TV SHOWS DETROIT'S WAR ON DRUGS

"DEA" is like "Cops," but 35 miles east of Ann Arbor.

Spike TV has strayed from its path of visual beauties and dudes
beating the crap out of each other with its new reality show, which
focuses on the Detroit division of the Drug Enforcement
Administration. Cameras follow the officers through stings and busts,
giving the public - and possibly other drug dealers - inside
information on the drug enforcement system.

Sadly, though, there are no drunken car chases involving hillbillies
and police officers, making the show more than a little boring.
Despite the tense techno music and grainy film effects, "DEA" is
nothing more than one hour of waiting in cars, chattering on
walkie-talkies and more scenes of officers arming themselves than the "Iliad."

Drug busts are enjoyable enough to watch, but here they're too few
and far between. It's obvious "DEA" can't fill an entire hour solely
with ransacking drug-dealers, and even the presence of TV cameras
can't entice the Detroit division to up its game a little bit.

The officers of "DEA" are your usual gang of cops: the rookie, the
street-smart cop and, of course, the one named "Woody." But the show
reveals an unexpected side of the officers as they give interviews
about their families and the fear they battle with every new raid.
They aren't Chief Wiggums, but the officers of the DEA end up being
pretty likeable.

It's surprising how frank and open the officers are about their job,
especially when it comes to their strategy of handling criminals. The
cops use a method called "The Flip," which entails persuading the
newly-arrested drug dealer to rat out their supplier in return for a
reduced or terminated sentence.

The central question of the series seems to be, "Are we winning the
war on drugs?" The DEA's answer is a pronounced "yes," but the show
contradicts itself. How can we be winning if we constantly let the
criminal go for revealing his supplier? If anything, "DEA" exposes
the problems within the drug enforcement system.

"DEA" may show the excitement of drug raids, but it also shows the
long periods of waiting and scheming by the officers. The likeability
of the cops and the undercover actions of the Drug Enforcement
Administration don't add up to much when placed next to a half hour
of sitting in a van listening to a wired agent talking to a dealer.
Even when the actual action takes place, it ends up being nothing
more than three minutes of swearing, blurred faces and innumerable
threats. Sitting through the majority of the show isn't worth it.

It's not easy to find the positives of "DEA" - unless you're a dealer
looking for an inside scoop. TV has always been a place for viewers
to escape their ho-hum matters while living vicariously through
others and possibly getting a laugh along the way. But "DEA" doesn't
do any of those things, and with its depressing premise and
lackluster entertainment value, only a small demographic would find
this enjoyable.