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Your Gay Uncle posted:I think of the saddest scenes in the entire show is in Pine Barrens when Tony loses it and starts screaming “ IS THERE ANYWAY THE PACKAGE SURVIVED” and “I have a meeting with Slava in an hour I could be walking into an ambush” and the camera pulls back a little bit and you can see AJ sitting in the tv room and can hear everything. I think it’s one thing to hear rumors that your Dad is in the mafia , but to hear him scream about getting killed and talking in code that even AJ could figure out means “ did you kill this guy” is another. He has this terribly pained faced while he’s listening to Tony and you can tell for the first time he’s really coming to terms with the fact that his dad is a gangster and has people killed on the regular. drat, I never noticed that, I was too busy laughing at the fuckin' ketchup packets. Nice spot!
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Nov 30, 2019 03:50
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writers: "ok so what do we get Jean Cusamano to say to show she only vaguely remember's Carmella's daughter" writers: "well what's like a meadow?" head writer: "call her something like 'fielder' but less stupid" *head writer leaves* writers: "everybody good with 'fielder', then?"
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Nov 30, 2019 13:29
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I always figured that was part of the Cusamanos being kind of lovely towards the Sopranos. Bruce is openly dismissive and contemptuous of Tony when he has food poisoning.
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Nov 30, 2019 13:57
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Jean Cusamano has a twin sister called Joan. Yugh.
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Nov 30, 2019 14:32
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Nice to see Robert Funaro(Eugene, who will be heavily featured in the next Season 6 opener) show up in a small role in The Irishman.
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Dec 2, 2019 17:02
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Charmaine Bucco too.
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Dec 2, 2019 17:13
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As i'm doing this rewatch with everyone, and thank you Jerusalem for doing these it's great to bring friends together.... The opsec of these guys is really bad. I get that a plot point of the show is no one gives a poo poo about the Jersey mafia after 9/11 but let's just take apart the Adriana hit. Tony calls the house line(should be bugged) of an informant that is currently trying to get her husband to go in to witness protection. He tells her that Chris tried to kill himself and gives the name of her murderer that is coming to pick her up ON A LINE THAT SHOULD BE BUGGED. The Pine Barrens example above always stuck out to me as well. Tony doesn't really use great codes on the phone when he's talking about killing people. I mean poo poo the worst i ever got involved in was large E/LSD sales(ironically during the Soprano's years) and we did not talk about poo poo on the phone except meet times. And no one was getting murdered.
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Dec 2, 2019 17:42
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I think the fact that they show Tony calling from a payphone is the shows shorthand for "they're being careful" without having to explain away every possible precaution they need to cover.
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Dec 2, 2019 18:18
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Was AJ's torn shirt *really* $40, or did Carmela just not know the price of a shirt Cuz, g'drat. Here, in 2019, at the age of 30 something, I ain't got a shirt that costs that fuckin's much. And yeah, s01e01 should tell you all you need to know about their understanding of opsec. But also remember that they didn't have everything tapped back then. Heck, PRISM started 2007, and the UDC didn't even get built until 2011.
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Dec 2, 2019 19:03
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It was prob some bougie Ralph Lauren type poo poo
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Dec 2, 2019 19:17
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I like how they call themselves "soldiers" but they're incredibly undisciplined, lazy and selfish and constantly go off on their own tangents to run their own operations that butterfly effect out in crazy ways because nobody really knows what anybody else is doing at any given time. The way they romanticize themselves and their lifestyles is simultaneously hilarious but also deeply disturbing.
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Dec 3, 2019 02:42
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Fragmented posted:As i'm doing this rewatch with everyone, and thank you Jerusalem for doing these it's great to bring friends together.... The one that got me was in the second half of the final season you see Tony rides around with a sawed off double barrel shotgun in his car. He gets pulled over with that it’s like 15 years federal prison time at minimum
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Dec 3, 2019 02:50
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I think that was more a comment on his current mental state and his situation re: New York.
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Dec 3, 2019 07:19
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Fragmented posted:As i'm doing this rewatch with everyone, and thank you Jerusalem for doing these it's great to bring friends together.... Even if they were bugging that line it would be hard to pin a murder on Tony or Sil without a body. I think we can safely assume Sil would be competent enough to get rid of the body without loving it up. They could put a tail on Sil after hearing that conversation I guess and maybe that would have saved Adriana's life since Sil would have noticed the tail and not done her in right there.
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Dec 3, 2019 08:06
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Ginette Reno posted:Even if they were bugging that line it would be hard to pin a murder on Tony or Sil without a body. I think we can safely assume Sil would be competent enough to get rid of the body without loving it up. They could put a tail on Sil after hearing that conversation I guess and maybe that would have saved Adriana's life since Sil would have noticed the tail and not done her in right there. A body... like maybe that dude of Junior's that they tossed at sea with just TWO loving CINDERBLOCKS AND A CHAIN? lol
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Dec 4, 2019 22:58
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Bedshaped posted:writers: "ok so what do we get Jean Cusamano to say to show she only vaguely remember's Carmella's daughter" Mulva
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Dec 4, 2019 23:35
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BrotherJayne posted:A body... like maybe that dude of Junior's that they tossed at sea with just TWO loving CINDERBLOCKS AND A CHAIN? this never struck me as weird but i guess it seems pretty unreliable. based on my extensive internet research it would work fine initially, and might be a decent permanent solution so long as you knife up the body real good to allow for gas escaping. maybe you string the chain down through his mouth and out his butt to make sure he doesn't slip off
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Dec 5, 2019 04:50
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Suxpool posted:this never struck me as weird but i guess it seems pretty unreliable. based on my extensive internet research it would work fine initially, and might be a decent permanent solution so long as you knife up the body real good to allow for gas escaping. maybe you string the chain down through his mouth and out his butt to make sure he doesn't slip off You should probably clear your search history. That cookie poo poo 
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Dec 5, 2019 12:16
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Suxpool posted:this never struck me as weird but i guess it seems pretty unreliable. based on my extensive internet research it would work fine initially, and might be a decent permanent solution so long as you knife up the body real good to allow for gas escaping. maybe you string the chain down through his mouth and out his butt to make sure he doesn't slip off It's the same thing they did to Pussy so I'm sure they've got things in hand.
