The title of the show refers to the structure of The Pentagon, which is configured in five concentric rings, from "A" to "E", with E being the outermost ring. Before any military action can be taken anywhere in the world, the mission must be planned and approved by the most important ring of the Pentagon, the E-ring. This is where the more high-profile work is done, all operations must be legally approved and the green light given by the Joint Chiefs of Staff. The show starred Benjamin Bratt as Major James Tisnewski, a former Delta Force operator and Dennis Hopper as Colonel Eli McNulty, as officers working in the E-ring of the Pentagon in the Special Operations Division – planning and co-ordinating covert US special operations actions around the globe. The show struggled from the onset because it was up against ABC's Top 20 hit Lost, CBS's Top 30 hit Criminal Minds, FOX's Top 10 hit American Idol and the network's Top 30 hit Unan1mous. Although NBC gave it an earlier time slot which led to better ratings, the show was pulled from the lineup during the February sweeps and officially canceled at the NBC upfront on May 15.
Cast
Benjamin Bratt – Major James "JT" Tisnewski, a former Army Ranger and a Delta Force operator reassigned to the Joint Staff's Special Operations Division after 14 months in the Middle East. Four years prior to the series, he was an Operational Detachments-A Captain. He was promoted to Lieutenant Colonel in "The General" and was assigned as the SOD Liaison to Delta Force.
Dennis Hopper – Colonel Eli McNulty, the principal staff officer of the Special Operations Division. A Vietnam War veteran and former prisoner of war with two Silver Stars, COL McNulty is still sometimes a little old-fashioned when it comes to dealing with female personnel.
Aunjanue Ellis – Master Sergeant Jocelyn Pierce, USMC, a career Pentagon non-commissioned officer who has worked as COL McNulty's aide for two years. She is a widow; her husband Danny was killed in action.
Kerr Smith – Captain Bobby Wilkerson, JT's former second-in-command who is now a Delta Force team leader. He is married with two kids, but is rarely ever home due to his job.
Robert Picardo - Larry Kincaid, a reporter who has been working at the Pentagon for over 20 years. He was paralyzed during his time as a war correspondent during the Vietnam War.
E-Ring aired in the United Kingdom on FX, as of July 28, 2006. They have shown all 22 episodes filmed, and have repeated the series several times since the conclusion of the original run. It is also currently shown in Kanal 5 for the Swedish market and in La Sexta for the Spanish market. On September 8, 2006,Hong Kong's ATV began showing it. In October, E-Ring aired on Premiere starting on October 5 synced in German language as well as the original sound. The show also aired on TVMax in and on Rádio e Televisão de Portugal and is airing again on Fox. The show is also currently airing on the Israeli Cable channel XTRA Hot. The show was aired on Philippine cable channel Crime/Suspense. The show is also airing on SubTV. The show is also due to air on Nine HD in April 2008. In Italy the show is due to air on Rai Due since March 21, 2008. In Croatia the show was aired on Croatian television HRT in September 2008, and again on RTL2 in September 2017. In July 2008 show started to air on Avala. The remaining episodes were shown on the Irish network TG4.
