The Sopranos Ending

The much-awaited conclusion of "The Sopranos" was broadcast in the US last night and, true to form, it defied expectations of a grand finale.

In the end, life continues as normal for the Soprano family in Essex County, New Jersey - violence, dodging the Feds and marital strife remain a part of daily life - we just won't be able to watch it.

In a way it's appropriate. The Sopranos never did tie up all the loose plot ends in each and every show, nor even season. So leaving the characters as if they are in fact real people, with the major and minor problems unresolved, is true to the basis of the show.

James Gandolfini, who plays Tony, has admitted that he is ready to let the character go after years of whacking enemies and friends and lounging in his strip club, Bada Bing.

The series ended as Tony, Carmela, A.J. and Meadow arrived for a family dinner at a diner, in a tense moment crying out for a burst of violence. As they sat at the table studying menus, menacing-looking people mingled nearby, possibly plotting the family's demise in a hail of bullets.

But there is no way of knowing if there was a bloody climax, because the series just ends there - in suspense.

I do wonder though, with no neat tying up of the plot lines, when the various actors and actressess are in their more mature periods and the money isn't coming in quite as it used to, are we going to see a reunion? Just as with The Police, The Who, and for all I know Yes is still touring somewhere.

What, The Sopranos, The Geriatric Years?

Jeff Jarvis is amusing on the Sopranos ending:

At the NJ.com forums, the ending confused some folks: They thought their TV's had died. Damned TiVo, cut off again. Art appreciation in the land of the Sopranos. Existentialism doesn't play outside Princeton.

Source: Written by Tim Worstall