Sopranos Watch: Don't Stop
SPOILER ALERT: Do I really have to warn you?
HBO photo: Craig Blankenhorn
So let's cut to the (David) chase. I thought the ending was beautiful. Judging from the comments already pouring into the Television Without Pity forums (and my neighbors screaming curses into their Brooklyn backyards at 10:01 last night), you didn't. Consider this a public service. You can't walk up to David Chase and tell him what a self-indulgent, pretentious jerk you think he is, so you can post here and do it to me. You're welcome.
But hear me out first.
I'm sure we'll talk about the other 59 minutes of the finale (which to me were fine but not stellar) at some point. But the ultimate moment was, as they say about democracy, the worst possible choice except for all the other choices that could have been made. People have debated for months how the series would end, but anything other than some form of a life-goes-on ending would have been counter to the history and the spirit of the show.
This is life and The Sopranos' view of it: no dramatic final poppings, no big finishes and curtain calls, no operatic closing arias, no mind-bending twists (like the ever-popular "Meadow takes over the family business"), no karmic justice, just ignominy, never-ending dread and onion rings. Life slouches on, a rough beast never getting to Bethlehem. If we had gotten any kind of more conventionally satisfying closure--an epilogue, Tony getting locked up, the Russian coming back and whacking everyone--we would have loved it initially and regretted it later.
If you take that as a given, the challenge was to devise an ending that stayed true to that spirit but still managed to surprise, engage and stir discussion in the audience without tying on an uncharacteristic bow. The sudden cut-out focused you on that last glimpse of James Gandolfini's expressive face, idly indulging in a deep-fried treat, looking ever slightly up to catch a glimpse of his only daughter. The Journey song cut in mid-exhilarating rush. The silent rectangle of nothing that, I admit, suckered me in and had me on my feet hoping that my backup DVR was still working upstairs.
In other words, Chase (who wrote and directed the finale) ended Tony's story pretty much exactly the way he was expected to and needed to, and yet he had me literally on my feet, engaged, a little pissed, laughing at my surprise and immediately playing the last scene over and over, figuratively in my head and literally on my TiVo. TV critics probably like that sort of thing more than non-professional viewers. If an ending works better the more you think about it, that's another way of saying that it worked on "an intellectual level," which is not the level people generally want to watch TV on. (Though I actually though the piecemeal reuniting of the family, echoing the first-season finale, was moving and full of heart). I've already heard the complaint that Six Feet Under's finale (which gave closure for every character by fast-forwarding and showing their deaths) was right in all the ways that this one was wrong. But Six Feet Under was a show that was, literally, about the fact that everything ends. The Sopranos is a show about the fact that nothing does--until you die, you just repeat the same patterns over and over.
Was it a tease, a cheat? Sure. In a way. Chase played the last scene following family members into the restaurant, lingering on various vaguely menacing diners around them, telegraphing all the usual signs of menace... then it started cutting to random diners, showing that the next threat to Tony could come from anywhere. Or nowhere. He could be capped two minutes after the camera cut. He could go to jail. Or he could just live on until he dies, adding an extra coat of saturated fat to the inside of his arteries every now and then, surrounded by his disappointed wife and disappointing children.
Of course, that's if you read the ending that way. There's a credible argument to be made that Tony actually dies in the final moment--that a bullet (probably from the nervous diner who got up to go to the can) had just entered his brain and ended him.
Did David Chase kill Tony off? I doubt it. But whether or not he did, he did something that to my knowledge no TV finale has: he killed the viewer off. You and I, watching Tony and sharing his universe one instant, our consciousness of him snuffed out entirely the next. Ended. Whacked. They say you never hear it coming.
But enough from me. Go to the comments and let me know what you
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26
You could get all intellectual and say the ending was brilliant.
But a nagging part of me says the show ended the way it did because it is not over...ie -- new season, movie, whatever, fuggedaboutit.
Anybody else feel that way?
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27
Its a tv show, it should have a tv show ending, the second to last episode was the best episode ever!!! People wanna see people die, they wanna see the role play out. I think chase started something that he wasnt smart enough to finish. And so what if there is a movie?? All the good charactors are gone!!! What a waste of an hour for me. I shoulda went to the surf club and saw jonathan peters and got drunk on the beach. I coulda caught the re run if i knew it was gonna suck. I think chase had no idea how to finish it so he took the easy way out. I think chase should be banned from making another televison show ever!!! I think he needs to be whacked for wasting all of our time!!!!
