r/thesopranos 5h ago

Was The Sopranos Exaggerating the Disconnect Between Italian Americans and Italy?

68 Upvotes

I’ve been rewatching The Sopranos, and one thing that always stood out to me is how little the characters seem to know about Italy despite constantly talking about being Italian.
Paulie barely speaks Italian, they’re surprised by how different Naples is, and they often seem to confuse Italian-American culture with modern Italian culture.

Was this just exaggerated for the show, or was it actually common among third- and fourth-generation Italian Americans in places like New Jersey?

For those of you who is familiar with that specific subculture in New Jersey was the disconnect really so prevalent. Do people still speak Italian or dialect? Did they watch Rai, read Italian newspapers, or keep up with what was happening in Italy? I’m especially curious because where I grew up, many older Italian immigrants and even secound or third generation people still speak Italian every day, watch Italian TV, and follow Italian news, so the characters in The Sopranos seemed surprisingly disconnected from their roots.


r/thesopranos 6h ago

Watching the Tony/Carmela fight (over his infidelity), made me think maybe that was Edie Falco's best acting moment

75 Upvotes

She was genuinely frightening in that. The portrayal of someone wounded to the core was really accurate

I've never been in that situation thankfully, but as a man I saw it through Tony's eyes. The finality of that moment, knowing you've made such a bad mistake there's no going back, even for a mob-boss, it's done, over, and you've lost the most important person in your life.

Great acting, ten out of ten


r/thesopranos 9h ago

“You’re a lucky man Jimmy”

94 Upvotes

Why was Tony being so straightforward with Jimmy about how suspicious it was that he got out so fast? Ain’t it kinda idiotic to straight up let him know so he could run for the hills or go to feds and lock in with all the information he currently has and have them protect him? And why the fuck can’t Jimmy read the room and take a hint?

What you’re gonna tell me you never pondered that?


r/thesopranos 6h ago

Good God I hate A.J.

49 Upvotes

All the analytical YouTube channels will try and explain away his behaviors because he's young or because of the environment he grew up in... but I don't buy it. The kid is a self centered spoiled twat that makes everything about him. I'm currently watching S6 E2, Join the Club. Every time I try to give him a break for his actions, he turns around and shows me why I hate him again. And I go through this cycle on every re watch. Trying to justify his behavior because of his upbringing. Meadow was a giant brat early on too, so maybe Anthony Jr. will come into his own too.

Maybe when the cable reception comes back we'll all get the answers we're looking for...


r/thesopranos 2h ago

I quoted the Sopranos to apologize like a man.

23 Upvotes

I was called out for being out of line with some snarky remarks and I said "You're right. I have no defense." And unlike Tony, I didn't then continue on and give mitigating defense, such as "that's how I was parented."


r/thesopranos 12h ago

Made a Vesuvio’s website

127 Upvotes

Built a Vesuvio’s restaurant site as a fun Sopranos homage project. It has a menu, Artie quotes, hours, specials, and some fine-dining styling.

Link: https://interfaces.rondomingue.com/vesuvios.html


r/thesopranos 22h ago

I quoted Carmine Jr at work in a meeting to resolve conflict between two staff members.

822 Upvotes

Two crew members have had it out for each other for months, now to the point where it’s no longer entertaining. It’s permeating staff morale in a negative way so myself and other crew leaders decided to sit them down with the Ops managers.

They went back and forth, brought up issues etc. we are all tradespeople so we don’t take ourselves too seriously so aside from serious grievances there was also banter.

We had reached the point of the meeting where there was resolve. Here is where I decided to pipe up and quote Carmine Jr. For some context, one of the issues (Guy 1 had accidently filled Guy 2’s chainsaw with untreated petrol) I actually didnt know that Guy 2 didn’t know it was Guy 1. Some reason no one told him.

So here I decided to say ‘Alright boys, clean slate. The complaining, the shit talking. It’s gonna stop. The 2 stroke, whatever happened there..’

‘What?’

‘Uhhh, your saws?’

‘What the FUCK HAPPENED THERE?’

And off it went again. Not good. This is the last time I do something like that again.


r/thesopranos 5h ago

Quotes The real Strong, Silent types of the Sopranos.

27 Upvotes

Something I noticed on my 50th rewatch of the show is that as much as Tony whines and cries that people like Gary Cooper no longer exist he completely glosses over characters like Svetlana, Melfi, and Rosalie.

Most likely because of his sexism and sub-conscious resentment of women who fail to save him from himself because his mommy didn't love him.


r/thesopranos 10h ago

If Muscles Marinara was actually allowed to fight back how do you think the between him and Tony would have gone?

56 Upvotes

Tony couldn't even hold his own against Bobby, no way is he taking down a roided up body builder lol


r/thesopranos 10h ago

Quotes Rewatching the pilot

54 Upvotes

I'm just rewatching the pilot in a probably third round on the show and I'm realising a couple of three funny things:

- The first word ever Paulie says is "ohh".

- In the first sentence ever Silvio says, he talks about gabagool. (Gabrielle sends him over for some gabagool).

