Initial reactions to Made in America: Is that All There Is? Sopranos Final Episode

First reaction. An initial state of stupefaction (then a slightly fainter echo of Timothy Noah's vehemently expressed opinion already up on Slate (see below for link). Best expressed by the inimitable Miss Peggy Lee.

Press Play to Listen >> Is That All There Is?

Second reaction. It's not so bad. Okay, so there's definitely the extremely strong possibility of leaving the door open for a Sopranos movie. Whew. Chase did end on Journey's Don't Stop Believing, specifically on the words "Don't Stop." Then dead silence. A very interesting choice indeed.

Third reaction. Maybe Chase really is quite cynical about human nature. Darnit. I'm often cynical (cyclically cynical, these days being on the downside what with Bush, Cheney, et al). But it also means I'm mostly okay for now upon realizing that both of Tony's families continue, warts, self-delusions, psychoses and all. Probably getting worse, not better. Did you notice how easily AJ was distracted from such overwhelmingly serious life and death issues to the most superficial, venal and equally corrupt and dehumanizing of ventures as T.'s own enterprises? (i.e., Hollywood; once again Chase having his cake and eating it too).

But then again what 'typical' American parents (especially on either coast) aspiring for their children's futures wouldn't desperately want to talk/manipulate/entice/bribe their precious young childling out of joining any war, especially this immoral gawd-awful, unending, body-maiming, unjust, cursed war?

And being bought off. Well, it's also 'typical' of so many middle/upper middle class/wealthy/privileged/entitled American teens isn't it? How they're socialized? It's what mass media reinforces up the 'Ying Yang' as Tony might say. Meandering if not flitting from one craze or distraction to the next, what with ADHD and the infinite possibilities of so many consumer choices. Consuming, buying, gas-guzzling right along with Mom and Dad, (and all the rest of us). At least that's the message we're left with. Again, pretty cynical of Chase. Crikey. They're supposed to be our future and all that.

And was Tony's cynical view of women as recently discussed with Dr. Melfi about to be 'borne' out with possible news of Meadow's pregnancy??

Tony's self-referential hijacking of the therapy session was a reminder of how uninterrupted his narcissism remains. That was a classic scene with a classic Tony. Worth the price of admission for that scene definitely.

James Wolcott has some interesting first impressions too.

A few quick points about the Sopranos finale: too much overlaying of soundtrack top-40 tunes and TV/movie clips, as if the creatives were trying to cut and paste a thick collage of Added Significance and Cultural Associations, and the reaction shot of the guy puking after ----'s head was melon-squashed by the car wheel was a cheap fillip. And all the A.J. stuff--useless; pointless. Liked the cat, though; it showed commendable poise and dignity in the face of Paulie's patented snarl of churlish hostility and overacting.

...All of the muddle was redeemed by the supreme construction of tension in the diner--such crosscutting!--and its lack of resolution, as if David Chase, chuckling maliciously, was denying forever the audience's desire for climax and catharsis.

I don't agree that the A.J. stuff was ALL useless -- maybe a little too much, but I think it made the point about the cycles of family development, the most venal aspects of growing up in such excessive capitalism, etc. I too loved the cat. Loved it. (Chase's sly foreboding warning to us that only the smile of the Cheshire Cat will remain?)

Then again with so many loose ends (we've learned to expect them from Chase even if we hate them -- like Timothy Noah's most recent Slate post expresses so vociferously), the door is open for future adventures in Soprano-land. For me, for now, that's enough.

At least it wasn't as bad as the horrible Seinfeld finale. Still ... disappointment lingers. Can't help having wanted something more satisfying. Chase seems to have wanted a little to much to tweak Tony's adoring fans and the series loyal viewers. Yeah, a little too much bafungoo from Chase in the end. Ingrate.

