I Finally Watched The Sopranos finale

I know I'm a tad late to the party, but I've finally seen the much-talked-about Sopranos' series finale. I also managed to do so without having the ending spoiled. Needless to say, there is a tension that builds throughout the final episodes, leading to an anticipation of Tony's imminent death and the downfall of the Sopranos crime family. In the final scene, with at least one conflict resolved, writer/director David Chase builds the tension even more ...

Like most viewers I'm sure, the seconds following the cut to black constituted a "what the -" reaction, followed by two re-watches. Realizing that this was the ending and not a technical glitch, I took to the internet to find a few theories. And a few theories there are - the cut to black means Tony dies or Tony actually died in the previous episode and this one is all a dreama dream. Similarly, that last scene is all a dream and Tony's "Last Supper."

But I reject the Tony death theory, as well a the similar dream ones. The Sopranos has frequently shown Tony dream sequences and established its own "dream language" - and these were not along those lines. As for the "Tony dies" hoopla - Hillary and I discussed it and came up with our own theory - "life goes on."

David Chase is a smart guy, who over the past ten years has been changing the nature of television with this show. It is doubtful who would conform to the audience's standards of finale expectations with an all-conclusive ending. That is not what this show is about anyway. He certainly plays with tension in this scene - the stress of Meadow trying to park, Tony's hyper-awareness (and subsequently ours) of everyone in the diner. Seeing as how just a day before he was in hiding, one could imagine Tony still being a tad tense, and thus viewing strangers with at least a certain degree of suspicion.

The Sopranos is not concerned with television or how things are expected to end, and while the show leaves many questions unanswered, it does leave us with the simple message that life - through good times and bad - must go on. In that dinner conversation, AJ reminds Tony of when he said "focus on the good times." This is an allusion to season one's finale - which finds the family simply sharing a simple, yet significant family dinner together. In this final scene, we see that shows heart lies not within the mafia, but within the family.

And, so, life keeps going - AJ is settled at a new job, though probably still prone to fits of depression; Meadow is engaged; Tony and Carmela are getting along; the threat on Tony's life has been temporarily removed than an indictment seems near. In life, there are good times and bad, friends come and go. But, it does keep going - unlike television. And so, Chase asks us to "focus on the good times."