When The Sopranos
Ruled the World

The world was much better when The Sopranos was still on TV. Every week, the entire country, perhaps even the entire world, was glued to their small screens to watch this mob family in New Jersey deal with all sorts of issues, from power struggles to personal affairs. It was always so entertaining to watch.

Had it aired on a different channel, I'm sure the show would've consistently topped the highest-rated shows of the early 2000s. But because it was on HBO, a premium channel that fewer homes had at the time, it rarely drew as big an audience as the more accessible TV networks did.

That said, there was no question that The Sopranos was a top-notch show. It even won 21 Emmy Awards to prove it, along with a boatload of other prestigious awards and accolades. No one was doing it quite like HBO at the time, and this show was the best they ever had.

That's why I still have immense respect for the cast. They did some of their best work in all six seasons, even when some have gone on to star in other, more famous shows since then. To me, they'll always be the characters they played in The Sopranos.

When I finally met some of them in 2024, that's all I could think about. That year was special for us Sopranos fans, since the show's 25th anniversary brought many cast members together at two separate events. The first was a private “family dinner” at Da Nico in New York's Little Italy in January, which featured Kathrine Narducci, Steve Buscemi, Steven Van Zandt, Aida Turturro, and Vincent Pastore.

My friend helped with the event's PR, and she brought me along as her guest to meet the cast who were there. Though I met most of them, only a handful signed my Sopranos poster, but I couldn't complain. I was lucky to see the reunion firsthand, let alone get some autographs.

The second reunion was at the Tribeca Festival later that year. A big part of the cast appeared at the world premiere of Alex Gibney's documentary, Wise Guy: David Chase and The Sopranos, at the Beacon Theatre, and many were among the show's biggest stars. They included Edie Falco, Jamie-Lynn Sigler, Robert Iler, Dominic Chianese, Annabella Sciorra, Drea de Matteo, and Steve Schirripa.

That was the better night for me, because I got even more autographs than the first one. I also finally met the incredible Edie Falco there. I loved her in The Sopranos but became an even bigger fan when she starred in Nurse Jackie. I couldn't believe that she was standing right in front of me.

It's a good thing she's such a nice person in real life, because I really embarrassed myself in front of her. But instead of making me feel even worse, she smiled at me, signed my poster, and gave me a gentle hug.

All of them were nice that night, but she stood out to me because of that. I even binged the series all over again after that interaction. And unsurprisingly, the show is still good after all these years. It has stood the test of time, and thank God for HBO Max, so we can watch it anytime we want.