Belmont Wrap-Up and Sopranos Finale

Wouldn't you know it? Rags to Riches, the first filly in over 100 years won the Belmont. Came in at 4-1. I literally walked into the casino sportsbook as the horses were loading into the gate. Probably was the last one to get action on the race. I walked back to a good spot to watch the race in the surprisingly crowded sportsbook just in time to hear, "And they're off...". Normal race until they made the final turn. The sportsbook went nuts. Both Rags to Riches and Curlin had made their move. Neck and neck down the stretch. Rags to Riches simply had more heart than Curlin, winning by a head. Gutty performance! Outstanding race! As they crossed the wire, I could overhear people saying it was 100 years since a filly won. Even people that had losing tickets, as did I, were in awe of what transpired. If Curlin had won, my trifecta ticket was a winner...but once again my horse got nosed out at the wire. Close. Again.

For those people that have never seen a major sporting event in a sportsbook, it's truly a sight to behold. For a true sports nut, it often gives you goose bumps. The room split into various rooting interests, all taking their turns to cheer when their wager is looking good. Only once have I seen the entire sportsbook in unison cheering for the same team. UNLV's NCAA second round upset over Wisconsin last year. I took down the largest payout I've ever had that day, and was not the only one in the room who did so. UNLV +250 to win that game...still can't believe we got those odds. That story is for another column. I do have one question however: why is Nevada still the only state with legalized sports wagering? What sense does this make? Was the retarded guy from Sling Blade involved again?

If you weren't a fan of the Sopranos, don't bother reading anything more in the column.

6:00. Show started. Highlights of the previous shows and then the theme song came on for the last time ever. Let the record show it was a little dusty in my house. The show starts exactly as I expected. Tony made it through the night. That's about the last prediction that I was correct about (besides Paulie staying loyal to Tony). The show started like a normal episode, and kept going. Tony spends time with each family member and even Uncle June. I couldn't help but keep looking at the clock wondering how the show is going to have time for this and this and that to happen.

Finally, Phil gets whacked. Now we're getting somewhere. What am I going to miss about this show? One great example here. Phil's last words: "Wave bye-bye to grandpa". Immediately he's shot dead on the spot. Classic. The show keeps going, yet Tony doesn't seem to be worried about his own fate. Phil's dead, and he's made peace with New York.

The final scene happens. Tony's family, all driving separately, one by one enter the restaurant. At the same time, it appears Tony is being watched by a couple people at the restaurant. Meadow has trouble parking her car. Finally successful, she runs across the street and opens the door to the diner. Tony hears the bell, looks up, music stops and cut to black. This has to be the greatest WTF ending ever. After this happens I'm confused. I'm almost angry. What just happened? Nothing? Tony got whacked? The show is really ending like this? I immediately logged on and tried to get on the HBO website to see what other people thought. The website was down due to high activity. Unbelievable. All night I let it soak in. Was this a brilliant ending or a terrible one? What was Chase (the director) implying happened there? Several different interpretations, but here are the three most common.

1. Tony gets whacked by the guy who entered the bathroom. Straight out of Godfather 2. In a previous episode, while talking with Bobby, he explains death as everything turning to black. That's exactly how the show ended. Instead of us seeing a bloody gruesome death to the show's main character, we saw black.

2. Tony was an FBI informant the whole time. The people at the diner that kept watching Tony were watching out for him and making sure he was protected. This would explain why the FBI always took him away and he never got indicted. Also, it would explain why Tony was told by the FBI where Phil was and why the FBI person Tony was working with stated "we're going to win this thing after all" after he learned Phil was whacked.

3. Nothing happened at all. Part of the beauty of the show. The writers made the audience constantly second guessing themselves. At times, we see things that are not there at all. Always suspense, and nobody ever really knows where it's going. It's been a lot of fun to try and predict how the show would end. Was anybody correct about the way the show actually did end? And since the show ended the way it did, it leaves the door open to a movie or a DVD release with alternate endings. If of course, nothing did happen at the diner.

So even though the show at first left viewers like myself more angered than complete, upon further review, I've got to say this was a brilliant ending. Open to interpretation. The ending was just as unpredictable as anything else in the show's history. Great writing. Even now that the show is over, people are still talking about it. How many people are sitting around a water cooler talking about the ending today? I listened to Colin Cowherd (ESPN radio) on the way in to work. (And yes I'm posting this as I'm supposed to be working). As he explained, it would be a disservice to the listeners to breakdown an undramatic NBA Finals game/series with the Sopranos ending the way it did. As much as I disagree with him on several things, he nailed this point right on the head. The Sopranos sucked people in like no other show in my generation...possibly ever. It transcended what any other show has ever been able to do in this respect. And now that it's over, what now? Will anything ever fill the void? What happens when there is no wait until next year? The question, like the show, is left open ended.

Rich Kim