The Second Coming (The Sopranos episode)
Encyclopedia
"The Second Coming" is the nineteenth episode of the sixth season and eighty-fourth episode overall of the HBO television drama series The Sopranos
The Sopranos
The Sopranos is an American television drama series created by David Chase that revolves around the New Jersey-based Italian-American mobster Tony Soprano and the difficulties he faces as he tries to balance the often conflicting requirements of his home life and the criminal organization he heads...

. The sixth season was broadcast in two parts; it is the seventh episode of the second part of the season. It was written by executive producer Terence Winter
Terence Winter
Terence Winter is an American writer and producer of television and film. He is the creator, writer, and executive producer of the HBO television series Boardwalk Empire...

 and directed by longtime series director Tim Van Patten
Tim Van Patten
Tim Van Patten is an American television director, actor, screenwriter, and producer. As a director, Van Patten has directed episodes of The Sopranos, The Wire, Deadwood, Boardwalk Empire, Rome, The Pacific, Game of Thrones, Ed, and Sex and the City. Van Patten is perhaps best known for portraying...

. It originally aired in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

 on May 20, 2007.

Plot

The episode begins with asbestos
Asbestos
Asbestos is a set of six naturally occurring silicate minerals used commercially for their desirable physical properties. They all have in common their eponymous, asbestiform habit: long, thin fibrous crystals...

 and waste smoking into the air in an area of scrubland near the New Jersey Meadowlands
New Jersey Meadowlands
New Jersey Meadowlands, also known as the Hackensack Meadowlands after the primary river flowing through it, is a general name for the large ecosystem of wetlands in northeast New Jersey in the United States. The Meadowlands are known for being the site of large landfills and decades of...

. As Tony
Tony Soprano
Anthony John "Tony" Soprano, Sr. is an Italian-American fictional character and the protagonist on the HBO television drama series The Sopranos, on which he is portrayed by James Gandolfini. The character was conceived by The Sopranos creator and show runner David Chase, who was also largely...

 sleeps in his bedroom, a sleepless A.J.
Anthony Soprano, Jr.
Anthony John "A.J." Soprano, Jr. , played by Robert Iler, is a fictional character on the HBO TV series The Sopranos. Usually just called "A.J.", he is the son of Carmela and Tony Soprano. He is a prototypical underachiever and is a constant source of stress and anxiety for his parents...

 turns on some rap music, waking his father up for a moment. When Tony goes downstairs later, he finds that the gift he bought Carmela
Carmela Soprano
Carmela Soprano née DeAngelis, played by Edie Falco, is a fictional character on the HBO TV series The Sopranos. She is the wife of Mafia boss Tony Soprano and the program's most prominent female character.-Character biography:...

 in Las Vegas
Las Vegas, Nevada
Las Vegas is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Nevada and is also the county seat of Clark County, Nevada. Las Vegas is an internationally renowned major resort city for gambling, shopping, and fine dining. The city bills itself as The Entertainment Capital of the World, and is famous...

, an engraved watch, has arrived by courier. Carmela recalls that Tony said he went to Vegas to wrap up some of Christopher
Christopher Moltisanti
Christopher "Chris" Moltisanti, played by Michael Imperioli, is a fictional character on the HBO TV series The Sopranos. He was Tony Soprano's protégé and a Capo in the Soprano crime family.-Biography:...

's business there and mentions that Christopher's widow, Kelli, will need financial support now. When Tony shows up at the office, a picture of Christopher, taken on the set of Cleaver
Cleaver (The Sopranos)
Cleaver is a metafictional film within a tv-series that serves as an important plot element toward the end of the HBO television drama series The Sopranos. Although very little film material is actually shown in the series, its planning and development are discussed at large throughout multiple...

, has been put up on the wall. Tony tells the guys about his peyote
Peyote
Lophophora williamsii , better known by its common name Peyote , is a small, spineless cactus with psychoactive alkaloids, particularly mescaline.It is native to southwestern Texas and Mexico...

 experience in Las Vegas.

When Tony goes with Patsy and Carlo to see Phil, he tries to reach a compromise with Phil about the asbestos removal project, reminding him of the talk they had while Phil was recovering in hospital. Phil tells Tony about the compromises he made while spending 20 years in the prison, where he made grilled cheese sandwiches on the radiator and "jacked off in a tissue" because he couldn't have any women. He coldly rejects Tony's offer. Tony retaliates by taking Phil's men Coco and Little Carmine off the payroll from another construction project. Butch and Coco viciously beat the foreman when he gives them the news.

