Sopranos Finale!!

[ephemery1]

I didn't see a thread on this yet, so I thought I'd start one...

..... what did everyone think of the series finale tonight??

************ SPOILER ALERT *************

I was outraged for about 3 minutes, then suddenly started to appreciate the sheer brilliance it takes to end a series at that level of suspense and shock and terror, without ANYTHING actually happening. I think it accomplished everything that shows like Seinfeld and Friends couldn't quite pull off... pulled the show to a close without being overly sentimental or not sentimental enough. I am impressed. And I can't stop re-watching the last 5 minutes.

ETA -- I keep having this mental image of David Chase leaning back in his recliner chuckling to himself as every other person in America leapt off their couch and screamed "What? What?? WHAT???"

 

[snogirl17]

it was a HUGE let down... at first i thought my dish went out because of how it ended. The way it ended was so open ended. I have a feeling (or at least i hope so) that they will do an encore. There is just to much left open. lets just say it didn''t end the way I thought it would at all.

 

[IrishAngel7982]

I never got into the Sopranos but I heard the finale was a huge disappointment...but the rumor on the street is that a movie is in the works...

 

[monarch64]

Yeah, I think DC intentionally left things open for a possible movie. Hmmm, what will happen when the guy comes out of the bathroom at the restaurant?

I did find it rather disgusting that Phil''s head was squashed, blech. And I thought for sure AJ had found a way out of the family when his SUV blew up...he could''ve run off into the wild blue yonder and never looked back. I''m glad Tony didn''t die, though, as despicable a character as he is, I''ve become oddly attached to him and would be sad if he got whacked.

 

[ephemery1]

Date: 6/10/2007 11:22:22 PM
Author: beanie
it was a HUGE let down... at first i thought my dish went out because of how it ended. The way it ended was so open ended. I have a feeling (or at least i hope so) that they will do an encore. There is just to much left open. lets just say it didn't end the way I thought it would at all.

I agree, the open-endedness is SOOOO frustrating. But then I started thinking... the show has centered around Tony from the very beginning, and so much of what we see is from his perspective. Would I have wanted to watch him die, feeling far removed from the scene since his perspective no longer existed? Or would it be more poignant to have it happen like that, where we, the viewers, are seeing the very last thing that he sees...... ya know?

And of course by doing it like that, they are leaving it completely open to the possibility that the black-out WASN'T him dying, and instead there's a movie... haha.

 

[ephemery1]

Date: 6/10/2007 11:38:00 PM
Author: monarch64
Yeah, I think DC intentionally left things open for a possible movie. Hmmm, what will happen when the guy comes out of the bathroom at the restaurant?

I did find it rather disgusting that Phil''s head was squashed, blech. And I thought for sure AJ had found a way out of the family when his SUV blew up...he could''ve run off into the wild blue yonder and never looked back. I''m glad Tony didn''t die, though, as despicable a character as he is, I''ve become oddly attached to him and would be sad if he got whacked.

Ahhh, but that''s assuming that the black-out wasn''t supposed to represent Tony getting shot in the side of the head from the guy coming out of the bathroom, as he looked toward the front door to see his daughter come in..........

But I agree, for some reason I like him too.

 

[snogirl17]

i just got done watching the last 20 mins again and i wouldn''t have Tony die, especially in front of his family! I guess i was just expecting a bit more being that it was the shows finale.

i thought that there would be much more drama at the end like a big blow out between Phil''s crew and tony''s crew. Then they would pan to tony sitting at the table with this family and just getting a call, telling him that it is done.. and then him going back to enjoy the family dinner.

I guess maybe in the end the show did end how it should have, when sex in the city ended i bawled my eyes out for an hour.. i became that emotionally attached! this way i just got to see tony and his family enjoy each other, finally after a lot of commotion.

