Monday, June 4, 2007

Ultimate showdown: Tony vs. Phil

Man, that was some Soprano's last night; maybe the best ever. After a fair to middling last season, I have to give credit where credit is due: they've brought their A+ game this season. The pace has escalated in each successive episode and last night it went to a whole different level. My only issue: I am just not certain how they are going to resolve so may open ended issues in one hour.

Regardless of what they resolve or not, it's gonna be one hell of a conclusion.

I think the big surprise next week is going to be that Paulie is in cahoots with Phil. That would explain why he wasn't labeled one of the "big three." It also would explain the botched hit on Phil. Last night was Phil's night, but I think Tony exacts his revenge in the conclusion. I still maintain my position from a week ago that they won't kill Tony off. I do think however we're in for a big surprise -- and that surprise will be a member of Tony's family -- AJ would seem to make the most sense - getting killed by accidently getting in the way of a failed hit on Tony. That might be a stretch but regardless, I think Tony gets himself off the mattress, whacks Phil in a mano e mano confrontation and consolidates his power. Roll credits.

So, let's hear it from the peanut gallery: what's your prediction?

In regards to Entourage, I felt that though it was a really good episode last night, it got overwhelmed by the Soprano's, which in my opinion is a first. Still it was great, due in strong part to the return of Shauna (one of the best female characters in all of TV, btw) and Walsh ("The creative juices are flowing, Suit. I'm going to shoot the whole thing in Spanish.")

Despite what promises to be a crazy process filled with Walsh-ian drama, Medellin is going to be a big hit and Vinc is going to get his Oscar. The Boys always end up on top in the end. Except Drama. His show will likely get canned, leaving Vince to bail him out yet again.

Lastly, this new show, John from Cincinanati, looks pretty interesting. Definitely going to get a tryout, as ironically enough, a friend of mine from Cinci would say. We'll see what happens after the first two or three episodes (the period of time in which, unfortunately for me, both Rome and Deadwood failed their respective tryouts.)

Beyond that, not much to look forward to from a television perspective this offseason (read: Summer). We've got the Tour de France and Entourage and that's about it. Here's to hoping for a new variation on Rock Star Supernova.

(PS. My doc finally called me up tonight and confirmed that the PET scan was good news. He expected to see uptake in the thyroid and was encouraged that there was none though the RAI scan is more of a complete test than the PET vis a vis the neck. He said this week's neck ultrasound and MRI will be very telling.)

8 comments:

Anonymous said...

That sounds promising, good luck! BTW - Rome sucked. You watch The Shield or Rescue Me? Worth a look.

Anonymous said...

where did i go wrong.i thought i was raising a major leagur pitcher and instead got a tv critic.GS

Anonymous said...

No doubt GS. He's also a TV critic who, startlingly, likes Rock Star Supernova.

I can't wait to hear his review of Paula Abdul's new reality show...

Anonymous said...

GS, he's happily married and has given you two beautiful grandchildren. I remember when Howard and I were sharing an apartment in the West Village with two cats. You and Ida were starting to worry...

Anonymous said...

re: good PET news, awesome. way to be how.

re: sopranos, no predictions here, just near unbearable anticipation.

re: summer tv, one key show you're missing is "it's always sunny in philadelphia," which is easily one of the most enjoyable half hours on tv.

Anonymous said...

Man, this is getting to be fun. NEver would I have imagined an email thread between Payro, my father, and Toddie.

Payro - Paula Abdul has a new reality show? Cool.

Anonymous said...

ok, here's my prediction. i think it has to end in a way that brings the whole series into a full conclusion, sort of like Michael Corleone dying by himself, all alone, at the end of III. I think that any or all of what you say happens... paulie gets it and phil goes down hard at Tony's hand. But my ultimate prediction is a dramatic conclusion that has Tony's depression finally catching up to him, even in victory, and he ends up killing himself amidst images of all the people he loved/liked and lost. They have dabbled too long in the psychology aspect to throw it all away like they did last week and have it end with a bbq. His torment has to catch up to him. That's my call and I am sticking to it. ;-)

Anonymous said...

oh, and at the end, Junior weeps over Tony's body.