Soprano fans: Who was your favorite character?

[Shell Beau]

I loved Sylvio and Big Pussy. I didn't care for Uncle Jr., but I met him IRL and he was such a nice man.

I hated Paulie.

I have been catching some of the reruns on A&E.

[Shakespeare]

1. Tony and Silvio.

And Tony's mom, before she died, just for sheer evil wonderfulness.

[Shell Beau]

4. She was ruthless.

[Amerigo Vespucci]

16. Agree with all three of your choices...

...as an Italian, the "Mom Dynamic" was an interesting bit of psychology to me. There is definitely a role that the matriarch in an Italian family plays that is unique and on occasion over-the-top. Aside from the fact that the late Nancy Marchand was a great actress and played that role to perfection, I've seen the "Livia" thing in real life and up close. She NAILED it.

I remember TV Guide's article during the second season of the show. They gathered up a few real-life New Jersey wiseguys and asked them to rate the show for accuracy. The only major flaw they saw was that Michael Imperioli's character, Christopher, was "one for the trunk"...he'd already been given far too many chances and in the real world would already have been made part of some New Jersey landfill.

:rofl:

[Tommy_Carcetti]

2. Livia. One of my favorite all time television characters of all time.

"Go on, go on into the ham! And take the carving knife and stab me here--HERE! Because it will hurt me less than what you just said to me!"


RIP Nancy Marchand. A great character to go out on, though.

[Shell Beau]

6. I just couldn't like her. She was so damn mean.

She was good at that character though.

[Tommy_Carcetti]

10. That was what made her so great.

One of my favorite scenes was when Tony came back to the house after not speaking to her for a year. He first tries to brush her off, but then he just lashes out at her. And she starts to put on a guilt trip and starts to cry. Tony gets fed up and storms out the door, but while he's going down the steps, he trips. And you can see Livia shift from her crying to a smile and a laugh, and then goes back to crying when Tony turns around. Truly a sociopath!

[Shell Beau]

12. Yes, I remember that episode. She tried to have him offed for

chrissakes.

[kwassa]

21. The Sopranos became a great deal less without Livia.

Nothing beats that first season, with Livia. Incredible character. The mother as monster. Marchand used to play high-society types, and completely changed gears, convincingly, for this.

Tommy Carcetti in "The Wire" was pretty good, too.

[Tommy_Carcetti]

31. I know, I got a kick out of the fact that...

the actress who played the Mayor on "The Naked Gun" and the high class matriarch in the Harrison Ford "Sabrina" remake was now playing this extremely bitter and emotionally manipulative mother of a mob boss.

[latebloomer]

48. " Poor You!!"

That show started slipping downhill after her death. She was just perfect. The first season was classic.

[AlCzervik]

3. Syl, Livia and crazy scary Janice.

I think Janice was the worst one of all, total sociopath.

[Shell Beau]

5. Tony had one normal sister.

What was her name? I think she was Lorraine Braco's sister in real life. Looked a lot like her.

[AlCzervik]

7. Barbara.

[Shell Beau]

17. Nevermind, Lorraine Bracco's sister played

Marie Spatafore.

[Flaxbee]

8. A friend of mine was a recurring character for a season or two...

She played the Russian prostitute with the prosthetic leg.

:D

[Shell Beau]

9. Oh yeah!! I remember her. She and Tony did the dirty bone dance

a couple of times!

[Flaxbee]

22. yup. she's a very famous actress in Russia...

really, really nice person. Who has both legs intact. :D

[GCP]

40. I loved her character in the show

She was so down to earth and real.

[Symarip]

11. I like the Soprano's quite a bit.

Can't imagine what it'd be like to watch it on A&E which I assume is heavily edited.

Back to the question, I think the most dynamic characters are Paulie, Christopher and Carmela. Paulie is often unpredictable and is highly emotional despite displaying the most apparent tough guy attitide. Paulie isn't supposed to be likable but often has likable quirks about him. Christopher is often torn between his loyalty and his own ambitions. Christopher is also, arguably, smarter than his mafia counterparts. Carmela is probably the most suprising character with her constant balancing act between living as a modern woman and playing the role of the typical mafioso wife. In one moment, she can be very open minded and progressive and the next minute, she can rebound back into a role that reminds you of June Cleaver. She also is very aware of the power she wields over her friends and Tony and is often torn on when and how to use her hidden authority.

[Shell Beau]

13. How about when she was so worried about Adriana and where she was

until Tony gave her that house to do. Then it was Adriana who.

[MadBadger]

14. Syl...but that could be because I'm a shameless Springsteen Nut

[Shell Beau]

15. He has this show thing on XM and it cracks me up.

He is so laidback sounding. He was my ultimate fave and I choose to believe he survived.

