I was watching Tucker, or one of those cable shows just now, and the interviewee said all the characters you see in the diner characters invited back who at one time or another threatened Tony's life. Did anyone notice that?

Taken from another forum re: last night's episode -

"

Tony DID get whacked. The only question is by who. Remember first Tony's comments earlier this season about getting whacked (which were also replayed either last week or the week before). Tony said something to the effect of "you don't see it coming, you don't feel nothing, everything just fades to black". That was your ending.

As for the who, take note of the credits for the folks in the restaurant at the end. The guy at the counter that goes to the bathroom is Nikki Leotardo, phil's nephew. The black men are the same ones that shot Tony in season two, but only clipped his ear. Oddly, the boyscouts were in the store last week when Bobby got it, so they are going to have some issues, but my money says it wasn't the boy scouts.

My money says that based on the title, "Made in America", it was the trucker with the hat that read "USA". The same trucker who was the brother of the trucker that Christopher robbed and killed in season two...he was the guy that had to identify the body. It's all in the credits."

I've just read and heard that scenario is probably bunk though.

At Satriale's Paulie declines Tony's offer to take over from Carlo, saying everyone who's had that gig has died prematurely. Tony ridicules his superstition - and finally sways him when he says he'll have to give the job to Patsy. "Prick. You always know what to say to me don't you?" says Paulie as he accepts the job.
- From the Sopranos' HBO site.


Never mind. Paulie took the job.

Paulie switched sides and went to the all-powerful and all-mighty New York Cosa Nostra. The Jersey crew(under Paulie)still exists, but it is after all only a glorified crew...at least thats what Phil called it.

In making this switch, Paulie served as Tony's angel of death. To the Italian people/human race, that's a very religious, sacred, close relationship. And remember, Paulie is always seeing ghosts and sh*t. He is the shaman, perhaps a Judas of sorts. Paulie fulfilled what the fates willed them ALL...Tony would "understand" that..

And he did it all at 3 o'clock.

Anyone reall the exact episode (possibly in Season #2) in which Tony gets shot at after he leaves Melfi's office?? (by the black guy who shoots at him while Tony's in his car).

I was discussing season 6 part 1 with someone and they asked me what I thought about the pens that the Naples assassins(who killed Rusty)had on the plane back to Naples in episode 7. He told me that the pens were significant b/c Johnny Sac's brother in law(Anthony) brought Tony a pen in episode 10, that the pens were one of Anthony's new products of some sort.

I had to check it out....In the very final scene of Episode 7 Season 6 (Luxury Lounge) the assassins are on the plane home and one of them gloats(in Italian) about the beautiful watch he bought, then the other assassin whips out a box of 3 pens that he is very proud of. This is the last thing we see in this episode(the one w/ Ben Kingsley and Lauren Bacall) and the final music score is quite chilling w/ a classical guitar playing a very lovely and chilling Italian ballad.

Then....in episode 10 Season 6 (Moe N Joe) Johnny Sac's brother in law(Anthony) comes to see Tony. Tony and Sil are alone and have just finished discussing Tony's new interest in Carmela's housing 'career.'

Tony: Ah the lord of the lenses.

Anthony: Actually we just started carrying these
(presents a small bag)
The newest cross pen.

Tony takes the box out of the bag and examines the pen. 'Ah a roller ball.'

Anthony: You want a classic fountain version?

Tony( dissapointed): No. Sit down

They all sit down and then Anthony says he has information for your(Tony's) ears only. Tony says 'ah, that's why Sil didn't get a pen?' Room is silent, Sil breaks tension by saying 'he's fucking with you Anthony!' Everyone laughs, Sil leaves and Anthony delivers Johnny's New Orleans request.

***
So.... IF the assassins got these 'beautiful' pens (which episode 7 makes a point of showing us in the final scene) from Anthony, they must have met w/ Johnny Sac. I smell treachery here. The tension between NY/NJ has not involved Johnny, he and Tony have more or less been 'friends' throughout the ordeal. But if the Naples assassins met with Johnny Sac (for whatever reason, and I don't know how/why they would? ... BUT, it appears that they did ) then this could possibly signify treachery on Johnny's part. Johnny(who is STILL against little Carmine?) could be the one behind this whole NY/NJ rivalry, while Phil(who looks to be ready to reconcile w/ Tony) is merely the proverbial 'patsy.'

Again, the assassin scene w/ the pens is the last thing we see in episode 7. I remember at the time thinking how lame the ending of the episode was. But then these pens come along, madonne!!! \:o

Anyone reall the exact episode (possibly in Season #2) in which Tony gets shot at after he leaves Melfi's office?? (by the black guy who shoots at him while Tony's in his car).

