Southland

Unknown Trouble

Season 1, Episode 1, Aired 1/12/10

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Episode Summary

The first day on the job for a rookie cop isn't going to be easy, especially when his training officer is tough-as-nails veteran Officer John Cooper. Meanwhile, Det. Lydia Adams investigates the disappearance of a little girl who had vanished while playing ball.

6.8

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Cast & Crew

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Ben McKenzie

Officer Ben Sherman
Michael Cudlitz

Officer John Cooper
Regina King

Det. Lydia Adams

Fan Episode Reviews (16)

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Anyone else think this is exactly like the The Shield?

1.0

"Abysmal"

By upyours13, Jun 13, 2011 Report Abuse

Rookie on his first day at the job, and an African American detective lady looking for missing child all in the dirty streets of Los Angeles. It's the exact same premise as the pilot of The Shield minus a bald man and his extremely crooked cop buddies. Hell they even used some of the actors from the show.
And what's up with the one guy, handcuffed, shooting the cop. A police officer is supposed to check the guy first for weapons. And it just came out of no where. Anyone on street know better than not to do so.
Though, on a positive note, the camera work is pretty impressive. The streets are supposed to be gritty, yet everyone looks very good.moreless

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3 12
First day on the job as an LAPD cop.

7.5

"Good"

By expatriot, Mar 24, 2011 Report Abuse

I thought this was a very good pilot episode. It's always difficult establishing a new cast when they did OK in this one. Despite the multiple storylines, it was relatively easy to keep track of who was who.

Ben McKenzie did a good job playing a rookie cop, he had that scared yet determined look that was appropriate for this first episode.

It's clear that this is more than just a cop show, they want to get a look at the cops as people, not just as officers of the law. The background and family situation of the cops are important and I'm sure they will expand on the respective backgrounds of the characters in future episodes.

A good start to this new series!moreless

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8 3
This was an average to good pilot episode... if you could stomach it.

6.5

"Fair"

By babarjunaidi, Mar 24, 2011 Report Abuse

Pilots are always interesting to watch. This one for me had a lot of positives but unfortunately it had a lot of negatives as well.

The story and the characters and their interactions were very compelling to watch. As mentioned by a previous reviewer the character's are not just cops but people and there attitude towards their job and life in general is depicted and will probably (and hopefully) be important later on.

What spoiled this for me was the style in which the show is shot. The jerky "reality TV style" camera work and the excessive background noise was not something I appreciated because it made me need to strain too much when watching the show. I prefer to be relaxed when watching TV. Straining is something I can do at work. The mood of the show was also very negative. There were 3 heinous crimes committed during a mere 42 minutes and neither one of them had even a remotely happy ending. The creators obviously want to go for realism but often we watch TV get get away from what is real. I did not feel happy like I do after I watch HIMYM or mystified like I do after watching Lost or thoroughly entertained like I do after Desperate Housewives. I felt stressed. That is not how I want to feel after having watched a TV show.

I will continue to watch the show for a few more episodes and perhaps longer if it lightens up just a little bit and gives us the occasional happy ending.moreless

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9 4
Great Pilot!

10

"Perfect"

By captopril_46, Mar 24, 2011 Report Abuse

This episode does justice to LAPD in trying to show us just a glimpse of what those brave men and women go through on a daily basis.

Loved the presentation from beginning to end...loved the fact that it didn't have much of that crappy background music which keeps things from feeling REAL..and loved the incredible acting from the superb cast, especially that OC-dude/rookie cop and his mentor/partner.

I will continue to watch this..but honestly, it's the presentation and the script that made me love this show! Hope the writers can keep it up. I'm a big fan of that OC dude and his serious-face-acting..I think he's perfect for this role.

KUDOS NBC! :Dmoreless

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4 4
A Perfect Cop Show

10

"Perfect"

By tim75224, Mar 24, 2011 Report Abuse

When you find yourself sitting forward on your chair, looking hard at the TV to study everything you're seeing and to hear every word, you know your watching something special. Intelligently written, admirably devoid of sentimentality and melodrama, this show trusts its material, its actors and its audience. And it's amazing how smartly photographed it is. You must watch, not just listen, if you want to really see the story being told. So much is communicated visually that to merely listen is to miss 60% of the show. You can't be doing the dishes or ironing or texting or surfing the web, without compromising the experience. I am totally hooked.moreless

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Trivia, Notes, Quotes and Allusions

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Trivia
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- The book Shamika Cole was reading during the hospital scene near the end of the episode was "Beloved" by Toni Morrison. Edit
- By way of an introduction before the opening credits, this first episode featured the following line: "Only 9,800 police officers patrol the city of Los Angeles, an area of 500 square miles and 4 million people...". Edit
- When John Cooper tells Ben Sherman he's got "90210 written all over his face", actor Michael Cudlitz knows what he's talking about because he had a recurring role on Beverly Hills, 90210. Edit
Notes
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- The version of this episode that aired on TNT on January 12, 2009, contained six-and-a-half to seven minutes of footage that had not been seen in the version that aired on NBC in 2009. Edit
- This episode originally aired on NBC on April 9, 2009. Edit
- The original title for Southland was LAPD. Edit
Quotes
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- John Cooper: This is a front row seat to the greatest show on earth. Edit
- Dewey: (when Ben vomits after seeing a corpse that has been eaten by dogs) What's wrong with your partner? He looks kinda sick down there.
  Cooper: Yeah, Tori Spelling threw up all over his brand new patent leather Mary Janes.
  Edit
- Cooper: (after pulling over a Ferrari) Get out of the car.
  Wade: Why do I have to get out of the car?
  Cooper: Get out of the car now, numbnuts.
  Wade: (exiting the Ferrari) Know who my father is?
  Cooper: What, your mother didn't tell you?
  Edit
Allusions
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- John Cooper: Yeah, Tori Spelling threw up all over his brand new patent leather Mary Janes. Another reference to Aaron Spelling's teen primetime soap, Beverly Hills, 90210, in which his daughter, Tori Spelling, played Donna Martin, a rich, sheltered, and virginal young socialite. Edit