Sopranos Season 5 - a whole lot of exposition and spoilers

I have a friend who says he doesn't like having Deadwood after The Sopranos because he doesn't get a chance to digest it. I think that actually reduces our perception of how The Sopranos illustrates bad moral choices. Like when Tony was in his living room asking Carmela if he could move back in while fixing the TV's programming. Click ,click, hit the right buttons and bingo, it's fixed.
A lifetime of a dysfunctional marrige and it's repaired in less than a minute. Chris rants and raves about the disrespect Tony has showed him but just one glimps of the burdens of a conventional lifestyle and he agress to have "the woman I love" murdered.

These are some sick people.

Now I do love the characters on Deadwood, especially the duplicitous Swerangen and the conflicted Jodie. But it's hard to watch both and not go to bed, facing Monday, without being a little depressed. Same with 6 feet under.

 

Greatest. Episode. Ever.

Only the Big p***y murder ranks up there with this.

I love Imperioli's acting job in his reaction to Ade's news. He started to experience the shakes and didn't know how to react. Simply brilliant

Plus, the scene where Aide is getting driven to the "hospital" by Silvio. The way her reaction changes as she notices the wilderness and begins to come to terms with what is about to happen... freakin' genius acting.

Plus the "undignified" meeting b/t JS and TS. TS suddenly coming to the realization that if he turns TB in, he will be JS's b**** for the rest of his life. "Go **** yourself. He's my cousin" Genius line.

And maybe its just me, but the "reconciliation" b/t Carmella and Tony seems very forced, as if out of convenience. She knows she can't get cash out of a divorce b/c little is reported and she can't get a good lawyer, so she agrees to get back with him if she can have a pet project on the side. As soon as her dad and her build the house, sell it for a million or two, she can dump his ass and live off the money she makes from selling it.

And Tony gets to save face by not having marital problems at home, which could be taken as a sign of weakness within "his other family."

(and it really makes me appreciate last week's dream sequence all the much more)

 

Not quite that sugary. I think the characters are bad in an unsympathetic sense, not bad in a critical sense.

But anyway, I think part of the shows appeal was that the characters, Tony especially, always left you with some hope that he/she would overcome their psychologcal conflicts and that they weren't really bad people in the end and would redeem themselves in one way or another, That way it made it more palatable on a subconscious level to laugh at their antics, or root for them, idolize them, etc. I think that sense is gone permanently now..however it might end up making the show better?

 

At least we got to see how Tony B. got to Leotardo and his kid (I was afraid that they were only going to leave it with chrissy's mention of it last week.)

I didn't like how they set up Aide to finally have to give-in to the feds, with that whole drug-dealer murder storyline. I was hoping they'd come up with something much closer to the family, so she'd FEEL COMPELLED to confess and turn herself into the feds. As it was, she really didn't want to cooperate, and with the feds trying to play hardball with her... you just knew that she wasn't eventually going to get her, or chrissy, to turn themselves in, especially not for some 'murder' which apparently could just be classified as 'self-defense.'

I did love the car-ride with Sylv (reminded me of the end of GF II), but Tony's phone call to Aide before that (telling her that chris tried to commit suicide, when it was all a lie to get her to come out so they could kill her) was AWESOME... the acting totally had me fooled on that one, as I wanted to think, "oh great... she's dead," but I gave Tony the benefit of the doubt that Chris WAS actually in a hospital... regardless of the episode content this year, Gandolfini remains on top of his game.

And, had Tony just given up his cousin at the end, this might as well should have been the season finale... but with his refusal to bow down to anybody, it sets up the all-out war we've been waiting for.

Some things I'll be lookin for (all speculation): Little Carmine and Frankie Vallie CAN'T be done... something has to come of their situation, TB is still probably a goner... would be interesting if he goes kamikaze style to repent to Tony for all the mess he's caused. And, Moltisante will do something heroic/powerful that will elevate him to the next rank in the family.

 

By the way, did any of you guys see the Sopranos cast do the "Top Ten" on Letterman last night?

It was freakin' greatness!

If you missed it, there's a link on CBS' site to it:
da link

 

I hate Real.

 

I'd missed it. Thanks, drapg!

 

That was awesome thanks for the link.

The last episode was one of the best ever.

Deadwood rules.

 

Long time no see!!!!

Glad you're back around!

 

thanks.

work work work - no time lately.


all work and no play make Sonny wanna.... go crazy! Don't mind if I do.

 

Great freakin' episode.

Chrissy's gonna be the last one standing after this show's all said and done, IMO. He's got absolutely nothing to lose at this point.

 

I love Sopranos malapropism , as evideneced by my new sig.
There was one by Little Carmine at the beginning of the last episode I meant to remember but forgot, something about the stalemate with Johnny Sac. Anybody remember it?

 

Little Carmine's ignorance is an awesome source of ****ed up quotes!

 

"We are caught in a stagmire" (don't know if that is word for word but stagmire was it). That had me laughing harder than the whole Hunchback bit with Bobby a couple seasons back.

 

Thoughts on the season finale?

I'm still not quite sure what to think. Seems things ended up a bit too convenient for Tony.

 

loved watching Tony B fly across the porch after Tony blew him away.

Was there anything funnier than watching Johnny Sack trying to run from the Feds and falling face first into the snow.

Overall a good episode, but wasn't expecting that ending.

 

As usual, Tony ends up on his feet while everyone around him takes the fall. I had a sneaking suspicion that Tony S. would actually do the hit on Tony B. The thing that surprised me was Johnny Sacks entire gang getting busted by the FBI.

Judging from last night's finale and how this season ended, here is where I think the last season and conclusion of the series will go....

Now that Johnny Sack is out of the way, Tony and the Soprano family have nothing to stand in their way. They can do anything they want. Nobody will be there to tell them no.

This will be their downfall. I predict that in the final season, the whole family falls apart. Every member of Tony's crew, including Tony himself, will either be dead or in the slammer. Tony will do something to piss Carmela off and end the reconciliation, and she will take revenge by grabbing as much of Tony's cash as possible.

 

interesting/funny things from the episode:

-Tony continuously butchering the English languge. "Irregardless", and "illuminate me".

-Chris talking about lifting weights and they pan to a set of 10 lb dumbells.

-Tony becomes "the bear" in the final scene in his backyard.

 

I didn't think it was an awesome episode for a season finale. We all figured Tony would have to do the deed on Tony B. as a sort of perverse act of love (preventing his otherwise unavoidable torture) or guilt.

I haven't quite figured out the irony aspect though. Tony finally takes action after weeks of letting his personal feelings get in the way of business (very non-mafioso) and then after he does it, it turns out if he had just waited a little longer he wouldn't have had to do it at all.

The mobsters disregard for women was in rare form. I know it is used to illustrate the lack of humaness in these dispicable characters but to dismiss Adrianna , "she was a C**t", dude that's cold.

 

The finale was pretty good...Tony having to whack little Tony, priceless...

"Event planning, isn't that gay"...LOL...

JSaks is an a-hole, but now he's in custody...Can't wait until next season...

Overall, I thought the season was pretty good...