DEA: Detroit follows Group 14 as they clean up the drug problem on the mean streets of Detroit, Michigan. The team consists of a pretty interesting group of guys with nicknames like Shaggy, Country and Woody. Overall, they are a fairly good looking collection of men, which made it more pleasant for me to watch, but that won't matter much to the target demographic for this DVD. One dude looked just like LL Cool J, I swear! What impressed me the most was the fact that these guys were seriously hardcore about what they do. They struck hard and fast and took care of business, but still offered a measure of respect to the folks they collared.
The series, which is only 6 hour-long episodes, chronicles the team taking down drug stash and money houses, chasing down heroine kingpins, and "flipping" dealers and working their way up the chain of command to take down the highest level members of the drug organizations. Although they almost always "got their man," I liked that it didn't always work out perfectly for them. It injected a nice bit of realism into things. While I'm sure things don't move as quickly as they seem to on the DVD, which is due to some fancy editing no doubt, the rapid pace of things keeps the show exciting and interesting. There's always some pounding music going on in the background to keep the tension up and the camera work was good. I'd imagine they got into some fairly hinky situations as the team stormed houses and such, but the camera man was able to record some good footage, even with all of the commotion going on. Also, the show is narrated by Lance Henriksen (Millenium, X Files) and he always makes things sound so intense.
Also included on the DVD is a full episode of Real Vice Cops: Uncut, which I presume is another Spike TV show. Although only a 30 minute show, it covers a Memphis, Tennessee vice squad, which is a completely different experience. These guys pray before they go out on a run and most of them look like bikers that you wouldn't want to mess with. Things just happen a little differently with this group. At any rate, it was fun to watch as well and was just a different slant.
Although you only get about 6 hours of show, what's there is a fun watch and really interesting. The DVD is not rated and there is plenty of drug discussion, as well as some violence and language, so its not for the kiddies. However, if you are into this type of reality show, you'll enjoy DEA: Detroit. It's a definite rental for fans of the genre and not that bad of a purchase at a price point of around $18.