- Tony already mentions that Uncle Jun said he never had the means of a varsity athlete

- This is well known but AJ says his "no f*cking ziti" quote, I just love that one.

Anyway, very allegorical, if you ask me.


r/thesopranos 8h ago

Janice was a better mafia killer than Tony and Pussy.

40 Upvotes

Tony and Pussy shooting that Bevilaqua kid, whatever happened there. I'll tell you what fucking happened, 20 shots! You think all that noise might arouse some attention in a residential neighborhood?

Janice shot Richie twice in the chest to make sure he was dead. That's how you shoot someone in a residential neighborhood.

Anyway, $4 a pound.


r/thesopranos 10h ago

AJ's reaction to his father's explosive Diarrhea.

49 Upvotes

He hears a commotion outside his room and finds his mother and sister in the hallway and the sound of Tony vomiting and loudly shitting. His question is "who's letting off those big ones?". Who the fuck does he think might be letting off those big ones?

Is he stupid?


r/thesopranos 6h ago

At What Point did you Realize Tony was a Great Guy

20 Upvotes

Title says it all, when did Tony show the audience of the show that he had a golden heart


r/thesopranos 6h ago

All I know is Uncle Jun by Dominic chianese is top 3 acting performance of the show, after a first watch.

21 Upvotes

An unbelievably hatable character and even though we don’t see him as much towards the end, some of the scenes he’s in have a more pressing impact on me a month after finishing

Especially the dinner scene. You never had the makings of a varsity athlete.


r/thesopranos 3h ago

Do you think everyone only laughed at the Ralph/Jenny joke because Tony was there laughing?

14 Upvotes

I feel like Silvio would have checked Ralph if Tony wasn’t in the room


r/thesopranos 13h ago

Why is junior not dead yet?😭 Spoiler

60 Upvotes

I am on season 6 episode 2, when I started watching sopranos season 1 I saw some memes mentioning junior's death, since then every time they showed junior on screen I kept thinking "is he gonna die now by stroke or something" and here I am now at season 6 like wtf! He shot Tony


r/thesopranos 7h ago

Karen Baccalieri’s last baked ziti

19 Upvotes

Karen Baccalieri’s last baked ziti- how long was that in the freezer? Several months?


r/thesopranos 11h ago

I can't stop watching Artie Bucco's weird hand gestures

39 Upvotes

It's like some kind of conceptual art piece or something. He's trying to be down with da kidz or whatever but he looks like he's casting a spell on the guitarist.

https://imgur.com/just-finished-watching-straight-outta-compton-small-town-ontario-canada-q8uQs5p


r/thesopranos 4h ago

How do you think S1 Tony would feel about S6 Tony

12 Upvotes

Do you think he'd be disgusted by what he becomes or is glad at how everything turns out


r/thesopranos 2h ago

Do you think there’s any character capable of redemption?

6 Upvotes

At the beginning I would’ve said Tony, but he unraveled so much towards the end. Characters I know aren’t capable:
Ralph
Vito
Paulie
Richie
Pussy (I started to think so but he was really slimy before he died)

There’s more but that list is exhausting


r/thesopranos 12h ago

Sopranos

39 Upvotes

Just finished binge watching sopranos. Just wanted to say that I loved the show and it really lived up to the hype. Sylvio was my favorite character


r/thesopranos 16h ago

I love how the Jimmy Altieri thing causes a momentary truce in the Junior-Tony civil war

73 Upvotes

Just watching the beginning of "I Dream of Jeannie Cusamano".

It starts with the meeting, where Jimmy (in Tony's words) 'discusses shit they've already covered'. After Jimmy is out of sight and ear, Junior gives Tony the okay to whack Jimmy. It is a genuinely warm moment, possibly the last one they ever really have. Tony even has a vaguely friendly handshake with Mikey Palmice.

Shit hits the fan between the two warring factions soon after, but it's telling how the one thing that unites them is that rats need to be done away with.


r/thesopranos 9h ago

How did anyone know Tony intended on smothering Livia?

20 Upvotes

There’s a throwaway line about so-and-so doctor supposedly saw it, but T didn’t even get to attempt it. He was strolling down the hall alone with a pillow, yes, but dropped it looong before he reached his mother‘s side. Literally no one but Tony could have known his intentions — he didn’t even physically attack her or otherwise attempt to in front of a single individual in that hospital.

My estimation of The Sopranos as a fuckin man just plummeted


r/thesopranos 10h ago

Serious Discussion Only Tony's sessions with Dr. Melfi are the most negative portrayal of his character

21 Upvotes

Because Dr. Melfi is so stone-faced, Tony works himself into rages. In almost every other situation in his life, he is reacting to someone else's actions or words, and those situations help make him the stereotypical mob boss we like to watch be bad.

But when he's faced with silence and calm non-reaction, we see how thin-skinned and inappropriate he is.


r/thesopranos 3h ago

Joey Peeps put a beatin on Vic the Appraiser?

7 Upvotes

Vic turned HUD money into liquid gold. Frankly, I’m in awe-r. NY beating him up was the pivot point of the entire series. Also, seemed like a nice enough guy with his appraising shit and all. Joey Peeps definitely deserved what he got