Thank you, DC!

If we're all supposed to come up with our own conclusion as to how it ended then olivant can say that it was Adriana who walked in the front door and she hired all the guys to kill Tony.

If we're all supposed to come up with our own conclusion as to how it ended then olivant can say that it was Adriana who walked in the front door and she hired all the guys to kill Tony.

What kind of closure did you want to see?

By Mark Egan
Mon Jun 11, 9:17 AM ET

Whaddya gonna do? After building tension for six seasons over 8-1/2 years, "The Sopranos," one of America's most critically acclaimed television shows, ended on Sunday with nothing more than a black screen.

And there was no clear answer to the big question -- would mob boss Tony Soprano sleep with the fishes?

Instead the mobster, who suffers the same worries as the rest of us, even if he gets relief from the occasional murder, finished the show munching onion rings in a New Jersey diner surrounded by a smiling wife and two content kids.

Sure a guy looking like a hit man had entered the restroom behind Tony and might be expected to come back out and kill the entire family, but then the screen went black for about five seconds and that was that. Some fans were disappointed.

"David Chase (the show's creator and writer ) should have put some bite into it. He left us hanging," said Johnny Salami, 43, of Rutherford, New Jersey.

"Maybe if you're from Oklahoma or California you don't care, but if you're from New Jersey, you want some closure."

Salami was in Lodi, New Jersey, at the Satin Dolls go-go lounge -- which since 1999 has doubled as the show's notorious, mob-run strip joint, the Bada Bing. About 200 fans gathered there to watch the final episode.

The strippers wore G-strings with the legend "Bada Bing." And out of respect, they stopped dancing for the show.

"This show is just short of being a caricature of Northern New Jersey, but we all love it," said patron Eileen Schley, 36. "I don't know now what I'm going to do on Sunday nights."

The series from Time Warner cable channel HBO has been around since 1999 -- longer than the Bush administration -- and broke new ground for television: portraying a thoroughly evil hero who corrupts everyone he comes into contact with while appearing perfectly ordinary to his neighbors.

STOPPING DEAD

James Gandolfini's performance as Tony Soprano has been hailed as a tour de force, as has the acting of other cast members. Despite the evil, brutality and violence that have become hallmarks of the weekly show, much of the channel's audience has formed a bond of affection for the Sopranos.

The penultimate show had left Tony's pompadoured henchman, Silvio Dante, barely breathing and full of holes; his brother-in-law Bobby dead and Soprano huddled in a darkened bedroom, clutching a machine-gun -- like a frightened child holding a teddy bear.

Even his long-conflicted therapist has dumped him and he is in all-out war with his New York gang rival Phil Leotardo.

But in the end, it was Leotardo who got snuffed out -- shot while waving farewell to his baby grandchildren, and then his head run over by an SUV for emphasis.

But for many fans, it wasn't enough and they just couldn't get past that black screen ending.

"Of all the things that could have happened, the worst thing that could have happened is it just end it like that; just stopping dead," said Tripp Reynolds, who watched at his home in Montclair. "But maybe it was inevitable given all the plot lines that were going."

The show won almost uniform critical praise. The New Yorker likened Chase's writing and character development to Charles Dickens, John Updike and Philip Roth and has called the show "the richest achievement in the history of television."

The final episode was peppered with classic one-liners from Tony. When Paulie "Walnuts" Gualtieri turns down an offer from Soprano to run a crew, Tony says, "I'm a little miffled." He tells a shrink, "My mother was a borderline personality." And when he hears his own son is learning Arabic, he says, "Come on, shish kebab! What else do you need to know?"

And the comedy which has come hand in hand with the violence since the beginning was in evidence too.

"One time, at the Bing ... I saw the Virgin Mary," Gualtieri confides in Tony.

"Why didn't you say anything," Tony replies. "F--- strippers, we coulda had a shrine, sold holy water in gallon jugs, coulda made millions."

Copyright © 2007 Reuters Limited.

I just watched the credits in slo-mo and there is no "Nicky Leotardo" named. Also, its possible that guy at the counter was just glancing over at the bathroom and not Tony.

I just watched the credits backward and they read "Adriana lives."

By the way, who was the guy that shot Phil?

I think that was Walden.... a soldier in Carlo's crew. (He's seen with Paulie talking about the cat).

It seemed as though Chase couldn't think of an ending so he left it up to us. That just wasn't enough for me.

...for God's sake, he could have thrown us a bone.