It all comes to a head here. Pussy has gone missing. Tony is lost in depression and hallucinating about a voluptuous Italian dental student house sitting next door. It takes an assassination attempt on his life to get Tony to wake up out of his stupor and begin to figure out the real truth. Then, the shit hits the fan.
Scenes to remember:
Dr. Melfi forces Tony to face something she’s already known for a long time; that his mother is the mastermind behind it all, including the attempt on his life. Man, alive! Even when I expect it and saw how carefully the season is built around this revelation, it is quite a scene when it finally is shown to Tony. The scene is constructed so tightly, every moment, the delivery of every line, the tension growing as Melfi rattles on and on about personality disorders, all to the point where it explodes or should I say Tony explodes, shattering the glass table, breaking the unseen barrier between psychiatrist and patient and coming so close to Melfi he actually spits in her mouth. It is an explosive moment, a shocking moment and a perfect moment.
As an audience we’re wishing Tony would listen to Melfi and finally we’re given the payoff when we learn that the retirement home where Livia has been living has been bugged by the FBI. As Tony listens to his mother rattle on about his seeing a psychiatrist, his depression and his meetings at her home, Tony has no other option but to face what he’s known but couldn’t admit.
Tony has to take care of those who’ve harmed him but before he can do that he and Carm (does it surprise anyone else that she takes the news of his mother in stride?) must suffer through one of the most uncomfortable family dinners. Imagine sitting at a table with your mother and uncle who have just tried to kill you?! The reactions from Carm, Junior, the kids and of course Tony are priceless and sell the scene so well.
Carm gets one more great scene in this season. Her confrontation of the priest is a wonderful piece of acting for Falco. Man, she is a tough woman. She direct, honest and takes no bullshit; it’s no wonder she’s with Tony.
Tony finally gets to take care of his dirty laundry. He kills his rat, kills Junior’s men but not Junior, who got lucky and sent to prison, and finally opens up to his guys about going to a psychiatrist. (Yet, another wonderful moment in this episode)! But just when he’s going to get the real revenge he’s been craving, smothering his mother, she’s beat him to the punch and pulled out the big guns by pretending to have had a stroke! He lets her know though, oh he lets her know.
These two episodes are so well done. The dream sequences are unreal, the scene where Tony is awoken from his stupor is thrilling, the moments we see Tony realizing what his mother has done are stunning, painful and cathartic. And finally, watching as Tony gets his justice is a thrilling and satisfying end to a wonderful first season. This is why The Sopranos is still considered the best. It broke the barriers and still, after having seen many of these shows, lives on. It’s like the fine wine Tony is always drinking, it only gets better with age.
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