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BiggerBoat posted:The headscarf goes a long way towards making him a hippie rock-n-roller, much like the Guido hairdo sells him as a mobster. VanSandt is awesome though, all the way around, and I'm not even a Springsteen fan. His super freakout about the cheese on the floor during the poker game (Season 2 I think) is one of my favorite rants in all the Sopranos series. Sil is hands down one of the best characters. "The moozadel?!"
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Jun 7, 2012 22:17
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Just finished "Kennedy and Heidi", Christopher  Best part was that lady they mentioned at Christopher's wake who never misses a wake, and then she nudges past Paulie at his "Mom's" wake.
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Jul 13, 2012 03:25
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th3t00t posted:Just finished "Kennedy and Heidi", Christopher There was a lot in Christopher's arc that I did not like. The whole being a writer, going to Hollywood, having a film debut, etc. Was it really all that necessary?
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Jul 15, 2012 15:33
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truth masseuse posted:There was a lot in Christopher's arc that I did not like. The whole being a writer, going to Hollywood, having a film debut, etc. Was it really all that necessary? Yes. It show that whatever Chris does he screws up somehow.
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Jul 15, 2012 19:26
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truth masseuse posted:There was a lot in Christopher's arc that I did not like. The whole being a writer, going to Hollywood, having a film debut, etc. Was it really all that necessary? It was also to show that he had a way out of the mafia life.
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Jul 15, 2012 19:28
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Also it was hilarious.
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Jul 15, 2012 19:39
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It's not like Christopher was just a natural born gently caress up. Tony kept pressuring him to drop the movie stuff and stay around New Jersey to focus on making money for him. It's the same with his rehab. He gets poo poo for doing drugs and then when he's clean all the same guys give him poo poo for not wanting to drink, to the point where he starts again.
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Jul 15, 2012 20:10
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So Breaking Bad is coming back, and Mad Men recently ended. And those are great shows that I really like, but whenever someone calls them or other shows the best drama ever, I always assume it's implied that Sopranos isn't being considered. As in, it's understood to be the zenith of TV drama and everything else is battling for 2nd place. Am I correct?
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Jul 15, 2012 20:24
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marktheando posted:Also it was hilarious. Okay, I will give you that. Now that I think about it, Christopher Moltisanti is the Theon Greyjoy of the Sopranos. Mr. Kite posted:So Breaking Bad is coming back, and Mad Men recently ended. And those are great shows that I really like, but whenever someone calls them or other shows the best drama ever, I always assume it's implied that Sopranos isn't being considered. As in, it's understood to be the zenith of TV drama and everything else is battling for 2nd place. Same thing crosses my mind. I couldn't get through season 2 of Mad Men. And around season 3 of Breaking Bad, I just got bored with it all. Game of Thrones, in my opinion, is orders of magnitude better than either one of those and potentially on par with Sopranos but we will see how Season 3 fares. Kempo Yellow Belt fucked around with this message at 21:52 on Jul 15, 2012 |
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Jul 15, 2012 21:49
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bobkatt013 posted:It was also to show that he had a way out of the mafia life. I am a bit sceptical about this because Chris was consistently presented as an awful writer. He did make an impression as a kind of Mafia authenticity consultant to Jon Favreau and his cousin's girlfriend for all of a couple of days, but he also burned his bridges just as quickly. To me the film stuff was mostly a commentary on Christopher's personality, and his expectations / aspirations of mob lifestyle originating more in the movies than what his New Jersey mentors and idols actually experienced. I can buy that it did represent his desire to exit the reality of the Mafia, though. Mr. Kite, it's not really fair to judge before the two ongoing shows are finished, but Mad Men is having a great run that I would argue is more consistent season-to-season, even if James Gandolfini and Edie Falco are still the best lead performances given to television as far as I am concerned. Breaking Bad's lead acting quality is also incredibly high but the plot got very pulpy very fast and falls back on a lot of contrivances to maintain a state of tension. Tastes vary though, we should just be happy that the top two TV dramas operating today owe such a clear debt to The Sopranos.
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Jul 15, 2012 22:10
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Chris wasn't really the smartest guy around. He thought the Cuban Missile Crisis was just a movie. Then again, pretty much all the mobsters were dumb guys.
