The Mysterious End of Tony Soprano Explained

[@BlandBrowser]

My feeling is that the show starts out with a theme, that of Tony balancing two families, his personal family, and his crime family. Tony is desperately trying to keep one from destroying the other. The last scene is when the two collide, that is, he is killed right in front of his wife and children as a consequence of his criminal life. The probable reason is that Phil was shot right in front of his own family on Tony's orders. This is a no no in Cosa Nostra, and killing Tony in front of his family is a form of punishment in kind.

[@gbeach85]

Hm interesting. I never thought of it like that.

[@andylymbo]

Also worth noting in the episode where Tony kills the rat he sees the sign that says no man can have two identities while not confusing which is being shown or however it goes.

[@BlandBrowser]

@@andylymbo Yeah - he is juggling two identities that don't fit together well.

[@robbieh.1384]

@@andylymbo iirc “No man can wear one mask to the world and another to himself without eventually becoming bewildered as to which is true.” I believe is the exact quote, it’s by the amazing writer Nathaniel Hawthorne, who was related to Judge Hawthorn from the Salem Witch trials and disliked the relation so much he added the ‘e’ to his pseudonym as to distance himself from it.

[@andylymbo]

@@robbieh.1384 Yeah I knew I got it wrong but yes it's a great quote and is basically one of the core themes of the show for sure.

[@merkgluestick2008]

The ending has to be us finally understanding Tony's mind. We as fans constantly look into the insane amount of detail and clues that could be leading to his death. Just like Tony, we were frantically noticing every detail thinking "is this it"? That explains why the final scene is done insanely long. It is completely in the moment. Completely in Tony's head.

[@rabidrabbitshuggers]

“The detail of this scene is excruciating, *almost as if it’s being described in a police report.”* Damn that’s brilliant.

[@Slattsburgh]

I just finished the sopranos about 2 months ago now and I still think about it constantly. One of the best tv shows I've ever seen.

[@Abounimir]

Same Story here dude

[@nunuvyobiznes9149]

name on that is better?

[@amplifiedspoon7922]

@@nunuvyobiznes9149 none

[@miekgg]

@@nunuvyobiznes9149Mr robot is better

[@miekgg]

@@amplifiedspoon7922Mr robot is better

[@caesar3311]

A hit is a hit. And with this channel it’s always a hit

[@Magicpickle5]

Patrician choice of pfp and username.

[@caesar3311]

@@Magicpickle5 Hello old friend

[@johnnymaximum3828]

whens hes right hes right

[@nitewing1898]

It's uhh.. good. There's good and there's not good. This is good

[@bzenga5981]

honestly what's great is that even if tony didn't die, the entire final arc and even the whole show showed that tony was basically already dead. him ending therapy ends any reason we want to keep watching him since he's basically set on just being a horrible person and with the study melfi reads it's arguable tony never really changed, so much as he stayed an awful person as his life continued to get worse.

[@faisalkamal4319]

I feel that show was good even without the therapy but yeah

[@bzenga5981]

@@faisalkamal4319 undeniably although i think it works pretty well as a framework for tony's interiority even whenever he tries to pull out, and him fully leaving at the end is him resigning his fate to being a wicked mob boss and not facing internal contradictions

[@GabrielTorres-fl2xo]

@@faisalkamal4319 I think that the therapy was one of the things that made Sopranos unique. It gives us the kind of insight into Tony's character that would only be possible if the show had a narrator

[@faisalkamal4319]

@@GabrielTorres-fl2xo yeah but it never went anywhere . We didn't get answers to the dreams and didn't make tony a bad person . Melfi was not good psychiatrist Dr krakower that was a good psychiatrist no preambles. Jennifer Melfi own psychiatrist was her friend who didn't respect doctor and patient confidentiality

[@faisalkamal4319]

@@GabrielTorres-fl2xo narrator what happened to seeing things

[@TophDaGreat]

Tony is dead and is in limbo forced to relive his death in an infinite loop because he just wants to see a glimpse of his daughter Meadow one last time. It just so happens at the moment Meadow opened the door, Tony got whacked so he never saw her. He relives it again hoping to see her this time but to no avail. This will continue endlessly. This is "Tony's hell".

[@Amadeus_]

He definitely saw her. The bell rings and that's the reason why Tony looked up for the fifth and final time. It's just, he gets a split second glance at her, before he got whacked. Though you're kinda right with how the beginning of the Housten's scene is shot, Tony enters the restaurant looking at the spot that he's about to sit in, almost with familiarity. Like he's been there before. Like he is in an endless cycle of a dream repeating itself.

[@theswagman1263]

@@Amadeus_ reminds me of the end of 2001 a space odyssey. the protagonist looking at themself already sitting elsewhere

[@macwyll]

@@Amadeus_ The shot begins with Tony entering Holsten's and seeing himself already seated. That can only symbolize one thing if you're supposed to be alive.

[@11fireflower]

@@TophDaGreat 💯

[@theonewhogetsshot-v7k]

How?

[@benjammin8184]

As if "Journey, cut short" wasn't an obvious enough hint.

[@JoeyMartz]

underrated comment!

[@fluffywolfo3663]

Ohhh, I get it now. I guess I stopped believing it could be answered

[@juice6199]

@@fluffywolfo3663 lol

[@benjammin8184]

@@fluffywolfo3663Lionel Hutz: Oh, they got this all wrong... Don't. Stop believing!

[@thomasvanskiver7519]

Broooooooo🤯

[@natedogg890]

I believe it was Paulie that ultimately betrayed him, we know that Paulie is the ultimate survivor in this life and has no loyalty left for Tony

[@DynastyLuminous46]

My money's on Paulie and Patsy working together, possibly with help from the NY mob who'd also previously stated "do business with what's left of them".

[@dzemilmehovic5271]

yea prolly. I mean Paulie is loyal to himself only but he did like Tony. However its himself before everyone ofc. In their last talk Paulie seemed to have had smt to say to Tony and looked sad. Paulie and Patsy made deal together at end most likely

[@dzemilmehovic5271]

@@DynastyLuminous46 yea Paulie saw New Jersey is doomed and obv prefers himself and Patsy has obvious motive. Remember them in toilet talking and at end one of them says smt like "its done" or "remember what we talked abt" i cant remember exactly but smt like that. And Paulie seemed sad and like he knew smt and wanted to tell it to Tony at their last talk

[@TupDigital]

@@dzemilmehovic5271 the line you're thinking of is Paulie saying to Patsy, "it's all yours...."

[@dzemilmehovic5271]

@@TupDigital yes

[@darj617]

Don't forget Christopher's ominous warning to Tony and Paulie: tree o clock. If Tony was shot by the members only guy, he would have been at Tony's 3 o clock position

[@pistol595]

I totally agree I've always thought this

[@handsolo1076]

When Tony enters the diner & looks around the second time he clearly sees himself already sitting there. This tells me Tony is already dead & has to relive this scene over & over, like Chrissy in The Irish bar. That is their hell.

