My Senior Thesis | seniorthesis2021

What is The Sopranos?

Informative Speech

Peter Laughlin

“When producer David Chase approached ABC with The Sopranos, the network wanted to change Mafia boss Tony into an FBI informant so that the main character was an undercover ‘good guy.’ Chase marched his show to HBO instead. It first aired in January 1999, and the rest, as they say, is history” (Davis). This is the origin of The Sopranos, an American crime drama that started the golden age of Television. American culture did not influence The Sopranos, The Sopranos influenced American culture.

The show stars James Gandolfini as New Jersey mobster Tony Soprano and follows his life, the life of his associates, friends and family, and how his way of life affects the people around him. You would think that the title of the show refers to the crime family at the center of the story, but this is a misconception. The name of Tony’s organization is the DiMeo Crime Family, and when you take a deep analytical look at it, the show is about Tony’s actual family. This is definitely a debatable aspect of the show. What is certain is that there are three main storylines in the show. Tony’s family’s plotline, the plotline of the mob, and the therapy plot line. Evidently, all these threads intertwine naturally. The Sopranos is one of the funniest shows around. This fact alone speaks to how unique and natural the show is. However, don’t be mistaken. The show is consistently dark, depressing, and desolate.

“While Tony's exaggerated dilemmas are foreign to viewers who have never hunted down a turncoat in a fit of wrath, treated him to a final soda, and then filled him with lead, there is something uncanny about Tony's reasoning, as though it is already implicitly at work in the hegemonic American ideology." Tony Soprano seems to be the American man incarnate," writes Aeron Bergman, a critic of The Sopranos (Laurier and Atkinson). The opening premise of the show is quite simple, a guy walks into a psychiatrist’s office. Tony seeks out a psychiatrist after he suffers a panic attack. As the audience, we learn after a few sessions with his new psychiatrist, Dr. Melfi, that his panic attack was caused by a family of ducks that had taken up residence in Tony’s pool. Tony got very attached to these ducks and developed a fascination with them. However, as Tony was grilling one day, the ducks decided to leave. This caused Tony to get a sensation that he described as ginger-ale in his skull, and he passed out. Through introspection with Melfi, Tony discovers that the panic attack was triggered by the ducks because he is subconsciously afraid of losing his family. This is the point where the dramatic question of the entire six season series is proposed, can Tony change before it’s too late? Well there is a definitive answer, but there’s no reason to spoil it here.

Tony Sopranos is three things. He is charismatic, fat, and loud. For Tony, nothing makes him angry like a rat, nothing makes him seethe and fume like a rat, nothing makes him yell and scream like a rat. The term “rat” refers to a turncoat in organized crime. Part of the reason why I love the show so much is because of the approach it takes to an already somewhat tired and established genre. Before The Sopranos, the genre consisted of The Godfather trilogy, Goodfellas and Casino, and others. All of these films glorified the life of a mobster in a way, and definitely didn’t depict it in a very realistic light. The Sopranos kind of changed all that. It was the first time we were given a gritty day in the life take on Mob life. Personally, to a certain extent, I prefer this depiction over what came before. Part of the reason The Sopranos stands out among all crime dramas is because of the way in which the show displays the inner workings of both the Jersey and New York crime families. The world of the show feels lived in. You forget that you’re watching a TV show. That’s what all good stories across all mediums should be able to do.

“Later, trying to explain the vision he experienced while comatose, Tony will say, uneasily, "I saw something." But what, exactly? As the Soprano saga draws to its close, heavy with intimations of its protagonist's mortality, what redemption, if any, awaits? Is Tony's vision one of heaven, or of hell” (Kaveny). Tony Soprano, despite the modesty of the person who brought him to life, is the greatest fictional character of all time. Obviously, that is just my humble opinion. The cultural impact of the show is a little hard to pin down, especially for me as I didn’t watch the show when it was on the air, but it did a lot at the time that was really pushing the envelope in terms of television and genre expectations. It took a much more grounded and believable approach to the mafia and organized crime in the United States, abandoning goofy tropes, for a more believable tri-state area crime setting.

Each episode was an hour long in length, which is like watching a feature length film nearly every week, and instead of having each episode be a self contained story, the relationships built in each episode had influences on future events, and watching one episode really isn’t enough. You’ve got to watch the whole season, if not the entire series to understand everything and see how it all comes together. There is a very real possibility that three shows wouldn’t exist if not for the Sopranos. The three that come to mind are Breaking Bad, The Wire, Six Feet Under. As Bryan Cranston put it best on the Dan Patrick Show, “I think what David Chase was able to do in creating a character like Tony Soprano was certainly paving the way to allow the space for someone like Walter White to exist.”

Bibliography

Davis, J. Madison. "Our 'Golden Age' of TV Crime Drama: The Artistic Promise of Television

Blooms." World Literature Today, vol. 93, no. 1, 2019, p. 10+. Gale In Context: High

School. Accessed 10 Sept. 2020.

This source talks about the Golden Age of TV and HBO as a whole. How the show has influenced everything that has come after it. How it truly pushed the envelope and broke new ground for the television industry.

Laurier, Andrew and Wilfrid Atkinson. "When You Walk through the Garden: HBO and the Cross Pressures of Post-Secular Humanism." Journal of Religion and Popular Culture, vol. 24, no. 3, 2012, p. 393. Gale In Context: High School. Accessed 10 Sept. 2020.

