Pseudo Realism & Anti Climax on ‘The Sopranos’ | Video-Essay Documentary

In this video-essay documentary, we examine why The Sopranos is one of the most important TV shows of all time. From it's use of pseudo realism to it's use of anti climax, we examine why & how The Sopranos works so well, why it's more different than you think, & ultimately - what made it so special.
#VideoEssay #Documentary #TheSopranos

[@DuckieHawke]

What's your favourite thing about The Sopranos?

[@XIntoxicationalX]

James Gandolfini

[@jasonoddily6459]

The soundtrack. It's hard to pick just one thing.

[@maciejbzura9057]

Paulie Gaultieri

[@DuckieHawke]

@@maciejbzura9057 I'm so glad Paulie never got whacked. Such a good character

[@darkchaser25]

The absurdism and the ambiguity

[@gnarrcan108]

Honestly Tony going to see a shrink isn’t totally unrealistic. That quote from Michael Franzese is accurate but inaccurate. What I mean by that is a lot of what Franzese says is still tinted by the lens of what the media and actual mobsters see themselves as (kinda like in the sopranos when Tony watches gangster flicks or when Silvio recites lines from The Godfather) in real mob history there have been loads of guys who’ve broken the “rules” and faced no repercussions bc they were either too well connected politically or make a lot of money. Frank Costello actually had a shrink and there’s tons of stories about wiseguys hitting other made guys and nothing bc of their own clout. I mean look at their stance on narcotics trafficking which is “don’t ask, don’t get caught and don’t forget to kick up the profits”. The best part of the sopranos as someone who knows a lot about the mob is that these dudes are all petty insecure gossips.

[@williamshakespeare9815]

I think Costello only saw the shrink a few times before being told to stop. But I think the type of boss Tony was also has something to do with it He was physically stronger than almost everyone else in thr family. Nobody was going to tell him what to do. If Chris or Pussy were seeing a shrink, I'm sure someone like Paulie wouldnt have stood for it.

[@jmdi2703]

1:21 This guy is totally bullshit. I don't think you even watched The Sopranos. Or, as with all real-life mobsters, he's jealous of the movie. They were also jealous of the movie Godfather and tried to censor it. In FBI documents the mob guys talking about Sopranos and they say; "Damn this series so realistic! Wtf!?" Even this guy himself talk about mafia on internet everytime!!! :D Nobody kills him! Already in the series, it is emphasized that "Going to a psychiatrist for a mafia member means death. And that's why Tony hides it and gets assassinated when it comes out. I mean, the show is aware of this. Besides, who knows what real-life mafia bosses do? A lot of mafioso going to a psychiatrist. There is a staff member in real life. They go and prescribe drugs. The mafia is also keeping up with innovations now. A lot of mafia members are still alive by spying on them. Like Henry Hill, for example. Today, there is no mafia father to be killed because he went to a psychiatrist and told about his mother and wife and prescribed drugs. Maybe 1960. It could have been before.

[@ThomasDepena]

To me, The Sopranos is about nothing other than the characters. And that’s why I love it.

[@litedawg]

The Sopranos is the pinnacle of TV acting and writing that only a few shows can even come close to. Mad Men , Walter White , and maybe The Wire that really had the story arcs and character development that can even come close to Tony and his story.

[@DuckieHawke]

I totally agree! Granted, I haven't seen The Wire & have only seen small chunks of Mad Men. There are still a lot of TV shows I wanna check out too

[@litedawg]

@@DuckieHawke I can’t recommend them fast enough for you. You have some real good viewing ahead of you. Both The Wire and MM are truly great . Start ASAP!

[@DuckieHawke]

@@litedawg So much to watch, so little time!

[@jmdi2703]

Nah. BB is overrated. The Wire and Mad Men have bad, robotic acting. Sopranos is most realistic most autantic series of all time. Only OZ close to Sopranos.

[@crazyjoedavola5430]

I've never been sucked into a show faster than The Sopranos. It was literally the first thing I binge watched years before it was a thing. Best show ever with BB right on it's heels. Great video....

