Cold Cuts (The Sopranos episode)
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| The Sopranos episode | |
|---|---|
| “Cold Cuts” | |
 |
|
| Episode no. | Season 5 Episode 62 |
| Guest star(s) | see below |
| Writer(s) | Robin Green & Mitchell Burgess |
| Director | Mike Figgis |
| Production no. | 510 |
| Original airdate | May 9, 2004 |
| Episode chronology | |
| ← Previous | Next → |
| "Unidentified Black Males" | "The Test Dream" |
"Cold Cuts" is the 62nd episode of the HBO original series, The Sopranos. It was the 10th episode for the show's fifth season. The episode was written by Robin Green & Mitchell Burgess and was directed by Mike Figgis. It originally aired on May 9, 2004.
Contents |
[edit] Guest starring roles
- Frank Vincent as Phil Leotardo
- David Strathairn as Robert Wegler
- Joseph R. Gannascoli as Vito Spatafore
- Dan Grimaldi as Patsy Parisi
- Max Casella as Benny Fazio
- Frank Albanese as Uncle Pat Blundetto
- Sharon Angela as Rosalie Aprile
- Chris Caldovino as Billy Leotardo
- Arthur Nascarella as Carlo Gervasi
[edit] Episode recap
Tony learns that Johnny Sack has seized an entire load of smuggled Vespas that were supposed to be received by Carlo Gervasi's crew and split between the two families. When he confronts Sack, the New York mobster denies the possession of the Vespas despite evidence against him, and makes a pointed reference to Tony's continued denial that his cousin Tony Blundetto was involved in the murder of Joey Peeps.
Janice makes the news after getting arrested for beating up a parent at a youth soccer game, prompting an infuriated Tony to again demand that Bobby "take control" of his wife. Bobby gives her an ultimatum to either see an anger management specialist or else "this thing with us ain’t gonna work out."
The "Soprano temper" becomes the focus of Tony's next session with Dr. Melfi. She observes that depression can be a manifestation of rage turned inward.
Tony sends Christopher and Tony B. to Uncle Pat’s farm in upstate New York. The farm is about to come under new ownership, so they must locate and move three bodies that were buried there over the years. Christopher and Tony B. bond while doing the night work, but once Tony joins them, he and Blundetto fall back into their old routine of picking on their younger cousin, Christopher. Christopher takes the insults personally, especially the jabs aimed at his substance abuse recovery.
Once back in New Jersey, Tony visits the Bada Bing and initiates a discussion of the terrorist threat tied to unexamined cargo containers at the ports. When Georgie joins the conversation, Tony suddenly explodes and gives Georgie a beating that sends him to the hospital. Tony is afterwards remorseful, handing Paulie a wad of bills and insisting he make sure Georgie gets "the best". Paulie then informs Tony that Georgie does not want to see him again and is quitting his job at the Bada Bing.
Tony joins Janice and Bobby for dinner, but is uncomfortable when he sees Janice deal calmly with a series of minor irritations, having seemingly overcome the "Soprano temper". He tests the newly docile Janice by harping sarcastically on the topic of her estranged son, Harpo. Despite her best efforts, Janice eventually explodes and chases Tony around the room with a fork in her fist. Satisfied, Tony leaves.
[edit] First appearances
- Uncle Pat Blundetto: Tony and Tony B.'s uncle who was given an early retirement from the DiMeo crime family. He settled on a farm in Upstate New York where he was often visited by his nephews Christopher, Tony and Tony B.
[edit] Title reference
- Tony tells Dr. Melfi that "revenge is like serving up cold cuts" (inadvertently mangling the adage "revenge is a dish best served cold").
- But like many episode titles, multiple meanings can be found. In this case, "cold cuts" might also refer to the skeletal remains Tony B. and Christopher dig up (the "cuts" on the bodies, like the bodies themselves, are cold); and even though the teasing that Tony S. and Tony B. give to Christopher are meant warmly (debatable, perhaps), they are taken by Christopher as a series of demeaning barbs -- cutting him, perhaps, to the quick.
[edit] Trivia
- In the audio commentary, director Mike Figgis points out how the scene where Christopher and Tony Blundetto dig up the skeletal remains of a man Christopher knew (and killed) echoes the Yorick scene in Hamlet.
- Steve Buscemi’s character Tony Blundetto says he was teased as a youngster and called Ichabod Crane. When Christopher asks who called him that, Tony answers "some very sorry people", suggesting he sought vengeance on them. In Billy Madison, Buscemi’s character keeps a list of "people to kill", which included Billy who had teased him when they were young.
- Of Johnny Sack’s belief that Tony Blundetto killed Joey Peeps, Silvio comments that Sack should be "out looking for the real killers, instead of spending all his time on the golf course". This line is a not-so-subtle jab at OJ Simpson, who in the years after his acquittal on murder charges claimed to be seeking "the real killers" while he was often criticized for spending all of his free time playing golf.
- The final song is the live version of "I'm Not Like Everybody Else" by The Kinks, which is featured on their album To the Bone.
- Tony delivers another beating to the Bada Bing bartender, Georgie Santorelli, on a trivial premise, which had become a feature of each season since the show's inception. However, in this episode, the assault is so severe that Georgie refuses to return to work, presumably marking the final instance of the tradition.
- Though credited, Dominic Chianese, Jamie Lynn DiScala, Robert Iler, Katherine Narducci, and John Ventimiglia do not appear in this episode.
LINKS:
