Absolutely. Sorry I left him out. The Big One. And I agree that the writers can’t have overlooked the potential in such a return.
I think he’s pretty much run his course.
Furio - 90%
Svetlana - 20%
Tony B’s kids - 50% (people might wonder what happened to him, including his family, but they might not actually show the family again.)
Devin - 60% (they might just forget about her)
Finn - 20% (I think it’s unlikely he’ll be reappearing.)
Feech - 20% (unlikely - they put him back in jail and I suspect he’ll be there for a long time.)
Frank Sinatra, Jr. - probably never, just a cameo
David Lee Roth - ditto
Paulie’s Mom - such a minor character, who knows?
Tony’s other sister - again, no evidence one way or the other
I don’t think they’ll bring the Russian back because David Chase himself said “I don’t think we’ll be seeing him again.” He knows that everyone thinks he’s coming back, on the other hand, so Chase may take a cue from the fans and do something clever with it.
Artie and Charmaine seem like they have a tense relationship as it is. I don’t really see Tony and Charmaine hooking up. Tony knows better than to mess with women who are close friends of the family and well-connected among Tony’s own peers (too much gossip.)
Who will be Christopher’s next squeeze? A series of hookers probably. I don’t think he’s ready to get involved in a relationship again - how the hell could he ever trust a woman after what happened to Adriana?
Will Angie Bonpensiero learn the truth about Pussy?
I doubt it.
What will be Uncle Junior’s next big move?
Florida?
Will Meadow get a job at the Bing?
Hopefully!
Nobody Knows Anything in Season 1. Tony goes to the nursing home and asks the lady who runs it to pass on to Livia that “her house sold; they accepted the counter-offer”. This is the final straw for Livia. She calls Junior, tells him that Tony’s been going behind his back and sets off the events of the end of the season.
However, when we come back in Season 2, there’s a scene in the first (I think) episode where Tony and Carmella are being shown around Livia’s house by an estate agent who tells them that because of the vandalism she “can’t sell the house in this condition”.
There’s no dialogue I remember that indicates that the sale fell through. If, when planning Season 2, the writers realised that they’d really like to keep Livia’s house around after all then it wouldn’t have been difficult to put in a few lines of dialogue in an early episode to that effect - the sale fell through. But there’s nothing at all.
The only explanation really is, they messed up. Which is rare for the Sopranos.
Wasn’t Finn in the last episode? Or has it been so long I have forgotten?
We’ve watched AJ go from a fat sullen little kid to a fat sullen adolescent. My least favourite character. I’d say his real life legal troubles say speak less to method acting than fat sullen rich and famous adolescent. As for Meadow, there’s nothing more irritating than a hot, rich 20 year old girl. I wanna see Carmella triumph. Mmmmmm…Carmella.
Well done, Argent Towers. I like your thinking.
One thing to say about Uncle Junior: in a fairly recent interview on Fresh Air Chase responded to Terry’s question about which character the writers liked to write for best and without a beat he said “Junior.”
Based on that tidbit, I suspect Junior will get up to something dumb just so they can have him saying those deliciously funny lines. Steve Schirippa (Bacala) had similar things to say in one of his books, and they seem to work well as a duo. Maybe the glory days are passed for them, but they just have to get humor from somewhere and Junior’s still got the chops for it.
You rated Furio’s return pretty high, and I think the unfulfilled Carmela thing might be made to work for an episode or two, just for the sparks.
Now. Here’s a really speculative idea. Suppose that AJ does get into some serious trouble. How do you rate the likelihood it will be:
- A hit
- A hijacking
- Some gambling venture
- Teen gang activities
- A drunken binge/drug problem
- A really bad paper route
Thanks much for this! That’s basically how I remember what we learned.
I remember him being in The Test Dream (Episode 63 of 65) but only as part of that wacky (long!) dream sequence. It’s been a while for me, too, so I could be wrong on that.
AJ hasn’t got what it takes for violent activities. I suspect that he may well be involved with drug dealing, and possibly gambling. AJ is no longer “fat and sullen” by the end of the 5th season, he’s not only better-looking but also seems to be rather popular. I wouldn’t be surprised if he starts up some of his own entreprenurial activities.
Furio ain’t leaving Naples; he may have never done anything with Carmela, but Tony’s going to make sure nothing ever does. Capiche?
Svetlana’s a good bridge character to introduce “wrinkles,” so I wouldn’t be at all surprised if she turns up.