 

[surfgirl]

I really liked it. I thought it was the most appropriate ending for an extraordinary series. I dont like being spoon fed in movies or TV and I didn''t want everything tied up in a nice neat little package. I thought we got alot of stuff tonight but last week was really the penultimate episode - with whackings a plenty and lots of mob violence and possible wiping out of an entire Family. Tonight was more of a "let''s all calm down" and get back to the business of Business. The mob is being emasculated and usurped by Terrorism and are barely on the FBI radar anymore. Tony, Carm, Meadow and AJ have essentially not grown at all during the entire series and are basically the same shallow, materialistic people they''ve always been, living in their little bubble with the occassional reality check from Tony''s Family life. Yet all around them, most everyone who''s come in contact with them has had sigificant life changes (and many have died as a result), including Paulie of all people, who realizes that he''s just getting too damned old to be doing this at the same intensity he used to. Yet the Tony Soprano family goes about it''s business as usual as we fade to black, at a family dinner at a local diner. Acting like a typical pedestrian family. Yet always with the fear of what might happen at any moment always lurking in the background.

I thought it was a brilliant ending. I''ll miss this show so much.

 

[divergrrl]

I too thought my DVR cut off the ending.

One of my friend''s husbands said that since the show was Tony''s "story" that when it cut to black, it meant he got whacked & that''s why it just stopped.

My DH read in USA Today a while back that they are starting a Soprano''s spinoff with AJ taking over the family. I *think* it was USA today. Some characters will return, but not all.

I was let down. I too do not always like happy Hollywood endings, but that was utter cr@p in my opinion. Chase could have been more creative IMO.

Diver

 

[LaurenThePartier]

Date: 6/11/2007 1:01:25 PM
Author: divergrrl
I too thought my DVR cut off the ending.

One of my friend''s husbands said that since the show was Tony''s ''story'' that when it cut to black, it meant he got whacked & that''s why it just stopped.

My DH read in USA Today a while back that they are starting a Soprano''s spinoff with AJ taking over the family. I *think* it was USA today. Some characters will return, but not all.

I was let down. I too do not always like happy Hollywood endings, but that was utter cr@p in my opinion. Chase could have been more creative IMO.

Diver

That was the theory of most of the people who I have talked to about it.

I haven''t seen a Sopranos episode in about a year, so I''m looking forward to catching up when it comes out on DVD.

 

[hlmr]

Date: 6/11/2007 2:23:32 AM
Author: surfgirl
I really liked it. I thought it was the most appropriate ending for an extraordinary series. I dont like being spoon fed in movies or TV and I didn''t want everything tied up in a nice neat little package. I thought we got alot of stuff tonight but last week was really the penultimate episode - with whackings a plenty and lots of mob violence and possible wiping out of an entire Family. Tonight was more of a ''let''s all calm down'' and get back to the business of Business. The mob is being emasculated and usurped by Terrorism and are barely on the FBI radar anymore. Tony, Carm, Meadow and AJ have essentially not grown at all during the entire series and are basically the same shallow, materialistic people they''ve always been, living in their little bubble with the occassional reality check from Tony''s Family life. Yet all around them, most everyone who''s come in contact with them has had sigificant life changes (and many have died as a result), including Paulie of all people, who realizes that he''s just getting too damned old to be doing this at the same intensity he used to. Yet the Tony Soprano family goes about it''s business as usual as we fade to black, at a family dinner at a local diner. Acting like a typical pedestrian family. Yet always with the fear of what might happen at any moment always lurking in the background.

I thought it was a brilliant ending. I''ll miss this show so much.

I agree with almost everything you say here surfgirl except I couldn''t help but be disappointed and a little angry right at the end but after thinking about it, I understood more why they would choose to end it that way.

I heard that the HBO website crashed last night after the show, as so many people logged on to complain about the ending.

 

[snogirl17]

ha! thats actually kinda funny, i went to the website too in hopes of there being a surprise show in a week or so. no wonder it was sooooo sloow!

 

[ephemery1]

I''m on board with Surfgirl and HLMR too... the more I thought about it last night, the more brilliant it got, I thought. And yeah, I was assuming the black-out was Tony getting whacked... I actually rewatched it to see what angle the guy from the bathroom would be coming from and everything... haha.

Also, DH spent some time this morning looking into some of the theories, and emailed me this:

Many people are claiming that (1) the Trucker in the USA hat was the same guy that Christopher had ripped off cd or dvd players from a few seasons back, (2) the two black guys who came in last were the ones that were hired to kill Tony the previous time when they only clipped his ear with the bullet, and (3) the guy who went to the bathroom was previously credited for a brief appearance as Phil''s nephew Nicki Leotardo during a sit down back when they were talking about what to do about Vito.

