RR1

(aka Random Review 1)

Just because I felt like it.

I can't believe it took me 7 years to discover Six Feet Under. Seven! I just finished watching Episode 3 from Season 4, 'Parallel Play', and there is no other word to describe the closing scene of that particular episode but sublime. The combination and sheer raw power of the fire burning the Fishers' 'baggage' to the sound of Radiohead's Lucky that eerily fills the atmosphere through Claire's speakers creates a feeling of emptiness and fulfillment - a feeling of catharsis. It just makes you think everything's going to be ok.

It is the cremation of the metaphorical dead bodies that have been haunting the family house and the characters. The song, elegantly chosen, reflects the mood of the scene, the characters and the series as a whole. It is as happy as Radiohead can get in 'OK Computer'. The sound of Thom Yorke's voice blurting out "It's gonna be a glorious day!" through the dark sounds of Greenwood's guitar indicates the struggle of the family to leave the past behind and together move towards a more positive future. But, the dark undertones are still there.

The purging of their sins (their 'mistakes' as we like to call our sins in everyday life) and the brightness of the flames against the darkness of the night serve as a rare positive reminder in the show that no matter how dark the cloud, there may be a silver lining. I say 'may', and not 'will', because I haven't finished the show yet, and because Six Feet Under is realistic, not optimistic.

Echoing the emotional, life-affirming end of American Beauty, the scene creates a parallel play between life and death, happiness and sadness, past and future, light and dark, and, finally, black and white, as it fades to it like it always does at the end of each episode.