The Sopranos (1999-2007)

Genre: TV / Drama

Starring: James Gandolfini, Lorraine Bracco, Edie Falco

Number of seasons: 6

Here is the story of Tony Soprano, his immediate family and his extended family as the boss of a criminal organization in New Jersey. Through the six seasons, we see Tony Soprano’s rise to power as a mob boss and then we see him trying to juggle the stress and pressure of all the responsibilities that come with that job in the “waste management business”.

Tony Soprano is a very flawed character to say the least. He has people beaten or killed at a whim, or he does it himself, he cheats on his wife, he leads a criminal organization and all of that, but James Gandolfini still managed to make us care about him and feel for him at times. You could see, underneath the rough exterior of a mob boss trying to keep up appearances, different layers of a human being caring for his people and searching for a meaning to it all.

The supporting cast was also very solid. Lorraine Bracco was really shining as Tony Soprano’s psychiatrist, one of the only women who could ultimately resist his charm. I also got a kick out of Little Steven Van Zandt, as Silvio, right-hand man to Tony Soprano.

Through the six seasons, there are some awesome episodes of The Sopranos. That being said, one of the major flaws of the show to me is that too many storylines get started just to lead nowhere. Some interesting developments were just dropped without a proper conclusion, and I found that lack of continuity extremely frustrating.

And what more can we say about the ending? It has been discussed over and over again by people for years. I will not ruin it for those who have yet to watch, but what a letdown. Many justifications have been given for the conclusion chosen, but none of them really appeased my disappointment.

The Sopranos is still a show worth seeing, for the cast, the shining moments in the script, the compelling stories and the many Godfather references (for the fans of the genre). Unfortunately, just like the main character, it is very flawed. Still an enjoyable….Fade to black….

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