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(S06E14) When we were first introduced to Chrissie's concept of Cleaver as a flick, I never really thought it'd see the light of day. But when the red carpet was rolled out this week, it looked like not only would it do that, but it could have been Christopher's shining moment in the family. As it turns out, maybe that last part isn't going to be the case. My prediction last week about Christopher's screen time turned out to be off base - so far, at least - but based on Tony's reaction to how the "boss" character in the film was portrayed, and how the portrayal resembled some of the events that had happened in the last few years, maybe Christopher might not see that much more daylight after all.
I'm very much into the disarray that the New York family is having right now. Aside from the fact that no one really seems to want to show real leadership skills, they're not exactly looking like model mob citizens compared to what the Jersey boys are doing right now.
Longtime fans of the show that have a wish for lots of bloodshed, or at least the death of a character every so often would have to have enjoyed this week's episode. Gerry Torciano being taken out certainly threw me for a loop. Not so much that one of the potential bosses got whacked, but how it was done. When Sil started speaking silently, and in the same half a second he's sprayed by blood, I was a little freaked out that something really off base had happened. I mean, the way this show goes with dream sequences and all that, it wouldn't have been out of the realm of possibilities. But the shot after shot fired into Torciano let us know that the man with the haircut wouldn't be taking the reins in New York.
Follow that up with an agonizing death for Johnny Sack, who has managed to make friends with a former doc gone con before passing on. I guess cold-blooded killer to cold-blooded killer can work out for the best, no? Seeing the man cruise through cigarettes while in the hospital didn't even strike me as odd, for some reason, and seeing Ginny go ballistic about it almost made me feel bad for the both of them. Johnny, because his wife was storming off at a time when he might never see her again, and Ginny because her husband wasn't taking any beter care of himself as he slowly died in the prison hospital.
Going forward, it'll be interesting to note whether or not Little Carmine even contemplates taking over the family. His weakness got him more or less shipped to Florida the first time around, and even he knows how Tony feels about coming to him this second time. Tony must be seeing some serious problems for his crew if he's desperate enough to ponder having Carmine take over. With Phil Leotardo seemingly wussing out in New York, and bosses seemingly happy to kill others in their same space, someone's got to step in and set things straight. Unfortunately, this might just put Tony in a worse position than he already was, as Johnny was able to hold off the New Yorkers from coming after him in the past, but he's gone now.
With a show as complicated as The Sopranos, I wouldn't normally think that something as simple as a hug and a pat on the back could be a bellwether for what would come next. But after the anger apparently shown to Tony by Carm, and the fact that others might have thought Tony had - or wanted to have - his way with Ade, then he's going to do whatever it takes to close the loop there. That goes probably double given the fact that she apparently met her maker in a forest, all courtesy of Tony, Christopher and Sil. In any case, the previews seem to show something of the unraveling ilk on the Jersey side of the river next week, with Paulie either being taken out to sea or being involved in something locally. Needless to say, talking about how he beat cancer in the face of the news that Johnny had died in the hospital was far beyond rude, whether or not anyone said anything to him about it.
The big downside I think we'll continue to have is that there are so many characters to love - or love to hate - that when they're not shown week in and week out, we're wishing they were there. It just seems so abrupt to see the fight between Tony and Bobby last week and then no appearance by Bobby and Janice (maybe they're still on vaca), and I'm hoping we see a lot more about AJ and his new family. Did you see the body language between them in the church at the christening? Not exactly looking good for him on that front, no?
I'll give this week's episode a six. I loved the inclusion (or conclusion?) of Cleaver, and think the character development that it set in motion was great. Seeing Tim Daly get smacked in the face by Christopher again brought back such happy memories, and a public killing of a boss all rounded out the episode really well.
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