HBO has had many successful shows on its network over the years, but The Sopranos has stood as one of their most popular programs. The Sopranos ran for a total of six seasons from 1999 to 2007, with James Gandolfini in the lead role as Tony Soprano
Tony was a New Jersey mob boss who sought out psychiatric assistance after struggling to deal with the stressors of his home and work life. The show was well-received by viewers and critics, with the series never dipping below an 8.0 on IMDb. Here are the 5 Best And Worst Episodes of The Sopranos (According to IMDb).
Best: “The Knight In White Satin Armor”- 9.3
Early on in the episode “The Knight In White Satin Armor”, Tony breaks things off with Irina Peltsin, which only makes things with Carmela more complicated since he confessed to her that he was cheating. Things for Janice, however, seem to be going well with her and Richie Aprile.
After Richie continues to disagree with Tony’s decisions, he decides to plan a hit (with the approval of Junior). Tony is tipped off about the hit by Junior, but before he can retaliate, Richie is killed by Janice after an argument escalates to violence. Panicking about killing her finance, Janice calls Tony, who calls Christopher and Furio to help clean up the body.
Worst: “Pie-o My”- 8.2
In the episode “Pie-o My” from season 2, Tony becomes interested in racehorses after Ralphie introduces him to his horse named Pie-o My. This eventually causes a conflict between Tony and Ralph, as Tony continually wants more of the earnings from Pie-O My’s races.
Adriana becomes increasingly stressed about her situation as an FBI informant, especially since her club is being used for mafia business. Janice continues to flirt with Bobby following the death of his wife, while Bobby struggles to focus on work. By the end of the episode, Ralph gives up on his horse after she becomes sick and tells the vet to hit up Tony for money to save her life.
Best: “Funhouse”- 9.4
The season 2 finale of The Sopranos opens with Tony and his sister Barbara discussing where their mother Livia is going to be living. Tony soon after becomes violently ill, likely due to food poisoning, which also causes him to have crazy dreams. In this episode, Tony also finds out that Pussy is an FBI informant, which forces the mob to take him out.
Silvio, Paulie, and Tony bring Pussy onto their boat and execute him. Tony is also arrested in this episode after Livia is detained at the airport for using stolen airline tickets, which are traced back to Tony. The episode ends with Tony being released on bail in time for Meadow’s graduation.
Worst: “Chasing It”- 8.1
“Chasing It” largely revolves around Tony’s addiction to gambling. The episode begins with Tony continuing his losing streak. Tony had initially agreed to help the Spatafore family move out of the state, but he loses $100,000 on a bet and isn’t able to aid the family.
Instead, he pays $18,000 to send Vito Jr. to a boot camp program to curve his behavior. Tony and Carmela also have a huge fight after Carmela makes him lose out on a football game bet. A.J. also has relationship troubles in this episode as Blanca breaks up with him.
Best: “Long Term Parking”- 9.6
“Long Term Parking” is the final episode to feature Adriana La Cerva alive. Adriana is forced to talk with the FBI again after they watch surveillance footage of her suspiciously taking something from Crazy Horse’s dumpster. She confesses that she helped two men move a body out of her club after she stumbled into the murder scene.
In one final attempt to save herself and Christopher, she confesses everything to her fiancé about being an FBI informant. At first, Christopher agrees to run away with her, but changes his mind and calls Tony. Adriana is picked up by Silvio after Tony calls her and says that Chris tried to commit suicide. Silvio ends up killing her, while Tony struggles to deal with the Johnny Sack and the disappearance of Tony B.
Worst: “Calling All Cars”- 8.1
“Calling All Cars” sees Bobby and his children continuing to cope with the loss of Mrs. Baccalieri. Janice does her best to try to get Bobby to move on, often manipulating situations to make Bobby see her point of view. A.J. terrifies the Baccalieri children with an Ouija board, which he later gets yelled at for.
Tony also continues to have issues with Carmine Lupertazzzi as they fail to make a deal on the profits of the HUD business. Uncle Junior also has problems in this episode since the judge at his trial refuses to entertain the idea of a mistrial.
Best: “The Blue Comet”- 9.6
In “The Blue Comet”, the mob war continues between the Lupertazzis and the Sopranos. Italian assassins are ordered to take out Phil Leotardo, however, the hitmen mistake him for another person and shoot Phil’s goomah and her father. This forces Tony and his crew to go into hiding, but Bobby is killed in a hobby store trying to buy a model train called the Blue Comet.
Silvio and Patsy are also attacked trying to leave the Bing, which results in Silvio being left in a coma. Tony and his family are able to escape safely, with Tony hiding out in a safehouse with Paulie, Carlo, Walden, and Dante.
Worst: “A Hit Is A Hit”- 8.1
“A Hit is a Hit” is the tenth episode of season 1 of The Sopranos. This episode mostly deals with Tony trying to make friends at a country club. While he tries to get along with Dr. Cusamano, the people at the country club only seem to be interested in talking about the mafia.
Tony also sees Dr. Melfi where he talks about how he used to bully kids when he was younger. Tony thinks this is the reason why he hasn’t gotten into the country club. To get payback for not getting a membership, Tony gives Dr. Cusamano a box full of sand, which sends Cusamano into a panic as he thinks the box is mob-related.
Best: “Pine Barrens”- 9.7
“Pine Barrens” is one of the more humorous episodes of The Sopranos that is directed by Steve Buscemi. In the episode, Paulie and Christopher kill a man while making collections. The pair decide to dump the body in the Pine Barrens, but when they open the trunk, they realize he is still alive.
Christopher and Paulie force Valery to dig his own grave, which gives him an opportunity to escape. Paulie and Christopher chase after him and despite shooting him in the side of the head, Valery still escapes. Tony is called to save them from the extreme cold, which infuriates Gloria Trillo.
Worst: “Christopher”- 8.0
“Christopher” opens with Silvio complaining about a protest against a Columbus Day parade since he thinks they are insulting Italian Americans. A fight breaks out between Silvio, Patsy, Artie, and the demonstrators. The mob wives are also subject to Italian-American stereotypes when they attend a luncheon at a church.
Bobby experiences a tragedy when his wife passes away in a car accident. Bobby had been complaining about traffic while on his way home, which was caused by his wife’s accident. The mob wives try to comfort Bobby, but Janice becomes attracted to him because of how much he cared for his wife.