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Dec 5, 2019 14:08
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Season 6, Episode 1 - Members OnlyTony Soprano posted:In the end your friends are going to let you down. Almost two years have passed between Season 5's finale and this, the first episode of Season 6. This passage of time is reflected in the story as well, over a year has passed and many changes have come as a result, shown in the excellent opening montage to the tune of Seven Souls, featuring the haunting voice of William S. Burroughs. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4c6Oh-8m2OI There's a lot to unpack in what we've seen in the opening 4 minutes or so of the above clip. Agent Harris has a new partner but is apparently sick; Vito has lost a tremendous amount of weight; Janice has become a mother yet again but appears to be suffering some level of post-partum depression; Bobby has taken up model trains as a hobby; Eugene and his wife have received apparently wonderful news in the mail; Finn still can't quite understand how the hell he scored so gigantically out of his league with Meadow; Ray Curto is keeping fit and healthy as he gets older; a long-haired AJ made it to college after all... Community College; and progress has continued on Carmela's spec house, which she shows off to Adriana La Cerva, who is of course dead and fades from view, awakening Carmela who realizes her missing friend being back in her life was only a dream. Some of the content seems pivotal, some seems irrelevant, but it is all important to either the events of this episode or those in the rest of the season to come. The song fades out with a transition to Tony Soprano in Uncle Junior's backyard, digging holes in the lawn and getting progressively more frustrated. A worried Junior watches him, wanting him to continue, desperate for Tony to dig up the 40k he buried from his share of the "Bohack's haul from the '70s". Tony has been digging long enough though, and come to the conclusion there's nothing there. Trying to be diplomatic, he suggests that maybe Junior didn't wrap it properly and it disintegrated over the last few decades. But Junior's attention is wavering, he momentarily forgets what they were even looking for, having to be prompted to recall, then gets nervous/annoyed when Tony calls him out over his fear of "him" finding it. Who is "him"? Junior tries to avoid the question but Tony presses it, and becomes infuriated when Junior says he is worried Pussy Malanga will find the money.   Here we see the terrible toll that dementia is taking on Junior. In some ways it would be easier if his mind was simply trapped in the past, but it isn't that simple. He knows who Tony is, he knows it is 2006 and that he has a retrial coming for which he needs money... but he's also convinced that a man he had killed six years earlier is still alive and actively coming after money Junior may have already spent decades earlier. He remembers that Tony has reminded him before that Pussy Malanga is dead which is why he was hesitant to bring it up, but he still believes Malanga is alive despite remembering being told he isn't. He's simultaneously aware AND muddled, and retreats back to his now obsessive desire to find the money, and Tony bites back his own frustration and anger to gently lead his once formidable Uncle back inside the house to prepare for his doctor's visit. Inside, as Tony washes his hands, Bobby and Janice arrive. Junior perks right up, wanting to see the baby, while Tony takes out his frustrations on his sister as the most convenient target, complaining about them being late and reminding them he has places he needs to be. Bobby wheels the baby in and apologizes, explaining loading the car up with the baby's things took up a lot of time, cheerfully asking if Tony remembers that from when he had newborns. Tony sneers that he didn't do any of that crap, mistakenly believing this somehow makes him superior to Bobby who clearly doesn't consider it a chore to spend time with his new daughter. Bobby helps Junior upstairs to get dressed for the doctor's visit, and Janice takes the chance to ask her brother how he feels their uncle is doing. Tony is irritated/worried that Junior can't remember if he ate, and obviously not for the first time Janice brings up that she feels he isn't competent and needs assisted living. Tony shuts that down right away, and when Janice points out Junior can afford to pay his own way he reminds her he has too many legal bills for that. Janice has thought of that too, he can sell his home and move into Green Grove, and that outrages Tony. Made safe by the intervening years since her death, Tony can now pretend that Livia's faults were a result of her being exiled to Green Grove. He ignores her reminder that Livia was actually thriving there as opposed to when she lived alone, and insists that Junior will stay in his own home: it is the least they can do to allow their Uncle to remain in the place he has lived for so many decades. Johnny Sack can only dream of the same. Unlike Junior he doesn't even have the benefit of house arrest, the FBI's case against him was strong enough that he remains in prison ahead of his trial. So he meets with Phil Leotardo to issue out orders and get news about what is happening outside, Phil having taken that step up to consigliere that Johnny feared he wanted, thanks to the void left by Jimmy Petrille's betrayal. However unlike Johnny probably feared, Phil has been surprisingly level-headed. Despite admitting that he's still hurting from his brother's murder by Tony Blundetto, he has kept things strictly professional and fostered a solid working relationship with Tony at Johnny's behest, keeping everything running smoothly. They're currently working on a new joint operation and there is some disagreement over the exact split, but while Phil is happy not to concede anything to Tony he's in full agreement with Johnny that it can remain amicable in spite of that. Johnny really lights up though when he sees Ginny arriving with her brother, and Phil happily notes that she is the rock that is keeping Johnny strong in these trying times. It seems to be true, as he explains Ginny's brother is along to fit him for contacts so he doesn't need to wear glasses in court: he's already developing a strategy for getting through the trial, not wanting to look weak and somehow seeming to expect he can escape conviction despite the FBI having far more on him than they ever had on Junior Soprano.   In the back of the Bada Bing, Tony receives a visit from Eugene Pontecorvo who wants to let him know about an ongoing issue his sports book in Roseville is having with Bobby Bacala of all people. In addition to that news though he has a surprise for Tony: four expensive David Yurman watches for Tony, Carmela, Meadow and AJ. Tony is happy of course, joking that some poor jeweler will be filing an insurance claim, but with a smile Eugene explains they're legit, and that's the other half of his news. To Tony's great surprise, Eugene reveals what we saw he and his wife recieve in the mail: an Aunt he was especially fond of has recently died out in California... and left him two million dollars as an inheritance. Tony, who was focused mostly on the watches, sits up and takes notice at that. They share an astonished laugh together, and Tony immediately recommends he invests it, and Eugene explains this is why he wants to talk to Tony. He mentions how much he and his wife and kids love Florida, and Tony assumes he means he wants to put some money on the street down there. But Eugene has something else in mind: retirement. Last season, Christopher explained to Adriana just how rare retirement actually was (outside of for a Boss, probably), making a note how Uncle Pat only got halfway out thanks to being near suicidal from a seemingly permanent case of hiccups. Now Eugene, who along with Christopher was one of only two guys from the DiMeo Family to get Made in years, is asking to retire. Tony puts on a pretense of cheer and tries to make a joke out of it, while Eugene with equal false cheer explains how he's getting close to 50 and his dad died at 52... his own mortality is weighing heavily on his mind. Tony, who once strangled a man to death while ranting that "you made an oath!", reminds Eugene of his own oath, and then points out that he's got financial responsibilities that need to be taken care of in New Jersey. Eugene has an answer to that in mind too though, they both already know Bobby has his eye on Eugene's sports book, and Benny is somebody who could step up to meet the other obligations. He mentions that Joe Bananas managed to retire and Tony snorts at Eugene comparing himself to that situation. But he doesn't laugh at Eugene's reminder of how far back they go (Catholic Youth Organization basketball!) and how much this would mean to his wife Deanne, and Tony stops pretending its a joke and frowns, clearly not happy but promising Eugene he will at least consider it. That's all Eugene could have hoped for, and the two hug before Eugene leaves. Back at the Pontecorvo home, Deanne is showing their daughter lovely homes in Florida they could