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Jul 15, 2012 22:14
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GimpChimp posted:Tastes vary though, we should just be happy that the top two TV dramas operating today owe such a clear debt to The Sopranos. Admittedly, it's not very specific, but you definitely see Tony in Walter White and Don Draper. Even going back to Vic Mackey. The Wire was a little different since it was mostly about Baltimore, but even the ostensible lead had bits of Tony. I haven't seen Game of Thrones yet, but is it safe to assume Sean Bean is the Tony character? And Dexter in Dexter? Mr. Kite fucked around with this message at 22:42 on Jul 15, 2012 |
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Jul 15, 2012 22:37
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Mr. Kite posted:There's definitely a Tony Soprano archetype now - the imperfect leading man. He loves his family (but sometimes cheats on his wife) and you get the feeling all he really wants is to provide for them. But business and personal demons get in the way. Along the way his wife leaves/divorces him. Plus he'll have to compromise his values at some point. I may be able to argue that Al Bundy fits what you are generally describing. Mr. Kite posted:I haven't seen Game of Thrones yet, but is it safe to assume Sean Bean is the Tony character? I wouldn't want to spoiler anyone on GoT. I will only say it's a lot more dynamic than the Sopranos and that you owe it to yourself to watch it as soon as possible. If you have HBO on demand, or HBOgo online proceed there immediately and binge. And there are way more  moments than there ever was in the Sopranos.
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Jul 15, 2012 22:46
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truth masseuse posted:I may be able to argue that Al Bundy fits what you are generally describing. The character I described is a little more specific than "kind of a dick." Mr. Kite fucked around with this message at 22:53 on Jul 15, 2012 |
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Jul 15, 2012 22:47
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Almost done with nth rewatch. drat, Vito's sixth season arc is really sad. He seemed so happy in New Hampshire
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Jul 15, 2012 22:51
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Yeah, be careful with the GoT references, please. I've yet to get into it, but still plan on it. Thanks 
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Jul 15, 2012 22:55
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nemoulette posted:Almost done with nth rewatch. drat, Vito's sixth season arc is really sad. He seemed so happy in New Hampshire He tried to live free; he really tried, but lunchtime was always an hour away.
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Jul 16, 2012 17:43
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nemoulette posted:Almost done with nth rewatch. drat, Vito's sixth season arc is really sad. He seemed so happy in New Hampshire Yep that whole season is about how people can try to change but it is impossible and they will always go back.
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Jul 16, 2012 17:45
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Mr. Kite posted:So Breaking Bad is coming back, and Mad Men recently ended. And those are great shows that I really like, but whenever someone calls them or other shows the best drama ever, I always assume it's implied that Sopranos isn't being considered. As in, it's understood to be the zenith of TV drama and everything else is battling for 2nd place. You would be if you hadn't misspelled "The Wire" 
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Jul 16, 2012 23:02
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Maybe I'm dense, but as a non-native speaker this has been bothering me recently... In "Chasing It", Hesh puts Tony's net worth at "six". He means 600'000, right? I'm not very well-versed in colloquial US-money-speak.
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Jul 21, 2012 17:05
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Banana Yaya posted:Maybe I'm dense, but as a non-native speaker this has been bothering me recently... In "Chasing It", Hesh puts Tony's net worth at "six". He means 600'000, right? I'm not very well-versed in colloquial US-money-speak. I think it usually means thousands, millions, billions, etc. I don't know how much nice suburban houses in NJ cost but $6 million net worth seems more likely than $6 hundred thousand, assuming that he owns his house. Or maybe the point was that his house is basically his only legitimate big asset so on paper he is barely getting by.
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Jul 21, 2012 18:01
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withak posted:I think it usually means thousands, millions, billions, etc. I don't know how much nice suburban houses in NJ cost but $6 million net worth seems more likely than $6 hundred thousand, assuming that he owns his house. Or maybe the point was that his house is basically his only legitimate big asset so on paper he is barely getting by. Yeah I would go with 6 million. The house that he has in rural NJ easily could have been around $600,000 alone. Then there is the Strip Club, the Boat, and other assets.
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Jul 21, 2012 18:18
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withak posted:I think it usually means thousands, millions, billions, etc. I don't know how much nice suburban houses in NJ cost but $6 million net worth seems more likely than $6 hundred thousand, assuming that he owns his house. Or maybe the point was that his house is basically his only legitimate big asset so on paper he is barely getting by. I considered "six million" as a possible interpretation but was then confused as to why Tony was having such difficulties paying back a 200k loan. Though now that you mention it, I also recall Hesh saying that Tony's boat had cost something ridiculous like 3.2 million. In that case it is indeed possible that he's worth 6 million on paper with a flashy boat and an ugly McMansion being his only real assets. Man, I think Tony's financial situation is fascinating as hell. Wish the show had gone into it some more (especially his shady Russian "banker").
