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Jerusalem posted:Yeah, I clearly got it completely wrong in that earlier write-up and this episode really threw it into sharp relief. I went back and added an addendum to the original write up for "Mr and Mrs John Sacrimoni request..." to point out my gently caress-up. Yeah, Junior doesn't get sent to the depressing state facility until "the Blue Comet" when Janice informs Tony that he's finally run out of money and they'd all have to contribute to keep him in the "nice" psychiatric facility.
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Apr 2, 2020 12:32
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Looking forward to the next review, even though I consider it the worst episode of the final nine. It's as if the writers stepped in poo poo, so to speak, when writing this episode.
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Apr 2, 2020 21:50
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escape artist posted:Looking forward to the next review, even though I consider it the worst episode of the final nine. It's as if the writers stepped in poo poo, so to speak, when writing this episode. The handheld camera in this episode is excessive and weird. It is a bit of a low ebb but still not a bad ep.
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Apr 2, 2020 22:41
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HBO is offering up free seasons of some of their shows, including The Sopranos and The Wire, if anyone's interested and is jonesing for a rewatch.
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Apr 3, 2020 15:04
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BiggerBoat posted:HBO is offering up free seasons of some of their shows, including The Sopranos and The Wire, if anyone's interested and is jonesing for a rewatch. What is this, amateur hour? You don't have them on your Plex and in constant rotation?
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Apr 3, 2020 16:04
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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lNlR3lfnLR8 Mob related
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Apr 3, 2020 16:52
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I can't believe how many Big Pussy sightings I missed when I first binged the show.
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Apr 5, 2020 23:35
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Season 6, Episode 16 - Chasing ItHesh Rabkin posted:He's the guy I call to deal with people like him. Tony and his crew are living it up at a casino, where Tony has just successfully pulled off a straight bet at the roulette table and won big. Everybody is gathered around shouting out their encouragement and egging him on, talking him up like he played it savvy as opposed to getting lucky. It's a chaotic scene, enhanced (perhaps too much) by the handheld camera-work, with shouting and lots of noise and other distractions plus a time limit on betting to "force" stupid decisions to be made quickly. When Tony decides to put it all on the SAME number most of the crew are shocked, until Silvio carefully agrees that you "have" to let luck like this ride. So the dealer spins and they all shout out in hope... and of course it's a completely different number that comes up because Jesus loving Christ why would you let it all ride on the same number twice in a row at the roulette wheel? Tony chomps his cigar and turns away acting unaffected, but his good mood has instantly disappeared. Vito Spatafore Jr (now played by a new actor) and a friend are loving about in a cemetery at night, getting their kicks in an entirely different way to Tony and his crew. Both are dressed all in black, with dyed hair and black lipstick: they're goths, and have come to the graveyard because I guess that's what they think they're supposed to do. Vito knocks over a tombstone (inscribed with the name of a television producer one of the show writers used to work for) and starts to lift it to do more damage when a flashlight illuminates the scene. The security guard yells at them to stop, so of course they immediately run away.   The two seemingly unrelated events come together a later day, when Marie Spatafore comes to visit Tony in the dining area of Satriale's as he is bitching to Silvio about horse racing. Silvio leaves them alone and Marie thanks Tony for agreeing to meet with her as well as all the help he's been so far after Vito's death. Tony likes people showing him gratitude and telling him he's a good person, so of course so that makes him smile. But when she starts telling him about Vito Jr acting out, about being accused of killing the neighbors' cat, and especially of her desire to sell up everything she owns and move herself and the kids to Maine, the smile drops. She reminds him he once told her to ask if she ever needed anything, and what she needs is 100k. She shakily hands over a crumpled piece of paper where she has scribbled her relocation expenses, essentially she can scrape together 80k after selling everything and paying all her debts, and she needs roughly 200k to buy the house in Maine. Tony, who likes being the good guy that people are grateful towards, swallows his alarm at being asked for 100k and offers a reassuring smile and an agreement that yes he COULD pay her the 100k... but there are other options to look at first. She's confused when he mentions Vito's Uncle, and when he says he means Phil she explains that her and Phil are only second cousins, he and Vito are only distantly related. But Tony isn't giving up his 100k that easily, and with that same reassuring smile says that before he does anything he should talk to Vito Jr. After all, he knows better than anybody that it is hard to substitute for a father (his father died when he was a fully grown man), but he does promise her that he will think about the 100k. Thus he fobs her off without explicitly denying her request. After all, he still wants her to remain pathetically grateful to him. All tact is gone once he goes to the back room though, complaining that Vito Jr is a whack-job. He explains Marie's plan for a fresh start elsewhere and Silvio - busy repairing an old lamp - grunts that this never works. His opinion isn't surprising, after all a significant portion of his employees at the Bada Bing probably showed up after leaving a lovely home life for a "fresh start" too. He suggests getting the kid a dog, and Tony - without mentioning the cat - turns that down, then gets into what is REALLY bothering him: why does HE have to pay for all this!?! Silvio wisely chooses not to answer and just lets Tony vent his bile about the situation, about being tasked to take care of his late Captain's problems, about how this should be on Phil, about how HE is the real victim here because one of his best earners got killed and now he has to fork out MORE money because of it? At no point does he seemingly grasp that his grumpy reaction to looking after a dead member of his Family is one that would probably be shared by any of his Captains if HE was dead and it was Carmela who needed help (in fact this already happened when he was in the coma and Vito and Paulie held back cash from her). Silvio, finally feeling it is safe, doesn't lose his poker face but simply notes that he agrees with Tony: this is NOT his problem. Tony's other problem is on the increase though. Later that night at the Bada Bing, nobody is paying attention to the strippers as they watch Tampa Bay vs. Buffalo in a football game. Tony has bet against Buffalo but they are looking strong, to the point that he's willing to settle for a Push if Tampa Bay can keep them within the 3 point spread and he'll at least get the money he bet back. But right as the game is ending Buffalo scores a touchdown and win by 4 points. Tony has lost his money, and is infuriated to hear a patron down on the floor celebrating the win, bitching that he probably "only" won $35 instead of the thousands Tony will have just pissed away. Paulie asks if he'd like a beer and Tony, maintaining his calm, says he thinks he's gonna grab a nap. He heads into the back room, and once alone he loses it. He smashes a lamp and hurls it across the room, upends and shatters a chair, smashes bottles and lets vent to his fury. As always, once the immediate satisfaction of unleashing his rage disappears he's left feeling foolish and empty inside. A common criticism of this episode is that Tony's gambling problem suddenly comes out of nowhere, but it is something that has steadily built up through the course of the series and especially in the first part of season 6 and the early episodes of this 2nd part of the season. It is also not present purely for its own sake, as will be touched on both explicitly and implicitly through the course of this episode.  