potentially buy. When Eugene return she eagerly asks what Tony's reaction was, did he like the watches? Eugene is optimistic, Tony hugged him which he takes for a good sign. Deanne gives him even better news, the four bedroom place they both really liked is back on the market after losing the original buyer. The family radiates warmth and joy... until Eugene's son comes striding by. Up until this episode, we knew NOTHING about Eugene beyond the fact he got Made at the same time as Christopher and that he has zero issue with violence. Nobody exists in a vacuum though (at least not in good television) and now we know he has a wife, a daughter... and a troubled son. Eugene asks Robbie where he's going as his wife mumbles a quiet warning to stop, and Robbie gets into an argument with his father about wanting to know where he is going and who he going to be with, angrily yelling that he doesn't do drugs anymore. He storms out of the house and Eugene turns to see his daughter clutching to Deanne in fear while Deanne herself glares with disappointment/condemnation. Angry, upset, humiliated, he lashes out rather than address his feelings, hurling a candy dish across the room and smashing it into a thousand pieces on the wall. Money CAN buy happiness, but it's not a cure-all. Tony and Carmela, now over a year into their reconciliation, eat dinner at a Sushi Restaurant - Nori's - that has become "our place" for them both. Carmela admits to fantasizing about eating there and Tony quips that he does the same, sometimes during sex! She frowns but in a good-natured way. They haven't just settled back into a routine, their marriage is sailing along nicely and they're clearly once again comfortable with each other. Comfortable enough that Carmela happily recounts details of her recent dream featuring Adriana, which does put Tony's guard up slightly. He's only somewhat put out when she points out she needs him to call the inspector at the building department like she requested regarding her spec house, which currently has a stop-work order on it she is trying to reverse. He promises her that he will get onto it as soon as he can. But then the conversation turns back to Adriana, and Tony does his best to shut it down and move on without being TOO obvious about it. Unfortunately for him, the next turn of the conversation is about Ginny Sack's situation after she recently saw her. Not only is Johnny in jail, but Ginny is facing a potential asset seizure and could lose everything. Though she doesn't say it and may not even consciously be thinking it, it remains on her mind that Tony's death or imprisonment could leave her with nothing. But while Tony admits that Johnny's condition leaves him concerned at times too (Jimmy Petrille who betrayed him was like an Uncle to Johnny), he can't deny they've had an excellent year. Carmela has to agree, they've been lucky, but Tony thinks it is more than that: like far too many people, he associates financial success with destiny, proof of superiority and even at times divine providence.   Less lucky is Hesh and his son-in-law Eli, who have just finished dinner at a Chinese restaurant in Brooklyn. Hopping into their car, they're surprised when another car skids to a stop in front of them and several burly men step out and surround them. Locking the doors, they refuse to get out as the men shout at them to leave, calling them loving Jews which would make you think this was a random anti-Semitic attack... but one - Jimmy Lauria - refers to Eli by name, and Eli clearly knows him too: this was a planned move. They're safe in the car at least, or think they are until one thug stuffs a rag into the gas tank and lights it on fire. They immediately leap out of the car, Hesh running around and pulling the burning rag out as Eli is thrown across the car by the thugs and attacked, one yelling that "Gerry" told him to stay out of Brooklyn. Hesh approaches the men calling out to them to stop, and one punches him hard in the face and knocks him down. In a panic, Eli hauls himself to his feet and tries to race across the street to get away... and is hit by a taxi and sent sprawling across the road. The next day at Satriale's, Eugene sits in the sun outside with Benny, Christopher, Raymond and Vito, who is on his current favorite subject of conversation: his weight loss. He's constantly buying new outfits to keep up with his dropping weight and laughs he's going to need "clothing anonymous", which is a pretty lovely joke to make when sitting next to a recovering drug addict like Christopher. Happily, Raymond is there to save the day, as he looks Vito's atrocious shiny suit up and down and remarks he should have called his sponsor before buying that jacket. Everybody laughs and Vito attempts to deflect the jokes about his taste somewhat by pointing out that Eugene is wearing a "Members Only" jacket (a clothing brand particularly associated with mobsters in the 80s and 90s). Tony and Phil emerge from inside Satriale's, having apparently been working more on their new joint project, and Phil and Vito greet each other happily: it turns out that Vito is the husband of Phil's cousin and the two frequently mingle at family gatherings. As they talk, Christopher asks Tony how things are going and Tony admits that he's been surprised by Phil stepping up to the plate and looking after both Johnny's business AND Ginny while also keeping the Lupertazzi Family running as Acting Boss and not causing any issues with Tony over the Blundetto/Billy business. Christopher is less impressed, remembering Phil wanted to kill him not so long ago, but Tony darkly warns him that what's past is past and that's the way he wants it to stay. Something else from the past is coming back though, as he spots Agent Harris approaching up the street. He hasn't seen the FBI Agent for awhile, and is surprised to learn he was transferred away from the taskforce and into Terrorism, and has spent the last six months in Pakistan. Tony is shocked (I wonder if the info on Matush they got from Adriana lead to this?), so why is Harris back now? He admits, after introducing his partner Ron Goddard, he really had just been craving a veal parm hero. Vito had thought his weight loss might be from the Atkins Diet, but he'd actually caught a parasite while in Pakistan he hasn't been able to get rid of. Harris heads inside and Tony admits to an unsympathetic Christopher that he actually kind of feels bad for the man who has been trying for years to put him in prison. Just as an aside, it was near impossible to make television during this period without the "War on Terror" intruding, and Sopranos was no exception. It made sense, in the real world while the FBI was still keen on making arrests in organized crime, terrorism/homeland security became the number one law enforcement priority of the time. This is touched on in The Wire to some extent as well, but season 6 of The Sopranos makes some interesting points about the shift in focus and the willingness to overlook or even embrace organized crime at times in order to uncover potential (or mostly imagined) terrorist plots.   Tony returns inside and is handed the phone, learning to his anger about the attack on Eli and Hesh. Going to the hospital, he finds Eli unconscious in a neck brace with his mouth wired shut, Hesh's daughter Beth applying ice to his lips to provide whatever comfort she can. Hesh's nose is bandaged up but he's otherwise fine, and he asks Beth to get them a drink (hot water with lemon for Vito!) so he can fill Tony, Vito and Christopher in. He explains what happened, becoming infuriated by an innocent question from Christopher he mistakes for a joke. It seems Eli had been helping him loanshark out in Brooklyn and word had gotten back to Gerry "The Hairdo" Torciano, an associate of Phil Leotardo's. That doesn't make Vito Hesh's favorite person, considering he and Phil are cousins. Tony keeps everybody under control though, getting the pertinent info and then ordering Vito to put in a call to Phil and organize to meet with Gerry. Somewhat placated, Hesh apologizes to Christopher who waves it off like it was no big deal, another reminder that Hesh is one of the few people who can talk poo poo to a Made guy and get away with it. The Building Department inspector has come to the Spec House as promised, but unlike as promised Tony has not put in a call to fix things ahead of time. So he simply does his job as he should, inspecting the entire site while a nervous Carmela and Hugh flutter along in his wake. Finally he reaches his conclusion: there is no reason to overturn the stop work order, none of the problems initially raised have been fixed. Chief among them is that Hugh has used utility grade pine instead of Douglas Fir grade, something Hugh thinks is ridiculous, he's been building houses like this for years! He insists they get Pudgie Walsh on the phone to sort this out, and the inspector informs him that Pudgie Walsh is retired. Signing off on the form, he hands it to Carmela and tells her she's free to file another appeal but doubts the result will be any different, all she can do is start over with the proper lumber. He leaves, and Carmela is furious with her