With the series finale of HBO's The Sopranos fast approaching (a week from this Sunday, to be exact) speculation is running wild as to what's going to become of Tony Soprano and his companions. The biggest question is whether or not Tony will alive or dead when the final credits role.

Michael Starr of the New York Post is betting that we'll know something about the series finale after the next-to-last episode airs this Sunday. Starr believes that this week's episode could be the one that features a final battle between Tony and his enemies, while the last episode could be the one that ties everything up in a tidy package, leaving Tony alive and kicking. Few clues are being given in episode description. For example, for this week's episode, "The Blue Comet", HBO writes 'The allegiance of those closest to Tony is put to the test and a case of mistaken identity has serious ramifications.' Not much to decipher from that notice, is there?

Its also been reported that show creator David Chase, who co-wrote this Sunday's episode and wrote and directed the series finale, has filmed several endings to The Sopranos to throw everyone off as to the fate of Tony. My guess is that Tony will wake up from a dream and Suzanne Pleshette will be there in bed next to him. Hey, it worked before!