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[Siegmeyer]

I'm currently binging on The Shield on Netflix - great show by the way - and have just started season 4.

Now I don't know why it took me so long to notice it (I didn't even notice it during watching - it suddenly occurred to mer whilst I was taking a dump), but I only just realised that the swearing/cursing is very tame.

This is a show where the word nigga is heard countless times every episode, gays have been called 'fags' and 'cum-burpers', blacks and latinos were referred to collectively as 'the Zulus and the Aztecs' by the star just a few episodes ago. There is plenty of violence, some being pretty graphic and also despriptions of situations that are clearly for a mature audience (e.g. someone scares a prostitute into talking by saying that she doesn't want to be tied up ad have a rat forced in her vagina). There's been numerous scenes of sexual assault, which while not overly graphic can still be pretty disturbing.

So why on earth is 'bullshit' the harshest thing I've heard out of any of these characters? It's really jarring with the rest of the show and I wish I hadn't noticed it. Is it a network thing? The Wire and Sopranos didn't have these issues. (I'm in UK though and I know HBO is independent, don't know anything about other networks).


Also related, I have yet to see one pair of tits, yet male ass is common place, from Walton Goggins' rather impressive toned specimen to the big, fat saggy asses of the obese rapist who died on his victim or the dude who paid the price for his gloryhole shenanigans.


Do other adult shows do this? I don't get it. Does America have a problem with nudity and swearing or is The Shield an anomaly?


What gives GAF?

 

[Currygan]

Kurt Sutter's trademark of convincing people his characters are more badass than they actually are

that's not a jab against Shield, which is brilliant, but I noticed it in SOA as well so there's a pattern imho

 

[diggmcbadass]

You can say fuck on HBO but no on FX. The reasons are uniquely American.

 

[Discotheque]

 

[120v]

i've never seen it but most dramas on FX have a lot of swearing and brief nudity relative to most non-premium cable shows

my guess is because the show is older and had to abide by different FCC regs (i think it's over ten years old now)

 

[White Man]

It was on basic cable, which shies away from vulgarity for the most part, even though they can use it.

 

[Ortix]

Yeah, they can't have them say "fuck" because the work with ads. Only the premium cable shows (HBO, Showtime) have no rules like that.

About the nudity, there's no tits for the same reason. Apparently there's no restrictions about ass, although I remember seeing some female ass as well.

 

[White Man]

Oh, also, The Shield was really one of the first shows to push the line on this sort of thing, too.

 

[Bleepey]

http://www.npr.org/2013/09/10/218525978/what-the-is-up-on-cable-these-days

Sutter says he's not allowed to use the F-word. Or the word "retard." He also can't use his very favorite swear word. It's probably the most vulgar reference to female anatomy you can think of.

Characters can get away with saying "bull- - - - " on basic cable. Not so much with the F-word. AMC actually has a f- - - quota on the show Breaking Bad. It's acceptable a certain number of times per season. After that, it's tastefully dropped out. You have to listen carefully to notice, as when Jesse screams to Walt, "Get the <silence> out of there and never come back!" in Episode 9 of the fourth season.

Breaking Bad was allowed like one fuck per season.

 

[Majima Everywhere System]

The Shield is on Netflix now? I swear I have looked for it once a month for about a year.

 

[Siegmeyer]

Yeah, they can't have them say "fuck" because the work with ads. Only the premium cable shows (HBO, Showtime) have no rules like that.

I can't wrap my head round this at all. Do the people running these networks think that people watching a show where one man is forced to fellate another with a gun at his head are suddenly going to be offended by a few f bombs? Conversely, if you're a company willing to pay for ads during The Shield, I doubt you'd lose sleep over the demographic you're targeting getting offended by some realistic lanuage.


It's interesting from a UK perspective where I'd say it's the opposite. Bad language is way more 'acceptable' than hardcore sex/violence/drug usage.

 

[strafer]

that explains all the jesus christs in SoA

 

[White Man]

I also remember reading that Breaking Bad was allowed something like 2 censored 'fucks' per season by the network.

edit: I probably have that wrong. I see all sorts of conflicting articles about the use of 'fucks' on Breaking Bad.

