Zap2it Fall TV Preview 2008: Cable Comedy and Drama Series

Sons of Anarchy
FX

Premieres: Wednesday, Sept. 3
Airs: Wednesdays at 10 p.m.

Stars: Charlie Hunnam, Ron Perlman, Katey Sagal, Drea de Mateo, Maggie Siff

What's It All About? A gunrunning motorcycle club operating in a rural California town is the backdrop for this hard-hitting multigenerational crime-family drama. The leader of the club is Clay Morrow (Perlman), one of the founding members. He raised his nephew, Jax (Hunnam), after his brother died, making Jax his likely successor. But Jax has a strong idealistic streak -- a softness that concerns Jax's ambitious mother, Gemma (Sagal), now married to Clay.

"Anarchy creator" Kurt Sutter, who also worked on "The Shield," says of his research into motorcycle clubs, "I had no doubt that they were dangerous cats, you know. But there was this amazing camaraderie. There was this amazing sort of familial? 'I'd kill for my brother' bond that all of them had. ... And that, juxtaposed against the lifestyle, was really fascinating material."

But it's what Sutter does with the material that makes this series so watchable.

Though young Jax does not have the same chance to play hero that "The Shield's" rogue cop Vic Mackey does, watching him carefully walk the line between his conscience and the club's demands makes for incredibly suspenseful moments. With "The Shield" entering its final season, this worthy substitute should have plenty of appeal.