The Sopranos Final Nine

[L.A.]

Well on the brightside, there's still one more legit gangster show left on tv!!! The Wire!

 

[ToddIsDead]

The Wire is great, but it's really a completely different show from the Sopranos.

 

[L.A.]

The Wire is great, but it's really a completely different show from the Sopranos.

True but its still the only show on tv that shows the gangster life.

 

[ToddIsDead]

They don't even show the same type of "gangster" life though.

 

[L.A.]

They don't even show the same type of "gangster" life though.

.Your right! Its the Gangsta life I meant

 

[Dark Donnie]

Maybe he didn't die?

Journey Rocker Kept 'Sopranos' Creator Waiting


SPOILER ALERT: Rocker Steve Perry refused to let The Sopranos creator David Chase use his classic song "Don't Stop Believin'" in the mob show's final scene until he knew the fate of the drama's leading characters. The ex-Journey frontman kept Chase waiting until three days before the long-awaited finale aired in America on Sunday. Perry is a huge Sopranos fan and feared his 1981 rock anthem would be remembered as the soundtrack to the death of James Gandolfini's character Tony Soprano - until Chase assured him that wouldn't be the case. Perry says, "The request came in a few weeks ago and it wasn't until Thursday that it got approval, because I was concerned. I was not excited about (the possibility of) the Soprano family being whacked to 'Don't Stop Believin''. Unless I know what happens - and I will swear to secrecy - I can't in good conscience feel good about its use." And Perry was so true to his word, he didn't even tell his family the song featured in the finale. He adds, "I didn't want to blow it. Even my wife didn't know. She looked at me and said, 'You knew that and you didn't tell me?'"

 

[conan69]

I dont know why everyone thinks he did.

Watching it,I didnt get that impression watching it at all and was suprised so many others did.

I talk about it in the other thread.

 

[rdh007]

Don't know if anyone's posted this, but I'm too lazy to check. I just noticed that Journey's "Don't Stop Believin'" is now the 19th most downloaded song on iTunes, just behind Avril Lavigne (which probably would be a great place...nevermind)

 

[AllThingsComic]

This could have been alot worse, We could have had Kevin Finnerty wake up in a hospital room with his "real" family around him and claiming he just had the wackiest dream ever. That would have really sucked.

 

[Dark Donnie]

This could have been alot worse, We could have had Kevin Finnerty wake up in a hospital room with his "real" family around him and claiming he just had the wackiest dream ever. That would have really sucked.

Someone posted that on another site....what if it ended with Finnerty waking up after assing out from a panic attack while walking to get the morning paper

 

[AllThingsComic]

That would have totally killed it for me. Better the ending they gave us then this scenario.

 

[Shot Gun Shy]

I thought the last scene was crazzzy !!
It will forever be talked about and discussed, thus immortalizing The Sopranos, lol.

There should definatly be a college or university course about this show.
Imagine having to write a final term essay on the last episode !
What !

 

[Shot Gun Shy]

It's not that ambiguous.

Either Tony and his whole family were massacred or they went on with the same routine we've watched play out season after season after season.

I interpret the sudden cut to black as the moment Tony got his brains blown out. We don't see it because Tony never saw it coming. We are experiencing his death from his eyes and it's poignant. There is no show, no visual, no audio, no anything without Tony. The same way all our lives cut to black when our shows end. Blackness. People complaining about the ending missed the point of the show. It wasn't about the destination, it was about the journey. If it ended like Scarface or Goodfellas or Carlito's Way or Godfather 1/2/3 it would be so been there done that. And it wouldn't be true to the nature of the show which was to avoid glamorous gangster cliches.

Lets look at other ways it could've ended.

1) Tony ends up dying in a loud shoot out with people screaming then you zoom in on his lifeless eyes? Bad idea. Closure or no closure it's cliche and predictable, it kills the replay value of the series, and we've seen the aftermath of Tony getting shot and presumed dead.

