College

How about just one decimal higher? You know? Just to get it up to being a 9.0 star rating? That's fine I guess. Anyways, my favorite characters in this episode were Tony, Meadow, and Carmela. My favorite thing about this episode was the Protagonist, the Antagonist, and the storyline. Just like the last episode, this was is severally underrated as well. I wish some of these episodes could be higher, because these episodes are all amazing. Tony for me is already in the top 2 of fictional characters for me, and this show is already on track to being top 5. As I may not always but most of the time say, definitely watch this show if you are looking for a good criminal show.

David Chase called it the "Ultimate Episode". For me it is my favourite episode, multi layered and full of symbolisms. A stand alone ep that has little to do with the whole Sopranos story arc but is so compelling i couldn't take my eyes of the screen throughout the story. There are plenty of episode of much greater consequence and significance but this one off ep is a tv gem.

While Tony is driving Meadow to college interviews, he spots an old snitch who has been in hiding under a new name. Meadow is waking up to what her father does for a living, and Tony has to work around her suspicions as he hunts down the rat, with a little help from Christopher. Back on the home front, Carmela sort of seduces her priest, who ends up spending the night at her house. She also takes a call from Dr. Melfi. Dr. Jennifer Melfi. As in, a woman shrink. Something Tony has carefully avoided telling Carm. The final scene between Tony and Carmela is priceless. A brilliant episode. We go from Tony-as-doting-father waiting patiently while Meadow is being interviewed to Tony-the-murderous maniac choking the life out of an adversary.

Don't get me wrong, I love the show very much, I have watched the whole thing at the least four times till now.

However, this episode here; "College", perhaps is the most boring episode I can think of in the entire show... 😓

This is not the only time we realize these two are kidding themselves but it is probably the first.

Tony is motoring around New England taking Meadow to various colleges so she can tour them and talk to school officials so that she can decide where she wants to apply. Carmela is home recovering from the flu, when her priest comes by, seemingly always looking for good food and a good movie on laserdisc, the premiere video format of the time.

During this trip Tony sees someone he thinks is a "rat" - somebody in the mob who twelve years before turned state witness and sent a bunch of his crew to jail and then went into witness protection. Would Tony jeopardize not only a trip that is supposed to be about his daughter but perhaps his daughter's life to whack the rat? Of course he would! And there is no doubt that if Tony loves anybody, that he loves his daughter.

Carmela becomes all weepy with the priest, confessing that she knows living off of Tony's life of crime is wrong but that she is attracted to what is easy versus what is good. She gets in these confessional moods several times over the life of the series, especially when she is facing some kind of crisis, but nothing ever changes. Over the years she talks to at least one other priest and a therapist, but in the end she continues down the same path.

I feel that this episode is underrated as it may feel like filler, but it is in fact quite revealing. And it is probably the only time in which Ronald Reagan's lips have served as a plot device.