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The Sopranos finale. What the heck?

posted by Rich Miller
Monday, Jun 11, 07 @ 2:07 am

Comments

I stayed up and watched it again. Pretty positive that Tony was whacked and the dark screen indicated that Tony was wrong about there being an afterlife (the insight he gained while tripping on peyote in Vegas).

What did Bobby say? “You never hear it coming.” Sudden blank screen with no preceding sound. He’s dead.

I was paying special attention to the little jukebox on the table during my second viewing because I noticed it reflected. Didn’t see anyone coming up on him, though.

Why did the outfit do it to him, if, in fact, he was zipped? Well, Tony had the top dog, Phil Leotardo, killed in front of his family earlier in the episode. Turnabout is fair play.

Still, I can’t help but wonder if the director had simply run out of ideas and chose to end it all with a cheap stunt. That being said, it’s got us talking about it today.

Anyway, those are my thoughts. Yours?

Comment by Rich Miller Monday, Jun 11, 07 @ 2:20 am
At first, I was with Slate’s Tim Noah, who invoked the short story “The Lady or the Tiger?” If you didn’t have it “inflicted on you in high school,” Noah writes, “all you need to know is that the king’s daughter has to decide whether her lover will be devoured by a tiger or married to her beautiful rival. No other options allowed.”

The problem is that the story ends with a question mark, both figuratively and literally, and we never learn what she chose. Noah writes: “What a marvelous leaping-off point for discussion, say some people. What a stupid cop-out, say I.”

But after thinking about it for a little while, maybe it was just a nice snapshot of what’ll dominate T’s life for a while: mysterious people at nearby tables, potential assassins using the john, bad 80’s music (is David Chase a fan of the ‘05 Sox?), and the most ominous parallel parking scene in the history of filmed entertainment.

I guess how I really feel about the episode can be summed up by saying

Comment by Brian Mackey Monday, Jun 11, 07 @ 3:46 am
rich,
the ending was so you would buy the box set when it comes out with the 12 alternative endings.

Comment by fedup Monday, Jun 11, 07 @ 5:11 am
There will be a movie, made for TV special, followup series (maybe without Tony), DVD with a different ending or some other money making scheme. This franchise is too valuable for it to end completely. We saw a “Who killed JR ending” last night.

Comment by Silent Majority Monday, Jun 11, 07 @ 5:54 am
sorry to hear about tony — the spurs ran a clinic last night…

Comment by bored now Monday, Jun 11, 07 @ 6:01 am
Quello è tutto, gente!

Comment by Addio, Antonio Monday, Jun 11, 07 @ 6:37 am
The last 5 minutes of the show was some of the tensest TV I have ever seen. Is coffee guy going to wack him, the two guys who walked in going to do it?

Instead you end up with questions.
Are the feds going to get him?
Is the FBI guy coming over to Tonys side?
Is that guy singing to the feds about Tony?

As a guy in a NJ paper put it however, if you were looking for closure on the whole thing you were likely yelling like Shatner in the Wrath of Kahn…

‘CAAAAAASE’

But it worked for me.

OneMan

Comment by OneMan Monday, Jun 11, 07 @ 6:54 am
No thoughts….. still in shock at the weak ending.

I was one hanging on to my seat at the ending, only to have the screen go blank. I checked to make sure the cable box light was still on. Than leaping up and saying ‘that’s it!???’

Too many subtle messages though. The ‘get rid of your oil gusslers and drive smaller cars’, discussion of terrorism, and the close up of the Ford insigia two times before running over Phil.

I think the last suble message was the importance of family. Unfortunately, I’ll be one of the gullible ones buying the 12 different endings DVD.

Comment by Metal Medusa Monday, Jun 11, 07 @ 7:00 am
David Chase is the anti TV as per usual guy…I read somewhere that he would treat the second to last episode as the rock’ em sock ‘em one, and the last as a quieter fade out…glad to see Phil whacked, even his lackey grew to hate him…there will be a movie when Gandolfini can’t get a non mobster role…the banter between Paulie and Tony about the cat and the Virgin Mary were rip snort funny and great writing…

Comment by Loop Lady Monday, Jun 11, 07 @ 7:44 am
I’ve been ruminating about this over at my blog. I’m leaning towards it being a total crap, cop-out ending.

Comment by Bridget Dooley Monday, Jun 11, 07 @ 7:51 am
Great ending, if you were surprised, you don’t know the show.

