The Sopranos

[Augustus 3061]

My girlfriend and I are re-watching, doing an episode or two per most evenings.  This is her 2nd time through.  Gotta be at least 5 for me.

From the time that I watched the show during its original run, all the way to present day, there was always something about Furio I found vaguely familiar but could never figure out what that was.

Watching tonight, I was suddenly mindblown, and just absolutely astounded that it took me this long to realize that Castelucci is similar looking to Brent Spiner.

Once I saw that, for the rest of tonight's episode I was imagining Furio as Data.

 

[Aqua Buddha 14598]

Rewatching this now with the wife.  Prolly the 3rd of 4th time for but the first in over five years.  She's never seen it.  We're midway through Season 2 now.  The wife is like "Can they just kill Richie already?"

What's interesting to me now vs the previous times is Tony's relationship with his family.  Now that I'm older I can identify with that angle a lot better.  He may love his family but they're all a total beating for different reasons.  Also forgot how funny the show was.

[msbesq 385]

Matthew Weiner is on the podcast this week. Great insights into the writing process and travails to get Mad Men on the air and keep it on the air.

[Augustus 3061]

On 6/15/2021 at 9:59 AM, Aqua Buddha said:

Rewatching this now with the wife.  Prolly the 3rd of 4th time for but the first in over five years.  She's never seen it.  We're midway through Season 2 now.  The wife is like "Can they just kill Richie already?"

What's interesting to me now vs the previous times is Tony's relationship with his family.  Now that I'm older I can identify with that angle a lot better.  He may love his family but they're all a total beating for different reasons.  Also forgot how funny the show was.

 

I think the comedic writing on this show didn't get as much praise as it deserved because the show was so incredible in many other respects.  But those comedic bits were brilliant.

[Nole-4-Life 804]

2 minutes ago, Augustus said:

 

I think the comedic writing on this show didn't get as much praise as it deserved because the show was so incredible in many other respects.  But those comedic bits were brilliant.

Paulie might be the unintentionally funniest character in any tv show ever.

[Augustus 3061]

Speaking of comedy...  watched the episode last night where Little Carmine meets Tony and LC tells the story of "Lewis (Louis) the whatever" and the palace that outshone "Versales."

I'd seen this numerous times and LC still cracks me up.

[billfromlaketravis 11516]

1 minute ago, Nole-4-Life said:

Paulie might be the unintentionally funniest character in any tv show ever.

Schirripa and Imperoili have both said on the pod that Sirico is Paulie. They're the same guy. Astonishing that Sirico mixing with really strong personalities in Chase and Weiner didn't blow up at some point. I guess Sirico had the good sense to keep the checks coming in and keep his mouth shut. 

[lateshow 1304]

1 hour ago, Augustus said:

 

I think the comedic writing on this show didn't get as much praise as it deserved because the show was so incredible in many other respects.  But those comedic bits were brilliant.

I don't remember the episode, but Christopher is summoned to meet with Tony. As soon as he walks in the door Chrissy says:

 

"Is this about the Easter baskets?"

T: "I don't even want to know what that means."

 

Little bits like that still crack me up on rewatches. 

[mchookem 16336]

https://news.yahoo.com/news/news/chris-rock-says-turned-down-101606033.html

he knew his limits lol

[Wade 464]

On 6/15/2021 at 9:59 AM, Aqua Buddha said:

What's interesting to me now vs the previous times is Tony's relationship with his family.  Now that I'm older I can identify with that angle a lot better.  He may love his family but they're all a total beating for different reasons.  Also forgot how funny the show was.

That's a great point.  I was single when the show aired and hated the family scenes.  Having rewatched after having a family those scenes are much more relatable.  I've got a 14 year old son who used to love to roughhouse with me.  Recently he's changed and just whines "stop" if I try to roughhouse him a little.  There's a scene with AJ doing that exact same thing when Tony tries to play.

[dcbc 14487]

Hey, does anyone remember the lead in HBO promo before some of the final season's episodes.  It comprised several clips from the Sopranos (and maybe other contemporary HBO shows with Zero 7's In the Waiting Line playing over it.  I've searched high and low for it and haven't founded it on these internets. 

