Damages Season 3 -Begins Monday January 25

FX at 9:00pm central time

A year ago, B, a friend of mine mentioned a show named Damages. She told me it was her favorite show. B told me Season 2 would be beginning soon, but that I really should watch Season 1. I was leaving on a trip to Mexico and decided to download Season 1 to my iphone. I really didn’t know if I wanted to follow another series. I was probably thinking at the time that I would be more active in 2009 and not watch as much television.

We were traveling with another couple, and I didn’t want to be rude and wear my earphones while we waited for the plane. So I waited until we were in the air to start the show. I watched the first two episodes in the air and was totally hooked. Then I was bummed out. Here I was in paradise, and all I wanted to do was watch Damages. So every night after everyone went to bed, I watched an episode or two. Then I would spend the next day telling everyone how GREAT the show was.

One day it rained all day. I was feeling bad for my fellow travelers, so I offered to let them use my iphone to watch the show. I am sure you know where this is heading. The rest of the trip was spent fighting over iphone privileges to watch the show.

If you love drama, suspense, twists and turns, and legal thrillers, this is the show for you. There are very few major, motion pictures that are as well written, directed, and acted as Damages. In fact, don’t go to the movies, just get FX on your satellite or cable so you can watch this show. It would be well worth your money.  Glenn Close stars in this drama. She is amazing as attorney Patty Hewes. One moment you will want her as your attorney, and the next you will hope that you never cross paths with her in your lifetime. Rose Bryne and Tate Donovan both turn in excellent performances as regulars on the show. This season, Campbell Scott and Martin Short will join the cast with Lily Tomlin and Keith Carradine joining as special guest stars.

I am hoping that any other television stations that are scrambling to reorganize (I am not going to mention any names) will watch Damages and see the quality television viewers would like to see. Damages was created by Todd A Kessler, Glenn Kessler, and Daniel Zelman who also serve as executive producers, writers and showrunners. The series is produce by Sony Pictures Television, FX Productions and KZK Productions.

I certainly recommend renting or buying Season 1 and Season 2, but no matter what, tune in to Season 3.

TRUST ME, you will be glad you did.

January

• The Bachelor: On the Wings of Love premieres (ABC), 8 PM Monday, January 4th
• The Biggest Loser premieres (NBC), 8 PM Tuesday, January 5th
• Nip/Tuck Final season premieres (FX), 10 PM Wednesday, January 6th
• Chuck premieres (NBC), 9 PM Sunday, January 10th (moves to Monday’s after this)
• Big Love premieres (HBO), 10 PM Sunday, January 10th
• American Idol premieres (FOX), 8 PM Tuesday, January 12
• Project Runway premieres (Lifetime), 10 PM Thursday, January 14th
• 24 four-hour, two-night premiere part 1 (FOX), 9 PM Sunday, January 17th
• 24 four-hour, two-night premiere part 2 (FOX), 8 PM Monday, January 18th

February

• Lost Final Season premieres (ABC), 9 PM Tuesday, February 2nd
• Winter Olympics (NBC), February 12-28

March

• Parenthood premieres (NBC), 9 PM Monday, March 1st
• Nurse Jackie premieres (Showtime), 10 PM Monday, March 22
• United States of Tara premieres (Showtime), 10:30 PM Monday, March 22nd

April

• The Tudors Final Season premieres (Showtime), 9 PM

No dates yet on Breaking Bad, True Blood, Rescue Me and a few others that aren’t coming to mind right now.  As soon as we have dates for them we will let you know!

FX has officially renewed there fantasy football comedy The League for a second season.  For me The League was a little slow to get out of the gates, but by the middle of the season I was really looking forward to each episode.  While it is no It’s Always Sunny In Philadelphia, even that show started off slow it’s first season before it found it’s groove.  The official press release from FX is down below.

I’m sad to note that as expected, our favorite Kiwis, Jermaine and Brett will not be back for a third season of Flight of The Conchords.  HBO reportedly wanted them back, but the stars have declined.  Here is the full story over at Ain’t It Cool News.

