Ami James in "NY Ink"

New York, New York. If you can make it there, you can make it anywhere. At least, that's what Frank Sinatra believes, and Ami James seems to agree. James is taking the city's tattoo scene by storm with his new studio, Wooster St. Social Club, in the city's perpetually trendy SoHo neighborhood.

Get another glimpse into the tumultuous lives of James and his crew when "NY Ink" returns for another season Thursday, Dec. 29, on TLC. Cameras once again capture the drama, as James strives to establish himself as the tattoo king of New York.

Back in the summer, the show's debut season averaged more than a million viewers as James struggled to set up shop after finding a space and hiring tattoo artists and other vital crew members.

Although some might describe the celebrity tattoo artist as brash and aggressive, he has nonetheless endeared himself to fans the world over. He first rose to fame on the TLC series "Miami Ink," which similarly followed the antics at a tattoo studio. The show ran from 2005-08 and broke new ground by introducing viewers to tattoo culture in a way no one had done before.

In "Miami Ink," which was set at the Love Hate Tattoo shop in Miami Beach, co-owned by James and Chris Nunez, filmmakers profiled not only the artists but some of their clients. It was a revealing look at the process of choosing and/or designing a tattoo as customers came in to immortalize important people or moments in their lives with ink.

"NY Ink" isn't the first spinoff of "Miami Ink." Famed artist Kat von D gained mainstream exposure on "Miami Ink," so when she headed back to L.A., she became the star of her own show, "L.A. Ink," which has also done very well on the network. Known for her trademark pin up-style tattoos, von D has become the subject of the tabloids thanks to her on again-off again relationship with bad-boy television personality Jesse James.

"London Ink," another spinoff, follows Louis Molloy, Dan Gold, Nikole Lowe and Phil Kyle at London Tattoo in Islington, England. While Molloy is a tattoo artist to stars such as David Beckham, Gold focuses in graffiti style. New Zealander Lowe specializes in Japanese, Tibetan and Indian-themed art and American Kyle offers clients new wave old school style.

With the three tattoo shows under its belt, TLC is dominating the genre, but the network isn't the only to boast such a series on its schedule. Notably, A&E premiered "Inked," about a Las Vegas tattoo parlor, in 2005, but the series has since gone belly up.

In contrast, James shows no sign of going belly up in "NY Ink." Business is booming at Wooster St. Social Club, and that only adds to the drama in this season. The last installment of the show served as an introduction to the cast of zany characters who populate his shop, and the sophomore season delves even further into their personal lives.

Cameras capture touching moments between James and his young daughter, but the show also reveals how success is forcing the tattooist to spend more time away from his family as he tries to juggle the demands of the shop. Chris Torres, who was fired at the end of last season, stirs up trouble when his rivalry with James once again rears its ugly head. As more and more people come in hoping to get tattoos from the controversial artist, James begins to wonder if he should just bury the hatchet.

Also this season, apprentice Billy becomes frustrated when he sees newer artists getting more opportunities, which causes a rift between him and James. Single mom and shop manager Jessica decides to study to be a tattoo artist instead of waiting for someone to invite her to be an apprentice. Megan spices up the season with her nightlife, and Robear decides to get serious about his love life. Meanwhile, Tommy misses his family in L.A.

While the shop drama and pranks are entertaining, the focus of "NY Ink" is still on the amazing artwork that gets inked onto eager clientele's skin. The clientele itself may be enough to keep viewers tuning in. The show has attracted celebrities from television, fashion, music and sports, including "Survivor's" Jenna Morasca and Ethan Zohn, Pittsburgh Steelers linebacker LaMarr Woodley and musicians Method Man and Corey Taylor.

The true stars, however, are the Wooster St. Social Club's staff members. The recent fascination with the world of tattoos has made the once counterculture figures bona fide celebrities, and James is one of the top names in the business. Tune in after Christmas for an inside look at his quest to conquer the Big Apple in "NY Ink."