Denial, Anger, Acceptance
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"Denial, Anger, Acceptance" is the third episode of the
HBO Home Box Office (HBO) is an American pay television service, which is the flagship property of namesake parent-subsidiary Home Box Office, Inc., itself a unit owned by Warner Bros. Discovery. The overall Home Box Office business unit is based a ...
original series ''
The Sopranos ''The Sopranos'' is an American Crime film#Crime drama, crime drama television series created by David Chase. The series follows Tony Soprano (James Gandolfini), a New Jersey American Mafia, Mafia boss who suffers from panic attacks. He reluct ...
''. It was written by Mark Saraceni, directed by Nick Gomez, and originally aired on January 24, 1999.


Synopsis

Shlomo Teittleman, the head of a Hasidic Jewish family, approaches Tony when his son-in-law, Ariel, demands a 50% stake in a family-owned motel as his condition for a divorce. Tony agrees to remove Ariel's claim in return for a 25% stake. Ariel turns out to be very tough, both emotionally and physically, and will not yield despite being beaten by Silvio and Paulie. They consult Tony, who in turn consults Hesh, who obliquely suggests threatening him with
castration Castration is any action, surgery, surgical, chemical substance, chemical, or otherwise, by which a male loses use of the testicles: the male gonad. Surgical castration is bilateral orchiectomy (excision of both testicles), while chemical cas ...
; Ariel yields. Teittleman then attempts to renegotiate the agreement, but Tony menacingly refuses. Jackie, who is dying from
stomach cancer Stomach cancer, also known as gastric cancer, is a malignant tumor of the stomach. It is a cancer that develops in the Gastric mucosa, lining of the stomach. Most cases of stomach cancers are gastric carcinomas, which can be divided into a numb ...
, has been hospitalized. Tony brings him a dancer from the
Bada Bing Bada Bing! is a fictional strip club from the HBO drama television series ''The Sopranos.'' It was a key location for events in the series, named for the catchphrase "bada bing", a phrase popularized by James Caan's character Sonny Corleone in ...
, posing as a nurse, for a "private party". However Jackie, whose condition is deteriorating, cannot think of anything else. Artie is still depressed by the loss of his restaurant; the insurance company refuses to pay him out, suspecting arson. He and Charmaine cater a charity event at the Sopranos' home; an argument between him and Tony turns into a boyish food fight. During the event, Carmela offends Charmaine by seeming to treat her like a servant. Afterward, Charmaine confides to Carmela that, prior to his marriage, she slept with Tony.
Meadow A meadow ( ) is an open habitat or field, vegetated by grasses, herbs, and other non- woody plants. Trees or shrubs may sparsely populate meadows, as long as they maintain an open character. Meadows can occur naturally under favourable con ...
and one of her friends, Hunter Scangarelo, exhausted from choir practice and studying for the
SAT The SAT ( ) is a standardized test widely used for college admissions in the United States. Since its debut in 1926, its name and Test score, scoring have changed several times. For much of its history, it was called the Scholastic Aptitude Test ...
s, decide to purchase
methamphetamine Methamphetamine (contracted from ) is a potent central nervous system (CNS) stimulant that is mainly used as a recreational drug use, recreational or Performance-enhancing substance, performance-enhancing drug and less commonly as a secon ...
from
Christopher Christopher is the English language, English version of a Europe-wide name derived from the Greek language, Greek name Χριστόφορος (''Christophoros'' or ''Christoforos''). The constituent parts are Χριστός (''Christós''), "Jesus ...
. Christopher initially refuses, fearing Tony's wrath if he finds out; his girlfriend,
Adriana La Cerva Adriana La Cerva is a fictional character on the HBO TV series ''The Sopranos'', portrayed by Drea de Matteo. She is the long-time girlfriend and, later, fiancée of Tony Soprano's protégé, Christopher Moltisanti. For her performance, de Ma ...
, convinces him to do it anyway, as the girls are likely to get adulterated and unsafe drugs from less trustworthy dealers. Christopher reluctantly agrees, stressing that Meadow must never speak of it. At the recital, Meadow and Hunter, showing subtle signs of amphetamine use, sing their brief solos successfully. After Christopher and Brendan return the stolen truck, Uncle Junior discusses what action to take next with his underling, Mikey Palmice, and with
Livia Livia Drusilla (30 January 59 BC AD 29) was List of Roman and Byzantine empresses, Roman empress from 27 BC to AD 14 as the wife of Augustus, the first Roman emperor. She was known as Julia Augusta after her formal Adoption ...
. Obliquely, Livia advises Junior to punish Christopher and take drastic action against Brendan. Out alone one night, Christopher is seized by Russian thugs who prepare to kill him. He thinks they have been sent by Tony because he sold methamphetamine to Meadow. Terrified, he pleads for his life, but it is only a mock execution. Brendan is shot dead in his bathtub by Mikey; Junior glances at the body.


Deceased

* Brendan Filone: shot in the head by Mikey Palmice on the orders of Junior.


