A suspect rapes the captain of an Los Angeles precinct on “The Shield” while his friend photographs the horrific incident with his cell-phone camera.
Two Miami plastic surgeons on “Nip/Tuck” separate conjoined twins in one scene and have three-way sex with a prostitute in another.
A squad of New York firefighters on “Rescue Me” that lost four men at the World Trade Center have trouble sharing their pain so they resort to boyish bonding antics, such as a penis size contest involving rulers, rings and remote controls.
It’s not HBO, but now it doesn’t have to be. FX, the little network of NASCAR and “Fear Factor” repeats, has come into its own with original dramas that titillate, provoke and demand more from viewers than most shows on television. With edgy, sophisticated dramas centered around male characters who are as vulnerable and as flawed as anyone in Tony Soprano’s gang, the 10-year-old basic cable network owned by Fox has become appointment TV without premium channel prices.
“It’s great to be a part of this upstart network that wanted to shake things up,” said Michael Chiklis, who won an Emmy in 2002 and a Golden Globe in 2003 for his pit-bull portrayal of Detective Vic Mackey on “The Shield.”
Becoming basic cable’s hottest network hasn’t come without taking some heat. Since it launched its first original drama in 2002, FX has stirred plenty of controversy–from parental protests lodged by the Washington, D.C.-based Parent’s Television Council about graphic violence on “The Shield” to the banning of “Nip/Tuck” at an Oregon prison this month because of its steamy sex scenes. Advertisers, such as Cingular Wireless and Gateway Inc., have pulled out in disgust as others have signed on.
For FX, a network that was craving an identity and a stronghold in the ever-expanding television universe, the course to a distinctive brand was clear. On one side of the marketplace were basic cable networks, such as USA, TNT and TBS, which compete head-to-head with the broadcast networks. On the other was HBO, the gold standard of fresh dramas and comedies.
“We decided we would try to bridge the gap in our competitive landscape,” said Peter Liguori, head of FX Networks.
Funny stuff
FX also is taking a second chance at comedy with a pilot shooting in Brooklyn. “Starved” is the story of three middle-age men and one woman who have eating disorders and are as famished for love as they are for food. The network’s first comedy, “Lucky,” which starred John Corbett as a chronic Las Vegas gambler, received an Emmy nomination for comedic writing but was canceled in its first year.
———-
Edited by Cara DiPasquale (cdipasquale@tribune.com) and Kris Karnopp (kkarnopp@tribune.com)
