TVSquad

This episode pissed me off...too weak for me to care...not enough plot development and random people and plot points thrown everywhere.

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This whole gambling issue is a bit of a problem...we have seen Tony visit the track race and casinos before but after 6 seasons they are telling us that he has a gambling problem? And hasn't Tony always seemed like the one who handles his finances perfectly? Just seems too...inconsistent.

As for the Muslim guy it's not really a big deal...

What the fuck was up with little Vito shitting in the showers? That was really weird...even for an emo.

My favorite line though: Tony on Cleaver: "It's not a positive portrayal of Italian-Americans." Exactly what people complained about The Sopranos when it first aired.

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I like the fact though that they never forget the history of the show...Tony getting shot, Tony remembering the fact that Carmela stole his money, the Blundetto fiasco and Vito getting whacked.

Btw, where's Artie Bucco? It's been 4 episodes without the guy...

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Tony mentions once and maybe twice about Vito being a better provider than the construction boss now running the operation. He also mentions other income dropping. So it may not be that his gambling is increased, rather it may be that his income is down, he is running a bad streak gambling and he is starting to get desperate. He has had arguements with Carmela about finances in the past, so money troubles are not new. I believe that this is a slow painful death for the series, but that after much agonizing, the end will come dramatically & violently.

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Well, Tony can't be that broke if he came up with $175 million+ for Ash at the end?? And #4 Rick, you are right....it is the fact that his men are not bringing in enough for his lifestyle. I liked the fight between Tony & Carm & thought that we were going to go back to the way it was the other season. They have some pretty intense fights. I think AJ will become a mental case. And Vito Jr. shit in the shower because he wanted to become known as someone else other than the "Gay Guy's kid", since the kids were calling him a fag & everything when he came into the shower. 5 more episodes to go....

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Good assessments of last night episode #3 & #4.Tony
doesn't trust anyone. Last night we found out he still has distrust for Carmela. He can't let that bird feeder thing go. Definitely his mother's son. Love how that came back up.
About the gambling angle with Tony: I think they have made way for something like this to happen eventually. I am glad #4 made light of the past financial issues Tony has had (Sometimes people concentrate too hard on the violent aspect of the show that they miss the subtle things). That combined with his recent distrust of everyone (Chris, Paulie, Bobby, Hesh, & even Carmela) must have Tony looking for something to fill the void coming from every direction.
All in all, this wasn't the best so far of the final episodes, but still way above par with the majority of what is on tv.
I used to think that the only way for this show to end was for Tony to be in prison or dead. I can honestly say now I have no idea how it's going to end. I like that.

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i don't know how many times it was mentioned that he has emergency stacks in random places around his house, so its not cropping out of nowhere.

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Can't say this was the best Sopranos episode I've ever seen, but I suspect that there will be a huge pay-off.

David Chase knows the stakes and wants his series to have a proper send-off, so I am trusting that we will all be blown away (pardon the pun).

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he explained his problem pretty clearly in the show. he has money but its for emergencies. he likely never had to dig into the emergency funds before because he never had such a bad losing streak (as a small time gambler, streaks like his can make a good man go bad - forget where a bad man goes) and his guys have been earning less and he has to absorb more of the blow on his own.

The show is finally addressing the fact that the Mob is really all about money. Vito was gay but atleast he was an earner. Paulie has always been annoying but when he stopped earning, he was a target. The ties that bind are all green.

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With all due respect, this was an incredibly bad episode. It's almost as if Chase, et al. are mocking us by throwing in "Tony's gambling problem" at this late date. If there had been hints that this is a new area of concern for Tony because of some psychological needs resulting from, what, "empty nest," recognition of our own mortality, etc. etc., then perhaps this might make sense. Instead, it seems as if this were inserted stupidly into the show in order to set up the scene with Carmela, the one where he apologizes to her and says that he should be grateful because he beat the odds with his own possible death after the shooting. Give me a break. I have been so excited about the final episodes, but now I see this slipshot writing and have lost considerable interest. We're being insulted by this stupid, stupid gambling red herring.

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What did Hesh's gf die from anyway? They never said.

I also would like to know where the hell is Artie Bucco. The guy is a mess, but a lovable one.

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I don't think the episode was that bad, what I do not understand, however, is the introduction of Vito's emo son and his problems this late. We dont' need more secondary characters this late in the game. What about Junior? He was in the entire show last week and now, nothing?

**I totally agree with khamel, someone said in a previous season "you're only as good as your last envelope"

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Can't like a lot about this episode- check out this take:

http://what-sucks.blogspot.com/2007/04/what-sucksthe-sopranos.html

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To answer #12, Patti's question, in the episode recap on the HBO site, it states; "When Hesh goes to rouse Renata for breakfast, he finds her dead in bed - a stroke." Great episode, next week has to be the catalyst show. I thought the reconciliation between Tony and Carmella was a symbolic resolution to the believable but laid on thick gambling problem as well and while I'm looking forward to any tense moments between Paulie and Christopher (remember the waiter?; fantastic), I hope Paulie makes it through to the final episodes though. I'd like to see a great scene with Paulie and Phil Leotardo. I am enjoying the recaps here as well, thanks.