[@DuckieHawke]

The Sopranos was the first show I binged after Breaking Bad. I finished BB in... 2015? And didn't start TS until 2019, so I think that speaks for itself Thanks, I appreciate it!

[@crazyjoedavola5430]

@@DuckieHawke - I binged The Sopranos on DVD in the early to mid 2000's, me and my girlfriend at the time started on a Friday with a half ounce of nuggz and finished Sunday evening bag empty....it was magical

[@DuckieHawke]

@@crazyjoedavola5430 That sounds like it was quite the experience!

[@DuckieHawke]

@Yeokay It took me six months too, but I guess I still consider that binging because I'd spend some days doing nothing but watching the show

[@KingJames-np2eh]

Lol Breaking Bad is nowhere close.

[@lennyb9286]

Breaking bad and the sopranos are the 2 best shows I’ve ever watched, they’re the only shows I have watched in order multiple times, yet it’s practically impossible to compare the 2, they’re just soooooo different it makes my brain hurt just trying to articulate my feelings about which is better. Great video nonetheless though it definitely helped in my journey to understand these shows

[@in_vas_por8810]

Exactly. For me, when Breaking Bad started, it was very believable; but towards the end it became a bit unrealistic/fantastical, at least in comparison to Sopranos. They weren't the same style of show. Sopranos goes deeper into the characters and their connections(imo), but the show as a whole is a lot "slower" than BB.

[@jmdi2703]

Breakind bad is overrated, borring bullsiht series who copiyng Sopranos!!!

[@K-Dot94]

1:26 regarding this michael franzese quote (who is awesome btw) its very apparent that the sopranos is very much showing the more “modern” approach to mob life. So when he mentions that the guy/boss or whatever woulda been whacked for seeing a psychiatrist, times had changed immensely from the mobs total control in the late 70s early 80s. So had something like that happened at the turn of the millennium, especially for a justifiable reason such as panic attacks, I would say that it would have been highly unlikely a wiseguy, let alone a boss would be whacked for that. Loved the vid man! Will have to check out more of your stuff at some point.

[@Buford_T_Justice1]

You know Phil did 20 years in the can and not a peep!

[@DuckieHawke]

Indeed!

[@frankmurphy7234]

Now go get ur ShineBox

[@DuckieHawke]

@@frankmurphy7234 I see what you did there! lol

[@Louid133]

The slammer is no place for the shah of iran!

[@litedawg]

He made grilled cheese on the radiator

[@nowbandnyc]

I’ve been devouring Sopranos analysis ever since I finished the series for the first time, and you’re the first critic I’ve heard, aside from me, say that “nothing really happens” in the show. I completely agree. Tony begins the series struggling to balance his family life with his work, wrestling with his inner angel and devil, and complaining about his mom to a hot shrink. And that’s exactly where he ends it, too. Obviously, plenty of “stuff happens,” but the pace feels absolutely glacial compared to Breaking Bad’s. But that’s because - and I only realized this, somehow, as the series was winding down, that the Sopranos isn’t about the plot at all. I kept waiting for the plot to truly crescendo, and it never did. The Sopranos instead is about people, and relationships, and the richness of all that makes up daily life as a struggling human. And having realized that, I am enjoying the show 10x more (on the inevitable rewatch that I “didn’t mean to start.”)

[@DuckieHawke]

I couldn't agree more!

[@nowbandnyc]

exactly! @Ajapam34

[@DioBrandoWRYYYYYY]

AJ having ADHD isn't a consistent thread through the show, you're kinda ignoring the fact that this was during the time where a lot of kids were misdiagnosed with ADHD because it was a convenient way to keep troublemakers docile while also selling a lot of ritalin, and AJ's problems towards the end of the series have other factors behind them.