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28
I too thought the ending of the Tony saga was a disappointment. Angela Lansbury was rushed...she didn't even get the chance to walk on stage to the applause that a legend like her so richly deserves, the excerpts from the Best Musical nominees were way too short, and the sign-off by Angela seemed pre-emptory.
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29
Loved it!
Tony was a murderer, a thug, and loved his family (including the incessantly annoying Janice!). Chase couldn't kill him. Couldn't let him live. So he let Tony's audience finish the last scene. Brilliant!! The Journey song (? "Don't Stop Believing" - can't remember the exact title) will be what Meadow hears after the shooting stops (yes - I 'killed' Tony, Carmella, and A.J.), channeling her last conversation with Tony.
Not that I'm giving the wrap-up a blanket "yes!". That whole business with the FBI and the Russians was confusing. And what was with the cat?
Love it or hate it, ya gotta hand it to David Chase for a gutsy call. Bada bing!
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30
Loved the ending. Everyone can interpret it as he/she likes: Tony lives, Tony's whacked, the whole family buys it in one spray of bullets--anything could have happened. The ending said: the series is over, you (the viewer) no longer have a window into these people's lives, what happens next is out of your hands. Likely the reason so many disliked the ending is that having to think about something is becoming passe in our culture (see the movie Idiocracy). In my husband's ending, Tony and his family are all killed; in mine, life goes on.
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31
I loved the ending, brought the series full circle, in a way. The series essentially started with Tony having an anxiety attack, and now Chase has given the viewers one. Chase wasn't about to kill Tony or send him to prison, this show has never been a morality tale. Though, in a way, Chase did the cruelest thing to Tony, which is to let him continue to live his life as he has always lived it. The only difference now is the audience now understands how suspenseful, paranoid, frustrating, and unresolved, an existence he lives.
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32
I LOVED THE ENDING, I WISHED THEY WHACKED AT LEAST MEADOW
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33
I thought the ending was brilliant. Frustrating, sure - but brilliant. David Chase is an evil genius.
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34
What a great ending. I had to watch the DVR when I came home from a gig last night. I was on the edge of the couch, heart beating out of my chest...then the screen went black. I was like 'what the hell, they didn't finish recording .....omg.....omg.....what happened.....' then the credits rolled.
I laughed. David Chase got me good. Butthead!!!
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35
Surprising and fantastic ending. Nobody guessed it. I didn't read one blogger that guessed it. Phil got whacked with relative ease. The New Yorkers got on Tony's bandwagon. No Terrorist issues. No FBI double-crossing Tony...but actually helping him in a huge way. No Russian. No AJ freakouts. No Sopranos whacked. Paulie was as loyal as ever...though we all know he complained constantly.
The greatness of the final episode is that everyone that watched it was just as paranoid and on the edge of their seat as Tony in his everyday life. It did come full circle. Tony is the man again...ready to rebuild the crew and business partnerships. And he is as paranoid as ever. I loved the black out at the end. "You never hear it comin'". Who knows, Tony could have been whacked (probably not though since Phil was already whacked). Or, life goes on...
I would think that the more it is thought about...whether you are an "intellectual" or an "instant gratification" type of person, it seems to me there can only be one conclusion: It was a great ending.
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36
Intellectually brilliant ending? HA! it was a cop-out. It was not a finale- it was a cliff hanger. I have seen every episode of this show. I have waiting the year+ in between seasons, I have been loyal and patient....and what do I get for a reward? I get messed with by Chase.
I for one will NEVER go to any damn movie. I am sure it would be a let down- as Chase would only ebd it with a sequel in mind.
Chase you should be ashamed for doing this to us.
I didn't want Tony to die- but I wanted to understand a bit more of these people-and where they go...
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37
The cat was brilliant, staring at Chris's picture
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38
My wife and I sat in a sweat of suspense as the final seconds ticked down. She stated that "Tony is gonna get whacked by those guys!"
"Those guys" of course where the four men the slight of camera shifted on as the family gathered in the booth.
When HBO went black and soundless leaving all of America hanging she went ballistic. She turned to me and loudly said.."What happened? Are you kidding me? What kind of ending is that?" "WHAT HAPPENED?!!!!"
I tried to give her my concept.
"Honey, not all packages come with a bow. Those four guys could have been hit men ...or...they could have been FBI men acting as protectors of Tony because they want him alive in order to use him as an informer. It's up to the viewer to draw their own conclusiveness. It's what you want it to be."
