Same Old Song From The Sopranos

By Jon Juliano
Collegian Staff
March 1, 2006

Can anyone really remember what television was like in 2004? Friends was still on; no housewives were that desperate, just a little melancholy; new Family Guy episodes were just rumors and The Sopranos just started its fifth season on HBO.

The show first aired in 1999 and quickly grew in popularity until it was bigger than anything, even James Gandolfini himself. However, the extremely long wait made the fans expect too much from the last two seasons and thus disappointment kicked in.

Seasons four and five dealt more with Tony’s immediate family, and while it was necessary for character development, the episodes lacked intensity, with the exception of a few episodes like when Tony killed one of his close friends, Ralphie.

Now in 2006, there are Sopranos Spark Note-like summaries in demand for each season because the show has not had a new episode since that primitive time in 2004.

The show is notorious for having gargantuan gaps in between seasons, much longer than any other show on television. These gaps build anticipation, but also make it hard to follow the show, because every sex scene and mob killing from past seasons blur into one obscure memory.

However after a two-year wait, The Sopranos will return to HBO on Sunday, March 12. It’s going to be especially hard for us on-campus Explorers who do not have access to HBO to catch the premiere, but we can always have our fathers tape the episodes.

For those forgetful Soprano fans, here is a wrap-up of what happened in season five: Adriana was forced into talking to the police while Steve Buscemi joined the cast as Tony B. and killed a guy of the New York crime family.

Tony Soprano stuck by his cousin Tony B., and would not let New York retaliate, but ended up killing Buscemi’s character for his mistake. The New York family did not think this was just, however, and wanted a war with Tony’s mob family, the armpit vs. the Big Apple, New Jersey vs. New York.

However, during a meeting with Johnny Sack, the leader of the New York family, the cops broke in and arrested Johnny while Tony got away.

During all this, Silvio, The E Street Band’s own Steven Van Zandt, killed Adriana because she was talking to the police. A stereotypical Italian/Jersey soap opera for all.

Although season five was not as good in the eyes of fans, it won four Emmys, which shows how great the acting is. The show is so realistic that, according to E! True Hollywood Stories, two accused killers admitted to emulating the show. Adding to the realism is the fact that the show uses Jersey natives for small roles. Before the show, Tony Sirico, who plays made mobster Paulie Walnuts, actually spent five years in prison.

Trailers and countdowns are on fan websites all over the internet. As I am typing this article, the clock is ticking. 13 days, 22 hours, 35 minutes and 12, no 11, no 10 sec... well, you get the idea. If you look hard enough, you can even find out what happens this season, but I am avoiding those websites altogether.

What can we expect from the show in 2006? Well, I am predicting that the tension between the New York and New Jersey families will be tighter than ever, and they may go to war. Christopher will turn back to drugs because his fiancée Adriana was killed, and a lot of family problems will occur involving Tony’s son A.J., not to mention more marital problems between Tony and Carmella.

Fans and haters of the show will be watching the season premiere on March 12 to see how it picks up from where it left off, and, for the haters, how the show continues to negatively portray Italians. I will be watching for both reasons, and I suggest anyone who likes violence, sex, well-written scripts, great acting and Italian mafia stereotypes do the same.

julianoj3@lasalle.edu