TV PRESS TOUR: FX back on track with “Shield,””Anarchy”

  After an entire summer without its original comedy or dramas, FX looks like it will be back in a big way in September. The pure adrenaline of “The Shield’s” final season kicks off Sept. 2, the day before the premiere of the testosterone-fueled “Sons of Anarchy,”
  Following the Fox party Monday night on the Santa Monica Pier -- which offered the rare chance to talk to TV’s two top visionaries, J.J. Abrams and Joss Whedon, while gorging at any of a dozen concession stands -- I stayed up until 12:30 a.m. watching the seventh season premiere of “The Shield” on the Beverly Hilton’s closed-circuit channel and woke up before 7 a.m. to watch “Anarchy.”
  It’s going to be a very manly fall.
  “The Shield” kicks off with a brutal confrontation between Vic (Michael Chiklis) and Shane (Walton Goggins) that’s been building for years. After watching that first hour, and listening to the cast talk about having filmed the final episode, I’m starting to realize that TV just won’t be the same without it.
  I‘m also looking forward to seeing a lot more of “Anarchy.” The story of a motorcycle gang that’s out to protect its small hometown from drug dealers and real estate developers, “Anarchy” stars “Undeclared’s” Charlie Hunnam as Jax, the son of the gang’s late founder, who’s looking for a smarter way than gun-running to make money; Ron Perlman as Clay, the gang’s leader, who’s pretty happy with the status quo; and Katey Sagal as Gemma, Jax’s mom and Clay’s wife, whose loyalties seem to be in question.
  I don’t know how wide of an audience it will reach, but based on the first hour, “Anarchy” will fit in with the rest of the FX lineup just fine.