Line #34 Recap/TheSopranosS5E8MarcoPolo


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3	->''"He doesn't care. With all the stuff he has? He got to go to the Olympics and everything. I love where he lives. I don't wanna come back here."''
4	-->-- '''Jason or Justin Blundetto'''
5
6	As tensions rise in New York, Little Carmine is recruiting supporters in exchange for new washing machines; their business is interrupted when Carmine's party boat, recently refurbished, is found damaged and in the middle of sinking.
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8	Phil is angry over his car crash during his previous confrontation with Tony during the previous episode. Johnny Sack sides with him and presses his claim against Tony, in order to preserve Phil's loyalty. Tony has Phil bring in his car to Big Pussy's body shop, which has now been taken over by his widow Angie Bonpenseiro. Phil proceeds to manufacture any and every possible claim for repair on Tony's bill, some of them frivolous or even outright fraudulent, out of pure spite towards Tony.
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10	Carmela plans a surprise 75th birthday party for her father Hugh; Carmela and Tony agree beforehand that Tony should not attend given their marital situation. Junior spoils the surprise to Hugh over the phone and when Hugh finds out Tony will not be coming to the party, he demands the "man of the house" attend. Carmela reluctantly invites Tony on short notice.
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12	Tony gifts Hugh with a Beretta Giubileo shotgun, to Hugh's delight. But Mary feels embarrassed by Tony's behavior, coupled with the fact that he's a mob boss. That embarrassment is heightened in front of her friend, Dr. Fegoli, whom she considers a proper and good Italian, despite his elitist and snobbish demeanor. Carmela eventually lays into Mary for being ashamed of her Italian American heritage. The evening culminates in Tony and Carmela making love in the pool, hinting at a possible reconciliation.
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14	Tony Blundetto meanwhile is not making as much as he'd hoped running airbags for Tony S. Tony B gets courted by Rusty Millio and Angelo Garepe, supporters of Little Carmine, for a hit job on Joey Peeps. Tony B struggles with whether he's willing to go as far as murder in order to make ends meet. The sight of the luxuries that the Soprano family has enjoyed, including the house, gets to Tony B and his kids, who steal from their cousin A,J. because he already "has so much". It becomes a tipping point for Tony B to accept the hit job.
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16	Joey Peeps is about to retire for the night with a prostitute when Tony B shoots both Joey and his prostitute to death in the car, but the car itself runs over Tony B's right foot.
17
18	!!Tropes:
19	* ActuallyPrettyFunny: Both Tony B and Joey Peeps smirk and chuckle over Phil's insistence that his car seat has been fixed wrong. Considering that's somebody both as high up and as dangerous as Phil, it also has shades of BullyingADragon.
20	* AgonyOfTheFeet: Tony B gets his right foot run over by the front wheel of Joey Peeps' car after shooting him.
21	* AppleOfDiscord: Uncle Junior deliberately creates one by tipping Hugh off about the SurpriseParty, and it works spectacularly.
22	* BeerGoggles: After being carried out of his party the worse for alcohol, Hugh mistakes either his wife Mary or daughter Carmela (perhaps both) for Virginia Mayo.
23	* BoomerangBigot: Carmela accuses Mary of being ashamed of her Southern Italian heritage with TheReasonYouSuckSpeech.
24	* BottleEpisode: Downplayed. A higher than usual proportion of the episode takes place at the Soprano home, although there are still many scenes away from it.
25	* BreakUpMakeUpScenario: The episode itself plays out as one for Tony S and Carmela, culminating in their TwoPersonPoolParty.
26	* BrokenWindowWarning: Johnny Sack has Little Carmine's boat sunk as a message.
27	* ButNotTooWhite: Mary was apparently disappointed that Meadow was born darker-skinned.
28	* CelebrityImpersonator: Tony B does some Creator/JackieGleason impersonation for the amusement of Angelo, while Rusty remains stone-faced.
29	* ConspicuousConsumption: Johnny Sack splashes out for a Maserati in anticipation of really raking it in as the new Boss. Tony S even lampshades it: "You're spendin' like you're already on the throne."
30	* ContinuityNod:
31	** Sal Vitro is seen landscaping at the Sacrimoni residence per the deal that was set up in "[[Recap/TheSopranosS5E3WheresJohnny Where's Johnny?]]"
32	** Tony says to Fegoli, "A doctor in the house? That's good, because somebody usually goes down at these affairs." In [[Recap/TheSopranosS1E1Pilot the pilot]], Tony had a panic attack while barbecuing.
33	* CreepyUncle:
34	** Tony B still has this vibe going on as he holds Meadow under a MaleGaze. Implied again when he looks uncomfortably at Tony S having a little closeup fun with Meadow. However, it's unclear whether it's him being a perv, or him being reminded of his absent daughter Kelly.
