Nerve Endings Firing Away

Continuing on with my TV on DVD series (Part I), I get into the shows that I really loved; most of which were on premier cable channels like HBO and Showtime. Premier cable channels neither have to bow to the whims and fancies of censorship (Carlin’s seven words you can’t say on TV) nor have to worry about satisfying advertisers who prefer clean wholesome family fun. This excludes a lot of intense and raw dramas that need profanity to make it life-like given the subject matter (people cuss in real life a lot more than they do on TV).

The Sopranos

HBO (1999-2007)

The granddaddy of all drama shows, this series was a mega hit when it aired and its series finale was one of the most talked about finales in television history. Focused on the mob family of Tony Soprano and his band of knuckle-crushers, this show takes you into the gritty suburbia of New Jersey where under the guise of familial life, the mob runs its business. Unlike other mob movies, this series focuses a lot on the protagonist’s family and his acquaintances, his emotionally-conflicted wife who can tolerate his infidelities only so much, and two smart yet confused children who wrestle with the reality of their father’s business. They enjoy the luxuries and perks that come with being in a mob family and cannot escape it as they grow older and venture out. Tony Soprano, one of television’s brilliant characters played perfectly by James Gandolfini, is a mesh of personalities affected not only by his chauvinistic Italian upbringing but also at time deeply intellectual and shrewd in running his business and worldly affairs compared to his peers. His interactions with his psychiatrist, Dr. Melfi delve deep into the evolution of his character and exposes the effect of people in his life especially his dominant and scheming mother (also brilliantly played by Nancy Marchand) who at one point plots his murder. Tony’s Sopranos’ dream sequences are also a treat to watch.

It is hard to describe the plot line as it gradually evolves from discovering mundane details of the mob life to the interactions of large Italian families who like to keep their business separate from pleasure and family but often fail abjectly. Under the guise of mob business, The Sopranos is really about complex relationships that many of us experience except in this family, if you make a mistake you get shot and swim with the fishes. Over the course of the series, characters enter and exit mostly to death and often you find yourselves sympathizing and rooting for Tony Soprano until he says or does something so horrific that you ask yourself how in the hell could you root for this monster. Manipulation is the key weapon used by all characters to achieve their ends and at the end of the day, no one trusts anyone. The complex array of characters that fill this series right from Tony’s wife, Carmela and children, Meadow and Anthony Jr. to his henchmen, Christopher Moltisanti, Paulie Gualtieri, Salvotore “Big Pussy” Bonpensiero, and Silvio Dante (aren’t the names wonderful sounding?) deserve a post each and have been dissected ad nauseam on the Internets.

Even amidst the violence and drama, comedy is often injected through the ineptitude of mobsters depicted through misunderstanding of historical facts (in reference to the Cuban Missle Crisis, Paulie says, “That was real? I saw that movie. I thought it was bullshit.”) and lack of English language skills (malapropisms e.g. revenge is like serving cold cuts) [memory refresher thanks to Wikipedia]. The comparison of highly intelligent mobsters with their bumbling peers also makes for some great conversational scenes.

Many of the characters are played by real Italian-American actors and have played roles in other mob movies like Goodfellas (27 common actors) and Mickey Blue Eyes (8 common actors) and hence the accents sound more real. The real beauty of this show is in the gradual evolution of all primary characters; their maturation yet tendency to retain the same raw core of their personality. The story arc depicts not only the inter-mob-family fights but also the relentless surveillance of the feds who not surprisingly also sympathize with the characters they keep a close watch on. Overall, a must-watch for anyone who enjoys television drama at its finest; it may well be impossible to top The Sopranos.

The Wire

HBO (2002-2008)

This urban crime-focused series might be one of the most gritty, raw, and intense shows on television and hence not everyone’s cup of tea. Based on different facets in each season on the city of Baltimore, the show highlights urban problems and the interplay of drugs, police, politics, school, and the media. The name of the series is based on the frequent attempt of a police squad to trace drug dealers using a wiretap. Intensely depressing at times, this show lays bare the realities of urban America and sheds the holier-than-thou image of law and order cultivated by other popular crime shows like Law & Order. The mesh of sociopolitical themes influenced by drugs and politics is unescapable and often makes for an interesting social science study.

Since this show touches up many of my professional and personal interests in urban, education, and political reform, it provides an immensely educational experience and catapults it right at the top of America’s greatest television dramas. Like Sopranos, several characters occur in various roles across the five seasons and it is especially troubling to see their slow decline into hopelessness and despair at their inability to make a difference in trying circumstances beyond their control. The goodness in each character is severely tested as they not only struggle with legalities of the system but moral dilemmas of their souls. The show cannot help but underline the brutal fact of life that like it or not, is that it isn’t fair.

The Wire is timely in the sense that it shows the impact of harsh economic climate on the real common man who simply cannot get a break or the devious journalist who ‘manipulates’ the stories to get a scoop. The circumstances of your birth are one of the unmentioned truths of life that not everyone can overcome. Before watching this show, I was involved in an academic research project that examined the opportunities and access indicators for people living in low-income neighborhoods and how the geography of their location is the pivotal factor that prevents them from succeeding in life. The Wire was like a television series based on that simple yet elusive concept. I had linked to The Wire‘s greatest 100 (and 100 more) quotes but it may not make much sense without the context.

I would not recommend this show for everyone but if you want to get a deep understanding of the grim realities of urban America and its sociopolitical themes that are often ignored by the mainstream media, then this show is a perfect study in gaining those insights. If you are one of those people who believe that black people are lazy and are naturally attracted to crime, this show will lift those curtains and reveal how personal circumstance and the neighborhood you grow up in are central to your life’s outcomes. It leaves you with a profound sense of gratitude for the way your life has shaped up, no matter how fucked up you might think it is right now.

More to Follow

Coming up next – Six Feet Under, Dexter, Battlestar Galactica, Freaks and Geeks, Firefly, Arrested Development, Lost, and Mad Men.