Few series finales have ever caused as much fan upset and speculation as the final episode of HBO’s “The Sopranos.” (Is it still necessary to put the cautionary “spoilers ahead” out there for series that have been off the air for the better part of a decade? Nah.) As fans of the show will likely remember — though they’d possibly like to forget — the final episode simply cuts to black just as Tony Soprano looks up at the entrance of the diner where he’s having dinner with his family. It was an incredibly tense scene with Meadow Soprano struggling to park her car and viewers wondering if Tony is about to be whacked by someone in the diner.
People largely fell into one of two camps after the finale — total outrage or acceptance — I’m not sure anyone really felt 100% satisfied. People wanted to know, did Tony Soprano die or did he live? Sopranos-creator, David Chase, who wrote the finale episode was tight-lipped about the mob boss’ outcome, but has now answered the question in a lengthy piece at Vox:
So is Tony dead?
We were in a tiny coffee shop, when, in the middle of a low-key chat about a writing problem I was having, I popped the question. Chase startled me by turning toward me and saying with sudden, explosive anger, “Why are we talking about this?” I answered, “I’m just curious.” And then, for whatever reason, he told me. […]
He shook his head “no.” And he said simply, “No he isn’t.” That was all
Not exactly a detailed explanation, but better than nothing I suppose. Wait! What’s that? David Chase DIDN’T SAY TONY DIED??? The internet went fanatic with chatter about the revelation, but that quickly came to a halt when Chase said his words were misconstrued by the writer. Damn you, David Chase! Why must you torture Soprano fans so? Back to the Tony Soprano dead theories drawing board suppose.
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