The Sopranos

[Hawk 34 0]

You could put Paulie with anyone and it'd rock. He needs to land on another show, the more random the better.

[Jingus 0]

The Sopranos pulled 11.9 million viewers. It was 2nd among cable and network shows that week, only behind "America's Got Talent."

People would rather watch Sharon Osborne than James Gandolfini. I think we just found the reason why the rest of the world hates us so damn much.

[Youth N Asia 0]

More people CAN watch Sharon Osbourne. I certainly don't pay for HBO, too much. And I don't know many people that do actually. Sounds like a lot of viewers for a pay station

[Mik 0]

Yeah it was a massive number for HBO.

[Hawk 34 0]

Talent was one of the very few new things on network TV last week. Besides, Osbourne isn't the draw of that show.

[bobobrazil1984 0]

I finally got around to seeing the last episode.

 

I felt like I got slapped in the face for following this show. While the ending was sort of intriguing in a wtf way, as a series ending to one of the best TV shows ever? wow, how horrible. It smacks of cowardice from the writers. The ole "ohhh boo hoo nothing we do can live up to the hype, i'm so scared of the hype and people expectations, so lets do this ambiguous ending". It was pure cowardice - make up your own ending bullshit that you do when you're too scared to just pick an ending. frankly, the article someone posted flat out said that the episode AS WRITTEN, had Meadow sitting down with the family, which basically means, the "Life goes on for Tony" ending. Imo, that's where the scaredy cat cowardice set in and they went for a "make your own ending" because "OHH BOO HOO THE PRESSURE AND THE HYPE WE'RE NOT GONNA LIVE UP TO IT". Gimmicky bullshit.

 

This isn't just a case of the Sopranos, but in general, why is it so f'ing hard to end a goddamn story well? Everybody all over the place keep desperately trying so hard to be 'original' or 'shocking' that they can't tell a fucking story. I legit worreid what sort of bullshit Rowlings will pull out for Harry Potter or on the last episode of LOST. I mean, DAMN, just take a couple of logical outcomes and pick one.

 

edit: after calming down a bit and rewatching the end, it's not so bad once you're over the fact that one of the best TV shows ever didn't get an ending. Upon further thought, I'm going to go with the literal interpretation that the Members ONly jacket guy went into the bathroom Godfather style, came out and shot Tony, and the sudden blackout was Tony's POV of getting whacked, you don't even see it when it's coming, fade to black, all that stuff. Since Chase pussied out with a create-your-own-ending, that's the one I'm creating.

[Coffin Surfer 0]

Entertainment Weekly is normally shit, but one of their writers nailed it. For those expecting complete closure with a ribbon on top, what show have you been watching all these years!?

 

All the major arcs were wiped up, and the final shot it is of Tony smiling. I can live with that, and again I think having Meadow sit down would have somehow robbed the scene of it's power. It doesn't strike me as a cowardly cop out at all, but a masterful film making decision. Would you really want to see the family gathered together and happy to end yet another season, or something more shockingly abrupt and finale to puncutate the show? And I believe Chase has done stated that Tony doesn't get whacked.

[bobobrazil1984 0]

i dont give a crap what Chase suddenly now "states". He had his chance to "state" what happens in the actual fuckin' show.

 

Tony got whacked. He didn't even see it coming. The guy came out of the bathroom godfather style. The blackout was his POV - it's a logical ending for Tony, and it actually makes the blackout and the editing/cutting make perfect sense in a dramatic sense and not just be some lame "make your own ending" gimmick, thats really the only way i can stomach it. As far as i'm concerned, he got whacked. from that POV it's a pretty cool ending.

 

btw i read somewhere that they re-aired "Sopranos Home Movies" the week before And the week after, as well as excerpting the infamous Bobby "when it happens, you don't even see it coming" quote in "Blue Comet". certainly seems like somebody wanted to make sure everybody saw that scene.

[Coffin Surfer 0]

That's not even Bobby's exact quote. "probably don't even hear it whenit happens." which was his way of justifying hunting and later killing that guy, which he learns to not always be true when he looks that guy in the face before finishing him. This is from people reading too much into stuff and screwing stuff around. Bobby obviously heard and saw it coming anyway when he was blasted away several times; call me crazy but I think his death and that quote was meant to be ironic. The flashback is because Tony finally had time to take in Bobby's death and he was holding the rifle he gave him for his birthday. The blackout is most likely not Tony's POV as the last image is us the viewer watching him look up and smile. And perhaps they reaired "Home Movies" because people kept fucking up the quote.

[C Dubya 04 0]

Okay, for everyone who references the Godfather style whacking, you do realize why that happened in the movie right? The gun had to be hidden in the bathroom because of pat downs happening. Why would the guy in the restaurant have hidden a gun in the bathroom? Again, why?

 

If you need to grasp at straws to try and change the ending, feel free, but at least make them plausible.