Nancy Sinatra performs a private function, singing "Bossman" appropriately enough for the guest of honor: Phil Leotardo. Tony and his Captains are in attendance, and at first it seems as if Tony is enjoying the evening and appreciating the reflected glory of being in the same room as a Sinatra like he once did at the Executive Game. But as he watches Phil, his smile fades and his unease grows. Phil is beaming, happy, satisfied... but also smug. Arrogant even. This is a man who believes he has finally reached his deserved spot and intends to take full advantage. Echoes of Johnny Sack's change in demeanor are still relatively fresh in Tony's mind, and he actually liked Johnny. As the evening extends on further, Tony chats with Carlo at the bar, but is somewhat distracted by seeing Christopher smoothly talking about Cleaver's potential distribution with a Lupertazzi Family member just down the bar. When Silvio, Paulie and Bobby approach and note it's 11:30pm and wonder if he wants to go, Tony admits he wanted to be out of there an hour ago. But he can't leave without offering a final show of respect to the man of the hour, and it'll give him a chance to raise the Marie issue as well. So he approaches Phil, who is happily telling Nancy about being at the Telethon where her father reunited Dean Martin and Jerry Lewis. Noticing Tony, Phil is surprised he is going when the night is so young, and can't resist a pointed barb when Tony notes how long the trip back to Jersey is: he made it himself many times, but he won't be doing that anymore. Still, he gets up to say goodbye and Tony offers another warm congratulations. After all, he didn't want Phil in this position originally but quickly realized he was better than every other option, and the short tenure of Doc Santoro has only solidified this mindset. But when he starts to bring up the issue with Marie, he has to hold back his offense when Phil mocks him for wanting to ask for a favor ALREADY. In a complete reversal of Tony's hospital visit, Phil patronizingly tells him he needs to stop worrying so much about business and just enjoy life. Phil certainly is, and when Tony explains the Vito Jr situation Phil - who purports to be a man for whom family is everything -replies with a charming,"The turd doesn't fall far from the human being's rear end." He does agree however with Tony that throwing money at the situation isn't likely to solve it, and when a very restrained Tony reminds him of his family connection and his own insistence that HE is not going to be the one to pay for this problem, Phil agrees that he'll talk with Vito Jr. That was all Tony wanted, and he departs, leaving Phil to bask in Nancy Sinatra's presence and enjoy finally being on top of the mountain. Tony doesn't head straight home though. First he stops off at Hesh's home to have a drink and just enjoy chatting with an old friend without an agenda. Hesh was up, complaining that his enlarged prostate means he spends most nights up pissing and wouldn't wish it on his worst enemy. They settle down in comfortable chairs and Tony gives him the gossip on Phil's dinner, admitting he left as soon as he could and that he's worried about Phil's smug attitude. He had thought the two of them were getting on, and he's worried that it might be more than the immediate hubris of getting the top spot, he believes Phil might still hold a grudge from Billy's death. That worries Hesh too, he had assumed that feud ended with Tony Blundetto's death. Tony doesn't know for sure, and then sadly sighs that it's not something he feels entirely comfortable discussing with his top guys: he likes them all but he knows that whatever ties might bind them, he will never be their TOP priority over everything else, they all have an agenda. Hesh, unlikely Silvio, doesn't simply sit and absorb. He asks questions, he probes, he allows Tony to draw out how he really feels. It's not exactly therapy (the one time Tony tried that with Hesh it was a disaster) but it is helpful, the questions he asks are generally pointed enough to allow Tony to get to the heart of what he means even when he doesn't realize it himself. To this point, Tony elaborates that what he means is that he appreciates being able to come to Hesh's without having to worry about that type of thing. They raise their glasses to each other and Hesh assures him he's welcome any time. But then Tony gives him a gift, and it all goes to poo poo. Reaching behind his back, he pulls out... a Cleaver cap. Hesh, unimpressed, takes it and quickly tosses it aside, noting he thought it was something else. Tony complains that he can get him the DVD but personally he thinks it "paints an unflattering portrait of Italian-Americans" (really himself, of course, plus another chance for David Chase to mock his critics), but Hesh explains what he really meant: what about the 200k he loaned to Tony?   Tony suddenly "remembers", as if he had ever forgotten. Yes, he owes Hesh 200k and hasn't paid back a cent, and as Hesh points out, since there is no vig he can't just let the money go unpaid. Tony reacts like a child, petulantly pulling out a roll of cash to fork out whatever he has in a big dramatic gesture, asking if that will cover the vig as if Hesh had just demanded that. Hesh, realizing too late that he's infuriated Tony, tries to put the genie back in the bottle, insisting that Tony forget it, trying to play it all off as a mistake. But Tony insists, and actually stops being petulant for a moment to admit that it is his own fault for not being on it earlier. Nervously Hesh takes the cash, and alarm bells must be ringing when Tony suddenly declares it is time to go home. Tony assures him they're both still good, cracks a joke about leaving him to continue pissing, and heads out the door. Once Tony is gone though, Hesh's entire attitude changes. Returning upstairs where his girlfriend Renata is awake and waiting, he bitches and complains bitterly about being treated like poo poo for expecting HIS money to be paid back on time. She doesn't know why Tony needed any money in the first place, and with contempt he points out Tony's excessive lifestyle, his gambling, and most of all his boat, pointing out he paid 3.2 million for it over Hesh's objections, and it has no resale value. He knows that Tony didn't forget the money, either. He's seen this kind of avoidance of payments far too often in the past and knows where it can lead if not stamped on fast. He sneers at the 3k Tony has paid him, a point and a half on the vig is apparently ludicrously low in his field. Clearly no fan of Tony, Renata reminds him that she doesn't like him meeting with Tony so late because it always upsets him: clearly the 2-3 times we've seen Tony make late night visits have been far from the only ones. Tony attends a real therapy session, but Hesh remains on his mind. He asks Melfi if there are a lot of Jews in her "business" and points out how good they are with money. Melfi, somewhat startled by the question, doesn't reinforce his prejudice but points out that Jewish obsession with money is just another ugly stereotype (Tony was only just bitching about Cleaver being unflattering to Italian-Americans!). Tony agrees this might be true but HIS friend is Jewish and is obsessed with money, and he complains to her about Hesh asking him to pay back the money he borrowed, as if he expects her to agree with him that this was somehow a bad thing to do. It has opened him up to having to admit to more than he had previously told her though, as he acknowledges that he took out a bridge loan to help cover up some of his recent gambling losses. Those losses he had at least told her about, and she asks him a pertinent question: why not just stop gambling? His answer, which we'll come back to soon, is gigantically important. Tony tries to play down the impact these losses have had on him. In the complete opposite of reality, he claims that he actually puts on a bit of an act to the men in his crew about how badly the losses hurt, but if you couldn't lose then what would be the point? But that causes her to ask him another pertinent question: what exactly is he chasing when he gambles? Does he want the money or just the thrill of winning itself? He can't answer that, he simply shakes his head as if to say she wouldn't understand his mindset... he's probably right, but not for the reasons he is thinking. But as their session draws to a close, Melfi does the same thing that Hesh did, and that Marie did before him... she upsets his comfort zone. She points out that recently he's missed more appointments than normal, and she's not concerned about him giving notice in time or paying for the hours when he doesn't... she wants to point out that he's not taking his therapy seriously. He disagrees, pointing out that he hasn't suffered a panic attack since he was shot, and seems oddly mad when she notes that he isn't telling her anything she hasn't already noted and considered. When he tells her that these visits with her are an oasis in his week, she points out that therapy is NOT a vacation. Her point remains: he either takes his therapy seriously... or she ends it. Tony agrees, but like with Marie and Hesh earlier, his earnest agreement in words is not matched by his face. He's mad that she's taken him out of his comfort zone. He has grown increasingly less comfortable with the men he leads (Christopher especially, but even Paulie in a recent episode) and those people outside of or adjacent to "the life" that he looked to as lifelines are proving - like his children - to be their own people with their own thoughts, feelings, wants and needs that aren't lockstep or subservient to his own.   