• Network: FX
  • Series Premiere Date: Sep 3, 2008
  • Season #: 1 , 2 , 3 , 4
Metascore
68 out of 100

Generally favorable reviews - based on 22 Critics

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 12 out of 22
  2. Negative: 1 out of 22
  1. Few series have exploded onto the scene with such a rich array of potential stories and inherently interesting characters.
  2. 88
    Every character is unique - but almost none compares in strangeness to Bobby Munson (Mark Boone, Jr.), a Jewish killer/gang member/Elvis impersonator. Yes, I love this show.
  3. Reviewed by: Verne Gay
    83
    Trade press has labeled this "'Easy Rider' Meets 'The Sopranos,'" which seems apt. Show comes from Kurt Sutter, longtime co-executive producer of "The Shield" (and married to Sagal) so that should give you a sense of tone and texture - violent, taut, well written.
  4. 80
    Sons of Anarchy, an unfailingly coarse yet brashly effective series that burrows into the workings of the titular outlaw motorcycle club.
  5. 80
    Sons of Anarchy is bloody, disturbing and maniacally addictive.
  6. Reviewed by: David Hiltbrand
    80
    A shockingly good series about a motorcycle gang in the apocryphal California valley town of Charming.
  7. 80
    I do think it has real potential to become a solid dramatic addition to the FX slate, as The Shield enters its final season.
  8. Gritty and occasionally violent, Sons was created by Kurt Sutter, an executive producer on "The Shield." As "The Shield" prepares to bow out, Sons should capably fill the smart, testosterone-fueled void.
  9. There are moments that require you not to think too hard, and some of the black humor doesn't overcome its fundamental nastiness. But on the whole, it's a superior package, intelligently constructed and handsomely executed.
  10. The show, which begins on Wednesday, is all tattoos and creased leather vests and shock-value chatter, and it isn't half-bad.
  11. Set as far as possible from the canyons of New York, the series has a cool, original look--despite its C-movie moments when burly guys in black jackets zoom down the highway to the accompaniment of country metal rock.
  12. Sutter has some interesting characters and ideas here, but the intensity isn't there yet.
  13. A complex and well-built drama that leaves the viewer wondering if there's enough humanity here to make the hard-boiled stories worth following.
  14. 60
    For all its ferocity, and despite some excellent supporting performances, there's a curious hole at the center of Sons of Anarchy. The character we're supposed to be most interested in is something of a blank slate.
  15. Reviewed by: Matt Roush
    60
    Well-made, but heavy-handed and hardly inviting.
  16. Reviewed by: Brian Lowry
    60
    Working with directors Allen Coulter and Michael Dinner, Sutter does bring a visceral quality to the violence, while detailing the club's code and commitment to functioning as an extended family; there's just so little dimension to the characters early on that it's difficult to care.
  17. It will take awhile to figure out whether Sons of Anarchy was worth the investment of our time.
  18. It might all have been a bit lifeless, had not Sutter, a writer on "The Shield"--which has so far kept its own tragic hero from speaking in blank verse--not cast his wife, Katey Sagal, as Jax's mother, Gemma.
  19. Sutter packs the early episodes with colorful dialogue but at the same time so much random violence that it crosses the line to gratuitous.
  20. 50
    Creator Kurt Sutter, a longtime writer for "The Shield," has said that he wanted to create a West coast version of "The Sopranos," but the world he created sometimes feels like "The Sopranos" without any discernible moral compass.
  21. 40
    Hunnam broods magnetically, but there aren't enough reasons to ride along on this incredibly bleak journey.
  22. 37
    Sons wants us to care about their hopes and struggles, but gives no clue as to why we might do so.
User Score

Universal acclaim- based on 171 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 62 out of 70
  2. Negative: 5 out of 70
  1. JennetP.
    10
    One of the few shows that pose moral questions, instead of illustrating moral certainties. (Note to USA Today: those of us who aren't lost don't need a compass.) And though it may not replicate every last detail of the MC lifestyle, SOA absolutely nails the outlaw spirit that animates many American subcultures. Individual characters are beautifully drawn, each distinctive yet archetypal, the product of writers, actors, and directors at the top of their game. But, as good as they are individually (Katey, dust off that award shelf, your Golden Globe is finally on its way!), collectively they are even better. There is genius in the casting of this show, so much that, when characters claim that separation from SAMCRO would be worse than death, the sentiment seems perfectly reasonable, even self-evident. My favorite new show, hands down. Full Review »
  2. Leave it to FX to prove to us that just because it is on cable tv, doesn't means it's bad. This show was beautifully crafted from the word go. It has heart, excellent dialogue and yes it is catchy and you can dance to it. My partner and I plowed through both seasons one and two with a wrecking ball and are anxious for the third season to be released on DVD. Katy Segal is more than breathtaking in this role, she is this role. She and Ron Pearlman make the most delightful and surprisingly adorable couple. Overall this show is fantastic and I highly recommend it. Full Review »
  3. Great show. I've been watching this since it first released. Just watched the Season 3 finale and I'm very pleased and can't wait for the next season.