I have no Earthly idea what Tony B.'s kids would do if they turned up.
Devin may be a “motivating factor” in A.J.'s descent into OC, but as Tony himself pointed out (in season 2, IIRC, to Dr. Melfi) A.J. doesn’t have the smarts or savvy to be an OG OC.
Finn? Something w/Meadow? Definitely a strong possibility. I can see Meadow and Finn taking off for the west coast and Meadow putting Jersey and Tony behind her forever.
Feech? Back in slam? He wasn’t out long enough to really get to know too much about Tony’s operation, and the way he was set up to go back in, it looked totally like “bad luck, bad timing,” so I doubt he has enough of a grudge to settle against Tony to flip, unless he starts to feel the grim specter of death in prison and wants to retire to sunny Arizona in exchange for testimony against Tony.
Frank Jr. and D. L. Roth were just “color.” They may return to provide same.
Dunno about Tony’s other sister (can’t remember her name offhand).
If Charmaine hooked up with Tony, it would be so out-of-character for her as to really blow a chunk of the show for me.
Since Artie’s no longe rmarried to her, I can see him maybe edging a little closer to Tony’s way-of-life than Charmaine ever permitted him; but, like A.J., Artie ain’t cut out for “the life,” and any involvement with Tony’s business will only bring Artie grief.
I think Angie Bonpensiero already knows what happened to Pussy.
Uncle Junior’s arc could be very interesting this season. As long as he isn’t really losing his marbles.
Silvio would never, ever, under any circumstances, let Meadow work in any club he owns.
Ya know, I’m on my 3rd or 4th go-around with this series and it never disappoints (well, maybe season four). Every time through, I pick up on something new, particularly the subplots. The dialog is priceless, the acting terrific, and the storylines an example of how good TV writing can be.
In the trailer for the next season, Finn is shown a few times, indicating that Finn and Meadow’s engagement will be a part of the show. Whether they will pull off a wedding is anyone’s guess. I’m thinking no.
Also, just guessing from the trailers, Paulie’s mom may die – they show him crying. I can’t think of anything else that would make Paulie cry.
Some interesting actors also look like they will be showing up, including Ben Kingsley and Hal Holbrook. Just the glimpses of these actors bring up intriguing possibilities.
Ben Kingsley was quite impressive in Sexy Beast and it might be fun to have some British gang involvement along the lines of the Russians already shown. There’s also the possibility that some “Middle Eastern” underworld activities could play some part in new ventures for Tony’s operations.
Hal Holbrook has been effective in nasty roles as far back as Eastwood’s Sudden Impact but his characters tend to be WASP types who have hidden agendas. The “Deep Throat” role in All The President’s Men may be a counterpoint to that category, but I would imagine Holbrook in a public official role (judge, senator, cabinet member) as opposed to a mob figure.
Whether it makes plot sense or not, I wouldn’t like to see Meadow go through with a marriage to Finn. Maybe Finn’s relationship with Vito could be expanded. 
I have never liked Paulie’s mom. Bad acting. Unsympathetic character. In fact, the best thing she’s done was being on the other end of the phone call Ralph had where he spun the yarn about Paulie and the gerbil.
I read a rumor somewhere (no cite, but likely TWoP) that the gang might be getting involved with the financing of a movie in some way and that Kingsley would be playing himself as being attached to this movie project…sort of like Jon Favreau’s appearance.
Thanks for the info.
I’ve seen the entire run of this show, but I still have one question… what’s up with Dr. Melfi’s psychiatrist (Dr. Elliot Kupferberg)? Is he also working for the FBI, or is the guy in the FBI meetings his twin brother?
Hmmm…George Loros (the little-seen, wired-by-the-Justice-Dept. Raymond Curto) doesn’t look that much like Peter Bogdonavich (Dr. Kupferburg), does he?
Hmmm…maybe a little.
I’m not sure if George Loros is the guy I’m referring to. There’s a guy in the FBI meetings who doesn’t seem to be an informant, he seems more like he’s running the meeting. IIRC he wears glasses too. (I don’t have the DVDs anymore, but maybe I can scrounge up a screen capture tonight.)
The best photo of Frank Pellegrino I could find has some neat bio data about him. There is a striking resemblance among these three actors, enhanced at times by the right angles and/or lighting. I just hadn’t noticed it before. Good catch, Mr2001 and nice try, fiddlesticks.