[@DuckieHawke]

I'm not disputing that the late 90's - late 2000's wasn't a time that was rife with ADHD misdiagnosis, because it absolutely was. It just takes looking at the old name 'ADD' from that time - that is used to refer to ADHD throughout the show - to conclude there was a fundamental misunderstanding of ADHD during that timespan. That misunderstanding & misinformation still rubs off on people today too. Excluding AJ's anti-social troublemaking behaviour - because that's too obvious, & could and would be used as an excuse to misdiagnose him - when you look at the fundamentals of ADHD, there is a massive chance that AJ legitamately has ADHD. AJ's rejection sensitivity, depression, suicidal attempt, & 'lazyness' are all super common symptoms of ADHD. These symptoms & behaviours are the result of ADHD brains being wired differently. This is known as 'neurodivergence'. So I think all of that combined with the fact that it's a generally minor storyline thread throughout the show, and that Tony & Carmella make very inconsistent attempts at helping AJ find answers, makes it the best example of a thread being used subtly over the show's six seasons. In comparison, something like Christopher's addiction is a thread used throughout the show, but it is usually at the forefront of the story & gets a lot of focus on the show - whereas AJ's potential ADHD is always played super subtly. Aaaaaaaaand that's ultimately why I chose AJ's potential ADHD as an example, and why I argued that he likely does have undiagnosed ADHD. Thanks for the comment though, I love hearing constructive feedback regardless of whether it's good or bad!

[@DioBrandoWRYYYYYY]

@@DuckieHawke I'm not necessarily against the possibility that AJ has ADHD I just think that it could also be possible that the later problems he manifests could also be a convergence of other factors, such as being kinda pampered, having no good role models, bad parenting and not having the fundamentals that could help him cope with some of the stresses in life that come with growing up. But I'm also biased in that I'm not a fan of big pharma and I do think it's ruined the way people try to deal with their problems so I can't be totally objective about it.

[@colinfitz6392]

explain how that works? giving troublemakers speed? let me get this right: you think there was some conspiracy designed to sell more Ritalin, and the idea was to ... what? pay doctors to misdiagnose troublemakers (??) which I guess was possible though a deal (??) with ... maybe.. ornery school teachers(??) , who get a cut of the money I suppose (?!) to somehow funnel bad seed kids (?!?) to doctors through some kind of falsified disciplinary action (wow this is getting idiotic), and then what? I have a feeling you probably often spout bullshit about things you know nothing about, but fit your political, or just entitled world view? Or you are just a narcissist? Either way you are wrong

[@DioBrandoWRYYYYYY]

@@colinfitz6392 Doctors being paid off by pharmaceutical companies? Yes, this is a long documented phenomenon, and in general the thing about medicine, and psychiatry in particular is that it's way more profitable to keep people on the hook forever rather than trying to cure people. Teachers? No. They don't actually have much authority in this regard beyond filing a report and then the school being like "maybe you should have your child checked out". And no, you're the one living in a false reality where THE SACRED DOCTORS and THE SACRED TEACHING POSITION inherently moral, never lazy or underhanded and to express any skepticism regarding if they do exhibit unethical behavior. America in particular is a overmedicated country, everyone knows this. And it's lead by profit, yes. But please, disprove me. But with an actual argument rather than ad hominin claims about me being a narcissist and entitled.

[@jordicabezut2107]

ER doesn't get the credit it deserve in terms of raising the bar for TV drama.

[@DuckieHawke]

To be fair, if it weren't for ER we likely wouldn't have shows like NCIS, CSI, Scorpion, etc nowadays; and I have a real soft spot for those types of shows. ER was definately a trend setter in hindsight. Diagnosis: Murder is a personal favourite of mine.

[@damianstarks3338]

Awesome/accurate essay.

[@everydayigetclosertothelig3992]

I took a shot every time "anticlimactic" is said in the video, now I am at the hospital.

