The Sopranos 2x11 Reaction

The joke at the hospital that nobody got was a very obscure reference: Herbert Marshall McLuhan was a philosopher and very noted media theorist in the mid-20th century, known as the "father of media studies". He was publicly known as just Marshall McLuhan, without his first name. So when a US Marshal whose last name is McLuhan escorts Junior to the doctor, they were laughing at how his name and title meant he was actually "Marshal McLuhan". Junior is consistently the person who most clearly and directly sees right through Janice. Even Tony, who from the very beginning knew that she was after something when she appeared at the beginning of the season, underestimates just how much she wants or what angle she's playing. Before he got outmaneuvered by Tony, I imagine he was always the person who could read everybody else's intentions. That's probably how he managed to survive so long in this game.

“Don’t give me your fucking Manson Lamps” what Tony is meaning by that is there was a serial killer called Charles Manson who was all round a creepy guy and lamps is just a term for eyes there for Manson lamps which is what suits Richie perfectly

hey guys, can you pllllease react to the Sopranos movie, Many Saints of Newark, after you’re done with the show!?

The Guy with uncle junior is Bobby Baccalieri or Bobby bacala

Love the ending of this episode. The crew in full formation, Tony talking sports with the FBI, Pussy going back inside at the sight of the agents. The ending song with the camera pulling back. A moment of simple serenity where all problems are out of sight and out of mind. Next episode will be fun.

Melfi and the other therapist is, in a way, a stand-in for us, the audience. We're horrified by the things we see, but we can't stop watching. To me, this episode alongside the last three is why I find The Sopranos so refreshing compared to most shows. I'm reminded of a comment Lola said in the pilot about how she didn't expect Tony to find out what the ducks meant to him so soon. This show doesn't extend a single plotline through multiple episodes as often as it would just let one episode's plot organically lead to the next. Here's an example. Ep 8: Matt and Sean shoots Christopher Ep 9: Tony kills Matthew in response Ep 10: Matthew's death pays off and led to Tony's looming anxiety about his potential arrest Ep 11: An "epilogue" to the mini-story as Tony's legal problem subside and he has to lay low This "mini-arc" is different than what you usually see on other TV shows. There is no single, escalating conflict, but rather a series of them that feed organically off one another. Each episode, feeding off the plotline that more or less pivots around Matthew Bevilaqua, presents Tony with a new, unique conflict that lets us see how he handles a variety of situations. Tony responds to the potential loss of someone he loved with brutal vengeance. He then faced the possibility of facing the consequence of his actions with terror. Finally, we see him responding to the regularness of life with depression, boredom, and finally leading to a panic attack. As for Junior, it's interesting to see another "what if?" scenario with him as a happily married man instead of the lonely mob life he chose to get into. Livia tries to ruin Catherine for him by telling him that Johnny felt her up once but Junior's having none of it.

Uncle Jun is such a cartoon character

This is an example of a type of episode the show wouldn't have done in the first season. People complained about less action and less flashy plot beats when season 2 was originally airing and the show doubled down on it. Felt like a Sopranos version of a Seinfeld episode where that's the show known for 'nothing happens'. Junior's plot line comments on Tony's well. He's in an actual house arrest and is forced to slow down in a way Tony isn't and something nice happened to him. Tony had a quiet scene in the very first episode of the season where he's alone with Carmela after Melfi rejects him and he had a chance to connect with her more and talk and he just doesn't communicate with her. It kind of deconstructs Melfi's words in therapy as Junior didn't really engage in deeper self-reflection and Tony has had opportunities but also didn't engage in it as well. There's something more to do than just: "have time and think" even if it's an important step.

I love how Junior is still pining for Roberta (the woman he pied in the face). He torpedoed a 16 year relationship with "the best piece he ever had" to save a miniscule amount of face when he's already the fake boss and facing trial to boot. These guys just can't help being self-destructive.

Janice is very good at appearing scatterbrained and innocent while she is manipulating people to do what she wants. She's definitely like Livia in that way.

Its interesting to see how the dynamic between Tony and Melfi is affecting one another in different ways lol for Tony, therapy might be a wasted on time but he sort of realizes is the only places where he can vent about certain aspects of his life… for Melfi is the other way around.. she is getting affected negatively since she has an obsession with Tony’s life. It’s like a train wreck.. you know it’s horrible but yet you wouldn’t take your eyes off that spectacle because of sheer curiosity.

You’re spoiling us with this upload rate

As a non-smoker myself who cannot stand cigarette smoke, I'm fully on Melfi's side.

I had intended to keep pace with LM but I'm now in the middle of the 4th season :) The only problem with that is that there are now so many episodes for which I'm really looking forward to their reactions and reviews but I'll have to wait.