Re: Analyzing the Coma "Dream"

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Hi wiggitywombat. (From Australia perhaps?)

I generally agree with your hypothesis that Tony's coma dream was his brush with death. But it was ambiguous enough to allow the viewer to think it might have been a vivid coma dream. (Interestingly the English cop shows "Life On Mars" and "Ashes to Ashes" used this very resolution when 21st century police detectives were experiencing 1970s and 1980s limbo before they "moved on").

Tony of course was still alive while he was experiencing his "Kevin Finnerty" mix-up. Kev Infinity also suggests what Tony really is (a kev means hoodlum or gangster in English slang). Had he taken a different route in life and not followed his father's steps he might have married Charmaine instead and become a successful optic lenses salesmen.

The dream was also a warning to Tony (from Chase, the real God of the Sopranos universe - see Test Dream) that if he doesn't change his ways the next time he will not be so lucky.

Re: Analyzing the Coma "Dream"

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I don't know if anybody has brought this up before, but there are a few similarities between the house in Tony's Coma Dream and an episode of the Twilight Zone A Stop at Willoughby. In the Twilight Zone episode Gart Williams, a New York ad executive is unhappy with both his job and his marriage to his wife Jane. Jane sees him as a money machine and ticket to the country club. During his train commute home he has a dream that the train stops at a town Willoughby during 1888. Gart asks the conducter where he is and is told Willoughby and that it is July 1888 and its a place "where a man can stop, slowdown and live life to full measure". When he goes to get off the train at Willoughby the train whistle sounds and he wakes up back in his seat during present day. He asks the present day conducter about Willoughby and the conducter explains that there is no stop with that name on this line. When Gart confronts Jane with his unhappiness and tells her about the dream and the town of Willoughby. She exclaims that it was a miserable tragic error for her to marry him and she didn't know that she married a man who wants to be Huckleberry Finn. He tells himself that next time he will get off the train at Willoughby, and precisely does just that during his next dream on the train. He stands up, leaves his briefcase on the seat, there is a close-up of the briefcase on the seat and gets off the train. All the towns people greet him already somehow knowing his name. The camera then does a close-up on the swinging pendelum of the station clock which fades into the swinging lantern of the train engineer standing over Gart's body. The conducter explains that "he shouted something about Willoughby right before he jumped". You then see the back of the hearse picking up Gart says "Willoughby & Sons Funeral Home".
The fact that Gart leaves his briefcase on the seat in the train is him leaving his business behind before he gets off the train. The same as Tony B. telling Tony that briefcase isn't allowed inside, "you can't bring business in". Both going into the house in The Sopranos and getting off the train in The Twilight Zone symbolized dying. In both cases the briefcases had to be left. Also similar was the fact that Tony was supposed to know everyone inside, when Gart enters Willoughby everyone knows him. The fact that Tony exclaims during the coma "Who am I? Where am I going?" is the same question Gart is facing throughout the Twilight Zone episode.

Re: Analyzing the Coma "Dream"

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A's no. , you have made some interesting connections here and in another post re. BE.

Yes I don't think any Twlight Zone reference is incidental nor coincidental. There have been a (very) few discussions about the TZ connection to the Sopranos.

I would argue that the entire series was one extended TZ story with the ultimate twist in the ultimate scene.

But your avatar name alone is worth a thread on its own.

Re: Analyzing the Coma "Dream"

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Avogadro's number, thanks so much for that very interesting Twilight Zone parallel. Chase is an avowed Twilight Zone fanatic, so it's fair to say any coincidences with symbolism from that show -- like the briefcase -- are likely not accidental.
Tony, his spirits crushed after b-lining to the fridge first thing in the morning: "Who ate the last piece of cake?"

Re: Analyzing the Coma "Dream"

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FlyOnMelfisWall wrote:Chase is an avowed Twilight Zone fanatic, so it's fair to say any coincidences with symbolism from that show -- like the briefcase -- are likely not accidental.
Nor is it a coincidence that Chase's first feature film is called "The Twylight Zones" set in the 60s about a young drummer. James Gandolfini will play the father.

What goes round...

Re: Dream Squence Thread

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chrisishot1 wrote:I'm not sure if he is in limbo, but that's a good argument, although he would actually have to be in purgatory. Limbo is (was) for unbaptized babies. Purgatory would tie into the name of his alternate identity KevIN FINNITY. They even made a poor joke about the name of the car. If he is in purgatory, is he here forever because he lost his identity? Carm says he's not going to hell, but he certainly wouldn't go to heaven.

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Whatever it is, what he would have been if not in the mob, purgatory, whatever, I find it interesting that he is still a womanizer.....I guess that didnt change in the afterlife..

Re: Dream Squence Thread

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Barryrock2 wrote:Whatever it is, what he would have been if not in the mob, purgatory, whatever, I find it interesting that he is still a womanizer.....I guess that didnt change in the afterlife..
Actually he wasn't. The girl stops him from kissing her, and remarks that she heard him talking to his wife and saw his face. (and how much he loves his family)

Tony says something like "I can be some other guy tonight... get away with the hole shabang! But no... I'd blow it."

Then the "helicopter" comes and he awakes from his coma for a minute or so.



Question: His "wife" in the dream who he talked to on the phone, who's voice was that?

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