Don''t know how true all that is, but those are some of the things people are debating... just thought I''d share!

 

[hlmr]

Date: 6/11/2007 1:26:19 PM
Author: ephemery1
I''m on board with Surfgirl and HLMR too... the more I thought about it last night, the more brilliant it got, I thought. And yeah, I was assuming the black-out was Tony getting whacked... I actually rewatched it to see what angle the guy from the bathroom would be coming from and everything... haha.

Also, DH spent some time this morning looking into some of the theories, and emailed me this:

Many people are claiming that (1) the Trucker in the USA hat was the same guy that Christopher had ripped off cd or dvd players from a few seasons back, (2) the two black guys who came in last were the ones that were hired to kill Tony the previous time when they only clipped his ear with the bullet, and (3) the guy who went to the bathroom was previously credited for a brief appearance as Phil''s nephew Nicki Leotardo during a sit down back when they were talking about what to do about Vito.

Don''t know how true all that is, but those are some of the things people are debating... just thought I''d share!

Wow! That is brillant!!! Just brillant!!

 

[jaz464]

Surfgirl, you and I are completely on the same page.

Though I am a HUGE Sopranos fan and know all of the episodes, I had not really been looking forward to the finale because I thought it would be too dramatic and unrealistic, with too much happening all at once just to tie everything up and thus not remaining true to the rest of the shows. But I was surprised to find I completely loved it. The end was just as it should be and I had no thoughts of 'what the hell' or 'did the cable go out??'. Actually, in the past, other Sopranos seasons have ended with the whole family eating in a little diner, so it all tied in I thought. The ending could have been about Meadow walking in, the FBI storming the place or a hitman to kill Tony. To me, it doesn't matter. Tony lives a dangerous and unpredictable life. Someone in his position is bound to end up in prison or killed at some point. So if it didn't happen last night over the Phil deal, it could happen next month, next year, or in 5 years. But for now, life goes on. Sil is in the hospital, we don't know if Meadow will marry Patrick, if Paulie will be successful running the Cifareto crew or what AJ will do with his life. But really, that is life. I don't feel like I am left hanging at all. Everything can not be finished, with well-defined endings, unless of course they all were to die. Bottom line is, Tony probably lived to see another day. And as the final song goes, (Journey's 'Don't stop believing') "and the movie never ends, it goes on and on and on..."

 

[hlmr]

Date: 6/11/2007 1:42:25 PM
Author: hlmr

Date: 6/11/2007 1:26:19 PM
Author: ephemery1
I''m on board with Surfgirl and HLMR too... the more I thought about it last night, the more brilliant it got, I thought. And yeah, I was assuming the black-out was Tony getting whacked... I actually rewatched it to see what angle the guy from the bathroom would be coming from and everything... haha.

Also, DH spent some time this morning looking into some of the theories, and emailed me this:

Many people are claiming that (1) the Trucker in the USA hat was the same guy that Christopher had ripped off cd or dvd players from a few seasons back, (2) the two black guys who came in last were the ones that were hired to kill Tony the previous time when they only clipped his ear with the bullet, and (3) the guy who went to the bathroom was previously credited for a brief appearance as Phil''s nephew Nicki Leotardo during a sit down back when they were talking about what to do about Vito.

Don''t know how true all that is, but those are some of the things people are debating... just thought I''d share!

Wow! That is brillant!!! Just brillant!!

Well, it''s not too brilliant that I can''t spell brilliant,

but I wondered if anyone else had heard or read about what ephemery''s DH had said?

 

[decodelighted]

I read another interesting theory about the ending today ...

You realize Tony is going to suffer a fate arguably worse than being "hit" ... In the 2nd to last scene with Uncle Junior, Tony says "You used to run North Jersey" and Uncle Junior says "I did?" -- manifestation & example of his alzheimer''s. He''s now leading a life he can''t remember: for its good or bad. In the final scene A.J. says to Tony -- "You said to remember the good times" and Tony says, "I did?" -- perhaps a subtle first glimpse of his Alzheimers to come.

The brilliance I see -- is the careful knitting of the ending about which so many different theories can be explored & seemingly hold weight. No easy feat.

