 There’s a part of me that doesn’t even want to blog about this episode. I don’t want to ruin it. I don’t want to overanalyze it. I don’t want to pick it apart. It was a brilliant 50-plus minutes of television, setting things up for what looks to be one helluva memorable finale next week, and that’s really all that needs to be said. The episode speaks for itself. But what kind of blog would this be if we didn’t actually blog? So let’s start by saying: Here we go. Seems the bloody, shoot-em-up ending that so many viewers wanted has come to be. That early scene with Phil and his two cronies was one of the best scenes of the season, maybe the series. “The Sopranos are nothing more than a glorified crew,” Phil says, quoting Carmine. “We decapitate and do business with whatever’s left.” Seems Phil doesn’t think all that much of his NJ counterparts, or at least, that’s what I gathered when he called them a “Pigmy tribe.” He wants the top three guys gone: Sil, Bobby and, of course, Tony. A couple of interesting notes here, the first coming from one of the guys from the NY group. Bobby is Tony’s #3. We’ve kinda known it for a while but, as the NY guy pointed out, Bobby used to be Junior’s driver. Then he marries Janice and a couple years later he’s T’s #3? That always seemed strange to me. Turns out they promote everybody, as Phil says, and Bobby’s a very large piece of evidence. But would Bobby be in that position if Chris had still been around? Probably not. Or, at least, you can bet Phil would’ve made Chris a priority over Bobby because he understood that Chris would’ve hurt T more. But Tony gives Chris a friendly push toward his dirt nap a few episodes ago and poor Bobby pays for it. In a hobby store buying an $8,000 train, no less. Second, who’s missing from that hit list? Paulie. Actually, someone even asked if Paulie should go too, and Phil’s guy clarified that their only targeting management. Man, Paulie’s so pathetic he can’t even get someone to whack him. And now, T’s stuck with Paulie again, in hiding just like their trip to Florida a month or two ago. I said “poor Bobby” earlier, but I feel sorrier for Tony, having to hole up in that house with Paulie for who knows how long. (By the way, whose house is that? Junior’s? His mom’s? I feel like I should know…but I don’t.) Now, I can’t gloss over perhaps the funniest moment of the entire episode, the reason T and Paulie are in hiding (with a couple other guys) and the reason Sil also got hit (more on that later): they killed the wrong guy. Tony catches wind of Phil’s plot against him (thanks agent Harris) and goes on the offensive, ordering a hit on Phil at his goumah’s house before he can hit them. Only they shoot the wrong guy – some Ukranian who looked a lot like Phil – and when Sil and Paulie see the paper the next day and realize that they fucked up, the look they exchange is absolutely priceless. Too bad that may be one of the last times we see Sil, after he and Patsy got ambushed in the Bing parking lot. He’s still alive (barely), but I want to know why he didn’t have his gun on him instead of stashing it in a bag in the backseat. If he’d been able to open fire immediately, he probably could’ve at least taken out one of the guys before going down himself. That would’ve been a much more appropriate end for Sil; he’s too great of a character to watch him (probably) die while scrambling for a gun and not even getting a shot off. Clearly, Tony is having a bad week, especially in the middle of the AJ crisis. After running into a girl from school (I’m assuming) while in the hospital, AJ’s home and watching war coverage, probably not the thing to be doing while you’re trying to overcome depression. Tony wants to talk to Melfi about, among other things, the AJ situation, but she’s not having any of it, not after reading that article that says, also among other things, that therapy becomes just one more criminal operation for criminals. Melfi thinks Tony’s been manipulating her for seven years, and she ends their association this week. Ooh, bad timing. Man, I felt bad for Tony, watching him come to the realization that she was ending his therapy at maybe the precise moment that he needed it the most. Thing is, we all know Tony’s a genuine guy. His sessions with Melfi have been authentic, and Melfi probably knows it too, but she’s not taking any chances. With one episode left, I wonder if that was her curtain call. So this is it. We were left tonight with an image of Tony, laying in a sheetless bed, fully clothed with his jacket on, falling asleep while staring at the door to his room, an assault rifle resting on his chest. It’s coming, and Tony’s ready for it. Carm’s with Meadow, Janice and Bobby’s kids in another house – who knows if AJ is going to show up after Tony tossed him out of bed and dumped all the clothes in his closet on his head? Chris, Bobby and Sil are gone. Tony’s locked down in a dumpy old house…with Paulie. And nobody knows where Phil is. You couldn’t pay me to miss next week’s finale. (Well, unless you’re talking serious money.) Filed under: TV and TV Dramas and TV Action and The Sopranos and External Entertainment and External TV Comments:
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That’s Tony’s mother’s house. When she died, Junior moved into it, and so that’s why it’s confusing you.