[@littlekingtrashmouth9219]

Also the guy who went into the bathroom came out at Tony’s right, his 3 o clock position if you will. Didn’t Mikey Palmice’s ghost warn Chris about 3 o clock?

[@dzemilmehovic5271]

@@littlekingtrashmouth9219 yes. Also Tonys favourite ever scene is Michael Corleone coming from toilet and killing McClusky and Sollozzo. And Bobby saying "u prolly dont even hear it when it happens". So many obvious signs

[@avega2792]

@@dzemilmehovic5271 no, his favorite scene is Godfather 2 when Don Vito goes back to avenge his father. He described the scene in detail and said it was his favorite. It was AJ that mentions the scene of Michael killing Sollozo and McCluskey after he tried to kill Uncle Junior.

[@dzemilmehovic5271]

@@avega2792 yea AJ mentioned that Tonys fav scene is killing. I remembered that Tony said when vito comes back to revenge it was most beautiful but dont remember him saying it was fave scene tho, obv i could be wrong

[@ChescoYT]

WOOOOOOOW!! Paulie gets murdered too, in the future after Tony get's wacked!! The series doesn't show us, but the writing tells us! NY ended up getting rid of Paulie as well! Explains how Carmine doesn't even respect or know his existance! Paulie was used for info and at the end of the day was no use to NY, they just wanted all of NJ gone as they were too much of a hassle and could take all the business & profits for themselves. When Christopher Moltisanti wakes up in the hospital after being shot in Season Two, he tells Tony and Paulie that he died and went to hell. He also says that Mikey Palmice gave him a message to give to the BOTH of them. “Tell Tony and PAULIE… 3 ‘o clock.” Tony in the final scene gets killed on his right side (3 o'clock) and never saw it coming (Fade to Black). Paulie in the future is also going to get wacked from the 3 o'clock right side of his head. Probably when Tony convinced Paulie to take over the Cifaretto crew, which Paulie also mentions in superstition foreshadowing is cursed where the leader always gets killed. It was Patsy & Paulie that planned out the murder of Tony using a lower rank unfamiliar NY hitman. Patsy takes over NJ as the boss and starts wearing suits, Paulie takes over the Cifaretto crew as a Capo and gets killed from the mentioned above foreshadowing. thisinterestsme.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/03/liar.jpg Patsy secretly hated Tony because he had his brother killed in front of his family. Paulie served his entire life to Tony's family and has nothing financially to show for it, he only made a living. He resented the family after 40 years of doing their dirty work with very little net worth. Paulie felt 'enough is enough, it's my turn' of a new attitude and since Tony's crew was now all wiped out, Paulie couldn't see a future with Tony rebuilding, especially since so much was against Tony (Feds, failing Health, no real protective Crew). So Paulie and Patsy and the NY family off screen made a pack deal to take Tony's place for the NJ opperations and to have Tony wacked. The final scene also shows what happens to Tony in the afterlife. Does he go to heaven, or hell? Nope, he goes to purgatory, where the thing he values the most in life is his daughter Meadow, who he's eagerly waiting to see her, but never does, he hears the bell from the door opening at the same time of being shot in the head from 3 o'clock. And sentenced to purgatory for his life's sins, re-living the same final scene & death over & over again for eternity! You can see how the writer & director shot the final scene where Tony walks in and it almost looks like he's walking in on himself: kzbin.info/www/bejne/Z6mcinR5maeIqLc Fuuuck, this show is all about the great writing! It plays out like a famous book!

[@macethorns1168]

It's just silly that anyone would interpret the ending as anything other than Tony being killed. The increasing stress in the last moments as well as Meadow frustratingly not being able to park and the bathroom having a clear shot to Tony (since Meadow wasn't sitting there)...not to mention a similar scene earlier in the show where Silvio suddenly gets splattered with blood mid story because someone got blasted.

[@Amadeus_]

I think it's because people refuse to believe that they wouldn't show the aftermath. But... Tony was always the first person perspective of the series. Without him... would we know what happens to the characters around him? Even though we seen scenes outside of Tony, I'd argue no. The ending also hits that, especially when they purposely showed that scene with Bobby and Tony on the boat, with Bobby thinking that you probably never hear it when it happens, the episode before. People are overreaching into delusion when they assume because they don't see Tony keeled over, that he didn't die. In a way, the audience was spared. His family would have been mortified. None more than Meadow. I just kind of wonder how the gunman would have escaped from that diner. Or how Meadow would have taken it. Would she have pursued why it happened through her lawyer path? Or would she have taken a different path?

[@blonded0532]

Even if all signs point to Tony’s being whacked, I appreciate that Chase has consistently stated that it’s up for audience interpretation and not a sure thing. It lets you kind of determine how you think the story should end.

[@Chiefteeth1]

He literally told us that tony died when the many saints of Newark was released

[@godfather71190]

​@@Chiefteeth1 He then took back that statement

[@RsBanez]

I think he clearly meant for him to die, and just says that to not invalidate the (coping) theorists and / or keep the conversation going almost 20 years later.

[@Ass_Blaster_Disaster_Master]

My take is that it doesn't matter if Tony died in the final scene. The feeling I took away was that any day could be Tony's last and every day would be dominated by the intense dread that the audience is made to feel during that last scene.

[@bryona5271]

Yes exactly. It’s like Schrödinger’s cat (which oddly enough there’s a cat at the end of the series) because we didn’t see what happens. Tony is simultaneously dead and alive.

[@MALITH666]

Good one. Yeap. Because if he dies. Its the end. If he lives, well then the question becomes 'well does he live the next day?'. The cycle of this question goes on as long as he lives. He will never live in peace if he lives.

[@Eippol_]

Poetic but completely false, it's a wrong interpretation. That's not at all what the scene is suggesting through editing (creating a pattern between objective and subjective shots: the last frame of the series [aka the black screen] is a subjective view of Tony dead, if you didn't catch that you understood nothing of the scene) framing, patterns, symbols (the bells that ring when someone enters, a symbol of death...), music choices and writing and directing. Too many details suggest a precise death: in the final episode AJ talks about his favorite scene in The Godfather (that is the scene in which a mobster exits from a bathroom and kills a mobster.... Do you recall a scene just like this? Oh yes, it's the Sopranos ending: it's a reference to the godfather) + the camera follows closely a man with "members only" jacket (the episode Members Only, S06E01, is the episode that featured the attempted assassination of Tony) etc etc. There many more details, the scene speaks clearly: everything points to only one explanation: Tony is dead. If you think of any other explanation, nothing makes more sense, all these clues fall apart.

[@Eippol_]

@@MALITH666 Not a good one, just a false interpretation that does not consider all the details and the structure of the scene, everything points only towards the death of Tony.

[@themk4982]

@@Eippol_Everything points towards Tony’s death but the point is that we don’t see it. We see many deaths in the series but not Tony’s. That’s because it’s supposed to be ambiguous. David Chase has also indicated that Tony dies, but very purposefully not confirmed it. That’s because it’s supposed to be ambiguous.

