Dear Glen and Joel,
So OK, we all agree that the fainting spells with panic attacks don’t fit with any diagnostic reality. They never have, but hey, they sure are dramatic. Along with the logo “It’s Not TV; It’s HBO,” comes “it’s not real therapy; it’s a dramatization,” so we have to cut the show some slack. It’s still the best theatrical representation going of our work. But what I am stumped about is the massive cultural shift from Season 1 to 3 regarding the code of silence. Remember in Season 1, knowledge of a made-man being in psychotherapy was sure-fire grounds for him getting whacked. Indeed, the entire dramatic arch of the first season began with the dire threat posed by Tony in Episode 1, wherein he repeatedly protested to Melfi that it was impossible for him to discuss his personal life. This terror spanned all the way to Episode 13, the season’s finale, wherein his prophecy came true. Uncle Junior actually based his entitlement to having Tony clipped on Tony “spilling his beans to a shrink.” Notably, Mama Livia gave her tacit support of the hit based on her own narcissistic injury over Tony maligning her to his shrink. So how are we to understand that in this week’s episode, not only is the heat off Tony for seeing a shrink, but a Mafia Don of equal years of maturity as Uncle Junior and Mama Livia openly commends Tony’s involvement in therapy? Sure, the stigma involving mental health treatment has radically changed in recent years, but this transformation within the outlaw culture of the mob is pretty shocking. Is acceptance of cunnilingus soon to follow? Any thoughts on the legitimacy of this change, or as I questioned before, are we as audience members being set up for a “hit” ourselves?
Phil