As for the whole Phil look-a-like debacle, I have a feeling Sil, Bobby and Tony were in trouble even if Phil had been killed. The order had already gone out, and he had gone in hiding.
If that had been the final moment of the series, with Tony staring at the door…I would’ve been satisfied - the best hour of television I have ever seen (Phil’s scene being one of the best - I agree).
Heads will roll.
Great episode. Sad to see Bobby and Silvio go. They were two of the more likable and loyal characters on the show.
AJ needs to man up. I get the sense that he’s going to play a bigger role in the finale than a lot of people think, but I just don’t know how he factors into Tony’s current situation.
I think I called it in the final episode.
Tony has few options and is immobile in that safe house. He reaches out to the Feds and hopes it does not blow back into his face.
No way Tony turns… This is not “goodfellas” where Tony will be picking up his paper from his new porch, living life like every other “schmuck.”
Brian, I don’t propose Tony will go the “Goodfellas” way. I think he’ll just plant the idea in the FBI’s mind that the Mid East guys have a NY Mob connection. This will be Tony’s attempt to open up a new front. Right now his options are very limited.
Someone please explain this for me. At the beginning of the show, Sil carries out a strangulation, unbeknownst to Tony. When Sil tells Tony about it, he looks dumbfounded and very surprised. Sil simply says, “I didn’t want to burden/bother you with it with all you’ve been going through with AJ. I thought Tony gave the okay’s for hits. WTF!
Has anyone thought about the fact that maybe Paulie is ratting out everybody’s postion???? Paulie will not go out quietly!
Does anyone know if the last episode will be longer than the usual 50-60 minutes?
i thought there was some irony in the
fact that silvio had to scramble for his
gun.
it was a similar image to adriana scrambling
away from him when he killed her.
Paulie is the mole. Did u notice that they zoomed in on Sil’s murder victim. He had on the same cheap shoes and jogging suit like P-Walnut wears. Also, his resentment toward Tony which he expressed to Johnny Sack was never resolved. Bobby was given the command he passed if off to Paulie as soon as Paulie sees the hitmen he stares then peels of in his CTS Caddy where’s he rughing off to ??
Great episode last night. If you sit back and look at things, Tony really has not been that great a boss. He’s made some bad calls all along the way, usually to appease NY. He killed his own cousin to shut Phil up (only it wasen’t enough for Phil). He killed Christopher for no good reason (bet he wishes he had him around now!) And they moved way too slow with this final thing. I would have had a contract out on Phil the minute he pulled that stunt at his house with Tony & Carmine. Then, even when he was tipped off by the fed, Tony took his sweet time going to the matresses, leading to the loss of Bobby & Sil. Fugget about the fact that he left this biggest hit of all hits at the hands of people that were not his most reliable solders (Paulie & that book store guy). At this point, I don’t have much sympathy for Ton’. However, that being said, if this show ends and Phil Leoardo is still alive, I will forever curse the name of David Chase and regret that I ever started watching this show in the first place.
While others are thinking Paulie may turn on Tony, I’m thinking Paulie may step up to the plate and pull his big butt out of the fire. Still, Tony’s whole life is crumbling around him…Fired by Melfi, Meadow changes her career path, AJ makes Fredo Corleone look like John Gotti, Chris, Bobby & Sil out of the picture, Uncle Junior out of money, etc, etc. It all adds up to not so good an ending for the big guy.
It’s safe to assume now that there won’t be any members of the Jersey family left standing after next week’s finale.
One by one, like 10 little indians, the big players have bit the dust: Chris, Bobby, Sil…I think it’s a foregone conclusion that the only ones left alive at the end will be Carm, Meadow & AJ.
I’m not sure if Phil will get it too, but Tony is a good as dead. When one of the heads of the the Five New York families wants their pesky little Jersey cousin disposed of, there is now way Tony & his small band of brothers are going to stop it.
Either way, at least the show is going out with a bang.
While the show last nite was good it doesn’t even start to make up for the aweful story lines and writing of this series over the last several years. Please get real…Tony kill Chris after he’s injured in a car crash? What type of an ending is that for one of the key players in the series…Chris should have gone out guns a blazing. David Chase and crew clearly got too big for the britches…I’m looking forward to this series ending next week too!!!!