[@scaliamotorsports6954]

I may have missed it but this video made no mention of the significance of Bells (“they toll for thee”) throughput season 6 and the Bell is the last thing Tony hears. Each Bell ring has purpose and strategically placed throughout the last season.

[@catalinasandor4373]

what do you mean “they toll for thee”?

[@Johnnysmithy24]

I only remember the ones from the boat in Soprano Home Movies. What are the others

[@gmailistrash4094]

@@catalinasandor4373 Essentially meaning death

[@HangedMunchkinTruther]

​@@catalinasandor4373"for whom the bell tolls" is a historical literary phrase alluding to someone's final moment of life.

[@farmalmta]

@@catalinasandor4373 Traditionally people were buried in a graveyard located next to the parish chapel which had a bell in its steeple. The bell would toll during the burial service. Those in the vicinity not at the funeral might ask, "for whom does the bell toll (meaning, "who died?)? The dark and ominous poem states, "Send not to know for whom the bell tolls. It tolls for thee." For Whom the Bell Tolls by John Donne No man is an island, Entire of itself. Each is a piece of the continent, A part of the main. If a clod be washed away by the sea, Europe is the less. As well as if a promontory were. As well as if a manor of thine own Or of thine friend's were. Each man's death diminishes me, For I am involved in mankind. Therefore, send not to know For whom the bell tolls, It tolls for thee.

[@Lesposito25]

The idea of not hearing the shot not knowing, it’s horrifying what if that’s it just black. Gives me chills

[@79Bobola]

Yeah that messed me up

[@natman2939]

The thing I’ve always heard is that there’s a very simple structure to the camera shots in the last scene. Which is every time it shows Tony’s face look up it then shows HIS point of view. And of course the very last shot before it goes black is his looking up when meadow comes in, therefore going by the structure what comes next should be *what he sees* and yet it’s black…. Because he’s dead and can’t see anything.

[@macwyll]

Devil's advocate, how do we know someone else didn't come through the door before Meduea, like what happened with AJ?

[@natman2939]

@@macwyll I don’t understand what that has to do with what I was talking about (the whole structure of the camera shots) thing. Maybe someone else came in. Maybe someone else didn’t. But it doesn’t change the fact that the last shot was supposed to be Tony’s POV

[@frickjames4089]

A small channel called Scenic Media did a very intriguing dive into the religious themes that this scene touches on. Such as the cokes being brought out as the blood of christ and each character eating the body of christ when having 1 onion ring as their sacrament for "The Last Supper". It's incredible the amount of depth in analysis a scene like this can bring.

[@theorderofthebees7308]

Oooh I will check it out thank you

[@griffinsalmon5798]

The final scene of the series begins with Tony walking into Holstens, but the way it is edited it flows like Tony is walking in on himself eating. The opening of the scene harkens back to what Chris said after his death experience and visit to hell where he met his father "every night they whack him the way he was whacked in real life. and it hurts." The total sequence is also most similar in editing to Tony's dream sequences. In the final season the the dream episode is substituted for the Kevin Finerty sequence which plays linearly as an alternate reality or a vision of reincarnation, showing the essential sameness of Tony's stresses and struggles with health and identity with a more banal character like finerty. In season 6 the dream/bardo sequences are more linear and cohesive than some scenes in Tony's waking life. The final scene of the show is dream-like with the looping edit sequence of Tony's face, what he sees, then his reaction, with perfect shots of Americana spliced in between. Maybe we're seeing in the final scene Tony's dreamlike loop of him reliving his death. when he enters holsters his expression is exhausted and defeated, in the show he had won the battle against Phil but lost the war he'd been fighting against the government and knew that a trial was on the horizon with Carlos testimony. but another way of reading his initial exhausted expression coupled with the edit of him sitting at the table is that he's lived this scene before and he is paranoid and powerless of the inevitable cut to black. the show does play with the supernatural. Really love the observation that one purpose of the ambiguity was to create the same feeling in the fan base that Tony had left in the lives of his victims' loved ones.

[@JoãoPedro03s]

"Tony is walking in on himself eating" that is exactly how it felt to me when I saw it and i haven't seen anyone else saying it wow

[@EddyTheMartian]

You’re making sopranos videos now too?! Awesome. Obviously haven’t finished the video since it’s just been posted but if it’s like your other videos it’ll be great! Thanks for all the great videos.

[@JustanObservation]

Thank you! And yeah, made a long one last week and one more coming next week

[@faisalkamal4319]

@@JustanObservation we are opening the books and see if you can be made or not then you will have soft drinks of choice not those sugarless drinks

[@jh6025]

I like the, "audience was whacked, and they never heard it", theory. We know he was most likely going to end up in jail anyway. Prison, I mean. Whether he died at that restaurant, or not, seems somewhat inconsequential. I feel like we observe Tony losing his soul. He seemed almost ready to be taken out of the game. The fact that Phil got it in front of his family would also be a clue, as Tony was in a similar situation.

[@marnie4629]

Another fact worth bringing up is that taking someone out in front of their family is frowned upon in the mob. As we so often have seen with the New York-New Jersey conflict in this show, retaliation begets retaliation. Makes sense for this to be the end for the both of them, as a sort of parallel between the two bosses.

[@MichelleRobinson8114]

Finally somebody said it, when I first saw the black ending I honestly thought it was the audience that got whacked.

[@elliotwatson3964]

Great video, but theres also one thing some people forget. When Sil is eating and BANG everything goes deaf and disorienting. The blood hits Sil and later on they talk about not hearing it coming

[@jediryan9454]

Tony's guarding angel (his daughter) was too late to save his life. She was suppose to sit next to Tony, basically blocking the shooter's path to him.

[@mikepastor.k6233]

...and then Tony sees her at the door as the last thing he ever sees ..

[@ultor__]

I agree

[@Amadeus_]

Perhaps Tony was right all along about his son being worthless. AJ set Tony's fate in stone by choosing to sit next to his mother instead of walking a couple extra steps and sitting next to his father. Actually kinda funny. But yes, it does frame up the line of Meadow being Tony's guardian angel even more than that.