But leaving aside Tony for the moment, I just want to go back to her question to Tony about why he couldn't just stop gambling. "It's a big part of my life" he offered, and wouldn't be shaken from that mindset. There is a warning there for Melfi, not in terms of danger from Tony but rather to the efficacy of her treatment. Tony has been attending therapy with her for close to a decade now, and while the panic attacks have stopped many of his original flaws remain in place or have become more prominent. In some ways he's shown growth, but in many others regression. A question frequently asked is WHY did Melfi not only agree to take Tony on as a patient but to keep him and even re-take him on after previous "break-ups"? If you take her simply at face value: that she has a duty of care to help somebody who needs it... isn't Tony's answer to her question a giant red flag. "Why not just stop?" "Big part of my life" - that doesn't just apply to Tony's gambling, it applies to everything. His crimes, his infidelity, his anger issues (the panic attacks have stopped, but he still smashed up the back office of the Bada Bing), those are all a big part of his life too. Carmela meets with the buyers of her spec house, and in a perfect example of the incestuous merry-go-round of their lives it turns out that the people buying the home are... blood. Carmela's cousin Brian Cammarata and his wife Janine have decided to purchase the home, though not after a final once-over with a house inspector. He arrives and they lead him around the house, as Carmela nervously waits by the front door with her father who seems unfazed: for her, it's the biggest project of her life, for him it's just the latest in a long line of homes he has built. Phil has his talk with Vito Jr, taking him to Applegate Farm for ice-cream. But he's not happy with Vito Jr's backtalk, pulling away his silo to snap that his outfit and makeup makes him look like a "Puerto Rican whore". He doesn't mince words, Vito Jr makes him sick, he's devastating his mother and he needs to man up, stop bringing shame to a family that has had all it can take, and be the strong and masculine figure his immediate family needs right now. Vito sullenly grunts that he doesn't understand what Phil means, and flinches back when Phil warns him he'll get a smack if he talks like that. Worst of all though, having said his piece, he now loses all interest, openly looking at his watch before snapping at Vito to finish his silo since he can't bring food in the car. He's given what he thinks is a tough love directive to a confused young boy lashing out after the horrible death and public shaming of his father, and as far as he's concerned that is the end of things. The Sopranos enjoy a nice meal outside in the sun, Blanca and Hector joining them. Tony for once isn't making it about himself, as he informs everybody with obvious pride that Carmela has successfully sold her house. Meadow and AJ are both delighted and congratulate her, as does Blanca, and she glows in the attention though she can't help but point out it simply passed inspection and Brian still needs loan approval. Tony cuts her off though, that is a technicality, she has succeeded where many others have failed and should be proud. She thanks him and notes she had plenty of help, including him in this victory. Blanca, who is still mostly new to this world, is surprised though: two people are going to be living in such a big house? Meadow notes they have a baby coming and that gives Blanca pause, eying up AJ with... concern? Disappointment? A realization that she is probably closer to Brian and Janine's age than AJ's? Carmela has also been given food for thought too, it isn't just two people and a baby that will be living in the house SHE built, but family as well. That night as rain falls and thunder rolls, Carmela calls Hugh in the middle of the night as he lays sleeping in bed with Mary. The rain worries her, and Hugh knows why, complaining that they replaced 50-60% of the bad pine with Douglas Fir. But that's not all, she's worried about the studs, the headers upstairs, she can't stop thinking about what might happen if the building material proves not up to snuff. But Hugh insists everything is fine, he's built 100s of houses to these specifications and the only thing that changed was "sob sisters" got put in charge of the Building Department. With complete disregard for the fact he violated numerous safety standards, he tells her he won't lose any sleep tonight and hangs up on her. Just as an interesting note, this marks Hugh and Mary's final appearance on the show, and it's oddly fitting that in their last scene it was for once Hugh doing all the talking for once and Mary simply present (she slept through the whole thing) and saying nothing. Lunch is brought to the crew at Satriale's, and as they eat they're joined by a welcomed visitor: Hesh Rabkin. Paulie and Christopher give him big hugs and he explains he'd brought his son-in-law Eli in for physical therapy in the area and thought he'd check in on them all. They ask him to sit, but as he joins them, Tony - who has been sullenly watching all this unfold - begins cracking nasty jokes, putting on a bad Jewish accent. Hesh, who sadly had probably faced this many times in his life, knows exactly how to undercut though. He does Tony one better, cracking a bad joke playing on the ugly stereotypes that Melfi mentioned, causing everybody to laugh except Tony. Not liking that Hesh has disarmed his weapon against him, Tony declares out of nowhere that Hesh has come for "the rent" and peels off another 3k to "get me through the week". Hesh, unhappy not least of all because this is all being done in public, tells Tony to cut it out as the others either don't grasp the significance of these exchanges or choose to ignore them. Tony tosses Hesh the 3k and then begins scraping together coins, rubbing them together and leering at Hesh who must be deeply regretting his decision to drop by (probably in hopes of normalizing things with Tony again, ironically). Satisfied that he's upset and hurt his old friend and mentor, Tony puts on a big smile and "laughs" that he's just been joking around. But again Hesh is used to this kind of bullshit, and again undercuts Tony's nasty stereotyping by noting he should throw the 3k into the pot for the poker game they're playing during lunch to make things interesting. That sparks up everybody's interest (they sure as gently caress heard THAT) and even Tony seems placated... for now. But once Hesh is out of there, things change. Returning Eli home, he has his daughter take his blood pressure and it's far too high, and she grumpily tells him to get his own drink when he demands one, pointing out that drinking isn't going to help matters. But once she's gone, he admits to Eli his big concern. Tony is acting weird and he should have known better than to lend money to a friend, especially one as powerful as Tony is. Eli doesn't buy it at first, he remembers how helpful Tony was during his time in hospital (I wonder how he felt when he heard Gerry Torciano was dead?) plus he's a Boss so he won't be hurting for money. He's alarmed when Hesh points out just how expensive Tony's lifestyle is however, guessing he probably has far less ready access to cash minus his assets than you might expect (plus Hesh gets in a little dig at "that wife" for her profligacy). He's even more alarmed when Hesh reminds him of some of those ugly stereotypes that they themselves have against Italians: they're okay for the most part, but corner them and you're dealing with an animal. Still, Eli can't bring himself to believe that Tony would kill Hesh, who was a friend of Tony's father and has been a friend/mentor to Tony for decades. But Hesh is not so sure, things change when money is involved, and he has to worry about what happens when Tony simply decides there are easier options to remove his debt to Hesh than just paying him back. It's not like he has much to defend himself with either, after all, Tony is the guy that Hesh would normally go to in order to deal with a problem... like Tony.   