father, reminding him she asked him multiple times if everything was up to code, lamenting what starting over will do to her "cost basis". Hugh is dismissive of the whole thing as "bureaucratic bullshit", telling her in his day the inspectors would just turn a blind eye (that's TERRIBLE!) but becomes incensed when she says she hired him expecting better than this. Angrily he reminds her that he wasn't hired, she told him they'd be partners on this, and he storms out in a huff, leaving an angry Carmela to seethe in the skeleton of her dream. At Vesuvio's that evening, Tony eats with Paulie, Carlo, Silvio, Vito and Christopher. The place is near empty and Paulie is grumpy about the slowness of the service as Artie seems to be, as always, chatting up his hostess. Vito hasn't been able to get in touch with Phil despite their family connection, which leads Tony to believe Phil is ducking him over the Hesh business. The others seem more concerned about the decline of Vesuvio's though, complaining about the bread and the stagnant menu that hasn't changed in what seems like forever. Tony though is considering what other avenues he can take, including seeing Johnny's brother-in-law to get the message to him to order Phil to see Tony. As he sits eating, having recently told Carmela about what a great year they've had, he suddenly shoves his plate away angrily and complains about how he can never seem to catch a break. He sure as gently caress can though, as fate takes a strange turn. Raymond Curto meets with Agent Sanseverino, who has been moved on to working him as a CI following Adriana's "disappearance". In the car, Raymond with not a hint of guilt or fear hands her a tape he claims has Tony discussing the Angelo Giacolone murder. That's major stuff, and even though Raymond admits the audio quality isn't particularly good, it'll stand up in court alongside the testimony he's more than happy to give. He begins to tell her exactly what Tony said... and then slumps forward. Dead. Right in front of Sanseverino's horrified face. The Captain they've had working as an informant for years, the biggest coup of their entire investigation into the DiMeo Family, just up and died in spite of his apparent robust mental and physical health.  At Raymond's funeral, the entire top echelon of the Family are there to pay their respects to a man they had no idea was feeding the FBI information on all of them. Tony isn't happy that Christopher brought along his sponsor, who looks scummy and only appears to have stories that involve other addicts, but Christopher quietly informs Tony that he's also a great document forger in addition to all that spiritual/moral support stuff! Tony and Silvio talk up Raymond's strength of character, while Paulie is just happy he went fast unlike Dick Barone (Tony's "Partner" at Barone Sanitation) who died of Lou Gehrig's disease between seasons. Christopher cracks a joke about the irony of Lou Gehrig dying of Lou Gehrig's disease, irritating Tony who reminds them (Silvio was laughing too) that a man is lying dead on the other side of the room. They step outside to smoke, leaving Tony inside where he is approached by Eugene who greets him warmly and then apologizes for not giving Tony his "taste" of his Aunt's inheritance, handing over an envelope of cash. Tony "jokes" that he wasn't going to bring up this apparent faux-pas but thanks him for the thoughtful gesture, and promises he is still mulling over Eugene's request. Pretending not to be overly invested or concerned, Eugene thanks him and quickly moves on, while Tony happily greets Rusty Millio who it seems survived the fallout from Little Carmine's failed bid for leadership. While he doesn't seem to fear for his life, he makes no bones about the fact he won't share a room with Phil, who of course isn't present since he'd have to deal with Tony on the Hesh situation. That out of the way, Rusty asks if he heard the news about the Captain in Westchester who was working as an informant the last three years. Tony is disgusted, and both he and Rusty agree without understanding the irony that standup guys like the recently deceased Raymond Curto are a dying breed: the kind who would NEVER flip on their fellow mobsters no matter what! Eugene returns home from the funeral where he does his best to contain himself as Deanne pushes harder and harder for him to press the issue with Tony. They've already made an offer on the place in Florida, and it is both their dream to escape New Jersey and the mob and start over fresh. Their daughter steps into the doorway to ask why they're fighting, and they assure her they're just talking. He picks her up to take her to bed, and Deanne can't help but push again for Eugene to make Tony aware just what a huge opportunity this is for the Pontecorvo Family. Unable to admit himself he's too scared to push harder, as well as knowing that it would probably backfire, he pleads with his wife to please just leave Tony along to process things, that is the only way they're going to get the result they want. Tony, unable to deal with the funeral any longer and the dark thoughts it is conjuring up (Carmela mentioned earlier he was off his anti-depressants), didn't have to fight hard to get Carmela to agree to leave the funeral and go to Nori's instead. They gobble the food down happily, but when they leave the restaurant, Tony concerns Carmela when he offers up an old excuse: he has somewhere he needs to be and so he'd like her to drive herself home. More concerning than that though is the fact that she didn't bring her own car, they came together, and that's when the other shoe drops. A brand new Porsche drives into the lot and Little Paulie steps out and hands her the keys. Amazed and thrilled, she's savvy enough to realize this is partly his apology for not calling the guy at the Building Department, and manages to squeak out a tiny little,"I'm still mad about that" before flinging that aside to, as so often before, let the gift of a material luxury item sweep aside all her other concerns and fears.  
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Dec 5, 2019 15:38
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The next morning Tony staggers downstairs where AJ is eating at the table, informing Tony that Carmela went shopping with Rosalie. Meadow passes by on her way to the pool, Tony has set her up with an internship interview but it has been delayed a week, and he asks her keep him informed. Once she's gone though he turns his attention back to AJ and the coat he has hanging on a chair, one he plans to lend to his friend Matt. Thoughts of Jimmy Petrille on his mind, Tony warns AJ that he'll probably never see the coat again and explains that no matter how close you think you are to somebody, your friends will ALWAYS let you down in the end. The only people you can REALLY depend on are family. A dark and depressing message to give his son, but one that says far more about himself than anybody else. In therapy, Tony talks about that family. Uncle Junior's condition is weighing heavily on his mind, probably largely in part because Raymond's sudden death is probably the way Tony thought Junior himself would go: physically and mentally fine right to the end and then suddenly just dead. Instead, Junior's mind is going, he's no longer the sharp guy from Tony's youth or even the intelligent if frustrating rival/mentor of the last few years. Tony laments the lack of dignity that comes with age, pointing out he saw a nanny pushing a baby on the street recently but also an elderly person being pushed in a wheelchair and it disgusts(frightens) him that you could end up exactly where you started in life. Melfi points out the importance of being able to let go of ego and let your family care for you when you no longer can, and Tony grunts he'd rather be smothered with a pillow. She jumps right on that, reminding him that he tried to smother Livia with a pillow. Tony is bewildered at first and then angry, claiming with utter sincerity that this never happened! Sure he'll allow that he grabbed a pillow, but he's convinced himself he was only holding it for something to clench to work out his anger when he confronted her. He dismisses the idea of "assisted living" when she brings it up, insisting that Junior is his uncle so he'll take care of him. But Melfi doesn't want to get away from Livia, telling Tony it's time he faced up to the fact that he had a mother who didn't love him. Pitying his Uncle is a way to turn the blame for what Livia did back on Tony himself, and when Tony tries to turn that around by asking if HER mother was ever a problem she admits she could be controlling and manipulative too... but she also never tried to kill her. Tony actually blames himself(!), saying he pushed Livia over the edge(!!), and for once is on the other side of the running joke when Melfi reminds him he put her in a lovely retirement community and he snaps that it was a nursing home! But Melfi hits him with a truth he can't argue or deny: it's easier for him to blame himself for Livia and Junior's attempts to kill him than it is to accept the fact that he had a mother who didn't value him.  