'Taboo' Has Found The Perfect TV Home On FX

Tom Hardy fans, rejoice! Everyone's favorite leading man (and resident dog lover) has finally come to television. He stars in the new series Taboo, which airs Tuesday nights on FX. Unfortunately, the series won't last forever. Taboo is only eight episodes, each of which will first air on the BBC in the UK, before coming stateside on FX.

Since the show is primarily being marketed as a miniseries, that's actually pretty standard, though it is on the lower end of what most FX miniseries usually entail. For example, American Horror Story routinely has 13-episode seasons, and American Crime Story's first outing had 10. That's OK, though — we can hope that if it has a successful season, the BBC and FX will bring Taboo back for even more episodes next year — just like the way AHS and ACS are "miniseries" with multiple seasons.

Taboo, which is set in the 1800s, tells the story of Hardy's James Delaney, an adventurer assumed to be dead, who returns to his homeland of England intent on inheriting his father's shipping empire. Of course, this isn't your typical "guy returns home and tries to reclaim his life" story. There's a dark undertone to Taboo, and Delaney will have to stay on his toes if he wants to avoid being killed or caught in the crossfires of his father's sordid legacy.

Taboo is also a family affair in real life, as Hardy told Deadline that it's based on an original story he created with his father, Edward Hardy (who is also a consulting producer on the show). The dark and off-kilter style of that story makes it a perfect fit for FX, a network that has made a name for itself by housing programs that are both wholly original and more dark than usual. One of FX's biggest successes is AHS, which regularly outdoes itself in terms of horror and explicit content. Another one of its series, The Strain, is both twisted and graphic in its storytelling, so it's no surprise that Taboo would find its place at this network. Given what we've already seen, it seems that there will be a lot of graphic moments in the future, and FX will allow those moments to happen.

FX also gives us dramas that are thought-provoking, well-written, and supremely acted. Take, for instance, The Americans, which follows two undercover KGB agents in the 1980s. Although the show has some questionable moments, every minute keeps you on the edge of your seat. The same goes for Fargo.

It's clear that Taboo has a lot of potential to be popular hit, and not just because of Hardy. While that's enough to get many fans to watch, let's not forget the incredible supporting cast, which includes Game of Thrones actors Oona Chaplin and Jonathan Pryce, House of Cards' Michael Kelly, and Bourne Identity's Franka Potente. In other words? Bring it, Taboo. Use those eight episodes to boldly go where no show has gone before.