[@DuckieHawke]

What can I say, I had to hammer the points home. Can we get a "anti-climactic" counter? 🤣

[@tidepride86]

My Top 3 1. The Sopranos 2. The Leftovers 3. Breaking Bad

[@DuckieHawke]

I've been hearing a lot about The Leftovers recently 👀

[@tidepride86]

@@DuckieHawke Oh it's a great show. It is short, only 3 seasons (28 episodes) but the writing is brilliant and the acting is some of the best I've ever seen.

[@DuckieHawke]

@@tidepride86 If it's on the same level as The Sopranos & Breaking Bad, then it must be fantastic 👀

[@deadchanneldontwatch7347]

without this show we wouldnt even have Dexter

[@aliensconfirmed3498]

Sopranos is REALISTIC. What we can say is that(arguably) it's not entirely "authentic" to the mafia rules.

[@joshronin4730]

Sopranos is beyond greatness

[@DuckieHawke]

Agreed!

[@guyincognito143]

I'm glad I subscribed at this point, the early years.

[@DuckieHawke]

I can only hope! Haha, no pressure! 😅 I got a bunch of videos planned!

[@jackdriscoll8387]

just hopped on the wagon let’s see it duckie

[@DuckieHawke]

@@jackdriscoll8387 Haha no pressure 😅

[@isaacster5027]

Eddy yech dee. Lol just breaking balls, wonderful video, perfectly explains why the sopranos is so unique

[@jeromesena5967]

I'm watching a sopranos video and your spoiling a game that I haven't played yet. Thanks bud. You're the bestest

[@DuckieHawke]

See 0:01 for spoiler warning. Thanks bud 😄

[@jeromesena5967]

@@DuckieHawke I clicked the video and looked away for a second so I didn't see that. 🥱

[@DuckieHawke]

Whelp, now you know! 😂

[@cumswag1222]

Franzese has since re-worded some of his criticisms upon watching the show. Also, real life mob boss Frank Costello saw a therapist briefly. It works on the show, since a big part of it is deconstructing the modern age of the Mafia and its crumbling traditions.

[@DuckieHawke]

I absolutely agree. It works within the context of the show. I was more-so making the point that it's more realistic than the majority of the TV show's from that era, though it still wasn't 100% realistic - because artistic liberties had to be taken for entertainment value. I also did see that Franzese had talked more about The Sopranos fairly recently, though that was after I had made this video!

[@cumswag1222]

@@DuckieHawke Very good.

[@MORGN]

I hate how Franzese always shits on the Sopranos and always repeats himself "if a real life Mob boss ever got caught seeing a therapist, he'd be in the trunk of his car by the end of the week"... He said it like 4 times. I doubt he even watched it

[@maxfieldnuckels9075]

@@MORGN he watched it, well, season 1 apparently. He stopped midway through season 2 like everybody else

[@jeromesena5967]

I've found holes in some of the stuff that franzese guy says. Don't believe everything he says. He's a rat

[@Grandtarkus]

What about the wire bro? You should make a video about it

[@DuckieHawke]

I haven't seen The Wire yet, but I might make a video about it after I watch it!

[@Grandtarkus]

@@DuckieHawke nice bro, the wire for me is right at the top with the sopranos, great video, you earned a sub

[@DuckieHawke]

@@Grandtarkus Appreciate it!

[@DavyDredd14]

THE SOPRANOS Episodes such as 'College' 'Funhouse' 'Pine Barrens' would make for great analysis videos.

[@DuckieHawke]

You're right, maybe I will have to make a video on those three episodes. 'Pine Barrens' is a personal favourite of mine. 'College' is interesting because it is generally quite self-contained & the first example of the show demostrating how brutal it can be. And 'Funhouse, I feel, has the destinction of being the only episode that actually structurally feels climactic.

[@abdulazizmerdad4093]

If you don’t mind me asking doesnt a film or tv show have to have a climax for it to work and I didn’t understand how anti climatic moments give characters more depth

[@AnAbsurdExistence]

make more videos

[@DuckieHawke]

Trust me, if I had any ideas, I would. I spent 6 months making a video that I ended up scrapping. I've been thinking about maybe making movie diary videos in-between video-essays - what do you think?