My words had the same effect on her as the volume from the TV.
My lovely wife is very much a "bow" person. -
39
well said chaddogg and jim. i too was weak kneed from the tension and the idea that we were just "taken out" from our secret viewing place was great! i will miss tony and his crew but i like to think he is still out there sweating it! thanks to that ending i can!!!!
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40
I think the ending was a total cop-out. The quinessential hollywood happy ending where the family gathers and all is right with the world.
There is no consequences for your actions, no remorse, life goes on. It was like the final episode of MASH. Everyone gets on with life and they get everything they wanted. Except at least in MASH, there was some consequences on action whether intended or not. I'm sure all the critics will howl about how clever the ending was, but in reality it was a final cop-out for the series that was a total cop-out. -
41
I wish I could see the last 10 seconds of the finale again (before the abrupt cut to black). I think we would have been "tipped off" by a surprised look on Meadow's face if she walked into the restaurant only to see one of those "menacing" diners with a gun a few feet away from her father's head.
If anything, I bet if you showed the replay of the restaurant scene to somebody who had never seen an episode of the Sopranos before, they would see nothing unusual about the scene. They would not get a hint that Tony was in danger. I think its a play on the paranoia that we were expecting him to die that WE were the ones seeing the danger, even though there was none.
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42
Chase did what a good writer does. He left the audience wondering and wanting more. The "Sopranos" is a cash cow. I don't blame Chase for keeping the show alive with the thought that there very well could be a reunion show or quite possible a big screen movie. If he had capped the family, it would have been too "Hollywood".
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43
David Chase = Shakespeare reincarnated. Perceptions have a direct relationship to an individual's own experiences and character. Way to go, Chase!
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44
Chase has secured his future fans - all those who think that the finale was brilliant - unfortunately for Chase, while those people may feel that they are the ones who are artistically intuitive enough to "get it," they are also a staggering minority. Follow the rule of the entertainment world: nine out of ten big hypes will ultimately disappoint.
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45
I get it! I get!!
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46
After reading/hearing all the fuss about this ending, I'm just glad my life doesn't revolve around the TV like some folks'!
Big deal. Get over it. If it helps, you can rest assured that you'll be able to give these people some more of your money when the movie comes out!
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47
There were three major opinions of what the ending would be. Tony: 1. gets whacked, 2. goes to jail, or 3. disappears. Chase would have left someone disappointed if any of the above happened. So he left it that any of the above could have happened. I have heard that there were 3 people in the restaurant from past episodes who had reason to kill him. When the camera panned to Tony during the Journey song, the lyrics 'he took the midnight train going anywhere' were the last words before the camera turned to something else. He also commented to Carmella that someone was informing to the Feds on his operations. There you go. You can pick the one that suits you or you can go with the one that Chase added to the mix.. Life goes on.
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48
chaddogg - I understand the point. But no other way it could have ended with that central theme in mind? How about, and this is a total for instanct, Tony getting shot in a random act of violence. No respect, just dead by some thug looking for a few bucks. That would have still carried that theme through, I think, while having the "crescendo" feeling of what a finale should have.
I don't think this was a horrible episode...it was just a disappointing finale.
I just know that, when the screen went blank, I felt the urge to defend it as I have in the past. I felt something pushing me to say to my brother sitting next to me, "Well, just give it a chance. I am sure he wants us to think this. He wants us to feel this." But in the end, it just left me feeling empty.
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49
Oops! Correction:
I get it! I get it!!
(sorry, too many peyote buttons in my youth)
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50
A VERY disappointing ending to one of the best series in T.V. history. Loyal fans of the show knew that Chase wouldn’t wrap things up with a shiny bow. But I think we expected a finale representative of the story we’ve followed for 8 years. Not to mention, the episode was all over the place. Jumping from one confusing scene to the next. You’re a phenomenal writer Mr. Chase; But you should have let the next to last episode be the finale (which is what he originally intended). At least that whole episode made sense.
- poniewozik Loved the season. Mrs Tuned In wd have put u on the main list RT @boredtodeath Thank u for incl us in Time's Top 10. We'll take hon mention. - 8 hours ago
- poniewozik @carr2n Virgin is the best, LAX-JFK - 9 hours ago
- poniewozik Did NPR interview abt multiscreen multitasking. After, automatically reached for iPhone in pocket. Like don draper wd have for cigarettes. - 10 hours ago
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