2) Tony gets locked up and thrown in jail for life. Final shot has him talking with his wife through a prison glass window. This ending is lame because we saw it already with Johnny Sacks and Uncle Junior.


All the foreshadowing of the last two seasons wasn't preparing us for a huge twist ending. The foreshadowing was showing us the possible endings. Dying in prison (Johnny Sacks), becoming an old forgotten relic (Uncle Junior), getting betrayed by your own crew (Phil), getting shot/presumed dead (Tony in a coma), family/friends ratting you out(Adriana), children following father's footsteps or getting caught in the crossfire (Anthony hanging with hoodlums/Meadow being threatened by Phil's man), the family having a happy gathering living happily ever after (end of season 6 pt1).

All of these endings were explored and would've been redundant at this point. If you see the ending as the last thing Tony saw before he got his brains blown out, it works and is far more powerful than seeing it from a spectator's perspective. When life ends it's over. No audio. No visual. No reflection or introspection or closure. Only blackness, so enjoy the ride while you can. If you see the ending as the best of Tony's life (his family) contrasted with the worst (looking over your shoulder ever second of every day because you're in the mafia) it also works well. It forces you to see why it sucks to be Tony. Even if he avoids prison or assassination he has to think about it every moment of every day. A fate worse than death. If you see the ending as just a family eating onion rings you're going to remain terribly disappointed.

I feel Tony never made it out of the restaurant. But whether he did or didn't doesn't matter. I see all the possible outcomes and I can see they all suck for Tony. If the ending was well established (Tony dead or in prison) I might have actually thought Tony would've been better off alive or free. But I now know better.

The ending summed up the show perfectly IMO.

100% AGREED !!

Wether ppl liked this ending or not, it will go down as an ending unlike any other in the history of television.
Just like this show has =)

 

[Killgore]

100% AGREED !!

Wether ppl liked this ending or not, it will go down as an ending unlike any other in the history of television.
Just like this show has =)

You're right. Sopranos went down.

 

[conan69]

Do you guys even watch the show???

Hits never include family members, unless theyre in the way. Tony stressed that to Carmella in the previous episode.

Phil had to be shot when he was(in front of his wife) because he was in hiding. They had to take the first shot they could.

Tony is often alone in going about his daily route. He showed up to the diner alone. Although he does have a driver, he often drives himself as well. If they want him dead, they can get him other times, instead of shooting in front of his family and a room full of people.


The idea of Tony being killed is stupid.

NY betrayed Phil and make peace with Tony so they can turn around and shoot Tony - placing NY back into a war with whoevers left of Tonys crew. Yea that makes alot of sense guys.

Carmine, who doesnt even want to be boss is put into a position of power to avoid further bloodshed. They all agreed the best thing was to make the peace and go about making money. Butch is even willing to give Bobbys family a large sum of money to pay off the debt of hitting Bobby.

Its business not personal. And business means keep the peace and everyone gets paid.When Butch was talking to Phil, a tourbus is gong by. The speaker can be overheard saying how Little Italy used to be 40 blocks and is now down to 1 square block. Butch then is about to suggest a peace with Tony and Phil gets mad. When Butch hangs up the phone, he looks up and sees asian faces, turns around and goes back.

The world these guys have known is shrinking. As Tony said in the beginning of the series "Ive always felt I came along at the end of things" - and these guys realize it.

Phils problems with NY were personal. Butch finally realized this. Its hard enough living their life without having someone destroy it with a personal vendetta.



I dont understand how anyone can think Chase would end this series ripping a obvious scene from the Godfather. Use your brains.



"Either Tony and his whole family were massacred"

Taking out a whole family is unheard of and a few of the points I made about show taking out Tony is illogical.


"or they went on with the same routine we've watched play out season after season after season."

Yes. Tony heard the ducks in the distance, theyre never coming back. Tony will never change and his life will never change. It will go on as we've seen in the past 9 years.

"some will win
some will loose
some are born to sing the blues
the movie never ends, it goes on and on and on and on

Dont stop Believin' "

Tony will never find the peace he was seeking with therapy.



