My understanding of "The Sopranos" ending **SPOILER ALERT**

[Yavin4]

Was Tony killed in the diner? Yes.
Was Tony not killed in the diner? Yes.

And, that's the point of the ending. Throughout the entire run of the series, Tony struggled to be normal. A good son to his mother. A good husband. A good father. He even went to therapy to try to become better, but in the end, he's still a monster. He's still a bad guy, and he faces death from every direction at any time in his life. He's trapped in his own hell. He cannot enjoy a dinner out with his family without facing the fact that a shooter may be on him at any moment.

He cannot become normal no matter what he does.

[CincyDem]

1. Shrodinger's Tony. He's both alive and dead. lol n/t

[Bleacher Creature]

2. I think it's supposed to be left open to interpretation, which I think is crap.

I've seen a ton of movies and tv shows that leave the ending intentionally ambiguous, but the way it was handled on the Sopranos seem gratuitous. There's a difference between showing the main character at a crossroads, and simply cutting off the scene and going to black.

I absolutely loved every minute of that show, but was really disappointed at the ending. And now that James Gandolfini is gone, there's now way to make it right.


Of course, this is all just my opinion. And I agree, he'll never have a normal life.

[GeorgeGist]

3. The audience died.

[NotASurfer]

4. I know people who swore they heard a gunshot when it went black

Maybe it was an elaborate psychological experiment sponsored by deep-cover Russian agents to see who was suggestible to a specific kind of gun-friendly subliminal messaging that was used to great effect last year by alt-right media. Yeah, that's the ticket!

[TexasBushwhacker]

5. Tony's dead

The Sopranos was a tragedy and at the end of a tragedy the protagonist dies (generally). The cut to black was through Tony's eyes. One moment he's having a friendly family dinner and the next, oblivion.

[Merlot]

6. I like that.

And whether it happend that night or another, it was going to happen.