Liliputin -5489

Comrade Kirov, you probably don't even hear it when it happens ..."
Josef Stalin

Liliputinss. What, the heck, is this?
http://stihi.ru/2021/11/24/7101

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Sergei Mironovich Kirov[a] (born Kostrikov) 27 March 1886 – 1 December 1934) was a Russian and Soviet politician and Bolshevik revolutionary. Kirov was an early revolutionary in the Russian Empire and a member of the Bolshevik faction of the Russian Social Democratic Labour Party. Kirov became an Old Bolshevik and personal friend to Joseph Stalin, rising through the Communist Party of the Soviet Union ranks to become head of the party in Leningrad and a member of the Politburo. On 1 December 1934, Kirov was shot and killed by Leonid Nikolaev at his offices in the Smolny Institute. Nikolaev and several alleged accomplices were convicted in a show trial and executed less than 30 days later. Kirov's assassination was used by Stalin as a reason for starting the Moscow trials and the Great Purge.

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https://www.youtube.com/shorts/1SLNT80g3EE

You probably don’t even hear it when it happens.”

I hear a lot of people quoting this statement of Bobby’s as thematic evidence for Tony’s death at the end of the series, but I don’t buy it for one reason: Bobby’s own words, at least in his case, were not true. He spent his last moments absorbing a spray of bullets knowing full well he was being assassinated. In saying you “probably don’t hear it when it happens” Bobby tried to rationalise the deaths of his fellow mobsters as being not unlike simply going to sleep, or just fading into the ether, but much like almost every other platitude these degenerates spat out and lived by, it turned out to be utter horseshit. “You probably don’t hear it when it happens” isn’t David Chase’s way of clueing you in to Tony’s death, it’s an ironic indictment of the gangster lifestyle and the lies these bastards tell themselves to help them get to sleep at night when their own violent demise looms over every near horizon. Just my .02.


The key word is 'probably' Some people see it and hear it coming sadly.

The other hint is Silvio recounting the story of not even hearing a gunshot go off right next to him as a person get's whacked at the same table. It wasn't until blood sprayed on him that Sil even noticed something had happened.

I'd also say Phil didn't hear it happen either.



Others who absolutely did see it coming:

Brendan Fillone Chucky Signore Mikey Palmice Jimmy Altieri Matt Bevilaqua Angelo Garepe Lorraine Caluzzo Vito Spatafore

And so on.

My point is only that Bobby’s statement is not watertight, and therefore cannot be considered a watertight piece of evidence for a definitive conclusion about Tony’s death. I have other beliefs about the direction of the ending that serve this less-than-definitive interpretation as well, but my biggest and boldest is that to insert Tony’s actual death into the series would be at the expense of one of the core themes of the show, i.e. Tony’s never-ending internment in his self-imposed spiritual prison - the only fate that would make death a relief; a relief he could not have appreciated if he understood it and would not have deserved if he received it, but a relief nonetheless - and he gets none, because what little is left of his life will be spent regarding every stranger with suspicion, every friend with a wary eye, his family with a tired kind of shame, and himself with the same puerile emotional judgments as have always constituted his depressive complexes (and these compounded now by the fact that his years of therapy were all for nought - he is really, truly unable to be helped). Again, just my 0.02c, but I’ve always thought a definitive interpretation precludes some of the most important conversations that could be had about what kind of person Tony really is by the time the screen cuts to black.


Probably went through his entire life never knowing a Ford Explorer would crush skull. Leatardo....that his fkn legacy!!!



How about that?


How bout dat, how bout dat.

The God Of Sopranos draws a different conclusion. The depiction presents a strong possibility of Tony's death at that final instant but Not a definitive outcome. This all is entirely intentional.


Oh my god. I had no idea that was updated recently with a lot of new Chase quotes I've never seen before. Tony is deader than ever. Thanks for posting that again.


I am familiar with this, and still don’t buy it. Not in the literal sense, anyway. My belief is that the direction is a red herring at best. Camp “Whether He Dies Or Not Is Not The Point” all the way, baby!

Ive always felt Tony doesnt die BUT goes to jail soon after the diner scene. I interpret it as the "last supper" for that family. Also we know Tony cant handle jail so he probably would rather take the bullet

I agree. People just want him to have died because they are so averse to a life goes on ending, and he deserves it they think. Those 2 things combine to bias them strongly in favor of Tony dying.

A bit off topic but I don’t want to create another thread about the ending.

I’ve been wondering the last few days, how did members only jacket guy know that Tony would be at Holstens? Was it Paulie who tipped off New York?


I’ve heard that, but I think the evidence for that theory is pretty scant. I prefer to believe that the ghost of Big Pussy dropped a phantom anchor on T’s head, like the icicle in The Lovely Bones.


Yea, but Bobby heard it coming because they were shooting multiple times to kill him. As for Tony, you don’t know where if the assailant was in the diner at all, or just knew he was there. It was speculated Tony died either sometime before Meadow came into the diner, or after. She also took a long time to parallel park. Which was like she’s going to go into the diner and see her dad die. It’s the constant fear of getting killed. Tony made a lot of enemies over the years and people might still hate him for killing a lot of people like Febby Petrulio, Chucky Signore, Matthew Bevilaqua, Big Pussy, Ralph Cifaretto, Tony Blundetto, Willie Overall, Phil Leotardo, Jackie Jr, and Christopher Moltisanti. You got to think someone probably hated Tony enough to have him killed in front of his family.


I’m resurrecting an old thread here, because I watched the finale again and am now down the Reddit rabbit hole…

But I think we should consider taking the line about not hearing it, quite literally. The sound you hear from a gun shot is the bullet breaking the spreed of sound, causing a sonic boom.

I think what Bobby was suggesting is that the bullet would “probably” hit you before you’d literally even hear it.

So you’re right - there were others that SAW it coming. But the likes of Phil and Tony? All they saw was “a fade to black” because they never heard it coming.

My thoughts exactly. However, I don’t think it’s the speed of sound but rather the explosion that propels the bullet out of the barrel.  Either way, the bullet would be in your head before the sound could permeate your senses. Also it’s been confirmed that T died in that scene.