Comment by Roger Monday, Jun 11, 07 @ 7:57 am
One of the best
Tony clearly wins and goes on to run the whole show.
“Don’t stop believing” confirms it

Comment by Reddbyrd Monday, Jun 11, 07 @ 8:14 am
Rich, I’m with you 100%. Two additions. First, the guy walking into the bathroom reminded me of the scend from the Godfather where the killer had a gun hidden in the overhead holding tank above the urinal. He came out of the bathroom with bullets flying. The guy in the gray jacket walked into the bathroom just before the screen went black.

Second, Chase used music as dialouge. His use of it during the final scene, but silence during the filan credits led me to believe that the Soprano family was in fact killed. KInd of like the moment of silence to observe the deceased.

Finally, the ending did exactly what you said — it has people talking about it. If a specific ending would have been selected, some people would have said I told you so, while others said that it was horrible. This non ending will have people talking and speculating for some time where nobody will be right for certain.

Comment by Buck Naked Monday, Jun 11, 07 @ 8:14 am
I thought it was typical of The Sopranos: unexpected and frustrating.

The debate over whether Tony was whacked or whether the ending was just showing that life goes on as usual for the Soprano family will never be resolved — just like the question of what happened to the Chechen at Barren Pines.

My immediate reaction when I saw the ending was to laugh. It seems like producer David Chase likes to play with his audience, and this was a moment that made the whole country yell in unison: Chuck Fase.

Other than that, it was an average episode. I’ll just think of last week’s episode as the season finale.

Comment by the Other Anonymous Monday, Jun 11, 07 @ 8:26 am
They ate. Life — crappy, stressful, petty life — goes on and on and on and on.

Comment by Boone Logan Square Monday, Jun 11, 07 @ 8:26 am
After staring blankly at the TV for five minutes, I shrugged my shoulders. Many people have been invested in this show for eight years and, as Buck said, a definitive ending would have upset a lot of people. The ending allows us to not only use our imaginations to continue the story, but blog about it for the next week. That’s entertainment!

Comment by jwscott72 Monday, Jun 11, 07 @ 8:27 am
The last two seasons have been painful to watch, kind of like watching a marriage slowly die in a room with paint peeling off the walls. So I’m not surpised the series ended with a dull thud, Tony and family gathered for dinner at a diner with Journey’s “Don’t Stop Believin’” playing on the jukebox (Tony’s choice). The screen just went black and across the nation viewers said “what the …” and they figured their TV had just died at the most inopportune time. I hated the ending … but I get it. It’s not about whether Tony and family live on … it’s about how it FEELS to get whacked. Being a mobster is all about imposing your will on others, taking what’s there’s. And that’s how viewers got whacked at the end. The joke was on us. No ending. Sorry. Whatya gonna do about it?

Comment by Mr. CUB Monday, Jun 11, 07 @ 8:32 am
What will Emil do now?

Comment by Sunday Nites - Free Monday, Jun 11, 07 @ 8:34 am
I liked the late 60’s music references: Vanilla Fudge on radio in sequential scenes. Dah, dah, dah,dah, dah,dah, dah..”Set me free why don’t you babe….”. They went digging for that one. The witness reaction at Phil’s demise was great. Ending was unexpected. Sure leaves the movie option available. The alternative endings will probably show up eventually in the reunion special. The importance of “family” popped up multiple times. Wonder how many takes were required for the Silvia hospital scene. Gotta be face out takes. Kept thinking Lil Steven needs to drop some pounds before an E Street tour.

Comment by zatoichi Monday, Jun 11, 07 @ 9:14 am
What’s “The Sopranos”?

Comment by Ferdy Monday, Jun 11, 07 @ 9:16 am
Well I guess you can think this thing to death but the truth be told it was absolutly the worst ending ever.
In fact they haven’t had too many good episodes after the first three years. It was time to let this series die. It was getting too sensitive and politcally correct.
Over the years I’ve known people some might say were mob connected. These guys I would never call sensitive or politically correct. This would be an insult. And does anyone care about A.J. ? Too bad he wasn’t wacked.
The best series ever on HBO was Rome. It made the Sopranos look like wimps.

Comment by Lula May Monday, Jun 11, 07 @ 9:18 am
Ahem…they left it open-ended for a reason…sometime later they’ll announce a Sopranos movie in production. That’s my prediction, and I’ve never watched the show.

Comment by Crimefighter Monday, Jun 11, 07 @ 9:29 am
Brilliant ending! The Sopranos was rarely about the story and always about the characters. That’s why we became so invested in the show.

The ending isn’t nicely packaged and fed to us - we get to use our imagination. What happens to Tony and his family now is different for each of us.

Comment by Left Leaner Monday, Jun 11, 07 @ 9:44 am
On another note, I wonder if the session will end in the same way? Suddenly, with no long term resolution? And each major player will go away imagining that it ended in his favor.

