"The Soprano's Season 6" Ending with a Clear Vision

 

    Yes I have spent the past hour just letting the finale of The Soprano's sit, and yes I did in fact actually enjoy it. Letting Don't Stop Believin' course through me, I can only sit back and appreciate the fine job that David Chase and co. did. I definitely did not agree with every choice that happened at the ending, and some parts I definitely felt could have been just straight up removed, but you can't separate the good from the bad, otherwise was there ever any real meaning to begin with? I do think this season most definitely does drag on, especially as someone who was not there to experience the "two different halves" of this season. However, even still, I think Chase had a pretty clear direction and vision when it came to how the wanted this series and considering how easy it could have been for them to fumble their way to the finish line you have to appreciate the cohesion. 

    So, let's get the elephant out of the room, let's talk about the final scene: is Tony dead? Look, I know people love to get cute with the way this show has such significant foreshadowing, and the way it plays out, but I refuse to believe that Tony dies like that, if he did I'm sure they would have included it, also what reason does New York even have to kill him. I think I very much fall in line with the thinking that the entire scene is just meant to illustrate the constant fear that Tony lives in, this fear that hospitalized Sil when he took over even for a couple days. I'm not saying he's meant to be boss nor a good person, but it purposely stops on the words "don't stop" before cutting to black. It never stops, New York might be dead but half of Tony's inner circle is gone, the feds are on the brink of breathing him down and he lives in constant fear of everything. It never stops, and that's the reality of the lifestyle he's chosen to live.

    Now with that out of the way we can talk about the much more interesting storylines. As a fan of Christopher it was really hard watching his fall from grace. I just thought his character was so interesting and to see him once again devolve to being a junkie, almost like a failed heir, it was hard to see. I'm not saying I wanted him to kill Tony in the end and continue some cycle of violence, but to see that he never could have cut it out with all the expectations placed on him, I'd almost feel bad until I remember all the times he beat Ade. I just think there's something really haunting about the way that he looks at Tony at the very end, like a little child, it makes you think about all that was eventually lost in translation between those two. I really did want Christopher to be Tony's successor, to be like his number two, alas it was not meant to be. Do I think Tony really wanted to kill him? Obviously, I think a part of him did, but considering his state I honestly feel like it was more of a mercy killing than anything. Yes he did realize he could never trust Christopher, and a lot of this season is about Tony losing his ways. Though with the way he looks at the car seat, and Christopher calls out to him like a lost child, I feel like in his own mind Tony rationalized it as more of a mercy killing for the boy who couldn't escape this vicious cycle, and a lifestyle that Tony himself kind of hated anyways.

    Speaking of people Tony hated, can we talk about Phil Leotardo? I'm sorry but I never really liked him that much as a villain. I always loved Johnny Sack of course, but the way Phil randomly 180's and is like "I've been disrespected too long" was always kind of random and out of the blue. To be fair though he was always shown to be a pretty big hypocrite. Always being talked up as this pragmatist only to take everyone out and basically try and kill Jersey because he thinks they're beneath him? Plus the fight with New York and is so brief and close to the end, though to be fair this show has never really been about the action, it was always about the characters. Which makes me disappointed that Johnny Sack went out the way he did, with cancer in a prison cell. I suppose in my mind they had built up all this tension as friends who had to operate in their own best interests, I wanted it to be Sack vs Soprano, but all we got was Leotardo.

    In terms of other big "events" this season, I think there was way too much AJ Soprano. I understand why he was included, after all the show was about the characters, and he was a very integral one, but also no one wants to see AJ Soprano be depressed and have his storyline take up way too much of the show's time. From the Blanca stuff to his suicide attempt which I'm sorry made me laugh. I understand the whole Tony feeling as if he's carrying some curse that will haunt his family for the rest of his life, but they focused on him way too much. The funniest part is AJ trying to become this like socially conscious character, yet somehow comes to the conclusion that he should join the army. Like you start to learn about the military industrial complex, and you're solution is to sell your body to your own country? On a side note can we talk about Dr. Melfi? I understand the whole she's just kind of using Tony because he's fun thing, but her dropping him so abruptly feels so out of place. Either you don't accept his "blood money" at all, or you actively stick to your values of trying to "save him." I guess you could accept that you've been lying to yourself this entire time, but for it to come from this random article, and to have it basically enabled by her own friend/therapist forcing it out of her is so ridiculous. Why would you ever make your own friend your therapist, even if a bunch of your friends are therapists anyways?

    Honestly, I was not too bothered by the whole coma thing, I don't think it took up too much of the time and it was interesting watching the mafia sort of keep on running itself without Tony. On a side note if the construction business was so profitable why did Tony keep on giving it to not one of his most trusted people? Like I didn't even know who Carlo was which is weird considering how old he is. You'd think he have climbed up more by then but he didn't. Honestly, I didn't even hate Janice by the end, yes she was still annoying and self centered but she felt less grating but I guess it was because I enjoy Bobby. Honestly, I'm surprised Paulie stayed alive until the end, and the way he acted he didn't even mind that New York didn't even try and wack him. You'd think they go for him but I guess by then he's wearing thin even on Tony, whose so paranoid that he literally kills Christopher. 

Final Score: 80/100

    I'll give it a tentative 80 but to be honest that it more indicative of how this season helps close out the show as a whole than the season itself. It did take me significantly longer to finish this season than an average one, and that's even taking into account the length. Especially by the end, I had already had an idea of what was going to happen to characters, and to see them all taken out in such a swift way was quite something for me. I do think that Chase did a pretty good job tying off loose ends. There was like a little bit more meat on the bone, but who really needs to see Tony in a jail cell happy that his family is taken care for? I don't think it would have done much. Moreover, time and time again the show likes to prove to viewers that it doesn't care about being grand or having proper sendoffs, just look at Christopher. If I had to rank the seasons I would probably go 3 and 2 as the best, followed by 1, 5 and 6 in their own tier, and 4 at the bottom? That seems fair enough in my opinion.