[MadBadger]

18. I like how real his character is.

Hes the consigliere for Tony and for Bruce, and his wife plays his wife on the show...LOVE IT!

[Shell Beau]

19. Didn't know that about his wife! Interesting.

[bigwillq]

20. Carmela

She was awesome. She was a bit edgy, but she was the typical Italian mother in so many ways.

[ThomCat]

23. Sophia Baccalieri, the actor is a friend of mine.

http://www.imdb.com/name/nm1141096/

She's my younger twin sister. We share a birthday. :) But she's 16 years old right now, and if she doesn't become amazingly famous someday then there is no justice in this world.

[Auggie]

24. Adriana

and Paulie, Phil Leotardo, Tony, Christopher

-----------

TONY SOPRANO: So, how was Miami?

PHIL LEOTARDO: Hot and sticky. Like my balls.

[Shell Beau]

27. You like Phil?!?!?!?!?!

He is the one I hate the most. I didn't mind so much when his head got popped by the tire.

[Auggie]

36. Yeah...

I enjoy the acting and watching how the producers develop the characters. Phil went from being a non-entity to a major nemesis in the plot line. And Frank Vincent did a great job with the character. I thought he was fun to watch and one of the most believable of all the wise guys.

Ralph Cifaretto was the one I was happy to see go. Quite a memorable exit too.

[Shell Beau]

38. Vito had a memorable one too!

x(

I wasn't a fan of Vito's but the pool stick up the rear was harsh!

[Auggie]

39. It's weird...

We develop positive relationships with these characters despite the fact they're murdering bastards. I felt sorry for what happened to the Vito character, but I guess it's fairly representational of homophobia at its cruelest.

[latebloomer]

50. I was so upset when Adriana got it!

I was fond of her. She was just so fun to look at and listen to.

[Tangerine LaBamba]

25. Tony, of course

James Gandolfini nailed him from the first episode. He was pitch-perfect, but then, he's a Jersey Boy. But, the series was nothing without him, and he carried each and every season. Given the breadth of the character, I'd say Gandolfini became one of the premiere actors of our time.

He won my heart forever, when he stormed into the nursing home having just learned that his mother and Uncle Junior had put out a hit on him, and, as he's rushing down the hallway to her room, he grabs a pillow off a gurney, and you just know what he's gonna do with it.



Then someone stops him as Livia is being wheeled out, and tells Tony that his mother has had a stroke and she's in bad shape.

Just for a second - I freeze the DVD every time, and watch this over and over - Tony smiles. The fastest, most gleeful smile, and then he turns away to his mother, no more smile, and he hisses at her that he know what she did, he knows that she ordered her own son killed.



Livia stares back at him, completely comprehending, giving away nothing.

It was a moment even Shakepeare would have admired. I fell for Tony at that moment, fell for him forever.

And, as an Itialian-American, I grew up surrounded by Livias - mother, grandmother, aunts. Her character is not fictional. Read about David Chase - she is his mother.

[Shell Beau]

29. Tony is obvious. With all his issues and crap, he is still likable.

I thought he needed to go to jail or die in the finale, but I am glad he didn't.

[Tangerine LaBamba]

33. The show was populated

with Italian-American actors - the vast majority - playing Italian-Americans.

You simply cannot miss. It is, I honestly believe, the richest world in which a kid can grow up. Not that it's not nuts, because it is, but in terms of depth and complication and confusion and all the things that make for great drama, comedy, tragedy, entertainment, there is nothing like the Italian-American family.

There are two kinds of people: Italians and those who wish they were Italian. I was raised with that one, and I think it's true.

[Shell Beau]

34. Silvio is such a bad ass!!

Although he couldn't hang when he was in charge.

[latebloomer]

49. Or did he?

I still wonder whether that sudden slam to black indicated the end of his consciousness.

[Shell Beau]

58. I know. We kind of have to draw our own conclusions.

I am guessing he doesn't live happily ever after.

[libodem]

26. I loved the whole show

took me a few years to find out how awesome it was. My mom kept telling me it was fabulous but I thought nah, couldn't be. I think Bobby was the nicest. And because I'm a mom and Camilla was such a large part, she has to be one of my favorites. Wasn't Janice something else, too?

[Shell Beau]

30. Janice was crazy. Bobby stole my heart. Just a big teddy bear.

I was angry when Tony made him kill someone.

[libodem]

28. Oh yeah

and who can forget the shrink. She had an interesting part.

[Shell Beau]

32. Dr. Melfi. She was also a fave of mine.

She was seeing a shrink because of Tony. Crazy.

[dysfunctional press]

35. sylvio, christopher, and paulie walnuts.

what have you got against paulie...?

