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Re: Episode Review and General Comments: 'Remember When'

91
I haven't had time yet to read all the posts above, but here are my thoughts before I get to them.

About Tony saying, the worst form of conversation is Remember When. And then in contrast so many of the parts of this episode are of him "remembering when" as it relates to Paulie and his father and Tony becoming a part of it all. And, Carmella saying something like: All this, at our age?......well, we are heading to an end. we are tired.

In fact, I think that statement and lingering on Carmella's face as she spoke it define this episode and perhaps, this end of show. game over. does it really matter how it ends? it is just not fun anymore -- and I don't mean for me the viewer, I love watching it. the whole presentation seems unfun to present. the presenters seem done. where are we going, where have we been, what does it all mean? that's the feel these episodes have. Just like the end of a life. we will all get there eventually...like Tony is getting there. like Sac last week. like Uncle Jr. this week. Watching New York twice now kill their tops...so it goes.

So it goes...that is the feel and mood of these episodes.

The energy of this episode was the young angry boy beating on Jr. That was the energy, right wrong or misguided that used to be in all of our characters when they were young, who we are watching end now. The energy they started their lives with. As hard as it was to watch, it brought Jr. to full circle. It was the raw real energy Tony faked when he beat up his bodyguard last season, what he wanted to prove. Yes, the kid is crazy. point. And this kid clearly had parent issues. Nothing was ever good enough.

So it goes...Paulie thinking about his end, lifting weights with no form, quickly and without purpose (except to himself, remembering). Proving. Tony taking home the hot blonde (also done w/o purpose, remembering, out of habit). proving. Jr. being a psycho-ward mobster. Proving.

Contrast it all with the annoying, modern teenager of AJ. Lazy. Controlled by his girl and yelled at by his mother. Not only is Tony at the end of his life, his plan didn't even raise a worthy son. What did he accomplish? Chris is gone Hollywood and had Tony's head fictionally chopped off.

We are having ends, consequences, legacies, reasons for being shown here, and since we all know it's the end anyway (like a cancer that can't be beat)....love it.

Re: Episode Review and General Comments: 'Remember When'

92
ChristophersRelapse wrote:Meyer Lansky

Dutch Schultz

Bugsy Siegel


All parts of La Cosa Nostra, and none Italian. It is a misconception brought on by Goodfellas that everyone has to be 100% Italian to be in the mafia. Hesh may not be an official part of the family, but it may be because he's half retired. He's still in on some stuff, but it seems that he was around more during Tony's dad's time.
I do not think that any of the above were ever "made" guys. They participated in organized crime schemes but were never members of the five New York "families" that constituted what is generally called LCN in New York, then branching out to the rest of the USA and Montreal. See also the various comments written on Sicilians versus other Italians...
biker 2
from frigid Ottawa Canada (near Harpo!)

Re: Episode Review and General Comments: 'Remember When'

93
Universal Polymath wrote:Sorry if anyone else has pointed this out already, I may have missed it. But I am thoroughly convinced that the writers are foreshadowing each episode with a cell phone call in the previous episode. Perhaps this is all just coincidental, but I’m almost positive this has to be a very small, but intentional, detail being consciously inserted into the show.

In “Sopranos Home Movies”, Christopher gives Tony a call the day after his birthday, almost as an afterthought, already tipping us off about the growing separation between the two characters. Tony promptly hangs up on him, and the entire scene only lasts a few seconds, but it’s enough to set up exactly where their relationship stands. The next episode brings their relationship to the forefront.

During that episode, Paulie gets a cell phone call during the premiere of “Cleaver”, but instead of simply turning off his cell phone, he has to become the annoying, inconsiderate busybody in the theater that aggravates others trying to enjoy the show (“Who, the Guatemalan? What time's he gonna be there? …Tell him to put it in the trunk!”) It's also interesting to note that this was an obvious business call. Whatever the conversation was pertaining to, even though there was nothing said on Paulie's end that could implicate him in any illegal dealings, it probably wasn't a conversation most of the other guys in the crew would have had so freely in a room full of people. Sure enough, the main focus of the next episode brings Paulie’s aggrivating and over-talkative tendencies (pertaining to the business) to the front.

And then, in “Remember When”, Tony has a brief conversation with Hesh on the phone about a loan to cover gambling losses, which, if the preview is any indication, will be the main storyline next week.

Just a thought. So will there be another cell phone call clue next week, which will pertain to the week thereafter? If so, it would probably be subtle enough that it would only become evident after episode five airs, in retrospect. Or perhaps this is all just too far of a reach.
Interesting theory. And remember, in "Stage 5," Tony is shown on his cell phone making bets, tipping us off to the gambling problem that seems destined to surface.

Re: Episode Review and General Comments: 'Remember When'

94
Spooky, how do we talk about a tragic real incident last week and think about Chase's writing in coincidence???? I know this has to be said here.[quote]
....................................

Yes, these coincidences/synchronicities between real life
incidents and the simultaneous airings of The Sopranos
episodes, do indeed boggle the mind! The last such
simultaneity was during the Duke Rape Case, when one
of the accused students was named Collin Finnerty. His
father happened to be named Kevin Finnerty, the same
name as Tony assumed during his coma after being shot
by Corrado last year.