[@jake101390]

You should make a video about the wire

[@king_supreme1102]

Sure the show isn’t 100% real, but it’s like 90% real and very realistic.

[@bobbycecere]

AJ didn't have ADHD. He was just a spoiled kid who took after his father. Rosie sums up the whole AJ character in one line "Well maybe it’s just that AJ is a selfish boy who doesn’t give a shit.”

[@andreassveen8689]

My top 3 shows 1) The sopranos 2) The wire 3) Game of thrones 1-6

[@mchlfx]

Was this video supposed to be anti-climactic? It was good but I had thought that after the clip there would be some closing thoughts or something

[@DuckieHawke]

Not really. I just couldn't think of a decent way to tie everything back together at the end of the video without becoming repetitive, so I figured I'd go for a meta cut-to-black mid-sentence instead.

[@mchlfx]

@@DuckieHawke Well, it definitely reminded me of the actual Sopranos finale! Lol

[@DuckieHawke]

@@mchlfx I was hoping it would! 😅

[@jagath3028]

tony going to see a therapist isn't really unrealistic. Even in the show, tony is kind of at risk and doesn't want others in his crime life to know, even livia and uncle tried to kill him after finding out(not the main reason but one of them). There have been a few mobsters who have broke rules and still not face any punishment.

[@bigt4135]

That ending

[@DuckieHawke]

How could I not? 🤣

[@abdulazizmerdad4093]

Do you think this also applies to goodfellas

[@bat__bat]

Not sure why BB is pitted against The Sopranos in nearly every single gen Z essay. It's like comparing one seat of an airplane to the entire sky.

[@DuckieHawke]

Bold of you to assume that I'm Gen Z. Also, I wasn't so much comparing the two. If anything I was contrasting the two.

[@aliensconfirmed3498]

True, I hate that. But this video didn't exactly look like doing that. It felt more like how The Sopranos is not breaking bad(how it's greater). Although I hated the comparison with Fly episode.

[@cumswag1222]

Also "she was a beautiful innocent creature" seems to strongly imply it was about more than just the horse. Even if Tony doesn't realize it.

[@DuckieHawke]

Good point, I had never thought about it like that! Tony might have just used the horse as an excuse at a base level, though it was likely about more underneath (like you said, even if Tony didn't even realize it himself).

[@cumswag1222]

@@DuckieHawke Well, at the end of the episode where he kills Ralph when Tony is at the Bing, he looks in the mirror and there is a photo of Tracee attached to it off to the side of the frame, somewhat blurry. Didn't notice until last rewatch.

[@DuckieHawke]

@@cumswag1222 That's a pretty cool small detail. I'll have to look out for it on my next rewatch!

[@TheGero95]

Nah it was about the horse

[@DuckieHawke]

@@TheGero95 That's very much possible. The Sopranos is super complex though, so anything is possible!

[@captainscentsible1811]

118 subs.why and how.you deserve 118k subs

[@carlos.fesc.]

Beautiful

[@DuckieHawke]

Thanks! I appreciate it!

[@omarlittle1367]

Resume: The Sopranos > Breaking Bad

[@DuckieHawke]

I love them both, but I think The Sopranos has the edge for me

[@omarlittle1367]

@@DuckieHawke Yeah, for me too. Breaking bad is amazing but more "easy to appreciate" for the massive presence of cliffangers, suspense and dramatic twists. The sopranos is deeper, more introspective, more implicit and has dealt with an infinity of different themes. Moreover, breaking bad lacks the sociological element that has instead made the sopranos an insight into American society

[@DuckieHawke]

@@omarlittle1367 Exactly! That is spot on. I feel exactly the same way!