This source talks about the Post-Secular Humanism of the show throughout the series. How it develops and how the setting decays as time goes on. Each season, Tony continues to sink further and further until it’s too late. How it blends nicely with the theme of the mob in decline.

Kaveny, Cathleen. "Salvation & 'The Sopranos': redemption in New Jersey?" Commonweal, vol. 134, no. 3, 9 Feb. 2007, p. 10+. Gale In Context: High School. Accessed 10 Sept. 2020.

This source talks about the series as a whole and does an in depth look at some of the tragic characters. They do summaries for each character and explore the character arcs of each character. They talk about Tony’s relationship with each one and how he influences their fall as well. It also talks about the recurring theme of not being able to escape your life of crime, which is true for every character in the show. You can’t hide from what you’ve done.

Blood Is Thicker Than Water: The Sopranos and Family

Peter Laughlin

Senior Thesis

Mr. Zontine

December 9, 2020

Tony Soprano sits anxiously in a waiting room as he waits for his first appointment with his new psychiatrist. He begins staring at and contemplating the statue of a naked woman in front of him. He stares at it almost as if it were gazing straight back into his soul. Before Tony becomes any more entranced than he already is, his psychiatrist, Dr. Melfi, opens the door and tells him to come in. This is how The Sopranos begins and it is no coincidence that it starts in this way. For a show that is supposedly about the mafia to open like this, is a huge change of pace. The reality is that the series creator, David Chase, could have easily made a television series similar to Goodfellas. However, that is not the case. He intentionally chose to open the series with Tony visiting a psychiatrist. It is the first sign that the show is going to be different than anything that has come before. When we see Tony in those opening few episodes, we can tell that he is searching for something. Even with that small inkling, we connect to Tony. We see that he has a fire within him. We later learn that Tony is afraid of losing his family by way of the ducks in his pool. Thus, the dramatic question of the show is posed, can Tony change before it’s too late? Many people believe that the show is solely about the mafia, and while that is mostly true, when you simplify the story down to that, you are missing the forest for the trees. Moreover, The Sopranos is about family. This is evident throughout the entirety of the show because you see how all the relationships develop and grow over time. Tony’s relationship with his wife, children, and his friends highlight this fact.

“As Tony tells Dr Melfi in the opening episode, he feels that he has come into the American Dream too late, without the prospects that fired his hard-working immigrant grandfather. He is shaken by the departure of a family of ducks he has nurtured around his swimming pool, as it suggests the irretrievable loss of innocence and foreshadows the loss of his own family” (Yacowar). As a character, redemption was always pretty unlikely for Tony, and by the final season, his fate was already sealed. It is interesting to note however, in Breaking Bad, the ending gives Walter White a sort of surprising roundabout redemption. You compare this to something like The Godfather trilogy, and the antihero of Michael is the direct opposite of this. He dies alone, with nothing, having avenged nothing. Tony’s end is sort of the middle area of these two extremes. He dies not having been redeemed, however, he dies with the people he truly cares for, his family. The scene that sums up the whole show is in episode five of season one, when Tony kills Fabian Petrulio. This is the first murder that we see Tony commit in the show, but the reason this scene is so important is because right after Tony is finished strangling the turncoat, he sees a group of ducks flying away. His expression changes to that of confusion and sadness as the camera pulls back and displays his reaction. This symbolizes that with every foul deed that Tony commits, he is that much closer to losing his family.

“The Sopranos chronicles the two overlapping "families" of mob boss Tony Soprano. Tony's work family comprises the capos and soldiers who help run his various unlawful enterprises, while his home family includes his wife Carmela, his daughter Meadow (an undergraduate at Columbia in season 5), and his son A.J. (a high-school student on the verge of delinquency). Orbiting this nucleus are Tony's increasingly senile uncle, "Junior" Soprano (the titular head of the mob family), and his free-spirited sister Janice, who is married to one of his soldiers, Bobby Baccalieri” (Kaveny). Firstly, the Sopranos is a story about family because of the end of the first season and the end of the final season. David Chase illustrates the true meaning of the show by bringing everything full circle. At the end of season one, Tony and his family escape a thunderstorm to eat at Vesuvio’s. They all eat dinner together with the power out and candles lighting up the room. Tony tells them to “remember the little moments, like this, that were good.” Flash forward to the final scene of the final season, and A.J. reminds Tony that he said this. In this way, there is a thematic throughline for the show. Other than David Chase explicitly saying it, having the first ending and the final ending being family dinner scenes is all the confirmation that is needed.

Secondly, Carmela and Tony’s relationship is one of the foundational plotlines to the entire series. Throughout the series, Tony cheats on Carmela with a plethora of women. He is unfaithful, and he justifies himself doing it. Carmela is aware of it, but silent about it in the beginning of the series. Eventually, Carmela flirts with the idea of being unfaithful herself in her marriage, but ultimately she wrangles herself back in due to her self delusion. As time passes, however, she becomes increasingly frustrated at Tony and visits a therapist. The therapist gives Carmela a reality check and tells it to her like it is. It is the one moment of blunt truth in the show. However, Carmela never goes through with his advice. Instead, she is reeled back in by Tony. Then, their relationship and story arc comes to a climax. In the finale of season four, Carmela makes a discovery, reaches a boiling point with Tony, and loses it. This leads to one of the greatest verbal fights ever put to film, where Carmela reveals to Tony her true feelings and her fantasizing about Furio. This is the point of no return, and the fight begins. The effect of this fight is massive. Tony and Carmela get separated. Tony moves out for a time, much to his chagrin. However, Carmela never goes through with a full divorce in the aftermath and Tony masterfully repairs their relationship and moves back into the house. Afterwards, Carmela is back to being her complicit, enabler self once more by the end of the series. Some people make the argument that her character progression reverts back at this point, which is not the case at all. If she completely left Tony and took the kids, that would be out of character for her. Something like that is much more in character for someone like Charmaine Bucco, Artie Bucco’s wife, who is basically a foil to Carmela. She told Carmela at the beginning of the series that she could have had her life, but chose not to. Moreover, Tony and Carmela’s relationship has a clear arc throughout the series, and with so much time dedicated to developing it, it is very clear as to the reason why it was.