Starring

*
James Gandolfini James John Gandolfini (; September 18, 1961June 19, 2013) was an American actor. He was best known for his portrayal of Tony Soprano, the Italian-American American Mafia, Mafia crime boss in HBO's television series ''The Sopranos'' (1999–2007 ...
as Tony Soprano * Lorraine Bracco as Dr. Jennifer Melfi * Edie Falco as Carmela Soprano *
Michael Imperioli Michael Imperioli (born March 26, 1966) is an American actor. He is best known for his role as Christopher Moltisanti in the HBO crime drama series ''The Sopranos'' (1999–2007), which earned him the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Suppor ...
as
Christopher Moltisanti Christopher Moltisanti, portrayed by Michael Imperioli, is a fictional character of the HBO TV series ''The Sopranos''. He is Tony Soprano's protégé and a member of the DiMeo crime family, rising from associate to captain over the course o ...
* Dominic Chianese as Corrado Soprano, Jr. * Vincent Pastore as Pussy Bonpensiero * *
Steven Van Zandt Steven Van Zandt (né Lento; born November 22, 1950), also known as Little Steven or Miami Steve, is an American musician and actor. He is a member of Bruce Springsteen's E Street Band, in which he plays guitar and mandolin. He has appeared i ...
as
Silvio Dante Silvio Manfred Dante is a fictional character on the HBO TV series ''The Sopranos'', portrayed by Steven Van Zandt. He is the consigliere and right-hand man to Tony Soprano in the DiMeo crime family. John Magaro portrays a young Silvio Dante ...
*
Tony Sirico Genaro Anthony Sirico Jr. (; July 24, 1942 – July 8, 2022) was an American actor. Often cast as a mobster, he portrayed Paulie Gualtieri in ''The Sopranos''. Born in Brooklyn to an Italian-American family, Sirico had a tumultuous early life ...
as
Paulie Gualtieri Peter Paul "Paulie Walnuts" Gualtieri is a fictional character portrayed by Tony Sirico on the HBO series ''The Sopranos'', one of the chief henchmen of series protagonist Tony Soprano. Sirico auditioned for the role of Junior Soprano, Uncle Jun ...
*
Robert Iler Robert Michael Iler (; born March 2, 1985) is an American actor. He is best known for his portrayal of A.J. Soprano on ''The Sopranos''. His film roles include '' Tadpole'' (2002) and '' Daredevil'' (2003). Career He made his debut in 1995 as ...
as Anthony Soprano, Jr. * *
Jamie-Lynn Sigler Jamie-Lynn Sigler (born May 15, 1981) is an American actress. She is best known for her role as Meadow Soprano on the HBO series ''The Sopranos'' from 1999 to 2007. Early life Sigler was born in Jericho, New York, on May 15, 1981, the daughter ...
as
Meadow Soprano Meadow Mariangela Soprano, portrayed by Jamie-Lynn Sigler, is a fictional character on the HBO TV series ''The Sopranos''. In the early seasons, Meadow is introduced as a smart but spoiled partygoer, whose over-dramatic personality and tendency ...
* Nancy Marchand as Livia Soprano ''* = credit only''


Guest starring

* Michael Rispoli as Jackie Aprile, Sr * Jerry Adler as Hesh Rabkin * John Ventimiglia as Artie Bucco * Kathrine Narducci as Charmaine Bucco * Ned Eisenberg as Ariel * Chuck Low as Shlomo


Also guest starring


Production

This is the first episode where Irina is played by Oksana Lada. She was originally portrayed by Siberia Federico in the
pilot An aircraft pilot or aviator is a person who controls the flight of an aircraft by operating its Aircraft flight control system, directional flight controls. Some other aircrew, aircrew members, such as navigators or flight engineers, are al ...
.


Title reference

Denial, anger, and acceptance are the first, second, and fifth stages of grief, respectively, described in the Kübler-Ross model. In this epidode, Tony is initially in denial that Jackie is going to die, telling Melfi that "Jackie's so mean he'll scare that cancer away!" Later in the episode, he becomes angry when Melfi says Jackie's prognosis does not sound good, and storms out of her office. Near the end of the episode, Tony accepts that Jackie is about to die, and tells Melfi "It's like he's already gone."


Reception

In a retrospective review, Emily St. James of '' The A.V. Club'' wrote that the " ndingmontage - intercut with Tony watching Meadow sing - is one of the first moments when ''The Sopranos'' takes music and rises above its prosaic, muddy universe to become something like sublime"; St. James commented that although the episode "is a 'Let's get the plot wheels turning!' kind of episode, and those sorts of episodes can be a little trying from time to time", there is nonetheless "lots of it that is just expertly executed". Alan Sepinwall praised Gandolfini's performance as well as the story involving Carmela and Charmaine, writing that the show "has a really great eye and ear for insults – particularly ones not necessarily intended as such".


References


External links


"Denial, Anger, Acceptance"
at
HBO Home Box Office (HBO) is an American pay television service, which is the flagship property of namesake parent-subsidiary Home Box Office, Inc., itself a unit owned by Warner Bros. Discovery. The overall Home Box Office business unit is based a ...
* {{The Sopranos The Sopranos season 1 episodes 1999 American television episodes Agunot fr:À Bout de Souffle (Les Soprano)