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9 Responses to “ Sopranos ”

1. # 1 Buck Rurgidson Says:
   June 11th, 2007 at

   Count me in as someone who agrees more and more with each passing minute.

   At H Hour, my initial reaction (along with much of Sopranos watching America, I suspect) was, and I am quoting directly here:

   “What the f**k? What the f**k! What the f**k!?”

   It wasn’t anger or dissatisfaction so much as bewilderment.

   But the more I think about it, the more I love it. In many ways, we leave the Soprano clan (proper) exactly as we found them – and that’s just part of why it is so brilliant. Life doesn’t always wrap up neatly.

   Besides, we all know the Russian from the Pine Barrens walked in ahead of Meadow and unleashed hell…wasn’t that obvious?

2. # 2 Buck Turgidson Says:
   June 11th, 2007 at

   Count me in as someone who agrees more and more with each passing minute.

   At H Hour, my initial reaction (along with much of Sopranos watching America, I suspect) was, and I am quoting directly here:

   “What the f**k? What the f**k! What the f**k!?”

   It wasn’t anger or dissatisfaction so much as bewilderment.

   But the more I think about it, the more I love it. In many ways, we leave the Soprano clan (proper) exactly as we found them – and that’s just part of why it is so brilliant. Life doesn’t always wrap up neatly.

   Besides, we all know the Russian from the Pine Barrens walked in ahead of Meadow and unleashed hell…wasn’t that obvious?

3. # 3 Buck Turgidson Says:
   June 11th, 2007 at

   Sorry about the double post – thought I caught my typo in the handle.

   Had something to add, but forgot it. It’ll shake loose in my head at some point.

   By the way – I don’t buy the notion that Tony was hit. Noting the “won’t hear the one that gets you” mentality, we weren’t seeing Tony’s point of view – we were seeing Tony.

4. # 4 Vasyl Says:
   June 11th, 2007 at

   Oh, I won’t say brilliant or satisfying, but the end was totally appropriate for the series.

   I once saw an interview with Larry David, who said the primary rule for Seinfeld was that the characters never learn from mistakes.

   Well, the characters in The Sopranos learned, but never changed. There was EJ, self-obsessed and spoiled, munching on his onion ring while whining abou his privileged position in life. Outside, Meadow was trying to prove how she can completely conquer the challenges of life, while failing utterly at parallel parking. Carmela was looking at Tony with disapproval and contempt, even while she’s more ruthlessly materialistic than anyone in the family or Family.

   And Tony — well, he’s stuck with the certain knowledge that disaster will strike. And no many how many times he’s in a scene that serves to remind him that family is more dear to him than Family, he won’t change.

   Satisfying? I don’t think so. But completely in keeping with the program.

   Oh, and Buck is so right about the Russian!

5. # 5 Kennedy Says:
   June 11th, 2007 at

   Count me in the absolutely brilliant category, I loved it. It was everything I wanted out of the last episode, it paid a huge tip of the cap to the amazing first season and it was classic David Chase in what he did to the fans that only tune in for the violence. The idiots that are up in arms only make it more delicious.

   Hunter came back, who is played by David Chase’s real life daugther btw. Uncle Junior reappeared and you got to see just how far gone he was. There was the story with the cat which I took as a nod to both Adrianna (staring at Christopher) and Big P****. AJ quoting Livia, “always with the drama”. And then of course AJ quoting Tony at the first finale when the family sat down for dinner at Arie’s. The icing on the cake would have been some ducks, but I’ll just have to live with the disappointment.

   And how about Tony at AJ’s shrink. He can’t help himself but to trash psychiatry and then open up about his mother and his history. Tony, Tony, what ever happened to the strong, silent types, you know like Gary Cooper?