Tony visits Johnny's Optometrist brother-in-law - Anthony Infante - where he explains the Hesh situation and why he wants to get it dealt with. Paulie, Christopher and Silvio are milling about the story as Tony talks, trying on sunglasses, and Tony asks to try on some very expensive Georgio Armanis. He likes them but... oh! He forgot his wallet in his car, but he'll catch him next time! With that they all walk out wearing expensive lenses they haven't paid for, a clear message that they both don't rate him as any kind of threat AND that he better take their message directly to Johnny if he doesn't want any more trouble. In prison he's as good as his word. Having driven Ginny up there, Infante listens as she explains her worries to Johnny about how the IRS have shown up at the house wanting to inventory everything. Concerned, Johnny ponders selling the Maserati he dreamed his entire life of owning, and is humiliated when he hears that Christopher Moltisanti has been by and told Ginny he'd be happy to pay cash for it. That's the kid he himself humiliated during the whole war with Little Carmine, and now he's relying on him for liquidity. To make matters worse Infante finally passes on the message from Tony: the Hairdo is in a beef with the Jew, the guy from Jersey got involved and Phil isn't dealing with it. Johnny understands all of it but he's infuriated, this is the kind of thing he'd told Phil to keep a lid on, and now his brother-in-law (who he clearly doesn't respect, and who clearly wants desperately to be even tangentially involved in the mob) is bringing him this stuff? Ginny snaps at him not to be rude to her brother and he bites his tongue, not wanting to upset her. To try and cheer him up, she hands him an envelope of photographs from their daughter's Wedding Shower, and with obvious adoration he looks through them, trying to contain hs emotion to see his wife and daughters living a life he can't be involved in. On Johnny's order, Infante has called Phil and things have finally been organized. Tony, Christopher and Vito wait at the Bada Bing for Phil, who even now makes a point of showing up late. They step outside, Phil joined by Gerry "The Hairdo" Torciano and Jimmy Lauria (who gave Eli the beating), where Phil acts like he only just found out about everything AFTER Infante gave him Johnny's message. He assures them the whole thing was a misunderstanding, and that had Gerry known Eli was associated with Tony he would never have sent Jimmy after him. But Tony doesn't believe Eli wouldn't have given him Hesh's name, and Gerry promises that he thought Eli was a civilian, when he asked him who he was he "high-handed" him and didn't give Hesh's name. Jimmy is quick to step in and remind them that they weren't the ones who hit Eli with the car, that was a hit-and-run, and as it always does things come down to money. Phil and Gerry agreed 25k would be a good price to pay, and when Tony balks at this low amount, it is clear that was Phil's lowball as he immediately offers 50k like it's no big deal. Tony agrees this is more appropriate, but Phil then takes the opportunity to shift to the subject he's been forced to hold off on while avoiding Tony's calls: the split on the new office park co-development project. As mentioned earlier in the episode, Tony has been assuming the same split as they had on the Esplanade, but Phil thinks it should be 65-35. Vito makes a token effort to point out that the extra costs Phil is claiming make this necessary would be passed on to his drivers anyway, but Tony ponders for a moment and then agrees to the deal. Vito leaves with Phil and the others to catch up on family business, and Christopher complains that he doesn't understand why Tony caved to Phil. Tony corrects him, he hasn't caved, he's strategized. With Phil as Acting Boss, Tony means to keep Johnny happy. Because if Johnny is happy then he'll maintain pressure on Phil to remain civil and business-like. After the bad taste left following the Blundetto/Billy situation, the last thing Tony wants is to have Phil with access to 200 "soldiers" coming after them, even if Christopher does claim to not be scared of that idea.   Back inside the empty Bada Bing, Eugene arrives with lunch but is disappointed to see Tony has already left. Left alone with Christopher, nervous and concerned about still not having an answer from Tony, he carefully asks Christopher if he's been told about what was discussed. Christopher has, he knows all about Eugene's desire to move down to Florida, but simply shrugs when Eugene timidly asks if he knows how Tony is leaning. Instead, he tells him that he's got a task he wants him to do, there's a gambler called Teddy Spirodakis who owes a guy called Fritzie in Boston money. Eugene assumes this is a simple collections job, but Christopher explains it's now gone past that point: it's "final notice" time and Christopher wants him to deliver it. Eugene is surprised but quickly assures Christopher he has no objection to the idea... except that he'll have to clear it with Vito as his Captain first. Christopher promises him that Vito will have no objection, and gets offended when Eugene questions if the order comes from Tony, angrily reminding him that HE is a Captain and he is the one telling him to do it. But he sweetens the pot too, if Eugene does this for him, he promises he'll put in a good word with Tony about Florida. He leaves, and Eugene - who is dreaming of getting out of the mob - finds himself now lined up to commit a murder. Tony returns to Nori's... by himself. Sitting alone at the table, he gorges himself on food, breathing heavily, stuffing his face. He told his son family was all you could rely on, but here he is "cheating" on his wife by going to "their" place alone. Eugene has a happier time at home as he and Deanne talk with their real estate agent about their dream home in Florida, pointing out issues that needed looking at, Eugene confidently demanding 2k get taken off the asking price since he'll need to re-wire the pool house in its current state. Their agent is accommodating and confident herself, assuring them that since they're responding to the owner's counter-offer on their offer they are perfectly within their rights to ask for whatever they want (plus the last buyers fell through!). "If we lose this house I'm gonna die" jokes Deanne, and she and Eugene kiss each other, still riding high on their dreams, not knowing how cruel her statement will prove to be. Back at home, Tony stops in the en suite to check his weight on the bathroom scales, and is unsettled to see he is up at 285lb, an enormous weight. He slips off his shoes and then his pants as if they weigh 35lb, and manages to get himself down to 280, which is still far too high but at least isn't QUITE so close to looping all the way around the entire scale anymore. Going downstairs after getting dressed, Carmela asks what he wants for dinner and he says they'll go where she likes, and she admits she hasn't been able to stop thinking of Nori's. Tony is less keen, admitting without any sense of guilt that he was there already today, not with anybody else but just by himself. She struggles to hide her disappointment, confusing Tony who assures her it is still their special place, clearly thinking she's upset because she suspects he went there with a goomar. She guesses the same, and without coming right out and saying it makes it clear that is NOT what has her upset. She has to explain that it was nice to have something that was just for the two of them, a place away from their kids or her parents. Not really grasping the significance, Tony says they can still go if she really wants to but of course he's spoiled the magic now. While she keeps on a smile and doesn't get mad at him, even Tony can tell he's hosed up somehow. As he leaves, he asks her how the car is, thinking that'll cheer her right back up again and put everything right, but all she offers is a thin smile: nothing passive aggressive, she is trying not to be upset, but Tony's face falls as she turns away, simultaneously worried and irritated that she's upset, still not quite grasping that is a problem of his own making.   