[@1987Liono]

Paulie and Patsy had Tony killed. Working with Butchie

[@corleonetoto2131]

totally the guy in the bar the Italian who is the contact between de zip of napoli as underboss now chrissy is dead no one will know like dickie tony never knew that paulie did it clipped both dickie and T almost clipped chrissy. Remember paulie did the columbo war snakes and treacherous those guys. The end

[@ChescoYT]

WOOOOOOOW!! Paulie gets murdered too, in the future after Tony get's wacked!! The series doesn't show us, but the writing tells us! NY ended up getting rid of Paulie as well! Explains how Carmine doesn't even respect or know his existance! Paulie was used for info and at the end of the day was no use to NY, they just wanted all of NJ gone as they were too much of a hassle and could take all the business & profits for themselves. When Christopher Moltisanti wakes up in the hospital after being shot in Season Two, he tells Tony and Paulie that he died and went to hell. He also says that Mikey Palmice gave him a message to give to the BOTH of them. “Tell Tony and PAULIE… 3 ‘o clock.” Tony in the final scene gets killed on his right side (3 o'clock) and never saw it coming (Fade to Black). Paulie in the future is also going to get wacked from the 3 o'clock right side of his head. Probably when Tony convinced Paulie to take over the Cifaretto crew, which Paulie also mentions in superstition foreshadowing is cursed where the leader always gets killed. It was Patsy & Paulie that planned out the murder of Tony using a lower rank unfamiliar NY hitman. Patsy takes over NJ as the boss and starts wearing suits, Paulie takes over the Cifaretto crew as a Capo and gets killed from the mentioned above foreshadowing. thisinterestsme.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/03/liar.jpg Patsy secretly hated Tony because he had his brother killed in front of his family. Paulie served his entire life to Tony's family and has nothing financially to show for it, he only made a living. He resented the family after 40 years of doing their dirty work with very little net worth. Paulie felt 'enough is enough, it's my turn' of a new attitude and since Tony's crew was now all wiped out, Paulie couldn't see a future with Tony rebuilding, especially since so much was against Tony (Feds, failing Health, no real protective Crew). So Paulie and Patsy and the NY family off screen made a pack deal to take Tony's place for the NJ opperations and to have Tony wacked. The final scene also shows what happens to Tony in the afterlife. Does he go to heaven, or hell? Nope, he goes to purgatory, where the thing he values the most in life is his daughter Meadow, who he's eagerly waiting to see her, but never does, he hears the bell from the door opening at the same time of being shot in the head from 3 o'clock. And sentenced to purgatory for his life's sins, re-living the same final scene & death over & over again for eternity! You can see how the writer & director shot the final scene where Tony walks in and it almost looks like he's walking in on himself: kzbin.info/www/bejne/Z6mcinR5maeIqLc Fuuuck, this show is all about the great writing! It plays out like a famous book!

[@BostonBruinsFan4Life]

Too bad the Bible never mentions a purgatory. That's a made up, Catholic thing.

[@lwrunnels]

David Chase lets us know exactly what happens to Tony when Tony enters the diner. When he's walking in from outside two red lights briefly appear on Tony (one at his temple, one on his chest). There's no source for these red lights and they don't appear again when everyone else walks into the diner. I believe Chase is letting the audience know that not only does Tony die in this diner but he will get one bullet in the temple (with his guardian angel Meadow not there sitting on his right to protect him - that's why her inability to parallel park the car gets so much attention) and one in the chest. As Chase has said, what happens to Tony is all there in the scene.

[@Dee-wj5qu]

Could you not interpret the lights as belly and ear the 2 previous shooting incidents

[@EJD339]

There were so many clues that Tony died I never even thought it was that ambiguous of an ending. I liked they left who put the hit on Tony more ambiguous though.

[@fehzorz]

if you look into it like a detective, putting all the clues together, it's clear that he's dead, which works nicely with your comment about how Tony Soprano inflicted the feeling of not knowing what happened on so many others

[@JayTeeAyy]

The cutting to black is like we were the ones that were in the restaurant, we have full recollection of what happened, but it’s way too dramatic to share with anyone, it’s something we want to get away from, because it haunts us everyday

[@ChiseledAdonis]

Golly, what a great summary! Great work as always!

[@emeraldkitty2415]

The only reason why I would have wanted more episodes would be to see how they had the family react and deal with his death. Would AJ have tried to retaliate? Or would it have sent him down a spiral out of control depression? How would have Meadow dealt with it? How fast would Carmella remarry to continue with her lifestyle? Wonderful video as always.

[@seamusmaguire2160]

I saw an analysis of The Sopranos that argued that is Tony gets shot at the start of season 6. We've already kind of seen everyone mourn and grieve for Tony

[@legoghostyoda]

@@seamusmaguire2160 exactly. Even if he doesn’t die from that shot, it shows exactly what would’ve become of the family if he does get shot and killed eventually

[@TheGr8-1]

Actually showing Tony in a coma from the gun shot shows you pretty much what would have happened post death. Pretty brilliant writing tbh.

[@TheGr8-1]

@@seamusmaguire2160 beat me to it lol

[@TheGr8-1]

@@legoghostyoda also beat me to it lol

[@gretaenglish3519]

I just did a rewatch after having only seen it when it originally aired. I remember the final scene being very divisive back then and everyone had his/her theories. Watching it now, the whole scene felt surreal, kind of like Tony's dreams and near death experience throughout the series. Going to a diner with one's family is such a normal thing to do. Perhaps Tony's death scene was an idealized version of what he wished his life could've been. I think him looking up to see Meadow come through the door was when the man in the bathroom took him out. I saw some cast interviews where they were saying they thought the cut to black was just life moving on. Don't think so! Thanks for your great work.

[@tyjuanconnell5791]

The truth is tony soprano got his brains spread all over that diner in front of most his family but the creative aspect of the show is beautiful in the fact that we got to know this character in 6 seasons which created the emotional attachment and the ending is sparing us the visual of a typical gangster ending we’ve seen so many times over.

[@201950201950]

I miss the Sopranos. Those years were excellent. Sunday evening television nights. I love to concluding my week with Sunday dinner with the family and then after the kids went to bed the sopranos.

[@navinjayakumar4058]

Big fan of your content. Fascinated by your articulation and the topics you choose.

[@osman732]

I remember it being obvious at the time and wondered why so much speculation in subsequent years. It seemed to me that people who didn't get that he was dead weren't really paying attention. It was amusing that David Chase was evasive about it, but I also enjoyed the vindication when he inadvertently confirmed that it is a death scene.

[@johnlenz420]

in just finished the series last night this video came at the perfect time

[@Zocrates8]

@@johnlenz420 welcome to the gang

[@CryptidMech]

Chase didn't confirm it. His comment was taken out of context

[@osman732]

​@@morganghetti During an interview for the Sepinwall/Zoller-Seitz book 'Sopranos Sessions', he accidentally referred to the ending as a death scene. When the interviewers pointed this slip out to him, his response was a long silence followed by "F you guys". 😂 He would go on to backtrack and obfuscate a bit further in future interviews, but not in an especially convincing way (especially when added to all the in-show clues).

[@sprawlz6466]

Ultimately what Chase said in any interview doesn’t matter as the scene is obviously up to interpretation. Personally, I find it most thematically fitting to think of it as a schrodinger’s box situation. He could very likely be dead and likely be alive, but we’re done watching him either way.

[@hippiecheezburger5457]

I love how the series and the last season especially just builds up to that crucial moment, the cut to black it’s so brilliantly written so many theories here

[@tRav285]

Youre a rockstar dude, great content!!

