Sopranos Season Two, Episode 26 - "Funhouse"

Sopranos Season Two, Episode 26 - "Funhouse"

The last episode of the season finds things going pretty well for Tony. Business-wise, things are great: the Webistics scam and Scatino bust out yielded, as Junior might put it, some serious sponduliks. A current venture involving the sale of bogus telephone cards is proving to be highly profitable as well. Richie and Janice are gone and soon Livia will be, too. Tony gave her two airline tickets so that she and his aunt Quintina can go to Arizona. At last, as Tony says, "All my enemies are smoked."

But despite his success, one night Tony's doubts about Pussy keep coming up -- along with the chicken vindaloo he ate in an Indian restaurant. While in the throes of a nasty bout of food poisoning, Tony has a series of fever dreams. His E. coli influenced subconscious conjures up everything from self-immolation to a vigorous sexual encounter with Dr. Melfi. But by far the most disturbing dream is one in which Pussy -- in the form of a fish on ice -- tells him he's been working for the Feds and that Tony's known all along. "You passed me over for promotion," the Pussy fish tells him, "You knew."

Tony wakes up determined to find out the truth about Pussy, one way or the other. He shows up at the Bompensiero house with Silvio in tow and while Silvio has coffee with Pussy and Angie, Tony searches their bedroom. Beneath the false bottom of a cigar box he finds what he's looking for: Pussy's wire and some tapes he's made for the FBI. Madonn', the hit in the gut from the vindaloo was nothing compared to this.

So Tony has Pussy join him, Silvio and Paulie for a test ride on a boat he says he's thinking of buying. But once they're beyond sight of land and below decks, the real reason for the excursion is revealed. "Why'd you do it, Pussy?" Tony asks. Over strains of Frank Sinatra, Pussy admits he's a rat, leaving only one thing to be done. And after a few shots of tequila Tony, Silvio and Paulie do it: they shoot Pussy, push him into the ocean and head back to shore.

But it's hardly safe harbor. Once he's home Tony gets a frantic phone call from Livia, who's been detained by airport security. The tickets Tony gave her are stolen -- booty from the Scatino bust out -- and no sooner is Tony off the phone than the FBI shows up with a search warrant. They've found the rest of the stolen airline tickets in Tony's Suburban so he has no choice but to accompany them to FBI headquarters. And while Neil Mink assures him, "they don't have bubkes," Tony's not convinced. "We're talkin' predicates up the ass," Tony tells Neil, "A fuckin' RICO case. Thirty to life."

Bailed out by Neil, Tony's free -- at least for the time being. He has a contentious session with Dr. Melfi during which she tells him, "After two years treating you I've learned things. And I pick up sorrow coming from you." But Tony's got more important things to do than confront any sorrow he may be feeling: it's graduation day. Meadow's, of course, but Christopher's, too. At the school Tony tells his nephew that he's going to be made. "I deserve it," Christopher responds, "Got no spleen, Gene." Afterward Tony and Carmela host a big shindig in Meadow's honor. The food is by Artie Bucco and everybody has a good time -- with one possible exception.

Angie Bompensiero is angry that Pussy hasn't shown up.

Sopranos Season Two, Episode 25 - "The Knight In White Satin Armor"

Sopranos Season Two, Episode 25 - "The Knight In White Satin Armor"

What's to be done about Richie Aprile?

It's not a rhetorical question. And it's going to have to be answered soon because he's rapidly running out his string with Tony. He's still selling drugs on his garbage routes and started trying to horn in on other capos' hauling contracts. And while Richie continues to contend that his future brother-in-law is not giving him due respect, Tony's rejoinder is direct: "Those who want respect give respect." And openly disobeying the direct orders of the capo di tutti capi is about as disrespectful as it gets. Is it any wonder Tony doesn't want A.J. and Meadow anywhere near the guy?

But Richie's not the only one with whom Tony would like to sever ties. He's been trying to break up with Irina, his Russian goomah, but she's not the kind of girl you can just shove a pie at, Junior-style. Whenever he broaches the subject of breaking up, Irina threatens to kill herself -- she even attempts it one night by washing down twenty sleeping pills with a quart of vodka. Tony wants Irina out of his life, but he's genuinely concerned for her and even asks Dr. Melfi to recommend a therapist for her. But in Irina's experience, psychiatrist equals gulag and she wants no part of it. So Tony sends her the next best thing: Silvio. As gently as he can, Silvio gives Irina the benefit of the wisdom he's gleaned from years of managing the Bada Bing: "You got a short window. It's not good to get too hung up on any one thing." As it turns out, that advice -- and an envelope with seventy-five thousand dollars -- helps Irina see the light.