FX COMEDY THE LEAGUE GOES THROUGH EXPANSION

Network Orders 13 Episodes for Season Two

LOS ANGELES, December 9, 2009 – FX’s freshman comedy The League has been picked up for a second season with an expanded order of 13 episodes from FX Productions, announced Nick Grad, Executive Vice President of Original Programming, FX Networks.

Season two is scheduled to return in late summer of 2010.  The first season finale of The League airs tomorrow (Thursday, Dec. 10) at 10:30 PM ET/PT, immediately following the season five finale of It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia at 10:00 PM.

“We’ve been very pleased with the creative and ratings trajectory of The League and believe it’s an excellent fit with our comedy brand,” said Grad. “Jackie and Jeff Schaffer are incredibly talented producers and the ensemble cast is fantastic. The performance of the show this season is reminiscent of Sunny in its first season.”

Set against the backdrop of a fantasy football league, The League is about friendship, marriage, parenting, and growing up…or refusing to grow up.  It was created by the husband-and-wife team of Jeff Schaffer (Curb Your Enthusiasm, Seinfeld) and Jackie Marcus Schaffer (Disturbia, EuroTrip) who serve as executive producers. The ensemble features Mark Duplass, Stephen Rannazzisi, Nick Kroll, Paul Scheer, Katie Aselton and Jon Lajoie. The series is produced by FX Productions.

“This has been a wonderful experience for me and Jeff,” said Jackie Marcus Schaffer. “Our cast – Mark, Steve, Nick, Paul, Katie and Jon – is made up of some of the most talented young actor-comedians in the business. So much of the credit goes to them.”

Jeff Schaffer added, “FX has been like the coolest girlfriend you could ever have. They get us, laugh at our jokes, and love hearing us talk about football.  It’s a perfect relationship – and we look forward to going steady with them for a long time.”

Episode five of The League (12/3) was the second highest-rated of the season, ahead of the premiere and behind episode two. Through five episodes, the series is averaging 1.06 million viewers and 863,000 Adults 18-49. Compared to year ago time period, The League has grown +44% among Adults 18-49, +65% in Adults 18-34, and +107% in Men 18-34. The delivery of Adults 18-34 (680,000) is +61% higher than the first season of Sunny (419,000), and +16% more in Adults 18-49 (Sunny season one, 747,000).

Last night I was fortunate enough to sit down with Taylor Sheridan, who plays Deputy David Hale on FX’s hit series Sons of Anarchy.  With the season finale airing last week Sons Of Anarchy and it’s surprising ending is still very much on everyone’s mind.  We got a chance to ask him about his character, the show’s cast and creators, where he sees the show going in the future and much more.  Taylor was very amiable and easy going, which was no surprise considering he’s a fellow Texan.

JoeOnTheTube: First off thanks for talking to us.  What was your initial impression of the script for Sons of Anarchy?
Taylor Sheridan: When I read the pilot I thought it was one of the better new pilots out there.  There have been a few others that I read that I felt the same way about like Lost, 24 and Desperate Housewives.  I knew it had the potential to be great.  Johnny Lewis who played Half-Sac is a friend of mine and he showed me the script.  I’d never met Kurt [Sutter] or John Linson the executive producer, but I did know the casting director.

JOTT: What were your first impressions of Kurt Sutter.  I keep up with his blog and his twitter.  He seems kind of intense and aggressive, and I mean that as a compliment.
TS: I think Kurt would take it as a compliment.  Kurt started on The Shield as a staff writer and worked his way up to executive producer.  On that show he really helped create a new model for TV.  I think The Shield is one of the top two or three shows in the past decade.  He’s really uncompromising.  Sons of Anarchy was his idea and his vision.  He knows how the whole story plays out and how it ends.  He’s very communal and let’s actors explore their characters.
JOTT: Do you have any input on your character?
TS: As far as dialogue goes we don’t have any input, but we do as far as the interpretation of that dialogue.  Hale was created to be the bad guy but it felt conflicted to me and that came out in the acting.  That influenced the writing.  We are allowed to cheat a little bit, but it doesn’t happen much because it’s so well written.