[Shell Beau]

37. He's a dick! He so tried to get Christopher in trouble when

they were stranded in the woods after chasing those Russians.

[dysfunctional press]

45. it was just one russian- and paulie lost a shoe, iirc...a guy can only be expected to take so much.

paulie rose thru the ranks as a soldier- he wasn't anybody's 'nephew', like christopher...he knows that the only one looking out for paulie is paulie.

but yeah, he's pretty much a dick. but he's a great dick. like when he shook down the landscaper after pretty much fucking things up for him worse than before, plus a broken arm.

but at least he wasn't a fucking scumbag RAT cocksucker like big pussy...:shrug:

[Shell Beau]

60. I loved Big P. Tony wanted so bad to just let it go with him.

But he knew he had to do it. He did rat out, but he was extremely torn about it and saw no other option. He was basically facing a life sentence if he didn't.

I didn't like how Paulie treated Christopher. Christopher was a "nephew". He was actually a cousin of Carmella's. And what good does it do to have someone looking out for you when they kill you? Christopher was always in trouble, but Paulie was always out to get him it seemed. Paulie was just a weasel. A paranoid weasel.

[VenusRising]

41. Silvio, Tony, and Furio.

I was so hoping that they would bring Furio back for the last season. I know they really couldn't without killing him, but I just loved his character.

[fishwax]

42. yeah, Furio was a good character

All he had to do was give Tony a little shove when they were standing outside the plane that one time ...

[dysfunctional press]

46. but the way that furio was falling for carmella was kind of...well...gross.

:shrug:
i thought that the way that story line- that took him out of the series, TOTALLY ruined his character.

although- part of me wanted to see him come back in the finale for a gun battle with tony.

[malta blue]

43. Paulie Walnuts. nt

[fishwax]

44. Three that noone has mentioned yet: Artie and Charmaine Bucco and Hesh

One of the best lines in the whole series comes in the first episode, when Tony is trying to get Artie out of town so Uncle Junior wouldn't be able to kill Little Pussy in Vesuvios. He gives Artie free cruise tickets and tells him they're comps for his work with the Dentists union. Charm refuses.

Artie: But the tickets were comps! Tony is a labor leader.
Charmaine: Arthur, please grow up. Does the mind not rebel at any possible scenario under which dentists are sending the don of New Jersey first class on a Norwegian steamship?

It doesn't read as well as it sounds in delivery. Kathrine Narducci did a great job with that role.

[Shell Beau]

61. She was never big on accepting anything from Tony.

[hibbing]

47. my two

Hi,
Sylvio's suits and Sylvio's hair.

Peace

[blueknight]

51. i thought carmella was fabulous!

she reminded me of so many italian women in my mothers family. my mom was a colombo. but my favorite character was tony, followed closely by paulie walnuts. he was so stupid, he was hilarious!

[latebloomer]

53. I really disliked the character

She was a true hypocrite. Pretending to be a good Catholic, turning a blind eye on her husband's crimes, and reveling in the luxurious lifestyle he gave her.

Good actress- and now I can't remember her name.

On edit- Edie Falcon!

[Shell Beau]

62. Edie Falco.

She did a fabulous job playing Carmella.

[latebloomer]

52. Is Little Steven bald?

I always wondered.

[RiffRandell]

54. Tony. n/t

[ashling]

55. Despite the fact that I was never a HUGE fan

of Opera, I have to say that Beverly Sills was a real class act and a fine singer. The greatest soprano ...

[barb162]

56. T

[wickerwoman]

57. I always liked Rosalie Aprile

Carmela's slightly more gormless friend. My all time favorite Sopranos scene is the ladies book club where they're reviewing "Angela's Ashes" and all Rosalie can say is "Uph! The Irish! With their drinking!"

[Bunny]

64. Do you remember when Christopher was shot, and he was in a coma for a while?

After he woke up, he told Paulie that he dreamed he died and went to hell, which was actually an Irish bar, where every day was St. Patrick's Day! :rofl:

This Irish woman laughed her ass off!

[Shell Beau]

65. I never realized Christopher Columbus Day was such a big

deal to Italians until I saw Sopranos.

[Bunny]

66. Yeah, it's a big 'un.

Pittsburgh has a Columbus Day parade, although it's not even close in size to the St. Paddy's Day parade.

[Lost in CT]

59. How do you watch that on A and E... they massacred the show...

It is like when NBC showed Scarface.

[Shell Beau]

63. I own all seasons so I can watch the full episode if I feel the need.

If I am channel surfing and nothing else is on, I will watch it. I know what they cut out. I don't think I could watch it for the first time on A&E though.

I think they did a decent enough job with it. There are so many curse words and murders, etc. It would be hard at all to get the full show. But you get the gist.