Thirdly, the way in which Tony affected the outcome of Meadow’s life and the way in which Livia affected the outcome of A.J.’s life cannot be overlooked. “Tony's heart of darkness is personified by Livia Soprano, who at first seems peggable as a better-done-than-usual caricature of the overbearing ethnic mother but is gradually revealed as a monstrous Medea” (Willis). When people think of Meadow as a character, they tend to see her as clear minded and progressive. However, this is not the case. She eventually attains the same self delusion that everyone close to the mob does. She tries to rationalize and justify everything in her head. Eventually, her aspirations to become some sort of doctor vanish. Her father’s legal troubles inspire her to go to law school to become a lawyer. There’s a scene later in the series between Tony and Meadow at dinner that stands out. Tony asks her the reason for wanting to switch career paths, and he notices something. She has changed. He feels guilty now. She will now be defending criminals akin to himself in a court of law. At least, that’s what Tony is scared of. He is afraid that he has only helped to continue and perpetuate the cycle of suffering. As for Livia, she bluntly told A.J. that “it’s all a big nothing! What makes you think you’re so special?” This changed A.J.’s worldview and planted the seed of suffering in A.J.’s mind. Years later, at the end of the series, when A.J. is at his lowest point, he tries to commit suicide by drowning himself. Tony conveniently comes home just in the knick of time. He saves A.J., and for months afterward A.J. goes to therapy. In therapy, he repeats the same thing Livia said to him all those years ago. Tony immediately recognizes who he sounds like. It is mindblowing how such a small thing can have such a massive payoff in the long run. It shows that words have power that are out of our comprehension.

Finally, Tony and Christopher Moltisanti’s relationship is arguably the heart of the show. Their relationship is extremely turbulent and always changing. Their dynamic is perhaps the most interesting in the show. Their arc together takes so many different twists and turns. Christopher’s father, Dickie Moltosanti, was killed when he was little and because of this, Christopher came to view Tony as a father figure. Similarly, Tony views him as a son, but it’s never lost on him that they’re cousins. Tony groomed Christopher for years to be in a leadership position within their organization. However, as the years went by, their relationship slowly decayed. Christopher eventually became a full-blown addict and was forced to go to rehab. This strained their relationship a great deal.

Then, their relationship reached a watershed moment when Christopher learned that his longtime girlfriend, Adrianna, had become an FBI informant. Christopher went to Tony to confess, and Tony subsequently had her murdered by his consigliere, Silvio Dante. After this, their relationship was never the same. While they were able to partially repair their relationship in the following years, Tony never lost his feelings of anger and resentment for Christopher. At that point, Tony viewed Christopher as his greatest failure and his biggest liability. He believed that he was always dragging him down. When the opportunity presented itself and the circumstances were right, Tony chose to end Christopher’s life and kill him. Coming back from New York, Christopher wrecked the suburban they were in. Christopher was badly injured, meanwhile Tony had sustained several bruises. Tony broke out of the wrecked car and managed to get to Christopher, who at that point was choking on his own blood. Tony was about to call 911, but then stopped himself. He saw the smashed up baby seat in the back of the car, thinking to himself how Caitlyn, Christopher’s daughter, could have been sitting there. He then digested Christopher’s last words to him, “I’ll never pass a drug test.” This was the final straw. “As Tony leaves the hospital, he is convinced his life is a gift, and he is animated by what Leonard Cohen would call a "state of grace." Nonetheless, given the chance to murder his troubled nephew Christopher, whom he previously loved like his own son, Tony quickly smothers him” (Laurier). At this point, Tony had the justification to kill Christopher because now his beliefs of Christopher being an abject failure were reaffirmed in this moment. Tony held his nose shut and Christopher choked to death on his own blood. In a backwards kind of way, he believed he was putting him out of his misery, and that he was preventing more tragedy from happening. He also very much wanted to be free of him. Tony had stated himself that Christopher was a tremendous drag on his emotions. Tony was very much relieved. The biggest failure of his life was now gone. However, in reality, Tony did the exact opposite. He did not prevent tragedy, he caused more. He left Christopher’s daughter fatherless. In doing so, Tony has only perpetuated the cycle that caused Christopher to be the way he is in the first place. Cycles, however, can be broken.

“The Sopranos, however, was never a small show. Its ambition, breadth, depth, and originality make it the Great Pyramid of television. There were eighty-six episodes, developing characters in a number and to a depth impossible in feature films and rarely attempted in episodic television. The writing of producer David Chase and his staff never cheated by taking the easy way out” (Davis). Moreover, all these are examples of how The Sopranos is defined by family and relationships and even the littlest of moments. The setting is obviously the mafia, but it's the drama, that aspect of family that makes it memorable. The Sopranos is about family in every sense. For example, Pussy Bonpensiero is like a brother to Tony. They were best friends and nothing about the mafia will ever change that. Ultimately, the dramatic question of the show is answered at the series finale. Tony loses everything, but the genius of the show is that we were already shown what would happen in that scenario, at the beginning of the final season when Junior shoots Tony. We didn’t need to see the family in ultimate despair mourning over Tony in Holsten's Diner because as the audience we’ve already experienced that. As David Chase said, “It’s all there.”