Taylor Sheridan, Kurt Sutter, and Adam Arkin on the set of FX's hit show Sons of Anarchy

JOTT: The Character of Hale was much more one dimensional in the first season than in the second season where a lot of his complexities came out.  Is this trend going to continue into next season?
TS: The change really started in season one around episode 10 when Hale was dealing with Stahl and the moral dilemma about what she was doing to Opie.  Hale is dealing with a police force that is largely corrupt and inept.  Next year I expect he’s going to be in a situation of control which could lead to more conflict.  Unser’s career as a cop is most likely over.  The joke on the set is that Unser is the next SAMCRO prospect.

JOTT: What sort of feedback have you gotten from fans on Deputy Hale?  It seems like you are in a strange situation.  It’s not often that you find a story where people are rooting against the honest cop and for the criminals.
TS: In season one Hale was hated until Stahl showed up.  The feedback has become much more positive as the show and the character become more popular.  Kurt does a great job at showing both side of all the characters.  He doesn’t really glorify anyone.  The division in the club mirrors the fans.  It means a tremendous amount that the people are so taken by the characters in this show which is essentially a study in grey.

JOTT: When does filming start on season 3, and how long does it take to shoot a full season?
TS: We start again some time in early March.  It takes about 6 months to shoot a full season.  We work six months on and six months off.  It takes about 7 working days to film an episode, sometimes a little more.

JOTT: How much does your character’s role as an outsider, or at least not a member of SAMCRO affect the mood on set?  Do the cops and MC hang out when the cameras aren’t rolling?
TS: There are some groups.  A lot of the guys ride together and stuff like that. But it’s a real close cast.  We are a salty bunch of character actors.    Theo Rossi (who plays Juice) owns a bar close by to the set so we have a lot of dinners there and hang out.  I have a lot of respect for so many of these actors.  I think that Kim Coates (Tig on the show) is one of the best actors working today.

JOTT: Not that Hale’s Bronco isn’t cool, but is there ever some jealously on your part that you aren’t getting to ride a Harley from time to time?
TS: I have a motorcycle in the garage that I never ride so I’m not really jealous.  At the end of season one Harley Davidson gave a bunch of the guys bikes, and I didn’t take one.  Now I would take one of those King Ranch Fords if they are handing them out.

JOTT: In the finale Hale seems a little conflicted about letting Weston go.  He mentions that there is a part of him that would like to see Clay dole out street justice, but he can’t let that happen.  Is there some internal conflict with Hale?
TS: The dilemma for Hale is that that Charming is a small town with big city crime.  He has no freedom to fight it because of Unser.  I think next season we will find out what he can handle and it will be interesting to see.  I think it is important for Kurt that Hale never compromise his morals.

JOTT: Fans were shocked by the finale.  It was so good, yet no one saw that ending coming.  TV just doesn’t end that way.  What was your reaction to the finale?
TS: I was floored by the finale.  It was one of the best episodes of TV I’ve read or seen.  The thing about it was that the situation couldn’t be resolved quickly.  The timeline from the start of season one to the end of season two is only about three months.  To resolve things takes time.  In real life a guy like Zobele would get away.  Kurt was very fourth-right about Half-Sac getting killed, and it was a decision that he and Johnny made together.

JOTT: I first saw you on Veronica Mars a few seasons ago.  On that show you flirted a little more with the opposite side of the law that your character does on SOA.  How was the experience of being on a teen drama like Veronica Mars different from being on a show like SOA?
TS: Veronica Mars was great.  Kristen Bell is just awesome.  She’s still just a girl from outside Detroit who somehow can still keep rooting for the Lions.  My character on Veronica Mars, Danny Boyd was very evil and very dumb.  The character had no subtext.  To prepare I just drank about four Red Bulls and I was ready to go.  The character just wanted whatever was in front of him.  On Sons it is much more layered.  There is more history to take into account for Hale.

