The Sopranos

I remember trying to watch the Sopranos something like 8 years ago.  My roommate rented season 1 on DVD, but after a few episodes I was bored shitless and couldn’t stand it.  However I was in the mood for a serious drama after trying out The Shield(and as I was watching it with my wife, I could only go at a pace where we both could watch at the same time), so decided fuck it – to give the Sopranos a try.

Wow.  Just wow.

From here on out there’ll be spoilers about the show.  So if you’ve never watched it yet then stop reading now.

Overall, this was just an amazing fucking show.  It was just so well written.  It wasn’t built on suspense and intrigue – it was just a beautiful story.  What I really liked was how there was so many mundane details, yet they kept it from being mundane.  Like when AJ tried to kill himself, and Tony comes home, starts eating the lincoln logs and takes a minute to notice.  Shit like that was just so beautiful.

There was a few weird things about the show.  Like something would happen, but then they’d not follow up on it for a few episodes(if memory serves me correctly Adriana getting flipped was one of them).  Also the story progression from the end of one season to the beginning of the next was crazy – you’d come back and someone else would be in jail, with only a small mention of how they actually got there.

But really those are just small nitpicks.  Overall The Sopranos was just a fantastic show.  Some of the shit they did in it was so beautifully done.  I really liked how they would bring you back to harsh realities, like when Tony killed Christopher for example.  Or the way Adriana was killed etc.

Also the dream sequences – oh man.  Especially the Kevin Finnerty one.  Just amazing stuff, and I usually hate dream sequences.

Of course – the ending.  What I love about it most is how ambiguous it is – there’s no definitive conclusion.  You can make assumptions based on facts – but there’s no solid conclusion of what happened.   I’ve been speaking to my friends and heard all the arguments about it.  That’s what is so amazing about the ending.  Was the dude just going to the bathroom?  Or was he there to kill Tony?  There’s just so many ways you can read into it all, and that’s what is so great about the show.  Everyone has a theory – but there is no definitive conclusion.

Also think about that ending – how suspenseful it really is.  Yet it’s over the most mundane thing – Meadow unable to park.  Again, just phenomenal.

And now – I feel sad.  Because it is over.  The show is over.  You really feel like you were living through the life of the Sopranos.  It’s one of those shows you just wish would go on indefinitely.  And now I think back – and there is so much stuff that happened that seems so long ago.  Richie.  Tonys mother.  Pussy.  etc etc etc.  Plus being able to watch it again with a whole new viewpoint on them.

Just amazing.    I’ve been loving The Shield, but so far I have to put The Sopranos as my favourite television series ever.