The Sopranos

[FlaSoxxJim]

Tony may or may not get killed. Paulie on the other hand, I've been waiting six years for him to go and his days are definitely numbered.

[KipWellsFan]

So Phil Leotardo's going to try to become boss right?

 

Also that whacking with Silvio was weird. I wasn't sure what was happening at first. I'll have to watch it again.

Edited April 16, 2007 by KipWellsFan

[Milkman delivers]

So Phil Leotardo's going to try to become boss right?

 

Also that whacking with Silvio was weird. I wasn't sure what was happening at first. I'll have to watch it again.

 

Can you explain what happened?

 

Honestly, I haven't watched the show normally for a few seasons, but I always follow what happened online. I think in the end, of the four mob characters that I consider the biggest (Tony, Paulie, Silvio, and Christopher), Silvio will be the one to live. He just always seemed to me to be the best person of them all, and that might be his saving grace in the end. Christopher's the only one of the others who I feel may end up living.

[KipWellsFan]

Can you explain what happened?

 

Honestly, I haven't watched the show normally for a few seasons, but I always follow what happened online. I think in the end, of the four mob characters that I consider the biggest (Tony, Paulie, Silvio, and Christopher), Silvio will be the one to live. He just always seemed to me to be the best person of them all, and that might be his saving grace in the end. Christopher's the only one of the others who I feel may end up living.

 

Silvio didn't die, he was just out to dinner with this guy and someone came and whacked the guy he was with.

[black jack]

The camera was on Sil, when he got sprayed with blood.

The fella he was having dinner with got lit up.

[Controlled Chaos]

Sopranos Rewind: Stage 5

Posted by Alan Sepinwall April 15, 2007 9:58PM

Categories: The Sopranos

WARNING: This column contains major plot spoilers for last night's "Sopranos" episode.

 

A moment of silence, please. I'm in mourning and more than a bit of shock that the show killed off one of the greatest characters in its history.

 

I'm speaking, of course, about Gerry "The Hairdo" Torciano.

 

What?

 

 

Sorry, my mistake. The late Gerry The Hairdo may have had one of the show's best nicknames, but the classic wiseguy who died in "Stage 5" was Johnny Sack. Where Gerry went down in a hail of bullets in a power play by rival New York underboss Doc Santoro, Johnny had a quieter, more prolonged passing, succumbing to lung cancer in a prison hospital.

 

Vince Curatola, who's gone from masonry contractor to "Sopranos" bit player to one of the show's most essential cast members, called his farewell episode "an actor's dream," and he made the most of it, turning in a master class performance. One superb scene in particular was the first visit by wife Ginny and daughter Allegra, from the way Johnny gently broke the news with his understated, "I'm very, very sick," to the daggers he stared at that prison guard (in freer, healthier times, Johnny would have had that guy's entire family killed), to the look of anticipation right before he smoked his first cigarette in a long time. What a great sendoff for an indelible character.

 

Thematically, though, the key scene was the one where Johnny asked optometrist brother-in-law Anthony Infante, "How will I be remembered?"

 

When you're coming to the end, either as a man dying of cancer, a mob boss who believes you'll soon end up murdered or in the can, or a TV producer trying to bring closure to one of the all-time great dramas, thoughts turn to legacy, as they did so often throughout "Stage 5."

 

Tony congratulated Christopher on making "Cleaver" by noting, "100 years from now, we're dead and gone, people'll be watching this (bleeping) thing." (No doubt a sentiment thrown around the "Sopranos" studios of late.) Then he complained to Dr. Melfi that rather than pass on the connection he had with Christopher's father Dickie, he'll instead be remembered by Chris as a bully.

 

Little Carmine (granted a rare moment of respect by the writers) explained to Tony that the part of Carmine Sr.'s legacy he wanted to follow was the happiness, not being boss of New York. And Phil Leotardo prepared to end his brief retirement (watch out, Doc Santoro) because he didn't want his legacy to be as the guy who didn't avenge his brother's murder. (That Phil still holds a birthday party for his brother years after Billy died, and that Johnny still tells stories about Carmine Sr., shows how much both men value how people are remembered long after they're gone.)

 

While Johnny was dying and Phil was stewing, Tony's relationship with Christopher continued to fracture. Chris is sober again, and he's apparently dumped Julianna Skiff. But he's keeping his distance from the wiseguys, allegedly to stay sober, but also to distance himself from the people (besides himself) responsible for the death of Adriana.