JOTT: Well Taylor thank you so much for talking to us.  We really look forward to seeing more of you next season and beyond on Sons of Anarchy.
TS: My pleasure. You’re welcome.  Thanks.

There you go folks.  I hope you enjoyed our interview with Taylor Sheridan.  He’s promised to sit down with us again before season three of Sons of Anarchy starts to talk to us about that season.

“The success of Sons of Anarchy is very gratifying and the show has become a bona-fide hit,” said FX President and General Manager John Landgraf. “The critics have recognized Sons as one the best series on television, and the show has earned its place alongside FX’s great drama series The Shield, Nip/Tuck, Rescue Me and Damages. Creatively, this season was spectacular and all credit goes to Kurt [Sutter] and the incredible cast led by Katey Sagal, Charlie Hunnam and Ron Perlman.”

I’m expecting a fourth season is in the bag as well since Kurt Sutter just signed on with FX for two more years.  So unless the show really tanks in the third season a fourth should be a no-brainer for FX.  This is good news for all of us who are huge fans of Sons of Anarchy.  SAMCRO forever.

Gemma’s a fugitive, Abel has been abducted, Half-Sack is dead… I guess Half-Sack being dead isn’t something hanging out there, but there is a whole lot to be resolved.

Right, right. Let me just start, because I know people are going to be pissed off about the Half-Sack thing. I will tell you that I’ve been having conversations with Johnny Lewis all season, and Johnny wasn’t happy on the show. Creatively, he really wanted out of his contract. We had ongoing conversations, and we decided we’d find some noble way for him to go. It wasn’t my intent to try to be sensational and kill off a main character. People are going to have their reaction, but I don’t want an actor that’s not happy. It’s not good for the actor, and it’s not good for the show. I love Johnny. I’d work with him again in a heartbeat.

How much confidence at this point do you have that the renewal is going to be finalized?

I’ve had conversations with (FX president John) Landgraf, and of course the show’s going to be picked up. What happens in season three, dude, is my contract is a two-year contract, historically actors get a bump between season two and three. FX, really the burden of that lands on them. They are the co-producers of that show. They really had to get all their financial ducks in a row. Once you announce the actual pick up, it sets the ball rolling. My thought was that we would hopefully find out before the finale. Obviously, that clock is ticking. But I’ve been assured there will be a season three. My deal is pretty much done, but it’s a matter of finalizing all the other deals. And then they’ll make the announcement.

Well, I don’t want to know too much about what’s coming, and I’m sure you don’t want to say much, but is it safe to assume we might see the club go to Belfast?

I think it’s okay to tease this, because I think it’ll be cool. I’m actually working with (the studio) now on how best to – clearly we’re not a show that can up and move everybody to Belfast. Does that mean having a second unit work out there to match some shots? But the plan is to take the charter to Ireland.

What did you have in mind with the scene in “The Culling” where Tara slaps around Margaret?

The conversations that I’ve been having with Maggie (Siff) all along – because it’s so not who Maggie is, she’s really a sweet, fragile soul – has been, it’s not so much about Tara finding the ability to change and to accept (the violence), it’s really about her continuing to suppress what she already has inside her. And for me, that’s always been underneath Tara. We saw some of that with Kohn. I felt that she’s had these strong influences all year with Jax, and what we saw happen to Gemma, and if we didn’t see some of that break open, and some of that spill out from her former life, that would almost be a disservice to who she had been.

Knowing that, and doing that scene, I did know what would happen in the finale, which is that ultimately, the same violence she supported and ultimately participated in, comes back to bite her in the ass, and terrifies her. By the end of the finale, she’s breaking down. I knew that I was going to go there, and I knew that I would see some of that bleed out, and I think that has a lot to do with the trauma that she feels afterwards. She knows that’s a part of it. She patched the guy up who ultimately put a gun to her head.

So much of the bad things at the end of the episode are caused by Stahl. After all the screw-ups she’s had investigating the Sons over the last two seasons, why is the ATF still leaving her in charge of the case, and giving her so much free rein?

