The Sopranos: The Complete Book

Product Information

The way the ending teases audiences by seeming very definite while denying us answers and closure makes it the ultimate Sopranos moment. And it throws all the other things we’ve been discussing, here and throughout this book, into sharper relief. Because it’s taking the question of whether Tony lived or died off the table. Johnston, Andrew; Sepinwall, Alan (March 5, 2008). "David vs. David vs. David; or Which Is the Greatest TV Drama Ever, Simon's The Wire, Milch's Deadwood, or Chase's The Sopranos?". Slant Magazine. Archived from the original on April 7, 2014 . Retrieved March 31, 2014. HBO: The Sopranos: S 5 EP 56 All Happy FAmilies: Synopsis". HBO. Archived from the original on January 23, 2010 . Retrieved September 3, 2008. Matt: You mean does it matter if Chase knows what happened? No. It’s become increasingly clear to me as we’ve worked our way through the entire series again, with over 10 years of perspective on that finale and nearly 20 years of living with the show in some form, that Chase is an intuitive writer, somebody who’s not trying to send messages or create puzzles for people to solve, but is just trying to make people feel and think and question themselves. James Gandolfini was invited to audition for the part of Tony Soprano after casting director Susan Fitzgerald saw a short clip of his performance in the 1993 film True Romance. [24] Lorraine Bracco played the role of mob wife Karen Hill in Goodfellas, and she was originally asked to play the role of Carmela Soprano. She took the role of Dr. Jennifer Melfi instead because she wanted to try something different and felt that the part of the highly educated Dr. Melfi would be more of a challenge for her. [48] Tony Sirico had a criminal history, [49] and he signed on to play Paulie Walnuts so long as his character was not to be a " rat". [50] Sirico had originally auditioned for the role of Uncle Junior with Frank Vincent, but Dominic Chianese landed the role. [51]

The Sopranos is noted for its eclectic music selections and has received considerable critical attention for its effective use of previously recorded songs. [80] [81] [82] [83] In a 2010 issue of TV Guide, the show's opening title sequence ranked No. 10 on a list of TV's top 10 credits sequences, as selected by readers. [96]This ending puts us in their shoes. We make up stories to reassure ourselves that we have control over life, and we really don’t. I’m reminded of that moment in “D-Girl” where Dr. Melfi summarizes existentialism for Tony. “When some people first realize that they’re solely responsible for their decisions, actions, and beliefs, and that death lies at the end of every road, they can be overcome with intense dread … a dull, aching anger that leads them to conclude that the only absolute truth is death.” I think the insistence on “proving” that Tony died is a means of reasserting control over the show, and over the life of the person doing the proving. Death is the only absolute truth for everyone, and if you read that ending simply as “he died,” you can wash your hands and walk away from it and not have to think about anything else that might be raised in that scene. Alan: Other than maybe the revelation that Big Pussy was an FBI cooperator — a plot idea conceived in the show’s embryonic stages, without Chase expecting anyone would care about him resolving it — The Sopranos tended to keep its plot cards face up. You knew virtually everything important that was going on, not only with Tony, but with all his enemies and allies. At this moment in “Made in America,” nobody that we know of wants Tony dead. Phil is gone, Butchie made peace with New Jersey, and anyone else who might wish Tony a violent end is out of the picture. a b Sepinwall, Alan (September 26, 2022). "The 100 Greatest TV Shows of All Time". Rolling Stone . Retrieved September 28, 2022. The Sopranos: Road to Respect at IGN". IGN. Archived from the original on May 16, 2012 . Retrieved September 22, 2007. Maureen Ryan of PopMatters described The Sopranos as the most influential television drama ever. "No one-hour drama series has had a bigger impact on how stories are told on the small screen, or more influence on what kind of fare we've been offered by an ever-growing array of television networks." [78]

Whelan, Jeff S. (December 14, 2007). "Jury hears from alleged real-life model for Tony Soprano". New Jersey Star Ledger. Archived from the original on March 4, 2016 . Retrieved January 27, 2015. Certain episodes have frequently been singled out by critics as the show's best. These include the pilot, titled " The Sopranos", " College" and " I Dream of Jeannie Cusamano" of the first season; " The Knight in White Satin Armor" and " Funhouse" of the second; " Employee of the Month", " Pine Barrens" and " Amour Fou" of the third; " Whoever Did This" and " Whitecaps" of the fourth; " Irregular Around the Margins" and " Long Term Parking" of the fifth and " Members Only", " Join the Club", " Kennedy and Heidi", " The Second Coming", " The Blue Comet" and " Made in America" of the sixth season. [169] [170] [171] [172] [173] [174] [175] Matt: I think it’s more interesting if he lives. I think it would fit with the cycles of experience depicted in the series. This guy has much more self-awareness and sensitivity than other people in his line of work, but is still a prisoner of his conditioning and maybe his genes, and always seems to fall far short of enlightenment. And if, to quote Mad Men, the greatest predictor of what somebody is going to do is what they have done in the past, Tony’s always going to basically be Tony, the loquacious gangster who puts himself first.Martin, Brett (July 3, 2013). Difficult Men: Behind the Scenes of a Creative Revolution: From The Sopranos and The Wire to Mad Men and Breaking Bad. Penguin Books. Sopranos' Pork Store Demolished". Fox News. November 12, 2007. Archived from the original on August 21, 2019 . Retrieved November 14, 2007. Appelgate, Jaclyn (April 4, 2022). "The 15 Most Historically Important TV Shows Of All Time". CBR . Retrieved September 23, 2022. I ask this not to spoil the details of the many pieces of Sopranos fanfic I have saved to the cloud, but to consider the larger question: Which ending is more interesting? Whether we get to see what comes next or not, which is a more entertaining, exciting, and/or thematically fitting conclusion to the story of The Sopranos: Tony’s abrupt death or his continued existence?

Beatty, Jeffrey F.; Samuelson, Susan S. (February 1, 2012). Chapter 9: Baer v. Chase (4thed.). Cengage Advantage Books. p.152. ISBN 978-1-133-18815-5. {{ cite book}}: |work= ignored ( help) HBO: The Sopranos: Behind the Scenes: Inside the Opening Credits". HBO. Archived from the original on November 9, 2007 . Retrieved November 14, 2007. Sepinwall, Alan (September 9, 2010). "Interview: 'Boardwalk Empire' creator Terence Winter". HitFix. Archived from the original on September 12, 2010 . Retrieved September 18, 2010.

I think we’re supposed to be thinking about death, or the finiteness of life, during that last scene, but not necessarily that Tony died right then and there, and that’s the end of the story.

The Sopranos features a large cast of characters, many of whom get significant amounts of character development. Some only appear in certain seasons, while others appear (sporadically or constantly) throughout the entire series. All characters were created by David Chase unless otherwise noted.Topcik, Joel (October 22, 2006). "Chris Albrecht: A former standup comic found his true calling: turning HBO into an Emmy magnet". Broadcasting & Cable. Archived from the original on December 11, 2013 . Retrieved August 17, 2011. The Sopranos has been hailed by many critics as the greatest and most groundbreaking television series of all time. [a] The writing, acting, and directing have often been singled out for praise. The show has also received considerable attention from critics and journalists for its technical merit, music selections, cinematography, and willingness to deal with difficult and controversial subjects including crime, family, gender roles, mental illness, and American and Italian-American culture. [79] [149] [150] a b "David Chase at Hollywood.com". Hollywood.com. Archived from the original on December 6, 2012 . Retrieved November 14, 2007.