See, I wouldn't expect that at all, that the author's intent has anything to do with chronological release. Time of release is generally out of their hands and belongs to studios, publishers and otherwise corporate entities and processes.

My apologies for already editing and rewording my initial post before you had responded to the first draft.

Not in my book, at any rate. There can be thematic and artistic purpose that is lost or obstructed as a result, and chronological release is often not up to a creator.

I wouldn't go that far at all, that's obscenely harsh, but I'm not especially fond of Fire Walk With Me. I feel that it fails in what it's attempting to do, and its stylistic and tonal shift away from that of the series was frustrating.

Mind you, I've only seen the full run of seven HBO series, and the other two are Flight of the Conchords and Family Tree (which I love, but come on) thus guaranteeing it to be the following five. The question is the difficulty of ranking five of my favorite shows ever.

I found his use of Moby Dick amusing because I really do feel that's a case where that content takes away from the book as a whole, pacing-wise and whatnot. The first and last hundred pages or so feel like a completely different book. The combination took away from what he was trying to do with either.

HERE BE SOPRANOS SPOILERS

They cut an hour out of the movie, you know.

I'm saying that I genuinely feel that you're placing far more importance than intended on a couple of minor plot details. Details which have fairly little to do with the actual major thematic narrative of what goes on in the final season. I did not word in the way I should have, but I honestly thought your points were…

Because all of the other moles in the series had so much impact on Tony's life?

Chase has very specifically said in an interview with Sepinwall, featured in his book, that he hates people's fixation on that statement (which doesn't come up until the season 4 premiere, by the way) and that he never intended to suggest some sort of dichotomy for how Tony's story would end.

You really should, they were fantastic.

The whole point is that Tony won, and that's actually the darkest and saddest ending imaginable. Life will "go on and on and on," with the threat of death lingering in Tony's paranoid mind because he never cut himself off from the mob, as represented by the slight tension the Members Only guy creates, Tony and his…

Likewise. And David Chase clearly feels the same way, upset at someone actually goading him into explaining something like he's always tried to avoid.

Yeah, he's probably a very limited actor (and apparently doesn't act as a career anyway), like a lot of actors on that show, Tony Sirico or Steve Van Zandt, but also like them, he was perfect for the role. Worked great as a comic portrayal of a kid growing up the worst kind of spoiled, and then managed to turn around…

Holidays of Future Passed.

I actually kind of assumed that's exactly what they'd do, at least repeating all of the living their life together after everyone else froze.

I'M NOT CRYING YOU'RE CRYING

The part at the end where the Professor shows up and gives them the time looper, and the last line is "Want to go around again?"

Like the crown apologizing in season 1.