I think she’s been on point all season. She says early on that it’s not about the Sons. I think she’s backed off of that. She’s really doing her job this season, which is to go after the guns. For the most part, the case is holding up, and she is gaining on it. Up until this point, she’s sort of proven herself as being on point with what the case is in going after Jimmy O, and Jimmy O is a big fish. But I do think that the machinations that happen at the end here, really it’s about her covering her tracks. Ultimately, the guys will try to take advantage of that next season. At the very least to try to help Gemma.

One of the cool things we were able to do on “The Shield” with the Kavanaugh character was, when you’re that close to something and someone that you can’t help but be influenced by it. Kavanaugh could not help but be influenced by the machinations of Vic, and ultimately, it impacted him and the decisions that he made. That’s the same thing with Stahl. She’s done some nefarious stuff within the boundaries of her job, in terms of how she threatens people, but she crosses the line here by essentially doing what we’ve seen the Sons do all along, which is to manipulate the truth and create a secret. That’s the turning point for her.

And of course it’s all perspective. On a different show, Stahl would be the hero. But on this show, we’re horrified when she does something the Sons do, yet we like them when they do the same things.

I like to say that Vic Mackey was 60 (percent) good, 40 bad. The Sons are 40 good, 60 bad. I think it’s important, and I was talking to my writers about this the other day: It’s really important for me to never just paint people black and white. I do think Stahl has compassion for what happened to Gemma. I do think that when that happens, it does impact her. The same thing with Hale. We’ve seen that guy set up as the antagonist, who ultimately throws them a bone at the end by not sending the sheriffs. It’ll be an interesting season next year. Unser will step down at the beginning of next season. It’ll be interesting to see Hale navigate without the cooperation of the Sons. That’s going to be fun to explore. Will he need to compromise the way Unser did to maintain civility in the town?

Check out the rest of this great interview over at What’s Alan Watching?

10. MODERN FAMILY- ABC, 2009-present: Now I love Modern Family, but with only 9 episodes under it’s belt it’s too early to put among the 10 best shows of the decade.  In a few years I might look back and admit I was wrong, but I couldn’t include it.
9. LOST-ABC, 2004-present: I have to agree will this one.  Even with a season or two that were stinkers Lost has kept me coming back again and again.  For me it really all hinges on the upcoming season.  It is ends well then It should be there, but if it doesn’t it could knock it off my list.
8. 24-Fox, 2001-present: Another solid pick in my opinion. Like Lost it’s had some seasons that were less than stellar, but it did introduce us to one of TV’s great heroes, Jack Bauer.
7. 30 ROCK-NBC, 2006-present: Once again, dead on.  One of the funniest and most clever shows on TV.
6. MAD MEN-AMC, 2007-present: I;m on the fence about Mad Men being on this list.  I’m going to have to think long and hard about including it in my top 10.
5. DAMAGES-FX, 2007-present: Not really a fan of Damages.  Wouldn’t make my top 20.
4. THE SHIELD-FX, 2002-08: I missed out on The Shield, but I’ve never heard anything but great things about it so I can understand why it would be on someone’s list.
3. CURB YOUR ENTHUSIASM-HBO, 2000-present: Yes, Yes, Yes
2. THE WEST WING- NBC, 1999-2006: Another one that I missed the boat on.  I was in college when West Wing, and not really interested in this type of series so I never watched it.  It will be on many top ten lists I’m sure.  I love Aaron Sorkin (Sports Night would be in my top 10 of all time), so I’m sure this show was great.
1. THE SOPRANOS-HBO, 1999-2007: No surprises here.  Maybe one of the greatest shows of all time.

Moderator            Welcome to the Katey Sagal Q&A conference.  At this time, all participants are in a listen-only mode.  We’ll conduct a question and answer session.  Instructions will be given at that time.  As a reminder, this conference is being recorded.  I’d now like to turn the conference over to your host, Mr. Dominic Pagone.  Please go ahead.