 

Like Tony, I've been visiting with Dr. Melfi long enough to understand the subconscious, and Chris is never going to forgive Tony for Ade's death - or for the affair he believes they had in season five's "Irregular Around the Margins."

 

They can make nice at the screening for "Cleaver" (a project Tony never would have given his blessing to if he hadn't just come out of a coma at the time), and Tony can even be godfather to Chris and Kelli's daughter, but whatever bond these two had is gone. Chris used to boast that he would go into Hell for Tony, and he's been living there ever since Tony ordered Adriana's murder.

 

Not that I think this is where the season is going (more and more, I'm expecting a "life goes on" conclusion with Tony neither dead nor in prison), but something to chew on:

 

After Ralphie killed Tracee, Tony initially got back at Ralphie in less overt ways, like making Ralphie be the one to decide Jackie Jr.'s fate, or stealing Ralphie's girlfriend and his horse. Making "Cleaver" - a movie depicting Christopher's warped interpretation of the events of "Irregular Around the Margins," in which the Christopher stand-in eventually kills his boss and mentor - seems like Christopher acting out on a level similar to Tony's early punishment of Ralphie. Eventually, Tony had enough and Ralphie's head wound up in a bowling ball bag; could Christopher reach a similar breaking point? Could his payback move from the subconscious to the conscious? And how would Tony be remembered if his junkie cousin took him out?

 

Some other random thoughts:

 

- With the death of Johnny, the Tony/Christopher schism and Phil's burning resentment, this was a dark hour, but also a wickedly funny one, and I don't want to shortchange some of writer Terence Winter's jokes. Among the best: Paulie turning the farewell toast to Johnny into a story about himself (and screwing up the lyrics to "Spinning Wheel"), Silvio's deliberate non-reaction to Tony's attempts to discuss the real-life parallels in "Cleaver," Christopher braining J.T. Dolan with his "Human-itis" Award, Paulie's confusion between Billie Holiday and Judy Holliday, and Johnny dismissing Ginny's theory that cancer comes from a bad attitude by asking of 6-year-olds with leukemia, "What's that from? Their negative thinking?"

 

- Continuing the series' long-running theme about the futility of change: Johnny gives up smoking and eats healthier, and he gets cancer anyway.

 

- Well, that was a nice little promotional gimmick that Agent Harris had to go ruin by interrupting Tony as he went to get his morning Star-Ledger. So now that our time on the show is apparently over, what's our legacy?

 

- So Meadow and Finn are splitsville, eh? Not really a shock, as he only proposed as protection from Vito.

 

- The song playing over the final scenes at the New York bar and the christening was "Evidently Chickentown," by "punk poet" John Cooper Clarke, one of the show's weirder, more ominous musical selections. Legend has it David Chase heard the song only once before, while cleaning his garage in 1983, and made a mental note to use it in a show one day.

 

- "Cleaver" star Daniel Baldwin is obviously one of Alec's 400 or so actor siblings, while Jonathan LaPaglia, who played the Cleaver, is the younger brother of "Without a Trace" star Anthony - who just so happened to be Fox's choice to play Tony back when David Chase was developing the script there. Little on this show is a coincidence, so take LaPaglia's casting as a hat-tip to what might have been.

 

- More guest star goodness: Sydney Pollack once again proving he may be a better actor than director with his nonchalant work as oncologist-turned-convict Warren Feldman. His delivery of the anecdote about killing the mailman ("At that point, I had to fully commit.") was hilarious, and his presence in turn inspired this brilliant bit of wisdom from Anthony Infante: "You're right. He still has the knowledge. I mean, O.J.'s no less of a running back, right?"

 

- Guest star oddness: Hey It's That Guy! actor Chris McDonald, who played Chris' new AA sponsor, is arguably too recognizable to be plopped with no introduction into an episode where Chris is schmoozing with C-list actors playing themselves.

 

As usual, our "Sopranos" blog will be filled with extras throughout the week: a chat Monday at noon, an interview with Vince Curatola about Johnny's death, reader response and more.

 

Alan Sepinwall may be reached at [email protected]

[Controlled Chaos]

I thought exactly the same thing. At first I was like, "Hey, it's Shooter!" and I didn't realize if he was supposed to be playing himself, or was just some new character.

