Jenn and I caught a Labor Day marathon of TLC’s Miami Ink and ended up staying awake until almost 1AM this morning.

We hadn’t seen any previous episodes, but several of our co-workers highly reccommended the series. Getting to watch 3 episodes in succession was the way to do it. There are only 5 main characters (six if you count the tattoos) and the style is very documentary, and not filled with the normal reality TV bullshit.

The best part of the show was definitely the art. And make no mistake, the tattoos produced by these guys is definitely art. The intricate lines, the shading, the color: I’d be more than happy to get tattooed there.

Maybe the only thing better than the tattoos are the people coming to get them. Real people with interesting and personal stories surrounding the imagery they want to have indelibly etched into their skin.

The stories range from sorrowful, to spiritual; from somber to uplifting and all areas in between. But they’re told succinctly and straight, without frills or confessionals or all the mumbo-jumbo that are now the hallmarks of reality tv drama.

I would highly reccommend this show. We’ll be watching the new episode tonight at 10.