D. Pagone            Thank you very much, and good morning and afternoon, everyone.  Again, I am Dominic Pagone from FX Media Relations.  Thanks for joining us on this conference call today with Katey Sagal.  Katey, thank you very much for taking the time to do this.  At this point, I’ll turn it back to the moderator, and we’ll start with the questions.

K. Sagal            Great.

Moderator            Our first question comes from the line of April McIntyre, Monsters and Critic.

A. McIntyre            Hello, Katey.  Thanks so much for your time.  Two questions for you: one, your character, you have such an allegiance to your son, Jax, and such for Clay.  But if you think that Gemma had to choose between the two, where do you think, especially this season more than any, where do you think her allegiance is really?  Where is her heart most?

K. Sagal            I think it’s a tough question.  Her allegiance is to everybody.  I mean, you know, what she’s desperately fighting for, in my opinion, is to protect the whole system.  This is her life, the whole thing.  In my back-story of Gemma, she has nowhere else that she’s come from.  I mean, where she’s come from, she doesn’t want to go back to, so her loyalty is to the entire situation.  I would imagine if she really had to choose, oh, gosh.  I really don’t know.  I would say her son.  That’s what I would say, but you never know with her.

A. McIntyre            Right.  I spoke to Henry Rollins and talked about the rape scene with him, and he said it was a very unpleasant day for him as an actor.  I wanted to know, from your perspective obviously, what was the repercussion of that?  How long did it take you to shake off that scene?

K. Sagal            To me, those scenes are done very by the book and very choreographed, and it was a very safe environment.  We had been to the space a couple of days before we actually shot the scene, so we could kind of take it in and realize where we were going to be.  And the actual shooting of the scene probably didn’t take more than two, three hours.  Shaking it off was actually a process through the next three or four episodes are pretty intense in terms of dealing with it, and so it kind of was hanging around.  I mean, it hung around for most of the season with Gemma, but the really super dark, emotional visits I had to take, I would say, it was a good month.  Not that I was walking around with it every moment of the day.  I have three kids at home, but it was definitely a dark experience.

A. McIntyre            Last question since you mentioned your family.  A Mesa Charter Hells Angel actually contacted me and said he wrote alongside Sonny Barger and your husband for Sonny’s birthday a few weeks back, and I wanted to know how immersed is your husband, the creator of the show, in the motorcycle club world?

K. Sagal            Well, he’s not really immersed in it.  He is now, you know, very familiar with it, and has made these contacts through his research.  I mean, before he began the project, he wasn’t really familiar with the world, but he, as any good writer would do, or any good, you know, he did a lot of research.  So he went and introduced himself at the beginning.  But now that community has really embraced the show, and I know Sonny called him and invited him and myself.  I was working.  I couldn’t go to his birthday party, which was really kind of an honor to be included.  And so Kurt went up.  I don’t think he has daily contacts with that world, but he definitely is connected in some ways.

A. McIntyre            I’m so enjoying your work on the series.  I think it’s some of the best work you’ve ever done.  Please continue.

K. Sagal            Thank you.

A. McIntyre            Thank you.

Moderator            Next question comes from the line of Jim Halterman, Progressive Television.

J. Halterman            Hello, Katey.  Thanks for your time today.  I want to know, you know, whenever I’ve seen you work in anything, you always seen to inhabit your character so strongly.  Are you able to shake that off as soon as the cameras die off, or do you kind of have a process that you go through to kind of shake off whatever you’re acting?

K. Sagal            I can shake it off pretty much as soon as I change my clothes because I usually, you know, the costumes and wardrobe and hair and all that kind of informs what it is I’m doing a lot.  A lot of times whatever shoes I’m wearing informs what it is I’m doing.  That helps right there.  But, no, I don’t tend to carry it around with me.

J. Halterman            I know you stepped back into Peg Bundy’s shoes when you worked on David Faustino’s Web series.  Was that easy for you to do, or did that take some adjusting since you hadn’t done it in a while?

K. Sagal            It’s pretty much like riding a bike, especially when we were all in the room.  You know, it was pretty funny actually.  And, you know, Eddie fell right into it, so we kind of followed his lead.

