Beyond the Books ~ Sons of Anarchy

Welcome to Beyond the Books. This post was inspired by Lexxie @Unconventional Bookviews' Up Close and (Un)conventional, who was inspired by Cuddlebuggery. It's meant to be a way for y'all to get to know me better on a personal level ~ Beyond the Books. ;)

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If y'all have followed me for awhile, you already know this. If not, here's a little tidbit about me. I don't watch t.v. Nope. Unless you count my sitting next to Hubs, reading, while he watches football and occasionally has me look up by saying "Hey honey, you have to see this." I used to watch t.v. A lot. But I didn't even finish Lost. I don't know what happened. (don't judge) I just decided one day that, as a wife and mom to 3, I had very limited free time and that I'd prefer using that time by putting my nose in a book (and my head in the clouds.) :D This was a purely personal decision - I have nothing against those of you who love your t.v.

Which brings me to Sons of Anarchy. Now, I knew about SoA because I work at Barnes & Noble and I saw the DVDs there. I'd always been intrigued with this sort of story line because I'd read and enjoyed a few MC books. Plus, Charlie Hunnam. (need I say more?) I admit to being shocked to realize this series began in 2008. Talk about being behind the times, but anyway... I decided at the beginning of January (2016) that I was going to watch SoA - one episode a day while I was on the elliptical. Two birds, one stone. At this point, I've watched 6 episodes. I'm not sure I'll continue past season 1 but here are my thoughts so far:

• I found myself critiquing the show with a reader's eye. Gemma or Jax would do something and I'd think "that's not consistent with your character up to this point."
• This is one dark/crude show. There have been several scenes I wish I could un-see or that I averted my eyes from because it was too graphic. (the sounds were bad enough) And this is where I believe reading beats watching - because no matter how well an author draws a scene, my brain will only conjure an image that I can handle. T.V. is in your face.
• The story is compelling enough that I am curious to see where it goes - to know everyone's story, why Gemma is so evil?!? I probably won't get all my answers by the end of season 1 and it remains to be seen if I'll continue. I'm thinking not at this point since my current read typically appeals to me more and I've found myself reading rather than watching while exercising lately.

Have y'all seen SoA? What are your thoughts on it? Are there shows you watch that make you cringe but you can't stop watching??