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Season Two is the worst of the three, but that's like saying that Lucy Liu is the least attractive of Charlie's Angels. It's still a million times better than anything else on TV. My problem with Season Two is that there wasn't a definitive storyline which progressed from week to week. You could easily watch the first few episodes and the last few episodes, and get the whole story.

But Season Three was sort of a return to greatness. The events of each episode build on top of the ones before it, and the end is just perfect, resolving some issues but creating much bigger ones in the process. This is why I was looking forward to last night's episode more than any other so far. But it just did its own thing.

SPOILERS

In that time along came a new show on F/X, The Shield. This show grabbed my attn much moreso than did the Soprano's. I watched each episode in it's entirety. Tuesday activities were planned so that we would be in front of a TV at 10pm. I can't remember a show ever grabbing hold of my attn in that manner, save the Sopranos.

At any rate, I'm hoping that The Shield will hold the same spell binding effect that it did during it's first season. It's just too bad that it won't happen until next year... At least I still have The Soprano's too tide me over..

Mike, Lucy Liu IS the least attractive of Charlies Angel's.

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"It is the opinion of the entire staff the Dexter is criminally insane."

THE SHIELD Season One comes out on DVD 1/7.

First, understand the the Soprano's was originally intended as a four season series. After four seasons, the climax of the show would be had between Tony, Junior, Mother, and a few others. All things would build to that, and to also find out who would rule the family after the death/imprisonment of Tony.

Season one jumped right in and gave us so much information right off the bat that it just seemed so full and lively. It was only natural that Season Two would seem slightly off.

However, when season three rolled around, problems hit the set. The untimely death of Nancy Marchand (the wonderful actress who played Tony's mother), meant re-writing the eventual outcome of the story line.

David Chase, the series creator, made the difficult and now in hindsite, the very bad decision of pressing forward, re-writing storylines as they went along. The entire season seemed disjointed and never went anywhere.

The highlight for me as far as season three went was the hit on Mustang Sally. That was a great and very well played out episode.

Now on to season four. This may not become the last season, but James Gandolfini is not signed to further years, so it is up in the air at this point if the show will really continue past this year.

The reason for the very long delay, is so that creator David Chase can get his thoughts and creative ideas together. He needed the extra time to re-write the outcome of this season, after the death of Nancy Marchand. This break should have come before season three, but what is done is done.

At least now we can get back to business.

As for the first episode of season four sucking? Well if you compare it to the very first episode, yes it sucked. It did not have that same feel that the very first look at the sopranos had. I will give it the whole season, and hope to hell it pays off. David Chase has promised that this season would blow away the entire series, so I hope that is in a good way. I imagine that this first couple of episodes are nothing but story setup, introducing new characters, and new situations, bringing us up to date, before all hell breaks loose.

SPOILERS...

Truth is, we learn about Tony's illgotten dealings OUTSIDE the family, cheating his underlings, his partners, and his wife. He has more than just a hotel on the line, he has something up his sleeve. He set up his nephew to kill off someone, and he may or may have not lied about who he was.

Remember that Tony is an Anti-Hero. The guy you love to hate, and hate to love. In this episode, even I was hoping someone would plug him. Perhaps that is where we are going in this season.

Here is hoping for better as the weeks move on.

Thank you for your input on "THE SOPRANOS" I do agree with everything you said. The reason why I thought last night's episode sucked was it's failure to make me want to tune in again next week to see what happens next like all of the episodes in the first two seasons did. I have decided not to watch the rest of this season's epidodes of "THE SOPRANOS" on HBO but will watch them on DVD when it is released by next Summer. "THE SOPRANOS" will end with season five and that should be the the best of the series as long as the writers do not screw it up with very lame plots and it's ending.

-Claude

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Call me a Utahn but I don't get it.

I think it is possible that at one time the sopranos had indeed jumped the shark. I do believe now that they are trying to get back behind the shark. It takes a while to write yourself out of a hole, and I do believe that we are on the way. I just wish if that were true, it would happen MUCH MUCH FASTER.