It was one of those final episodes that everyone saw and talked about or heard about through other means. They even spoofed it on the Emmys. It ended in June and people still talk about it. They still obsess after it. What happened to Tony Soprano? What about the family? While people fight about what happened, I prefer to go with the song that Tony flipped on the jukebox prior to the shows ending. “Don’t stop…believing.” The Sopranos are alive and well in our hearts, minds, and in this DVD box set.
One of the first questions I asked myself was whether or not this series would fizzle once it was off the air. Most everything moves to DVD when it ends or starts a new season, but that does not mean it warrants a purchase. Would The Sopranos warrant that purchase? That can be answered with a resoundingly certain, yes.
Release Info:
The Sopranos aired on HBO from 1999-2007 with the occasional break in between. The Sopranos Season Six, Part 2 offers the final nine episodes plus plenty of special features on DVD. This set was released by HBO Home Video on October 23, 2007 and retails for $80-$100 at local retailers or $54.99 on Amazon.com.
This second part of the season offered only nine episodes, while normal seasons offered 12 episodes. The episodes include “Soprano Home Movies”, “Stage 5”, “Remember When”, “Chasing It”, “Walk Like A Man”, “Kennedy and Heidi”, “The Second Coming”, “The Blue Comet”, and “Made in America.”
The Sopranos Plot:
You have to live under a rock to not know who The Sopranos are. However, if you don’t know who they are, let me fill you in. The Sopranos are a New Jersey family. A crime family to be exact. The head of the house, Anthony “Tony” Soprano (James Gandolfini – All the King’s Men) is the King of the Soprano crime family.
Tony is the epitome of the Italian mobster. He is tough, emotional in hiding, in control (even when he’s out of control) and has most everything you would think a man could want including two kids, a wife, several girlfriends, and the nicest things that money can buy. He’s got a big temper, but he has a big heart, even if it’s hard to see when he’s having you shot in the face.
Mama Soprano is known as Carmela (Edie Falco – Freedomland). She is the strong and independent wife. Completely put together, she always looks nice, has things under control, and attempts to be the best wife and mother that she can be. She may be one of the few people that can keep Tony in line. Well, at least while he’s looking her in the eye. After that, his behavior is fair game.
The kids are Anthony who everyone calls A.J (Robert Iler) and Meadow (Jamie-Lynn Sigler – Homie Spumoni). A.J. is whiny, insensitive, and loves to cause trouble with blinders so tall that he doesn’t seem to realize what he is doing. Meanwhile, Meadow is the perpetual pride of the family. Daddy’s little girl and mommy’s angel, Meadow’s main struggle (at least this season) is whether to become a doctor or a lawyer.
Beyond the immediate family you have the extended family and the mob crew. There is Tony’s sister, Janice (Aida Turturro) and her husband Bobby (Steve Schirripa). She is annoying enough to make you want to punch her every chance you get and he is not much better, though he tries…sometimes. Junior (Dominic Chianese – The Godfather Part II) is the crazy uncle most known for the ability to create gasps of shock and laughs when he is on screen. He’s also known for shooting and almost killing Tony. That’s why Uncle Junior lives in a mental hospital now.
The mobsters include Christopher, Tony’s cousin (Michael Imperioli – Sweet Nothing), Paulie (Tony Sirico – Goodfellas), and Silvio (Steve Van Zandt). Meanwhile, on the other side of the fence there are the New York boys, headed up by Phil Leotardo (Frank Vincent). They New York boys don’t always get along with the Jersey boys, and vice versa. The last main character of the show is Tony’s therapist (Lorraine Bracco – Goodfellas, The Basketball Diaries), who has spent the last six seasons counseling Tony on everything from marital problems to how to handle A.J.
The Sopranos follows the lives of Tony and his extended family through everything they do. The show offers drama, spice, controversy, murder, Italian food, family values, and the occasional bit of irony. To say it was one of the best shows on television in recent years would be an understatement. As a show, The Sopranos offered excellent writing, compelling characters, dynamic acting, and it was all wrapped up in a package meant to shine.
The series started with a bang and it hooked many people, myself included, right from the get go. Years later, as the series has ended I continue to watch reruns and love the show as much as when it was new. There are questions as to whether the show ended on the same bang that it started with, but I think the ending was significant to the message of the show. You know what they say….Don’t stop believing. Had they ended the show any other way than they did, you might have had to stop.
Audio/Visual:
The Sopranos Season Six Part Two comes out looking and sounding perfect. Offered in a widescreen format the video was transfered in a 1.78:1 format that is completely crisp and looks as good as the day it aired on television, if not better. Meanwhile, the audio is presented with Dolby 5.1 so the track comes through in a strong way and clear way. The audio is powerful and offers the punch and impact necessary to get the job done.
Special Features:
If you own other seasons of The Sopranos then you know that there are usually some special features included, though nothing that is jam packed with extras. With added commentary and a featurette or two, things are usually wrapped up and that’s that. In The Sopranos Season Six Part Two you are offered four commentaries with different cast members. The episodes with commentaries include “Soprano Home Movies” with Steve Shirripa, “Remember When” with Dominic Chianese, “The Second Coming” with Robert Iler, and “The Blue Comet” with Steven Van Zandt and Arthur Nascarella.
In addition to the episode commentaries, there are two featurettes. The first one, “Making Cleaver”, is just under ten minutes and offers Christopher’s take on his horror-mobster movie “Cleaver”. The final feature, “The Music of The Sopranos“, is just under twenty minutes and includes interviews with the music and creative experts for the show.
Bottom Line:
The Sopranos is one of those shows that defined how televisions dramas need to be made. This show set the bar with excellence and spoiled audiences for years with amazing storylines and solid writing, acting, and directing. While the show is unfortunately over, the DVD sets offer all of the best moments and some worthwhile behind the scenes action to complete each season.
Fans of the series will definitely want to add this set to their DVD collection. If you are not a fan, I highly recommend starting with season one. After the first episode or two you will be ready to buy the entire series. It was simply amazing in every conceivable way.
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Technorati Tags: The Sopranos, Season Six Part Two, David Chase, Mobster, Crime Family, HBO Home Video, DVD Box Set, DVD Review, Anthony Soprano, James Gandolfini, Edie Falco, Robert Iler, Jamie-Lynn Sigler
