When Tony was talking about the hereditary connection of depression, I was reminded of something my father once told my mother.

When my anxiety (how my depression manifested itself) first started to effect my quality of life, my father mentioned to my mother that he hated passing it on to me.

It was really touching to hear that from my mother. The old stoic german doesn't share much. I didn't know he and my grandmother even suffered from depression until my twenties.

It makes life really hard but I'm still so glad that I have this life. I'm still so grateful to have had the stoic grumpy german man as my father.

That's all.

I bet that perscription is going to cause AJ to do Something Awful. Brrr.

This season has been so boring. It's like every episode has said "Look, we're building up to something! Do you feel the tension?!"

And then nothing happens.

I totally agree. Let's show Phil Leotardo in the previews and have foreshadowing...

Phil wasn't even in last nights episode.

It seems like it is going out with a whimper instead of a Sopranos "bang".

Oh, man, I've been *loving* this season--but I will admit that it's been all about slow decay, the erosion of trust and connection, rot from within--and is likely not going to be satisfying to those who wanted things to be more plot-driven and leading to a big finale. I totally believe there will be no big finale, that it's eventually all about ending with a whimper and not a bang (although I suspect, after last night, there's a more dramatic and unpleasant end in the near future for Christopher...)

I thought last night was the great (or at least nearly great) episode in quite awhile -- the second half, especially. But why on EARTH have we had to futz around for so damn long to get to this point? Why haven't we seen (as just one example of many) more of Christophuh's relationship with Kelli and the baby and his in-laws -- I mean, his relationship with Adriana was shown in-depth for so many seasons, it feels totally weird to have just sort of relegated him (and the new family, and the massive guilt/denial he's obviously carrying over Ade) to the background.

But this has been the story of the Sopranos' weaknesses over the past few seasons (which has been made all the more painfully obvious to me as I've been simultaneously rewatching the first several seasons with my boyfriend, who had never watched the show before) -- major, in-depth characters and storylines that go missing for multiple episodes (and even whole chunks of seasons) in lieu of developing subplots with secondary characters that just suddenly show up and take center stage (Big Gay Vito, I'm looking at you), despite the fact that the audience has spent years investing in OTHER characters.

Also, am I the only one who thinks the quality of the acting has declined, along with the quality of the writing? Not James Gandolfini and Edie Falco and the rest of the usual suspects from the first few seasons (though Robert Iler and Jamie-Lynn Whatsherface have always had their limits), of course, but several of the new actors who have had increasingly more airtime in the past few years (and again, I'm thinking of most of the New York crew storying) are just full-on amateurs (I'm thinking, for example, of the woman who plays Ginny Sacrimoni -- god, I just cringe every time she's got to read a line).

/rant

please forgive typos and other small weirdnesses above. I am evidently too passionate to proofread!

i really liked last night's episode too but i felt like i missed an episode or a bunch of stuff. Why is Meadow home? What happened to Finn? AJ got dumped?

Why is Meadow home?

There was a passing reference a few episodes ago to her going to med school, rather than law school (though it wasn't clear if she was IN med school, or had just decided to apply), but it's not clear to me why she's living at home again, given that -- even without a job -- it seems like Tony would set her up with an apt. somewhere.

What happened to Finn?

Another a very brief passing reference a few episodes ago to them breaking up, but it was never very clear.

This is just another example of the ridiculous tendency of Chase and Co. to take long-term, MAJOR storylines -- like Meadow's education/career/relationship! -- and reduce them to a couple of passing comments in the background.

AJ got dumped?

Yep. Blanca dumped him last episode after they (briefly) got engaged. No reason given; just a few brief scenes with Blanca inexplicably acting like a bitch, then boom: she's gone.

This season has felt less like an ongoing drama and more like a series of "Very Special Episodes."

Tony tackles a gambling addiction, this week on a Very Special Sopranos.

Christopher's new-found sobriety leads to alienation, this week on a Very Special Sopranos.

this week on a Very Special Sopranos.

Cue Enya.

Yeah -- I thought there would continue to be a compelling story arc vis-a-vis Meadow and Finn, Meadow's career, etc. Guess the writers needed to "resolve" that plot line and wipe the slate clean.

Now we can watch A.J. "suffer" from the bad blood he has inherited; witness a crime boss in-the-making and witness Christopher derail and confront his past, "The Family," etc. Right now he's on a crash-course with Paulie and most especially Tony.

I wonder if there ever was a meeting like this in the writers' bungalow:

"Hey, gather round. Come on, come on, simmer down. Everyone got drinks? Cool. Well you've likely heard that contract negotiations with Gandolfini have concluded. This upcoming season will be the last. I know, I know. But, hey it's been a great ride for all of us. Now...wadda' we goin' do about some of the story threads we've been weaving for years? Yea, yea, I know ... many of us were expecting at least five-more-years to resolve some of these things, but heck, life in the real-world does have an impact on our fictional world. We ask that folks go off and propose plot points and story arcs. Yeah -- we wasted time on the Gay Vito detour and the Finn affair, but we've gotta' move forward. I've got my own ideas as to how we should proceed. But, any-and-all input is welcome. Just know that we're not gonna resolve everything with an autistic kid staring into a snow globe or Bob Newhart waking from a disturbing dream."