Bibliography

Davis, J. Madison. "It's Over When The Soprano Eats Onion Rings." World Literature Today, vol. 82, no. 1, 2008, p. 9+. Gale In Context: High School. Accessed 10 Sept. 2020.

This source talks about the ending and how it affects everything. It additionally talks about how David Chase structured the ending and how it all lines up in the end. Also it talks about how the hints are all planted for the ending and the cultural impact of the show.

Kaveny, Cathleen. "Salvation & 'The Sopranos': redemption in New Jersey?" Commonweal, vol. 134, no. 3, 9 Feb. 2007, p. 10+. Gale In Context: High School. Accessed 10 Sept. 2020.

Laurier, Andrew and Atkinson, Wilfrid. "When You Walk through the Garden: HBO and the Cross Pressures of Post-secular Humanism." Journal of Religion and Popular Culture, vol. 24, no. 3, 2012, p. 393. Gale In Context: High School. Accessed 10 Sept. 2020.

This source talks about the Post-Secular Humanism displayed within the show. The source talks about how it develops throughout the series and how the setting decays as time goes on. Each season, Tony continues to fall further and further, until it’s too late. The source explains how it blends nicely with the theme of the mob in decline.

Willis, Ellen. "Our Mobsters, Ourselves : Why The Sopranos is therapeutic TV." The Nation, vol. 272, no. 13, 2 Apr. 2001, p. 26. Gale In Context: High School. Accessed 10 Sept. 2020.

This source talks about how we can find ourselves within Tony Soprano. It talks about how there is some humanity within him in a sense. For example, how him going to the psychiatrist makes him relatable. We can see that he is searching for something.

Yacowar, Maurice. "The Sopranos and the American Dream." Queen's Quarterly, vol. 112, no. 3, 2005, p. 382+. Gale In Context: High School. Accessed 10 Sept. 2020.

This source talks about the Sopranos and its commentary on the American dream. The source talks about how the show reflects on it and how it is portrayed throughout the show. The source states in various ways how the decay has begun. Also, it talks about the major themes of the show. For example, how the mob is decaying and how Tony got in at the end of the mob.

What is the Golden Age of Television?

Lesson Plan

Peter Laughlin

Objectives:

Students will get a feel for what the Golden Age of Television is.
Students will identify shows that they themselves have watched and enjoyed.
Students will learn about the circumstances that started the Golden Age of Television.

Lesson:

Introduction/Discussion and Interactive (Hook) - 7 mins

Q: What is one of your favorite TV shows?

Goal is to get the audience to name shows that they have enjoyed.
Get the audience thinking about the medium of Television and long-form storytelling.

Q: In your own opinion, what do you think is the greatest Television show of all time?

- Goal is to get the audience to make their mind up about what they consider to be the best show

- Create a dialogue and discussion within the audience and let them talk about it themselves. If you really love something you gotta be able to defend it.

Q: Do you think any of your favorite shows took part in the “Golden Age” of Television. How and why?

- Goal is to get the audience thinking about the time frame for this period of Television.

- The more they understand the context of the time and place that the shows were created in, the better.

B) Video- 3 mins

- Setup and explain the premise of the scene

- Post-video discussion about the scene

C) The Origin of the “Golden Age” (Lecture) - 5 mins

Q: So what started the Golden Age of Television?

A: It’s a question that does not really have a correct answer.

In my own humble opinion, it was The Sopranos that started the “Golden Age” of the medium.
There is an exact moment in the series that changed the medium forever.
It led to the creation of all the TV dramas that came out after 1999.
“'Tony Soprano was the most complicated character ever to appear in a television drama'” (Smith). The character of Tony was the first real TV “antihero.”
As I mentioned, the moment that changed the landscape of TV was found in episode five of season 1 of the Sopranos, “College.”
The premise is Tony takes his daughter, Meadow, up to Maine for a college visit.
When Tony stops for gas, he spots someone he knows from afar. A former member of his crime family who turned FBI informant.
At this point, Tony is now obligated to exact his revenge on the rat and execute him himself and in the end that’s what he does.
This is the thing that changed everything. It was the first time in the medium that the protagonist of a TV show commited murder.
The creator of the show, David Chase, had to fight HBO to keep this in the episode. The studio was worried that Tony killing in cold blood would cause the audience to dislike him. Chase’s counter was that the audience would do that if he didn’t murder because then he would appear weak. In the end, Chase won the argument and the rest is history.

Materials:

Photos of the show/characters
Video of the show

Bibliography:

Romano, Andrew. "The Most Dangerous Show on Television." Newsweek, vol. 158, no. 02, 11 July 2011, p. 60. Gale In Context: High School. Accessed 14 Jan. 2021.

This source talks about Breaking Bad when it was on the air. It discusses how Breaking Bad is changing the medium and contributing its own legacy. The source talks about the challenges involved with pitching the show to the studios originally. It details the struggle that Vince Gilligan went through to bring his vision to the small screen. Additionally, it discusses and praises the relationship of Walter and Jesse.

Lanahan, Lawrence. "Secrets of the city: what The Wire reveals about urban journalism." Columbia Journalism Review, vol. 46, no. 5, 2008, p. 22+. Gale In Context: High School. Accessed 14 Jan. 2021.

