KASEY BURST What is the greatest TV show ever created? Is it ‘Breaking Bad? ‘The Wire?’ Game of Thrones?’ No. There is only one correct answer to the question, and that answer is ’The Sopranos.’ I love the Sopranos. Growing up in the early 2000’s, it was a Sunday night ritual; turning off Sunday night football, and turning on HBO to watch the critically acclaimed crime drama with my dad. We watched it upstairs because my mom didn’t quite have the same affinity for the show as we did. When I watched it for the first time, I was more drawn to the vicariousness of it all; the violence, the shock value, and the explicit material. It felt like I was watching something I wasn’t supposed to be watching. With my dad’s permission, and with the understanding that it was just a show and though in some ways imitated real life, wasn’t to be taken literally or modeled after, we would break down every episode. We would groan when we heard the music play, which signified that the credits were about to role, and we’d have to wait another week for a new episode (back when you couldn’t binge watch programs). It was easily the fastest hour of the week, as I was on the edge of my seat the entire episode. As I got older (and could binge watch shows) I loved it for the quality and complexity of the plot. On the surface, it’s a story of a New Jersey Mob boss and the struggles he faces as the leader of his ‘family.’ But underneath, there are many subplots that make the show what it is. Like the fact that the main character, Tony Soprano, goes to therapy for panic attacks. The fact that many argue that he is a borderline personality, teetering on the edge of psychopathy and sociopathy, but has anxiety induced panic attacks makes his plight that much more interesting. You begin to see him show emotion only in regards to birds, and horses, but is indifferent towards other people. He continues to apply some of the coping strategies in therapy to help him in his role as a mob leader, but in other ways regresses in his personal life. He is highly intelligent and has almost premonition-like dreams that he is intuitive of. Where other past mob movies mainly showcase murders, and shock kills, this show deep dives into other areas of the human psyche, where violence is present, but not really all that important to the overall themes of the show. Not to go off the deep end, but I bet if any college level philosophy courses examined ‘
More Mob Mentality
More Mob Mentality
More Mob Mentality
KASEY BURST What is the greatest TV show ever created? Is it ‘Breaking Bad? ‘The Wire?’ Game of Thrones?’ No. There is only one correct answer to the question, and that answer is ’The Sopranos.’ I love the Sopranos. Growing up in the early 2000’s, it was a Sunday night ritual; turning off Sunday night football, and turning on HBO to watch the critically acclaimed crime drama with my dad. We watched it upstairs because my mom didn’t quite have the same affinity for the show as we did. When I watched it for the first time, I was more drawn to the vicariousness of it all; the violence, the shock value, and the explicit material. It felt like I was watching something I wasn’t supposed to be watching. With my dad’s permission, and with the understanding that it was just a show and though in some ways imitated real life, wasn’t to be taken literally or modeled after, we would break down every episode. We would groan when we heard the music play, which signified that the credits were about to role, and we’d have to wait another week for a new episode (back when you couldn’t binge watch programs). It was easily the fastest hour of the week, as I was on the edge of my seat the entire episode. As I got older (and could binge watch shows) I loved it for the quality and complexity of the plot. On the surface, it’s a story of a New Jersey Mob boss and the struggles he faces as the leader of his ‘family.’ But underneath, there are many subplots that make the show what it is. Like the fact that the main character, Tony Soprano, goes to therapy for panic attacks. The fact that many argue that he is a borderline personality, teetering on the edge of psychopathy and sociopathy, but has anxiety induced panic attacks makes his plight that much more interesting. You begin to see him show emotion only in regards to birds, and horses, but is indifferent towards other people. He continues to apply some of the coping strategies in therapy to help him in his role as a mob leader, but in other ways regresses in his personal life. He is highly intelligent and has almost premonition-like dreams that he is intuitive of. Where other past mob movies mainly showcase murders, and shock kills, this show deep dives into other areas of the human psyche, where violence is present, but not really all that important to the overall themes of the show. Not to go off the deep end, but I bet if any college level philosophy courses examined ‘