35	* [[DatingWhatDaddyHates Dating What Mommy Hates]]: No matter how many years go by, Mary still disapproves of Carmela having married Tony. Strongly implied to have been a factor in Carmela and Tony getting back together.
36	* ADayInTheLimelight: Carmela's parents are more of a focus in this episode than perhaps any other in the series.
37	* DeadManHonking: Joey Peeps, after he's been shot to death by Tony B.
38	* DisposableSexWorker: Implied to a degree. Tony B has to work himself up to taking out Joey Peeps, with whom he had friendly acquaintances. He doesn't hesitate in also taking out [[TheOldestProfession the prostitute]] once he gets around to killing Joey Peeps.
39	* DontLookAtMe: Meadow picks up that Tony B is [[MaleGaze ogling her]], so she gives him an ArmourPiercingQuestion in reply: "Any luck with [[TheRunaway Kelly?]]" She thereby indicates that she has the HyperAwareness to realize that Tony B has the CreepyUncle thing going on.
40	* EmbarrassingLastName: AJ initially mishears the name 'Fegoli' as 'Faggo', much to the chagrin of Mary.
41	* EtTuBrute: Even if he and Carmela are in the TemporaryDivorce at the moment, it's easy to tell Tony S feels hurt by the initial exclusion from the birthday party, no matter how much he tries to hide it under a brave face.
42	* EvilIsPetty:
43	** Phil makes up any and every [[BlatantLies bullshit]] claim for repairs he can think of on Tony S' bill. It's partly trying to claw back as much of the $40 grand he had to pay on what he felt [[CallBack was a]] LeonineContract, and partly out of pure spite towards Tony S.
44	** Uncle Junior ruins the surprise for Hugh simply because he wasn't invited. He justifies it as "At our age, it's enough of a surprise when we wake up in the morning." Carmela immediately realizes what happened, but Hugh buys it hook, line and sinker, even repeating the line to his wife and daughter.
45	* EveryManHasHisPrice: Little Carmine is doling out washing machines in an attempt to court allies in his EnemyCivilWar against Johnny Sack.
46	* FallenOnHardTimesJob: Tony B initially struggles with and refuses a hit job on Joey Peeps. But he takes up Rusty on the offer, because he wants very much to improve his material situation, especially for his kids.
47	* HeelFaceRevolvingDoor: Tony B struggled with one during the [[Recap/TheSopranosS5E7InCamelot previous episode]] about whether to leave the [[ReformedCriminal straight life]] and return to the [[DamnItFeelsGoodToBeAGangster mob life]]. He struggles with a different one in his episode about how far he's willing to take it, and if he's willing to defy Tony S who has forbidden getting involved with the New York SuccessionCrisis. He's started off as running airbags for Tony S, but it's not bringing in as much as he'd like. He struggles with whether to take on a hit job on Joey Peeps for that extra cash and initially refuses. But his kids being resentful about their own living situation provides a tipping point, and he accepts the FallenOnHardTimesJob.
48	* {{Hypocrite}}:
49	** Mary claims to be proud of her Italian heritage, but Carmela realizes she's actually ashamed of it.
50	** Tony B lectures his kids on stealing from A.J., and yet his first line of work for Tony S involves stolen airbags.
51	* IControlMyMinionsThrough: Johnny Sack takes the loyalty angle when it comes to Phil. He takes up Phil's grievance over damages to his car against Tony S. The purpose is to preserve Phil's loyalty, whom Johnny needs as [[TheDragon his Dragon]].
52	* IJustWantToBeBadass: Implied to a degree when the short and slight Hugh accepts the gift of a Beretta rifle from Tony S with a definite relish and begins pretending to aim it.
53	* ImprobablyCoolCar: The Maserati that Johnny Sack buys. It will become a {{MacGuffin}} in its own way shortly.
54	* InSeriesNickname: It's in this episode where Tony first anoints Phil as "The Shah of Iran".
55	* InVinoVeritas: Several characters are more honest than usual about their feelings at Hugh's party, including Carmela and Tony B.
56	* LargeHam: Once he does come to the party, Tony S really enjoys himself.
57	* LockedOutOfTheLoop: Possibly. The dinner during which Rusty and [[TheConsigliere Angelo]] offer the hit job to Tony B is unclear as to whether [[InadequateInheritor Little Carmine]] was himself in the know. The hints continue in a later scene when Tony B calls up Rusty to accept the job. Little Carmine is himself getting shaved by a barber a few feet away, and it's [[AmbiguousSituation ambiguous]] whether Rusty deliberately spoke the name 'Blundetto' quietly enough so that Little Carmine can't hear it. It's Rusty who gives the final nod for the order to kill Joey Peeps. It may reinforce that Rusty's ambition is to become TheManBehindTheMan, while Little Carmine ostensibly [[AuthorityInNameOnly sits on the throne]].
