‘Sons of Anarchy’ season 6: A look at Kurt Sutter, the Parents Television Council, and madness
We want to try and be diplomatic in a sense about the issue of what children see on TV. We understand that it is important for there to be certain guidelines that television follows to help inform parents as to what is best for their kids to watch; also, be understanding that there are punishments for those who violate those rules, but when you are talking about a show intended for mature audiences, rated as such, and airing on a cable network in FX starting at 10:00 p.m. Eastern time, whose fault really is it if your five-year old kid is tuning in?
A nice analogy to compare this issue of television and parental responsibility is as follows. We were at the Fan Expo in Toronto last month attending a panel for a big-name TV star, and he used rather liberal language, assuming rightfully that this was an adult panel. Then, upon realizing that a mother brought her child to something that was clearly a bad environment for them, he questioned her as to why she did so. At that point, it’s not on him that this woman made a bad parenting choice.
This is where we are coming from with this: “Sons of Anarchy,” and the Parents Television Council blasting the show for depicting the beginnings of a school shooting at the end of the premiere. For starters, there is no bigger group of blowhards out there right now than the PTC, who seem to have drifted away more from informing parents as to good programs to watch, and instead seem more invested in creating sensationalized headlines anytime that they see something that they don’t like. If a show is rated for mature audiences and the scene in question happens at around 11:30 at night, what do you want the show to do? At that point, you cross the line from being an advisory committee into being a censor. Not exactly a good role to take in a medium all about creative freedom. If you don’t like violence, don’t watch “Sons of Anarchy.” There’s your answer. It was not as though Kurt Sutter put a shooting on his show after an hour of an ice cream social. This is a show that has already depicted rape, brutal beatings, Otto’s tongue getting cut off, and dozens of other grisly things.
Sutter has an insightful take on the criticism in his “WTFSutter” video below, and we will stand by the opinion that we first said in our review from the premiere. Was this scene and the buildup uncomfortable to watch? Beyond the shadow of a doubt, and it was so unnerving that it took us a while to get into a different headspace afterwards, but we respect fully that he was allowed to tell this story, and do so without limitations. We also know Sutter’s work well enough to know that it was not exploitation, and the reason behind this story will become more and more apparent as the weeks progress. To make a statement blasting the inclusion of a plot point on the PTC’s part, without knowledge of the tone or the implications of said event, is not only an injustice to the show, but a waste of their own time. They should be examining whether or not “family shows” are appropriate for families, and not a parent letting their five-year old stay up and watch something rated “mature”. We imagine that these are probably the same sort of people who have never even heard of the PTC in the first place.
Now, we move forward to what lies ahead. We’ll have some more scoop on episode 2 soon, so be sure and stay tuned for more on that.
Photo: FX