Hopefully Tony goes out the right way…and not in some half baked David Chase wet dream.
Some additional comments for the cast of the show should they actually read stuff like this to find out what the average Joe thinks…The acting was aweful after season 3! I’m tired of hearing about how great the acting is and how cleaver the writing is. The show has been way below average for the past 4+ seasons. If the cast wants to see acting watch Rome now that was a show.
The AJ & Meadow actors are about as second rate as you will ever see.
& Steve please stay with the singing and get away from the acting!
Jame…diet time and I think you are type casted for life!
Eddie…you are the only real actor BUT even you sat back on your past accomplishments too much.
The Bobby character sucked…and the guy who played him is about as stupid as they come…Give me a break you go on the Imus show after the racist comment he made…get real! You’ll never get another acting job…you might also want to diet!
& Paul what can I say except you should have really joined the mob.
hey guys….i also think Paulie is a rat….that thought occurred to me after the show…not sure how it’s going to resolve, but he’s clearly on both sides of the fence
The possibility of Paulie being a rat has always existed (whether he’s a rat for the feds or whether he was double-crossing T with the NY crew), and while that’s still a definite possibility, I actually prefer Frank’s view: after all the grief Paulie’s given T this season, and with everyone thinking he’s turned, wouldn’t it be great if Paulie comes through when it’s all said and done and saves Tony’s hide? Of course, having Paulie play both sides of the fence would explain how the hit on Phil got so screwed up.
I do wonder, though, if we’re going to find out in the finale that someone in Tony’s crew has been working with the feds this whole time. Could be Paulie, could’ve been Chris, could be anybody, really.
last night was pretty intense.
It would not surprise me if Paulie has been working for the feds all along, and I think he is going to save T’s ass. I think the feds will set up something where everyone will think T is dead, but he’s disappeared into the netherlands of the witness protection program. the last scene could be Carm, AJ and Meadow at the cemetary…a car is in the distance …the window comes down a little bit, just enough for us to see that T is alive and well…he looks at his family for the last time and the car drives away. If people are looking for some sort of redemptive act from Tony, leaving his family (who he really does love) would certainly be up there.
It’s going to be a long week.
its juniors original house he never lived in livias house janice moved in there when she died
No way Paulie is working for the Feds, and no way Tony gets clipped next week.
Phil has planned this well, but his decision is not rational. He wanted to retire, but then he got a big bug up his ass. He will pay for it in the finale.
The bloodshed in Tony’s crew this week is probably all we’ll see on his end. Paulie is a simple character. He’s a pain in the ass, but when the chips are down, he’ll stick with Tony and help him take out Phil.
Tony has been sloppy, and guys in his crew paid for it, but he’s a savvy criminal, and the whole Melfi situation helped drive that home.
Eye for an eye this season? Bobbies clips someone and gets clipped. Chris clips someone and gets clipped. Silvio clips someone and gets clipped.
Neither Paulie or Tony clipped anyone and they are still around, at least for now.
The NY gang has had no resistance thus far. The finale should change all that.
Was one of Bobby Baccala’s shooters Bruce Springsteen?
Phil gets it next week. His kind of stubborn irrationality (not letting go of his brother’s death at the hands of Steve Buscemi) does not go unpunished in his world.
The house is definitely Livia’s. Based on Tony’s expression in the last scene and that brilliant shot of him walking down the narrow hall, I believe that the bedroom is his from childhood. It’s perfect really: He’s come full circle to the place where his demons were born to make his last stand.
Why did the Italians get the wrong guy? Who thought this was Phil’s goomah’s house? This is why I think that Paulie is working the other side…he was the one who set it up, right?
Maybe I missed something, but I don’t get how they got it so wrong.
It is certainly Junior’s house. that was the sink he was stuck in. plus when they have showed the front the door was on the right, Livia’s front door was on the left, plus Livia had a much bigger kitchen. Maybe tony has a funny look on his face when he saw the house was because the last time they showed him there he got shot by crazy Uncle Junior. if your trying to look for some kind of medaphor about Tony,his past, and this house, how about the last two times that he was in this house or leaving this house he was fighting for his life.
Tony had Bobby killed.
1. 2 young kids with baseball caps, not soldiers like Silv.