This source talks about The Wire and David Simon’s background. It details his history with the Baltimore Sun. It discusses the specific events that inspired plotlines in the show. Also, it talks about how The Wire is unique in the fact that each season, the story focuses on a different aspect of the city of Baltimore. Not only that, the author discusses how the show’s format is similar to that of a novel.

Mitchell, Matthew W. "Some more light on the text: watching HBO's Deadwood with and without the Apostle Paul." Journal of Religion and Popular Culture, vol. 25, no. 1, 2013, p. 110. Gale In Context: High School. Accessed 14 Jan. 2021.

This source talks about the TV western Deadwood. The author discusses the characters and different events that happen in the show. He also discusses the viability of the western genre in general. Furthermore, the legacy and impact of the show is talked about.

McManus, Elizabeth Berkebile. "Protecting the island: narrative continuance in Lost." Journal of the Fantastic in the Arts, vol. 22, no. 1, 2011, p. 4+. Gale In Context: High School. Accessed 14 Jan. 2021.

This source talks about Lost and its role in the golden age of television. The author talks about the different narrative devices the writers used. Secondly, the author discusses how the structure of each episode kept the audience always asking questions. Thirdly, the author talks about how Lost borrows thematically from all the old adventure novels, like Lord of the Flies.

Smith, Anthony N. "TV or not TV? The Sopranos and contemporary episode architecture in US network and premium cable drama." Critical Studies in Television, vol. 6, no. 1, 2011, p. 36+. Gale In Context: High School. Accessed 15 Jan. 2021.

This source talks about The Sopranos and David Chase’s philosophy. It discusses how David Chase tried his hardest to make The Sopranos different from “regular TV.”Also, the author discusses how the writers strayed away from a typical episode format like Lost. It details how every episode has an act structure and the fact that each episode has a definitive ending and conclusion. In other words, no cliffhangers. The author talks about how unconventional and unrestricted the show was for its time and how it revolutionized the medium.

https://docs.google.com/presentation/d/e/2PACX-1vSeoijocgEhug5_MDCKz9KL-z4XqyWAF7TYla9hAlnuNbUpD6DOgu69lPQWOH4myqXDIDGeWjAHi5BO/pub?start=false&loop=false&delayms=3000&slide=id.p

Face Off: The Sopranos and Breaking Bad

Peter Laughlin

Senior Thesis

Mr. Zontine

April 19, 2021

Hello. In this paper, I will be taking two shows which I consider to be thematically similar, The Sopranos and Breaking Bad, and comparing their endings. Specifically, I will be analyzing why one ending worked and why the other may not have been thematically consistent with the rest of the show.

The Sopranos and Breaking Bad, two of the towering juggernauts of the golden age of television, are considered by many to be amongst the greatest television shows of all-time. They have had a lasting impact and legacy on television as a medium, and continue to influence new shows that come out to this day. At first glance, outside of some rather surface level similarities, such as both being classified as crime/family dramas, and featuring an archetypal anti hero, it would be difficult to find a common thematic element to anchor these two shows together.

Breaking Bad tells the story of meek mannered high school chemistry teacher Walter White, who after being diagnosed with terminal lung cancer, puts his degree from CalTech to good use, and begins cooking methamphetamine, in order to ensure a future for his wife, son, and unborn daughter. As the series progresses, we see the feeble, milquetoast Walter begin to transform into his ruthless alter-ego, Heisenberg, who resorts to the most extreme of measures in order to survive. The show is heavily serialized, in that the entire series almost plays out as one big movie, features a limited cast of characters, with only a handful or so that I would consider main characters, and utilizes slow-burn, white knuckle tension, capped off by exhilarating set pieces.

The Sopranos tells the story of New Jersey mob associate, Tony Soprano, who along with the most severe case of mommy issues ever put to screen, suffers from anxiety and depression, and begins to see therapist Dr. Jennifer Melfi to ascertain the cause. What follows is a sprawling six-season saga, featuring a massive cast of characters, that aims to explore and satirize Jersey mob culture, as well as American culture as a whole. It is anchored by its protagonist, and whether or not he can walk away from the life he’s always known, before it costs him everything.

The show was groundbreaking at its time of release due to its audacity to explore mature and controversial themes. While it was one of the first shows to utilize heavily serialized storytelling, the show was still primarily episodic, especially in its earlier seasons. In contrast to the pedal to the metal tension driven storytelling of Breaking Bad, The Sopranos utilizes a far more contemplative approach to its narrative. Episodes rarely end with any sort of cliffhanger, and any action or violence in this series is treated in a very matter of fact style. Furthermore, in contrast to the heavy stylization found in Breaking Bad, The Sopranos is incredibly stark in its filmmaking. In fact, as the series goes on, the entire aura of the show, from the overall tone, to the cinematography, becomes darker and darker, reflecting the increasing hopelessness and pessimism of its protagonist.

Don’t take my words the wrong way, however. In no way is one show’s approach to storytelling superior to the other. Each style is perfectly suited for the different kind of story each is trying to tell. So what could possibly be the thematic element that ties them together? What is the main theme that exists at the core of both of these shows? Well, that theme is change.