[@JoyJacques]

I don't know if Chase always had this ending in mind, but the beauty of it is that he was able to shoot the episode where Tony is killed, and no one on the crew has any idea this is what they had just finished shooting. If anyone asks them what happened, what could they tell them? Tony and his family ate dinner in a restaurant. No one died, as far as anyone involved in the production of this episode could tell. I think Chase absolutely planned for this to be Tony's death. He set it up brilliantly, and none of us saw it coming either. The talk around the ending of the Sopranos was very big, yet this way there were no leaks to the media of a typical "death scene" where people are covered in blood.

[@firebeardnc6012]

Interesting analysis, but you have failed to take into account the biggest clue to Tony's fate in the series: The gabagool.

[@thewhatness]

All this from a piece of gabagool?

[@bobby.m136]

I think that by ending the show as he did, Chase gave viewers the exact message he was aiming for....it could happen any time from anyone, and you wouldn't even hear nor see it coming...which is spot on as far as im concerned....was disappointed for a while myself at the time of watching but over time I've excepted that this ending was unlike the usual of what any other show would give us and in looking back absolutely genius!!!

[@JeffZhorne]

who is chase?

[@bobby.m136]

@@JeffZhorne creator/runner

[@johnanthony2333]

Excellent review, and sure, I guess I would have been okay with a happy ending for Tony, but sadly it did not work out that way. Along with each of the detailed factors you mentioned, which I thought were all on point, I felt Chase gave us one additional symbolic event that can lead us to believe Tony was in fact killed and it has to do with Meadow's parking. I don't think it was a coincidence that it took her two failed attempts before finding success on her third attempt at backing in. There were two failed attempts on Tony's life before, IMO, the Members Only guy makes the third attempt a success. If only David Chase would have named the final episode 'Third Times A Charm' to back my theory lol

[@lorimiller4301]

💝🎯🍻

[@maxmike]

Wow great theory

[@Hammerage1]

However much I try to imagine Tony not dying, my subconsciousness tells me otherwise. The whole story revolves around Tony, his life and primarily: His thoughts. Tony's story ends abruptly as the music cuts off and camera goes black. Death is the end to everything we know, and as Tony meets his end, so does the series. Edit: My first reaction was: WTF happened? Is this the end? This can't be the end? Then the more I think about the ending, the more I absoloutely love it.

[@themadtitan7603]

My exact same perspective. I try to imagine him living and the final scene being one last dinner they had as a family before he got convicted and sent to the can. But everything symbolically and thematically points to him being wacked at that diner. I keep thinking it's just David Chase putting all the dots to map out his intention with the ending for us to connect, but without drawing it out, as it's just not necessary.

[@lorimiller4301]

Agreed 👍

[@Frankie5Angels150]

The catch phrase for The series was “Tony Soprano has two families. If one doesn’t kill him the other certainly will “

[@internziko]

I mean it's about as obvious as you can get without blowing his brains out all over the onion rings. Anyone that thinks Tony is still alive is kidding themselves..

[@maximuscesar]

I finally started the rewatch that I postponed for years, and I saw a hint for what happened at the end in the very first episode: when Tony took Carmella for dinner to talk about seeing a psychiatrist he says "The wrong person finds out about this and I get a steel-jacketed anti-depressant right in the back of the head". I've seen many many analysis on the ending and never saw this being brought up.

[@WilliamWallace42]

Because getting shot for seeing a psychiatrist has nothing to do with the ending and why Tony was killed, his therapy sessions were exposed seasons earlier and he wasn't targeted for it.

[@maximuscesar]

@@WilliamWallace42 yes, but it's a hint nonetheless. Because, although that wasn't the actual reason why he was whacked, that was indeed how he died.

[@WilliamWallace42]

@@maximuscesar you think David Chase had already planned how Tony would die and left a hint of it in the very first episode? I find that hard to believe

[@WilliamWallace42]

@@maximuscesar especially since it has no relation other than how he was killed, which taking a bullet in the back of the head in the mafia is a pretty common statement that anyone can make in that life.

[@greathornedyak9904]

It’s “what Tony sees.” Every time he shifts his attention, the camera shifts to his POV. The bell rings, Tony looks at the door, the camera pivots. Carm talks, Tony looks, the camera Pivots. The bell rings, Tony looks, cut to black.

[@TheSkaOreo]

Honestly, the cut to black in the Sopranos reminds me a lot of the cut the black Paul Schrader used at the end of First Reformed: In that film, the main character is about to commit suicide after an aborted attempt at blowing himself up at a church. Suddenly the love interests rushes in, and then they start making out as the camera moves around them--and then it suddenly cuts to black. I feel this is very much a representation of the depression that the character feels, represented in a dream in which he temporarily feels bliss, before being sucked right back into the blackness of despair--similar to what that cut to black represents. I think the same thing applies here. I'd argue that wondering whether or not Tony got his brains blown out in front of his family defeats the purpose here. As others have already said...it doesn't matter whether he gets killed in that restaurant, because he's already spirtually and emotionally dead. His personal hell is sitting in that restaurant waiting for either someone to save him or kill him, and he's denied an ending. Hence the cut to black.

[@nirmalkumar7941]

The ending definitely had me gripped as if something bad was about to happen. Instead of the show giving easy answers , it expects audience to find an answer. Ending with Tony killed would have instantly settled the debate . Sopranos definitely in my all time best lists ! I don't even know what to watch next.

[@nunuvyobiznes9149]

What show do you consider to be better than The Sopranos?

[@chrisfromsouthaus2735]

I've always thought that he gets shot, survives, but suffers a fate worse than death. Seeing both Junior and Sil essentially a shells of their former selves, I've always thought that was setting up the fate that awaited Tony. That he survives, but is barely more than a vegetable. Just aware enough to understand and regret his fate.

[@honeybadgermk127]

My feeling is that this scene sort of parallels the one in the season 1 episode "college", where Tony is almost killed but the shooter relents because Meadow is with him. In this scene, chance prevents Meadow from being there to save Tony once again. I also like the idea of it being Paulie who orders the hit, as thematically it makes sense given how Chris gave both him and Tony the warning about "three o'clock".

[@timwhite5562]

I rewatched the series recently after last watching it during its original run on HBO. For the most part I never really considered the "who" to be all that important, and it was probably one of those Occam's razor "easiest answer" things: NY set him up with agreeing to end the feud with Phil. Laying in bed last night, sweating my ass off with no AC and 82⁰ humid night at 1:00AM it hit me that this probably wasn't the case. If it had been, there would have been no reason for it to have gone down the way it had, at least if it was the Member's Only guy. The guy came in, and sat at the counter for quite a long time. Assuming the guy didn't plan on killing himself afterwards, and didn't want to spend the rest of his life in prison, he would want to limit the amount of time he would be noticed and remembered. The other part is why he waited as long as he did, he clearly knew who Tony was, and that he was there. The godfather thing seems like a red herring, since the guy didn't need to go to the bathroom to get the gun. I had thought that maybe he wanted to wait for the family to be there to witness it, as a way to get back for Phil's wife having to see it, but his wife was already there. Beyond that how would the guy know that everyone was coming, and if he did why didn't he just sit outside in his car until he saw everyone show up, then go in to finish the job? I have no idea what happened, I'm just pretty sure my original assumption was wrong.