2. Bobby kicked the crap out of Tony.
3. Bobby was still loyal to Junior. (Conversation with sister at pool)
4. Bobby messed up the hit on Phil.
Although some of the hits have been entertaining, what kind of a NJ crew are we left with now for the ‘Big Finale’??? Chrisy is gone, Big Bobby is gone, Sil (best character in the Sopranos) is hospitalized or dead… that basically leaves Paulie and a bunch of relative unknowns.
The finale must revolve around a move by one of the Big 3 left: Tony, Phil or Paulie. You’ve gotta wonder if all the script-weaving they’ve been doing this season (eg. Junior’s troubles, AJ’s depression) will be meaningful or just BS filler.
My money’s on Phil finishing the job. After the botched hit by NJ, he’s a step ahead of everyone else. For the sake of closure, Tony’s gotta go.
I like the concept that Tony has been working with the Feds and that’s probably who will show up to pick up Carm Aj and daughter. The Feds have been working with Tony and was notified of th epending hits. I agree Tony wacked Bobby and this will be blamed on Phil so Tony is taking advantage of the mess with Phil. All will show up at the end with Phil and Paulie being arrested by FBI and the story will end.
Actually I don’t know a darn thing but it is fun to speculate. Pualie is without a dount a traitor thus the reason why he so easliy parked his car in front of the safe house. He is not t hat dumb. Cloe though.
I have a sinking feeling that if anyone kills Tony, it’s gonna be AJ.
Think about it. A lot of attention has been placed on AJ’s depression this season, and after last week’s episode, it seems like he’s finally come to the conclusion that most of the stress in his life is due to his dad’s “career.”
Plus, he’s the only one who can really get close to Tony at this point in time.
The show has killed off all the last main characters besides Tony’s family beause the last episode will be about TONY. I think he will win and clip Phil and the show will end, him still the boss… filling in the holes in his organazation. Same as it ever was. isnt that what the whole Melfi thing was all about? He never changed a bit. He was still a cold blooded killer till the end. Tony goes on but the show is over because Tony knows he is what he is and thats the closure. Regardless it will be AWESOME
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A lot of theories abounding here, and some of them actually sound plausible.
Good points by Billy Kamp about Tony ordering the hit on Bobby; he certainly wasn’t too broken up when he heard the news. And was it just me, or did Tony seem to know about it very quickly after it happened?
I also agree with RJ that Sil was one of the best, and most criminally under-used, characters on the show. A few weeks ago I said that I wished Chase had involved his character more; this week he finally gets a bigger role, and now he’s gone.
As for finale theories, how about this one:
Junior escapes from the prison hospital with help from his cronies and heads back to his old place, where the guys have fallen asleep from all the pizza & beer.
As Junior enters the room upstairs, Tony shreds him like a head of lettuce with the assault rifle, thinking it’s Phil’s guys.
Upon seeing what he has done and how he has destroyed his whole family, Tony turns the AR on himself, irrationally thinking that if he takes his own life, maybe A.J. won’t end his.
Hey, after Chrissy cheesy death anything’s possible.
“The show has been way below average for the past 4+ seasons.”
Below average for “The Sopranos” or below average for television in general? This happens a lot - a show makes a big splash and then the audience starts to fragment because the show doesn’t go in the direction that certain segments want it to. Even the worst season of “The Sopranos” is better than 90% of the other schlock on TV.
They are certainly setting things up for Paulie to be a traitor. I thought it was pretty subtle, but the theory has so much momentum that it makes me think that they’re going to go the other direction.
I do not want to spoil it for everyone but it is somewhat obvious that Paulie will betray Tony by giving him up or killing him…think back to the episode where Tony and Paulie went into hidding, Paulie suppose to be dead but Tony decided against it and that is going to come back to bite Tony in the final episode in some way…
I was wondering the same thing about why Sil didn’t have the gun in his lap. It just didn’t make any sense to me that they were running for their lives and his gun was in the backseat. I think they should have thought about that a little more.
I love how everyone knows how things are going to play out. Yeah, they’ve been setting things up for Paulie to be a traitor, but as John said, that may just be misdirection. Maybe the irony here is that Tony looked down on Paulie for so long and actually thought about whacking him a few episodes ago but then, in the end, Paulie’s the one who saves his ass.
Anybody who “knows” how the finale will unfold is kidding themselves. We’ve all got theories, but the only one who knows for sure is Chase.
