The Sopranos Final Episode
There are television shows, now and then, that etch themselves into your mind. But its fairly rare that a show goes beyond this level of attention paid and become indelibly burned into your mind. For me, The Sopranos is one of those rare shows.
So, I just finished watching the final episode of this unique series. What did I think? As the character Tony Soprano might say, "You're asking me what I think? What the hell am I supposed to think?".
Truly. The show ended on what surely had to be a cliffhanger ending, with Tony, Carmella, and AJ are sitting in a small restaurant as an apparent or possible (take your pick) gunman is sitting nearby.
Could it be that this is how Soprano ends? Who knows? We don't get to find out. But just as Meadow enters the restaurant, after a grueling campaign of parallel parking, and the maybe-if-gunman heads toward the restroom, the screen goes to black. And we can only wonder what the hell might happen next.
If there is to be a Sopranos movie, this was, without a doubt, the perfect setup.
...and if we never see a Sopranos movie, well, it's still a fantastic ending. Why? Good question.
Many, or most viewers, may be thinking, mumbling, or saying to themselves "What the f@#%!" And that's certainly understandable. Because there's A LOT we didn't get to find out, such as:
1. What will happen to Sil? Will he recover? Will he be an invalid? Will he take up his former position as Tony's right hand and Consigliere?
2. Has Junior slipped completely into alzheimer's land, never to return?
3. Will Janice manage to get her hands on Junior's stash, will she nab another husband? and will she manage to hold Bobby's kids hostage so that her own progeny may continue to bond with her half-siblings?
4. Will Paulie suffer an early demise by taking on a captaincy that he swears is cursed?
5. Will Dr. Jennifer Melfi ever counsel Tony again?
6. Will they somehow miraculously manage to hold an open casket funeral for Phil Leotardo (kind of hard when you consider that, after being executed at a convenience store gas pump, his head was crushed by the rear wheel of his wife's SUV)?
And, the most important question, from my viewpoint, is this: Is Paulie Walnuts overly superstitious, or is there something funny going with that damn cat?
Of course, this is why the final episode of this wonderful series is so great. Without the answers to these questions being presented, we can only wonder, and, thus, the show and its characters stay alive.
