"Man, I have been dying for a Satriale's Chicken Parm." -Fed Agent

Best line of the show

Not to nitpick, but it was veal parm.

Unfortunately, Tony getting shot wasn't a surprise to me, since f*cking CNN showed the clip this morning before I had a chance to watch the show. I just happened to flip by as it was shown, so I had no warning whatsoever. I was waiting for it throughout the episode, and after the hanging, it was obvious it was going to be Uncle Junior.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Michael Ballack

Not to nitpick, but it was veal parm.

Good catch, I always watch these episodes two are three times during the week to catch all the little funny lines, as you can see what happens when I quote them after watching it once.

Exactly...The only thing would be if Sylvio could keep Chris in check.

Good season opener, but i have a q. Tony said that the NY crew has 200 soldiers. How many does NJ have? Have they ever told us?

Speaking of how fat Tony is getting, does anyone else get the feeling that James Gandolfini is not really that fat right now and that he is wearing a "fat suit". I just had that feeling, considering how many times that at least emphasized his weight gain. I would be sure getting thin (maybe as part of recovery) was in the story line if that other hugely fat guy wasn't losing weight as well.

Despite living on Staten Island, I'm not totally familiar with mob hieracrchy. However, Sylvio isn't really a captain, he's Tony's consigliore. So, wouldn't a captain need to take over the family, like Chris, Vito, Bobby, or Paulie? Larry Barese is still under house arrest, but what about Ally-Boy Barese or Carlo Gervasi? Are they captains too? There used to be a "family tree" of the crew somewhere on the web, but I can no longer find it.

Fantastic season opener last night. Loved everything about it.

Yeah Syl is the "Tom Hagen" of the family, but i think he did get made captain in Season 2 around the same time as Pauly. I think it was at that dinner where they had the conversation about passing up a past character and keeping an eye on him. I think that was how it happened.

I believe that Christopher would have control as he is the only captain with shared blood with the boss …. plus it makes a lot better TV.

Who is Carlo Gervasi?

IIRC, Junior is still technically "boss" of the family even while under house arrest by the government. Tony is the underboss of the family while making the big decisions (i.e., who gets made, who splits the profits in their joint venture with the NY family run by Sack).

You are correct that Sylvio is the consigliore of the family which makes him third in command. However, that doesn't automatically make him the "boss" if Tony is taken out.

Carmine Lupertazzi once referred to the NJ family as a "glorified crew" so I can't imagine that they have more than 20-25 soldiers.

I think i was wrong about Syl being a captain after doing some research. And i may be misinterpretting the above comment but Christopher doesn't really have shared blood with Tony. I can't remember exactly but i think the only "real" familty ties they have is that Chris is Carm's second cousin. The nephew title is more out of affection. Though i still could see Chris becoming the acting boss.

Bite your tongue, mister.

"My Tony" looked positively resplendent last night. Resplendent! I say!

And yes, I was hanging on the edge of my seat last night during the weighing scene, hoping for the complete "full Tony." And had to contend myself with those snippets outside Satriale's where we got a refreshing blast of salt-n-pepper chest hair "cleavage." *fap, fap*

Were Gandolfini "losing weight" on one of those revolting fad diets of late, you would see it in his face first. Atkins freaks get a deep, deep groove along the nasolabial line that makes them look like concentration camp victims. Hot, it's not. Gandolfini isn't dieting.

I didn't even need to read the spoiler sites to know what the twist was long before the episode aired. An "ending you won't believe" could only mean one thing and bada bing, there it be. "What kin ya du?"

Plus, r-e-l-a-x, people. Tony ain't dead and there's no flashback season. Gandolfini is the centerpiece of the entire show. He's contracted through all 20 episodes. Did you not see the clip collage before the episode showing Tony edging through a crowd or throwing a (grand?) child in the air? This isn't some J.J. Abrams' "pull the rug out from under the audience because I've plotted myself into an impossible corner and can't get myself out" non-show. Let's clip this "Lost"-esque silly-ass speculation in the bud right the hell now. The last thing we need is for "The Sopranos" threads to turn into one of those nutjob wank-fests. Thank you very much.

You know how to start and end a post.

I really enjoyed the episode and was certainly on the edge of my seat the entire episode. My wife and I were both in shock after Tony got shot. I don't know why, but I found the whole failed home inspection piece to be a riot.

He hasn't had much of a role, but he appears from time to time. Last appearance was at Ray Curto's birthday party late in Season 5.

As for Sylvio, I remember when Tony and Paulie met at the statue of Lou Costello (mallomars comment) and Tony said that Paulie & Sylvio were now on the same level. This was after Big Puss came back in S2, and Tony still wasn't sure about him.

Tony was very close to Dickie Moltisanti, Chris' father. Since they were like brothers, that's where the nephew title is from.
I think that Chris' paternal grandmother is Carmella's father's sister, which would indeed make them second cousins. I think.

Not sure if this family tree can be considered as canon, but it shows that you are correct.

Link

Can I get a family tree break down? I didn't think Bobby was a captin. I thought he was just Juniors mouth piece?

I'm doing this off the top of my head so feel free to correct me.

Boss

Junior Soprano (retains the title even though he is still on trial)

Underboss

Tony Soprano (acting boss since Junior is under house arrest)

Consigliere

Sylvio Dante

Capos

1. Paulie Walnuts (not sure who he has under him though - maybe running Jimmy Altieri's old crew?)
2. Larry Barese (though his brother Albert is probably running the crew since Larry is in the can)
3. Ray Curto (RIP)
4. Vito Spatafore (runs the old Aprile crew)

Christopher said that he is a captain on last night's episode, but I don't ever recall him getting the bump.

I was thinking maybe Chris and Bobby got bumps to captain between seasons.

Bobby was made Captain between seasons 4 and 5 or maybe early in 5. I think it was because he married to Tony's sister.

Chris was not a Captain last season so it must have happened in the decade since season 5.

Chris got made acting captain in S4 when Pauly was in Prison. I think Tony made him a Captain sometime in S5.

i think chris got bumped after tony killed the captain that burned down the barn that killed the horse he loved and that one stripper who had a daughter that got too close