The Sopranos - Family Values

Junior's Review

Junior's Review
(Episode 71 - LIVE FREE OR DIE)

"Live free or die" is a great title for a episode, but the episode wasn´t. It´s always a bad sign if four writers share the writing credits and rarely a great script is the result if too many writers are involved. Episode 71 prooves that point because it was in my opinion one of the weakest episode I have ever seen. Considering season six it is way behind the quality of the first five episodes, but I don´t doubt a sec we´ll see far better story telling in the next weeks. Of course it still provided several great scenes like Tony talking to the worker who found Vito´s cell, Tony talking to Melfi and Finn as witness of a very special prosecution. As always Tim van Patten did a great job as director. However, the episode didn´t rise up to the outstanding and unique brilliance of the show. Put aside the funny and entertaining oneliners about Vito being gay and you wont find much substance.

Already at the beginning the coming out of the fat mobster was forced in a way that is very untypicall for the Sopranos. Chris goes to an AA-meeting and meets a guy who happens to have heard about Vito´s performence in the gay-club. At the Bada-Bing a guy provides the information that the witnesses are credible. For me it seemed forced to do the outing in this way and therefore too much explanation and justification for the storyline were written in. As I´ve said before I am not really interested in Vito and his fate. Too much screentime was spent on his escape. From the beginning his important role in season six doesn´t fit his character and his actions. He lacks everything other major charcters like Pus, Ritchie, Ralphie or Tony B. had to offer. Think only about how distant the relationship between Tony and Vito is on a emotional level. Even worse, to me he is the one and only character in the show who isn´t credible. I just didn´t buy he has a goomah and hides with her. I can´t think of a reason why he wouldn´t run away in the first place and if he loves his family he would have had arranged a deal with the feds to get with them into witness protection. Perhaps it will happen in the next weeks, but the more I think about Vito, the more his actions become uncredible. The only thing relevant about Vito is how his storyline reflects Tony´s character arc.

Tony isn´t sure what to do. He is under pressure from his guys to order the hit on Vito for being gay, but he doesn´t give in to the pressure (yet). He finds reasonable arguments not to do so, but I find it hard to take this for an example for his character change. When it comes to hits Tony was always more reluctant than others and always wanted to be sure to do the right thing. It was never an easy decision for him and the pain he suffered for having to kill Pus or Tony B. was a much deeper inner conflict for him than the Vito- thing can be ever be. So the intention to use Vito as a ground for developing and showing Tony´s change falls short so far. I understand that Tony wants to read his magazines and every time something would get in his way. He wants to enjoy things, wants to consider every day a gift, but it´s impossible for him because of his obligations. They pull him back in. My point is that you could cut Vito and still the same effect would be easily generated with more interesting characters involved. That´s also the big difference between episode 70 and 71. Last weeks episode didn´t rely only on Vito, but also on other characters and it was a fine composition of different storylines to carry a theme. The main aspect Vito provides is the plain fact he is who is he and he can´t change. This was made perfectly clear last week. So overall nothing new of importance was added in my eyes. "Live free or die", sounds great, could also be of some meaning in later developments, it has certainly meaning for Vito in New Hampshire, but to me it´s just a repetition. In the first episode of season six everything was said about the tragical trap the mob can become and nothing could have made the point clearer than Eugenes suicide.

In terms of pushing the storylines forward there wasn´t much done except for the fact that everybody hears about Vito being gay. Yes, I also saw Meadow arguing with Finn, Carm and Angie, but that´s only exposition and hardly enough for 52 minutes of the Sopranos.

comments are welcome to: jan@winning.com

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