The Sopranos Finale

I have watched the Sopranos on and off since it began and think it is a pretty awesome show. Like most people, I didn't know what the hell was going at first when the screen just cut to black as Tony looked up at the diner door his daughter was coming in. The more I think about this choice for an ending, the more I appreciate it... because it's making me think.

At first me & my brother got up and walked around, wondering out loud what we just saw. It might not be how I would have thought to end the show, but there is a great Zen aesthetic to the approach. The sharp cut in the scene hit millions of people in the head like a Shaolin Master's cane. Some people just rubbed their head & said "Stupid!" Many, however, have fulfilled the creator's intention by pondering and participating in the dialog that extends to our own lives and imaginations. The Sopranos is a powerful show and the greatest effect of the story is to make people analyze their own minds and motivations.

The buildup in the last scene gave the viewer an overwhelming sense of the paranoia and anxiety that would be experienced by someone in Tony's position. It made the abrupt end all the more startling. In a show where the superficial are obsessed with who gets whacked in the most creative way, the creator has given a very real and direct lesson about death. It won't come at a convenient time when we have put all our loose ends and problems away. As the use of the band 'Journey' indicates, it's the quality of and perceptions created in each life's journey that determine how the ending goes for the individual.

So kudos to Zen Monkey Buddhist master David Chase for revealing the empty nature of reality to the masses, who have filled it with their collective consciousness.

"Hey, take that Zen crap
an' shove it up your ass!"