In Breaking Bad, we see Walter White slowly morph into a ruthless criminal, and yet, while many of the immoral decisions that Walter makes throughout the series are out of self preservation, there are just as many choices that are driven by his own ego. In his essay, “Bad Decisions,” Chuck Klosterman illustrates how Breaking Bad sets itself apart from other acclaimed anti-hero dramas such as The Wire, Mad Men, and of course, The Sopranos. He writes, “Breaking Bad is not a situation in which the characters’ morality is static or contradictory or colored by the time frame; instead, it suggests that morality is continually a personal choice.”

While the characters of The Sopranos do make plenty of immoral choices, one must also take into account the environment and context in which they exist. Oftentimes, the characters do not necessarily want to do these immoral things, but end up doing so due to desperation and self preservation. This is not to excuse their actions, merely to say there are additional things that must be taken into account, as opposed to just personal choice. But, in Breaking Bad, Walter is not driven to take immoral action by his environment or upbringing. Yes, he does begin selling meth due to his cancer diagnosis, thus needing financial security for his family, but throughout the series, we see he is given many outs, or chances to walk away, but he doesn’t. He continues to push the envelope, slamming his foot down on the gas pedal, and ramping up the stakes. Even when he is faced with situations where he must take drastic measures to ensure his survival, they are almost always brought about by the consequences of his own actions.

Breaking Bad purports that there is a fragile barrier between being a good man and a bad man, and that all it takes to break bad, is to simply choose to do so. In The Sopranos, while Tony Soprano does commit an extensive list of horrible actions throughout the series, and he most certainly should be held accountable for these actions. The show goes to great lengths to show that Tony is not the way he is simply due to his own predilections, but rather the culture he was raised in, the upbringing he was given by his insanely dysfunctional parents, and the pressures and anxieties that come with maintaining the lifestyle that he has cultivated for himself. There are many times throughout the series where it is implied that, deep down, perhaps on a subconscious level, Tony doesn’t even necessarily want or prefer this lifestyle, and wishes he could have a simple life, free from the numerous complications that plague his mind on a daily basis. But, he, in a sense, feels trapped, constricted by the responsibility that comes with being the leader of men and his own warped perception of masculinity. In his therapy with Dr. Melfi, Tony does end up coming to a number of semi-epiphanies, taking Melfi’s advice on how to deal with the more toxic and stressful aspects of his life, and yet he tragically ends up falling victim to his numerous bad habits and behavior, either due to external forces, or his own misinterpretation of the lessons that Melfi tries to get across to him, and fails to take steps to change. Even as his decisions threaten to tear his life and family apart.

In The Sopranos, Tony must make a concentrated effort to change his life, and must overcome the numerous factors that prevent him from doing so, before it's too late. For a more concise summation of this thematic core shared by both shows, as writer Ross Douthat writes, “Both shows are deeply interested in moral agency, but in “Breaking Bad,” we’re watching a protagonist who deliberately abandons the light for the darkness, whereas in “The Sopranos,” we’re watching someone born and raised in darkness turn down opportunity after opportunity to claw his way upward to the light.” So with all that said and established, now it’s time to indicate which show I believe has a finale that works, and which has a finale that I believe does not work.

Let me be clear, both endings, I believe, are satisfying conclusions to their respective stories. I am simply analyzing which ending of the two, works in context with the dramatic question of their story and narrative. This might be quite the hot take, but in terms of my analysis, I believe that the ending of The Sopranos works, and that the ending of Breaking Bad does not work. Now, before I go further into detail about my conclusion, let us first establish what happens in each finale.

In the series finale of Breaking Bad, Walter White, having had his brother-in-law killed, his partner imprisoned, his fortune stolen, and his family obliterated, decides to return to Albuquerque to set things right and make his final stand. Throughout the finale, we see Walter secure a financial future for his family, make peace with his wife, say goodbye to his infant daughter, take vengeance on his enemies, come to the rescue of his partner, thus reconciling their relationship, and die satisfied before the police are able to apprehend him. The storytelling is straightforward and is in no way ambiguous. However, there is an alternate theory proposed by comedian Norm Macdonald that states that Walter never made it back to Albuquerque and succumbs to his illness, whilst sitting in the snow covered car in the opening of the episode, and that everything we see play out in the finale is simply a dying fantasy. Now, creator Vince Gilligan has come out and denied this theory, however it is still an interesting thought nonetheless.

In the series finale of The Sopranos, Tony Soprano finds himself in the midst of a conflict with the Lupertazzi Crime Family. He and his family are forced to go into hiding until they can ensure their safety. Tony is eventually able to come to a deal with the underboss of the rival family, track down acting boss Phil Leotardo, and take him out, thus allowing his family to return home, and achieving a tentative peace. Throughout the finale, Tony seems to sort of make peace with the people closest to him. But, it is made clear that, despite the fact that he is safe for now, he is not free from the numerous anxieties and tribulations that his lifestyle entails. Then, of course, there is the final scene. Tony is meeting with his family for dinner at Holsten’s and arrives first. His wife arrives, then his son. Particular attention is also given to a mysterious man in a members only jacket, who seems to be eyeing Tony pretty hard, and who we last see entering the bathroom to Tony’s right. As Tony’s daughter Meadow arrives, and makes her way into the restaurant, the bell above the door rings, causing Tony to look up, and the show cuts to black. Even to this day the exact meaning of the cut to black is debated, with show creator David Chase refusing to give a definitive answer. However, if one pays close attention to the final season of the show, you will notice hints and foreshadowing littered throughout, carefully crafted by Chase. All of these breadcrumbs point to Tony’s ultimate fate, and yes, Tony Soprano does indeed die in the series finale of the show. Once you go over all the little details, the inference of the ending becomes unequivocal. His death intentionally imitates the murder of Sollozo by Michael Coreleone from The Godfather.

