Sopranos

i haven't talked about this season's sporanos yet, and now is as good of a time as any to start. this week's episode i thought was very well done as it added some new fuel to the fire that is smoldering inside the soprano family and expanded on some topics that have been explored in the previous few episodes.

i've noticed that the recent episodes have followed a similar pattern, with one character and their relationship with tony being the focus. the first episode it was bobby, the christopher, then paulie, now aj. this week we seem to have those personal stories come together a little more, with the christopher-paulie feud almost boiling over to the point of no return.

this week's personal plot, however, revolved around aj. the pain he was expressing was very real. i did find it ironic, however, that in order to get aj out of the blues he was in, tony pushed him to hang out with the sons of some of his "associates", the very same people that tony has tried to keep aj away from. his solution has almost worked too well: now aj is happy again, but the cost could be that he gets involved in the family business. i don't see aj taking over for tony when the series is over, he is still way too dumb for that, but i do see him filling the role of the front man or the face of the younger generation while the other kids are the ones controlling everything. aj will never have tony's toughness or business sense, but i think he is smart enough to know that his name will get him somewhere. if anyone takes over the soprano family when, as many predict, tony gets it, i think it will be sil because a member of the e street band can do anything he wants, whenever he wants.

my favorite part of the episode, however, were paulie's goons who consistently scammed christopher's father-in-law's store. those guys rock. great scams they run. consummate professionals. i even think i picked up a few tips.