Least Favourite Episode?

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The Sopranos is unquestionably my favourite TV show ever, but as Americans like to say, "no-one bats 1.000" and in amidst all that wheat, there are a few grains of chaff. Anyway, here is my 5 least favourite episodes ever (but I just want to reiterate that I think the series as a whole is brilliant!)

1. University (Series 3) - Utterly sordid and repellant from beginning to end
2. Employee of the Month (Series 3) - is that scene with the attack on Melfi REALLY necessary?
3. Christopher (Series 4)- just really, really....silly
4. Test Dream (Series 4) - Dream sequences are like whiskey ...great but only in moderation
5. Join the Club (Series 6) - see comment above

Re: Least Favourite Episode?

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I really liked Employee of the Month and University but they are brutal episodes and very difficult to watch in parts, so I can understand certain people's distate for them.

Good thread. My least favorites in no particular order:

Do Not Resucitate- The whole plotline with Tony working with the corrupt civil rights activist was too episodic television for my tastes, and you knew it wasn't going to have any consequence of any sort while it was happening.

To Save Us All from Satan's Power- I was looking forward to this flashback episode, but it really didn't have much of a plot, other than to show the characters with bad wigs and dye jobs.

Christopher- This episode wasn't as bad as many made it out to be, but the storyline seemed so forced. Chase has always been perplexed about Italian-American groups protesting the show, and this is the episode he used to address that.

Provai, Livushka- The episode, as a whole, is really a classic, but the decision to use a digital recreation of Nancy Marchand was the most egregious misstep on The Sopranos.

Kaisha- I've defended 6a to a lot of people, and really believe it's an undervalued and misundertood group of episodes. With that said, Kaisha didn't really help my case. Granted it's not a bad episode, but it was questionable judgment to have such an uneventful episode be the last one before a nearly year-long break.

Re: Least Favourite Episode?

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I can't connect the episodes you describe with the name of the episode. Perhaps if you give a one sentence summary as to what the epi was about, it would help identify to which epi you refer. The title of the epi should be enough, but I just don't have a list handy that gives a brief overview of the epi for each title.

One epi that comes to my mind as being "least favorite" was the one that centered around the feds trying to plant the bug in the basement. It just didn't seem to advance the story line at all and provided little or no entertainment.

In general, most epis that have a lot of Janice tend to make me hit the fast forward. IMO, the character she portrays is very repulsive. Her voice is repulsive and I'd like to see a lot less of her character, in general. My reasons? We learned very quickly that Janice is a very selfish character but not clever enough to disguise her grasping from others. So, many of her attempts to manipulate others just fall flat. We see right through them and they tend to be boring as well as ineffective. After the first few times that happens, the entertainment value just disappears and it gets very boring very quickly. I realize that is just a generalization. But i think it is also the truth.

Re: Least Favourite Episode?

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Wow, I really disagree about Janice. I think Aida Turturro is fabulous on the show.

When people say they hate people like AJ, Meadow, and Janice, you have to remember the characters they are depicting. They all do a good job of portyaying people who have enjoyed certain fringe benefits of the mafia lifestyle, so they are naturally going to be selfish and spoiled.

I think it wouldn't be realistic to portray them really any other way.

Re: Least Favourite Episode?

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Wow the differences of opinions by fans of the show amazes me.

Personally, not only do I think Adia Turturro as Janice is one of the best actresses on the show (you're supposed to hate her, that means she's doing an excellent job), but 4 of the 5 episodes JOHNNYBOYM put on his hate list are some of my favorites. (Although I am partial to the dream sequences on the Sopranos so that's why I LOVE Test Dream and Employee and Join the Club, and I also think University is a fabulous episode). But hey, at least we all agree that Sopranos amazing.

Personally, I think "Full Leather Jacket" is one of my least favorite episodes, even though I still think it's pretty damn good (Proval as Richie is great and Christopher getting shot at the end is intense).

Also, "In Camelot" comes to mind simply because I thought that Johnny Boy's old comare was quite creepy (I know she's supposed to be, but it's still weird). Even though Buschemi directed it (I believe) and I really like the Tony flashbacks to when he was a teenager.


All in all, it's extremely hard to pick the "worst" episodes of such an amazing show. I would like more imput because I'm trying to find episodes that I haven't seen in a while because I watch Sopranos wayyy too much.

Re: Least Favourite Episode?

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This thread is tough, but interesting. I love so many episodes in the series run, I can only think of a couple that I didn't find some entertainment value out of.

"In Camelot"- Season 5- I love season 5, but to me this episode was a stinker. It was already posted, about how creepy Johnny Boy's old goomar was. The whole story was uninteresting to me and is the only thing I can recall from memory about this episode. Proving my theory that it took away any other shining moments that may have existed in this episode. There was however one good/memorable thing that came out of this episode. When Tony found out from her about money that Phil was still making off the land that Johnny once owned that Tony never knew about. This led to the first bad blood that developed between Tony and Phil and led to Tony running Phil off the road, injuring his neck and damaging his car. If the series comes down to NJ (Tony) vs NY (Phil), it would be interesting because this is the episode where it all started with these two. So even when The Sopranos aren't that good, you still get something important out of it, go figure.

"Kaisha"- Season 6A- I'm not the type that needs to see someone get clipped to think an episode is great, I appreciate the show for a lot more reasons than that. The humor, family stuff, therapy sessions, anticipation that anything can happen, great writing and character development, attention to detail. All of those things make the show great in addition to a well placed "hit" at the right time, but in "Kaisha" they owed us something more. This was by all extents a season finale, as it was the last episode for almost a year and nothing happened. I understand the scene at the end was supposed to signify peace, almost like a calm before the storm of what will probably come, but the scene of Tony Soprano in a beret, around the Christmas Tree is probably one I could have done without. It would have been an okay episode in the middle of the season, but for a finale it was kind of weak.

Re: Least Favourite Episode?

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Not one particular episode, but the storyline of Vito going to New Hampshire was like taking a character of minor importance and giving him his own spin-off. I think it plays little importance in the series as a whole. The fact that Vito is gay and causes a rift between NY & NJ is important, but could have been simplified. I think Chase was stretching his storyline to accommodate one more season. (or 1/2 season).

Re: Least Favourite Episode?

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I have to agree with WITWF about Camelot. I found the whole story boring - except for the scene with Tony and Phil.

Has anyone ever posted about the connection between the name "Kaisha" in season 6 and an episode back in season 4 when Chris has two black guys whacked because they were going to hit Johnny Sac? Just before the hit, Chris gave them their money and cancelled the hit. One of them turned to the other and said, "Better tell Kaisha".

Any chance that could be the same Kaisha in season 6? It was said, again, by some black guy who said something about his gf Kaisha.

Re: Least Favourite Episode?

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Has anyone ever posted about the connection between the name "Kaisha" in season 6 and an episode back in season 4 when Chris has two black guys whacked because they were going to hit Johnny Sac? Just before the hit, Chris gave them their money and cancelled the hit. One of them turned to the other and said, "Better tell Kaisha".

Any chance that could be the same Kaisha in season 6? It was said, again, by some black guy who said something about his gf Kaisha.[/QUOTE]

I bet that is the backstory for how Christopher came up with the name for his made up goomar, so Tony wouldn't know about Julianna.
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