There's no crying in outlaw biker gangs, right?

As Sons of Anarchy roars back for its third season, the leather-clad, gun-running testosterone that has fueled the series takes a bit of a backseat to resolving last season's cliff-hanger: the abduction of Jax's infant son, Abel.

"I just wanted to begin the season showing the emotional devastation of that," creator and executive producer Kurt Sutter tells TVGuide.com. "Even though these guys navigate in a fairly dangerous world, ultimately what happened to Jax is not in the outlaw handbook."

When the show resumes, Jax Teller (Charlie Hunnam) is so crushed that he can barely lift himself from the floor to bathe. And even though his fellow club members understand his grief, they also grow frustrated at his lack of interest in retaliation. "We're playing with the idea that perhaps Jax is too deep a thinker and perhaps too sensitive for this lifestyle," Sutter says.

And the club isn't the only support system Jax turns his back on. Rather than accept any comfort from girlfriend Tara (Maggie Siff), Jax insists that she leave Charming, so as to remove herself from any further danger.

"I know it's really difficult for couples who go through a tragedy like this. Whether it's losing a child or whatever it may be, the majority of couples don't make it, and I think I just needed to acknowledge that with the two of them," Sutter says.

"I think they're both struggling with their level of guilt for what happened," Sutter continues. "Ultimately Jax can barely wrap his brain around what's happened to his kid, and the idea that he suddenly is responsible for other lives, including Tara, is just something he can't deal with. It's really a selfish act — although he feels he's doing it to for her own good, he's really just doing it to protect himself."