[@aliensconfirmed3498]

I think you are somewhat overthinking it. Even if he eats an entire dinner there before shooting Tony it will not make much of a difference as people won't really notice him before he does it. As far as going into the bathroom is concerned he only made his job simple. If he had just gone and started blasting Tony would have reacted and there is possibility of missing his head or creating a mess. On the other hand when he comes from bathroom he has a clear shot at Tony and he can easily run away with one clean shot, without any other mess. When he waited he could have been assessing the situation, thinking how to do it, seeing if any potential threat is around, could be nervous, could be many things.

[@chrislyons6951]

The delay and nervous looks show that Members only was probably incompetent. An analysis by Scenic Media suggests the Out Doors man is a second shooter. This guy is incompetent too - leaving finger prints on the table. Good observation that it didn't seem like the family were waiting for more people - they only ordered 3 drinks.

[@TupDigital]

"Say bye-bye! Bye-bye Pop Pop!" Absolute 24k gold

[@Plebzzz]

I'm glad theres still videos being made about it like this even though it happened so long ago now

[@amp888]

Considering this video was published in 2022, I think you should've included the occasions on which series creator David Chase has talked about the scene. Once, in 2020, he [accidentally?] referred to it as "that death scene", and he did an interview in 2021 where he spoke more about how Tony's death evolved in the show. So, the creator of the series has confirmed Tony died. That still potentially leaves viewers the option of choosing to ignore both the text of the show and the words of the creator ("death of the author"), but IMO they deserve to be included in a discussion on the interpretation of the scene.

[@michaelmcinerney1425]

Cracking videos as usual! Has got me itchin to rewatch the series. Keep up the great work!

[@blue_diamond_gem]

If they wanted him dead, they would have written it that way. It’s called an open ending for a reason.

[@JesusSavesSinners]

True.

[@Luke101]

The final shot of this show, and the abrupt cut to black, in my mind is a masterful way to end a show. All the clues are there. The ending could only logically mean that Tony would do 20 years in the can.

[@oltwist]

Also, big love to this channel... Watched almost all of your videos, some multiple times. Keep up the great work.

[@thewage7108]

also the fact that throughout the episode we see a shot of tony followed by a shot from his perspective… when he visits junior… when he walks in the diner… the cut to black is his perspective 😔

[@shapeshift13]

I like how every episode felt like a movie

[@jitesh881]

He was shot for sure at the time when is looking at his daughter one last time...also her presence is also not there to save him, like it saved him in the past

[@jadengrant]

Butchie had Tony killed; I think that is the most probable ending.

[@dzemilmehovic5271]

@@tRav285 ?

[@iurivanastacio3081]

I still think its the bartender from bada bing. Poor guy was taking beatings like crazy since the beginning of the show.

[@danielwarren3138]

@@iurivanastacio3081 the guy who couldn't use the phone?

[@jm2206]

It was either Butchie or Little Carmine. Doesn’t really matter who anyway. New York saw the opportunity to finally absorb Jersey and they seized it.

[@danielgriffith3633]

I think that's the strongest possibility as the other 4 NY families could interpret Butchie/Leotardo family as being in on Phil's whacking if there was no retaliation. Tony didn't see this somehow

[@DRSTRANGELOVEIN]

In that moment, his story was over and he knew it. The fact is wether he does get killed or not doesn’t matter. In that moment most of his closest allies were dead or gone, he’s under threat of imminent indictment due to Carlo ratting him out, and all he wanted was to have a meal with his family. Season 1 Tony would’ve seen members only guy coming and acted to ensure his own safety but here either doesn’t notice him or doesn’t care. Because he’s accepted that it’s either a casket or a jail cell for him. His time here is just… over.

[@dend1]

On the juke box there was a song called i gotta be me, a lonely place by tony benett. Tony S couldn’t change and ended up in a lonely place

[@harry_the_pirate8460]

A thing i havent seen anyone else talking about is that the big picture in the middle of the restuarnt that Tony is looking at at 7:51. After this shot we see tony getting a sort of worried look on his face or a him coming to a realisation (Dont know how tf i type that word lmao). I think this shows us Tony remembering a quote that he saw in that school which says; "One man can not wear one face to himself and another to the multitude without finally getting bewildered as to which one may be true". I think tony got "bewildered to which one may be true" when he quits therapy and gives up on trying to work on his good side. This id say marks the end of any hope for tony soprano becoming a good man but rather the man who does almost unjustifiable actions that whom we have seen him becoming more and more throughout the series. Personally, i dont think he would deserve a good ending. I am aware that my interpretation of the ending doesnt come with a conclusion, but since he told us to come with out own opinion on what Tony deserves i figured id write it anyway.

[@Mister_Jimmy]

At least two or three times in the final season, Tony enters a scene where an Abraham Lincoln documentary is on the TV. The last instance, literally focuses on Lincoln’s assassination, in which he was out for the evening…seated…across from his wife!

[@talesfromthetrip]

I can’t stand when people don’t like the ending because it’s a “cop out” or “cheap”. Like did you just skip all of season 6’s episodes? All the answers are there for you to figure out. If they would’ve showed him getting murdered, then this video and many others would not exist and the Sopranos would just be another great show, but not the best show of all time. It’s mostly Breaking Bad fans too because they got to see a conclusion. With all of the decisions David Chase made throughout the whole series, not showing a true “end” to Tony Soprano was by far the best one. If people can’t see that for what it is then I just feel bad for them.

[@tomoconnell2727]

very interesting, thanks for posting - we all seem to focus on the song Don't Stop Believing on the juke-box (since it is the song that closes the show), but the 'flip-side' for that song (on the juke-box) is Anyway you Want it... perhaps that is David Chase's actual message...

[@happyfeet7759]

For me, as this is the first interpretation i thought of, he lived, but in the long run, its not that important, because he showed his unwillingness to truly change. He was good enought to build a somewhat functioning family, and won't end up like Junior, but he didnt quit the game, didn't change fundamentally, and even though this time he got away with his life and got his families life quite stable, as the time passes he will just get more angry, depressed and paranoid and sooner or later he will slip and fall.

[@Dylandontplay]

Love your videos man!;

[@RsBanez]

It's pretty obvious what happened there, the only reason why it's not shown is because, how do you make the last scene a graphic brutal murder? It's too abupt and just ending the episode with the family horrified wouldn't have worked, so Chase went with a more creative approach while having the same effect and not having to show the protagonist's brains blown out.