   And of course there was another gratuitous murder scene, just like the week before. Yes David, we get it. You’ve always been upset with the people who tune in and worship the bad guys. You spent a couple of the middle seasons trying to get us to hate them for being horrible people and yet some people still worshipped them. So you had death scenes in back to back weeks with spectators watching who can’t turn away. And in consecutive weeks you literally ran them over. What it lacked in subtlety it made up for in OBVIOUS METAPHOR. Gotcha. The one armed guy who couldn’t look away in the finale may have been overkill. Just saying.

   But the end was magnificent, I was out of breath when it ended, the suspense was that strong and it was set up perfectly. First of all it’s an obvious homage to the finale in the first season, which is satisfying and should have been expected if you remember that when they ended the first season they assumed that they wouldn’t get picked up and it was basically written as a series finale. Chase wanted to end with the family, and really always wrote for the family story first. Then, just in case anyone didn’t remember that scene from about seven years ago, AJ referenced Tony’s advice from that dinner, which was touching. If your adrenaline didn’t get going when the music started right as Carmella walked in then you’re made of stone. Then AJ shows up without his girlfriend and you realize it’s just going to be the family for dinner at the end. Then there’s shots of ominous looking people and Carmella asking about Tony’s meeting with the lawyer and you’re reminded that all along Tony’s always been in danger. And the mob looking guy who walks in ahead of AJ is Chase giving a big FU to all the people who complained over the years that he made Italian Americans look bad. The joke’s on us, not every Italian looking guy who walks into a diner is there to shoot someone (who knew) even if he heads into the bathroom and you wonder if Tessio remembered to hide the gun behind the toilet. And next two African Americans walk in and you’re reminded of the attempted hit on Tony in the first season.

   And then Meadow can’t parallel park. Also, Livia ran over her friend when she couldn’t drive either. Chase is a chauvanist pig! But then again, Angie Bompensero runs a body shop, so it’s a show of contradictions.

   The Meadow parking situation was a really effective plot device for creating the sense of urgency. And when she started running across the street I half expected her to get run over – a Godfather 3 ending, the daugher gets it. But it was not to be.

   And once the family is reunited with all their problems solved (although with huge potential problems ahead) that was it, it’s over. And the amazing thing is that even though every sign Chase ever gave pointed toward an end with the family reunited, together, with Tony on top and a life goes on kind of future, they still managed to make it a completely breathtaking surprise. That’s unbelievable.

   And for all the people who think that the cut to black was supposed to be Tony getting killed or even a choose your own ending end, let’s just see how much more obvious they could have made it with these song lyrics:

   It goes on and on and on and on
   Strangers
   Waiting
   Up and down the boulevard
   Shadows
   Searching in the night
   Streetlight
   People
   Living just to find emotion
   Hiding
   Somewhere in the night

   Working hard to get my fill,
   Everybody wants a thrill
   Payin anything to roll the dice,
   Just one more time
   Some will win
   Some will lose
   Some were born to sing the blues
   Oh the movie never ends
   It goes on, and on, and on, and on

   It’s kind of obvious.

   And I just love what Chase did to all the people who tuned in to see a violent ending. Chase gave them exactly what they wanted, unfortunately they were the ones that got whacked.

   Ha! They didn’t like that so much. You reap what you sow.

6. # 6 Rob_N Says:
   June 12th, 2007 at

   Off the Broiler has a pictorial essay about Holsten’s up. Looks like a pretty cool joint.

7. # 7 Joe Serra Says:
   June 13th, 2007 at

   I’m not that big of a TV watcher but The Sopranos was one show I never missed. I just don’t know what I’m going to do with my Sunday Nights now.

   Anyway, I thought this last season was spectacularly brilliant especially the last two episodes. I’m still running those last two through my mind.

   Take Care!

   Joe Serra

8. # 8 Paul Deming Says:
   June 17th, 2007 at

   I thought it was a mistake…too many lose ends for my taste.

9. # 9 Rob_N Says:
   June 19th, 2007 at

   Paul, If folks are getting the ending correct (that the audience got whacked) that’s the point.

   When you die, you tend to leave some loose ends with those surviving wondering “what if?” …