A.J. despairs about the world and his future to his therapist, Dr. Richard Vogel, complaining, "Why can't I catch a fuckin' break?" He becomes interested in W. B. Yeats' poem "The Second Coming
The Second Coming (poem)
"The Second Coming" is a poem composed by Irish poet William Butler Yeats in 1919 and first printed in The Dial and afterwards included in his 1921 collection of verses titled Michael Robartes and the Dancer. The poem uses Christian imagery regarding the Apocalypse and second coming as allegory to...

" and reads it in bed. He feels deeply disillusioned with the political and materialist status quo and talks pessimistically while Kelli is over for dinner. When Meadow
Meadow Soprano
Meadow Mariangela Soprano , played by Jamie-Lynn Sigler, is a fictional character on the HBO TV series The Sopranos.-Character:Meadow is the first-born child of Tony and Carmela Soprano...

 comes to see her brother in his bedroom, he dismisses her cheeriness about the film Borat
Borat
Borat Sagdiyev is a satirical fictional character invented and performed by English comedian Sacha Baron Cohen...

, telling her "it wasn't fair to the people involved" and dejectedly claims that the U.S. will bomb Iran
Iran
Iran , officially the Islamic Republic of Iran , is a country in Southern and Western Asia. The name "Iran" has been in use natively since the Sassanian era and came into use internationally in 1935, before which the country was known to the Western world as Persia...

. He also tells her he's dropped out
Dropping out
Dropping out means leaving a group for either practical reasons, necessities or disillusionment with the system from which the individual in question leaves....

 of college. Meadow tries to console him and reminds him that he's a son in an Italian family and so "you'll always be more important." After Carmela leaves for a lunch date, A.J. attempts suicide
Suicide
Suicide is the act of intentionally causing one's own death. Suicide is often committed out of despair or attributed to some underlying mental disorder, such as depression, bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, alcoholism, or drug abuse...

 in the family pool, jumping off the diving board with a plastic bag around his head and one foot tied by rope to a cinder block. While underwater, he manages to struggle back up to the surface since the rope is too long. Tony comes home, hears his son's cry for help, jumps in the pool, and saves him from drowning. A.J. is put on Valium and admitted to a mental-health ward in a hospital.

When Tony talks to the guys in his office about A.J.'s suicide attempt, he laments, "Where did I lose this kid?" Patsy, Silvio, and Carlo try to console him with their stories of their children's tough times. When Tony tells Carmela he feels depressed, an argument between them erupts. Carmela blames A.J.'s condition on Tony's family's genetic predisposition towards depression, tells Tony he plays the "depression
Clinical depression
Major depressive disorder is a mental disorder characterized by an all-encompassing low mood accompanied by low self-esteem, and by loss of interest or pleasure in normally enjoyable activities...

 card," says that he is always complaining, and throws the watch he bought for her at him. In Dr. Melfi
Jennifer Melfi
Jennifer Melfi, M.D., is a fictional character on the HBO TV series The Sopranos. She is the psychiatrist of Mafia boss Tony Soprano. She is portrayed by Lorraine Bracco.-Character description:...

's office, in response to her suggestion that the long rope suggests A.J. subconsciously didn't want to die, Tony responds, "he could just be a fuckin' idiot... historically, that's been the case." Tony talks about the "Sopranos curse" that Carmela mentioned but refuses to shoulder all the blame. "His mother," he says, "she coddled him."

While Meadow has another "mystery date" with her new boyfriend at a cafe in Queens
Queens
Queens is the easternmost of the five boroughs of New York City. The largest borough in area and the second-largest in population, it is coextensive with Queens County, an administrative division of New York state, in the United States....

, a drunk Coco comes over to their table and makes several lewd comments. After Meadow tells Carmela, she tells her father what happened and Tony hides his rage. Meadow reluctantly tells Carmela and Tony that her boyfriend is Patrick Parisi, Patsy's son. After Tony leaves, Meadow tells Carmela that she will not be going to medical school
Medical school
A medical school is a tertiary educational institution—or part of such an institution—that teaches medicine. Degree programs offered at medical schools often include Doctor of Osteopathic Medicine, Bachelor/Doctor of Medicine, Doctor of Philosophy, master's degree, or other post-secondary...

 but instead law school
Law school
A law school is an institution specializing in legal education.- Law degrees :- Canada :...

, inspired by Patrick's passion about the justice system.

