Nip/Tuck: Deeply Superficial.

The darling of the Parent's Television Council is back. Nip/Tuck is back for it's fourth season, and despite the warnings all throughout the show that this is only for mature audiences, the PTC must be gnashing their teeth right about now.

The truth is, last year, I objected to it too. And I hate Nip/Tuck writers for making me agree with the PTC, and I hate Ryan Murphy (the creator and head writer) for leaving the show on autopilot to direct his movie that is getting Oscar buzz, and I hate myself for watching that drivel. The show that likes to bill itself as "deeply superficial" was exactly the opposite. It was "superficially deep." They thought they were making a lot of important points, but there was nothing substantial last year. They even managed to sever one of the plastic surgeon's fingers, which is being treated as if it never happened this season.

This season must be what Ryan Murphy was dreaming of when he finished shooting on his movie for the day. This season is back to the original first season greatness. This year, it truly is "deeply superficial." In last night's episode, we saw Sean cheat. AGAIN. Just when he thought everything was going so well. Sean likes to be the "family man" but that is the thing he is the worst at being. And Christian has built his entire life around being sexy and attractive. It would keep him from having to feel anything real, because reality hurts. Especially if you have his background. But now his looks are slipping, and he is finding that there isn't much to replace them. He craves Sean's life, but also loathes the idea of it.

So Sean is cheating again, Christian misses Connor's birth to get lipo, and Matt is still searching for somebody to lead him. With these characters, it's like they exist on several planes of existence. They are EXACTLY the same people we left at the end of season one, and they are all more bitter and cynical than their season one selves could ever hope to be.

And that's what the PTC doesn't seem to get. This show does not glorify plastic surgery in any way. If anything, it makes it more disgusting. Nothing about any of these characters is sympathetic. I once heard an argument that Trainspotting would drive kids to heroin use. I asked whether they actually watched the movie. Because there was nothing that looked attractive about "the worst toilet in Scotland." There was nothing attractive about their lives. Their answer was, of course, that they had not seen the movie. The PTC is so busy yelling about how much sex Christian has that they can't see from the context that he is completely empty inside. They are too busy condemning the show for its gory scenes on television to figure out that the show's creator is saying that plastic surgery is a gory, bloody mess, and should not be ventured into lightly. They are so upset that Sean is cheating on his pregnant wife, that they don't realize that they are SUPPOSED to be upset by it. There are no heros on this show. I think that's why I like it.

So PTC- recognize from the tagline "Deeply Superficial" that they are making a comment on the society you want to uphold so much. It is the modern version of The Picture of Dorian Grey. In that book, Oscar Wilde wrote, "There is no such thing as a moral or immoral book. Books are well written or badly written. That is all." The story is about a man whose painting grows ugly with each bad thing he does, while he stays young and beautiful. If you cannot draw the parallel, then I weep for you.