I thought the same thing.

[RockRaines]

So Phil Leotardo's going to try to become boss right?

 

Also that whacking with Silvio was weird. I wasn't sure what was happening at first. I'll have to watch it again.

I think with the death of Johnny Sack he now doesnt have to be civil with Tony about his cousin's death and murder of Phil's bro. Methinks he is going to get even. Either Chrissy or Paulie are going to die.

[Brian]

I didn't understand the thoughts Tony had about knocking off Paulie? Was he talking to much to strangers or just his habits getting on his nerves? Hopefully Sepinwall's article tomorrow will help me.

 

I liked the whole show theme of Old school vs. New School throughout the episode.

[jackie hayes]

I didn't understand the thoughts Tony had about knocking off Paulie? Was he talking to much to strangers or just his habits getting on his nerves? Hopefully Sepinwall's article tomorrow will help me.

It was a case of a lot of little things adding up. Paulie trying to cover every detail about the job the FBI was digging up, running his mouth constantly (even mentioning some murdered hippie in a group as uncontrollable as those three women), betraying confidence to Johnny Sack, being a prime target for the feds without any earnings. And this for a guy who's had money problems often enough. There's little to recommend Paulie now except pure loyalty, and Tony's trying to weigh that against practicality.

[SoxFan562004]

It was a case of a lot of little things adding up. Paulie trying to cover every detail about the job the FBI was digging up, running his mouth constantly (even mentioning some murdered hippie in a group as uncontrollable as those three women), betraying confidence to Johnny Sack, being a prime target for the feds without any earnings. And this for a guy who's had money problems often enough. There's little to recommend Paulie now except pure loyalty, and Tony's trying to weigh that against practicality.

I think it might also be establishing a theme of Tony's increasing paranoia. It seems he is having trouble trusting people around him. Chris, testing Bobby's loyalty to him (putting him in his place) and not Paulie.

[Controlled Chaos]

Sopranos Rewind: Remember When

Posted by Alan Sepinwall April 23, 2007 3:45AM

Categories: The Sopranos

WARNING: This column contains major plot spoilers for last night's "Sopranos" episode.

 

"Things are going great, finally," says Tony Soprano. "Maybe I'm just waiting for the other shoe to drop."

 

So are we, Tony.

 

As this final season has gone on, fans have been waiting to see who will die, who will wind up in jail, who will rat. If a sad, moving episode like last night's "Remember When" is any indication, the wait might not end -- and that might be okay.

 

"Remember When," is an entire hour of shoe-levitation. The FBI digs up the body of Willie Overalls, the first man Tony ever killed. Tony and corpse-disposal accomplice Paulie drive down to Miami to lay low, but everything's fine after incarcerated capo Larry Boy Barese pins the murder on the late Jackie Aprile.

 

On the road trip, Tony's first prolonged exposure in years to Paulie's verbal diarrhea makes him wonder if Paulie can keep his lips zipped in front of the feds should it come to that. On a celebratory fishing trip in the Atlantic, we're cued to believe that Tony is on the verge of sending Paulie to sleep with Pussy, but at the last minute, he backs off, not ready to kill Paulie for something he only might do.

 

There's a murder, as Phil Leotardo's guys give the food-poaching Doc Santoro a Moe Greene Special, but the biggest explosion of violence is perpetrated on Uncle Junior, who takes a nasty beating from his mental hospital protege Carter Chong (guest star Ken Leung).

 

I expect more misdirection like this as the season goes on. Thus far, the murders have involved minor characters like Doc and Gerry The Hairdo, while Johnny Sack had a non-homicidal passing. David Chase and company (in this case, writer Terence Winter) have never liked to do what the audience is predicting. I think we're going to see a lot of characters suffer a fate worse than jail or even death: being forced to confront who they really are.

 

In episode one, it was Bacala who had to abandon the pretense that he could be a made man without blood on his hands. Last week, Tony saw how much Christopher resented him, while Phil and Johnny Sack questioned how they had lived their lives. Here, Junior and Paulie -- Tony's biological uncle and his unofficial one -- come to terms with their decay into lonely, pathetic old men, not useful for much besides dirty jokes and stories about the good old days.