Comment by the Other Anonymous Monday, Jun 11, 07 @ 9:45 am
I don’t think Tony was whacked. No evidence to support that conclusion.

I think it was just insight into the way Tony is always on guard, and looking out for his family - here he was literally looking over their shoulders in the diner. And not every suspicious person is up to no good. I think Chase just wanted to give a feel for the kind of diligence Tony has to exercise every day.

I thought it was pretty good as far as finales go. However I was hoping for some closure on “the Russian.”

Comment by GOP'er Monday, Jun 11, 07 @ 9:52 am
great ending…better than seeing the cast of seinfled sitting in a prison cell for violating the good samaritan law

Comment by anon Monday, Jun 11, 07 @ 9:55 am
Sometimes things just don’t end well.

Comment by It's Just Life Monday, Jun 11, 07 @ 9:58 am
Why should anyone be surprised? The entire season has been weird and fairly uneventful, at least for the final season of a show that is completely unlike any other.

I was even surprised that Phil got whacked. I fully expected Tony to either be killed off or indicted by a federal grand jury. After years of toeing the legal line, not being indicted shocked me.

If they make a movie, I would like to see Tony indicted halfway through and then have last half of the movie be a dramatic trial. Killing Tony off in a movie after seven years on HBO would be counter-productive.

I will say that no closure is a bit irritating. I purchased HBO only to watch The Sopranos and now I’m left hanging.

At least “Boston Legal” starts back up in September!

Comment by Team Sleep Monday, Jun 11, 07 @ 10:00 am
Team Sleep

Kinda like Illinois………….

Comment by Aquanet+ Monday, Jun 11, 07 @ 10:03 am
At first I thought it was kind of lame, but as the credits rolled, it made me think more. Did the guy come out of the bathroom and shoot him? Did the 2 guys who came in the door do it? Did his daughter get in the way of the shooting?

Guess I’ll have to wait and see when the special comes out in a year or two.

Last weeks show was much better.

Comment by Tessa Monday, Jun 11, 07 @ 10:04 am
one of the best lines on this show was at the beginning when his son said “what, no f’ing ziti” and last night I felt like saying “what, no f’ing ending”
it could have been that it was afterlife or a dream sequence but if not it was a good portrayal of how they’ll always have to be looking over their shoulders. My prediction wasn’t right, though, I thought Uncle June was going to get him in the end

Comment by anonymous Monday, Jun 11, 07 @ 10:05 am
There were at least two “Godfather” references that I noticed. The guy walking into the restroom at the ice cream parlor is getting talked about a lot this morning, but earlier in the episode, Tony grabs an orange and starts to peel it at the beach house. Google “godfather and oranges” if you don’t know what this means.

Comment by Kosin Monday, Jun 11, 07 @ 10:07 am
in a way, it is a resolution. Carm and Tony got
together and seemed to get it right with AJ, Meadow (as a budding mob attorney)
is sorta in the family business, Carm’s house
business is in the next plans, and Tony seems
soothed by the fact that Junior cannot recognize
him. Never mind his main business rival is now out of the way. According to Chase the show was really not about the mob stuff but a family in crisis and
a man in middle age who has a crisis in the
head, and not in a bullet way. The Soprano family seems to be in a good place now.

so, when it goes black, Chase metaphorically
kills of the family by cutting our cable feed
to whatever happens in their life. but they
may well still be alive. or not, we may
never know.

still wondering about the cat, though. and
wishing Paulie got it, cause, he’s probably
a rat, in my opinion. which is why he hates
the cat………

Comment by amy Monday, Jun 11, 07 @ 10:44 am
Amy, you should be a critic. I have read countless of articles befora and after the final show and yours has been the best digestion of the series I have read so far

Comment by Looking at a blank screen Monday, Jun 11, 07 @ 11:16 am
You viewers got whacked. You know too much. Capisce?

Comment by Duck Pond Monday, Jun 11, 07 @ 11:26 am
I guess there were multiple meanings.
1. Life goes on.
2. F- you America/Bush Supporters was the second message.

At least we got close to a full hour this time.

I am trying to determine which is the bigger let down, Lost or the Sopranos? Bring back OZ!

Comment by Wumpus Monday, Jun 11, 07 @ 12:08 pm
I rather liked the ending. But I do think that Chase has left an opening for a feature film. I would wager that he has already taped a number of different endings on this scenario.

There was some closure here–Tony recognizing the depth of Uncle Junior’s dementia; the crushing (couldn’t help myself) of the Leotardo reign; and the reluctant ascension of Paulie Walnuts.