When Dr. Melfi sees Dr. Elliot Kupferberg, he tells her that a study has shown that sociopaths are not helped by talk therapy
Psychotherapy
Psychotherapy is a general term referring to any form of therapeutic interaction or treatment contracted between a trained professional and a client or patient; family, couple or group...

 but further enabled by it, perhaps even "sharpening their skills as con men" in the process. Meanwhile, Tony tracks down Coco and Butch at John's Restaurant on East 12th Street in Queens
Queens
Queens is the easternmost of the five boroughs of New York City. The largest borough in area and the second-largest in population, it is coextensive with Queens County, an administrative division of New York state, in the United States....

. Tony then viciously pistol-whips
Pistol-whipping
Pistol-whipping is the act of using a handgun as a blunt weapon, wielding it as if it were a club or blackjack. "Pistol-whipping" and "to pistol-whip" were reported as "new words" of American speech in 1955, with cited usages from 1940s...

 Coco several times with a snubnose revolver and warns Butch at gunpoint to shut up and remain seated at his table. After kicking Coco's face into the floor, Tony leaves the restaurant. At a session with A.J.'s psychiatrist that Tony and Carmela attend, A.J. recalls times when he felt humiliated by his mother and depressed by his visits to Livia at the nursing-home. As Tony listens, he notices one of Coco's teeth in the fold of his right pant leg. Carmela wonders why a college would teach a poem like "The Second Coming" to young people.

At the office, Patsy talks warmly with Tony about the romance between Patrick and Meadow and hopes there will be a wedding one day. Little Carmine arrives to meet with Tony and tells him he will broker a meeting with Phil regarding the beating he gave Coco.

Tony partly blames himself for his son's state while in Dr. Melfi's office, although he also says he realized, while on peyote
Peyote
Lophophora williamsii , better known by its common name Peyote , is a small, spineless cactus with psychoactive alkaloids, particularly mescaline.It is native to southwestern Texas and Mexico...

 in Las Vegas, that mothers are like buses who drop you off and continue on, but "we keep trying to get back on the bus." Dr. Melfi tells him that it's an insightful thought.

Tony's beating of Coco has opened a deep rift with the Lupertazzi crime family, as Phil refuses to meet with Tony and Little Carmine when they show up at his house. After Butch closes the door on Tony and Patsy, Phil yells down at them from behind a second-floor window as they walk away from the house.

In the final scene, a despondent Tony goes to visit A.J. at the hospital and with the glass doors to the mental-health ward sliding shut behind him, he walks down the hall to his son and places a hand on his shoulder.

Guest starring

  • Gregory Antonacci
    Greg Antonacci
    Gregory Antonacci is an American television actor, director, producer and writer.As a director, producer and writer, he worked on a number of television series namely Brothers, The Tortellis, Perfect Strangers, The Royal Family, The John Larroquette Show, Herman's Head, It's a Living and other...

     as Butch DeConcini
  • Peter Bogdanovich
    Peter Bogdanovich
    Peter Bogdanovich is an American film historian, director, writer, actor, producer, and critic. He was part of the wave of "New Hollywood" directors, which included William Friedkin, Brian De Palma, George Lucas, Martin Scorsese, Michael Cimino, and Francis Ford Coppola...

     as Dr. Elliot Kupferberg
  • Cara Buono
    Cara Buono
    Cara Buono is an American actress, screenwriter and director, probably best known for her role as Dr. Faye Miller in the fourth season of the AMC drama series Mad Men.-Early life:...

     as Kelli Moltisanti
  • Lindsay Campbell
    Lindsay Campbell
    Lindsay Campbell is an American actress and web journalist. She was the host of a daily online show called Wallstrip which shoots in Manhattan. She left Wallstrip on January 14, 2008 to host MobLogic....

     as Professor Kline
  • John Cenatiempo as Anthony Maffei
  • Dominic Chianese Jr. as Uncle Junior
  • John "Cha Cha" Ciarcia as Albie Cianflone

  • Michael Countryman as Dr. Richard Vogel
  • Armen Garo as Salvatore "Coco" Cogliano
  • Frank John Hughes
    Frank John Hughes
    Frank John Hughes is an American film and television actor best known for his portrayal of "Wild Bill" Guarnere in the HBO miniseries Band of Brothers, Tom Fox in Catch Me If You Can, Tim Woods in 24 and Walden Belfiore in The Sopranos.-Early life and career:A native of the South Bronx, Hughes...

     as Walden Belfiore
  • Michael Kelly
    Michael Kelly (American actor)
    Michael Joseph Kelly is an American actor.-Early life:Kelly was born in Philadelphia and raised in Lawrenceville, Georgia, the son of Maureen and Michael Kelly. He has one brother and two sisters . He graduated from Brookwood High School in Snellville, Georgia...