Tony keeps "chasing it", making another casino trip to the Borgata in Atlantic City with his crew. This time he is playing blackjack where there is at least a semblance of skill. He's doing well for a change too, and when the dealer is changed out after he wins several hands in a row he makes the sensible decision to back out of the table: as far as he is concerned, casinos don't suddenly change dealers like this unless they're looking to halt or derail a winning streak. Tony's mood is up along with his chips, he's made about 18k and even enjoys needling Paulie for suggesting they go get steak now that Tony has money. It's all good natured fun, but as they're walking away, chips piled high in Tony's arms, leaving the casino winners for a change... Tony sees a sign. A horse race taking place at Batavia features a horse at 2/1 odds named... Meadow Gold. Silvio immediately agrees that Tony has "gotta" do that and they head into the bar after Tony gets in a bet just in time. Christopher excitedly tells Bobby that Tony has put at least 18k on the race, possibly 25, and is surprised by Bobby's indifferent reaction. Bobby shrugs, grunts that he's excited and goes back to looking through his paper: he and Christopher are two very different people unknowingly sharing very similar roles in Tony's life. The race begins and Tony's excitement mounts, egged on by his crew. He stands to make 50k on this best, money that could easily wipe out a chunk of his debt to Hesh (or more likely, go towards more betting) but more than that is the thrill of the risk. They scream in excitement as Meadow Gold holds the lead coming around to the straight... but Swelligant has been keeping pace and to their horror they watch it just pip Meadow Gold, winning by a "oval office hair" as Christopher so eloquently puts it. Tony, for whom the world slowed to a crawl as he watched his winnings disappear, stares in disbelief at the screen, then comes back to himself and puts on an act of tossing aside the betting slip and indifferently muttering,"What are you gonna do?" before walking away, far from the "pretend it hurts more than it does" bullshit he told Melfi he would do on his crew's behalf. AJ, dressed in a suit that is NOT tailored, has taken Blanca out to a nice restaurant. Her suspicions are aroused when she is brought a covered plate and a beaming AJ tells her he has ordered for her. She lifts the cover nervously and gasps out a less than enthused,"Oh my God" when she sees a ridiculously large diamond ring in a box beneath. She doesn't know how to react, but he's already babbling, insisting that he won't be a bad partner/father like her ex was to her and Hector. He overrides her objections, revealing his youthful naivety as he proclaims that he made night manager of the pizzeria in only 3 months and plans to be day manager in another 3... so she knows he'll be able to provide for them! His plans remain a slightly modified version of his teenage fantasies of running nightclubs, as he enthusiastically tells her within a couple of years he'll own a chain of restaurants and clubs and she'll never have to work again. In spite of herself, the childish dream he is selling her is breaking down her resistance. It would be cruel to say that she might be thinking about his rich family and the lifestyle that comes so naturally to them and is alien to her, but when he tells her he loves her and she tells him she loves him back, it doesn't seem calculated. It's the opposite in fact, it seems like a genuine reaction said in the heat of the moment that she may regret later but meant in that instant. She allows herself to be carried away by his enthusiasm as he tells her they'll have kids, brothers and sisters for Hector, and finally as she holds the expensive ring in her hands she manages to get out a quiet,"Okay." AJ, thrilled beyond words, kisses her and she kisses him back, and for that one moment at least AJ is genuinely happy and content with his life and actually has a constructive vision of a future that no guidance counselor, sibling rivalry, demanding mother or raging father could ever get out of him.  
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Apr 7, 2020 12:28
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Phil's lovely speech apparently didn't work miracles, so Tony visits Marie's home to have a one-on-one talk with Vito Jr himself. Apparently Vito did something unspecified to a developmentally disabled girl which is why Marie called Tony, and after asking for privacy he gets straight to the point: why is Vito acting out like this, he was always a good kid. Vito snaps back at that, pointing out to Tony that he doesn't know anything about him, sometimes he calls him Carlo Jr. Tony is a little flummoxed by that, but he is Livia Soprano's son after all so he quickly finds a way back into ascendancy by invoking Vito's dead father, complaining that his dad was forever talking about what a good kid his son was. But when Vito Jr cracks a homophobic joke about Tony and Vito, Tony actually shows a rare moment of restraint and empathy. Quietly he credits Vito Jr for having a sense of humor, saying he understands he needs it to help deal with a rough situation because he knows that Vito misses his father.... "whatever he was." Vito makes no smart remark to that, this actually got through to him, but when Tony then continues to lay out some hard truths, Vito snaps at him angrily that he's not moving to Maine, apparently his mother has not been quiet about her plans. Tony snaps back that nobody wants that either but Vito is leaving them little choice, and angrily he demands to know if Vito knows how much that will cost.... then belatedly adds on,"your mother?". Resorting to the much vaunted but almost always useless "tough love" approach that Phil already tried, he snaps at him to stop with the weird poo poo and be a man. Vito complains that somebody should have stopped his dad doing "weird stuff" too and Tony is at a loss. He doesn't know how to get through to the kid, he can't blame him for being upset even if he can't condone his actions, and he sure as hell can't beat him up. He resorts to deriding his attitude, mangling the Ojibwe saying (he's probably long since forgotten the origin of) once again as he growls that Vito goes about in pity for himself. He tells him to be the man of the house for his mother and then with a deep sigh leaves the room, having achieved nothing but berating a young boy with emotional issues stemming from grief Tony himself is partly the cause of. Happier times come back at home, when he is dishing up some food when Carmela arrives home and informs him the closing went through and she has officially sold the spec house. He lifts her up and spins her around, both laughing, neither even thinking how impossible this simple act alone would have been for him not so long ago. He wants to go out and celebrate, but she is still somewhat concerned about the lumber, and Tony waves that off not with an assurance that everything will be fine but a simple noting that Brian has hosed over plenty of people in the past, as if somehow this makes it all okay. But they move past that, Tony asking her how much she ended up selling the place for. He's thrilled when she subtracts the costs (Marie would drool at the numbers) and figures that she's probably going to end up showing a 600k profit. Suddenly her silly little project he bankrolled to get back into his marriage and later to avoid her sniffing too much around Adriana's disappearance seems like a much bigger deal: he's done big scams that netted him less than that! She laughs when he says she should take a chunk and bet it on the Jets... and then listens in growing horror as he talks more enthusiastically about it and she realizes he is being serious. With the eagerness of a gambling addict convinced they have a system or an inside scoop, he tells her about how "we" can't lose because a girl at the Bada Bing has an osteopath sister who insists the Chargers' quarterback has a hairline fracture in his right leg, and even Vegas doesn't know about it! Too late he takes in the horror on her face, and his attempt to salvage it makes things worse as he puts on a big fake grin and explains he didn't mean all of it, just a piece of "my half". Not quite able to believe she has to do this, she points out that he (he, not "we") is rich and can use one of his squirreled away bundles of cash to pay for it. Still forcing a smile, he explains that money is for emergencies only and the rest is tied up in "asset allocution" and ignores her question as to what that actually means. Still pushing forward in spite of all the warning signs, he explains that this money is the "gravy", the stuff you can play with and take risks with. It's only when she sadly turns away without a word and begins mechanically removing pots from the cupboards for dinner that he finally realizes he's gone too far. To his credit, he doesn't fly into a rage or sulk like a child as he might have in the past. Instead he turns her gently around and apologizes, agrees he shouldn't have said anything, and when she sadly reminds him that she thought this was supposed to be HER money (it was never explicitly stated but it was clearly her intention when they made their deal) he is quick to agree it is. He hugs her, and for the moment at least the crisis is averted, though he has sullied what was supposed to be her great moment of triumph that made all her capitulation in other areas worth it.  