I also like the touch of having the boy scouts at the restaurant–are these the same scouts from the toy train store the previous week?

All in all, much better than the last Seinfeld, the last final episode that I paid attention to.
It is a tad ironic that Jerry ended up in prison, but Tony Soprano did not.

Comment by Jake from Elwood Monday, Jun 11, 07 @ 12:21 pm
Dear Looking at a blank screen:

thank you! What a nice thing to say.

maybe I should head for a new job!

happy rewatching the last episode.

amy

Comment by amy Monday, Jun 11, 07 @ 12:50 pm
The blank screen was a mistake - they actually were showing a blago press conference.

Comment by A Citizen Monday, Jun 11, 07 @ 1:07 pm
Outstanding ending. Everybody is looking for too much in it. The end was Chase saying F-U to TV networks and viewers who can’t understand subtleties and symbolism.

1. Every major character was revisited and paid homage to in the last episode or two.

2. Phil, not getting just whacked, but getting his head squashed (hilarious) was Tony crushing his enemies.

3. The guy at the counter, who Tony obviously saw and wasn’t concerned about, was his “father” Johnny Boy.

4. The two black kids at the jukebox represented the two black guys who tried to whack Tony in the first or second season. Remember that botched hit?

5. The guy with the USA cap. He was there to symbolized that, hey, they may be the “Mob” but they are still Americans.

6. Tony’s choice of Journey was that he enjoys Journey, he has listened to their music in other episodes. The song chosen was Chases symbol of the viewers pathetic plea’s of “don’t stop… the series”.

The end was just that. THE END! No more Soprano’s. It’s over. No movie, no sequel nothing. Just a cut to black. The death of the series, not Tony.

Chase said he knew how he would end the series years ago. He “whacked” it.

Comment by Papa Legba Monday, Jun 11, 07 @ 1:23 pm
Papa, I’m starting to come around to your viewpoint on this. Maybe it was the viewers or the show that got whacked and not Tony. We didn’t see or hear it coming, either. And if snitches were preparing to testify against him, who knows more than us about what he’s done? lol

Comment by Rich Miller Monday, Jun 11, 07 @ 1:27 pm
Papa,
You just said everyone is looking for too much in it and then you go on to explain too much that’s not there. Oh please. Analysis this. The whole thing sucked.

Comment by Lula May Monday, Jun 11, 07 @ 1:47 pm
I am on the Tony-didn’t-get-whacked side of the fence.

We met T and family in 1999, he was nervous about enemies and the fed, his wife was materialistic enough to overlook his faults and stick around, his son was a whiny pain in seat, and his daughter was a mafia-princess who could manipulate her folks. Scene runs out last night, and what has changed? Nada.

It is a tad unrealistic that someone tailed him to a restaurant we’ve never before seen in the series only hours after Phil was killed.

The idea that we, the viewer, got whacked and never saw it coming is a compelling one.

I will take exception to one thing Amy said: The acting in T’s final scene with Uncle Junior was fantastic. He actually showed compassion for Junior, giving him a glimmer of reminder of who he once was with “this thing of ours.” And in his last look at him, T’s eyes were glassy and on the verge of tears.

Also, count me as one who doubts a movie or reunion or anything will be made. We saw an 8-year snapshot of their lives, and that’s that.

Comment by Buck Turgidson Monday, Jun 11, 07 @ 1:52 pm
Let me add RE: Godfather references…there was no Sgt. McCluskey to pat Members Only guy down - he could have gone in to compose himself, but there’s no reason he’d have had to hide a gun.

Comment by Buck Turgidson Monday, Jun 11, 07 @ 1:53 pm
I agree with an earler commenter that that was the most intense five minutes of TV I have ever seen. You thought everyone was going to whack Tony, you thought Meadow was going to be whacked, and you tought they were going to wait until the whole family was together and whack them all! And we were waiting for the Feds to come running in and pinch Tony.

The problem was I didn’t think the mob was going to kill Tony cause th little guy and Ton shook on it with little Carmine’s blessing. It was little Carmine’s family after all, even if he wasn’t the boss.

All in all I thought it was a great ending accept for the fact it made me think my cable cut out at the worst possible moment. I was about to throw something when the credits started to role. Good TV!!

Comment by de Vreisee Monday, Jun 11, 07 @ 2:15 pm
As far as good HBO series is concerned, Rome, the Sopranos and Deadwood all are eclipsed by “The Wire”. A great show that explores crime, police work, inter-office and city politics, and the basic core of human nature. The most realistic show on TV.