 

[Gonzalez]

Basic cable has this little thing they call advertisers. Like network TV you have to try your best not to piss them off since they are the lifeblood of these basic cable channels.

 

[jorma]

http://www.npr.org/2013/09/10/218525978/what-the-is-up-on-cable-these-days





Breaking Bad was allowed like one fuck per season.

Do org-domains have similar restrictions? That's bull-_ _ _ _!

 

[Travo]

Because it's FX. I love how Battlestar handled this by making up its own curse word.

 

[Rhomega Beta]

For a minute, I was thinking of Agents of SHIELD, and wondering why you were complaining about lack of swearing in a show based on the MCU, which doesn't really have swearing in it.

 

[Manmademan]

For a minute, I was thinking of Agents of SHIELD, and wondering why you were complaining about lack of swearing in a show based on the MCU, which doesn't really have swearing in it.

Ha! I'd pay a LOT of money for a show where Vic Mackie and co. Got dropped into the MCU. Agents of " The SHIELD" would be a goldmine

 

[RandyBobandy]

It doesn't make sense really considering the content of these kind of shows. Graphic violence, drug dealing, people dying, but you better not say fuck!

 

[Gonzalez]

Also may I add that they not only toned down the language, they also toned down Vic's personality. Sure he may be a "bad guy", but he's also not homophobic, racist, or a rapist. He also solves a lot of problems even though he's breaking the rules, and committing crimes.

They were really struggling with advertisers when writing a TV show starring an anti-hero during the early years of this genre.

 

[UnluckyKate]

Because it's FX. I love how Battlestar handled this by making up its own curse word.

Firefly had them swearing in chinese because in the future everybody spoke chinese as it was the new superpower. It was brillant.

 

[Zaph]

US cable is an odd beast. Many of the shows deal with some really dark stuff and depict very graphic violence, yet four letter words and nudity is off limits.

In the UK, a lot of the same popular shows are rated 18 (Breaking Bad, Walking Dead, even The 100...) which basically allows them to show almost anything (including brief real sex), but it still contains the same uneven content.

I wonder how long it'll be until most shows are filmed for the larger international/online audience, then edited down for US basic cable? I believe Sony did something similar for Breaking Bad - where AMC would mute the occasional 'fuck' yet other territories had the uncensored version.

 

[kharma45]

The Shield is on Netflix now? I swear I have looked for it once a month for about a year.

It is on the UK one.

 

[DiscoJer]

Also may I add that they not only toned down the language, they also toned down Vic's personality. Sure he may be a "bad guy", but he's also not homophobic, racist, or a rapist. He also solves a lot of problems even though he's breaking the rules, and committing crimes.

I think that was part of the point of the show, though. Trying to show that while Vic was a murderer and worse, he also had some good qualities. Trying to have things be shades of grey, not just black & white.

Also how his fellow cops would also sometimes condone his behavior when it got good results.

 

[Ashok]

I honestly never noticed. The Shield was just perfect on FX imho. It was already gritty enough on basic cable, I don't really know how just adding more swearing would improve anything.

 

[Dabanton]

It's running joke on SOA that they'll only say "Jesus christ" instead of using a fuck.

 

[Hindle]

Swearing would have been too cliche for the characters. No one fucks with the Strike team, they don't need to swear to intimidate.

 

[Gonzalez]

No one fucks with the Strike team, they don't need to swear to intimidate.

Nobody fucked the Strike Team, the Strike Team fucked themselves.

I'm truly surprised there wasn't a situation where they had to take a trip to Sacromento because they accidentally mailed a dead prostitute(who OD'd from the drugs that they stole from the evidence room to sell on the street because they had to pay for Vic's sons autistic classes) to the Governor.

 

[Eiolon]

I'm actually one of the few that didnt like the wire and it was mainly due to every other word being the F bomb. Now I love that word to death but it doesnt mean your script has substance to it when using it. I found the shield to be more intelligent show due to them stucking with what mattered in thendialog department.