58	* TheManBehindTheMan: Rusty Millio's ambition is still very much to take over the New York family ''de facto'', with [[InadequateInheritor Little Carmine]] as his [[AuthorityInNameOnly puppet]].
59	* NotThatKindOfDoctor: A revered (and rather snooty) erudite named Dr. Russ Fegoli attends the 75th birthday of Carmella’s father Hugh. Tony, upon meeting him:
60	-->'''Tony''': A doctor in the house, huh? That's good 'cause someone usually goes down at these things.
61	-->'''Mary''': He's just joking!
62	-->'''Fegoli''': Unfortunately, my doctorate is in International Affairs.
63	-->'''Tony''': So you're a doctor like Kissinger’s a doctor?
64	-->'''Fegoli''': Yes.
65	* NotTheFallThatKillsYou: Hugh tumbles from the roof of the Sopranos' house. The bushes he falls into save his life.
66	* OneOfTheBoys: Angie has effectively become one of the guys after having taken over Big Pussy's body shop. Given that we haven't seen her for a while, it also has shades of AscendedExtra and TheBusCameBack.
67	* PennyAmongDiamonds: Tony B's kids are resentful about the contrast between the living conditions they're in, and the opulent house of the Sopranos. It becomes a tipping point for Tony B as he struggles with his new HeelFaceRevolvingDoor.
68	* ProfessionalKiller: Tony B accepts a job to kill Joey Peeps for some extra cash.
69	* TheReasonYouSuckSpeech: Carmela ends up giving Mary one, the substance of which is accusing Mary of being a BoomerangBigot. It's ultimately a {{Deconstructed}} one, as this was in response to Mary complaining about Tony being at the birthday party, which isn't unreasonable considering his line of work, although Carmela, like the other characters, makes it out to be an attack on culture rather than ethics.
70	* {{Revenge}}: Little Carmine and Lorraine went to school together, and were occasional lovers. It's held out to Tony B as the motivation for hiring him to take out Joey Peeps, although it's [[AmbiguousSituation hinted at]] that Little Carmine himself may have been LockedOutOfTheLoop.
71	* RevengeSVP: It's implied that Tony S turned on the LargeHam and gifted Hugh with the Beretta shotgun in order to give payback to Mary, guessing that she was the source of the initial snub.
72	* SmugSmiler: Hugh has it going on when he lets on that he already knows about the SurpriseParty.
73	* SoapboxSadie: Meadow claims that the justice system is biased against minorities.
74	* SpannerInTheWorks: Tony S has adopted a strategy of [[WeWait waiting out]] the New York SuccessionCrisis and keeping the Jersey family out of it to minimize the damage and risks. Tony B, by killing Joey Peeps, has committed the first and not the last act that will utterly dash Tony S' hopes.
75	* SpottingTheThread: Dr. Fegoli notes that the best of the Beretta guns, including the Giubileo shotguns, are never exported. He has thereby figured out that Tony is [[TheMafia a mobster]] who has the connections to get that kind of gun into the States. Mary's worst fears are realized, which eventually leads to Carmela giving her TheReasonYouSuckSpeech.
76	* SurpriseParty: Intentionally subverted by Uncle Junior. He goes out of his way to tip-off Hugh about the party waiting for him, [[{{Jerkass}} just because he can]].
77	* SuspiciouslyAproposMusic: "Bad 'n' Ruin" by Music/RodStewart is playing while Tony B walks up to and murders Joey Peeps. The lyrics as a whole place a lot of emphasis on a son feeling he doesn't live up to his mother's expectations, which in a way acts as a punctuation mark on Tony B's steps through yet another HeelFaceRevolvingDoor. Moreover, there's one lyric in particular that's loaded with {{Foreshadowing}}: "Here's one foot in the grave."
78	* TemporaryDivorce: Ongoing between Carmela and Tony S, and the source of quite a bit of drama in this episode.
79	* ThrowTheDogABone: Tony let Angie Bonpenseiro take over Big Pussy's old body shop so she could make ends meet.
80	* TwoPersonPoolParty: Tony S and Carmela, signalling a [[{{Foreshadowing}} possible end]] to their TemporaryDivorce.
81	* VisualPun: We cut from Tony B filming Carmela's ass to a shot of the moon.
82	* VisualTitleDrop: Numerous characters play a game of Marco Polo in the swimming pool after the party.
83	* WalkInChimeIn: When Tony arrives at the party.
84	-->'''Carmela''': He always leaves it til the last minute.
85	-->'''Tony''': I heard that.
86	* WhatTheHellHero: Bobby leaves the room with a DisapprovingLook after [[{{Jerkass}} Uncle Junior]] deliberately spoils the SurpriseParty for Hugh.

Context Recap / TheSopranosS5E8MarcoPolo