[@Jeremy-jm3fe]

Breaking Bad is meant to be a small-scale introspective series that focuses on character development. It isn't supposed to be a critique on society, the government, politics, etc. The Sopranos, for as amazing as the writing is, doesn't really have much character development. Tony Soprano was already a fully complex character, and we simply saw the layers unfold. Walter White started moderately intriguing and he grew more complex over time. Jesse also had great character development, if not even better than Walt's in terms of relatability. Sopranos also doesn't have consistent storytelling; for instance, Dr. Melfi was told on various occasions in the early seasons that diagnosing Tony Soprano was a waste of time, because he's a psychopath. It wasn't until the final season that Dr. Melfi researched psychopaths, which makes no sense and was only done because the showrunners wanted a conclusion to the therapy arc. Breaking Bad has the edge in storytelling structure, cinematography, symbolism, foreshadowing, character development, and music design. There's a reason that over 10 years later, people are still actively discussing the themes and characters of Breaking Bad.

[@omarlittle1367]

@@Jeremy-jm3fe I agree with you on the issue of storytelling (although the aim of The Sopranos is not to entertain with a story full of suspense and twists) but I disagree that the Sopranos characters don't evolve. Their development is simply not as explicit as that of the Breaking bad characters. Breaking bad shows you directly how Walt and Jesse evolve. In The Sopranos the evolution of the characters is more implicit, more "refined" and also less spectacularized. In this regard, I invite you to read the book "The Sopranos and Philosophy: I kill therefore I am". Beyond the development, I think the characters in The Sopranos are better (more complex, more elaborate, more introspective) and I think the characters are really the strong point of a TV series. I'll give you some examples: Carmela Soprano vs Skyler: Carmela wins Livia Soprano vs Marie: Livia wins Chris moltisanti vs Jesse: IMO Chris wins Jhonny Sack vs Tuco: Jhonny wins Phil Leotardo vs Gus Fring: ok Gus wins XD Tony Blundetto vs Hank: Tony wins Junior Soprano vs Saul: it's a draw Adriana vs Jane: Adriana clearly wins Finally, as far as Tony and Walt are concerned, at an acting level it is a draw but personally I have always preferred Tony as a character, simply because I saw myself in some of his moods, in his anxieties and paranoia. Walt is a great character but I've never identified with him, I've always seen him as an "external" character. Ultimately, I think it's all a matter of personal taste. As far as I'm concerned I've always preferred sophisticated and complex dramas (I also prefer Mad Men to Breaking bad). And if I have to tell you which series struck me most of all and which in my opinion is really the best ever, I tell you The Wire.

[@iceburgslim2000]

Til dis Day we're stll makng up our Minds ....

[@hurley31]

Where does having a popular KZbin channel where spilling mob secrets is the main content fit in with Franzese's view of what is and isn't realistic for a wiseguy?

[@gregoryberrycone]

i think the way you keep describing the show as purposely "anti-climactic" is misleading. the show subverts tropes effectively and is consistently unpredictable, and i think many of the story arcs endings are so troubling and pessimistic that could be misinterpreted as anti climax when in facts they are just failing to give the audience the happy ending they might be after. the perfect example being the death of Adrianna, its definitely not anti climactic, but it could be seen as unsatisfying since the audience is very likely holding out hope she would escape with her life

[@debrachambers1304]

Breaking Bad is like The Godfather and The Sopranos is like Goodfellas & Donnie Brasco

[@aliensconfirmed3498]

No freakin way. The Sopranos is like all those movies combined. Captures the flashy lifestyle, the unpredictability and violence like Goodfellas. Captures the more mundane and sometimes miserable life of Donnie Brasco and then has the character depth, the grandeur themes and the overall writing and filmmaking quality of Godfather.

[@aliensconfirmed3498]

Comparing breaking bad to Godfather is particularly insulting. The Godfather is like the greatest achievement in 3 hours of motion picture. Breaking bad doesnt achieve nearly enough of what's possible in 60 hours.

[@debrachambers1304]

@@aliensconfirmed3498 I'm talking about how the Godfather is an epic story of corruption and badass hits and this single, highly intelligent man rising to power my outsmarting his enemies, which Breaking Baf also is. There are definitely differences in tone and style and execution, but here's no need to get huffy that someone could _even compare_ them. And The Sopranos doesn't capture the grandeur in the same way as The Godfather. It's pretty much the opposite if that tone. It's filled with anticlimaxes and doesn't have the operatic quality. Even though Tony rises to the top, life remains mundane and he has panic attacks he needs therapy for.