Chases point of exit really boils down to a trick. Its misleading and IMHO a complete failure.

 

[terry78]

Brings me back to when they were attempting to get the guy at the Starbucks type coffeeshop to pay protection money...he was like, "look take it up with corporate....you shut us down, there will be another one here next week." They can't do what they used to, because their neighborhood is no longer little mom and pop type joints.

 

[Dark Donnie]

http://www.nj.com/newsflash/enterta.../1181910633108540.xml&storylist=entertainment

Sopranos' star: `No idea' about ending
6/15/2007, 8:12 a.m. EDT
The Associated Press

NEW YORK (AP) — Viewers weren't the only ones who didn't know what to make of the boldly ambiguous ending of "The Sopranos" — some of the stars didn't, either.

James Gandolfini told the Daily News in Friday's edition that he had "no idea" what to think was to happen to his character, the emotionally tortured mob boss and suburban dad Tony Soprano, after the hit series' final episode closed Sunday with an abrupt cut to a blank screen.

"You have to ask ("The Sopranos" creator) David Chase that. Smarter minds than mine know the answer to that," Gandolfini said. "I thought it was a great ending. You decide."

The screen went black and silent as Gandolfini's character and his family sat down to dinner, leaving fans guessing — and some complaining — about the ending's meaning or lack thereof.

Some have suggested that the movements of a man in the background portended a "Godfather"-style shooting. Others surmised that the show, which delved deeply into the domestic life of its mobster protagonist, was simply ending on an everyday note. Chase has declined to explain.

Several of Gandolfini's cast mates echoed his praise for the show's open-ended conclusion.

"A conventional ending would have been a fraud," Steven Van Zandt, who played Silvio, told the Daily News.

"Life doesn't have tidy little endings," said Van Zandt, a member of rocker Bruce Springsteen's E Street Band. "Even some great songs just fade out like the last episode of 'The Sopranos.'"

 

[Dark Donnie]

Also

http://community.tvguide.com/blog-entry/TVGuide-News-Blog/Todays-News/Sopranos-Clan-Hails/800017014

One more

http://www.cnn.com/2007/SHOWBIZ/TV/06/15/television.sopranos.reut/index.html

 

[Killgore]

The show didn't "end on a note". It ended in the middle of a note. It was random and a slo --

 

[AllThingsComic]

Excuse my french, but they jerked us off with that B.S. ending and left us with blueballs. That was a tacky way to treat the fans. And to try and use some artsy fartsy ending to make us think and draw our own conclusions is just a sad way to say they didn't have a cool ending, just like all the cheesy fillers in the season and seasons past. I'm sorry i'm not into deep philosophies when it comes to a show about the mob. I watch to see(optimum word, see) how it all plays out.

After a couple of days of collecting my thoughts, the ending really was pretty good. The anxiety we felt with Tony in the diner was the anxiety Tony feels everyday and I believe that was the point that Chase was trying to convey. It was we the audience that got whacked from Tony's life, not the other way around.

 

[Killgore]

After watching it a second time, I hate it even more. Chase's writing is so transparent. Instead of crafting a genuine satisfying ending, he relied on a cheap gimmick and hoped that we'd get all riled up about it on message boards. Well, mission accomplished but what's wrong with just telling a good story instead of shtick?

 

[Dark Donnie]

I just read a interview with Matt Servito(spl) who plays Agent Harris. He said originally the scene went on for a little longer, meadow sits down. The Mysterious Guy in the Members Only is even more mysterious, he even walks towards the table as if he was going to do something to Tony and then Cut Scene.

 

[Matt]

After watching it a second time, I hate it even more. Chase's writing is so transparent. Instead of crafting a genuine satisfying ending, he relied on a cheap gimmick and hoped that we'd get all riled up about it on message boards. Well, mission accomplished but what's wrong with just telling a good story instead of shtick?

Really? The more I watch it, the more I like it.

