FX, Cocky Like a Motherfucker



(image via debbieschlussel)

How brilliant was "The Shield" this season? Katie fucking Segal? And how genius was the casting of Franke "Run, Lola, Run" Potente as a newly-minted Armenian crime boss with a steep learning curve? And, if Minnie Driver doesn't win the Emmy for Best Actress in a Drama, then, my friends, there is no justice.

Okay, FX is hott. We won't deny it. Everyone wants to fuck FX. HBO used to be the hottest, but with the demise of The Sopranos ("Not with a bang, but a whimper ..") and the fizzling of Big Love, Entourage -- which isn't as tight as it used to be -- is the only reason to stop by anymore. Bill Maher's on summer vacation in search of some sweet African-American loving (He likes his women like he likes his coffee). And even then it's routine sex; talk about Rome, the good times. HBO just doesn't have that old cable network magic between the sheets, anymore.

Meanwhile, FX has been working out doing crunches and has the hott body of a "mussular" cable network. And, according to Variety, they are getting a bit cocky:

"As the champagne and celebs flowed freely through FX's premiere party for "Rescue Me" in Gotham last month, the cable net's topper John Landgraf held forth to a reporter about the relationship between Shakespeare, Updike and the FX slate.

"The cerebral, polished Landgraf is running FX these days with a willful disregard for TV's unwritten rules, resulting in a network that bucks many of the current cable trends.

"As the net debuted the fourth season of 'Rescue Me' last week and preps for the release of its big summer bet 'Damages' next month, Landgraf and his team face arguably the most critical point of their tenure.

"Thanks in part to a low-cost production model, FX will air eight original series this year -- more than any net has ever aired on basic-cable (and several times the number it aired when Landgraf joined as FX Entertainment prexy in 2004 under Peter Liguori, now head of programming at Fox).

"'Every other network takes risks within shows. FX takes risks with the whole network,' says Nick Frenkel of 3 Arts Entertainment, which produces FX's sitcom 'It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia.'"

Cocky works well if you are hott, which, quite frankly FX is ... (variety)