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Something tells me the ending could involve the terrorists. Maybe something like Tony in a building and then it gets blown up and he can walk away from the lifestyle all the while people think hes dead. Its obvious that the money is now better overseas. I picked that up from the conversations with the Canadians and the Cubans. He can easily disappear and still earn elsewhere. But thats just my take on things.

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Agree with most that last night's was not the most scintillating writing. My thought is that David Chase used this episode as an expository interlude to set up the groundwork for interesting tensions and explosions to come in the final showdown.

Tony is doubting himself in major ways now, increasingly troubled, and he is consistent in expressing that the cash-flow crunch tied is to Vito's absence. Vito may have been gay, but he heaved in those bales, and Tony's economic comfort zone seems to have shrunk since Vito got it in the motel room.

Melfi and Tony had earlier discussion about Vito being gay, and Tony seemed to acknowledge that Vito may be gay, but he was also a good man. He saw that Vito did his job, was absolutely loyal, and Tony trusted him. Not the case with those hovering about Tony now, so it's as if he made a leap in understanding that Vito's gayness wasn't all that defined him--much to the discomfort of the rest of the gang. Tony has made no bones about the fact that he's furious that Phil made the decision to whack Vito without consulting Tony. He just didn't believe that Vito deserved to die for being gay.

Look at the whole picture with Tony: you've got Tony getting shot by Uncle Junior, the slow recovery from the surgery, lots of backstabbing, his top earner Vito dead for a specious reason, a shrinking economic picture, his growing distrust of Christopher, this sense of disrespect toward him everywhere he loo9ks, and the feeling that he's being edged out, even by his own men, so Tony's not in a trusting mood these days. He sees betrayal everywhere he looks.

With such a contracted sense of self, Tony's temper and patience seem strained to the limit. He flares at Carm, and Chase gives us a subtle look at how thin-skinned Tony is, especially in the instance of his debt to Hesh.

Here Tony owes Hesh $200K, but chooses to "forget" it, and he'd like the debt erased as a gesture of his high status. When you're the boss, you don't want to feel you're under someone else's thumb, but Hesh unfortunately reminds Tony of the debt during this bad patch.

Hesh's instinct that this could bode very, very ill turns out to be right on the money. Tony is fuming that he has to cough up $3000 bucks a week toward the debt. His humiliation gets the better of him at the card table when he snidely offers Hesh nickles and quarters off the table. Hesh feels the rage pouring out of Tony. The discussion Tony has later in the car turns to offing Hesh altogether as a way to discharge the debt. Hesh's antennae pick up what a menace Tony has become under the burden of this debt and how much Tony despises him for it.

My take is that Hesh's instincts about Tony couldn't have been more accurate: suddenly Hesh's lady turns up dead as a doornail. Immediately following, Tony brings the remainder of the debt to Hesh's door with fake regrets . . . as if to say, "Humiliate me, schmuck, and pay the price." Here Hesh had thought all along that Tony would kill HIM, but Tony extracted much more for the embarrassment he felt from his debt to Hesh: he took his lover from him to let him feel the sting of his foolishness in not overlooking the debt to the "boss."

It was nice to see Tony and Carm in each other's faces, and she was awesome, the way she stood him down. AJ seems lost, and we don't know what ragged piece of earth Chase is going to have him land on. Vito Jr. is in some deep shit, and his forced removal to boot camp in Idaho seems like the mafia Discovery Zone version of "junior whacking," when needs to be whacked but is too young to take out.

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Tony and the boys would be booking the bets, not giving the action to others. Also, no way would someone bet thousands on a harness race at Batavia Downs. Very small upstae NY track. A bet like that would turn a 2-1 shot into a 1-9 shot. Even a crazy man would not bet like that.

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Like most commenters, I found this episode a little dry (I hate admitting that), but I'm sure that was intentional.

The kid in the shower... wow... and how funny was it when Vito, Jr. and Phil were sitting outside and Vito had all the make-up on and was eating a huge sundae. Phil needs to step up and realize that he caused this situation, and he needs to make it right, but I'm sure this story line is over now.

I was happy that Hesh was in this episode. I always had a soft spot for Hesh, it seems that he is one of the most respected characters. Even for gangsters $200K is a lot of money, it never would have been a big deal if Tony wasn't on such a losing streak. It was kind of sweet how Hesh realized that something was wrong with Tony and could see all his debt when no one else could (or would address it).

#17, do you think Tony actually killed Hesh's lady friend, or do you mean symbolocily killed her? I'm guessing on the later.

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I'm in a minority here. I thought it was the best episode this season because 'things' finally happened. From Tony's gambling to his fall-out with Hesh and seeing that Muslim drug dealer a lot of balls were put in play. I also understood that Tony had Hesh's girl killed. I figured that's what he told his capos outside the pork store.

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