[Mik 0]

http://www.bobharris.com/content/view/1406/1/

 

Very well written breakdown of the finale by a former TV writer.

 

He makes a lot of good points.

[bobobrazil1984 0]

Okay, for everyone who references the Godfather style whacking, you do realize why that happened in the movie right? The gun had to be hidden in the bathroom because of pat downs happening. Why would the guy in the restaurant have hidden a gun in the bathroom? Again, why?

 

If you need to grasp at straws to try and change the ending, feel free, but at least make them plausible.

 

this is a valid point. I just meant Godfather style in the way it's set up. Yes you're right, there was a logistic reason in the movie. Here there isn't one - except maybe he's preparing and can walk out with an uninterrupted clear shot at Tony from the side.

 

and what's this grasping at straws to change the ending business?

David Chase SHOT and EDITED the last scene himself. What, you think it's an ACCIDENT there were endless close ups and focuses on this guy? The scene is clearly shot and cut to be one of two things:

 

A) the guy is important and about to do something

or

B) the guy is a tension-building red herring

 

It's all right there, its one of the two, and both of them are plausible. Grasping at straws to change the ending is like, "hey, maybe AJ pulled out a gun and shot Carmella in the head because she nags him all the time", there's nothing to suggest that is even remotely possible. Here there is everything to suggest that A or B are realistic possibilities.

I choose A, and since the aired ending was so vague, I feel fine about it. If David Chase wanted to make it clear one way or the other, he would have shown it (i hope).

 

 

So Tony got whacked. good ending!

[World's Worst Man 0]

It was done to create suspense. There was no logical reason for Tony to get whacked there, as the New York problems were finished. You also conveniently forget the black guys that the camera focused on. Or the other suspicious looking characters in the restaurant. Chase wanted to dupe people into thinking Tony was going to get whacked, and fed their confusion by filming it in such a way that suggested it was imminent. Mission accomplished.

[Coffin Surfer 0]

http://www.bobharris.com/content/view/1406/1/

 

Very well written breakdown of the finale by a former TV writer.

 

He makes a lot of good points.

 

 

The Walrus was Paul. Not to mention the guy admits to have stopped watching the show after Season 4. He is right about Tony not paying attention to the possible threats the viewer sees and focusing on his family; which goes back to my theory.

 

"B) the guy is a tension-building red herring"

 

Bingo.

 

"You also conveniently forget the black guys that the camera focused on. "

 

As well as the Trucker, the young couple....

[SpikeFayeJettEdBebop 0]

I thought the article by the former TV writer was written well with A LOT of great points, but I still dunno if I really believe it. Also, theres a link to an article where the "Members Only Jacket" guy says something "shocking" was shot in the finale but was not shown. In the same article the actor who plays Johnny Sac says "I think Tony dies". Very strange.And damn David Chase for this wonderful creation

[Skywarp! 0]

Sorry for bumping this thread, but I just finished the series and I'm just as miffed right now as the rest of you were months ago. That ending was unexcusable--easily the worst series finale I've ever seen, which is saying something since I have seen Seinfeld's.

 

So for everyone else: did your original disappointment subside with the passage of time, or are you still as ready to lynch Chase as you were last summer? Now that you've pulled back from the series, how do you view it as a whole?

[NoCalMike 0]

Sorry for bumping this thread, but I just finished the series and I'm just as miffed right now as the rest of you were months ago. That ending was unexcusable--easily the worst series finale I've ever seen, which is saying something since I have seen Seinfeld's.

 

So for everyone else: did your original disappointment subside with the passage of time, or are you still as ready to lynch Chase as you were last summer? Now that you've pulled back from the series, how do you view it as a whole?

 

I think I would have been more mad if the series was still as good at that point as it was in it's first two seasons. By the time the series ended it had ran it's course and only had some random good moments throughout the final few seasons.

[Hawk 34 0]

Looking back, I have no problem with the ending.

[Mecha Mummy 0]

Looking back, I have no problem with the ending.

 

Neither do I. Once I realized that that WAS the ending and processed the point of it, it was exactly the right way to end it, as far as I was concerned.

[Youth N Asia 0]

The ending has kind of grown on me a little. I could have done without AJ at all the last few years, but otherwise I was alright with where storylines ended up. Anyone that was expecting a real ending must have forgotten what show they were watching.

[Jingus 0]

I was fine with everything except for the very end. Meadow tries to parallel park her car for half an hour straight, and then that goddamn cut to black which was so random and poorly timed that back then I literally thought my cable had gone out. Everything else was just about perfect, but I still don't see what the point was in ending it on such a bizarre note, and am mystified by the interviews with Chase where he said that he didn't understand why it pissed some people off.

[Youth N Asia 0]

Yeah, the Meadow thing was...pointless. I guess he had something in mind with it, but it was just dumb.

 

I so wanted AJ to kill himself this season