The Fleshy Part of the Thigh

At the beginning, I love the show, but it just grows on you like a rose. The show comes out, smelling like a rose. They had everything stacked against them at the beginning network television versus cable. Shooting on location versus in Los Angeles. All the actors were basically unknown actors except for a few. Even the writers that came on the show.wait a minute this will never work. When I first heard about the show, I thought it wouldn't either but Little did. I know this show for now I strictly watch it for the comedy after watching it so many times in the dialogue and the scenes. For some reason the Sopranos seen by scene. It's just epic. It's great television. Like Seinfeld. Or the honeymooners. Every single scene you watch is great just like twilight zone. My only guilt is I haven't seen Rockford files or northern exposure but I plan on watching those next. I love David Chase's seen by seeing depiction and how it jumps from scene to scene Versus weak transitions that other studios and sitcoms use. It's ridiculous. Love the Sopranos.

After three emotionally dense episodes, this is usually when the creative team behind the show take it a bit easier and allow the characters to "relax" a little. No, sir: The Fleshy Part of the Thigh moves forward at a breathless pace, as if Tony's coma had never occurred.

Of course, it did, in fact the New Jersey boss sends most of the episode at the hospital, chatting to fellow patients (most notably Hal Holbrook) about life and all things connected to it. As he prepares to come home, he learns a part of his business isn't going that well and there's nothing to do about it since Johnny Sack is indirectly involved. Also in for bad news is Paulie who, after receiving a literal kick in the balls in the previous show, gets a metaphorical one when he discovers his dying aunt Dottie, a devout noun, is actually his mother and the woman he thought was his mom is his real aunt. Disgusted and enraged by the revelation, he vows never to speak to "Ma" again, taking it out on Tony instead.

Although he has been dealt with on a deeper level in other episodes as well, this is the closest the writers have come to fully rendering the complexity of Paulie's personality: his inner conflict is the final step in setting him apart from the trite "smiling hit-man" cliché and Sirico is excellent, letting every last hint of humanity in his character emerge to great effect.

That said, his misadventure is the only huge event of the episode besides Tony's return home at the end. Maybe The Fleshy Part of the Thigh is a "calmer" show: the real trouble will start in the next couple of episodes.

I just watched an old episode of E.R. and happened to notice that Paulies real mother appeared in a hospital bed in a uncannily similar scene. Just wanted to say that.

Tony recovers from his coma, whilst Paulie has some distressing news.

This is a classic episode with some character defining moments.

The best compliment I can give 'The Fleshy Part of the Thigh' is that the writers manage to layer the plot with some fascinating themes and put it across in a fairly simplified way, whilst entertaining at the same time.

Since the show began, numerous episodes have made reference to our existence within the workings of the universe. There have been various perspectives on life, death and human connections by characters who are psychologists, religious figures and the likes of Livia Soprano, portrayed as incredibly negative and pessimistic. This episode offers another perspective and it has an interesting impact on Tony's dealings with certain people. The first 3 episodes of season 6 in particular laid the foundation for this with Tony's weird existential journey and he is now at an interesting point in his character arc.

Contrasting Tony is the existential crisis that Paulie finds himself in throughout the story. It cleverly shows a more narrow minded perspective, full of bitterness and self-obsession that could never comprehend anything outside its own black and white little world.

The guest characters are particularly good, with my favourite being the evangelical minister who was most likely inspired by the prominent Christian fundamentalists in the US at the time of writing.

James Gandolfini is brilliant and supported well by Tony Serico and others.

Visually it does a great job of the storytelling and conveys various themes such as how everyone and everything connects through shots of trees, people, and objects. You also feel more relevance in some of the imagery used in earlier episodes now like 'Pine Barrens' and 'Long Term Parking'.