 

Characters have been telling old stories all season, often about the resentment that grows between fathers and sons, or between mentors and proteges. Here, Junior recalls the day his father (Tony's grandfather) made him walk home 11 miles for turning down a 25-cent tip from a rich woman. Carter loses his temper recounting the time his father dismissed a 96 score on a third grade spelling test because it wasn't a 100. Paulie notes that Johnny Boy Soprano gave Tony the Willie Overalls hit when Tony was 24, but Tony quickly and forcefully says that he was 22.

 

It's those details they don't forget. Even in the grips of dementia, Junior knows he walked 11 miles. Carter remembers the exact grade on the test. Tony remembers how old he was when his father made him into a killer (which he in turn would do to Christopher and Bacala).

 

Earlier in that conversation, Tony suggests that Johnny Boy never believed in him. Paulie counters that Johnny trusted him with the hit, after all, but Tony clearly resents that Johnny didn't believe he could become anything but a thug, condemning him to this life.

 

Tony's always been one to dwell on the past, but spending so much time with blabbermouth Paulie takes away his taste for it. Annoyed by Paulie's endless stories -- including one, uttered in front of civilians, about an apparent murder at a Jersey shore house -- he excuses himself from the table "because 'remember when' is the lowest form of conversation."

 

At least Tony still has a present to hold onto. Junior and, to a lesser extent, Paulie don't.

 

Junior tries to recreate the past in the hospital, enlisting Carter to help him run a funhouse mirror version of his old Executive Game, with the patients playing for buttons and non-diet sodas. But he's not as strong as he once was, and faced with the threat of being transferred to a less cushy facility, he consents to a new drug regimen that leaves him a blurry, sleepy shell of himself.

 

Carter, bitter at the perceived betrayal by another father figure -- and perhaps having read "One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest" too many times -- gives Junior a beatdown. Our final glimpse (ever?) of the official boss of New Jersey shows him sitting in a wheelchair, a cast on his arm, a blank, depressed look on his face, and a cat from pet therapy as his only companion. (Can Dominic Chianese and Vince Curatola share the Emmy? Damn.)

 

Midway through their fugitive vacation, Tony and Paulie are shown a black and white photo of Paulie in his '60s heyday, flexing a bicep for the camera. What we realize instantly is that Paulie is trying to preserve that image all these decades later. He still pounds the dumbbells, even though the skin sags around his muscles. He still wears the same hairdo, even though the hair is grey and thin. He lives alone, has no real friends, is the least-productive, least-respected captain in the Family and he can't stop talking. The only real difference is the amount of TV he watches; in the '60s, he didn't know who Barney Fife was, while today he cackles hysterically at a "Three's Company" rerun.

 

Paulie's just self-aware enough to know that Tony's displeased with him. He has a flashback to Pussy's oceanic murder as he and Tony cast off in their fishing boat, is terrified throughout the voyage and later has a dream (very literal by "Sopranos" standards) where he confronts Pussy the rat to ask, "When my time comes, tell me: will I stand up?"

 

Paulie hasn't had to make that choice yet. None of the major surviving characters have. Right now, Paulie's punishment is simply having to be Paulie Walnuts, just as Tony's punishment is to be the boss of a decaying empire, and having to work with guys like Paulie. Will that be enough for the fans?

 

Some other thoughts on "Remember When":

 

-More foreshadowing that Tony was going to murder Paulie: the three men who took Tony out for a celebratory dinner after the Willie Overalls hit were Pussy (killed by Tony), Ralphie (ibid), and Paulie.

 

-Art inadvertently, awkwardly imitating life: days after the Virginia Tech tragedy, we have an episode (shot months ago) featuring a violent, emotionally disturbed young Asian American man, as well as talk of on-campus violence (another patient at the hospital is a Rutgers professor who stabbed his dean and then slit his wrists in the faculty lounge).

 

-Know your Family: The two gentlemen volunteering to spring Junior were Uncle Pat Blundetto, whose upstate New York farm featured its own buried corpses in season five's "Cold Cuts," and Beppy Scerbo, a member of Junior's old crew. Beansie Gaeta, Tony and Paulie's Miami host, is the pizzeria owner paralyzed by a Richie Aprile hit-and-run in season two.

 

-Not since Junior confused himself and Bacala with characters from "Curb Your Enthusiasm" has there been as hilarious a Junior parallel as him writing to Vice-President Cheney to note that they're both "powerful (men) all too familiar with accidental gunplay."