[@itsalwaysdarkestbeforethes1198]

I know interpretation is important in any piece of media, but based off of Chase’s comment “ “I was driving on Ocean Park Boulevard near the airport and I saw a little restaurant. It was kind of like a shack that served breakfast. And for some reason, I thought, ‘Tony should get it in a place like that.’ Why? I don’t know. That was, like, two years before.” I’m inclined to believe the *original intent* is that Tony died

[@manband20]

imo it was the guys who helped and authorized Phil's hit. They decided that Tony was too much of a wildcard and wanted it to be done, especially since he had Phil whacked in front of his family. I don't believe Paulie did it for the sole reason that his actor, who was a mobster before the show, had the rule that his character could never "become a rat" because he didn't want his old people to believe that he had done this and drew on personal experiences for the character. I believe this simple request can be interpreted as both not becoming a police informant AND not being the one who helped kill Tony for the sole fact that they both betray the boss and the people he worked so closely with. Plus I love Paulie and don't believe he would stoop that low. The guy screwed Tony over sometimes, sure, but he was just mad and saw everything begin to fall apart and lashed out accordingly. But murder Tony? Nah, I don't believe it.

[@odimane]

I personally like to think that Tony wasn't whacked at the end -- rather, it's his self hating way of imagining the perfect death for himself. The way the scene was shot makes me refuse to believe any other theory, with the disjointed set up shots of Tony watching himself at the table with his coat off. He's come to terms with who he is by the end of the series -- he's ready to die. The scene being very reminiscent of the Godfather serves to accentuate AJ's point from earlier in the season. "everytime we watch godfather, when Michael Corleone shoots those guys in the restaurant (...) you say that's your favourite scene of all time!" Tony was always a narcissist whether he realized it or not -- whether his mother hardbaked it into his personality or he was born that way, the focus has always been about HIM in every situation he was ever in. Notice how after Gloria commits suicide, Tony checks on the people he loves more and more only to clear his own conscience, like when Artie borrows money off of him. It makes sense for him to be abandoned by Dr. Melfi -- the only analog he had left to a mother figure -- to only picture himself being brutally murdered in front of his entire family. Nothing is about him anymore, so he creates a situation in his mind where everything goes perfectly -- he is killed at the perfect moment in the perfect way, all to the tune of "Don't Stop Believin''".

[@themadtitan7603]

Great theory. Very thematically fitting imo.

[@PallyLIVE]

It's crazy how many people over-observe the most out-there of details, and come to the conclusion that the ending is "open ended" and "up for interpretation", rather than analyzing the details that are presented clear as day, and tell you EXACTLY what happened.

[@SonnySantana2099]

😂😂 fr!!

[@HughManatea]

I am positive there was an interview recently where it is confirmed by the shows creator that Tony got popped. Inadvertently albeit, but revealed none the less.

[@indy2502]

David Chase was talking about that interview in the Talking Sopranos Podcast. He said he never told the reporter an ultimate statement about Tonys fate after the "cut to black". They just put words in his mouth he never spoke

[@HughManatea]

@@indy2502 That is a bummer, but it makes sense. Like even though Chase envisioned Tony dying it is still undetermined. Did not catch that, but Ill take it.

[@otten5666]

Did you read that from another KZbin comment without a source?

[@HughManatea]

@@otten5666 Nah an article from E-Online. It turns out it was all cabbage though. No mozz in it at all.

[@allanj917]

The credit scene says it all....Members only jacket guy in diner ( only person in diner that is described with a role )...also (deleted scenes were rumor that Tony gets shot from behind)

[@Dylandontplay]

Please make a video on Christopher! That would be such an awesome break down!!

[@SerErryk]

He's a psycho. The end.

[@VelkanKiador]

My view on the ending is quite simple. It doesn't matter if he lived or died at the end of the show when it cut to black, as long as he is choosing to live the mob life he will always be walking around on a knife's edge. Did he live, did he die? I don't feel that's the point of it all.

[@brockrain4618]

Agreed 👍

[@tylermatchett9144]

Just finished this episode about 5 mins ago. The feeling is…haunting

[@FreeOpenTruth]

La Cosa Nostra has rules and they wouldn't shoot a boss of a family at a table in front of his wife and kids. Phil got clipped the way he did because he was in hiding and just stepped out of the car. Walden didn't know or even look who was driving him. Plus it was a "then or never" type of situation. Tony on the other hand had the peace sit down with New York, so he felt safe now. If they were gonna whack him, they could have done it anytime. So Tony is alive in my story!

[@Im3than]

The best part of this show is how you never know how it's gonna-

[@amackemspeaks2284]

you forget that members only guy and the camera pans with him to Tony's '3 oclock' - which is what christopher says is the message for him from his dad when he "comes back from hell"

[@mcclintocksamuel05]

All the Sopranos analysis’ I’ve seen refer to the music as “funeral music” just because it’s organ music. No diving into the actual song which is You Keep Me Hanging On by Vanilla Fudge.

[@seanodonohue1326]

The 80's British gangster movie "The Long Good Friday" has a similar cut to black. The scenes are different but the cut to black is similar. I've also been reminded of the movie Papilion in some of the dream sequences.

[@pukika88]

This ending aged really well.

[@kevinlittrell3407]

I think the show presents two options: 1. he dies by the gun. 2. He outlives his usefulness like Junior and spends the rest of his life an empty old man.

[@Saturdaiz]

only 25k views? this is professional editing quality damn

[@bradhorowitz2765]

Great video! I actually never looked at the ketchup that way. I always thought it was humorous scene-tony acts like anyone in a stressful situation especially when seeing something so ordinary be annoying (no ketchup coming out). But I do think he died. Which leaves a question: Who? I know you mentioned the candidates. But who could have known Tony would be at the deli at that time? The family only planned it at the last minute. Which means there was limited time for someone outside their immediate circle to know. Also, the members only guy-did he or someone plant a gun in the deli? This seems more unlikely here. In The Godfather, it was Michael who planned out the shooting in advance. The deli dinner was spontaneous and low-key. I think the members only guy had the gun on him and only went to the bathroom to get it ready. I think it’s likely Meadow told her fiancé, who was Patsi’s son about her plans.

[@PeterNibbs]

Yup ur right

[@FritzS1884]

A.J.'s girlfriend knew where they would be. She was at the Soprano's house when Carmela says that's where they are going. There is a scene in an earlier episode in which her picture is on the wall at Butchie's place. She was a plant by the NY mob.