 

[surfgirl]

Date: 6/11/2007 6:10:22 PM
Author: decodelighted
I read another interesting theory about the ending today ...


You realize Tony is going to suffer a fate arguably worse than being ''hit'' ... In the 2nd to last scene with Uncle Junior, Tony says ''You used to run North Jersey'' and Uncle Junior says ''I did?'' -- manifestation & example of his alzheimer''s. He''s now leading a life he can''t remember: for its good or bad. In the final scene A.J. says to Tony -- ''You said to remember the good times'' and Tony says, ''I did?'' -- perhaps a subtle first glimpse of his Alzheimers to come.


The brilliance I see -- is the careful knitting of the ending about which so many different theories can be explored & seemingly hold weight. No easy feat.

Exactly deco! Tony sees what his fate will be eventually. And in how the story was told last night leaves room for all those who wanted something more concrete to occur. Me? I''m happy it was left to go "on and on and on and on...." but what I''m pissed about is that I freak''in hate Journey and I cant get that lame song out of my head! ACK.

 

[Mara]

we were soooo nervous at the end there. it was like so many things COULD have happened, it lets your imagination work for them.

one thing that i felt had some meaning but i didn't know what it was...was when tony was looking at the song choices on the little table radio...they showed each song title for a good 10 seconds or so each time and i felt like somehow they meant something, either alone or all together..but what...hmm.

the last 5 minutes were just so random for me. meadow's whole parallel parking thing, i kept wondering if something was going to happen to all of them in the diner and not to her because she took so long to park the car so she wasn't inside. and then when she was crossing the street i was sure she was going to get hit by a car or something.

i loved the sopranos overall but i swear i will not miss that 'edgeofyourseat' stressed out feeling i had watching almost every episode...waiting for something bad to happen. i think i slowly grew an ulcer over the many years the show was on. hahaha.

 

[monarch64]

Mara, totally agree with you on the "edge of the seat" feeling and the frazzled nerves it causes...LOL!

Once again, as with most episodes, it has taken me a day or so to digest everything that happened and see more clearly what was going on. Not that I have it all figured out, by any means, but I''ve enjoyed reading other forums and this thread and getting everyone''s take. I don''t like being completely spoon-fed, as another poster mentioned, but it does take me awhile to mull things over and I have to love DVR since I can re-watch at my leisure and have those "a-ha" moments.

A few weeks ago, I realized the last winner of Project Runway''s design house or whatever is called "Cosa Nostra," I think his name is Jeffrey-something, so I got to do a little research on "This Thing of Ours." Very interesting stuff. We live in an area where you read daily about the mafia and I''ve read some non-fiction about the topic over the years since I moved here. DH is from Chicago, half-Italian, and graduated with a degree in Crim. Justice, he did his senior paper on the mafia and is completely infatuated with all of it, so watching the Sopranos has been fun for us. We met after the first season, but have watched most episodes since then together. Coming from a small town in so. Indiana, I didn''t take it seriously at all at first when he started explaining some things about how certain suburbs had been run here, and of course all the other things you read about in the paper. We went to an old-school Italian restaurant once and I made some silly comment using a last name that was apparently very well known when we were sitting at the bar before dinner, and he immediately shushed me. I thought it was a joke! He later explained that it was quite possible some of the men in the bar were connected, and I swallowed my mirth right then and there.

Sort of a twilight-zone moment for me.

I would love to see a movie made, but then again maybe the story is best left open and we''ll forever wonder what becomes of Tony and the family...

 

[surfgirl]

This is such an excellent summary of what the blackness means at the end of last night''s finale. Remembering of course, Bobby and Tony''s conversation at the end of the first episode of this last batch - they''re sitting in the boat on the lake, fishing quietly, and they''re talking about what they think it''s like "in the end" and do you hear it coming or not...

"There WAS a killing at the end of the show. When the screen went black, someone died. Who died you ask?
You did. I did. Everyone who watched the show did. WE were the victims. Separated in the blink of an eye from our ''family''. Everything we cared about ripped away in that awful instant. And we go in utter blackness, total stillness. It''s over. And we didn''t hear it coming."

