Sopranos return pushed back, Deadwood over after 3, The Wire still sketchy

Says the expert.

 

I didn't say HBO doesn't care about ratings. I said they pay very little attention to the standard ratings system. Other networks live by the damn thing, since they're selling ads and ad rates are determined by those ratings.

HBO doesn't have to worry about that, so they use a ratings system that is much more involved and gives a better indication of actual viewership and loyalty.

The Sopranos didn't suck. This past season certainly wasn't as good as previous seasons and didn't measure up to other shows on TV, like The Wire, The Shield, Rescue Me and Deadwood. But the season was still pretty damn good.

I don't understand how someone who loves The Wire as much as you do can hate The Sopranos so much for the "setup" episodes. No show on TV has more setup episodes than The Wire. Like the Sopranos last year, those episodes are particularly well done and enjoyable. But I don't know how you can criticize one show for using them while praising the other.

 

dog

my problem with the sopranos isn't "setup" episodes. i really don't even know what those are. i know people toss that stuff around a lot on this board. but good tv shows just move forward. that's why i love the shield. the wire always moves forward. the sopranos this past season just went riding a bunch of different pointless directions this year. and based on my extremely high expectations for the sopranos, this last season did suck. i'd still watch it over 97 percent of the stuff on tv. it's still good, but relative to expectations it sucked.

also, what's the deal with deadwood? they're ending the current season early?

 

Sopranos and the Wire are 1a) and 1b) although I'm afraid I'd agree with Jason on the last season of the Sopranos--very few satisfying episodes and not very many incandescent moments.

 

Whitlock

Every show has "setup" episodes. They typically advance a storyline, or, in the case of The Sopranos, several storylines, without the HOLY SHIT moments. There are usually few plot twists or unexpected happenings. The episodes just give you information and move things along. Many of The Sopranos episodes last season did that. Too many for my taste, that's why I said it was a disappointing season. But like I've also said, I think Chase got stuck with the extra episodes and used a shitload of filler stuff to expand a story he had crafted and planned.

As for Deadwood, no one is really sure what the hell happened. Here's a site with a decent description: http://savedeadwood.tv/ Past the basics, though, no one is really sure. They just folded up camp out of the blue.

 

Everyone tells me how EVERY Sopranos episode was a set-up episode.

I don't need people to tell me that on the wire.

Non of the arrogant non-sequiturs of the last Sopranos effort has afflicted The Wire.

 

"Northern Exposure," until Rob Morrow left, is definitely one of the best TV series ever. Another David Chase product, too.
Interesting to see how similar the writing in "The Sopranos" can be to "Northern" even though the subject matter is entirely different.