Eugene goes to a chicken place in Boston at night, wearing his Member's Only jacket zipped up, one gloved hand in his pocket. He seems to casually notice somebody as he waits at the counter, and saunters over with a smile and greets the man, asking if his name is Teddy. Teddy, an overweight guy who seemingly has zero idea of just how much loving trouble he is in, looks up and smiles broadly, not knowing who Eugene is but apparently happy to make a new friend... and Eugene pulls a gun out of his pocket and fires three times, blowing Teddy's brains out all over the window. With complete ease he makes a point of dropping the gun on the ground of the diner before calmly walking out, wearing gloves, no cameras around, knowing that everybody will be too shocked by the suddenness of blood and death to remember anything about him. He gets into his car and drives away through the rain , the only sign that there's something deeper beneath his poker face the moment he notices a splash of blood on his cheek and smears it off with his fingers, wiping them on the roadmap he followed to get up to Boston. Another day, Carmela visits Ginny at her home, worried because she'd been calling but getting no answer. Ginny admits that some days she simply doesn't answer the phone because of creditors calling up trying to get their money/her assets. Carmela seemingly has come over to do a nice thing, wanting to treat Ginny to a spa day, but she makes a point of looking over at her car first before mentioning casually that she through they could drive up here. Ginny of course can't help but notice that Carmela has a new Porsche, and she compliments her on it. Carmela, who probably is genuinely trying to be a good friend to Ginny but just can't help her, beams and nods happily. After Tony's "betrayal" she wanted to feel better herself and showing off her new toy is just the way to do that, but like Tony other people end up getting their feelings hurt even if that wasn't the intention. At the back office of the Bada Bing, Silvio is trying to read the newspaper while Vito goes on endlessly about his exercise program and Eugene plays pool. Vito thinks Tony should come exercise with him, what if he was to have a heart attack!? Silvio remains as non-committal as possible, and is relieved when one of the strippers pops in to tell Vito he's parked in the handicapped spot again, one used by a former Judge who is a regular patron. He gets up and leaves, which gives Silvio the chance he needed to bring something up to Eugene. After reading a joke out of the paper, Silvio "casually" mentions that Tony asked him to speak to Eugene about the "Flordia thing"... it's a no-go. Just like that, without even having the balls to say it to his face, Tony has wiped out Eugene's dream. Eugene is devastated, and asks if he could at least speak to Tony. Silvio shakes his head, they can't accommodate his desire to retire because he's "part of the team", and Tony isn't in a position to be bothered because he's... out on his new boat. That rankles most of all, Tony couldn't even be bothered to tell Eugene to his face and instead he's out cruising about on his new boat while Eugene's dream dies? He reminds Silvio he just did "that thing", having clearly thought the murder was his cost for getting out, but Silvio shrugs again: that's not his department. But Silvio is also clearly uncomfortable about being given this lovely duty as the bearer of bad news, making his way inexorably towards the door as Eugene asks if they worry he might ever talk about crimes, especially considering the one HE just committed. Again, Silvio has no answers, only Tony's directive. He finally escapes through the door, leaving behind a shattered Eugene to consider his situation. He's not helped by Vito returning, with no knowledge of what has just gone down and instead picking up where he left off explaining that Tony's health should be a concern and he could die of a coronary "or cancer" and hey... maybe Vito himself, now one of the top earners for the Family, might become the Boss! Eugene could care less about Vito's fantasies when his own have been denied.  On the Stugots II, Tony is interrupted by a phone-call from Barbara who is at Junior's, where she's meant to be the one scheduled to keep an eye on him. But her husband Tom inhaled noxious chemicals on film location after a smoke effect went wrong, and Tony immediately insists that she go to be with him. The trouble is, Junior is having a bad day, he's agitated and nauseous and is insisting she not go. Tony suggests she call Janice or Bobby to come over, but she already tried that and Janice told them it wasn't possible and didn't/wouldn't elaborate why. Tony fumes to hear this, noting that he's out on his boat, and Barbara apologizes which he quickly accepts, not wanting to guilt his baby sister who has always done everything she can to make her own way and not be a burden/responsibility for him. He assures her again she can go, then tries to put a call through to Janice, but his phone is low on battery and dies before she answer (or not). Enraged, he tosses his phone into the seat, and if you asked him to compare his problems with Eugene's he'd probably say he was getting the worse end of the deal. Bobby is working happily on his model trains in the garage when Janice strides up with the baby, snarling that she wants to throw all of it in the garbage. He asks her obviously not for the first time not to belittle his hobby, and Tony arrives just in time to hear them arguing about Bobby intending to go do his collections instead of go with Janice to an appointment. He chooses to ignore that Bobby wants to do his job FOR TONY'S BENEFIT so he can angrily proclaim that they're loving about while he has been forced to abandon his day on the boat. Janice throws that back on Tony, reminding him that she already told him a week earlier that today was the day she'd be taking baby Nica to a pre-school meeting. She also refuses to let him turn his nose up at the idea that she'd be worried about this stuff with a 15-month-old, pointing out that nobody was more competitive about this kind of thing than Carmela was with AJ. Tony points out that didn't exactly work out well, and keeps looking for excuses as to why he doesn't have to be the one to look after Junior: Why do BOTH of them have to go? Why can't they call the nurse? Janice, moody herself, throws answers back for all of them, though the one about the nurse has a nasty touch of racism to it, and Bobby can't take anymore and finally declares that he'll do it. Now that Tony has actually had somebody step up and agree to do the thing he doesn't want to do... he snaps,"gently caress it!" and storms off complaining that if you want something done you have to do it yourself. But as he strides away, Janice gets one last dig in that enrages him (because it is true), he was the one who was opposed to Junior getting assisted living. Turning back, Tony glares at them both, points a finger and hisses that they'll "talk" later, and then storms out again. Nobody covered themselves in glory here, they were all working their own agendas and trying to score-points (yes even Bobby, who is forever torn between defending his wife and not disrespecting the Boss). At Vesuvio's, Carmela has a meal with... Angie Bonpensiero. She's dressed up and looks great, though she admits that with the hours she works at the Body Shop she doesn't have time to date. Artie brings over the bill, telling them the dessert was on him, and then points out how nice it is to see them being friends again. Laughing, they admit neither can remember what their falling out was over (loving nothing, they all abandoned her after Pussy "went into Witness Protection" and enough time had passed they could stop feeling bad and start blaming her by association). Artie agrees, reminding them that he and Tony went for a few months without speaking to each other, and then throws in an unexpected curveball: he and Charmaine are getting back together! They're surprised and delighted, but not as much as Artie, who notes they're both very happy without mentioning the fact it was him who forced the separation in the first place because of his dumbass midlife crisis. Eugene has returned home to Deanne to give her the bad news, and do his absolute best to try and salvage the situation. She's distraught but he keeps pushing on, coming up with a mad plan to purchase a home in Livingston or North Caldwell so they can be closer to Tony. That'll be good for him, and the new schools and new friends will be good for her and the kids. They can afford to live up there with the money they have, he could even make Captain, but that's not what Deanne wants. She wants out, for all of them, and when he keeps pushing that this could be better than Florida which has its negatives, she hits him with the big guns. She shows him the drug kit she found under Robbie's bed. For just a moment Eugene's resolve wilts and he stares with desperate sadness at the proof of his son's continuing addiction... and then he forces on a smile and asks her if she thinks Florida would be any better, it's the drug capital of the country! Revolted, she harangues him for constantly coming back to Tony getting to make this decision for them. He should just kill Tony if that's the obstacle, and she sneers that she's fully aware he's capable of it and that he's done it before, he should just kill him because Tony Soprano is nothing but a piece of poo poo. She backs up nervously when Eugene rises up and towers over her, but appeals to him once again with a reminder that the money is THEIR money, not Tony's. It has nothing to do with him, they shouldn't need his permission to leave Jersey and go to Florida. It's a naive belief, but there's more truth to it than Eugene would like to admit: a large part of what keeps the mob running is the belief that there will be deadly repercussions for not towing the line, an ironic truth given that they control their victims largely through fear of what could happen. So Eugene again jumps back to try selling her on his panicked shift to wanting to buy in New Jersey instead of Florida, and she walks out of the room in disgust.   