Hesh is reading at home when he spots a car pulling up outside and Tony emerging. Calling to Renata, he tells her to go up to the bedroom and look the door, not explaining why, just insisting she do it. There is a knock at the door and he opens, pretending great surprise to see Tony and Bobby - two imposing figures - standing in the doorway. They walk in before he can step out, and he nervously improvises a complaint that he was fired up from watching a piece on Hezbollah on CNN. His concern grows though when Tony informs him that they are on their way to the boat show in Edison and decided to pick him up and take him along. Hesh wasn't on Pussy's fated final trip, but he's sure to know at least some of the details, and Tony out of nowhere asking for company on a trip to look at a boat must be ringing alarm bells. Keeping his voice low, he tells them he'd love to go... but Renata has a bad migraine and he doesn't want to leave her alone. They don't insist or ask for further details, just accept his lie. Tony reaches into his jacket pocket and Hesh winces... till he brings out another envelope of cash, saying this should get him caught up with the vig. Hesh again makes a point of saying he doesn't want the vig and would be happy with just getting the full amount whenever Tony has it ready, and Tony "jokingly" asks if they're gonna do this same song and dance every time. He takes the envelope and assures them he'd be happy to go with them next time, but as they're leaving Tony makes a statement that shows he doesn't buy the migraine story at all... next time he is coming, he will call first. They leave, and Hesh is left as agitated and worried as ever. In the car, Tony is fuming. Angrily he demands to know if Bobby say Hesh's pissy attitude, complaining at his lack of gratitude for them thinking of him for the boat show (despite his obvious and documented objections to boats as any kind of investment) and especially for not being grateful at Tony personally paying him his vig. Bobby, who was untroubled by Hesh's attitude, is like Silvio and can see how the wind is blowing, so after quietly listening to Tony vent, he agrees. He goes one further though, noting that he shouldn't pay back ANY of the money he owes Hesh, after all, what can he do about it? That gives Tony pause at least, as Boss of the Family it would look bad if he doesn't pay his debts, but Bobby and Carlo both point out that nobody would ever know. Tony is still angry but also now he's a little uneasy. Notwithstanding the fact that Hesh is still his friend, he knows that the precedent he would set here would be bad, after all what would stop Bobby and Carlo and others from deciding that they ALSO don't need to pay their debts. Their whole system works on the mutual agreement that it does, after all. Luckily for him he quickly finds a new outlet for his rage. Carlo likens the situation to Eddie Valentine in a classic episode of The Twilight Zone, and as he is going through the details Tony erupts, screaming at him that he should suck some cocks instead since Vito brought in three times what Carlo ever has on construction. Carlo is, understandably, shocked and hurt. But Tony takes savage satisfaction in that, going so far as to say that he didn't have this problem with gambling losses back then either, as if Carlo is somehow to blame for his lack of self-control. Carlo, so gung-ho for Vito's death when he learned he was gay, has to take this insult in silence, but as so often with Tony his immediate eruption of rage will bring at best only short term satisfaction and later bitter regret.   Tony's mood doesn't improve the next morning as he reads the paper about the Jets blowing out the Packers 42-10. Enraged, he shows Carmela the paper as she walks past, and gets angrier when she notes it is good that what he thought would happen did. He disagrees, pointing out he "only" bet 10k on the game, and gets angrier when she asks so what, he still won, right? He snaps at her that he told her it was a sure thing, but because she wouldn't listen he has lost a lot of money. Again, she points out that he DIDN'T lose, but he's not thinking about the money he won, he's thinking about the money he COULD have won. Idiotically, he bitches that they could have turned her "bullshit" into a million dollars, and now she's gone from bemused/confused to angry herself... her BULLSHIT? She yells back at him that the spec house was HER investment, money for HER future, reminding him that Ginny Sack had to move in with her daughter after Johnny's death. This angers Tony even more, roaring that Johnny provided for Ginny but she's a hysteric overreacting (consider Tony's reluctance to provide for Vito's widow in the context of his statements about wives being taken care of), then flings the newspaper in her direction and screams that she should remember that he - currently on a long-term losing streak - knows what he is doing. Just like with Carlo, he satisfies his immediate urge to vent his rage with words he will regret later. He sneers at her constant spending of HIS money on furniture and other things, complaining she would spend all his money if he let her, and when she snaps back that next time he wins something SHE wants a cut so she can gamble it and see how he likes it, he dredges up a deep resentment from the past to accuse her once again of stealing money from his bird feeder. It's true, but also an incredibly hurtful reminder of a very dark phase of their marriage, and when he goads her that there is no cut for him to claim because the 40k she put on the stock-market returned her nothing she's had enough. She tries to storm out of the kitchen but he chases after her, spilling bile all the way, growling at her that HE put the down-payment on the spec house and covered the cost of materials AND leaned on the building inspector when she had her thumb up her rear end doing nothing (he doesn't mention this was because he actively avoided providing any assistance in the hopes she would just give up and stay a housewife, and only changed his mind when her boredom threatened his security). But cruelest of all is when with utter contempt he declares she is a lovely businesswoman who built a piece-of-poo poo house, and it is going to cave in and kill Janine's unborn baby. Utterly horrified, she hurls the Lladró figurine she once bragged to AJ's rich girlfriend about at the wall, smashing it into a thousand pieces. "GO gently caress YOURSELF!" she screams and rushes up the stairs, as he screams back at her that when he's dead she can go live in a dumpster. He's left standing alone in the entrance hall, his wife sobbing upstairs in their bedroom, an expensive statue in pieces on the floor. He's an overweight, middle-aged man with a gambling problem who just took out his frustrations on "only" winning a 10k bet on his wife. He's utterly pathetic, and the fact there are some elements of truth to the horrible things he just told his wife just makes the fact he threw them in her face all the worse. As always, in the immediate aftermath of him throwing aside restraint for short term satisfaction, he's left empty and unfulfilled. This is the first real argument we've seen Tony and Carmela have since he got out of the hospital. They've had their moments of snapping at each other, but for the most part since he survived the gunshot (and arguably since he returned home at the end of season 5) their relationship has been remarkable stable. He's been more attentive, spent more time at home, shared in more family dinners willingly instead of begrudgingly, and even moments like his fight with Bobby he remained in a unit with her. He even managed to resist infidelity for a time. But this was like the darker times, like the explosive confrontation they had in Whitecaps, a complete regression to form by a man who no longer has panic attacks but still seems intent on spoiling every positive relationship he has in his life.  Vito Jr joins the other boys after gym class in the showers. When some of the other boys make fun of him and make homophobic jokes at him, he simply stares at them and then without breaking eye contact straight up takes a poo poo on the floor. They are shocked, and when he keeps staring as he lifts a foot and stamps down on his won poo poo, they all flee screaming from the room. Tony, still boiling and struggling to control his emotions, goes to dinner at Vesuvio's with Christopher, Bobby and Paulie. He cuts off another Paulie story to ask after the power tool shipment they arranged in Miami, and Paulie quickly brings himself back into work mode to give him the details. Tony nods and asks Christopher if things are ready on their end at the hardware store and he says they are. Tony isn't pleased, but he is satisfied that they have done what they are supposed to do. Bobby, however, doesn't read the mood and brings up with great delight the story about Vito Jr making GBS threads in the shower. Tony fills the others in on the details, apparently Vito Jr was expelled for this, and now he spends all day shut away in his room. Christopher smirks that he's probably planning another Columbine, but when Tony suddenly turns morose talking about how little Francesca Spatafore is the victim in all this they quickly all fall into line. Tony, whether knowingly or unknowingly seeking some form of absolution, says it isn't fair she should have to suffer, and he will never forget that Phil Leotardo did not step up for his family at this time. He acknowledges that Vito "sucked a cock" but before that he was one of them, their friend, and somebody has to do something. Paulie, ever the rear end kisser, says he will never forget that Tony stepped up, and with a sigh Tony says they need to go to Slava's so he can arrange liquefying some of his offshore assets: he's going to pay the 100k to Marie to move to Maine after all (and hopefully ease his guilt about what he said to Carmela in the process). AJ drives Hector into the city where they are going to meet Blanca when she finishes her shift so they can all take part in the Hispanic Day Parade, Puerto Rican flags adorning his car. He's very fatherly with Hector, holding him in his arms, chatting happily with him when Blanca arrives in her brother Jesus' car. She's immediately out and grabbing bags from him, telling him hurriedly that they need to talk, grabbing Hector and getting him into the car before handing him a bag full of his clothes. He's confused, he just did