I don't know what it is about this show, it certainly isn't pretty boys, it certainly isn't uplifting in the traditional sense of the word, or inspiring in the same sense though it grabbed me within the first couple of episodes.

Sons of Anarchy is about a biker gang. It's brutal, uncompromising, stark and at times shocking so it's quite unusual for me to have become so deeply engrossed so quickly and I found myself watching the first two seasons back to back over a couple of weeks. I just couldn't put it down, as they say.

Kurt Sutter, the creator, is a genius, the way he makes you care about each and every character in the story, protagonist and antagonist alike. He is so elegant in his sparsity, not one line or gesture is irrelevant and the actors themselves deserve acclaim for the way they deliver each with such panache and ease. He takes his characters right to the edge and often over (Henry Rollins as a white supremacist with 'I Kill Niggers' tattooed across his chest...).

The matriarch of the story played by Katey Sagal (Sutter's wife) is the most powerful role I have seen a woman play for a long time, she deserves an Oscar for her acting (as does Sutter for the script). Sons of Anarchy is a technical work of brilliance. Any student of the art should study it closely.

I'm not going to go into the story, only say, biker gang/small town and leave it at that because I just couldn't do justice to even a brief synopsis probably because I'm still not quite sure myself what that is and why I've been so deeply affected by it.

A masterpiece.

You really do need to see it.