[@aliensconfirmed3498]

@@debrachambers1304 By grandeur themes I meant they both have themes of family, culture, loyalty, betrayal and possibly many more. Both are essentially tragedies and both in a way are about misery of human life. Sopranos doesn't have the same operatic feel but it's obvious. One of the themes in Sopranos in fact is the way these guys idolize the Godfather figures but how they and there lives are totally different. This is a great contrast too. But still in many ways Sopranos is much closer to Godfather than breaking bad. Micheal was good guy to begin with but was put into situation where he had to make sacrifice. Then gone through a lot which made him cold. Got into position of boss again due to circumstances and had to do things to fulfill his duty. Walter White was bitter and egoistic to begin with and caused most of the misery all by himself. I still hate the comparison.

[@laughman7357]

I felt that Walter was the antagonist from the beginning and I'm not saying that in hindsight. The first episode literally ends with him uh.. kinda forcefully engaging with his pregnant wife. It was obvious to me at that point that while this was a fascinating character and a stellar performance, he was a villain I could not identify with. BUT THATS JUST ME.

[@DuckieHawke]

Totally understandable!

[@MrNotaComedian]

UMM... the wire ?

[@DuckieHawke]

The Wire came out three years after The Sopranos. I was more-so making a point of The Sopranos being the start of pseudo realistic TV shows - so The Wire (at least aesthetically) is likely inspired (either directly or indirectly) by The Sopranos & it's success. As far as I understand it, The Wire is in the same league as a show like Oz (which is a show I referenced). I'm not saying The Sopranos is the absolute best show either, but it was the start of a trend. I haven't yet seen The Wire, but it's on the list!

[@milovarquiel]

Along with The Wire, The Sopranos and The Wire changed TV history forever. And that's why this video lacks context. The Wire that you're omitting, pushes along with The Sopranos the envelope much further than cable tv could ever achieved.

[@DuckieHawke]

Really, it's all about how you precieve it. This video isn't a retrospective about television, it is merely an analysis of The Sopranos - so I would argue it does contain context. Yes, I mentioned the show within the context of TV at the time at the start of the video, but that more of a framing device - because I more-so set out to analyse the show specifically in terms of it's lasting influence within TV, as well as the aspects that make it work. As I precieve it - The Wire came out three years after The Sopranos. I was more-so making a point of The Sopranos being the start of pseudo realistic TV shows - so The Wire (at least aesthetically - and regardless of it's influence) is likely inspired (either directly or indirectly) by The Sopranos & it's success; just like if Oz hadn't have been successful, then there likely would never have been The Sopronos in the first place. I'm not saying The Sopranos is the absolute best show either, but just that it was the start of a trend. I haven't yet seen The Wire either, but it's on the list!

[@milovarquiel]

@@DuckieHawke I do agree with you in some points. And you raise a good observation, The Wire came three years after The Sopranos. It's just that in my personal opinion, The Wire raised the bar more in realism in television. Thanks for the reply, I liked your video and seeing your answer gives more context to what you presented. The Sopranos is GOAT nonetheless.

[@DuckieHawke]

@@milovarquiel No problem! I'll have to put time aside and watch The Wire eventually, to see how it stacks up against The Sopranos!

[@aliensconfirmed3498]

It's really good video but I hated the comparison between Fly episode and Sopranos. Fly is genuinely bad episode. Nothing much happens in it on either plot level or story level or even characters and neither does it feature good enough dialogue scenes. The only parallel here with Sopranos is that not much happens on plot level.

[@abdulazizmerdad4093]

Nah fly is an amazing episode

[@KOTEBANAROT]

The hell are you talking about? Its one episode where walt loses his guard and candidly talks about his regrets, his internal struggles, him trying to reconcile and understand why he does the things he does. Its an amazing episode.