     as Agent Ron Goddard
  • Joey Perillo as John Stefano
  • Matt Servitto
    Matt Servitto
    Matt Servitto is an American actor, probably best known for his role on The Sopranos as FBI agent Dwight Harris. He also appeared on all 3 seasons of the Peabody Award-winning series Brotherhood as Rep. Donatello and had a guest appearance on Sex and the City as Carrie Bradshaw's editor...

     as Agent Dwight Harris
    Dwight Harris
    Special Agent Dwight Harris, played by Matt Servitto, is a fictional character on the HBO TV series The Sopranos. He is an FBI agent assigned to Tony Soprano's case...



First appearances

The episode marks the first appearance of:
  • Timothy A. Feliciano as Patrick Parisi, son of Patsy Parisi, and new boyfriend of Meadow Soprano.

Title reference

  • "The Second Coming
    The Second Coming (poem)
    "The Second Coming" is a poem composed by Irish poet William Butler Yeats in 1919 and first printed in The Dial and afterwards included in his 1921 collection of verses titled Michael Robartes and the Dancer. The poem uses Christian imagery regarding the Apocalypse and second coming as allegory to...

    " is a poem by W.B. Yeats, which A.J. is studying for college. Its bleak perspective increases A.J.'s depression which culminates in his suicide attempt. Parts of the poem's final lines ("what rough beast . . . Slouching towards Bethlehem") are echoed in the final shot. A slouching, downcast Tony is seen walking down the halls of the mental hospital, or "Bethlehem", which was famously the name of the world's first psychiatric hospital
    Bethlem Royal Hospital
    The Bethlem Royal Hospital is a psychiatric hospital located in London, United Kingdom and part of the South London and Maudsley NHS Foundation Trust. Although no longer based at its original location, it is recognised as the world's first and oldest institution to specialise in mental illnesses....

    .

  • In the season five episode "Cold Cuts
    Cold Cuts (The Sopranos episode)
    "Cold Cuts" is the sixty-second episode of the HBO original series The Sopranos and the tenth of the show's fifth season. It was written by Robin Green and Mitchell Burgess, directed by Mike Figgis and originally aired on May 9, 2004....

    ", Dr. Melfi quotes "The Second Coming" to Tony.

  • A.J. can be seen as the second coming of Tony's panic attacks and fits of depression; Tony has often talked with Dr. Melfi about his passing-down of these weaknesses to his son.

  • Tony can be seen as the second coming of his mother, Livia. Tony displays Livia's paranoid and vindictive tendencies throughout the second half of season six, and says, "Poor you!", Livia's standard response for when someone is looking for sympathy from her, in this episode to Carmela and A.J. when they complain.

  • This episode is filled with sons who have their father's names and some traits, but who are extremely different from their fathers in meaningful ways: Anthony Soprano, Jr. (A.J.); Giacomo Aprile, Junior (Jackie Junior); Carmine Lupertazzi, Junior (Little Carmine); and Patsy Parisi (Patrick Parisi, Junior).

Production

  • Arthur Nascarella (Carlo Gervasi) is billed in the opening credits but only for this episode.

Music

  • The song "Ridin'
    Ridin'
    "Ridin" is the second single from Chamillionaire's album, The Sound of Revenge, and features a guest rap by Krayzie Bone. Its title is often incorrectly assumed to be "Ridin' Dirty" due to the chorus...

    ", by Chamillionaire
    Chamillionaire
    Hakeem Seriki , better known by his stage name Chamillionaire, is an American rapper, record producer, and entrepreneur. He is the CEO of Chamillitary Entertainment. Chamillionaire is also the founder and an original member of The Color Changin' Click...

    , is played by A.J. when he wakes up in the morning at the beginning of the episode.
  • The song "Please Mr. Postman
    Please Mr. Postman
    "Please Mr. Postman" is the debut single by The Marvelettes for the Tamla label, notable as the first Motown song to reach the number-one position on the Billboard Hot 100 pop singles chart. The single achieved this position in late 1961; it hit number one on the R&B chart as well. "Please Mr...

    ", by The Marvelettes
    The Marvelettes
    The Marvelettes were an American singing girl group on the Tamla label. Motown's first successful female vocal group, the Marvelettes are most notable for recording the company's first #1 Pop hit, "Please Mr...

    , is playing when Tony
    Tony Soprano
    Anthony John "Tony" Soprano, Sr. is an Italian-American fictional character and the protagonist on the HBO television drama series The Sopranos, on which he is portrayed by James Gandolfini. The character was conceived by The Sopranos creator and show runner David Chase, who was also largely...