Junior is watching Paths of Glory in the dark when Tony arrives, turning on the light when Junior suspiciously demands to know who it is. He's lost the upper plate on his dentures and snaps angrily when Tony says they're probably upstairs, then complains about people calling and hanging up. Tony tries to calm him, saying they'll find his dentures and that the calls are probably from salespeople, but can't help but crack a joke about Pussy Malanga when Junior hisses that he knows who is calling. Regretting it almost as soon as he said it, Tony suggests Junior go upstairs and find his teeth while he prepares him something to eat, suspecting he hasn't eaten since Barbara left. As he heads into the kitchen, Junior growls that he knows he had a banana in there, and Tony bites his tongue and promises they'll find that too. Eugene, still trying to find some one-size-fits-all solution, eagerly pops into the room where Deanne is silently weeping, and tells her that he's figured it out. They'll buy a condo in Florida, and he'll take another run at Tony to request retirement again in six months or a year. Deanne can't believe what she's hearing, especially when Eugene suggests she and the kids could maybe go ahead and shift while he remains here for another year or maybe two at which point everything "could" be different. So desperate that he even seems to have taken on Vito's mad ramblings, he points out Tony might even be gone! His phone goes off and a disgusted Deanne tells him to go ahead and take it, sarcastically remarking,"His master's voice". Moving into the bathroom, he answers, but it's certainly not Tony given the aggressive tone he takes. He drives to a pre-arranged spot and leaves his car, hopping into the one waiting for him... and is introduced by his handler to FBI Agent Sanseverino. Yes, Eugene is another CI, and he's been hauled in because he hasn't been in touch recently and with a major loss they suffered recently they're looking to make him their "designated hitter". Eugene immediately reads between the lines and figures out what nobody else ever did: Ray Curto was a cooperator. They don't confirm it, but they push that they need him here, and when he starts to bring up Florida and assures them he'd return for any trial, they cut him off immediately. Unlike Tony they say it to his face, but the message is the same: he can't go to Florida, he has to let that idea go. His last avenue of potential escape gone, a miserable Eugene accepts his fate, and they begin pumping him for information on recent Union rulings by Tony and who if any Made guys from New York were present. Returning home, Eugene sits up drinking in the living room and looking through photo albums of happier times with his young family. He stares with love at photos of he and the children on the beach, and collects a sea-shell from a table: a memento of a time of pure happiness. He's clutching it in his hands when he steps off the stereo speaker in the garage and drops sharply, the noose around his neck pulling tight but not snapping the bone. Instead he jerks his body wildly and claws at the rope pulling tightly into his neck, legs trying to find purchase again on the overturned speaker, struggling and gasping for air that won't come as the last miserable moments of his life pass in excruciating agony and panic until finally with a few last spasms his body finally goes still, his bladder releases and urine purs down his pants-leg. It is a depressing, unflinching and distressing 30 seconds or so of a fixed camera angle showing the passing of a character who until this episode was largely just one of the background members of the crew shooting the poo poo or cracking wise with the odd passing moment of intense violence or intimidation.  Make no mistake, Eugene wasn't some innocent victim of circumstance. He was a Made guy in the Mafia, and the life he lived and the luxuries he enjoyed came at the expense of others, often through violence. He (and to some extent, Deanne) embraced and enjoyed the benefits of the mobster lifestyle, and it wasn't until they lucked into some legitimate money that they decided they wanted to leave that all behind. They had genuine reasons and a genuine desire, but it was never going to just be a matter of deciding one day they would just leave and start a new life over (especially not in loving Florida). But nobody deserves to reach a point of utter hopelessness like Eugene reached, and what makes it especially galling is that his life and happiness was barely an after-thought to Tony. When he said you can't rely on friends, I said it said more about him than anybody else. That's certainly true, because with friends like Tony who needs enemies? This by itself would make a hell of an ending for the first episode of the sixth season... but it's not over yet. Back in Uncle Junior's home, Tony prepares pasta in boiling water while listening to swing music on the radio. He moves to the foot of the stairs and calls out to Junior that dinner will be ready in 10 minutes. Junior's quavering voice comes back demanding to know who is there, and Tony quips that it is Artie Shaw (whose music is playing on the radio). Junior yells back at him not to go anywhere and Tony promises he isn't, then returns to the lounge to look over the music. He hears Junior coming down the stairs and turns to ask if he has any wine... and with a toothless scowl and a face twisted by rage Junior snarls something in Italian to "Malanga" and pulls the trigger on the gun he is clutching in his hand. With a scream of pain Tony stumbles backwards over the furniture and crashes into the floor, seeming to startle Junior for a moment before instinct kicks in and he flees up the stairs. Knowing that he needs to hide the gun, he slips it under the bed in lieu of a sewer hole, then quickly retreats inside the cupboard and hunkers down into a corner, fighting back tears. There's some part of him that realizes what he's done is wrong, but he has no control anymore, he's living simultaneously in two different times with a lifetime of instincts holding sway over both. Meanwhile his nephew, who he once tried to have assassinated and who he has since become a quasi-mentor to, lies on the ground a floor below, a bullet in his belly and his own blood all over his hands. His own instincts taking over, Tony struggles to his knees using the chair for support and lunges to the phone, but it proves too much and he falls backwards again, his death grip on the phone ironically causing him to tear the cord out of the wall and send the phone itself flying across the room. As her husband lies bleeding out on the floor, Carmela leaves Vesuvio's with Angie and they head to the parking lot laughing. Angie is of course extremely impressed with Carmela's Porsche, and Carmela beams again at the chance to show off her new present... until Angie without malice happily explains that she considered buying a Boxster for herself but ended up going with the Corvette. Carmela immediately realizes the lovely Corvette behind Angie belongs to her, and more than that she bought it... herself. Not a gift, not a make-good, she earned and purchased it with her own work and success. She mistakes(?) Carmela's question for asking if she leased it, and explains her accountant (she has one of those, too!) told her it was better to own outright. They hug and kiss and get into their respective cars, though Carmela's feels a little less impressive to her somehow now. At Junior's, Tony on some instinctual level understands what has happened. His Uncle didn't try to kill him, he tried to kill Pussy Malanga. So he calls out to the man who shot him, bellowing to him to call 911. But Junior is in no state, even if he recognizes that is Tony now some part of his brain will still be telling him it is a trick, or bombarding him with warnings that some threat is out there he must avoid. So Tony drags himself agonizingly to the kitchen and with what little strength he can muster crawls up enough of the wall to pull the reciever off the phone. With a heroic effort he jabs 911, but that's all he can do and he collapses to the floor again. The phone rings and the 911 operator is heard asking where is the emergency, but Tony Soprano doesn't answer. He simply lays, barely breathing, blood pouring out of his stomach, and the first episode of the last season of The Sopranos ends with the lead character seemingly at death's door.   Now THAT is a season premiere! Season 6: Members Only | Join the Club | Mayham | The Fleshy Part of the Thigh | Mr. & Mrs. John Sacrimoni Request... | Live Free or Die | Luxury Lounge | Johnny Cakes | The Ride | Moe n' Joe | Cold Stones | Kaisha Season 1 | Season 2 | Season 3 | Season 4 | Season 5 | Season 6.1 | Season 6.2 Jerusalem fucked around with this message at 15:27 on Apr 23, 2020 |
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Dec 5, 2019 15:39
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Excellent write-up as usual, Jerusalem!  The ending of the season premiere caught me off-guard the first time I saw it in 2007/2008. What an amazing way of opening a season. The episode coming up is one of my favourites and its ending plays a huge part in that. Best use of a Moby soundtrack ever.