[@aliensconfirmed3498]

@@KOTEBANAROT Too much unnecessary and boring screenplay to arrive at that. Better screenwriting would achieve same storytelling with may be 2-3 different scenes each less than 3 minutes and may be add even more layers to it. Calling this episode great is like calling every movie that acts serious as great or every actor who can make serious face as great.

[@TheScott21385]

Honestly its not realistic at all. Those in the "mafia" are bottom of the barrel now a days. Like the people who couldn't make it.

[@DuckieHawke]

"The mafia being bottom of the barrel nowadays" doesn't necessarily mean that the show is unrealistic. If anything, that sentiment - if true - would make The Sopranos more realistic as a result, due to the constant conversations throughout the show that make reference to the mob's loss of power

[@TheScott21385]

@@DuckieHawke i liked the video. Good theory, and explanation. It just today, and in the Sopranos days the FBI and NSA were all over it. Most made men in real life during the Sopranos run were incompetent and couldn't figure out a way to make money. It was a great show and i watched it many time, but it just wasn't realistic. Again love the show, and im obviously watching your take on it.

[@DuckieHawke]

@@TheScott21385 I can totally see where you're coming from! I usually chalk that kind of subtext up to artistic liberties being taken for the sake of entertainment It's not 100% realistic when relating to the mob, it's more-so the character interactions that I find to be realistic - and how they're structured & framed

[@TheScott21385]

@@DuckieHawke it was a great show and changed the way premium TV shows were made. "The Wire" was made almost completely like the Sopranos the way it was shot, and put together. They didn't romanticize anything, and it was a bunch of separate shots/scenes put together to make a show, and a storyline make sense. The Sopranos did forever change premium TV. You can tell a difference between an HBO show, and basically any other show. Some other pay subscription shows try to imitate, but they dont even come close.

[@DuckieHawke]

@@TheScott21385 Having not seen The Wire yet, that was always my assumption about the show - since it was the first notable HBO show to come out after Oz & The Sopranos, so it was likely inspired by their success. Makes total sense!

[@Mostopinionatedmanofalltime]

What about Dallas? Just as good and important in my opinion.

[@BudDylan]

Funking spoiler

[@DuckieHawke]

Please refer to 0:01 in the video where there is a spoiler warning 😁

[@Hulkamania4eva]

Someone hasn’t seen The Wire

[@maxfieldnuckels9075]

Good show, but season 5 sucked the big one

[@LeJobastre1215]

The sopranos is still better

[@DuckieHawke]

Indeed I haven't. The Wire came out three years after The Sopranos, and I was more-so making a point of The Sopranos being the start of pseudo realistic TV shows - so The Wire (at least aesthetically) is likely inspired (either directly or indirectly) by The Sopranos & it's success. As far as I understand it, The Wire is in the same league as a show like Oz (which is a show I referenced). I'm not saying The Sopranos is the absolute best show, though either

[@mrcrackdonald_1]

@@DuckieHawke You should definitely watch it if you into layered, complex tv shows

[@DuckieHawke]

@@mrcrackdonald_1 I heard it can get pretty violent, that's why I've stayed away from it

[@iwillheadlockyournan731]

I definitely felt a concerted effort to make Gus Fring more sympathetic in series 4 (his origin story etc) in order to swap the protagonist/antagonist vibe with Walt. Great video nonetheless.

[@DuckieHawke]

Oh for sure, I totally agree! I pointed this out in the annotation at 4:44! Thanks, glad you enjoyed the video!

[@aliensconfirmed3498]

I don't think back stories are either necessary or sufficient to make characters sympathetic humans. Talking of Gus Fring, they did not humanize him in a really good way. The closest they come is I think through his immense hate for Hector which ultimately causes his doom. But other than that it's just all pretty simple and surface level. The protagonist antagonist swap also doesn't happen until possibly when we learn Walt was the one to poison the kid.