J. Halterman            That’s great.  Thank you so much, and continue the good work on the show.

K. Sagal            Thank you.

Moderator            The next question comes from the line of Stacy Harrison, Tribune Media Services.

S. Harrison            Hello, Katey.  I was actually just wondering a little bit about Jax’ dad and sort of the circumstances surrounding his death.  Will there be – it always seems sort of fishy what’s going on with that.  There seems to be sort of a Hamlet dynamic going on here.  Will we learn more about that as the season goes on?

K. Sagal            It comes up in bits for this second season.  I have a feeling that through the arch of the series, you will find out more about that history and that back-story.

S. Harrison            Also just with the second season, the show has really spiked in the ratings, and I was just kind of wondering if you guys have kind of sat and thought maybe what that’s all about, if people are just discovering you, if there’s something else going on.

K. Sagal            To me … family drama with really interesting, intricate family relationships that I think that that’s one of the draws.  I think that it’s a world that people haven’t seen before.  I think the quality of the storytelling is really high.  I think the cast is really great.  To me, it makes perfect sense that now that people have sort of defined it and word of mouth has spread that if you show up for it, you’re going to have a good experience.  It’s not like, you know, somebody was lying to you when they say it’s a good show.  I think that it’s been really exciting to watch, and it’s rare that it happens, so it’s good.  It’s nice.

S. Harrison            Thank you.

Moderator            The next question comes from the line of Christine Nyholm, Cable TV Examiner.

C. Nyholm            Hello, Katey.  I have two questions.  The first is about your singing and songwriting.  I know that’s the love of yours, and I was wondering if that has been used in the show at all or if it will be in the future.

K. Sagal            So far I’ve sang two songs in the soundtrack of the show.  The first season, I sang Son of a Preacher Man.  And in this last season, I’m the one singing Ruby Tuesday over the second episode.  Yes, I haven’t written.  We don’t really use, well, we use some original music, but a lot of it is stuff that we re-cut, and hopefully I’ll get to sing one for the third season too.

C. Nyholm            That would be great.

K. Sagal            Yes.

C. Nyholm            Then my other question is back to your Peg Bundy role.  These two roles, Gemma Morrow and Peg Bundy are so different, and you’re still associated so much with Peg Bundy, but which one is more like Katey Sagal?

K. Sagal            I don’t think Peg Bundy was very much like Katey Sagal.  Definitely the wardrobe Gemma wears might be a little more like Katey Sagal.  I mean, any time you play anything, there’s pieces of yourself that you’re kind of elaborating on.  I mean, you’re using parts of yourself.  I tend to be very fiercely loyal to my three children, and I wouldn’t want to cross me about them, so not that I would do what Gemma might do, so there’s pieces of that in her.  And Peg was a rather vain housewife, and I can have my moments, so there may have been pieces of that in her.  There’s little bits in both of them.

C. Nyholm            Thank you.

Moderator            The next question comes from the line of Kendra White of Side Reel.

K. White            Hello.  Thanks for talking with us today.  With so many tough issues presented on the show that I would say have only intensified this season, what kind of both positive and negative feedback have you heard from fans?

K. Sagal            What kind of negative feedback?

K. White             Positive and negative.

K. Sagal            I think mostly positive.  I’m sure there’s negatives.  I’m sure there’s people that might think it’s too violent.  And I always feel like, well, then watch something else.  I haven’t gotten a lot of negative feedback, actually.

K. White            Great.  Thank you.

K. Sagal            Or maybe I’m just not paying attention to it.

Moderator            You have a question from the line of Phil McCray of StarFalls.com.

P. McCray            Hello, Katey.  How are you?  I have a question regarding the storyline of Gemma this season.  How important do you think that is for women who are watching the show, just seeing what you’re going through and how you’re dealing with the situation?