 

Alan Sepinwall may be reached at [email protected]

[RockRaines]

Watching the beginning of the show during the recap showed me a piece of foreshadowing I hadnt seen before. When they do a toast for the goodbye og Johnny, Paulie is clearly in the background foreshadowing his upcoming death.

[Brian]

It would kind of make sense if that was the last we see of Junior.

 

And I told my dad the exact same thing about Chong.

Edited April 23, 2007 by Brian

[Jenksismyhero]

Is it just me or does anyone feel a little bored thus far. You'd think with only 8-9 episodes to go they'd start out with a bang or have 8-9 crazy episodes to close it out. So far we've gotten three slow episodes showing Tony's difficult position of wanting to be the boss yet wanting to end his life alive and not in jail. Gee, hasn't this been a running storyline for 6 seasons? Why re-hash this again and waste three episodes on it?

 

The way these have gone, I'm thinking that Phil Leotardo goes after the Jersey boys, roughs someone up and then Tony has to decide whether to retaliate or retire for good.

[southsider2k5]

I finally have gotten caught up on the first three episodes. Obviously they are treating this season as one long episode. All of these first three episodes have been building up to the end, except for a couple of little teasers, like Doc's whacking. It will be interesting because with the amount of teasers out there, this series could see a 2-3 week climax.

[DrunkBomber]

I finally have gotten caught up on the first three episodes. Obviously they are treating this season as one long episode. All of these first three episodes have been building up to the end, except for a couple of little teasers, like Doc's whacking. It will be interesting because with the amount of teasers out there, this series could see a 2-3 week climax.

This is what I was thinking. I just think they are setting it up where anything can happen in the last episode or two. The episodes havent been too eventful but theyve done a nice job of setting it up where anything can happen. Anybody from Pauly, Christopher or even Tony could get killed with the story lines theyve set up so far.

 

One of my friends brought up a point that I doubt would happen, but hopefully there is no attempt to make any of this one of Tonys dream sequences.

[southsider2k5]

This is what I was thinking. I just think they are setting it up where anything can happen in the last episode or two. The episodes havent been too eventful but theyve done a nice job of setting it up where anything can happen. Anybody from Pauly, Christopher or even Tony could get killed with the story lines theyve set up so far.

 

One of my friends brought up a point that I doubt would happen, but hopefully there is no attempt to make any of this one of Tonys dream sequences.

 

I will be so f***ing pissed off if they use a dream as an ending to this series.

 

Anyways, anyone want to start offering up any predictions yet? Who gets whacked, who gets busted, and who turns states evidence?

[retro1983hat]

I think Tony gets whacked and Chris takes over as boss since he's part of Tony's actual family.

[southsider2k5]

I think Tony gets whacked and Chris takes over as boss since he's part of Tony's actual family.

 

Isn't Chris actually Carm's cousin?

[retro1983hat]

Isn't Chris actually Carm's cousin?

 

 

That is true, but it still would be closer than Paulie and I doubt Silvio would want it. Although, Janice could push Bobby into the role, but who the hell knows.

Please, just no dream sequence.

[Brian]

The show has done dream sequences during its entire run. I doubt that is how it will end.

This isn't the Bob Newhart show.

[Jenksismyhero]

I still say it comes down to either killing out the NY mob, making him the boss of the entire area, or he bows down and retires. This will all come after Phil kills someone in Tony's crew or in Tony's family. My bet is either Chris or AJ. I'm leaning towards AJ right now.

 

I think at this point, with everything he's gotten away with, with all of the close calls with the fbi/police, it'd be a really predictable ending if he would go to jail. I think it's gotta be bigger than that.

[southsider2k5]

My guess has been for a while that Tony gets flipped and goes into witness protection with the family. There have been hints about it before in some of his dreams.

[RibbieRubarb]

I still think Meadow takes over the family ala Michael Corleone. The good offspring turns bad. She has been slowly defending and accepting her family's role more and more...

 

My guess has been for a while that Tony gets flipped and goes into witness protection with the family. There have been hints about it before in some of his dreams.

 

I think that would be a great ending...A real purgetory for Tony. David Chase has always said "Goodfellas" is his bible for "The Sopranos"

Edited April 24, 2007 by RibbieRubarb