laundry a couple of days ago. It's not laundry though, it's his things, and it's not all she has to give him, as she hands him back the diamond ring too. AJ doesn't understand, telling her he loves her, and she replies back that she loves him too... before quietly admitting that also maybe she doesn't? All she knows is that she doesn't feel whatever she should be feeling to marry him. He stands confused, watching her as she hops back into the car, puts Hector into her lap, and Jesus drives them away and out of his life. The first great love of his life has rejected him, and left him abandoned in a culture largely alien to his own... which must have been how she mostly felt whenever she visited his parents. Tony is stacking his collected cash into his safe in the back of the Bada Bing as Christopher plays pool and Silvio is reading the paper. Sil notes a story about the Dolphins' kicker getting run over, and Tony says he heard that he was only saved by his helmet. They consider the implications though, the backup kicker is straight out of college and untested, there is a good chance this will make all the difference in their upcoming game with Philadelphia. Tony considers and makes a fateful decision... he's going to take the entire 100k and bet it on Philly... if he wins, then Marie Spatafore gets her free ride and then some! Christopher, who knows a thing or two about addiction, takes this in quietly and wisely makes no comment. Silvio though just nods and offers,"Good for you" before asking if what Carlo told him is true and Vito Jr ate catshit out of a litterbox? No, Tony explains, he took a poo poo in the shower. "Glad we got that straight," agrees Silvio, going back to reading his paper. Of course, Tony loses. Miami wins 21-7 as he listens on the radio while Dante is driving him, and he has to face the fact that he just blew 100k of money he had taken from his offshore "just in case I die and Carmela needs money" account, and not even on a quasi-noble thing like helping Marie but on a loving football game. Davey Scatino would be proud. So he makes a decision, and puts through a call to Marie, telling her that he intends to help. She's relieved, Vito Jr snuck out of the house again last night and she is at her wits end. But then Tony keeps talking, and she listens in first confusion and then horror as he tells her all about a camp in Idaho that provides tough love to help kids like Vito get back on track. She knows exactly what "tough love" means though, and why camps like these are in Idaho and Utah: they're States where you are still allowed to strike children. Tony insists that is just for the deterrent factor, and then with great authority declares there is no geographical solution to an emotional problem. He assures her he'll cover the 18k cost for the camp, and an exhausted and emotionally wrung out Marie has to suffer the indignity of thanking Tony for his bullshit solution that she knows will at best just cause Vito to repress his feelings (much like his father did) or at worst further his trauma.   With that business done, Tony makes amends of sorts with Carlo (and his son Jason) outside of Satriale's, giving him a task to do embracing him warmly after finishing his instructions, making it as clear as possible without actually apologizing that he's sorry. Dante drives him away, but as he goes he takes in changes to the old neighborhood, including a larger Muslim population than he remembers. As they drive by multiple groups, two in particular catch his eye, and Dante notices them too: it's Ahmed and Muhammad, the two men who were constantly in the Bada Bing, always drinking, dealing in stolen credit cards and frequently passing on their greetings to Tony. But now they're dressed traditionally, assembling with other similarly attired Muslims, and once again he engages in some cruel stereotyping as he considers the implications of this change as well as Agent Harris' repeated requests for information. Vito Jr is woken by three strange men entering his room and insisting he must come with them. He's hauled out of his house, his weeping mother apologizing to him profusely, his sister wailing to understand what is going on. The strangers assure Marie she's doing the right thing, and then they're gone, dragging her bewildered son to Idaho as he screams for his mother to help him. Yeah, this is gonna really make him a more balanced individual. Tony's "help" for Marie and his non-apology apology to Carlo haven't done anything for his bad luck though. He's lost another bet, this time on a basketball game that came right down to the buzzer. He watches with dread from the edge of his bed, switching it over to the news (George W. Bush meeting with the Saudi King) when Carmela moves through the room without a word. He calls out to her, asking if they're not speaking now, and when she still doesn't reply he calls to her again, asking (not telling) her to come see him. With her own restrained temper she does as asked, and Tony surprises her with a gentle and seemingly legitimate apology, promises her that his background in construction means he knows she did a good job on the house no matter what he said before... and then does something that the likes of Davey Scatino never did: he admits to his wife that he's been losing and losing badly for quite some time now. He tries to explain why he's continued to gamble in spite of this, trying to get her to understand the mindset of "chasing it", and the way his eyes light up does bring Davey Scatino back to mind again, even though by the time we saw him he had already gone well past the point of anything but phony confidence and barely contained panic. In any case, she points out that whatever kicked the argument off, the true rage that came out didn't feel like it was about money. She admits that she worries, reminding him that he got shot, but he counters softly that he has gone to great pains to ensure she will never end up like Ginny Sack, and it kills him that she spends so much time worrying about it (without grasping that he could alleviate that somewhat by actually treating her as an equal partner in planning her own future). But there is more to worry about and he knows it, she points out that he now refuses to walk down the drive to collect the paper, wanting to know WHAT it is that has him spooked. He tries to play that off but she won't let that go, is it the FBI? Something else? Something worse? What? Weeping openly she says that all his gambling and chasing highs can't remove the fact that there is a giant piano dangling directly over their heads. To this point Tony has done a surprisingly good job of making up, or at least acknowledging the situation and partaking in open conversation to help them lance the boil of their heated argument. But now, in this moment, he blows it all as he reveals why he feels that piano will never drop. In shock she listens to his eager, reality-denying argument that he survived being shot which had terrible odds, and therefore... he's up! As if he's decided that all his current gambling losses are just some kind of karmic realignment for him winning so big by surviving the shooting. She gives no reply, how can she? How do you respond to something that mad without igniting a whole new argument?   Also, just in case any of you needed reminding, Edie Falco is a superb actress and once again delivers a stunning performance in this scene. Yeah yeah, I know, Edie Falco: Amazing, Water: Wet. Hesh emerges from his bathroom in the morning in a chipper mood, chatting to Renata who lies in the bed with an eye-mask on. Checking his watch, he's surprised to see it is already 10:30am and merrily asks her what she'd like for breakfast as he leans down to give her a kiss... and is greeted by cold flesh. Alarmed he removes the mask and sees her staring sightlessly straight ahead. He checks her breath, grabbing at his phone and repeating her name over and over again in denial of what all his senses are telling him. Holding her hand, he breaks down sobbing as the emergency operator picks up and asks what his emergency is. Some time later he sits alone on his couch, records and posters adorning the walls from his time as a producer, all of it surely feeling utterly shallow and unimportant now. Tony enters the room after knocking, carrying a paper bag. He pats Hesh's shoulder and offers him a brief hug and a kiss, then stands awkwardly and tells him that Renata was a great girl. Hesh can barely manage a choked out,"Thanks" and then Tony steps back, motions to the bad and informs him he's brought him the rest of the money he owes. He offers another awkward pat on the shoulder, tells him,"Sorry for your loss" and then walks out the door. Hesh is left with his life secure, his money repaid... and nothing else. None of it meant anything, Tony could have repaid him at any time but simply didn't want to take from his savings, only willing to fork out from the "gravy". All that fear, all that confusion, the nasty jokes and the begrudging vig payments, none of it was necessary. Unlike Davey Scatino, Tony always had the resources to pull himself out of the trouble he was in, what he said to Melfi about it being pointless without risk was complete bullshit, because he was only ever playing with his extra money in any case. He blew 100k of the offshore cash on a bad bet, and he's paid 200k of it to Hesh now... but only because it was expected of him and done begrudgingly due to Renata's sudden death. It's never said on the show, but it was a stroke according to the show's creators, and not at all the sometimes conspiracy theory put out by fans that Tony killed her as a warning (what?). Hesh could care less, the money is meaningless to him now, he's gotten the monkey paw version of his debt being paid and his problem with Tony resolved. Tony leaves the house after this perfunctory gesture, and as he walks out the door his face is that of a man who just performed some rote task, accomplished some necessary if not particularly compelling duty. One of his oldest friends and a mentor just suffered a devastating loss and all Tony can offer is money he owed him, a basic,"She was a great girl" and a "Sorry for your loss" before going on about his day as per normal. Hesh never appears in the show again, though presumably his relationship with Tony continued largely as it always had before. He was just yet another example of Tony's growing isolation from a core group of friends as their immediate usefulness to him dropped, or who "betrayed" him by not fitting in exactly with his idea of what their roles in his life should be. What it all boils down to, once again, is one certain inescapable fact... Tony Soprano is not a good person.   