ding ding ding!

joancarol scores with a very pertinent precedent. Finnegans Wake ends mid-sentence with this line:

A way a lone a last a loved a long the

Oh my god, check this out. This is the coolest thing ever. The answer to

I don't think that Tony "saw himself" in the diner, in some surreal time warp. I just watched the episode again, and the shot is of Tony walking in the door, then looking into the restaurant from his perspective, then another shot of him standing at the door, then him in the booth. It's just an unusual jump cut, I think.

There are two types of Sopranos viewers: those who like the action/violence/mob story lines, and those who like the philosophical questions the series raises. The first group wants to be entertained; the second group doesn't mind a little thinking thrown in with the entertainment. Neither group is better or smarter than the other; it's just the way it is. In general, the former group hated the finale, and the latter group loved it.

My husband is in the first group. He immediately began composing a vitriolic letter to David Chase, then gave up in disgust and went to bed. I loved it and thought about it all day today.

Of course, my first reaction (well, my second reaction, since my first was "Oh no! Damn Direct TV!) was disappointment and frustration, because I didn't want it to end. Kind of like when you're eating a good meal and it's over and you're still hungry.

But, after thinking about it, this is what it meant for me:

We humans always think that we should know everything. For example: Is there a God? How can there be a God when there is so much suffering in the world? What does the future hold? Well, personally, I just don't know the answers to these questions. And as humans, we just can't know everything, so why do we frustrate ourselves thinking that we should have all the answers? This is what the end was about for me. David Chase was saying: it just is not going to be known what happens to these people, and there's nothing we can do about it, so we need to all just deal with it, just like we have no choice but to deal with life's larger unanswered questions.

A few random thoughts that I've alwawys wanted to mention, so I'll mention them now since this is the first time I've written into Salon to discuss the Sopranos:

- The ending for me also reminded me of Livia Soprano's famous line "It's all a big nothing"

- Did anyone notice that Patsy Parisi's wife, Donna, was the same woman who played poor little Annette in Saturday Night Fever?

- I agree with whoever said that the cat staring at Christopher's photo was Adriana! (I was disappointed that Carmela never found out about Adriana - I was really hoping for that).

- Hands down, my favorite character, my favorite scene in the entire series was the old psychiatrist who told Carmela that she must leave Tony and that he wouldn't take her "blood money." The only honest, real, moral character in the entire series. Of course, Carmela is too morally weak (i.e. lazy and materialistic) to listen.

- Other than that psychiatrist, the only other pure character was Adriana. Dumb, yes. But she was the real thing - she had no ulterior motive and only wanted Christopher. She didn't have any evil in her, unlike, to varying degrees, all the other characters, including Melfi.

- Rosalie Aprile also rocks. Not morally pure, mind you, just cool.

- Hesh was pretty cool too.

- For some reason, the incident that I thought would come back to haunt people in the end was when Chrisopher and Paulie killed the waiter in Atlantic City who complained about his tip. Everyone always talked about the Pine Barrens Russian, but I thought this storyline in particular would be the downfall of Christopher and/or Paulie in the end.

- I'm looking for literature that will keep me consumed like the Sopranos did. I have purchased Madame Bovary and Abelard and Heloise because they were both mentioned in the series. Anyone have any other recommendations?

- AJ. Ooooh, I can't stand him, with his new BMW. Take the bus!

- Meadow. Yes, Meadow, Italian-Americans are treated so unfairly. Shut up Meadow.

- I always looked at Tony's life, with his constant stresses of trying to avoid the FBI and death at the hands of rival thugs and thought: if you want a McMansion so badly, wouldn't it be easier to just go to school, get a good job, and obey the law? The Cusumanos live in a house just like yours and they don't have to worry about Phil Leotardo, the FBI, etc. This is the U.S.; people can go to college and become successful even if they aren't born rich. I did it. And look where taking the easy way out gets you: Junior Soprano.

Like many here I've been reading message boards all over the place (except HBO's, which is spastic). I can't believe how many people never watched the show, or haven't watched it in 5 years, and yet they "read" about the episodes online, so,think they know it all. YOU need to get a life, not try to jump in on the social bandwagon we're all on. You contribute nothing based on not even watching the show. I love the power of the internet, allowing us true Sopranos fans to share our thoughts and passions on the show, literally the moment it ended.

Everyone has theories about who was in the diner. Why on earth would David Chase put characters that we never would recognize in there: the dudes who tried to kill Tony for Junior, the brother of the guy that Brendon (who worked for Junior, not Tony) killed in a truck hyjack, Phil's other brother, who was at a sit down in an old episode, and like Tony wouldn't recognize him at the diner? Makes no sense.

I don't believe Tony got whacked. I think David Chase has put us inside Tony's head (via therapy) from day one, and now it's over, we're not privy to his thoughts anymore, Melfi tossed him out and he's tossed us out. Fade to black. Life goes on.

I am happy with the ending. I would have found it hard to go back and watch the early years of the show if I knew in the back of my mind that Tony was dead.

I doubt if there will be a Sopranos movie (if so, it would be on HBO, not at the theaters), Gandolfini has put 10 years of his life into Tony and at his late age has one more shot to make the movies he wants to make, and he has to go for it. I would never watch a movie with AJ or Meadow, some kind of "the kids run the family now" crap. I wouldn't mind a prequel of the early years of Tony's Dad, Mom and Junior etc. Once again they should use unknown actors, but is there every going to be another actor like James Gandolfini?

Did anyone notice that Sil's wife was rubbing his feet, as if he was paralyzed from the waist down and she kept hoping he'd have some feeling or response to her touch?

Also, who even knew the family was eating at the diner? It was a last minute decision. There were no hitmen in the diner. Tony just had to put on his "keep an eye out" face. He's lost Sil and Paulie is going downhill mentally. Tony has to look out for Tony. He was just hanging at the diner waiting for his family to all arrive, like he waited for his ducks.

Tony is a survivor, notice how he happily sat with AJ's shrink and even flirted with her a bit. Melfi didn't destroy him, no one can, he believes he's a General in the gang wars. And he is. He just has to rebuild his troop numbers and he will. That's how I look at the end of the series, life goes on. AJ will still be living at home when he's 40. Meadow will quit work and have babies, as why should she work when she will have enought money to shop all day like Mom does?

Sorry for the rambling....this show just makes you care so much about the family...though I liked Tony's mob family more then his wife and kids....LOL.