Envelope pushers
Looking for buzz, normally tame nets are figuring edgy is best way to make noise
Nighttime network Adult Swim, a haven for young men with short attention spans, will venture into the smarter environs of "The Boondocks," an animated spinoff of Aaron McGruder's fiery, often politically incorrect comic strip.
Mike Lazzo, senior VP of Cartoon Network, says there was little hesitation on his end to greenlight the project, which will air during Adult Swim's 11 p.m.-5 a.m. latenight shift.
"I've grown up listening to rap music, so I'm not shocked by the language aspects, and I don't think our audience will be either," he says. "I see it in the tradition of Samuel Clemens, someone working in an American vernacular. That's what (McGruder) is doing. Obviously this will be controversial to some, but not young people."
Skein also will be the most mature of Adult Swim's offerings, which typically span 10-12 minutes and deal in stop-motion celeb parodies and fast-food aliens. And though Lazzo says the series version of "Boondocks" will be broader and more character-based than the biting three-panel strip, "Aaron's a social commentator. That will always be the case."
It's no wonder cablers are inching closer and closer to the line. With original programming popping up across dozens of networks, competition is fierce and shows that don't make noise die a quick death.
Lifetime will delve into risque territory with the miniseries "Human Trafficking," which stars Mira Sorvino and Donald Sutherland in a hard-hitting look at international sex trade. MTV Networks' mainstream service for gay and lesbian audiences, Logo, in conjunction with Sundance Channel, are teaming up on "Transgeneration," a documentary that profiles four college students undergoing sex changes. Even country music cabler CMT will take a stab at a serious docuseries when it bows American Soldier," a sort of real-life "Over There" following young soldiers in Iraq.
And FX, known for making waves with its sometimes uncomfortable subject matter will go into fall with war drama "Over There" and comedies "Starved," about friends with eating disorders, and "It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia," which sends up racism, abortion and underage drinking in the first three seasons.
Then there's TNT, with an arsenal of staid procedurals such as "Law & Order" and "Cold Case." In late summer, cabler bowed gritty drama "Wanted," a crime skein centered on an eclectic and elite group of officials that tackle the most violent and dangerous of offenses.
Head of programming at TNT Michael Wright says the push isn't so much about making waves as it is about viewers' demands.
"In this day of the Internet and information at your fingertips, you can't really fake it," Wright says. "Audiences have come to expect a certain degree of authenticity. And as a programmer, you want to be bold and reach a little. It was a thoughtful decision to pick up this show, and we will go where we need to go to do the show properly."
As for the growing trend of increasingly gory and disturbing crimes gracing primetime dramas, Wright says media, as a whole, also has become rawer.
"I think it's OK to depict violence on TV to a point. What's more important is to see characters reacting to it, to show the consequences."
Wight adds "Wanted" exec producer Jorge Zamacona, whose credits include "Oz," "Homicide: Life on the Street" and "10-8," has done his homework.
"Jorge knows the world and the people in it, and he says the truth is far uglier," Wright says.
Over on pay cable, already saturated with "controversial" sex, drugs and violence, Showtime will be go the route of FX and attack a current issue in "Sleeper Cell." Like FX's "Over There," Showtime skein concerns the headline issue, in this case terrorism.
Show, about the infiltration of a terrorist cell by a devout Muslim undercover agent, has already drawn attention and ire when the New York Post inaccurately described the show as painting terrorists in a "sympathetic light." When Robert Greenblatt received several hundred letters from subscribers threatening to cancel their service as a result, he knew concept would be divisive.
Producers have employed series advisors that will help get the show as close to reality as possible.
"We're certainly not going to have only positive images. When we said we were going humanize the terrorists, it set off alarm bells, but what we mean by that is we're going to spend some time with them on the show. None of these guys are heroes, but they're dimensional characters," Greenblatt says. "Some of them are monsters, but also people with families. Some come from places that have been in turmoil for decades and longer and we're going to get into some of that."
Greenblatt isn't expecting the show to do blockbuster numbers, but says it's enough to have a show that stands out.
"This is a topic we all live with and I think people are going to hear about the show," he says. "But it is darker, and it's not for everyone."
