I saw that the Hextube marathon of The Sopranos just finished so I want to discuss with others! Overall, fantastic show, I love the idea that the mafia is a microcosm of white American society as a whole and how selfish and morally bankrupt it is. It's shockingly funny at times too, they really nail the black comedy aspect (the Columbus episode was hilarious from start to finish 
). All of the characters are phenomenal too, it's hard to choose favorites, but if I had to I'd probably say Adrianna, Carmella and Junior in that order (honorable mention to 
for being a goofy little freak)
Other random thoughts (spoilers for the ENTIRE show)
-As I've said before, reading The Will to Change alongside watching this show makes it clear just how well the writers understand white supremacist imperialist patriarchy, even if they wouldn't use that term to describe the society the show takes place in. And all the mobsters are well written and often endearing despite being undeniably evil pieces of shit.
-I had Christopher's death spoiled for me before watching the show but honestly I could tell the dude was gonna get got right from season 1. He's too hot-headed and overly ambitious, he was never gonna survive, but I did NOT expect the way it went down, that was fuckin brutal. And then Tony goes to Vegas, trips balls and LAUGHS about his death. I saw some people say "that was the moment I knew Tony was irredeemable", and like yeah that really drives the point home but also cmon it took you that long to make up your mind about that?
-The most heartbreaking part of the whole show was Adrianna's death. She's definitely not a complete innocent in the grand scheme of things, she financially and materially benefits from Chris' extortion and murder of others and is totally complicit in it. But the way she gets completely trapped between the mob and the FBI really makes you feel for her, she's among the more moral characters on the show and I desperately wanted to see her get away.
-I've seen redditors and their ilk say that they hated Livia which blows my mind. She's funny as fuck every time she's on screen, just a pathetically manipulative old narcissist, and I love watching her and Tony interact.
-I've also seen redditors say that they hate Meadow and AJ, the former for purely misogynistic reasons and the latter because he's "annoying". Like yeah they're kids, they're supposed to be immature and obnoxious at times, but they both grow into their own people and I like both of their arcs (moreso AJ's, Meadow gets a lot more complicit with the mob shit in the later seasons which made me sad)
-I'm still not totally sure how I feel about the ending. Ultimately when I imagine any other more "definitive" ending, it doesn't quite feel right. If I accept the theory that the cut to black is Tony getting shot, I think that's works brilliantly since he's the primary POV character and it hits harder than outright showing him getting whacked. I'm curious to hear other peoples' interpretations.
I'll probably think of more things to comment on as I contemplate the show more, but I highly recommend checking it out if you haven't. There's a reason it's so highly regarded and memed on. And of course I want to hear others' thoughts as well! There's a lot to unpack in this show and I'm sure I haven't even scratched the surface of its themes and ideas.
I liked how they presented the feds: as mostly asshole, opportunistic careerists who ultimately cozied up to Tony when the way to move up the ladder became about going after people of middle eastern origin / Muslims.
meadows arc also saddened me to see her turning into a mob lawyer type. probably because it felt too realistic.
AJ was relatable. not because I was a hooked up little prince, but it was obvious how set up he was to be tragic by a father and a family that can only, effectively turn young boys into sociopathic, violent and completely lazy men.
except AJ was just too sensitive for all that, so he just became sorta lazy and kinda checked out... wanting to just follow stuff that seemed cool and made him happy.
I think viewers who shit on AJ think Tony is an antihero they want to be like instead of realizing he is the villain and that his reign over the family was extended by therapy when he should have been left to die and probably saved everyone some grief.
I liked how Carmella's "soul searching" BS was exposed by the therapist who told her that she was accountable for what she knew and if she wanted to be ethical, she needed to be leave all of the wealth behind as tainted to start a new life. and she was like "nah" because she loved all the finer things, the giant house, and all of it. that's when she stopped trying to find someone who would tell her it was appropriate to play the martyr.
also, I am 100% subscribed to the theory that Phil Leotardo was repressed sexually about an attraction to men. the scene with the male body builder on TV at the wake and how mad he gets is so fucking funny. also, I think I like the theory most because it infuriates really dumb sopranos fans in YouTube comments when you bring it up. the sort of people who idolize mafia types and claim "he wasn't gay, he was a traditional family man!" I mean, come on, Phil dramatically comes out of the closet he was hiding in to get the drop on his son in law, to violently murder him and sexually tortured him for the "crime" of being gay. that's barely subtext.
also, subtext is an anagram of buttsex.