To me, that sums it all up perfectly as to why David Chase chose the black screen at the end. Everyone is picking apart the "but what does it mean? Tony got killed and he went to black" and blah blah blah, but I can totally see Chase thinking, "no you dolts, it''s YOU who''ve been taken out. The Soprano''s will just go on and on and on and on but YOU? You''re done now. It''s over."

 

[monarch64]

Date: 6/11/2007 9:33:16 PM
Author: surfgirl

This is such an excellent summary of what the blackness means at the end of last night''s finale. Remembering of course, Bobby and Tony''s conversation at the end of the first episode of this last batch - they''re sitting in the boat on the lake, fishing quietly, and they''re talking about what they think it''s like ''in the end'' and do you hear it coming or not...

''There WAS a killing at the end of the show. When the screen went black, someone died. Who died you ask?

You did. I did. Everyone who watched the show did. WE were the victims. Separated in the blink of an eye from our ''family''. Everything we cared about ripped away in that awful instant. And we go in utter blackness, total stillness. It''s over. And we didn''t hear it coming.''

To me, that sums it all up perfectly as to why David Chase chose the black screen at the end. Everyone is picking apart the ''but what does it mean? Tony got killed and he went to black'' and blah blah blah, but I can totally see Chase thinking, ''no you dolts, it''s YOU who''ve been taken out. The Soprano''s will just go on and on and on and on but YOU? You''re done now. It''s over.''

Does this have anything to do with tony''s peyote-induced "I get it, I get it" desert scene a few weeks ago? I was nodding as I read your post, makes a lot of sense.

 

[monarch64]

LOL! SDL, did you read surfgirl''s theory? It might be of interest, hee he! I know, though...I would''ve covered any hypothetical children''s ears when the screen went dark all of a sudden there at the end...obscenities abounded!

 

[ChargerGrrl]

Another die-hard Sopranos fan here. DH and I were in Vegas this past weekend and had to miss the finale last night. We did everything in our power today NOT to hear about the ending. And we didn't (it was hard!)

So we just watched it on our DVR. And it was FABULOUS! I admit that I kept waiting for SOMETHING to happen, and wasn't disappointed by Phil's whacking (the BEST ever during the series' run).

Then comes the final scene, and it just ended.... It was what it was. It ended just like how it began. These characters dropped into our lives without any fanfare 85 episodes ago, and they left just the same way. No bloodshed or drama.

Journey's song "Don't Stop Believin'" was a great background tune. I can't help but wonder if it had a special meaning for Tony and "family"

I don't forsee a movie in the works. The story is done. The ambiguity is what made it great. We're left to come up with our own conclusion.

Bravo, David Chase!

 

[monarch64]

Date: 6/12/2007 12:12:18 AM
Author: ChargerGrrl
Another die-hard Sopranos fan here. DH and I were in Vegas this past weekend and had to miss the finale last night. We did everything in our power today NOT to hear about the ending. And we didn''t (it was hard!)

So we just watched it on our DVR. And it was FABULOUS! I admit that I kept waiting for SOMETHING to happen, and wasn''t disappointed by Phil''s whacking (the BEST ever during the series'' run).

Then comes the final scene, and it just ended.... It was what it was. It ended just like how it began. These characters dropped into our lives without any fanfare 85 episodes ago, and they left just the same way. No bloodshed or drama.

Journey''s song ''Don''t Stop Believin'''' was a great background tune. I can''t help but wonder if it had a special meaning for Tony and ''family''

I don''t forsee a movie in the works. The story is done. The ambiguity is what made it great. We''re left to come up with our own conclusion.

Bravo David Chase!

Ditto, chargerGrrl! Although I wouldn''t be opposed to seeing a movie...

 

[mercoledi]

Just to feed the fire a little...

An actor who was on the Sopranos for a while is a Boston local and has been showing up on the local cable am news every month or so to talk about the impending end of the Sopranos and plug his own comedy show.

So about a month ago he said something to the effect that the final twist was going to anger a lot of people and leave them unfulfilled. He also hinted at a movie then.

He was on again Monday morning and mentioned not only the movie, but that the actor who plays Tony Soprano was not going to perfom in that role after the season finale.

You can see the interviews here.

