Photo Credit: TNT/Greg Williams

As you should already know by now, the much anticipated Season 3 of SouthLAnd premieres next Tuesday, January 4, 2011 on TNT at 10/9 central. This is the first season of SouthLAnd written and produced entire for and by TNT and already the critics are raving over it.

I was privileged to see an advanced copy of the first episode of the season and I have just one word to describe it: Wow! Just… Wow. There is no doubt about it, fans – SouthLAnd is BACK, with a vengeance! Forget what you knew about the show before. Season 3 takes things to a whole new level, starting off with a bang and never looking back.

I don’t believe in spoilers, so I won’t be giving any out here (sorry folks!). Let me just say that having read the first couple of pages of the script on Facebook, I was still on the edge of my seat with my heart in my throat in the first 60 seconds. Throughout the episode I cried, I laughed, I was shocked, I was angry, I was surprised, but mostly I was entranced. It was, above all else, SouthLAnd.

You will be happy to know that all of your favorite cast members from the past are returning to SouthLAnd this season. While some of the recurring characters (like Michael McGrady’s Detective Salinger, Tom Everett Scott’s Russell Clarke or Emily Bergl’s Tammi Bryant) may not make it into every episode, they will be there and have a part to play. All of the key players, though, like John & Ben, Lydia & her new partner Josie (who you will love) and Nate & Sammy appear to be featured regularly as we’ve come to expect.

So sit back, tighten your seat belts and get ready for the ride of your lives SouthLAnd fans! SouthLAnd is back, with a TNT Twist! The long wait since Spring has definitely been worth it and if “Let It Snow” is any indication, the next 9 episodes will most definitely be ensuring us, at the very least, a Season 4.

Now, for the very dedicated SouthLAnd Fans – we are going to be running a series of Contests and Giveaways here on SouthlandTvFans.com to celebrate the return of the show, with prizes provided by TNT and our site sponsor, InterFuzed.

This past Tuesday, during our last pre-premiere Live Chat (also our biggest chat yet!), we gave away the first of our prizes two 2 random winners**. Chatters @aec702 and @hopsko were the lucky winners of special Nike® Dri-Fit® black Golf Jackets with the Southland & TNT logos embroidered on the back, courtesy of SouthlandTvFans.com and TNT*!  There are more of those to give away, too, as we will be conducting our first website contest starting later today through the night of the premiere, where we will be giving away 2 more of the jackets as prizes! We will be having website contests each week of different types where we will be giving away 2 jackets each week, throughout the entire season.

Also, as a very special treat to celebrate Premiere Week, during our next Live Chat (next Thursday on its new day, so as not to interfere with the show’s air date), we will be giving away 2 season downloads of SouthLAnd on iTunes to two lucky random winners in the chat, some time between 6 and 9pm EDT! You have to be in chat to win, though, so make sure you come chat with us. Our chat rooms are available for just about every possible user on just about every browser, operating system or mobile phone out there, so you have NO EXCUSE for not joining us!!

So that is it! If you didn’t already have enough reason to watch SouthLAnd Season 3 for the show itself, now you have even more reason – Win Really Cool Stuff at SouthlandTvFans.com! Some of our contests will require that you have seen the latest episode, so be on your toes and pay close attention – you never know when the contest will require you to answer a trivia question about the most recent episode!

* Contest prizes provided by TNT Promotions/Public Relations to be used at the discretion of SouthlandTvFans.com for promotional purposes. TNT is not involved in, or responsible for, any contests or giveaways conducted on this site in any way.

** Contest and Giveaways are open to residents of the United States, Canada, Puerto Rico & the US Virgin Islands only. Shipping, if any, will be taken care of by SouthlandTvFans.com. Taxes and duties, if any, are the responsibility of the recipient. Only one prize per household (verifiable roommates excepted) allowed for the period of 12/15/2010 through 3/31/2011. Full contest rules will be posted with the first contest.

Season 3 of SouthLAnd is now available for pre-order through a Season Pass on iTunes! Of course, you still have to wait for each episode to air on TNT first, before you get them automatically downloaded to your computer, AppleTV or other Apple device. However, by purchasing the Season in advance, you can have the episode delivered to you automatically each Tuesday night and have it waiting for you to watch on Wednesday in your choice of HD or standard. If you are a SouthLAnd fan who doesn’t get TNT and doesn’t want to wait until Friday for the episodes to show up on the TNT website, then this may be just the answer you’ve been looking for.

