Nobody smokes a cigarette like Vince Curatola.

This is why I don't buy the criticism about "Chasing It" in 6B. People thought that came out of nowhere, and superficially it did, but it was clearly another step down the dark road for Tony, one Melfi saw coming long before.

Agree 100 percent about his sincerity. Tony was right there with him (or at least giving him the proper respect) until he insulted Schwinn by saying he would not be saved.

Agreed. If you take the entire sixth season, each character gets a showcase episode and I can't think of anyone who doesn't come out worse for having been linked to Tony — except Artie, and I don't think that distinction is incidental.

I've always thought one of the Sopranos' lone musical oversights was not using "One of These Days" in the episode where Ralphie is killed. The line right before the song kicks into overdrive is, "One of these days, I'm going to cut you into little pieces."

This rapper subplot is slightly less cringe-worthy than the first season rapper subplot, but still, you could tell that subculture wasn't really in The Sopranos' wheelhouse.

I just re-watched that episode recently. The Hollywood storyline is so-so, but the Artie storyline really holds up well.

"I gotta wear a jock, the doc says, keep the testes elevated."

That scene and the one where he's clipping coupons are keepers, for sure.

The show did this a lot, actually, introducing characters or subplots they obviously hadn't planned in advance and you just have to accept (Ralphie shows up in S3 but has been in the Soprano universe for years; Tony Blundetto is first mentioned one episode before he gets out of jail but he and Tony Soprano's…

Re: CFAmick

What I love about this episode is how lived-in all the characters are. Even after 21 months, it took literally no time at all for the show to fall back into its customary rhythms. The whole production was a well-oiled machine by that point. and it all feels so effortless.

Junior shooting Tony in his kitchen is another classic Sopranos mind-fuck. You might have imagined Tony getting shot at some point (and he did in S1), but rather than an elaborate shoot-out or grand chase, it's his feeble mummified uncle who confuses him for someone else.

The first half of 6A is prime vintage Sopranos, almost taken to another level of nuance and sophistication. The second half is a bit more spotty. Then 6B finishes it out in grand style.

It is a gorgeous melody, and you can tell Donald really liked it because he'd already used it on his solo track "Big Noise New York."

I think you've got it exactly right, take5. SD don't conform to a certain ethos. What I say to that is: It's a big tent. There are all different kinds of ways to make a record. The Ramones is one way. Steely Dan is another.

He's never had a #1 song of his own, but Manfred Mann's cover of Blinded by the Light went to #1. Bruce thinks it's because they changed the lyric from "revved up like a deuce" to "revved up like a douche."

That was included as part of the Promise box set. The band (the original, lean and mean band, minus Danny) ripped through the Darkness album in a near-empty theater. You might seem skeptical at first, but the performance is intense and is my favorite thing about the whole box set.

I've seen Donald leave the stage before, too, and I think it's for one reason—let's just say he seemed quite a bit looser in the second half than the first half.

I think CBaT gets overlooked a lot because while there are definitely some great songs on it, it doesn't feel like B&F have found their true voices yet. They would take a quantum leap just a year later with CtE (and CBaT is itself a quantum leap ahead from much of their unreleased demos that turn up on various bootleg…