K. Sagal            I’m not sure that it’s the way anybody would deal with the situation.  Her choice to not speak up and not tell her family what has happened to her, she’s doing it for a higher purpose in her mind, which is to protect them because she knows who her family is, and she knows that this is a violent world, and that they would protect her.  They would go to any lengths to protect her, so she has decided to keep quiet.  I don’t know that that is the message that women should pick up.  I’m not sure that that would be the proper way to handle that situation for anybody really, but for Gemma, and in this world, it is, so that’s the storytelling going on.  That’s the story that we’re telling.  Any other woman in that situation, I would hope that they would go talk about it immediately.

P. McCray            Great.  Thanks.

Moderator            The next question comes from the line of Sandy Sahakians of Famous TV.

S. Sahakians            Hello, Katey.  Thank you so much for taking the time today.  My question is about Gemma and Clay.  It seems that their relationship this season is a bit in trouble, and I was just wondering how that’s going to evolve for the rest of the season.

K. Sagal            They’re a bit in trouble because there’s a big secret.  There’s a lot of secrets, and any time we live in that kind of situation, you’re not authentically being with anybody, so I think that as the season unfolds, I think some of those secrets will be, we’ll find out how they’re handled, and I can tell you this.  They stay married.  I’ll tell you that.

S. Sahakians            Okay.  All right.  Thank you.

Moderator            There are no further questions at this time.  Please continue.

K. Sagal            Thank you.

D. Pagone            Are we good, everybody?  Apparently so.  Thanks again for taking the time.  Katey, thank you for taking the time.

K. Sagal            Thanks, Dom.

D. Pagone            Sons of Anarchy, Tuesday nights at 10:00 on FX.  Thanks, everybody.

K. Sagal            See you later.

Moderator            Thank you.  That concludes our conference for today.  Thank you for your participation and for using AT&T Executive TeleConference

So much going on in this episode it’s hard to know where to start.  With everyone but Opie in prison the clubs in real trouble.  Not just from the league outside of prison, but from their Aryan brothers inside.  Clay knows he’s got to find some protection, and he reaches out to LaRoy for help.  Before “black has their back” SAMCRO has to do a few things for the 9ers.  First they must set up a snitch on the inside by using Juice as bait.  This works out fine, but Juice is stabbed by the Aryans once he’s back in the yard.  The second part of the 9ers’s favor is a little harder.  Opie has to set up a tranny drug dealer.  He shakes down Lyla’s (his porn star love interest) drug dealer and steals his stash.  Opie then plants the drugs only to have Trammel get shot while trying to arrest the she-male.

Turns out Agent Stahl is back in town and she heads over to the prison to stir up a little trouble with Clay and Jax.  She tells them that the Irish are working with Zobele in hopes that one of them will rat them out.  Jax ends up outsmarting Stahl and realizes that she’s got nothing on SAMCRO anymore.  All Stahl does succeed in doing is causing a brutal fight between Clay and Jax, that no one breaks up in hopes that it will actually help mend the club.

On the outside, Gemma and Tara are going all they can to hold it together.  Gemma goes to Oswald in hopes that he will bail the crew out.  At first he refuses her, but eventually comes around as they talk about Charming, and wonder if they really can keep it the same.  After Opie’s Mom bails Gemma and Tara help out by watching their kids.  When Opie sends Lyla to pick them up they refuse to give the to “porn girl.”  Opie eventually comes himself, and explains that Lyla is just a single mom doing what she has to do.

The final scene of the episode has the club members that were in jail pulling back up to the clubhouse.  All but Jax walk toward the clubhouse while Jax heads to the garage.  Looks like he might be alone here.

Thoughts and Observations:

• Damn, there were a lot of orange jumpsuits in this episode. Speaking of wardrobe, how many different SOA shirts do you think Jax has?
• Opie and the porn star can’t end well, for anyone.  I assume that he hasn’t heard the last of the Chinese drug dealer either.
• “Bobby telling Jax, “This club needs a healing brother, and you gotta be the one to deliver it.”
• This might have been the best episode of the season thus far.  No surprise that Kurt Sutter wrote it.
• Opie was so nice when he expressed his disapproval of the way that Gemma and Tara treated Lyla.  I’m rooting hard for Opie to get in a good place.