10 TV Shows That Killed Characters Unexpectedly Early
1. Terry Crowley - The Shield
The Shield may very well have been the best cop drama of all time. Based in the fictional LA district of Farmington, it focussed on an anti-gang detective unit called The Strike Team. Episode one saw a new member, Terry Crowley, being inserted into the team by the district’s captain, in order to investigate allegations of corruption within the squad.
The audience is made aware that Terry is a mole, but it’s made out that the team are unaware. The other four teammates, Vic, Shane, Ronnie and Lem, are a tight crew of colleagues, but welcome Terry with open arms.
This is why it came as a shock at the end of the first episode when, after raiding a suspected drug dealer’s house and shooting the dealer, Vic and Shane gunned Terry down in cold blood with the suspect’s pistol. This sudden twist certainly does confirm the captain’s suspicions of corruption, as well as confirming the sort of series that the viewer is in for. These are not good cops and The Strike Team does not f*ck around.
This may have been an uneasy revelation for many, but in the words of Vic Mackey, get over it.