 

[Zaph]

I'm actually one of the few that didnt like the wire and it was mainly due to every other word being the F bomb. Now I love that word to death but it doesnt mean your script has substance to it when using it. I found the shield to be more intelligent show due to them stucking with what mattered in thendialog department.

I love both shows, but come on now wtf?

 

[kharma45]

I didn't even notice the lack of swearing and I'm 6 seasons in.

 

[PhoenixDark]

I'm actually one of the few that didnt like the wire and it was mainly due to every other word being the F bomb. Now I love that word to death but it doesnt mean your script has substance to it when using it. I found the shield to be more intelligent show due to them stucking with what mattered in thendialog department.

I love The Shield but this is an utterly ridiculous view. The Wire's dialogue isn't particularly vulgar and more importantly features so much thoughtful dialogue that it's ridiculous to focus on the f bombs. Come on.

 

[andycapps]

Yeah, this is a basic cable show and there are lines that they can't cross in the US. The Shield definitely pushed those lines, IMO.

 

[Gonzalez]

I love both shows, but come on now wtf?

Yeah, did he even realize the zany situations the characters would get themselves in just to not get caught.

 

[White Man]

I love The Shield but this is an utterly ridiculous view. The Wire's dialogue isn't particularly vulgar and more importantly features so much thoughtful dialogue that it's ridiculous to focus on the f bombs. Come on.

Really. If you want to find a reason to hate on the Wire, talk about how unwatchable season 2 is.

 

[The Chef]

Really. If you want to find a reason to hate on the Wire, talk about how unwatchable season 2 is.

Season 2 is unwatchable? Dear god season 1 was a chore for me to get through.
Gaf lied to me.

Also to OP. Does the lack of f-bombs in the show actually effect your enjoyment of it?

 

[Majima Everywhere System]

It is on the UK one.

Thanks!

 

[CD'S BAR]

they use pretty much every vulgarity except fuck, including the n-word.

 

[Mr.Swag]

Just assume they said fuck I'm every third sentence.

 

[A Serious Man]

People think The Shield was Kurt Sutter's show? He was a writer and even acted in it but that's a Shawn Ryan joint. Sutter wasn't even around for the last season or two.

 

[MacH1nation]

It's airing on FX man, if it was on premium then you'd have your swears. Besides cable only loses the F word and more explicit sex, they still had plenty to work with to establish the gritty vibe.

 

[Decado]

Strange. For some reason I thought swearing was allowed on FX.

 

[blame space]

Also may I add that they not only toned down the language, they also toned down Vic's personality. Sure he may be a "bad guy", but he's also not homophobic, racist, or a rapist. He also solves a lot of problems even though he's breaking the rules, and committing crimes.

They were really struggling with advertisers when writing a TV show starring an anti-hero during the early years of this genre.

uhhh, this post is all over the place. i don't think having vic not be a rapist was "toning him down" for advertisers

 

[Officerrob]

People think The Shield was Kurt Sutter's show? He was a writer and even acted in it but that's a Shawn Ryan joint. Sutter wasn't even around for the last season or two.

Similarities and actors crossing over to SoA, it's easy to see how people make that mistake

 

[Mr. Saturn]

Similarities and actors crossing over to SoA, it's easy to see how people make that mistake

To be fair The Shield is a much better show than SoA, in my opinion at least.

 

[A Serious Man]

To be fair The Shield is a much better show than SoA, in my opinion at least.

I don't think anyone will argue with you.

 

[Mr.Swag]

The Shield is the second best show to air on TV, after Breaking Bad.

 

[Cipherr]

I can't wrap my head round this at all. Do the people running these networks think that people watching a show where one man is forced to fellate another with a gun at his head are suddenly going to be offended by a few f bombs?

It really makes no sense as you have clearly demonstrated here lol. Its just one of the weird things that we are assbackwards on here in the US.

 

[Currygan]

People think The Shield was Kurt Sutter's show? He was a writer and even acted in it but that's a Shawn Ryan joint. Sutter wasn't even around for the last season or two.

same style, same plot progression, same camera work, but more importantly, the writing

granted, SOA is a piece of shit show compared to Shield, but similarities are well evident