text: Oz is the TV show which is intensive non-stop adrenaline. Its a show which is not aimed at a large audience but a specific one as its themes are very adult orientated. It obviously did not achieve mainstream success as this was an impossibility but had much fame with its audience and many famous actors either guest starred or became part of the show.<br /><br />Oz is a series of fictional stories based on a prison located somewhere in the New York state. There are many different ethnic groups which play a somewhat equal role in being represented. These groups are the Muslims, Homeboys, Aryans, Bikers, Italians, Latinos, Irish, Christians, Gays and Others. Some have some form of affiliation with each other such as the Bikers and Aryans whilst the Aryans are the enemy's of numerous groups such as the Muslims and the Homeboys. <br /><br />In Oswald Penitentary (Its official name) there is a policy that not too many members from any one ethnic group may be allowed. It is the maximum security prison and the regular prison where sometimes prisoners are sent to or from in the show is called "general population" or "gen pop". The main character of the show is Augustus Hill who also narrates the story before and after the main segments, crossed between a documentary type and a biographical one. Hill is bound to wheelchair usage as a consequence of his unknown past. He is part of the "others" group which features individuals which don't fit into the other prison gangs.<br /><br />Of the many groups it is the smaller ones which are able to keep themselves avoided by trouble most of the times as the larger ones are busy in conflict with one another. Are few of the most noteworthy characters are as follows: 1)Ryan O'Reilly is in charge of his fellow Irishmen and somehow always voluntarily gets himself involved in lethal activity for the weakest link. 2)Miguel Alvarez is the watched Latino who has constant struggles with coping with his popularity within his own gang and with others. 3)Simon Adebesi is the Nigerian who was the former leader of the Homeboys gang. Hes also very physically quite large and solid. These two reasons are why he is one of the most powerful inmates inside of Oz. 4)Karim Said is the Muslim and Black nationalist who is a very defined in his opinions and desires. He fights for the rights of his people on many levels through the show, from his own Muslim group, to his wider Black group and even fighting for all the groups against the unjust rules of authority. He character seems in some ways identical to Malcom X, the famous Black rights fighter who was also Muslim.<br /><br />All in all, for its genre Oz is possibly the greatest (fictional prison show or show based on ethnic relations). If it doesn't sound as if your own type of series it probably shouldn't be tried out, but if it does interest, then it is definitely worth viewing. The biggest problem with the show is how it is addictive, some may feel wrong viewing a lot of this kind of material. Researchers argue on whether it is harmful or not but in the end it is just a reflection of the society of the world we live in today. This means that it is as an informant and an indicator of the world than an aggressor.