[Johnny Sack 8397]

On 6/16/2021 at 3:49 PM, lateshow said:

I don't remember the episode, but Christopher is summoned to meet with Tony. As soon as he walks in the door Chrissy says:

 

"Is this about the Easter baskets?"

T: "I don't even want to know what that means."

 

Little bits like that still crack me up on rewatches. 

That’s when Tony was calling him out about not paying for dinner when he was low man and stuck that spaccone Paulie with the bill.  

[Johnny Sack 8397]

On 6/17/2021 at 7:56 PM, Wade said:

That's a great point.  I was single when the show aired and hated the family scenes.  Having rewatched after having a family those scenes are much more relatable.  I've got a 14 year old son who used to love to roughhouse with me.  Recently he's changed and just whines "stop" if I try to roughhouse him a little.  There's a scene with AJ doing that exact same thing when Tony tries to play.

That’s the episode where Jackie Jr get clipped.  Tony was being loving.  

[Johnny Sack 8397]

On 5/18/2021 at 10:33 AM, msbesq said:

Yes, Steve Buscemi was on a few weeks ago. Also very interesting. 

 

That cocksuckin' piece of shit Tony Soprano's cousin - I can't even say his name

[dcbc 14487]

2 hours ago, Johnny Sack said:

 

That cocksuckin' piece of shit Tony Soprano's cousin - I can't even say his name

Username/Avatar does not check out

[SizzleChest 8284]

I rewatched some episode recently with the closed captions turned on.

Finally learned how to spell 'pucchiac'.

Should come in handy the next time I need to call someone a cunt and they'll wonder what it means.

[Johnny Sack 8397]

16 minutes ago, dcbc said:

Username/Avatar does not check out

He clipped Peeps.  Who used to send Ginny a Grandmas of Maine coffee cake every Christmas.

[dcbc 14487]

17 hours ago, Johnny Sack said:

He clipped Peeps.  Who used to send Ginny a Grandmas of Maine coffee cake every Christmas.

I meant the quote, which I thought was from the "Shah of Iran."

[Johnny Sack 8397]

Been doing a rewatch.  Junior, before he became a stunad, is the best non Tony/Carmela/Melfi character.

[billfromlaketravis 11516]

10 minutes ago, Johnny Sack said:

Been doing a rewatch.  Junior, before he became a stunad, is the best non Tony/Carmela/Melfi character.

[Cousin Strawberry 1261]

On 6/19/2021 at 12:02 AM, SizzleChest said:

I rewatched some episode recently with the closed captions turned on.

Finally learned how to spell 'pucchiac'.

Should come in handy the next time I need to call someone a cunt and they'll wonder what it means.

its actually buchiach.

[SizzleChest 8284]

2 hours ago, Cousin Strawberry said:

its actually buchiach.

I shouldn't expect much from closed captions spellings, but it's spelled with a 'p' on Urban Dictionary too.

[Fletch 5800]

On 6/18/2021 at 9:24 PM, Johnny Sack said:

 

That cocksuckin' piece of shit Tony Soprano's cousin - I can't even say his name

Phil. Phil. Please

*silence*
Im sorry I forgot what we were talkin about?

Me too. The fuck was it!??!?

Oh!!! Carmela….

To the comedy commentary above, for me it was always hilarious. I mean yeah there’s some dark shit of course but watch this and not laugh your ass off

 

There’s so much fucking gold in pretty much every episode it’s insane

[Dennis Taylor 18830]

On 6/16/2021 at 2:41 PM, Nole-4-Life said:

Paulie might be the unintentionally funniest character in any tv show ever.

[MissingInAction 25106]

The scenes where Pualie deals with his mothers crew always crack me up.

[Guest Lobo]

the fucking lunch in the city with the bread rolls?  I can't watch that scene and not cry laughing.  Hits way too fucking close to home.  

[Johnny Sack 8397]

2 hours ago, Lobo said:

the fucking lunch in the city with the bread rolls?  I can't watch that scene and not cry laughing.  Hits way too fucking close to home.  

