Shark is an American legal drama television series created by Ian Biederman which stars James Woods as Sebastian Stark, a notorious Los Angeles defence attorney who - following a personal epiphany - brings his cutthroat tactics to the prosecutor's office.
The series originally aired in the USA on CBS from 21 September, 2006 to 20 May, 2008. There are 38 hour-long episodes in two seasons.
Shark originally aired in South Africa on M-Net from 1 February, 2007 to 19 December, 2008. It later aired on DStv's M-Net Series channel and on TopTV's Fox FX channel. See "Seasons" below for seasonal broadcast dates and times.
Season 2 premiered on Fox FX on Tuesday 30 April 2013, at 20h30. New episodes broadcast weekly. There are 16 episodes in the second and final season.
Season 1
Shark is a drama that follows the professional and personal life of Sebastian Stark, a charismatic, supremely self-confident defence attorney who, after a shocking outcome in one of his cases and a personal epiphany, brings his cutthroat tactics to the prosecutor's office.
As the head of the Los Angeles District Attorney's high-profile crime unit, Stark is forced to work for his former nemesis, Jessica Devlin, the ambitious and accomplished D.A. who despises his ruthless strategies.
Devlin teams him with a group of young prosecutors who are about to have the learning experience of a lifetime because, though Stark is seeking to redeem himself, he has no intention of changing his underhanded approach to cases just because he's now working for the 'good guys'.
His young team includes Casey Woodland, a privileged hunk who is arrogant about his abilities as a young attorney; Raina, a smart, tough new addition to the office; Martin Allende, an intellectual from South Central L.A.; and the high-powered Madeleine Poe, who joins the team in order to learn from the best.
It's an eye-opening experience for this rookie group of lawyers who begin to use Stark's infamous brass knuckle tactics in their cases.
With Stark's 16-year-old daughter, Julie, rooting for him at home, this legal shark must now prove that he can play, and win, on the other side of the law.
Season 2
Having weathered a challenging but successful first year as head of the Los Angeles District Attorney's High Profile Crime Unit, Sebastian has had the added good fortune of persuading the ambitious, accomplished and recently displaced former DA, Jessica Devlin, to revisit her glory days as a trial attorney by becoming a senior member of his team.
The junior lawyers on Sebastian's team, who are beginning to use some of Sebastian's infamous brass-knuckle tactics themselves, include the smart, tough and passionate Raina Troy, the shrewd and high-powered Madeleine Poe and the newest member, Danny Reyes, whose edgy and aggressive style challenges Sebastian at every turn.
The team also relies heavily on their resourceful investigator, Isaac Wright, a former LAPD detective.
In addition to striving to be a good father to his 17-year-old daughter, Julie Stark, and enjoying his status as one of LA's most eligible bachelors, this legal shark is intent on proving that he can play, and win, for the "good guys."
Seasons
Season 1 (22 episodes)
Channel: M-Net | Premiere: 1 Feb 2007 | Finale: 28 Jun 2007 | Thursdays, 19h30
Channel: M-Net Series | Premiere: 25 Jun 2007 | Finale: 19 Nov 2007 | Mondays, 23h00
Channel: Fox FX | Premiere: 17 Jan 2012 | Finale: 12 Jun 2012 | Tuesdays, 20h30
Season 2 (16 episodes)
Channel: M-Net | Premiere: 5 Sep 2008 | Finale: 19 Dec 2008 | Fridays, 19h30
Channel: M-Net Series | Premiere: 14 Sep 2008 | Finale: 28 Dec 2008 | Sundays, 19h00
Channel: Fox FX | Premiere: 30 Apr 2013 | Finale: 13 Aug 2013 | Tuesdays, 20h30