I have finally (Ithink) caught up with the story line so far,pending tonight’s episode which I think is a new one.
With all the chaos caused by what happened to Tony, I would like your opinions on what is gonna happen to Uncle Junior. I ask this because I haven’t seen much in the show addressing the issue.
Guess I should spoiler-box the rest:
[spoiler]In my understanding, you can’t just go out and shoot a made guy. Doesn’t matter what your position in the mob is, this requires a sit-down and approval. Even if you are yourself a made guy. So The Mummy pops a cap on Tony w/no approval. What do you think the story arc will be on this?
I understand, I think, that there would have to be approval before putting a bullet in his head, but will the mobsters go for this?
Again, it is just my understanding alone, but I don’t think the reasons matter (legit gripe, dementia, etc. You break the rules you pay. Period. [/spoiler]
In my opinion, it’s probably clear to all of Tony’s crew that Jr. has to go. Nothing has been done yet because Tony gets to say how, when, and where it’s done. (Plus, Jr. is currently protected by the government.) But eventually something has to be done.
My wild guess is that later in the season we’ll see what amounts to a mercy killing. Jr. will be mostly gone mentally. He’ll have only a few moments of lucidity between bouts of dementia. Tony will have a heartbreaking moment where he comes to terms with what has to be done. I think he’ll do it himself, and at that point it won’t have much to do with revenge at all.
I’m not able to make any speculations because this season has totally confounded my expectations so far.
However, regarding Junior, I don’t think anyone (besides A.J.) is planning to whack him, because (1) he’s in Federal custody, and practically impossible to reach; (2) he’s an old guy who’s losing his mind and will probably die soon anyway, and most importantly (3) Tony didn’t die.
All the other wiseguys seem more concerned about taking care of Carmella’s family, and taking care of business, and who’s gonna fill the breach if/when Tony kicks it. Nobody’s talked about whacking Junior so far (except A.J.) and if they were planning a move, I’m sure it would have been mentioned by now.
I think Junior has to die, besides shooting Tony he is a major liability now. He can spit out in his dementia all kinds of clues linking people to past activities. Nothing that would hold up in court, but avenues of investigation. If he has a lucid moment and realizes what he has done, he should follow the Omertà and commit suicide.
Mostly because David Chase has said the writers like writing for Junior, I expect Junior to be around for the long haul. He may have an accident or AJ could sneak up and kill him or he could be whisked off to the funny farm, but I don’t see a sanctioned hit in his future.
He’s a kind of glue for the whole blood-family (and in-laws) dynamic, providing what Livia would be doing if she were still alive. Next to Tony dying off, Junior would make the biggest difference among the men. Carmela’s death would likewise sink the show. Almost anybody else could get killed, or die naturally, and things could continue.
It has occurred to me that the writers know we’re expecting a big slaughter as the series winds down, and they’re either clever enough or sadistic enough not to let it happen as we would anticipate.
Kinda like the masochist saying “hurt me” and the sadist replying “no.”
I think AJ will make an attempt on Junior. I don’t know if it will be successful. Either way, it puts Tony in a huge bind–on the one hand, Junior is a made guy and the former titular boss, and there are ways these things have to be done. On the other hand, Junior had it coming, and AJ is the boss’s son and has a legit beef. It’s a natural extension of the family vs. “Family” theme they’ve explored from the beginning.
Remember–Tony’s speech to AJ about trusting your family came just one episode after Tony had to take out a cousin who was like a brother to him, after he just about tore the organization apart by protecting him. Tony has repeatedly made the assertion that family are the only ones you can trust throughout the series, despite his family screwing him over left and right–his mother, Uncle Junior, Janice (every chance she gets), Christopher (who has fucked up so many times and in so many ways that it’s a miracle he’s still around), Tony B. The natural progression for the big climax would be to bring this even closer.
Why does AJ want to whack Junior anyway? It should be as obvious to him as to everybody else (except Junior himself) that Junior never meant to hurt Tony, that he thought Tony was somebody else, because he is losing his mind, and, at the time of the shooting, he didn’t even know what year it was.
I like Zeldar’s explanation. The writers have to realize most people are expecting a swift and violent payoff, and as such, they’ll probably go a different route.
(B) My assumption is the family didn’t know exactly how far gone Junior was. When last we saw Tony pre: hospital, he was passed out on the floor of Junior’s kitchen, presumably unconscious. No one may realize that Junior thought he was someone else.
This is the last season, so anything goes. Everyone expects Tony to die, but since David Chase likes to confound expectations, Tony will probably survive. (On the other hand, since everyone expects Tony to survive, because David Chase will confound our natural expectation that he will die…well…you SEE why I’m not trying to predict what’s gonna happen???)
Carmela will probably survive, because there’s no reason for her to get popped. The kids, and the other gangsters, anything could happen. Christopher will probably make it out alive, because he’s the natural heir apparent for “Sopranos II”, if HBO decides to make a sequel series without Chase. (I’ve heard nothing about anything like that, but you know they are talking about it…)
Funny thing about last week’s show. When Carmella was talking in the cafeteria about Tony being in a coma, and now Silvio’s in the hospital, and she says: “What the hell is going on around here?” I shouted at the TV: “IT’S THE LAST SEASON! DUH!!”
I think even the mob understands that Jr isn’t mentally competent, and therefore they’ll hold no animosity towards him for shooting Tony. And I’ll bet Tony won’t either.
The other issue of Jr’s dementia causing him to give up information to the feds is far more interesting. Now that he’s in custody, it’s a big problem. Before, all the feds could do is examine him in court under very strict questioning, with a lawyer present, and where any evidence against the family could get tossed due to Jr.s mental state.
But if he’s in custody, committed to a hospital or home under protection of the feds, they can just ‘chat’ with him and get him to cough up all kinds of things like the location of bodies etc. That makes him dangerous to the mob.
I wouldn’t be surprised to see an episode coming up in which someone tries to get at Junior. I also wouldn’t be surprised if the attempt fails violently, and Junior becomes a key figure in bringing down parts of the mob.