Okay, so I just watched the finale, and I had to google some interpretations of fellow watchers. I found what this guy said on www.thesopranos.com forum.. it made a lot of sense.
I dunno, I guess it makes sense... because what DIDN'T make sense is why Meadow was running in so quickly the way she was? I didn't get it! Why was she in such a hurry! She had either news... or saw something that Tony didn't see.
Anyways, sorry if this is a repost of information that's already been said. I just thought you'd like to hear an interpretation that seems quite plausible. It's a sad ending, but it makes sense.
The countless web forums regarding the Sopranos ending is very eclectic. Many of us are pissed off, others confused and others elated at the brillant ending.
Let the speculation begin! Until we hear a commentary or interview from David Chase regarding what the ending means, we can all draw up our own conclusions. Here is mine:
In a previous episode this season Bobby and Tony are talking at beach house (the one where they get into a fist fight) and they discuss what its like to get wacked. They in one way or another discuss how when it happens everything goes black and you don't hear anything. It just ends.
This is the key to the ending. TONY IS KILLED AND WE DIE WITH HIM. It further iterates that we have been viewing the show for all of these years form Tony's perspective and WE get wacked WITH Tony! Just like for Tony, everything for us just suddenly goes black and we don't hear anything. Note this is also the only episode with no soundtrack during the credits.
This theory on it is further backed by the overall tone of the show. One of the most prominent aspects of the show is its sense of "realism". Throughout the show everyone deals with issues that are very realistic and people can relate to such as alcohol and drig abuse/rehab, mental wellness, the difficulties in raising children, health ailments (cancer, depression), and on and on. These very realistic aspects of the Sopranos are never shown in any other Mob-Type show/movie. This is one of the greatest aspects of the show.
That said, in real life, loose ends are never really wrapped up in a tidy ending. In fact life goes "On and On and On and On" (as proclaimed in the song in the diner in the last scene). So the reality is that it was NOT TIME for all the loose ends in the show to be tied up. Carmela with her real estate endeavors, Meadow going to law school, AJ getting into the movie industry, Syl recovering from the gun shots, ect. None of THESE storylines are ready to be tied up. The only one that is ready to be tied up is Tony's storyline and just as when we pass away in real life we don't know how the storylines of our family and friends will end. Thus, since we have "DIED" with Tony in the diner, we too will never really know how everyone elses storyline ends.
That is my theory on it. To me, it is a bittersweet ending. Of course, like all of us, I have an emptiness inside not knowing what will happen to all of our favorite characters but on the flip-side like the rest of the show I think it is a brilliant ending and really stays true to its form, which is unexpected, realism that hits closer to home than any other show in history.
I dunno, I guess it makes sense... because what DIDN'T make sense is why Meadow was running in so quickly the way she was? I didn't get it! Why was she in such a hurry! She had either news... or saw something that Tony didn't see.
Anyways, sorry if this is a repost of information that's already been said. I just thought you'd like to hear an interpretation that seems quite plausible. It's a sad ending, but it makes sense.