Shawn Ryan remembers well the furor that erupted when "NYPD Blue" premiered in 1993. Ryan, the creator of FX's new gritty police drama, "The Shield," is from Rockford, Ill., home to one of the numerous ABC affiliates that initially refused to air "NYPD Blue" due to its bedroom scenes, violence and nudity. Station managers, religious leaders and several advertisers felt the show went too far.

The title character of ABC's 1990s drama "The Commish," paunchy police commissioner Tony Scali, never let chasing a criminal get in the way of a good meal. "Chases usually lead to ... injuries, but no one ever got hurt by a bowl of linguini," said Scali, as played by Michael Chiklis. So guess what Chiklis is doing in the opening scene of his new FX show, "The Shield," in which he plays a hard-driving and hard-living police detective? One clue: There's not a strand of linguini in sight.