Letters to the Editor
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An unexamined life ...
Even though the final episodes may be depressing and disappointing to those want the Sopranos to play “who-gets-whacked-this week” or have a lovable villain ala J.R., I think they are restoring Chase’s reputation that had started to wane a bit. He has always said Tony is a sociopath, and that even Carmela and other peripheral players in the Mafia are not to be admired (example: Brian Williams’ ignorant attempt to get Edie Falco to portray Carmela as a strong woman during a promo; she didn’t bit cuz she knows her character). It was creatively brilliant to kill off Christopher early on (and yes this was brewing despite what one letter said) and then shove the sad, disgusting aftermath in our faces, totally illuminating Tony’s sociopathic narcissism for anyone left who still wants to love the SOB. Then, most brilliantly, he has Tony, the poster boy for an unexamined life, ingest a psychedelic. OMG, I thought, is this guy finally going to get a look inside himself, unfiltered through the layers of self-justification, self-pity, and the rest of his defense mechanisms. Of course not, and it would be wrong to portray it any other way. Yes, we have seen glimpses of Tony’s humanity when it comes to his children and others, even ducks. But one doesn’t get to the point of being a Mafia boss without all the hostility and self-deception that Chase and Gandolfini bring to Tony’s character. The final episodes may not be going where some people want, or others expect, but to me they are proving that chase is again on the right track.