I wouldn’t call the episode great; it was a return to good Sopranos TV, but I think we were so lulled to sleep by the boring stories of Season Six that a good episode blew everyone away.
It’s all a bit too little, too late in my opinion. “The Beginning of End” should have been the graphic during the preview of the final block of episodes from Season Six, not just the last two. They could have wrapped up all the major storylines amid an all out NY-NJ war, but instead we were subjected to episodes full of new pointless characters and stories that did nothing to provoke the impending war that couldn’t have been done during than Blandetto/Vito disagreements.
I like where they are going and will ultimately miss the show, but there isn’t enough time in an hour episode to wrap this up the way it should have been.
BTW - Why was a hit only ordered on Phil? NY was obviously coming after more than Tony, so why didn’t NJ reciprocate? I would have chosen the Godfather I-style of simultaneous killings of Phil and his top guys. Just another in a string of Season 6 disappointments…
No way Paulie rats. Tony’s payin the price for clipping Chris, Tony B., Ralphie, and for allowing the situations that led to Richie, Vito, and Jackie Jr. to go. BTW, where was Benny when they went to the matresses?
How did Bobby climb so high withour making his bones until a month ago? Who goes to war without going heavy 24/7? This mutt’s more a half a fag than a wiseguy. Tony’s number 3? I say he was never even straightened out.
I say Tony turns to save his cowardly ass. If not, he gets clipped.
Guys, I really don’t think that’s Junior’s house they are in. Last night I watched “Pine Barrens” on A&E and right after watched “Blue Comet” rerun on HBO. In the Barrens episode, Tony & Junior are in Junior’s kitchen so I got a good look at it, and it is nothing like the kitchen in the Comet episode. I think that must be Livia’s house.
Has anyone already mentioned the cardboard cutout of syl in the living room? WTF — a mistake by the production crew?
Tony’s decision not to take out Paulie will come back to SAVE him. Paulie will not turn.
Loved reading the commentary, and I’m dying to watch the next episode. I thought you might enjoy these humorous odds on who’s going to die in the final episode:
Sopranos Oddsmaker
Not that it really matters a whole heck of a lot, but I don’t think that is Livia’s house too. Her stairs were on the left hand side (I remember the hilarious scene of her coming down in one of those chair-lift things) and the stairs at this house were on the right. It may just be some random safe house. I noticed the Syl photo too and thought it very… odd….
The home is Tony’s from childhood. The bedroom and the bed is his. He was born in that bed and he will die in that bed. Pauli will kill him.
Most of the episode (65 Minutes) will be envolved with finding and killing Phil Leotardo.(some cameos from his family) After Tony suceeds he returns to his bedroon…pondering his success, his good luck.
Pauli the “judas” will enter the room, gun drawn not knowing that Phil is dead. Tony asks what the hell are you doing…Phil’s dead.” The ever cynical Pauli responds “always liked you T but it’s business.”
Tony falls into the bed where he was born a bloody mess.
The child Tony had a future destined for destruction and the adult Tony had a past that affirmed that destiny.
The presence of Livia overwhelms.
News flash, folks:
Sorry to ruin everyone’s theories about whose house it is, but I did the sensible thing and checked the HBO episode guide, which states that the place is merely a safe house. There is no reference to it being Livia’s, Junior’s, or any other house Tony has a connection to.
That would make it odd that the cardboard cutout of Sil was already there, unless that was a goof by the crew or a sly little tribute to him.
One thing I did notice upon my second viewing is that the house looked just like the one that was in the dream Paulie had a couple of episodes back, after he & T. took the trip to Miami. Paulie entered the house and Big Puss was in the kitcken making breakfast.
My summation: the houses in those neighborhoods all look similar because of how & when they were built, so while it may resemble the other houses, it’s probably just one of the many safe houses the crew had secured throughout Jersey.
jsut like everyone else i do have my ideas about how the show is going to end,but i dont want anyone critizing it so what i will say is,guys its been a great ride,watching the kids grow up,cris and paulie screwing up the hit on the russians out in the woods during winter.seeing the look on big pussys face when the first shot was took.adriona crawling in the leaves begging for her life.im sure yo all have your favs as well. we will miss ya guys,yes it has been a great ride.
Great post … I’m predicting Tony will love, but not Janice, and maybe not Carmela … Soprano Predictions (not spoilers)
have you guys ever known chase to be obvious? it is too easy to think that paulie is the rat! hope we will not be disappointed!
i think aj redeems himself and helps tony,if not i hope he dies!!