Footnote: After what felt like some sort of unsatisfying ambiguously contradictory yet sorta satisfying betrayal by The End of the Sopranos (not completely sure yet if it is but darn if I don't feel a little like Carm right now -- maybe it's a gut-reaction pushback to Chase's choice to force us into Cold Turkey, his having the last laugh...the joke's always on us in Soprano-land isn't it?) -- anyway, John from Cincin-whatever...definitely disappointing. How could it be otherwise?

But wait! What does it all mean? Was Tony whacked? Were we whacked (metaphorically speaking) by Chase? It's looking deeper and more loaded with weighty symbolism and messages all the time. An allegory for us, for our times, for our culture, nation, world all the time.

What if Tony has a conscience after all?

After pondering the End Times aka The Sopranos Series Finale on HBO, entitled "Made in America" -- like so many others who have been on the journey over these past years, what would the most unexpected ending, the least clichéd, least predictable outcome be? After all isn't The Sopranos a brilliant allegory for US -- we the people, the USA?

Yes, it has regional and cultural specificities along with national and universal truths. But with its overarching themes of power, violence, greed, corruption, anxiety, depression, hubris, sex, dreams, hopes, family, lying, self-delusion, the banality of evil, (and so much more) -- hasn't it been entirely American while supremely universal?

Brecht suggested that great art both shapes and reflects. I think it's pretty clear The Sopranos has done both -- not always in positive ways, but not all in negative ways either, not 100% of the time has it been discretely successful moment by moment or story by story, but overall it has indeed illuminated, enlightened and shaped us, US, the USA more than any other.

At the end, I'm not sure Chase & Co can avoid some clichés and some very expected denouement. The Blue Comet proved to have both moments of sharp brilliance and moments of overplayed cliché, and yet it burned brightly and memorably despite some of those shortcomings (see James Wolcott's blog which includes a critique of that episode some of which I completely agree with, but not all -- proving again how subjective it all can be).

Universal themes in art, literature, film...sometimes do reflect the completely expected and anticipated as well as the unanticipated or shocking -- and sometimes human nature is just so damn (depressingly) predictable -- part of what got Tony into therapy in the first place.

And so what about the capacity for redemption? The need for hope in order to continue slogging through the difficulties of life, family, work, relationships, the world. Isn't that part of Tony's life-long struggle? (That maddening struggle -- seven years of which we've witnessed and pondered along with Dr. Jennifer Melfi, the incredible Lorraine Bracco).

So what if in the end (or at this point in the journey) Tony chooses change? Rejects the destruction of violence, the narcissism of sociopathy and decides his conscience is prodding him toward hope, redemption, non-violence, putting others first, protecting his family in a way that puts their complete well-being first now instead of on a quasi- (ostensibly and arguably) equal parallel track with The Family? What if The Family fades into the past and Tony moves into a different future? Can people ever stop lying first to themselves and then to others? Can people with a barely registerable conscience really change? Does Tony have a conscience after all? If so, can Tony Soprano of all people actually change at the deepest level? Were the insights gained and shared with Dr. Melfi REAL or an illusion? Was he merely honing his sociopathic skills or growing his severely developmentally delayed, under-developed conscience?

Who knows? I guess Chase will tell us tonight what his outlook and belief system entail -- for Tony at least. But what about the rest of us? Is Tony's fate our fate too?

I'm not predicting the unexpected. Merely pondering it. And on some level hoping it's possible for T., for Carm, Meadow, AJ -- for US all after these past seven years.








P.S. Wasn't that Yochelson study about incarcerated prisoners? Of course they are motivated to hone their survival (and exit) skills. If I recall correctly, the study was Not about wiseguys initiating and self-seeking therapy. Doesn't that shade things at least somewhat in favor of Tony having something going on deep inside? We shall see.

Buon Viaggio Sopranos, Malaprops and All

Woke Up This Morning (Chosen One Mix).mp3 (4.68 MB)
viaggio felice, buon viaggio Sopranos (hat tip to :: The PlayList ::)

A Handful of Famous Soprano Malapropisms We Have Known and Loved


The Sopranos: First 6-Seasons in Seven Minutes
aka "whacked out" refresher

HBO > Sopranos website