The Sopranos: The Top 15 Moments

Believe it or not, The Sopranos made its debut on HBO 15 years ago today, on January 10th, 1999. While the network had found success with scripted dramas like Oz and Sex and the City, The Sopranos cemented HBO's reputation as a haven for quality programming and top-notch storytelling, It paved the way for more great HBO fare like The Wire, Deadwood, and Six Feet Under, and for networks like FX and AMC to make similar transformations. Without Tony Soprano (played by the late and truly great James Gandolfini), the television landscape might be a very different, and less interesting, place.

In honor of the show's anniversary, we've picked our favorite 15 moments from the show's six (or is that six-and-a-half?) seasons. Some are funny, some are morbid, but all made for compelling TV.

15. The Chinese Prince Matchabelli
As seen in: "Rat Pack" (Season 5)

If The Sopranos had a designated comic relief character, it was Paulie Walnuts (Vito Spatafiore). Paulie fancied himself a suave ladies man and all-around competent capo, but his cluelessness tended to get the better of him throughout the series. In this episode, Paulie took Tony's advice and began reading (or listening to) Sun Tzu's The Art of War. Hoping to impress his friends, Paulie waxed on about the genius of "Sun Tizzou," a man he praised as "The Chinese Prince Matchabelli," until the more worldly Silvio Dante finally set him straight.

The_Sopranos_Paulie

But the best moment in Paulie's brief flirtation with culture came when he listened to Sun Tizzou in his car, knowingly absorbing the lesson ""He will win, when he knows when to fight, and when not to fight" and nodding knowingly. No sooner did he absorb this bit of wisdom than Paulie launched out of his car, delivering a savage beating to a group of gardeners who owed him money. Lesson learned?

14. Furio Cuts Loose
As seen in: "Big Girls Don't Cry" (Season 2)

Early in Season 2, Tony paid a visit to some Camorra mafia colleagues in Naples, hoping to pick up some new soldiers with more loyalty and skill than he could find among his own motley crew. Furio Giunta (Federico Castelluccio) immediately fit the bill, displaying a fierce loyalty for his superiors and a stern authority of his own. Plus, he was stylishly dressed and even a sensitive guy the ladies could flock to (even Carmela).

3furio

But viewers got a taste for just what sort of darkness lurked beneath Furio's calm exterior when he set about punishing the men who owed Tony money. Furio's early display of savagery set the tone for his character in the following seasons. He was a gentle soul capable of great violence and great passion.

13. Vito Accidentally Comes Out
As seen in: "Unidentified Black Males" (Season 5)

The mafioso culture seen in The Sopranos is all about machismo - proving to everyone else in the family that you're tough, worthy of respect, and a red-blooded male of the highest order. It's not a culture that welcomes homosexuality. So it was a bit of a shock when Meadow's then-boyfriend Finn accidentally caught Vito Spatafore (Joseph R. Gannascoli) performing oral sex on a security guard at the construction site they both "worked" at.

Vito_Spatafore

It was a twist that initially resulted in a humorous subplot as Finn wasn't sure whether Vito was looking to whack him for seeing too much or trying to seduce him. Finn's solution was to get engaged with Meadow. But eventually Vito's story took a dark turn when he was exposed to the rest of the crew and forced to go into hiding. His tragic, brutal death later in the series would cause a serious rift between the Soprano and Lupertazzi families.

12. Janice - A True Soprano
As seen in: "The Knight in White Satin Armor" (Season 2)

For much of her early appearance, Tony's sister Janice (Aida Turturro) made a grand show of distancing herself from the family business. She was a bohemian free spirit who traveled the world and dabbled in all sorts of crazy jobs before returning to Jersey to pester her brother. But that facade quickly faded away when she started dating her old high school boyfriend (and Tony's rival) Richie Aprile (David Proval). Suddenly, Janice reverted to the stereotypical mafia housewife.

Sopranos_ep212

But Richie learned the hard way that Soprano blood runs deep in this episode. After calmly punching Janice in the face for having the audacity to support his son's homosexuality, he returned to his meal, only to have a dumbstruck Janice come back in the room and shoot him dead. So after weeks of exacerbating the rivalry between Tony and Richie, Janice immediately put it to rest. Funny how things work out.

11. Christopher's Intervention
As seen in: "The Strong, Silent Type" (Season 4)

If every junkie hits bottom eventually, then Christopher Molitsanti's (Michael Imperioli) came when he accidentally killed fiance Adriana's (Drea de Matteo) dog while sitting on it in the midst of a heroin high. This finally forced the rest of the family to sit Christopher down in an intervention. And true to form for the Sopranos, that intervention resulted in Christopher getting beaten up and set to the hospital.

Sopranos_ep410

The key moment, however, came when Tony again confronted his nephew in the hospital room. Tony suddenly morphs from caring uncle to vengeful mob boss, telling Christopher in no uncertain terms that he's only still alive because he's family. In ore ways than one, this scene is haunting because of how we know their relationship eventually plays out.