Sopranos

When I saw James Gandolfini had died my heart sank. The days following his death I read post after post, article after article about how upset people/critics/actors were about his passing. It was really interesting to me because when he was alive he didn't seem to be one of the most well-known or often talked about actors around. Essentially he had one role which everyone remembered so fondly that in his death people felt they'd lost a friend.


So, my way of paying tribute was to watch his one great role again. The first time I saw The Sopranos was four years ago. I had left my job at a high school and was waiting to start my next at a new school. My boyfriend (now my husband) was working long hours at a catering company. Being alone in a foreign country where I didn't speak the language meant I had a lot of time on my hands. I had never really watched a long running hour-long TV drama before and thought I'd give this one, which I'd heard so much about, a try.


At first, I attempted to watch the series with Tomas but finally couldn't wait for him to come home on the weekend or one night a week to get to the next episode. Pretty soon I was doing what so many others have done with these types of shows, living it. When I reached the last episode I felt even more alone than when I started it. I lived, breathed and solely thought about The Sopranos.


This time things are much different. I have time but not so much. My husband and I are watching it together so I have someone to share it with. But I quickly realized that one thing is the same, as with all these types of shows I watch; if you watch them fast, you forget. It's one of the real downsides of watching a couple episodes a night. A week in and it all starts to blend together. So my solution was to try to keep an ongoing commentary about each episode. I figure I don't have to say much, just whatever is on my mind when we finish each.


I didn't start with the first two episodes because I didn't get the idea until the third. (I'll go back and do those two in the future). Sometimes I write a lot and sometimes I write a little. I write them fast and then add things if I think of them later.


So here's to Tony....