The Sopranos
What would it be like if the essence of Martin Scorsese’s seminal crime movies was distilled into a long-running TV show? David Chase brought us the answer in this HBO juggernaut, one that is probably responsible more than any other for spearheading the current crop of classy TV drama. After years of solid supporting character work the late, lamented James Gandolfini finally got a meaty role worthy of his magnificent talents as family man mobster Tony Soprano, a broiling mixture of paternal warmth and savage violence who never fails to hold our attention. The finale might be one of the most controversial moments in TV history but when The Sopranos hit the sweet spot, boy did it hit hard.
