A new television show rode onto the small screen in September 2009 which was full of violence and controversy setting its storyline firmly in the world of motorcycle gangs. Producers and writers could only hope talented acting and clever writing would attract and keep bikers afraid of a stereotype backlash from the non-riding public. Clutch and Chrome goes behind the scenes and rides through the series critics have come to love and viewers have flocked too.

The latest television drama to enter the world of two-wheels isn’t so much about the motorcycle but the characters who ride them, and in this case the gang members who wreak havoc from the saddle of their steel steeds.

Coming from the same network that brought a no holds barred police drama ‘The Shield’, FX’s new series ‘Sons of Anarchy’ doesn’t just use motorcycles as props but sets the story in the dark world of motorcycle gangs and immerses its troubled characters in interweaving plotlines. 

To read the initial series synopsis on paper, ‘Sons of Anarchy’ could have been dismissed as ‘Grandson of the Wild One’, but that would dumb down a cleverly written series and do a great disservice to the talented cast. Following a confused son trying to find his place in life as well as coming to terms with the mafia-style motorcycle gang family business. At first glance its as if Marlon Brando had stuck around at the end of The Wild One, married the waitress he had a crush on and after a little bit of begetting, we arrive at the present day of the Sons of Anarchy. 

But the first five minutes of the FX show (which premiered on September 3rd  2008) wiped away any possible similarities or comparisons, with the 'Sons of Anarchy' motorcycle club more resembling those targeted by the DEA than any past generation counterparts. If media time were twisted and the Sons of Anarchy met Marlon Brando’s Black Rebel Motorcycle Club on the street, they would probably fall off their bikes with laughter, either from the 1950’s outlaws stealing something as silly as a racing trophy or the group’s dapper hats and jackets. 

The story of 'Sons of Anarchy' has continued to maintain gritty and classical Shakespeare undertones through the series as the storyline storms through a one smart plotline after another, rewarding viewers paying attention with hints that everything is not as it appears. ‘Sons of Anarchy’ isn’t your typical motorcycle television show with chiseled actors sporting stubble and riding a showroom Harley. Creator and Executive Producer/Writer Kurt Sutter creates a world of characters ripped from that one-percenters club in Anytown, USA located in the bad part of town casual bikers steer clear of. Club members wear their colors constantly, proudly and even while they’re having sex! The men in ‘Sons of Anarchy’ smoke and drink too much, appear rumpled and unshaven with hair that hasn’t been washed this side of a week.

The show's sharp scripts attracted at least one of the leading men.

"It’s incredibly smart, very, very, very vivid, completely ungratuitous for a show’s that as hardcore and violent and explosive and radical behavior, these are not your average conservative Republicans, these guys are ruthless and badass," say's Ron Perlman who plays the club's leader Clay Morrow. "The way it’s depicted is very organic, which you could only do if you’re a brilliant screenwriter, as Kurt Sutter is, and as an actor you know you’re always going to be supported by—you’re never going to be made to look gratuitous or silly because everything is incredibly well supported in a very organic and very brilliant way."  

One has to wonder that the time saved by not making the cast look Hollywood beautiful is surely lost and even multiplied for the hours it must take the make-up department to adorn the actors with the multitude of large, complicated tattoo’s every character sports. Between how they walk with casual confidence to the commanding glances thrown around, the actors aren’t playing motorcycle gang members so much as they are the ‘Sons of Anarchy’.

Although the cast all ride Harley-Davidson motorcycles, the bikes are toned down and dirty enough to park outside of any clubhouse. Short on fairings and abundantly matt black the sparce bike ‘bling’ comes in the form of gas tanks custom painted in the gang’s colors or with the occasional skull, a vanity common to many bikers. Even down to the novelty lids the members begrudgingly wear to satisfy a helmet mandatory state, authenticity appears to be the rule of the show. Producers not only have road captains on set, but also a member from a self-described motorcycle gang acting as a consultant for directors as well as actors. 

"We have a tech advisor who’s a member of the Oakland Chapter of the Hells Angels named D.L.," says Ron Perlman,"he’s one of the most famous guys in that club, and whenever I get a break in the action, I sit and chat with him."

Speaking of actors, who are all these people with such familiar faces? 

Firstly, any role you’ve seen them perform before ‘Sons of Anarchy’ feels like some acting exercise with everyone on screen fulfilling the intelligent script and its well-written lines. If good scripts stretch acting muscles the 'Sons of Anarchy' makes each actor a thespian body-builder. Nearly every character is asked to go from a cold stone stare to unrepentant violence in a matter of moments. As if taken from real life biker conversations, the dialogue is casually clever with actors delivering it bitingly perfect. In fact, so much information is squeezed into every scene and exchanges, casual viewing could easily lead to a well used backward button on the TiVo remote control. 

Taking the lead role is an actor well known to European audiences for his work in a British drama, Queer as Folk, Charlie Hunnam plays ‘Jax’ the well-liked son trying to balance the demands of the Sons of Anarchy motorcycle club with his own personal morals. But as with all of the cleverly complicated characters created by Sutter, Jax goes from disarming with a smile or quip to outbursts so violent other members have to pull him off his unfortunate victim. Of course there’s a perverse street justice angle to every beating, but the brutality stops viewers from putting Hunnam’s character in any type of box.

However, the sparkling smile obviously works its magic as apparently every female in the town of Charming either wants to or has slept with the young but respected member of the club.