Just tagging on to SSW’s Sopranos talk. Lots to squeeze, especially since I haven’t been really watching it until season 7 (I didn’t have access to HBO until I started dating P). For those that need a catch-up, here are some appropriate YouTube clips:
Sopranos Seven Season Synopsis in Seven Minutes (someone had way too much time on their hands)
Every death scene in chronological order (brutal)
Aaaay – Ohhhh – funny
Tour the real places in Jersey with Vito
The last four minutes
Some good commentary
My opinion: I was going for the existential “Tony – that’s what it is like to be wacked” explanation until I saw the last video commentary – it changed my mind. There were claims of four potential assassins at the diner – the 2 black guys walking in (which were claimed to have been in season 1), a trucker (claimed to be from season 3), and some Italian guy at the bar that was ID’s as the NY boss’s nephew. Others debunked these theories – identifying that they were all knocked off or didn’t exist. The last video gave a perfectly good explanation. Recreating Dostoevsky’s “Crime and Punishment” paranoia of having to look over your shoulder every moment – the way David Chase was able to make the entire audience feel – is sheer brilliance in execution (sorry, couldn’t resist the pun).