The TNT version of “Southland” has grown on me slowly over time, I think. The budget cuts have forced John Wells and company to streamline the cast, and it seems the focus is now much more on how the different partnerships operate, and on LAPD culture in general, which is where the show excels. (Back when there were so many detectives floating around, the show seemed to feel compelled to spend more time on generic murder cases, when the magic was just watching the cops ride around in their cars kibbitzing.)
With the fourth season premiere, I quite like how putting Ben and Sammy together has revitalized both characters without entirely letting Ben get too comfortable, and it was interesting to see Cooper adjust to both his new back and his new partner (played by recurring guest star Lucy Liu).
I’m not going to write about this show every week, but what did everybody think of the premiere? Do you like the current configuration? Do you suddenly have a hankering for Hawaiian-Filipino fusion, served from a truck paying homage to Chuck Norris? And how did you feel about what went down at the station at the end of shift?