Wrap these in cellophane.

[billfromlaketravis 11516]

The scene where Junior sings at Jackie Jr's wake is such a beautiful scene. It works on so many levels. I'll forgive him for going senile and shooting Tony. 

But Paulie Walnuts is still a better character. Consider all the great Paulie scenes vs all the great Junior scenes. It's no contest. Would you rather watch Paulie freak out on a psychic or watch Junior under house arrest? 

 

 

[Bogeywon 2519]

2 hours ago, billfromlaketravis said:

The scene where Junior sings at Jackie Jr's wake is such a beautiful scene. It works on so many levels. I'll forgive him for going senile and shooting Tony. 

But Paulie Walnuts is still a better character. Consider all the great Paulie scenes vs all the great Junior scenes. It's no contest. Would you rather watch Paulie freak out on a psychic or watch Junior under house arrest? 

 

 

Respectfully did agree.

They are both great… just different characters. They are all great

 

 

except AJ

Edited June 21, 2021 by Bogeywon

[SizzleChest 8284]

6 hours ago, Lobo said:

the fucking lunch in the city with the bread rolls?  I can't watch that scene and not cry laughing.  Hits way too fucking close to home.  

The way he snaps his fingers at the waiter and then points with his pinky out.

[Dennis Taylor 18830]

6 minutes ago, SizzleChest said:

The way he snaps his fingers at the waiter and then points with his pinky out.

The pointing gets me every time. 

[Guest Lobo]

the sound editing alone as the women are ransacking the sugar and bread basket.  Emmy awards all around, ma! 

[msbesq 385]

The podcast this week discussed “Long Term Parking”, which was always the saddest episode to me. Adriana was the most sympathetic character in the show to me and Drea did a great job portraying her.

[Cousin Strawberry 1261]

4 hours ago, billfromlaketravis said:

The scene where Junior sings at Jackie Jr's wake is such a beautiful scene. It works on so many levels. I'll forgive him for going senile and shooting Tony. 

But Paulie Walnuts is still a better character. Consider all the great Paulie scenes vs all the great Junior scenes. It's no contest. Would you rather watch Paulie freak out on a psychic or watch Junior under house arrest? 

 

 

Junior was the better character.  Go shit in your hat.

[Augustus 3061]

Holy cow.  I guess this scene had slipped my memory.

It's the episode where Junior is repeating the "never had the makings of a varsity athlete" comment.  Tony eventually loses his shit, telling all concerned that Junior is dead to him.

Then Tony learns that people with demential/alzheimers do this kind of thing, and softens toward Junior.

They're sitting on Junior's sofa, and Tony asks why, if Junior is gonna be repeating stuff over and over, can't it be something nice, why does it have to be something mean?  And then he says to Junior:

"Don't you love me?"

The question is so sincere and vulnerable, and Junior doesn't answer but his chin starts twitching as if he's fighting tears, and the episode ends.

Goddamn that hit me in the heart.  Don't know how I forgot that, it was so powerful.  And it's another of countless examples throughout the series that make clear all the talk of Tony being a sociopath were absurd.  He was just a severely insecure guy whose self-centeredness and narcissism were ego defense mechanisms.  He was not only capable of empathy and other basic human emotions, but there were plenty of scenes as well where he showed sincere generosity and love.  I think the references to 'sociopath' from Melfi's therapist and husband were intended to highlight how lazy we can be when assessing others, especially those who are different from us.

Edited July 4, 2021 by Augustus

[Cousin Strawberry 1261]

2 hours ago, Augustus said:

Holy cow.  I guess this scene had slipped my memory.

It's the episode where Junior is repeating the "never had the makings of a varsity athlete" comment.  Tony eventually loses his shit, telling all concerned that Junior is dead to him.

Then Tony learns that people with demential/alzheimers do this kind of thing, and softens toward Junior.

They're sitting on Junior's sofa, and Tony asks why, if Junior is gonna be repeating stuff over and over, can't it be something nice, why does it have to be something mean?  And then he says to Junior:

"Don't you love me?"