With this last incident of the young Asian male who killed
so many on the Virginia Tech campus, at least in the
3rd episode of The Sopranos, had such a disturbed
individual confined to a mental institution for the
criminally insane, which is what should have probably
happened to the VT killer before he went on his
grotesque rampage in real life.

"Art imitates Life."

Monadax

Re: Episode Review and General Comments: 'Remember When'

95
patriquem wrote:Here is an excerpt from the HBO synopsis of "Remember When":

Paulie and T drive through the night rain reminiscing about the old days. When Paulie mentions Ralphie, Tony brings up Ralphie's off-color joke about Ginny that got him knocked off when someone told Johnny Sack . "Who the f**k would tell Johnny about that joke?" Tony asks. "How should I know?" Paulie replies defensively.

Telling the joke about Ginny Sack's mole isn't what got Ralph disappeared, even though it did cause some problems for Tony. What are they talking about?

Tony said the Ginny Sack joke got Ralphie "knocked off" because he doesn't want people to know the real reason Tony whacked him. Over the horse. Remember he told his crew that he thought NY was involved in Ralphie's dissapearance as Tony was having his issues with Carmine and Johnny at the time. The only other person who really knows what happened was Christopher.

Re: Episode Review and General Comments: 'Remember When'

96
Universal Polymath wrote:Sorry if anyone else has pointed this out already, I may have missed it. But I am thoroughly convinced that the writers are foreshadowing each episode with a cell phone call in the previous episode. Perhaps this is all just coincidental, but I’m almost positive this has to be a very small, but intentional, detail being consciously inserted into the show.

Just a thought. So will there be another cell phone call clue next week, which will pertain to the week thereafter? If so, it would probably be subtle enough that it would only become evident after episode five airs, in retrospect. Or perhaps this is all just too far of a reach.
Excellent point! Rather than it just being a week to week thing, it may be foreshadowing several events of this final season. I think there has already been another call like this. In Soprano Home Movies, Carmella called AJ and he lied about working at the Pizza Parlor, while cavorting on their bed with Blanca before throwing a pool party. Considering all the "father" issues this past week, we are certainly going to see an arc with AJ being a major player before this season ends. This call shows his continued irresponsibility (I guess every scene with AJ shows this) which will "put Tony to the test". Remember the windshield smashing scene?

Re: Episode Review and General Comments: 'Remember When'

97
tomahawk wrote:Excellent point! Rather than it just being a week to week thing, it may be foreshadowing several events of this final season. I think there has already been another call like this. In Soprano Home Movies, Carmella called AJ and he lied about working at the Pizza Parlor, while cavorting on their bed with Blanca before throwing a pool party. Considering all the "father" issues this past week, we are certainly going to see an arc with AJ being a major player before this season ends. This call shows his continued irresponsibility (I guess every scene with AJ shows this) which will "put Tony to the test". Remember the windshield smashing scene?
Yeah, good call - I was trying to remember any cell phone calls that could prove to be important later on (a challenging feat, being as there are a lot of phone calls in this show), but I had overlooked that one. After the 6a finale, everyone seemed to be speculating that Blanca would help shape AJ up, and he would finally become more responsible with her influence. However, that call signified the contrary, right off that bat - He's still the same AJ, and, plot-wise, something big is sure to happen with him soon.

Re: Episode Review and General Comments: 'Remember When'

99
I thought the most fascinating aspect of this episode was Tony being constantly confronted with his gang being a dinosaur. The most striking was all the "remember when" talk of young Paulie and his father's Caddy. Then he and Paulie - who the putana "thought" may have been Tony's father - show up in a Ford Windstar van to cut a deal with a Cuban mob that show up in a benz and dressed to the nines. All the guys they talk about are either dead or going. Contrast the pics of Tony's father and Junior as young hip wise guys, and Paulie as a young black haired muscle man with Syl and Bacala calling Tony at the motel. They are obese and aethsmatic. Junior withers away mentally in an institution. Carmela is hammering home that they are old. Who is young? Christopher - he doesn't trust him and he doesn't appreciate or want the buisiness. The Cuban mob does it real.

The end is near.

Re: Episode Review and General Comments: 'Remember When'

100
Al Sikeli wrote:I thought the most fascinating aspect of this episode was Tony being constantly confronted with his gang being a dinosaur. The most striking was all the "remember when" talk of young Paulie and his father's Caddy. Then he and Paulie - who the putana "thought" may have been Tony's father - show up in a Ford Windstar van to cut a deal with a Cuban mob that show up in a benz and dressed to the nines. All the guys they talk about are either dead or going. Contrast the pics of Tony's father and Junior as young hip wise guys, and Paulie as a young black haired muscle man with Syl and Bacala calling Tony at the motel. They are obese and aethsmatic. Junior withers away mentally in an institution. Carmela is hammering home that they are old. Who is young? Christopher - he doesn't trust him and he doesn't appreciate or want the buisiness. The Cuban mob does it real.

The end is near.
Which leads back to the very first episode, when Tony tells Melfi that he feels like he came in at the end of something, not the beginning.

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