[@bradhorowitz2765]

@@FritzS1884 thats unlikely. not only was the mob from ny very unlikely to do that (no mob ever got a civilian to be a mole), but the mob, as the show stresses, is a bunch of sociopathic idiots who should be arrested base don their stupidity. but their ferociousness and pure dumb luck combined with admittedly horrid law enforcement strategies means they get to walk more often not. as for Rhionna herself, she was not connected to the mob prior to aj (who isn't involved exactly). She met through the hospital. that means the mob somehow knew that Rhionna would end up meeting aj at the hospital, tell her to fake her health issues being an addict, or approach her to spy on the sopranos (but why would they do when aj has never been a mobster?), know who she was, and also think that she wont relapse. its a stupid theory. The most likely story is this; the new york mob most likely got the approval or gave the ok to patsy. Patsie had the means, and will to do so. he was among the highest rnaking officers in the mob and was not seen as threat to new York. he also lacked tony's issues which infuriated new York. patsy hated tony, and during the war, would have easily have picked up on the hatred the gang had for tony. It was quite apparent even to Silvio that loyalty was wanning. his son was also likely aware or involved in his father's activities. hence what started as a mob families getting together for the sake of advancement and mutual attraction, its likely the son hated tony as much too for killing his uncle (or at the very least was sympathetic to his father's side). His father was close to his uncle so it stands to reason that the son was aware of the issues. All it took was patsy being approached by or approaching new yoek after securing approval from the sopranos family to kill tony. It all stems from tony being a terrible boss and incompetent. It never occurred to him that patsy hated him. It never occurred to him that he had lost support. Because season 6 tony is living in full blown sociapthy, apathy, depression. he doesn't care. the mob was willing to kill phil, a high ranking officer, so why not tony as well? In the mob, your expendable. Tony had been causing massive problems through his life and they figured "hey this patsy guy, he can do it...sure. two birds and one stone." This is why patsy has the strange conversation with Paulie. it dosnt make sense if the conversation was about phil's death.

[@FritzS1884]

@@bradhorowitz2765I do not disagree that Patsy (and/or maybe Paulie) were working with Butchie to off Tony, but I don't rule out that Rhionna played a role in helping carry out the plot. Throughout her appearances in the show she does not strike you as a person suffering from depression, so her happening to be at the hospital with AJ was a little off from the beginning, AND there is a scene in an earlier episode where a picture of her is hanging on the wall in Butchie's salon. Chase I'm sure put it there for a reason. Also, she's the only non-family member we see on screen who knows where they will be for dinner (and why wasn't she at the dinner? Not invited, otherwise engaged, or perhaps knew what was coming?) As for not putting civilians into the middle of a mob related initiative, the list is pretty long of things that Chase inserted into the show that didn't follow mob protocol. Maybe she's just there to add to the ambiguity and possibilities, who knows - but I do agree that Patsy was involved in some way.

[@bradhorowitz2765]

@@FritzS1884 but there are problems with this. Its extremely risky, illogical, and unprecedented for a simple mob boss to get a high schooler girl into a mental hospital in the same one aj went to. The mob is not that crafty or smart enough. In fact, the beauty of the final episodes is what we dont know. Remember, we see the episodes through tony's perspective with some other characters getting their time on screen. We WOULDNT know if new York struck a secret deal with patsy. In fact, patsy already has a "mole" its called Patrick. The show also stresses that depression/mental issues dont make a person look worse. sometimes they seem fine on the outside. Rhionna was there jsut like anyone else. we hear dietary and modeling from her-so perhaps it was the pressures of modeling. she does, to me, at least look sickly and unhappy. That picture-its unclear who that is. It doesn't really look like Rhionna, and it could be any blonde girl. Also, even if it was rhionna-shes modeling. so not really weird if someone got her modeling stuff. The best theories is this: new York and new jersey struck a secret deal sometime before or after tony went along with the decision to kill phil. keeping ton alive at this point was a detriment. not only was he facing another series issue, his gang had been compromised, and he had prove nhis failure to cooperate with new York. Second theory if e decide new yok didnt have anything to do with the murder: patsy, decided to act now when the opportunity was ripe. tony had alienated everyone and the war had nearly destroyed the crew. patsy knew new York wouldn't care if tony died, but he decided to act with internal approval by the crew to carry out the mission. he relief on his son who i see was more or less aware of the history with his father and tony. His son was the only one outside the inner family to know where and when the family would eat.

[@georgedevine4130]

I do believe it was a hit by Butchie for Phil's death. Paulie probably took the boss position as he was the only lone survivor. It was also probably symbolic that Meadow took so long to park the car to be able to sit in the path of the hit , as if his time ran out from being spared. What a great show. I still go back and watch episodes to catch stuff I may have overlooked.

[@Daniel-vg8fk]

Butchie gave permission for Phil to be whacked, as we had seen earlier on this episode. However, I still believe that Tony was killed and the hit was ordered from someone in New York. As if killing Phil (a boss) wasn't bad enough, it was also done in front of his family. Some powerful people in New York probably saw that as going too far and put an end to Tony. Even if Tony did survive, he would soon be in jail. Carlo had flipped and indictments were ready to be used against Tony Soprano. In general, the cut to black refers to the end of Tony's life, whether that be in a physical way or a more figurative one.

[@chrislyons6951]

When I first saw the episode I thought Meadow was the one killed, a similar ending to The Godfather. Both the shooters seemed incompetent- the primary shooter looks around nervously, the other dufus leaves fingerprints on the table, so anything could happen when they fumble the initial strike. Scenic Media explains how Tony's meal mirrors the last supper - the communion wafers, mentioning a traitor, talk of remembrance. The shooter also goes to wash his hands - Pilate style. Tony dying outright, without experiencing grief, was too merciful.

[@vic1freeman]

Excellent. This is brilliant content.

[@McRino1]

I can't remember where I read or saw a showrunner or writer saying, there is no show without Tony soprano. And after the cut to black happens, the show time continues for a few seconds before the episode ends... Almost like well the episode is 55 mins long but Tony died at 52 so you'll just have to wait. I believe Tony is dead, and that we don't need to see it to know it's happening. With the fade to black it's almost like we the audience are suffering the same shock at his death that his family would be without seeing it but by feeling it in the sudden absence

[@AmaanKhan-qd3mq]

One detail I read about which further cemented the idea of tony dying, was a communion in the restaurant. Tony wearing a gold ring on his finger, carmela with her gold earrings (representing the circle of life and a representation of their own lives) and then of course the onion rings, which they all ate from. Its a sacred moment, their last meal together and tony the "giver" of the communion is sacrificed for his own sins. Its also befitting that meadow did not share the meal or partake as she is highlighted as a guardian angel figure in tony's life multiple times.

[@ekcoupe5059]

I think the scene was purposely made over dramatic bc they wanted you to believe he was going to die, but that was just a twist to let peoples minds over think , even David chase said I never said Tony was dead , he said that in the last episode of talking sopranos

[@EndOfSmallSanctuary97]

Easily one of the greatest endings of any piece of fiction. Absolutely genius.

[@raycerski]

Bobby did say that “you probably don’t hear it coming” that’s probably also why it just went black, implying that Tony did get killed but maybe I could be reaching

[@SonnySantana2099]

No this is exactly it

[@Brokeboy6969]

Only show ending ever that had me replaying my shit thinking my fire stick just pooped out I’m pissed

[@fijiunlimited4503]

I wonder if David Chase was inspired by a movie or show that had a cut-to-black ending.

[@chasejackson7248]

No because no movie was stupid enought to do it.

[@gamergirl2236]

I always thought that it was just another day in the life for the mob. It’s just back to the business since the mob war ended. By the way, if you look closely right before the cut to black, Tony turns off the jukebox hence why the song stops.