So, moreover, why do I believe that the ending of The Sopranos works, and why do I believe that the ending of Breaking Bad does not? Well, it is simple. It is because the ending of The Sopranos answers the dramatic question of the show, posed in the first episode of the show, in the final episode of the show, and Breaking Bad answers its dramatic question in the season four finale of the show, and still has one season left of story to tell. The dramatic question of Breaking Bad is how bad will this man reveal himself to be. Walter, at the end of his season-long chess match with Gus, commits his most vile, disturbing, and evil act, the poisoning of a child. The extremes he goes to at the end of season four ensures his survival, and he manages to kill Gus. Walter wins. As the audience, we are happy that he is triumphant, he as a character is certainly filled with immense pride, which only further multiplies his ego. However, the final shot of the season is a pan over to a flower pot in Walt’s backyard, and as the audience, we realize with horror that Walt lied to Jesse, he poisoned a child, and then we ask the question, who were we really rooting for this entire time? The ending of season four is masterfully executed, and could have easily been the ending to the show. However, there were still so many loose ends left open, and there was more story to tell. The problem is, of course, that the dramatic question of the show was answered before the ending of the story and narrative itself. Walt, in a sense, completed his character arc. That is why the final season, unfortunately, was not perfect in a literal sense. As soon as the final season began, the pedal to the metal pace of the narrative, stopped completely. This was done to stall Walt’s character development in order to give the narrative enough time to introduce a new enemy faction that would oppose Walt. All shows suffer from this problem, even The Sopranos. They kill off the major antagonist, and have to introduce a new one, however, I believe The Sopranos were more successful with the execution of it, especially since the writers had to do it more often. Even with season five of Breaking Bad not being completely perfect, it is still mostly amazing, especially the final nine episodes. Not to mention that the antepenultimate episode of the series, Ozymandias, is the greatest hour of television in history.

The dramatic question of The Sopranos is will Tony be able to change his ways, before he loses his family? It is not mentioned enough that the title of the show does not refer to the crime family, but, in fact, it literally refers to Tony’s actual family. First and foremost, the show is about Tony and his family. The first series ending was a scene of them eating dinner together, and the final series ending was a scene of them eating dinner together. Characters may refer to the crime family as The Soprano Family, but in truth, the name of the organization is the DiMeo Family. The inciting incident of the opening scene of the series was Tony’s panic attack. That is why he went to Dr. Melfi in the first place, and in the first episode, he comes to the realization that him seeing the family of ducks fly away was something deeper than what he saw before him. His brain subconsciously interpreted it as something else. He had a panic attack, because subconsciously, he was afraid of losing his family. Thus, the dramatic question of the series is posed, and it is not definitively answered until the final episode of the show. We see Tony happy at the end, with his family, basically content. Perhaps, Tony can see that his family is more important than his lifestyle, but before Tony can even entertain the thought, his life is taken from him, in front of his own daughter, his family. The ending has so many layers of subtext, that in a way, makes it genius. We didn’t need to see all the loose ends tied up, or the aftermath of Tony’s death, because David Chase already made sure that we saw Tony Soprano die, we just didn’t know it.

Bibliography

Davis, J. Madison. "It's Over When The Soprano Eats Onion Rings." World Literature Today, vol. 82, no. 1, 2008, p. 9+. Gale In Context: High School. Accessed 10 Sept. 2020.

Kaveny, Cathleen. "Salvation & 'The Sopranos': redemption in New Jersey?" Commonweal, vol. 134, no. 3, 9 Feb. 2007, p. 10+. Gale In Context: High School. Accessed 10 Sept. 2020.

Willis, Ellen. "Our Mobsters, Ourselves : Why The Sopranos is therapeutic TV." The Nation, vol. 272, no. 13, 2 Apr. 2001, p. 26. Gale In Context: High School. Accessed 10 Sept. 2020.

Yacowar, Maurice. "The Sopranos and the American Dream." Queen's Quarterly, vol. 112, no. 3, 2005, p. 382+. Gale In Context: High School. Accessed 10 Sept. 2020.

Peter Laughlin

Senior Thesis

Mr. Zontine

May 10, 2021

My Ten Favorite Sopranos Episodes

Having watched the series and personally regarding it as perhaps my favorite television show of all time, it feels apropos to now outline what my ten favorite episodes of the series are. There are 86 episodes in total, so it is a lot to choose from, however, I believe that I have narrowed it down. They are all amazing, but these are the ten episodes that stuck out to me as my favorites.

Coming in at number ten, the episode Blue Comet is a standout for various reasons. The pacing and writing is excellent, and the tension is allowed to naturally build and escalate in such a satisfying way. The twists in this episode were shocking and cruel, and left me questioning which characters were going to survive, and which characters were going to get popped. This episode also has the most haunting ending of any episode in the series, and it perfectly expresses that Tony’s fate is now inescapable and inevitable.

At number nine, the episode Employee of the Month is one of the darkest of the series, definitely the darkest episode in season three. It is apparent with this episode that David Chase was doing everything he could in terms of pushing the envelope with the medium of television as a whole. The storytelling is daring and it unironically broke new ground for the medium. In this episode, Dr. Melfi is brutally attacked and raped. The police mess up and are forced to release the suspect. Dr. Melfi is left with a choice, let the police be incompetent and let this traumatic event pass, or tell Tony about what happened and get revenge. Ultimately, Melfi chooses to not tell Tony what happened and forgoes vengeance and revenge. When this episode aired in 2001, it was unlike anything that could be found on TV. There was nothing like it, nothing this harrowing and dark.