 

[Matt]

These spoilers were posted before the 4th episode of the season. What makes them remarkable? Just how hit and miss they are. Chances are, all these scenes were filmed. Every, single one. That is what makes Chase remarkable. He filmed completely different episodes. There is probably a handful of different Sopranos episodes in the HBO vault that didn't air. It shows how much of a master of editting Chase is. Its quite impressive.

#78 SOPRANO HOME MOVIES - April 8, 2007

#79 STAGE 5 - April 15, 2007

#80 REMEMBER WHEN - April 22, 2007

#81 CHASING IT - April 29, 2007

Tension is mounting between the New York and New Jersey families. Tony and the get away for a while by taking a trip to Atlantic City. However, Tony has a streak of bad luck and has to borrow $200,000 from Hesh and then sells Carmela's spec-house to pay him back. This, of course, causes a huge fight between Tony and Carmela. Meanwhile, AJ gets dumped by his girlfriend Blanca during the Puerto Rican Day pride parade. Vito's widow approaches Tony about helping her troublemaking son.

#82 WALK LIKE A MAN - May 6, 2007

Bobby and Janice are living in Johnny Sack's old house and Tony gets mad because they're not keeping it clean. Kelli's dad is the unwitting catayst of a new feud between Christopher and Paulie. Meadow is arrested during a rally for illegal Mexicans and has to be bailed out of jail by Carmela. AJ struggles with depression and attempts suicide by trying to drown himself with weights in the family's pool, but Tony saves him just in time. However, Uncle Junior also attempts suicide and is successful.

#83 KENNEDY AND HEIDI - May 13, 2007

Phil finds out Paulie has been skimming money in an asbestos-disposal job jointly run together by New York and New Jersey. Already angry over his brother being killed, as well as one of his captains, Phil looks for to hit somebody in Jersey. He chooses Paulie's nephew, Little Paulie, but the hit happens after Little Paulie has picked up Paulie's mother/aunt and they are both killed. Speaking of Paulie, in this episode, his brother makes an appearance and "upstages" Paulie.

#84 THE SECOND COMING - May 20, 2007

Phil turns down Tony's offer of compromise. New York attempts to hit Tony, he survives, but his driver Perry is killed. Shortly thereafter, the FBI picks Tony up and plays a tape of Little Carmine involved in the plan to hit him. Agent Harris tries to flip Tony but he refuses. Meanwhile, AJ despairs about the world and his future. Tony takes umbrage over a big affront to Meadow.

#85 THE BLUE COMET - June 3, 2007

This episode will be mostly in black and white and will run 80-90 minutes long and will chronicle many of the main character's entrance into the mob. Tony contemplates a difficult choice given by Carmella. AJ inquires about going back to school. The FBI is preparing for "Plan B." Silvio is demanding answers from New York but nobody is over there is apologizing. Tony has a major breakthrough in a session with Dr. Melfi. Bobby is killed by New York in front of his son while coming out of a hobby train store. Silvio and Patsy are shot and killed by New York outside the Bada Bing.

#86 GOING HOME - June 10, 2007

The final episode will run 90-120 minutes. The former beachhouse will act as a refuge for Tony and his family. Tony thinks back to his first meeting with Dr. Melfi. Christopher and Meadow get offers from the west coast. Artie ponders a problem from his past. Benny Fazio shoots and kills Phil outside a gas station. Chris is driving Tony in Tony's Cadilac Escalade when Chris loses control of the car and goes into a guardrail. Chris is gurgling blood and Tony has to put him out of his misery by choking him to death. Tony breaks down and cries uncontrollably. Some unexpected visitors arrive at the Soprano household. The final scene takes place in an old fashioned ice cream soda shop.

 

[Dark Donnie]

In regards to the "Going Home" spoilers, I know there were pictures of filming online months ago from the crash site that were snapped by some gossip magazine.

Also, people who watch the shooting of the Phil murder said that they did film something with Benny killing Phil, why tehy would change it I don't know.

There were alos reports of Melfi filming a scene at Holsteins, so take that for what its worth