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Jul 21, 2012 18:20
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How much did he have in those bird feeders? Carmilla stole like $40k right? That seemed like about 1/10th of what was in there. I need to re watch the scene.
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Jul 21, 2012 18:26
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If he bought that boat brand new, it looked like a 42 Viking. Brand new those things are anywhere from 3-4 million. I think they actually put a value on his house in one of the episodes, around the time Carm was building that spec home. I think they have around 4 million in assets, because that boat is worth dick. That house as well. Tons of cash lying around. Something like 7 figures I imagine.
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Jul 21, 2012 18:58
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Banana Yaya posted:I considered "six million" as a possible interpretation but was then confused as to why Tony was having such difficulties paying back a 200k loan. I thought he was avoiding paying it back just to be a dick.
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Jul 21, 2012 19:18
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withak posted:I thought he was avoiding paying it back just to be a dick. My girlfriend thought so too, I wasn't sure though. The debt coincides with his huge gambling problem after all, it's possible he gambled away most of his liquid assets and really didn't have 200k just lying around. I mean, when he wanted to give Marie Spatafore 100k (which he subsequently lost in a bet) he had to go see his Russian.
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Jul 21, 2012 19:47
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Banana Yaya posted:My girlfriend thought so too, I wasn't sure though. The debt coincides with his huge gambling problem after all, it's possible he gambled away most of his liquid assets and really didn't have 200k just lying around. I mean, when he wanted to give Marie Spatafore 100k (which he subsequently lost in a bet) he had to go see his Russian. He was just avoiding paying it to be a dick, that's why when he decided to stop being a dick and pay it he just wanders in with the whole lot in a bag. There's also the bit when he's just out of hospital and Melfi says something along the lines of "You've implied you have millions of dollars". Also when Carmella says she'll take him back if he backs her on the spec house, the land alone was 600k. I think he just doesn't keep it around in cash, it's off in the Caymans or whatever. I remember way too many of the tiny details in this show.
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Jul 21, 2012 21:37
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Tony loaned the money in the first place to cover some pretty significant gamling losses. It was a short term loan, so it wasn't like he didn't have the money, he just didn't have the liquid funds right at the time. The main reason he stopped being a dick and repaid the loan was the death of Hesh's girlfriend. I think Tony was mostly acting out over the vig to try and show Hesh that he was the boss rather than just a random guy loaning money.
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Jul 21, 2012 21:56
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Hm, I'd agree he was just being rear end in a top hat towards Hesh then. I'd also somehow forgotten about the death of Hesh's girlfriend making Tony feel contrite (that never made sense to me - her death, I mean).
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Jul 21, 2012 21:59
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Chalk me up for a vote on the "Tony was just being a dick" side. He's the boss why should he have to pay back Hesh except when he feels like it? Hesh asking for it just prolonged the dickishness. Tony had gone full on monster at this point if you remember. Not like he was ever a good guy but the last couple seasons he just gets colder and colder.
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Jul 22, 2012 01:09
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Fragmented posted:Chalk me up for a vote on the "Tony was just being a dick" side. He's the boss why should he have to pay back Hesh except when he feels like it? Hesh asking for it just prolonged the dickishness. Tony had gone full on monster at this point if you remember. Not like he was ever a good guy but the last couple seasons he just gets colder and colder.
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Jul 22, 2012 02:55
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I am almost done with the first part of season six and wow, this show is insane. One thing that I've always gotten a laugh at is when even the lieutenants, captains and Tony himself squabble over a few hundred dollars or a few thousand. I get that they have to collect on everything but like it's a big deal. It puts it into perspective how much money they are dealing with. Also, most people don't have mansions like Tony does and are constantly getting nickeled and dimed. Also, up to the point that I am, I really dislike how Junior is disregarded as crazy and is almost never shown again except when AJ visits him. I would have liked them to explore his psyche a little more than before when he wanders to the wrong house or goes to the old church.
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Jul 22, 2012 05:17
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When Paulie & Ralphie are having their spat over the 50k in season 3, Ralphie says he's bringing in 3 mil a year for Tony. So either way there's a lot of drat cash floating around.