At number eight, we have the episode College, which was a landmark episode for the series. Without this episode, the rest of the series would not have been possible. This was the episode that defined The Sopranos and the shape of television to come in this new golden age for the medium. For the first time, a protagonist of a show murdered someone in cold blood. It had never been done before. Not only was it groundbreaking, it has perfect structure, and perfect storytelling and narrative in its 56 minutes of runtime. As an episode, it represents what the show is about in such an ingenious way, that is why it is one of my favorites. As Tony walks over the corpse of the enemy he just killed and took vengeance upon, he looks up into the sky and sees a group of ducks flying away. As Tony commits these dark deeds, the chance of him losing his family only increases, just like the ducks flying further and further away.

At number seven, is the episode Whoever Did This, which features the death of Ralphie Ciffaretto, and it is one of the most interesting episodes of the series. In this episode Ralphie’s kid is injured and taken to the hospital. Throughout the episode, we are shown Ralphie in a new light, a sympathetic light, one we have not seen before. We actually get some insight into why he is the way he is, how him being sexually abused as a child created the monster. It becomes apparent that since this is the first episode we are shown this side to Ralphie, that something bad is probably going to happen to him. As the audience, we do want something bad to happen to Ralphie, he deserves it, he’s a monster. However, as the narrative breathes humanity into Ralphie, his death comes at the hands of Tony, who murders him for his supposed killing of Pie-O-My, Tony’s horse. It is never definitively revealed whether or not Ralphie killed the horse, it is left ambiguous, and it makes the moral dilemma all the more complicated and undecided. As an audience, we wanted Ralphie to get whacked since season three, but when it finally came, it was executed in a way that left the audience conflicted and it posed the question, is Tony that much different from Ralphie? What a genius way to send off such a despised character, the execution makes it all the more important and interesting.

At number six, is the episode Funhouse, and what an episode it is. It is such a fantastic finale to season two. Not only is the execution superb, but the way in which it concludes storylines is fantastic. Characters that you thought were going to die in season one, die in this episode. It catches you off guard, it is unexpected, but yet, it feels earned and it makes sense. The aspect of this episode that makes it stand out are the dream sequences. They are so incredibly good. When it comes to portraying dreams on screen, David Chase is second only to David Lynch.

At number five, is the episode Kennedy and Heidi. In my eyes, it is the beginning of the end for Tony Soprano. We see the true extent of the monster Tony has become. There’s no going back. In this episode, he commits probably his most horrendous and wicked act in the series. We also see how he deals with it, lives with it, and compartmentalizes it. The episode paints a clear picture where Tony is at mentally and it is some of the greatest character writing that I have seen.

At number four, is the episode Whitecaps, and the reason why this is one of my favorite episodes is the same reason why this is everyone’s favorite. It is because of the conflict between Tony and Carmela. This conflict results in one of the greatest verbal arguments ever put to film. The performances delivered by James Gandolfini and Edie Falco speak for themselves.

At number three, is the episode Long Term Parking. Many people consider this to be the greatest episode of The Sopranos and for good reason. This episode features one of the most shocking deaths in television history. The execution is brilliant and the writing deserved all the Emmys that it got. Obviously, after the fact, like with lots of things, it made sense that it happened when it did, that specific character’s fate was in danger for a long time, but, nevertheless, it was still shocking.

At number two, is the series finale of the show, the only episode other than the pilot that was both written and directed by David Chase, Made in America. While it was a “controversial” ending at the time in 2007 for some fans, as time has passed, in retrospect, the consensus has formed that the ending to The Sopranos was a stroke of genius by David Chase. In my eyes, Chase continued to push the envelope when it came to the medium of television, even until the end. However, the factor that puts this episode at number two for me are the performances, especially between Gandolfini and Chianese. The final scene between Tony and Junior is perhaps my favorite scene of the series, as it is so impactful and emotional.

Finally, my favorite episode of The Sopranos is Pine Barrens. I know, it’s what everybody says is their favorite, but there is a reason for that. It’s so simple that it’s brilliant. “Captain or no captain: right now we’re just two assholes lost in the woods,” as Christopher says to Paulie, the premise of the whole episode is just two guys lost in the woods and with that simple premise, they were able to make something so incredibly groundbreaking. It makes me even happier that Steve Buschemi directed it. I think that it’s considered one of the greatest episodes of television of all time, second only to Ozymandias from Breaking Bad. However, personally, it is my favorite television episode of all time. Anyways, those are my ten favorite episodes of The Sopranos. Let me be clear though, there is not a single bad episode of the 86 episodes in the series. For any television series, that is a testament to its writing.

Bibliography

Davis, J. Madison. "It's Over When The Soprano Eats Onion Rings." World Literature Today, vol. 82, no. 1, 2008, p. 9+. Gale In Context: High School. Accessed 10 Sept. 2020.

Kaveny, Cathleen. "Salvation & 'The Sopranos': redemption in New Jersey?" Commonweal, vol. 134, no. 3, 9 Feb. 2007, p. 10+. Gale In Context: High School. Accessed 10 Sept. 2020.

Yacowar, Maurice. "The Sopranos and the American Dream." Queen's Quarterly, vol. 112, no. 3, 2005, p. 382+. Gale In Context: High School. Accessed 10 Sept. 2020.