Before the season starts, you can also check out a free, 4 minute Behind the Scenes sneak peak currently available on iTunes.

SouthLAnd Season 3 Pre-Order HD: $27.99 SD: $17.99

Season 3 Sneak Peak – Behind the Scenes of TNT’s SouthLAnd FREE!

Getting so excited for the return of Southland in January! Any scoop?

Southland’s first episode back is gangbusters. They are actually busting gangs, of course, but there are also huge twists in store for two of our faves, including Shawn Hatosy’s Sammy, that blow up the whole season. As Shawn just told us, “The beauty of what’s going on this season is that Sammy needs to lean on someone because he’s going through a real tough time, and he’s got his partner [Kevin Alejandro as Nate] to help.” Awww, bromance. Also in the premiere? You’ll find out why cops might want to take off their bulletproof vests when facing down a bank robber spraying a city street with semiautomatic weapons fire, and well, it’s so cool.

Regina King and Ben McKenzie talk about the new season. (Screen Junkies 11th, Dec. 2010)

“There’s a scene this year where there’s a guy who’s bleeding, says his girlfriend cut him,” McKenzie said in a conference call with the media. “’Where is she?’ ‘Down the block.’ It’s a blow up doll. The guy is 5150, crazy. He says he got into an argument with his girlfriend about the outfit she was wearing and guys looking at her. Clearly he’s lying, he cut himself. There’s funny stuff like that but also disturbing. It’s a line we walk on the show.”

Adams has been a stellar by-the-books detective so far. The new season will shake her up too. “Lydia specifically [learns] that she may not be the easiest partner to work with, contrary to her belief,” King said. “You kind of see her discovering that through this new partner she’s working with. I think you’re definitely going to see a less perfect side of Lydia but I think what’s interesting about how the writers are playing it is that you see a less perfect side of her as she discovers the less perfect side of herself.”

Read the full article at http://www.screenjunkies.com/tv/tv-news/southland-spoilers-the-case-of-the-blow-up-doll-stabbing/

1×01 Unknown Trouble  Sat. Oct. 23rd 10:00 AM(EST) on TNT
1×02 Mozambique  Sat.Oct. 30th 10:00AM(EST) on TNT
1×03 See The Woman Sat. Nov. 6th 10:00AM(EST) on TNT
Season 2 rerun continues in the same 2:00 AM time slot.

2×05  What Makes Sammy Run?  Tue. Oct. 26th 2:00 AM(EST) on TNT
2×06  Maximum Deployment  Wed.Oct. 27th 2:00AM(EST)on TNT

http://www.tvguide.com/search/index.aspx?keyword=southland

For those that just can’t wait, or maybe haven’t seen the whole series (to date) yet, (or maybe you don’t get TNT) don’t forget you can buy the DVD for Season 1 in our Store, or both seasons online through iTunes! All proceeds go directly to maintain & improve the site, like paying for our new Chat Room!

Sorry folks – still no word yet on a release date for Season 2 on DVD! As soon as we hear we’ll let you know!

To buy this week’s episode, U-Boat, click here:

Buying through here (e.g., click on the link above) costs exactly the same as it would if you had bought it directly from the iTunes application ($2.99 an application, that is). However, a teeny, tiny percentage of your purchase will help support our all volunteer website and defray some of the costs involved in running the site, the contents and the operating expenses. If you are going to buy the episode anyway, or know someone who is, we greatly appreciate you clicking the link here first and helping us out!

To buy this week’s episode, Butch & Sundance, click here:

John and Ben are the first responders to a triple-homicide in Hancock Park, involving a mother and two young daughters who are found brutally murdered in their home. In investigating the case, Lydia and her new partner Rene realize they have two very different styles of doing detective work. Sammy continues to have problems with his wife, who seems unable to complete even the simplest of tasks. And Ben confronts John about his increasing reliance on pain pills.

Tonight, March 9, 2010 at 10/9c on TNT. Repeats at 1am/12am c.

Available tomorrow on

Available streaming at http://TNT.tv/southland on Friday.