Meanwhile Richie has decided to take action. He tells Junior the time has come to make a move against Tony. Unfortunately for Richie, none of the captains is willing to side with him. And as Junior's already made one failed attempt to knock off his nephew, he's not about to embark on another one. Deciding he's better off backing Tony, Junior warns him of Richie's intentions. Tony immediately contacts Silvio, whose take on the Richie situation is as succinct as it is deadly: "I genuinely don't think there's anything to gain by keeping him around." Tony concurs, telling Silvio, "Get it done."

Is this the end of itchy Richie? Well, yes. But not the way you think. That night, Richie makes the fatal mistake of ending an argument with Janice by punching her in the mouth. Janice responds by taking a gun from a cupboard and shooting Richie like a downward facing dog. Now Richie's lying dead on Livia's kitchen floor and as she's done in the past, Janice turns to her baby brother for help. Tony brings in Christopher and Furio to minimize the problem -- literally. They take Richie's body to Satriale's, where they cut it into more easily disposed-of portions. That taken care of, Tony puts Janice on a bus back to Seattle, telling her, "all in all...I'd say it was a good visit."

So Tony got lucky. Both Richie and Janice are out of his hair and he barely had to lift a finger to accomplish it. He still has one big enemy, though: Big Pussy. Until now, Pussy has been avoiding giving Agent Lipari anything probative on Tony. But he's grown increasingly resentful of the Boss' treatment of him since his return. Is Pussy's resentment strong enough that he'll finally give Tony up to the Feds?

There's one more chance this season to find out.

Sopranos Season Two, Episode 24 - "House Arrest"

Sopranos Season Two, Episode 24 - "House Arrest"

This week Tony finds out that going to jail might not be as bad as what you have to do to avoid it.

Tony's lawyer, Neil Mink, warns him that while he dodged a bullet on the Bevilaqua matter, the Feds are still gunning for him. The government has devoted considerable resources to investigating the Soprano organization, Neil tells Tony, "and sooner or later, they're going to want a return on their investment." If Tony wants to stay out of jail, Neil says, he's going to have to start behaving like a civilian and "get your ass out of that strip club." So, on advice of counsel, Tony forsakes the Bada Bing and the pork store for the corporate headquarters of Barone Brothers Sanitation.

For the next few weeks Tony spends his time going to the office and hobnobbing with the movers and shakers of the non-putrescable waste industry. While this solid-citizen-as-solid-waste-manager act may be helping him avoid federal indictment, it's also causing Tony's stressors to pile up higher than the inventory. He's having even more anxiety attacks and developed a rash on his forearm. Dr. Melfi tells him the reason for his increased stress is that inactivity has allowed him to reflect on the abhorrent things he's done. As for her own stressors, Dr. Melfi has been dealing with her growing aversion to Tony by fortifying herself with vodka before his sessions.

But Tony's too concerned with other matters to notice Dr. Melfi's flexible cocktail hour. Richie and Junior have been using their garbage routes to sell coke, despite Tony's warnings that this could bring the DEA and FBI down on everybody's heads. Finally Tony's taken as much insubordination from Richie as he can stand, and screams at him, "I fuckin' hate the way you make me ride you!" But as Richie sees it, Tony's eating alone and he's going to have to do something about it.

Speaking of eating alone: Junior has about had it with house arrest. Desirous of company more stimulating than Bobby Baccala's, he tries to get in touch with his old girlfriend, Roberta Sanfilippo. Junior remembers Roberta bittersweetly as "a great ass... and game as they come." But when she doesn't return his call, he settles for the companionship of Catherine Romano, an old friend from his school days. She's no Roberta, but she's game in her own way: she makes manicotti, massages his feet and doesn't mind when he falls asleep in front of the TV and snores like a band saw.

So it seems that for the time being, Junior has found a way to cope with confinement. And Tony finds a solution to boredom, too: he says "so long" to Barone Sanitation and goes back to his old haunts.

As for the Feds: let'em watch.