The question is so sincere and vulnerable, and Junior doesn't answer but his chin starts twitching as if he's fighting tears, and the episode ends.

Goddamn that hit me in the heart.  Don't know how I forgot that, it was so powerful.  And it's another of countless examples throughout the series that make clear all the talk of Tony being a sociopath were absurd.  He was just a severely insecure guy whose self-centeredness and narcissism were ego defense mechanisms.  He was not only capable of empathy and other basic human emotions, but there were plenty of scenes as well where he showed sincere generosity and love.  I think the references to 'sociopath' from Melfi's therapist and husband were intended to highlight how lazy we can be when assessing others, especially those who are different from us.

IIRC, Dominic Chianese said that the script didn't call for him to cry.  He just did because Gandolfini was so good in that scene. He also cried when talking about it at the Sopranos reunion.

Edited July 4, 2021 by Cousin Strawberry
additional info

[Augustus 3061]

Wow, that's awesome.

[Harrison Bergeron 1798]

Also doing a Saints-inspired re-watch:
1. Even better the the second time noticing more subtleties, particularly the sound track. 
2. Hate Tony more, like Janice more
3. Sorry if covered earlier but read an interesting piece on Paulie behind Tony's hit

[Bookman 4639]

Love me some Jennifer Melfi.

[jeevsie 3734]

Good ol' Dr Milf-y.

[HornOnTheBayou 8931]

I'm doing a re-watch to get ready for The Many Saints of Newark. Is Father Phil the dumbest and/or horniest character in television history? I get that he's probably celibate and going through a dry spell. And yes, Edie Falco is extremely attractive. But, dry spell or not, she's not "Sure, I'll fuck the mob boss's wife. What could possibly go wrong?" hot. 

Edited July 17, 2021 by HornOnTheBayou

[Harrison Bergeron 1798]

Probably anchored by the long exposition I read but now pretty obvious Paulie put out the hit on Tony. That's been one of the joys of the re-watch is noticing Paulie's complexities.

[CooterBrown 18014]

Finally started my very first watch of The Sopranos. 6 episodes in and it’s pretty good so far.

[Bogeywon 2519]

10 hours ago, Harrison Bergeron said:

Probably anchored by the long exposition I read but now pretty obvious Paulie put out the hit on Tony. That's been one of the joys of the re-watch is noticing Paulie's complexities.

Wait what??? Paulie walnuts? Send me a link please

Edited July 17, 2021 by Bogeywon

[TwiceHorn 31496]

I didn't have HBO for the longest time.

Accordingly, my first watch of the Sopranos was marathons on I think A&E.  They would do pretty much a whole season, but in no particular order.  That actually works ok, but it's odd watching the eps/seasons in order for the first time.

[Dutch 4474]

11 hours ago, Harrison Bergeron said:

Probably anchored by the long exposition I read but now pretty obvious Paulie put out the hit on Tony. That's been one of the joys of the re-watch is noticing Paulie's complexities.

Paulie? Wack the boss?

 

But… I could be wrong; I’d be interested to read that piece if you have a link.

One of the (many) things that makes the series so great is the deep subtleties and complexities of the characters. Every viewing reveals things you missed previously. 

[VirginiaLonghorn 4777]

1 hour ago, CooterBrown said:

Finally started my very first watch of The Sopranos. 6 episodes in and it’s pretty good so far.

Pretty good? 🤨

[CooterBrown 18014]

Pretty good?

What’s funny is that having not seen one second of it during its heyday, it’s a bit jarring to see the origin for so many mob/Italian tropes that are a result of this show. It took a couple of episodes to get past that it wasn’t derivative but it’s the source for everything that came after it.

[Player 4575]

Probably anchored by the long exposition I read but now pretty obvious Paulie put out the hit on Tony. That's been one of the joys of the re-watch is noticing Paulie's complexities.

That theory could be right. But I think Patsy Parisi makes more sense.

[Bogeywon 2519]

5 minutes ago, Player said:

That theory could be right. But I think Patsy Parisi makes more sense.

He didn’t have the clout to pull that off and get everyone in line.