First off I must say this season sucked for the most part. To me they wasted to much storyline on people who didnt matter i mean there was several things that could explored beside little vito shiting in the shower or ALL the time AJ is now occupying the episodes. This season had its moments but nothing like seasons 1-3.
Anyway here is my prediction and my explanantion of it….
First off Tony doesnt die!!! I say this because Chase said several years ago that american mafia films and story’s are always the rise and fall of the mob and why would I waste my time with that paradigm.
To me that means though Tony has fallen yes but he wont completely fall off..
Chase also said that he knew the ending years ago and I believe that everything aroung Tony will fall apart and unravel even more than it has and instead of Tony dieing he must finally learn to live with “Tony Soprano” which will continue to be worse than anything he will ever face.
Now on to the rest of my prediction. Paulie is a rat!! To NY family I mean look at the facts he he was tight with Johnny Sac telling him the joke about his wife and most importantly look at this season why did Chase revist that incident when Paulie and Tony went to Flordia and Tony wanted to whack Paulie and Tony insisted the truth from Paulie about if he told Johnny?
To me it was a build up to tonight Paulie is alive and working against Tony with NY thats why he wasnt killed last week!!! Thats why he didnt want to do the hit on Phil. That being said Phil, His Underling, and Paulie will die tonight and all by TONY!!!
Pauile First!!! I think when the episode just starts!! To get the drama from the get go.
AJ will play some part in the ending they have built him up to much as of late. Not sure what really I think one of two things he finds out Blanca is pregnant(remember her look at dinner when the subject of a baby came up a few episodes ago)and AJ finds something to live for or 2 he finally gives up and kills himself or gets killed in some sort of crossfire in a wierd twisted way.
Carm sticks by Tony as she always has but truly wants a new life but as always not as much as the one she lives now!!
Sil I believe lives and him and Tony continue to run the Family.
In the end the ducks return to the pool as AJ is gone and most of Tony’s family is gone. Tony stares at them and realizes the ducks do and have always represented his family. Tony is alone left only with Tony Soprano and the panic attacks return and if and only IF Tony does it will because of the panic attacks not Phil or NY!! I know that last sentence contradicts my thoughts at the beggining saying Tony doesnt die but I just thought that could happen….
I read Chase filmed 3 alternate endings no one knows what one will air but I truly believe like he said the show is like real life things happen in life and life goes on there isnt always closure in ‘real’ life like there is in tv and movies thats why we dont really know what happened to the russian or if Adrianna really died or what happens to the Arabs etc, so I believe the saga of Tony Soprano will live on we just wont get to see it…………
the last episode sucked. what the hell was that?i dont get it.
I will never watch a rerun or a special or a made for tv movie or major screen production of the Sopranos. I have wasted many years watching something that I kept hoping would be something or do something interesting. This series had no story line. It was very disjointed and went on many very uninteresting tangents. Most episodes are able to stand on their own,this a series does not make.
I waited years between new seasons and got the usual let down. I had hoped for a great ending or a little something special. David Chase needs to speak to the writers of Six Feet Under. There was a great final episode. So to give myself the closure I need…..I will discuss the episode with friends for one week. After that…in true Italian form they will be offically dead to me and I will not waste another minute of my time since they wasted years of mine……
So long all.
I’ve been saying for the last couple of weeks that as long as Phil got clipped, I’d be happy. Guess I was wrong. Although having the car run over his head was a nice touch. The whole Paulie and the cat thing was great, I thought. It showed Paulie as Paulie right up to the end. He’s always been superstitious and weierd about stuff like that. All these Paulie theories that have been thrown out there (Paulie flipping or playing both sides with the NY boys), I never went along with. Paulie is a simple character in this show. He’s there for comic relief and he stayed true to that right to the end. But that’s about all the good I can say about last night’s show. Typical of the way this show has gone recently, about three quarters of the episode was wasted with filler and we got about 20 minutes of good stuff. They spent way too much time this season on AJ. OK if you want to show that Tony has this useless son and all that. It could have been done in much less time. I don’t think in the history of TV has more time been wasted on such a completely useless character. You kept waiting for something big out of him because of all the time invested, but nothing. In the end, he’s all set to join the army and thinks its a great idea, until Tony finds him a nothing job with a porn producer trying to “branch out” into crappy straight-to-video movies. That whole story line was STUPID. The ending? Well, I think it was a