Comment by de Vreisee Monday, Jun 11, 07 @ 2:20 pm
Those that think that Chase will follow up with a feature film doesn’t get it. Chase will let this flutter in the wind for eternity. He does not need the money, and as mentioned earlier, is a non-conformist. He accomplished EXACTLY what he wanted to do. “Tony Soprano” is virtual and infinite. And everyone’s opinion of what happened is as valid as the next.

Comment by Luca Brazzi Monday, Jun 11, 07 @ 2:27 pm
the whole thing did not suck–I guess the American TV viewing audience has to be hit over the head with plots, subplots, and definitive resolution. Get over it you cretins. Great TV, great ending. Like life itself, most days are not memorable. Tony vanquished his demons for now. Arrivederci Tony. Gratzie David.

Comment by Palermo Princess Monday, Jun 11, 07 @ 2:28 pm
Papa, I would argue that most Sopranos viewers do not care about symbolism and situational nuances. They want action and attitude. The attitude side MAYBE permeated the episode but the action certainly did not. It is interesting that there was more action in last Sunday’s episode that the finale.

Comment by Team Sleep Monday, Jun 11, 07 @ 2:33 pm
The last five minutes were as tense as anything I’ve ever seen - but I note it was tense for us but not Tony - clearly he was under control. Even after killing Phil. Chase played us all - He played our internal race cards with the two black guys; our knowledge of the Godfather/gun in the bathroom scene; and more over the fact that a serial killer like Tony unfortunately fits into the crowd with the likes of everyone.

Suffice to say - seeing Phil get it rather than Tony was fine with me…just surprised Paulie Walnuts walks among us.

Comment by Taylor Street Monday, Jun 11, 07 @ 2:35 pm
It reminds me of an interview I saw with John Lennon years ago. He had a doped out homeless person sleeping in his yard. The guy thought he was reading subtle messages to him in all of Lennons songs. Lennon tried to explain this was not the case. There were no hidden messages but he could never convince the druger. Soprano fanatics are that druger.

Comment by Lula May Monday, Jun 11, 07 @ 2:35 pm
de Vreisee has clearly never seen Fraggle Rock….

Have to admit I didn’t immediately jump to this conclusion (thought T got whacked), but Bobby’s earlier foreshadowing that “you don’t hear it coming” and the abrupt end of the show to a blank screen makes me think Papa and the others are right — the audience got whacked.

Comment by Rob_N Monday, Jun 11, 07 @ 2:44 pm
mafia, mafia, mafia. Today it can be said without getting deleted. It was an ok show. Italian culture was unfairly represented. The Italians actually have very little pop in the types of crime repesented on the Soprano’s. This show must have had a ton of input from Italians. They told the writers how it used to be before the mexican, russian and asian gangs took over their turf. The Italians have a romantic view of things especially themselves. They love the mirror.
When the show was a little better a couple years back I asked a real goomba how “they” felt about it and he said that it was good for business because it made him feel like the world was a little more accepting of his grafty ways. He is still a trapped free man in the State Senate.

Comment by nino Monday, Jun 11, 07 @ 3:19 pm
Team Sleep -

I didn’t say fans don’t care, I said fans don’t get it. Big difference.

I saw an interview with David Chase a week or two ago. He stated he hoped that the audience was sophisticated enough to understand the characters and their actions without having to spell it all out in a black/white manner.

BTW. The cat is the Russian from the “Pine Barrens” episode. That is why it was always staring at Christopher and bugging Paulie.

Comment by Papa Legba Monday, Jun 11, 07 @ 3:47 pm
I originally thought maybe his bear was coming back for him. I think it was left open so Tony could live forever. A few weeks ago Tony said:

“One hundred years from now, we’re dead and gone, people will be watching this f-ing thing.”

Comment by little Monday, Jun 11, 07 @ 4:14 pm
SUCKED!!

Comment by NIEVA Monday, Jun 11, 07 @ 4:19 pm
lol @ Italians cryin the way they are protrayed!

Comment by Wumpus Monday, Jun 11, 07 @ 4:36 pm
The show ended the same way the ILGA session ended… with questions and a blank screen.

Comment by Anon Monday, Jun 11, 07 @ 8:25 pm
No one brings up the fact that FBI agent Harris tipped Tony as to Phil’s whereabouts. In an earlier episode, Harris tells Tony how much he despises Phil for setting up the brutal rape of a female FBI agent. When Harris calls Tony about the tip, he is in a hotel room with a female FBI agent getting dressed and shooting him some angry looks while he is on the phone. After Phil is shot, he says to his partner, “we won.” The partner has a strange look on his face.

Sociopath Tony ultimately gets lucky again, as he did throughout the series. This time his pals were the FBI?

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