About a year or so ago, I stopped watching the Sopranos about midway through the 4th season. It was kind of starting to slow down. Now don't get me wrong, it was still prime stuff as far as TV was concerned but from prior seasons it was kind of losing its grip on me. So I popped in the final disc of Season 4 and finished it up. It ended with a cliffhanger of course, and I was immediately stricken with withdrawals. So a friend gave me the season 5 discs and off I went. I watched the entire 5th season in one weekend. That's how glued I was to this thing again. "Just when I thought I was out, they pull me back in."
So with Season 5 a bunch of new mobsters are released from the joint including Robert Loggia and Steve Buscemi. They all try to reintegrate themselves into the gangster lifestyle, some with varying degrees of success. Since this is essentially like reviewing a 13 hour movie, I'm gonna speed through this. The newbies cause Tony all sorts of new issues, and his cousin, Buscemi's issues ultimately play out till the season finale. Tony and his wife separate in this season and sample the single life only to find that because of the family business they can't really do anything but stay together by seasons end. Its all very sad really and I must say that this season is the by far the darkest. Tony's life is fractured to the point of almost disrepair. The series really does not pull many punches this time out. Tough decisions are made and all though Tony tries to be a nicer person about it, he knows that in the end he must resort to his old ways. Change is tough, and especially when your family's life depends on it. The series has become quite an epic tragedy. Watching it all at once, I felt like I had just finished a very satisfying novel.
Creator David Chase got his second wind this season. And from my perspective it was quite a page turner. I was hooked. I know season 6 and 7 are several years away, but I can't wait. I'm having withdrawals already. But I am ready for something a little lighter after that 13 hour marathon. After all is said and done with The Sopranos, creator David Chase will have created one of the most genius and innovative series to ever grace the screen. Its epic in nature and hopefully can continue for many years to come.
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