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Jul 26, 2012 23:16
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This is kind of thread Necromancy, but the OP is from 2008 so I gather that isn't a problem here. I just finished my first watch of this show and holy poo poo, it might be the best thing I've ever seen. I'm already planning a rewatch for next summer or something because there are so many nuances and characters I didn't really "get" until later on in their arcs, and I'd love to take this all in with a better understanding of things. I don't really know what I can add to this thread... I just need like-minded Sopranos fans right now. One thing that really struck me about this show is how unapologetic it is about these characters, and how they manage to win us over anyway. I can't even keep count of the number of Tony scenes that pushed him over the line in a way you can never come back from, scenes that always mean "This character is a Bad Man and if he dies you, the viewer should not feel bad," yet I'm still pulling for him. Even knowing Tony survives the show I was on the edge of my seat and borderline nauseous towards the end of Blue Comet, and I did something approximating a fistpump when Agent Harris came through with Phil's location. I will say that I never cared for Johnny Soprano in the flashbacks; he was like a window into how we would have perceived Tony minus James Gandolfini's charisma. I know that last scene has been discussed to death. I loved it; for one thing, it's brilliantly directed when viewed in the context of the rest of the show. There are two or three beats where camerawork syncs with the musical cue in a way that we've come to associate with an outburst of violence, it's absolutely fantastic. My only issue is that Meadow's been living in the city for how long and she still needs a half-dozen tries to park in that huge spot? edit: I have to say, from the pilot to the finale, Silvio is probably the character I did the biggest 180 on. My initial impression was "Holy poo poo, what an overacted cliche mobster stereotype" and he almost singlehandedly prevented me from watching the second episode out of fear that this was a dated show that leaned too hard on the whole Mafia thing. By the end I was in love with the guy. One of the best moments in the show is when Tony asks him to go lean on the building inspector for Carmela and Sil replies "To what end?" The delivery on that line just kills me. Tender Bender fucked around with this message at 05:54 on Aug 17, 2012 |
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Aug 17, 2012 05:28
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quote:and I did something approximating a fistpump when Agent Harris came through with Phil's location. This is funny because Agent Harris basically does his own fistpump when Phil gets whacked.
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Aug 17, 2012 06:08
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Carthag posted:When Paulie & Ralphie are having their spat over the 50k in season 3, Ralphie says he's bringing in 3 mil a year for Tony. So either way there's a lot of drat cash floating around. Yes but as Henry Hill said in Goodfellas quote:We had it all, just for the asking. Our wives, mothers, kids, everybody rode along. I had paper bags filled with jewelry stashed in the kitchen. I had a sugar bowl full of coke next to the bed. Anything I wanted was a phone call away. Free cars. The keys to a dozen hideout flats all over the city. I'd bet twenty, thirty grand over a weekend and then I'd either blow the winnings in a week or go to the sharks to pay back the bookies. Didn't matter. It didn't mean anything. When I was broke I would go out and rob some more.
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Aug 17, 2012 16:28
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Tender Bender posted:I just finished my first watch of this show and holy poo poo, it might be the best thing I've ever seen. I'm already planning a rewatch for next summer or something because there are so many nuances and characters I didn't really "get" until later on in their arcs, and I'd love to take this all in with a better understanding of things. As was stated I believe earlier in this thread: Its a fact that the Sopranos is the best thing to have ever aired on TV. All other shows are simply vying for second place.
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Aug 17, 2012 16:43
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Carthag posted:When Paulie & Ralphie are having their spat over the 50k in season 3, Ralphie says he's bringing in 3 mil a year for Tony. So either way there's a lot of drat cash floating around. Yeah but I think unless you're one of the top guys in the organization, you're kicking up a huge majority of the money. The lower level guys do it Henry Hill style (as mentioned above) and just go out and rob when they need money. Also, I remember thinking in the episode where Tony & Paulie meet with those Armenian(?) guys to set up the power tool operation why Tony would offer him a truck load of pool toys and poo poo. I was like "What the hell kind of money maker is that?" Then I realized, when you're stealing everything to begin with, you can sell it at any kind of discount and its still pure profit. haljordan fucked around with this message at 16:59 on Aug 17, 2012 |
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Aug 17, 2012 16:52
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Seams posted:This is funny because Agent Harris basically does his own fistpump when Phil gets whacked. "We're gonna win this thing!" 
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Aug 17, 2012 16:56
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