Season 6: Soprano Home Movies | Stage 5 | Remember When | Chasing It | Walk Like a Man | Kennedy and Heidi | The Second Coming | The Blue Comet | Made in America | The Final Scene Season 1 | Season 2 | Season 3 | Season 4 | Season 5 | Season 6.1 | Season 6.2 Jerusalem fucked around with this message at 12:07 on May 17, 2020 |
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Apr 7, 2020 12:29
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Excellent write-up as always, and thank you for reiterating that Tony's gambling problem doesn't come out of nowhere, it's been bothering me for some time that it's such a common complaint. I've always seen the last nine episodes as Tony lashing out against fathers, father figures, sons, and surrogate sons. What he does to Bobby in Soprano Home Movies, his continued issues with Christopher, coming close to killing Paulie, rejecting Hesh's advice and then refusing to pay him back until he had to, Vito Jr., etc.
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Apr 7, 2020 13:59
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This is the 4th and final of what I call the "last hurrah" episodes where a side character gets a majority of the focus of the episode and then their story is basically done and we never see them again. (Stage 5 for Johnny, Remember When for junior...whatever the one was called with Artie in 6A) The episodes are great dont get me wrong but they feel I dunno...awkwardly done. Like instead of spacing stuff out over the season they cram it all into 1 episode like "Hey remember Johnny Sack? Yeah hes got cancer and now hes dead. Artie? Oh hes still a joke and a failure, peace Artie!" It's like they realized oh poo poo the shows ending we need to wrap these characters up and they give them these very abrupt endings. Maybe it just stands out to me because they took such a completely different approach with the final episodes"and you figure it out" last scene. Am I the only one?
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Apr 7, 2020 14:35
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banned from Starbucks posted:This is the 4th and final of what I call the "last hurrah" episodes where a side character gets a majority of the focus of the episode and then their story is basically done and we never see them again. (Stage 5 for Johnny, Remember When for junior...whatever the one was called with Artie in 6A) When this aired it wasn't such a common thing for people to binge watch things one episode after another. If they spread a minor character's story over even one season in little bits people would most likely have forgotten earlier parts of their story
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Apr 7, 2020 15:39
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That doesn't seem to be a thing the writers of the show ever worried about before.
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Apr 7, 2020 16:48
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I never noticed the implication before this recap that it was Vito (and Ralph before him) who are part of the problem as to why Tony can't pay back his debts, which seems to be at least one thing he remembered his dad telling him. Of course his dad also told him to never gamble. So.
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Apr 7, 2020 16:52
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banned from Starbucks posted:This is the 4th and final of what I call the "last hurrah" episodes where a side character gets a majority of the focus of the episode and then their story is basically done and we never see them again. (Stage 5 for Johnny, Remember When for junior...whatever the one was called with Artie in 6A) If I'm not mistaken, didn't Chase not really want to do as many episodes but later agreed to? Season 6b or something? Might explain some of the awkwardness if he was padding it out. Put me down as not really caring for this episode. It didn't seem to progress the story much and I'm still in the "gambling problems out of nowhere" camp so it sort of felt shoehorned in. I'd never thought of Tony as a heavy gambler before, no more than most anyway, but now it's driving his entire life, Davey Scatino style. Didn't land for me. Also, this is one of those episodes that make you really loving hate Tony. That poo poo with mocking Hesh and the horrible things he said to Carm were total dickhead territory. even for him. He's a complete rear end in a top hat this entire episode and is directly responsible for loving up Vito Jr even more. So much collateral damage is done by these jerk offs.
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Apr 7, 2020 17:27
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ruddiger posted:Thinking about lil' Vito stepping in his own poo poo in the shower room at school. I felt bad for that little dude.
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Apr 7, 2020 17:51
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Tony’s always gambled, but it’s only a problem for this one episode, and it has basically no consequences for him. Contrast that with (for example) the issue of his inability to remain faithful to his wife, which is a through line of the entire series, explored in his therapy, and shown multiple times to have unpleasant side effects for Tony and those around him. I’m not sure where they thought they were going with it, but as someone who had a gambling problem once, this is not an accurate representation of someone with one. Davey was much closer to the truth.
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Apr 7, 2020 20:38
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I think that's part of the point though, he's asked if he's chasing money or just the thrill of winning and he can't really answer. All his talk about risk and danger is empty talk because nothing is on the line for him, as is demonstrated with Hesh at the end (and earlier when he grumpily decide to pay for Marie's move). He always had the money to pay back what he owed, it was just money he didn't feel like using for that part of his life. He's not chasing money and he's not in a Davey Scatino like situation where he desperately needs one big win to set things right and fix all his problems. He's after the thrill and it bugs him (as always) that there are consequences to his actions, and especially at the world for not aligning to his desires. It's completely a problem of his own making and also one in his own head, and the fact he actually considers Bobby and Carlo's suggestion that he simply not pay back Hesh shows just how far gone he is: he's actively considering throwing away a lifelong friendship just to avoid paying back money he can easily afford to pay back but simply doesn't feel like doing. There's been a repeating thing throughout the show about how action "wakes" Tony, especially when he's in a depressive phase. His reaction to the assassination attempt by Junior and Livia stands out, and I think as the show has progressed and his therapy has actually made incremental progress in his condition, his depressive episodes have become more subtle and exhibited themselves in less obvious ways than the big funk he was in before that early assassination attempt. He doesn't get panic attacks any more, but in his effort to feel "something" he does smash up rooms, pick fights with his brother-in-law, go on gambling binges, risk/reject longstanding relationships with close friends/mentors, get into a screaming match with his wife etc. The irony being that for the most part he has actually become a better father and a husband as time has gone on, he is more engaged with his children and especially with Carmela, and it really stands out in this episode when they have their gigantic fight because it used to be such a common occurrence but really hasn't happened much at all since their reconciliation and especially since his shooting.
