THE VIDEO Dokken, "Into the Fire," Tooth and Nail, 1984, Elektra
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SAMPLE LYRIC "[Into the fire] I've fallen / [Into the fire] I've fall-ennnnnnnnnnnnn! / INTO THE FIRE! / Into the fih-uhhhhhhhhh!"
EXCESSIVELY DETAILED DESCRIPTION A spread-legged, leotard-clad model with stylishly mussed hair is splayed across what appears to be a giant diaphragm (albeit a neon diaphragm wrapped in barbed-wire cobwebs). Another model, apparently a cast member from Cats. And a somewhat beefier lass, clad in some sort of tight leather swimsuit, banging an enormous gong, while another oddly-made up woman blows fire and more Cats claw the screen. Is this what we'll find when we go into the fire? We'll have to wait and see.
Meanwhile, outside of the fire, Don Dokken et al. are rocking out on a stage a) at night b) in the snow c) beside a river, where a speedboat races back and forth d) while a helicopter with a searchlight circles overhead e) in front of a bunch of creepy, anonymous buildings that are either waiting to be completed or actually are parking garages f) encircled by enormous pots of fire g) while an enormous pair of goblin hands rise up from the stage, about to clap together and crush Mick Brown, h) all of the above. (Hint: If you guessed "all of the above," you were correct!) It's unclear where the hell they are, although for some reason I always think Eastern Europe. Beats me, though.
Anyway. As we near the first chorus, the helicopter and speedboats are really going nuts, as are Don Dokken's nostrils, while meanwhile a woman is being wrapped in barbed wire. After the chorus wraps up, one by one, the band's members hop off of the side of the stage (over more barbed wire), only to wind up tied to that giant diaphragm from the first shot, which now appears to be suspended over a large number of candles or torches or something. "The Fire." As each lands on the diaphragm, it spins away -- "Into" the fire! Note that they do bring their instruments with them.
Once in the fire, the boys are pushing a giant mine car full of fire toward what appears to be either a) the Cirque du Soleil's version of Dante's "Inferno" or b) again, a Japanese revival of Cats (if you guessed none of the above, you're probably correct on this one). Anyway, they're pushing it into another diaphragm thingy (also full of fire) around which elaborately made-up models are standing on platforms, forming a sort of pyramid. The women, one of whom is sort of sitting splay-legged (and beckoning them to come in between her legs) all gesture toward the band with scary claws (think Lee Press-On Nails from hell) as they push, and more hands coming up from the floor threaten on either side.
Mission accomplished, the band carefully makes their way back out of the fire, walking along burning coals while more hands grasp from below and red fabric billows behind. They escape through an opening that suddenly appears ahead of them (and I'd be lying to you and to myself if I didn't describe it as vaginal), and find themselves all safe and sound inside the giant goblin hands on either side of the drum kit back on their stage, which are now smoking (by which I mean there's smoke coming out of the fingers -- they're not like, holding a giant cigarette -- I feel kind of weird that I felt the need to give this clarification!).
But they're not safe yet. The snow seems to have stopped, but that copter's still looking for something, and the speedboat's still tearing it up. Still, the threat of the Cats having been contained (the women are now relegated to the role of back-up dancers, gyrating in front of the goblin hands), we're now free to revel in George Lynch's guitar solo and the bridge, which is the best part of this song. And though the back-up dancers make some token efforts to remove the barbed wire they're still wrapped in, it's over for them. They'll dominate Dokken no more.
THE VERDICT Like I go on to say in my analysis of "Alone Again," it's hard to believe that these two videos came from the same album. The two seem to somewhat reflect a more general transition in the look of metal videos, and this one is definitely old school. The production values are underwhelming, overreliance on face paint is a serious issue, and the whole thing about having the spooky, evil women who want to trap the band members is a very familiar trope (viz the Scorpions' "Rock You Like a Hurricane" Queensryche's "Queen of the Reich," and Def Leppard's "Foolin'").
Though the shortcomings of this style of video are clear, they're much more fun than many of the later videos (am I saying I prefer this style of subjugating women, where they're threatening? Maybe). In fact, it's kind of interesting to look at the transition in video women as heavy metal hitting puberty. In early videos, women are sexy and desirable, but they're scary and potentially emasculating. Later, once metal's got some hair on its chest, the women are even sexier, and suddenly they're putty in the bands' hands. The whole getting-trapped-by-futuristic-robo-babes thing is over.
Nevertheless, I can't get enough of this video. It's got a similar aesthetic to "Breaking the Chains" (as well as the aforementioned videos), which again, I find to be very fun, and it's also got George Lynch (of whom I also can never get enough) with his amazing two-tone hair. This appears to me to be the last video that features said 'do, and while clearly he looks amazing no matter what's going on up top, the half 'n' half hair is a truly astonishing accomplishment (particularly in a decade so focused on hair).