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The Sopranos, Season 6B: "Remember When" [recap]



I don't know if it was the OE in me or just the sentimentalities running through this episode, but I'm going on record, saying that this was one of my favorite episodes in Sopranos history. You can go on and on about how it's changed, or you can be one of those jerks who is only looking for the violence, so when someone doesn't get killed or isn't shot at, you think the show is going down hill.

This is poetry.


Don't get me started on the many "buddy" relationships we touched on, from Tony/Paulie to Corrado/Carter to Johnny/Corrado... or the fact that Paulie denied telling Johnny Sack about Ralphie's comments regarding Ginny 3 times (LOST ain't the only show with Biblical references...). Just take a look at all of the references to past times, not just the "remember when" premise of the show, which was genius, given the way everyone was reminiscing. The whole Ralphie/Johnny Sack fued got thrown in here, as did Big Pussy getting capped. The Sopranos is wearing its sadness on its sleeve, letting you know that, in ending, they will still remember the hits.

Touch on a few of the other recurring themes, like the search for that father figure. We see the obvious one in Tony's friendship with Paulie, who is 20+ years his senior, but dig deeper: remember Carter getting so furious about his pops pissing on his 96? Now, he has Corrado, who might be a bad influence, but it was an influence that helped him crack his shell.

This show is just too deep, and beautifully done episodes like this one just reinforce the fact that this show is one of the greatest in TV history.

This episode just had too many classic moments:

  • Corrado whoopin' the Professor's ass
  • The whole flowers/vase joke @ Corrado's card game
  • Tony glancing over the ax and the knife, wondering if he should murk Paulie
  • Carter throwing the paper at the guys singing, which harks back to Meadow throwing the bread at Corrado when he was singing in the finale of Season 3
  • The blonde asking Tony if Paulie was his father
  • Doc Santoro's eye getting shot out. That Phil is a cold bastard.
  • The Feds getting (false) wind that Jackie Aprile was the one who killed the bookie. LOL such a shame, the Aprile family always gets the short end...
  • Corrado's Dick Cheney letter. That was just a stroke of genius.
I just want to touch on two more things.
  1. I had no idea Phil Leotardo was poised to be such a big problem/character on the show. He went from just getting out of the slammer to stamping out all comp. That New York family has been in shambles ever since Johnny Sack set foot in Jersey, and while I think Phil feels he is too old to truly lead, he doesn't like giving up the power. And he is poised to keep murdering...
  2. Paulie Walnuts' life is the family. While T might have wanted to off him on that boat, he knew that Paulie gets it done when it comes to family business. He might have wavered for a bit, but for all of his neurosis-like behavior (who has 4 pairs of the same white shoes in their closet?!), when you need a situation handled, or some muscle thrown around, you holler at him. I still think he'd kill himself before flipping to the feds. It's just sad to see that his life is nothing outside of the mob.
I can't even go on... if you are sleeping on these episodes, just keep sleeping. You don't get it.


related links:
HBO.com episode guide for "Remember When"
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