Sopranos
I told you in a previous post how I have seen all six episodes of Sopranos Season Six. Some people have claimed that they don’t like it. It has yet another dream sequence, which seems to be the way David Chase and Crew take a break a la sitcom retrospectives with flashbacks and scenes from past episodes.
I am not a big fan of The Sopranos Dream Sequence for the most part. They might be chock full of symbolism, but mostly I think it is just potato loaf. Annette Bening as an imaginary in-law and strange car rides with dead folks.
But I thought that this seasons dream sequence was interesting. It had Tony Soprano dreaming that he was a salesman out in California, all the while he lay in a coma in Jersey. It was cool hearing Gandolfini’s real voice without an accent, and the symbolism was more distinct. I think it might be my favorite part of the season so far. Call me crazy.
April 22nd, 2006 at 16:14
You’re not crazy because that is the whole point of this show. It’s about Tony and the thoughts inside that man’s skull. The dream sequences are an attempt to give you a bird’s eye view of his subconscious. I know it’s all abstract and some of it seems to be an homage to past characters, but it really does have a point. There are clues there. Last year in “test dream” we learned of Tony’s inability to take charge of a situation, all the way back to his high school footbal days, in one of his “coach molinaro dreams.”
Later in the dream, he realizes that Tony B will eventually go off the reservation and try to kill Phil Leotardo.
Maybe it’s not so violent, but it is another angle, or another dimension to think about.
April 22nd, 2006 at 16:30
Don’t get me wrong Adam. I really liked the latest dream sequence, and I can see some symbolism in the writing. For example, the gift of the dinosaur book when Tony feels mortal and outdated in the hospital.
April 23rd, 2006 at 3:33
I wonder how that interplay with brother donnie (the preacher who showed up with Janices’s former lover/partner– ‘have you heard the news?…he has risen!’), in episode ‘fleshy part of the thigh’ will play out. ONWARD CHRISTIAN SOLDIERS!? who knows. Tony was actually soft, but rational after the coma. (don’t whack this guy, don’t rush to judgement…then he pulls the stunt with muscles marinara) but as he said in therapy…it’s all about the material posessions and the aspirations of our children/spouses that bring us down…it comes back to the “Sometimes I go about in pity for myself, and all the while, a great wind carries me across the sky.” ojibwa quote…Live Free or Die…”just when i thought I was out (Tony’s coma)…they pull me back in (death-reality is the ultimate mind fuck: is death really the great liberator OR is it the other way around? Or is Sarah Jessica Parker destined to weigh in on this subject?[ Later that night, I got to thinking about the x-factor. In mathmatics, we learn that x stands for the unknown, a+b=x, but what’s really unknown is what plus what equals friendship with an x. Is this an unsolvable equation? Or is it possible to transform a once passionate love into something that fits nice and easily onto the friendship shelf? I couldnt help but wonder… can you be friends with an x? ] (Since I’m typing this on an apple cpu, I can’t help to indulge. I’ve recently watched too many ‘Sex and the City’ episodes, sorry.)
Bottom line, jesus, yeah that too: Tony is soft and doesn’t give a shit, but he is reverting back to the old Tony. Everyday is a gift, but with each passing day that kind of harmony fades away.
just my two cents …
April 23rd, 2006 at 8:55
X marks the spot. This cup of coffee that I am drinking hits the spot. See Spot run.
April 25th, 2006 at 17:55
I agree with you that about the dream piece. At least it wasn’t like Dallas all those years ago, when Bobby dreamed the entire previous season.
April 25th, 2006 at 18:08
Oh yeah, I remember that stunt. Thought it was stupid even as a 10-12 year old. If I remember correctly, the show went dramatically downhill after that.