That''s pretty much all I know, but I think it sort of supports the Tony-got-shot-by-other-guy''s-nefew-exiting-bathroom theory. Whatever the answer may be, it''s cool to see so many people intellectually engaged in something nationwide!

 

[hlmr]

Date: 6/11/2007 9:33:16 PM
Author: surfgirl

''There WAS a killing at the end of the show. When the screen went black, someone died. Who died you ask?

You did. I did. Everyone who watched the show did. WE were the victims. Separated in the blink of an eye from our ''family''. Everything we cared about ripped away in that awful instant. And we go in utter blackness, total stillness. It''s over. And we didn''t hear it coming.''

To me, that sums it all up perfectly as to why David Chase chose the black screen at the end. Everyone is picking apart the ''but what does it mean? Tony got killed and he went to black'' and blah blah blah, but I can totally see Chase thinking, ''no you dolts, it''s YOU who''ve been taken out. The Soprano''s will just go on and on and on and on but YOU? You''re done now. It''s over.''

I love it!! We, the audience, the fans, got whacked!!!

 

[surfgirl]

I know, hlmr! It makes it all the more delicious, doesn''t it?

I just read this snippet from a phone interview David Chase did yesterday from France (he didn''t want to be in the US when the show aired and deal with all the "monday morning quarterbacking"...) and when speaking of making a movie, which he once again said he doesn''t think he wants to do:

"...Another problem with a movie is that so many characters died in the last season. Chase said he has considered "going back to a day in 2006 that you didn''t see, but then (Tony''s children) would be older than they were then and you would know that Tony doesn''t get killed."

I think he cant make it any clearer than that. Tony doesn''t get killed. There. He said it himself. No more ''reading into the blackness'' theories. I''m sticking to the we-the-audience were the ones who got shacked. So much more interesting that way...

 

[decodelighted]

Date: 6/12/2007 12:14:16 PM
Author: surfgirl

'...Another problem with a movie is that so many characters died in the last season. Chase said he has considered 'going back to a day in 2006 that you didn't see, but then (Tony's children) would be older than they were then and you would know that Tony doesn't get killed.'

I think he cant make it any clearer than that. Tony doesn't get killed. There. He said it himself. No more 'reading into the blackness' theories.

I read that article too ... but I *think* he was saying that if he set the movie in early 2006 -- during a time before many main characters were offed, that we would know Tony wouldn't be killed WITHIN THE FRAMEWORK OF THE MOVIE ... because the movie would take place, say, before Christopher's death ... if Tony kills Christopher ... Christopher is alive, therefore Tony will be alive.


ETA:

I heard they shot three different endings, and that they MAY be on the eventual DVD. Not that Chase ever intended on using them ... but he had to shoot multiples so the word wouldn't leak ...

Anyone else care to guess what those endings are:

I'd guess ...

1) More evidence the bathroom guy shoots Tony (the actor says he knows what happens but is contractually prevented from disclosing)

2) MEADOW steps in front of an assasination attempt accidentally -- which is the most nihalistic ending possible .. killing off the only redeeming family member, who was going to go on to work in law.

3) Guy exits bathroom, exits diner ... family continues converstation once Meadow sits down at table. Pull back to tableaux of family dinner ... Song ends.

 

[jaz464]

Date: 6/12/2007 12:14:16 PM
Author: surfgirl
I know, hlmr! It makes it all the more delicious, doesn't it?

I just read this snippet from a phone interview David Chase did yesterday from France (he didn't want to be in the US when the show aired and deal with all the 'monday morning quarterbacking'...) and when speaking of making a movie, which he once again said he doesn't think he wants to do:

'...Another problem with a movie is that so many characters died in the last season. Chase said he has considered 'going back to a day in 2006 that you didn't see, but then (Tony's children) would be older than they were then and you would know that Tony doesn't get killed.'

I think he cant make it any clearer than that. Tony doesn't get killed. There. He said it himself. No more 'reading into the blackness' theories. I'm sticking to the we-the-audience were the ones who got shacked. So much more interesting that way...

Maybe I am missing something but I don't really get this reasoning. If the movie were to take place in the past (like 2006), then even if Tony did supposedly die in the last episode, the movie would still make sense. We wouldn't know that "Tony doesn't get killed." That would be later on.