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Dec 5, 2019 16:09
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This episode made me wish we'd gotten more out of Robert Funaro over the years.
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Dec 5, 2019 16:40
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Dawgstar posted:This episode made me wish we'd gotten more out of Robert Funaro over the years. We originally were before the third season was heavily rewritten. That's why he's made alongside Christopher and why he's in the main cast list for the entire third season before getting punted to the end credits by season four. I remember some people turning the episode off after Eugene's suicide because they found it so disturbing and ended up missing the actual ending.
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Dec 5, 2019 17:06
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Pope Corky the IX posted:We originally were before the third season was heavily rewritten. That's why he's made alongside Christopher and why he's in the main cast list for the entire third season before getting punted to the end credits by season four. I seem to recall he originally got the part of Ralph Cifaretto which ended up not working out, leading him to be replaced at the last hour.
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Dec 5, 2019 17:18
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Is it ever made clear that Agent Harris has something worse wrong with him than a ‘parasite’? His health comes up a couple of times iirc, but I can’t remember if it’s ever made explicit?
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Dec 5, 2019 17:25
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Not that I know of, he seems to be better by the second half of the season. And the back and forth between Tony and Eugene is actually based on truth, as James Gandolfini and Robert Funaro have been friends since they were in school together. Funaro told a few good stories at the con.
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Dec 5, 2019 18:28
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Eugene was always my favorite background character on the show. Its a shame Funaros only been in a few tiny roles here and there. Interesting that they had bigger plans for him in season 3. Hes barely visible in the scene in "...To Save Us All from Satan's Power" where he shows up with Junior to the sit down with Jackie Sr. Implying hes been an associate in Juniors crew since at least 1995 (or whenever that scene takes place) and got tossed over to the Aprile crew (I guess Tony took Gigi) having been spared the fate of most of Juniors other guys. 
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Dec 5, 2019 19:13
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gently caress just got to the review with the Livia demon on the staircase last night. Just scrolling past the loving picture gave me a sense of dread... I probably lost 4 hours of sleep on that. Ugh.
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Dec 5, 2019 19:18
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banned from Starbucks posted:Eugene was always my favorite background character on the show. Its a shame Funaros only been in a few tiny roles here and there. Tony basically raided Junior's crew by the beginning of the second season by taking Gigi, putting Eugene in with the Apriles, and killing Spoons, leaving only old guys like Murf Lupo, Beppy Scerbo, etc. Oh, and Bobby.
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Dec 5, 2019 19:28
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I hope things ended up ok for Murf and Beppy.
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Dec 5, 2019 19:50
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banned from Starbucks posted:I hope things ended up ok for Murf and Beppy. It's sad looking back on the way Junior called Murf a poor prick because he didn't realize he had salad dressing on his shirt, when Junior ended up much worse in the end. EDIT: Also, do yourselves a favor and look up the song "Seven Souls" by Material w/William S. Burroughs, the episode cuts it down by a few minutes and the entire thing is excellent. Pope Corky the IX fucked around with this message at 20:37 on Dec 5, 2019 |
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Dec 5, 2019 20:05
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Pope Corky the IX posted:Oh, and Bobby. Yeah, I love how Tony assumed Bobby was just some useless fat gently caress who was only around because of his dad's rep, and slowly comes to realize he's competent and eventually ends up considering him about the most useful person in his entire organization. BrotherJayne posted:gently caress just got to the review with the Livia demon on the staircase last night. Just scrolling past the loving picture gave me a sense of dread... I probably lost 4 hours of sleep on that. Every so often I show that scene to people. Even those who haven't seen The Sopranos or aren't aware of the context get freaked out/impressed by it, it's an absolutely incredible shot just visually but it also is fantastic in the overwhelming sense of dread it generates, especially with the stonemason's reaction to her.
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Dec 5, 2019 23:53
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Jerusalem posted:Every so often I show that scene to people. Even those who haven't seen The Sopranos or aren't aware of the context get freaked out/impressed by it, it's an absolutely incredible shot just visually but it also is fantastic in the overwhelming sense of dread it generates, especially with the stonemason's reaction to her. I swear they used infrasonics or something on that scene. Motherfucker starts stepping through the door and I'm on my feet screaming at the TV, basically doing the "wake me the gently caress up and get me the gently caress out of here" routine. Mulholland Drive can't hold a candle to it.
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Dec 6, 2019 00:08
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Jerusalem posted:
This episode was such an insane shocker when it aired, the shooting came out of nowhere and was so realistically brutal, it truly was an incredible premiere. Also, woo! We are about to do the coma episodes, some of my favorites but I know they are divisive among fans.
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Dec 6, 2019 02:59
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BrotherJayne posted:gently caress just got to the review with the Livia demon on the staircase last night. Just scrolling past the loving picture gave me a sense of dread... I probably lost 4 hours of sleep on that. I need to go back to where the thread was talking about it because I dropped out for awhile and missed it, but if you guys are talking about what I think you are, Are you sure that isn't just some lady? What makes her a demon?
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Dec 6, 2019 03:02
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Zaphod42 posted:I need to go back to where the thread was talking about it because I dropped out for awhile and missed it, but if you guys are talking about what I think you are, It's not really a demon, it's a dream sequence of an incredibly disturbing Livia-shaped person standing on the stairs. It's one of those scenes that just causes dread, it is done so well and evokes a nightmare perfectly.
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Dec 6, 2019 03:26
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I think of her as the monster that cast a long shadow over Tony's entire life, the manifestation of his fear of her when he was a child and she was the daunting giant who could not be reasoned with or handled. A representation of his own powerlessness, more a creation of his own mind than the true Livia, but no less disturbing or frightening because of it. Livia was a flawed and often repulsive human being, but she was only human in the end. But Livia the mother/monster? Oh that thing is going to live as long as Tony does, so long as he doesn't ever truly engage with his therapy as anything other than a bandaid.
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Dec 6, 2019 03:37
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Okay cool. I mean that scene was ostensibly some kind of purgatory so yeah, that read holds, I just wasn't sure it was a 'demon' per se.
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Dec 6, 2019 03:46
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Ishamael posted:
gently caress yeah! I love the 2? coma episodes.
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Dec 6, 2019 04:03
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