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Apr 7, 2020 22:09
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Torquemada posted:Tony’s always gambled, but it’s only a problem for this one episode, and it has basically no consequences for him. Contrast that with (for example) the issue of his inability to remain faithful to his wife, which is a through line of the entire series, explored in his therapy, and shown multiple times to have unpleasant side effects for Tony and those around him That's where I am with it. I mean, OK, he's been shown to gamble on occasion but never in a way that was compulsive or affected his ability to do business and the way it's implemented here as a central plot device is rather sudden and jarring. He's hosted several poker games without taking part and comes off as disciplined. He's shown to get drunk use coke too but never like an addict and the story line is not only clumsily implemented but treated almost like a one off for a filler episode. It'd be like if Paulie or Bobby suddenly developed a crippling drinking problem out of nowhere that impaired their jobs as mobsters. With Chris' addiction problem, we see it grow over time with several "uh oh" hints dropped along the way. We've seen Tony struggle continuously with his temper, his panic attacks, his depression and (like u said) his infidelity but now he's letting 100 grand ride on a roulette number? And that's the thing: they weren't going anywhere with it at all as far as I could tell except to create tension with Carmela and give Hesh something to do. Maybe you could argue he's substituting the rush of gambling for his somewhat decreased promiscuity and infidelity but I'd argue we're not really shown that and it it's never earned, IMO. It's one of my least favorite episodes.
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Apr 7, 2020 22:10
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BiggerBoat posted:the story line is not only clumsily implemented but treated almost like a one off for a filler episode. I think this is what people are getting at with the "it comes out of nowhere" perspective. It certainly does have the feel of a capsule episode (a few episodes in S5 also have a similar vibe imo) and could have been done a lot better (I do not profess to be able to do better). Renata's death at the end seemed kind of clumsy. Writeup perhaps better than episode? I wouldn't argue
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Apr 7, 2020 22:31
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It also doesn’t really come up again despite nothing really resolving
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Apr 7, 2020 22:47
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I thought the gambling was something that caught up with him super fast once he lost all the kick from Vito, who was bringing in a huge amount to him.
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Apr 7, 2020 22:50
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COMPAGNIE TOMMY posted:I think this is what people are getting at with the "it comes out of nowhere" perspective. It certainly does have the feel of a capsule episode (a few episodes in S5 also have a similar vibe imo) and could have been done a lot better (I do not profess to be able to do better). Renata's death at the end seemed kind of clumsy. pentyne posted:I thought the gambling was something that caught up with him super fast once he lost all the kick from Vito, who was bringing in a huge amount to him. Maybe, but the show usually does a much better job showing us and describing these sorts of things in ways that don't come out of left field or feel so forced. I honestly remember David Chase basically admitting he had to come up with some filler to give HBO more episodes than he wanted to write but I'll have to go Googling and dig up an interview to confirm and I don't have time right now.
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Apr 7, 2020 23:15
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"She's a romantic, this ah one. She's gonna clean ah my teeth for me" 
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Apr 7, 2020 23:19
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Crossposting from The Wire thread:animeluva1 posted:The streaming companies are waging an epic war now that everyone's in quarantine. HBO recently joined the fray with multiple shows and movies, including The Wire, available for free. Episodes are shown in remastered HD where possible. The Sopranos is included in this deal, great chance for a rewatch if you don't have access to it otherwise.
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Apr 8, 2020 01:32
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I really enjoyed House when it came out but it ended up conflicting with my hockey league and I got out of it once I missed a few episodes. Starting fresh again now and oh boy does it feel second rate after being not long removed from my rewatch of this. I feel I'll never see television the same again
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Apr 8, 2020 02:04
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House isn’t really comparable This is a cheesy drama while house is a cheesy procedural
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Apr 8, 2020 02:39
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It isn't, but I enjoyed it so much years ago that in my mind I dared hold it as prestige drama which is of course insane. I don't watch a lot of tv
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Apr 8, 2020 03:13
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Is it me or is Chris' junkie friend wearing Daaa jaaaaacketttttttt in s4e10?
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Apr 8, 2020 03:56
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Aw, I caught up to the thread! I missed a week or two and figured I'd catch up when it was all done haha. I don't post much but there was a comment a ways back saying how much effort you put into a low-traffic thread, Jerusalem, and so I wanted to say that there are probably other lurkers like me since this is a thread with so much reading to keep up with, and also (of course) thanks so much for doing such a fantastic job with these write-ups! You catch so many subtleties I've missed, and the summaries are so thorough it's almost as good as watching the episode again. I really appreciate the show so much more for all the symbolism and foreshadowing and parallels you point out.
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Apr 8, 2020 04:46
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I thought the global pandemic would give me a lot more freedom to get these last episodes written up faster, but I've ended up as busy if not busier than normal anyway. Still hoping to get through the rest of these by the end of the month though, I hadn't realized I've been doing these write-ups for over a year now, initially I figured like 6-7 months tops!
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Apr 8, 2020 05:08
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Jerusalem posted:I thought the global pandemic would give me a lot more freedom to get these last episodes written up faster, but I've ended up as busy if not busier than normal anyway. We were all hoping this would be the case too, I can’t think of a thread with a better standard of writing.
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Apr 8, 2020 08:15
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Between this, the medieval total war LP and one other I think I’ve read more of your writing than any other writer and basically all I’ve done for the last thirty years is read books. You can absolutely hang with good writers J.
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Apr 8, 2020 10:16
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I'm sure its already been posted here and I've missed it but theres a Sopranos rewatch podcast with Michael Imperioli and Steve Schirripa. Between this and the Scrubs one I'm loving these deep dives to give us something to do during quarantine. https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/talking-sopranos/id1500453500
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Apr 8, 2020 12:19
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Jerusalem posted:I thought the global pandemic would give me a lot more freedom to get these last episodes written up faster, but I've ended up as busy if not busier than normal anyway. Still hoping to get through the rest of these by the end of the month though, I hadn't realized I've been doing these write-ups for over a year now, initially I figured like 6-7 months tops! Personally I don't mind the wait, I appreciate the care in the writeups. Thanks again for doing these, it has been a nice echo and reminder of how these threads were back when the show was still on. Of course now we have fewer people theorizing that Meadow would take over the DiMeo family, so that is clearly a loss.
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Apr 8, 2020 15:04
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Ishamael posted:Of course now we have fewer people theorizing that Meadow would take over the DiMeo family, so that is clearly a loss. To quote the Bard himself, "what."
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Apr 8, 2020 15:24
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Crosswell posted:the medieval total war LP Got a link? I can't find it.
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Apr 8, 2020 15:27
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Dawgstar posted:To quote the Bard himself, "what." There were some absolutely wild takes in the 2007 threads.
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Apr 8, 2020 15:54
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Tater Love 
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Dawgstar posted:To quote the Bard himself, "what." Oh it was a thing.
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Apr 8, 2020 16:38
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Jerusalem posted:Crossposting from The Wire thread: You should link that in case no one here knows you wrote that one too https://forums.somethingawful.com/showthread.php?threadid=3522091&userid=0&perpage=40&pagenumber=1
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Apr 8, 2020 16:41
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