    , Sil
    Silvio Dante
    Silvio Manfred Dante, often referred to as "Sil", played by Steven Van Zandt, is a fictional character on the HBO TV series The Sopranos. He is the consigliere to Tony Soprano in the Soprano crime family. Silvio has one of the lowest profiles on the show. He is usually a behind the scenes figure...

    , Paulie
    Paulie Gualtieri
    Peter Paul "Paulie Walnuts" Gualtieri played by Tony Sirico, is a fictional character on the HBO TV series The Sopranos. He is a caporegime and later underboss in the Soprano crime family.-Plot details:...

    , Carlo, Walden, and Bobby
    Bobby Baccalieri
    Robert "Bobby Bacala" Baccalieri, Jr., played by Steve R. Schirripa, is a fictional character on the HBO TV series The Sopranos. He was a Capo and later the acting underboss of the DiMeo Crime Family, as well as Tony Soprano's brother-in-law...

     discuss Tony's trip to Vegas and their respective drug
    Psychoactive drug
    A psychoactive drug, psychopharmaceutical, or psychotropic is a chemical substance that crosses the blood–brain barrier and acts primarily upon the central nervous system where it affects brain function, resulting in changes in perception, mood, consciousness, cognition, and behavior...

     experiences.
  • The song "Suspicious Minds
    Suspicious Minds
    "Suspicious Minds" is a song written by American songwriter Mark James that, after the failure of his own recording, was handed to Elvis Presley by producer Chips Moman becoming one of his most notable hits and a number one in 1969, "Suspicious Minds" was widely regarded as the single that returned...

    ", by Elvis Presley
    Elvis Presley
    Elvis Aaron Presley was one of the most popular American singers of the 20th century. A cultural icon, he is widely known by the single name Elvis. He is often referred to as the "King of Rock and Roll" or simply "the King"....

    , is playing in the back room of Satriale's while Tony meets with Patsy and (later) Little Carmine.
  • The song "Into the Ocean
    Into the Ocean
    "Into the Ocean" is the second single from Blue October's fifth album, Foiled. The song peaked at #53 on the Billboard Hot 100, while the music video for the song, directed by Zach Merck, reached number one on the VH1 V-Spot countdown...

    ", by Blue October
    Blue October
    Blue October is a rock band from Houston, Texas. The band was formed in 1995 and currently consists of Justin Furstenfeld , Jeremy Furstenfeld , Ryan Delahoussaye , Matt Noveskey , and Julian Mandrake .-History:Blue October was formed by lead...

    , is playing during A.J. and Meadow's conversation in his room.
  • The song "Lullaby
    Lullaby
    A lullaby is a soothing song, usually sung to young children before they go to sleep, with the intention of speeding that process. As a result they are often simple and repetitive. Lullabies can be found in every culture and since the ancient period....

    ", by Ninna Ninna, is played when the chapter ends.

Awards

  • The following actors submitted this episode as their 2007 Emmy choice: James Gandolfini
    James Gandolfini
    James J. Gandolfini, Jr. is an Italian American actor. He is best known for his role as Tony Soprano in the HBO TV series The Sopranos, about a troubled crime boss struggling to balance his family life and career in the Mafia...

     (Tony Soprano), Edie Falco
    Edie Falco
    Edith "Edie" Falco is an American television, film and stage actress, known for her roles in Oz as Diane Wittlesey, as Carmela Soprano on the HBO series The Sopranos, and as the titular character on the Showtime series Nurse Jackie...

     (Carmela Soprano), Jamie-Lynn Sigler
    Jamie-Lynn Sigler
    Jamie-Lynn Sigler is an American actress and singer. She is best known for her role as Meadow Soprano on the HBO television series The Sopranos.-Early life:...

     (Meadow Soprano), Robert Iler
    Robert Iler
    Robert Michael Iler is an American actor, known for his portrayal of A.J. Soprano on The Sopranos which aired on HBO from 1999-2007....

     (A.J. Soprano) and Peter Bogdanovich
    Peter Bogdanovich
    Peter Bogdanovich is an American film historian, director, writer, actor, producer, and critic. He was part of the wave of "New Hollywood" directors, which included William Friedkin, Brian De Palma, George Lucas, Martin Scorsese, Michael Cimino, and Francis Ford Coppola...

    (Dr. Elliot Kupferberg).
  • This episode was nominated and won for Outstanding Writing for a Drama Series for the WGA Awards.

External links

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