For those living under a rock that is itself under a larger rock (to borrow a phrase from some really funny person), The Sopranos ended their eight-season run tonight. I've been no more than a casual watcher for every season but this last one (which many think has been boring by comparison). I haven't missed a beat since April. That was until tonight. Oh, I watched it. I'm just not sure what to make of it (though I was thrilled to see Phil do his best impression of a speedbump). The best explanation I can come up with for this finale (if there won't be a movie like some predict) is that Tony gets whacked while Steve Perry sings "believin'". My only basis for this is that Tony has said when you die you don't see it coming. It just goes black. He said something like that to Bobby (I think) anyway. And that's exactly what happened.

But what was with Meadow's parking woes? And is Paulie Walnuts a snake? That last scene with him made me believe he might not be the most trustworthy guy on the block. Not to mention, he didn't really have a good reason to not head the job that Tony offered him. Then again, it could just be David Chase being David Chase. No explanations. No rhyme. No reason.

So I don't know what to make of the last episode. If you have any thoughts, let me hear 'em. And if you want to read some interesting Sopranos articles, you can start with this one from the New Yorker (before the finale).

And this writer makes the point that when you're in Tony's line of business, your life is never your own. You're constantly looking over your shoulder. There was a lot of that going on for sure.

Another good point: It's no coincidence that Dr. Melfi just terminated his treatment. Her appalled fascination with Tony has always mirrored ours, and when her shrink alerted her to studies suggesting that sociopaths use talk therapy to sharpen their con-man skills, we all started looking at Tony in a harsher light.

Some various comments on the final episode.

The HBO community. If you wade through the OMGs and LOLs, you'll find some interesting points, one being that the entire last scene was a dream. And I agree with viewer who thought he saw Tony sitting at the table in the diner - looking back at Tony. Weird. Fuck! Just put two and eight together and realized the Little Feat song playing as they walked in was "All That You Dream". Hmmm.

Also, I'll just say that I always look forward to their music and tonight's show left me angry about the silence over the credits. But I've had time to think about it, and now I love it. I also loved the Journey.

Okay, I just paused the diner scene. I noticed the Jay and the Americans ripoff of The Drifters' "This Magic Moment" as one of the songs in the tabletop jukebox when I first watched, but how about these other titles:

"I'm Alive"
"I've Gotta Be Me"
"A Lonely Place"
"Those Were The Days"
"Turn, Turn, Turn"
"Only The Strong Survive"
"Who Will You Run To"
"Magic Man"

I'm definitely voting on the diner being some sort of a dream. More on all of this later. Thoughts??