SCALPED to become a TV series?!

DC Vertigo's Scalped Being Developed as a TV show?

The production is prioritized by the newly formed DC EntertainmentJason Aaron's Scalped, a series from DC Vertigo, is gritty mix of crime fiction that is set in the world of present day Native Americans. The story revolves around Dashiell Bad Horse, a boozing and bitter young tough guy, who returns to his birth place in Prairie Rose Indian Reservation. He became a muscle for hire, who worked under a corrupt chief of the Oglala Lakota tribe name Lincoln Red Crow. In truth Bad Horse is an FBI agent, working to bring Red Crow down.

It's been reported that DC has planned to set up the project since the series debuted back in 2007. Now it seriously being considered under the newly formed DC Entertainment brand. Many high-profile writers are eager to pitch for the project. DCE is committed to bring this to the Small Screen, rather than make it a feature film, to accommodate the complexity of the story.

This will be great for HBO, give it something like a Soprano spin to it, and this is something really worth watching.Comment:  If you don't know SCALPED, it's basically The Sopranos on the rez. That means a series drenched in murder, crime, corruption, sex, violence, gangs, drinking, and drug abuse. It's as if the GOON squads of the 1970s now ruled a criminal empire based on an influx of casino money. (Never mind that no South Dakota tribe has a major casino.)

To give you an idea, the thuggish tribal chairman kills and scalps someone in the first issue. There's no federal or state presence except a single FBI agent who has to "infiltrate" the tribe. This rez is basically a lawless third-world rogue state--an Iraq or Afghanistan in the middle of the US.

A SCALPED TV series would reinforce almost every negative stereotype: that Indians are savage, uncivilized, warlike, drunk, lazy, shiftless, greedy, corrupt, crime-ridden, incapable of governing themselves, etc. It would be a major setback for accurate, authentic portrayals of Native people and culture. I'd suggest keeping this on your radar screen and preparing to protest it if necessary.

For more on the subject, see TV Shows Featuring Indians.