The Shield creator on essential episodes of FX cop drama

You know what is hard? Picking seven essential episodes of The Shield, one of the greatest series of the 21st century, which also happens to boast a pilot and finale that are considered among the best in TV history.

But creator Shawn Ryan is up to the challenge. As part of EW's celebration of The Shield's 20th anniversary (read our full oral history here), Ryan was tasked with selecting his favorite installment from each season.

Read below for the list and his breakdowns of the episodes, which don't include any premieres or finales, because, come on, that's too predictable!

01 of 07

Season 1: "Dragonchasers"

Initially working with "incredibly little money," Ryan says "budget issues" led producer Scott Brazil to request "some relief" during season 1. While the result wasn't entirely a bottle episode, they stuck to minimal sets for episode 108, between Vic (Michael Chiklis) helping Connie (Jamie Anne Allman) get through withdrawal and Dutch (Jay Karnes) with interrogating a serial killer (future House of Cards star Michael Kelly). Ryan knows the socially awkward detective was "the butt of the jokes" early on, but his work here prompted "a lot of people to fall in love with Dutch."

02 of 07

Season 2: "Scar Tissue"

When actor Danny Pino landed another gig, his season-long arc as violent gang leader Armadillo needed to be abruptly cut short. So he got a bloody new exit plan: To protect Vic and the Strike Team, Lem (Kenny Johnson) and Shane (Walton Goggins) set Armadillo up to be killed while in police custody. "There's this shot that always sticks with me: As everyone in the Barn is freaking out over one prisoner stabbing another, Shane and Lem are just standing there, calm, no real expressions on their face," Ryan says. "Sometimes a problem forces you to create a better solution. It made us be more surprising than planned."

03 of 07

Season 3: "Strays"

The Shield Strays — Jay Karnes on 'The Shield'. FX

Ryan believes the David Mamet-directed hour (best known for Dutch strangling a cat) was the season high point, and that it was "great validation" to have someone of Mamet's stature join them. "The first two seasons we were working in relative anonymity," Ryan recalls. "But this started the run of people being really interested in coming and spending time on our show: David in season 3, Glenn Close and Anthony Anderson in season 4, Forest Whitaker in season 5, Frank Darabont in season 6. It gave such energy and juice, and everyone wanted to do their best work for David."

04 of 07

Season 4: "Back in the Hole"

Following the success of "Dragonchasers," The Shield started to do an annual bottle episode, but with the season 2 and 3 editions being "not as good," Ryan realized Brazil needed to helm season 4's attempt. And it's hard to beat "a lot of Glenn Close, Anthony Anderson, Walton Goggins, and Michael Chiklis bouncing off of each other."

05 of 07

Season 5: "Kavanaugh"

As he watched cuts of the already-filmed season 5 episodes, Ryan became "pissed" when he realized Forest Whitaker had been wearing his own wedding ring while playing his divorced character, Internal Affairs Lt. Jon Kavanaugh. But from annoyance came inspiration. "I closed my eyes for like 30 seconds and went, 'Why would a divorced guy continue to wear his wedding ring?'" Ryan remembers. "That question turned out to be this deep dive into him, and it was a real departure for us. Forest is in every scene and crushed it."

06 of 07

Season 6: "Chasing Ghosts"

The Shield Oral History — Det. Vic Mackey (Michael Chiklis) confronts Detective Shane Vendrell (Walton Goggins) on 'The Shield'. Prashant Gupta/FX

Leading up to filming the big confrontation in which Vic learns that Shane killed Lem, The Shield cast and crew were "exhausted," having filmed two seasons in less than a year. But Ryan says the arrival of Shawshank Redemption director Frank Darabont — who a few years later launched The Walking Dead — reenergized the creative team, helping to "remind us what made the show work." Also, it didn't hurt that he turned in the closest thing Ryan ever saw to a "perfect" director's cut.

07 of 07

Season 7: "Possible Kill Screen"

For years, Shield camera operator Billy Gierhart pushed to get an opportunity to direct, a request Ryan long denied due to Gierhart's value in the camera work being their "magic sauce." When Ryan eventually relented, he tasked Gierhart with the series' penultimate installment, which includes Vic's chilling confession of all his crimes. Not only does Ryan view the hour as part of the finale, but he also believes it's just "as good" as the closer: "I really love that episode."

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