Mayans MC on FX – Tuesdays at 10 PM
Relatability will get me to tune into a TV show anytime. I guess that is why I never watched Sons of Anarchy. An aversion to gangs and motorcycles curbed my curiosity of ever wanting to watch a single episode.
Mayans MC created by Kurt Sutter and Elgin James
So why then did I tune in to Mayans MC, the spin-off of Sons of Anarchy which is about motorcycles and gangs? For one, it is a spinoff of FX’s most-watched series in its 20-year history and it has an all Latino cast. Second, I know the work of most of the lead actors and have had the pleasure of following the career trajectory of Mayan MC executive producer Norberto Barba, now considered one of Hollywood’s top TV directors and producers. But, as a woman of Mexican heritage, I was most intrigued by the character of Adelita. Now if you know anything about Mexican history — you know the significance of that name. I can relate. I’m in.
Creators/Exec Prod. Kurt Sutter & James Elgin and Lead actor JD Pardo
Mayans MC is the next chapter in the Sons of Anarchy saga. Set in a post Jax Teller (the lead in Sons of Anarchy) world, Ezekiel “EZ” Reyes (JD Pardo) is fresh out of prison and a prospect in the Mayans MC charter on the California/Mexico border. EZ, the gifted son of a proud Latino family and former golden boy, sees his quest for the American dream snuffed out by border violence. Faced with carving out a new identity for himself in his small town, EZ’s need for vengeance drives him toward a life he never intended and can never escape.
Show creators Kurt Sutter (Sons of Anarchy) and Elgin James (Little Birds) worked hard not to make a Latino version of Sons of Anarchy when creating Mayans MC. “It was important to Kurt to create an authentic world,” explained Norberto Barba, who was brought on board to executive produce and direct shows once the pilot was shot. “From the inclusion of women, Latinos, people of color in the writing room, to the research they did. They did a lot of research…they went to Mexico before I came on board.”
Clayton Cardenas
Emilio Rivera
The series also stars Clayton Cardenas as Ez’s brother Angel, Edward James Olmos as Angel and EZ’s dad, Sarah Bolger as EZ’s old flame, Michael Irby as the Mayan leader Obispo Losa, Carla Baratta as Adelita, Raoul Max Trujillo as Che Romero, Richard Cabral as Johnny “El Coco” Cruz, and Danny Pino as Galindo the ruthless cartel leader.
Emilio Rivera who played Marcus Alvarez in Sons of Anarchy not only reprises his role in Mayans MC, he is also credited with being the catalyst for the spin-off to the new series. He is the bond that links the two shows together. At least for now until other rumored SOA cast members make their appearances. Two of those characters had a brief and fleeting moment in the pilot episode of Mayans MC. Will those be more than fleeting? We are told to stay tuned.
Norberto Barba Directing
But after directing the pilot, Sutter decided it needed a re-tooling. The script was reworked and there were cast changes. Sutter asked Barba to direct and re-shoot the pilot, which he did with a few requests. Barba wanted a specific look and called for the pilot to shoot in the border town of Mexicali and in Mexico City. He also brought on board some of his own crew. One of those key creatives, who ultimately gave the show its “look”, was Mexican born Marco Niro (Miss Bala, The 33). “I brought in Marco as production designer because I really wanted the feel of what it is to live on the border. We wanted to make it as real as possible…the dust, the sweat”
Edward James Olmos as Felipe & JD Pardo
The result was most definitely a very different feel from Sons of Anarchy. Olmos who plays Felipe, EZ and Angel’s father put it best when he told Entertainment Weekly in a video interview recently, “People who have seen Sons of Anarchy understand that world, but this is different. The whole complexity of culture changes the dynamic immensely. Yeah, There are similarities…they both ride motorcycles — that’s about it.”
And the specificity of the show seems to have struck a cord, whether it’s with carry-over SOA fans or new viewers tuning in for whatever reasons, they made the show’s premiere on Sept. 4th, the highest-rated drama among adults 18-49 since January of 2016 on FX.
Yes, there are still the motorcycles, the killings, the betrayals, and rivalries, but there is also the family, the brotherhood, much like in SOA (which now I must see for myself). But what I am sure you did not see in SOA are the multitude of Latino faces in multidimensional roles; the neighborhoods, the pre-Colombian cultural iconography and references, the strong women who fought alongside Villa and Zapata in the Mexican revolution — the Adelitas — as represented in one of the characters.
Carla Baratta stars as “Adelita” who as a child, watched her family die at the hands of the Galindo cartel. Now, streetwise, driven, and seeking an eye for an eye, she mentors a ragtag group of Mexican orphans. She represents the idea of a woman who will fight for what she believes is right. Adelita is just her nom de guerre if you will. In future episodes, we will learn her true identity.
There is much to like and much to jeer and cheer in Mayans MC. If you saw the pilot episode I am sure you have already conjured up your own “what is going to happen next?” questions, some of which will be answered in this Tuesday’s episode.
For a newbie like me, I asked Barba how he would describe Mayans MC to someone, who like me, never got the SOA bug. He described it as, “A contemporary outlaw biker saga that revolves around life on the border and around universal themes that have to do with family, trust, and betrayal.”
I can relate to that. I’m in.
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