posted by gut
I read every tv critic review I could find back then. My take was he may or may not have died then, specifically, but that the scene is almost like a premonition. The scene does sort of standalone, and it's also somewhat disconnected from the timeline of the show (i.e. it could have been 2 years later). The most popular theory, at the time, was that Chase "whacked the audience". And some also noted that the ending left open the door for a movie or some sort of sequel - that was a hope for a long time, even rumored, and might have happened if James G hadn't died unexpectedly.
Chase had always said that Tony had to pay a price, and that an anti-hero couldn't escape some form of justice. Of course, The Americans showrunners said pretty much the same thing...
I've forgotten 90% of what made that last scene so amazing. I wasn't really "tuned-in" to all the symbolism and throw backs to The Godfather that Chase routinely used. But because of that, people found all kinds of clues in that setting, many of which I'm sure Chase had no intention for other than to create the setting of a diner. But it became not unlike a painting, where people were even analyzing the playlist on the jukebox for hidden meanings.
I was all "WTF" like everyone else when I watched it live. But IMO it's now one of the singularly great scenes in television and movie history. And that's just from a story-telling standpoint. The rest of it in terms of execution, ambience and cinematography doesn't lag, either.
Yeah, I can see that. The scene does kind of stand apart, but there were references to that is where they were going to dinner that night earlier in the episode. Once the scene started, I was paying attention to every detail and noticed a bunch of references myself. I agree it is one of the great scenes. I agree he has to pay a price as his actions the last 2 seasons were getting worse and worse.
I lean on he got whacked, but I could see others who take a different view.
I finished up the Unsolved Mysteries on Netflix. They were fine, but they needed more crazy stories. The unsolved murder stories are fine, but that is more dateline now. I remember the crazy shit like the UFO episode more than the unsolved murder stuff.
I'm about to start the quick Netflix Mob show: Fear City: New York v. the Mafia tonight.