Sopranos: The Last Episodes (spoilers)

It seems like near death experiences affected Phil and Tony very differently. Tony feels he should take the second chance he has to appreciate the fruits of his labor more, while Phil feels he should quit "comprimising" and take all that he can get (as he says spending 20 years in the joint and then getting a second chance made him realise he only has one chance to take all that there is to grab).

Things are getting very interesting.

I was a little confused as to what the "sanctioned" response would have been to Coco's behavior toward Meadow. Would it have been cool for Tony to just beat up Coco but not to fuck up his whole mouth and jaw? What would Phil have done to Paulie or Sil in the same circumstance? Clearly there's a war brewing. I wouldn't be surprised by anything at this point. I'm wondering if the Arab guys are going to figure in the finale - or if Tony will end up the boss of NYC, or if Phil will kill him, or if Tony gets offed by Carmela or AJ, or even Janice. Was there a hint that Paulie is "playing both sides" in the clips from the next episode? I assumed they meant Paulie. I'll be very sorry to see the show go.

When they said playing both sides in the preview I thought they meant Phil's nephew (the guy attempting to brocker peace b/w the two). If Tony takes over NY he'll no doubt suffer a major personal loss (someone gets to Meadow, AJ somehow does himself in, etc.), I realy dont know what to expect.

I don't see Tony as having the muscle to take over New York. The New Yorkers have always looked down on the New Jersey family, often referring to them as a "glorified crew" or in similar terms. The implication has always been that the New Yorkers are much stronger. It would seem that the only way Tony could do this is with support within the New York organization. At least to this point, he does not have it.

The writers have never really clarified who supports Little Carmine within his organization. Tony did appeal to him to become the boss of the New York family a few episodes ago, which implies that he must have some support (although this was before Phil Leotardo put his hat back in the ring). He was also involved in the power struggle for the New York organization (going up against Johnny Sack and Phil Leotardo) following the death of his father. If memory serves, he voluntarily backed down.

Everyone seems to look on Little Carmine as kind of a simpleton. Also, he's made it pretty clear that he has no interest in another power struggle. Perhaps Tony can get some support from him, but it's not clear whether any of the influential New Yorkers are with them.

Another possible ending is that the New York family will just steamroll the New Jersey family (though this could be very unsatisfactory for the fans, depending on how it was handled).

I think war is imminent, but then again, Chase loves his anti-climax, so who knows? Either way, some major blood will be shed.

I also thought that the money-with-no-envelope indicated FBI observation. However, I don't think this is plausible because they clearly showed the asbestos rotting in the water and grass. If this was indeed an FBI sting, I don't think they'd really let the asbestos actually rot just to fool Tony's crew. And besides, Bobby's the one that took the money, not Tony. It would still be difficult to connect it all the way to T himself.

One of his kids dying is certainly a possibility, but I just don't see it because it would be way too cliche. I can see Tony losing nearly everything or some other catastrophic event, but something like losing a child? I don't feel it.

I don't think Paulie's smart enough to play both sides, but I do think Silvio is. If you notice, he's the one that was always encouraging Tony to gamble in Chasing It while the others were at least giving Tony disapproving looks. If there's a Judas in the bunch, my money's on Silvio.

And yes, New York is way too strong to be taken on by Tony in an all-out war. They've always made it clear that NY was much more powerful ("They got over 200 soldiers in his family"). However, Tony's always been smart enough to solve a problem in a unique way, which could succeed in bringing down Phil in the end.

RIP Johnny Sack :-(

Think about how Johnny Sack handled the BS about the fat joke on his wife. He was livid, but Carmine defused it and eventually told him to suck it up. Johnny wanted to put a hit out on Ralphie, or do something to retaliate, but very little was ever done in retribution.

A fat joke (2nd hand after the fact) about your obviously obese wife is a lot different than what Coco pulled with Meadow. That's next level shit. "You got some cream on your mouth - would you like me to add some of mine?" Then, "Tell your dad I said hello." Come on. If Ralphie had made a fat joke to the wife's face, that would almost be as bad. And Ralphie would have paid for it. Phil is a loose cannon - that kind of behavior is bad for business. He's bitter about Ralphie killing his brother and about his time in the can, but refusing to negotiate and shutting down projects out of spite won't solidify his hold on the crown. It hasn't been addressed at all in the show, but I'd imagine the underlings get restless if the money isn't flowing. Something has to come of the Arab connection. Then again, I've been waiting for that Russian that Paulie and Chris left in the woods to come back for 3 seasons now so who knows.