http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Characters/TheSopranosLawEnforcementAndCivilians

open/close all folders

FBI and Law Enforcement

Special Agent Dwight Harris

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/AgentHarris2_8451.jpg

Played by: Matt Servitto

"Damn! We're gonna win this thing!"

A senior FBI agent assigned to Tony's investigation.

Anti-Hero: Of the Knight in Sour Armor variant. He possesses a cold and humorless demeanor, but he is a good guy who is doing his job to maintain the peace.
Awful Wedded Life: Near the end of the series, he's seen arguing over the phone with his wife, who clearly doesn't like that he's Married to the Job, and it's obvious that this isn't their first such argument. Harris is later shown having an affair with another FBI agent.
Dirty Cop: His opposition to LCN is never in question, but he's cordial with the mobsters on a personal level and possesses an "ends justify the means" type of mindset. In the end, he's a party to the murder of a mob boss.
Enemy Mine: His final scene in the series is him celebrating the death of Phil Leotardo, which he helped arrange with Tony.
Failure Is the Only Option: Over the course of the entire series, nothing he does gets him one iota closer to putting Tony away at the end than it did at the beginning. Tony doesn't even consider him a threat and the two have a Friendly Enemy relationship. Notably, his only major success was helping Tony assassinate a rival mob boss.
Friendly Enemy: Of all the FBI agents, Tony gets along with Harris the most. Even as early as Season 2, the two of them have a conversation about baseball while off the clock.
Go-Karting with Bowser: Agent Harris isn't above enjoying a sandwich and a chat with Tony at Satriale's from time to time.
Good Is Not Nice: Not a bad guy but mostly a fairly typical stern, humorless federal officer, who is also cheating on his wife. That said, he's mostly polite and accommodating when dealing with Tony personally, which factors into their willingness to help each other in the final season.
Hero Antagonist: Well, he is a good guy who is assigned to Tony Soprano's case.
Heroes Gone Fishing: Likes to hang out in Satriale's because he really enjoys the sandwiches.
It's Personal: One reason Harris is interested in the downfall of Phil Leotardo: the New York mobster once set up a rookie FBI agent for a rape and beating.
Kick The Son Of A Bitch: When Deborah tells him that Adriana can't have children, he reflects that Darwin might have been right, as her and Christopher being unable to produce offspring makes a pretty good case for nature "weeding out the nimrods".
Knight in Sour Armor: By Season 6, the job and all the new anti-terrorist stuff are taking a visible toll on him, but he keeps dedicated to it with resignation.
Not So Above It All: The usually stoic and utterly professional Harris exults and loudly celebrates upon receiving the news of Phil Leotardo's death, which he helped engineer. He's also seen arguing very angrily with his wife over the phone.
Pragmatic Hero: Isn't above staining his personal ethics or bending — perhaps outright breaking — the law to bring about an overall positive outcome, like the death of a savage mob boss.
Reasonable Authority Figure: Serves as this throughout the entirety of the show.
Skewed Priorities: Invoked; While he's still concerned with mob activity in the later seasons, federal law enforcement's priorities following 9/11 force Harris to worry more about potential terrorist cells than about LCN.

Frank Cubitoso

Played by: Frank Pellegrino

An FBI director in charge of investigations into the Soprano family.

Big Good: Technically, what with being the senior upholder of the law.
FBI Agent: FBI chief of New Jersey division.
Good Is Not Nice: Although mostly a calm, soft-spoken man, he scares the relatively innocent (by the standards of this show) Adriana into becoming an informer with the threat of a very long prison sentence for drug dealing, so much that she vomits all over him. In her final episode he berates and threatens her for not giving juicy enough info ( although his reason is justified, as Adriana has become complicit in a murder in the Crazy Horse which she had tried to hide from both the FBI and from Christopher).
Kick the Dog: Though Tony is hardly an innocent or decent person, Cubitoso playing him the tape of Livia trying to orchestrate a hit on him by manipulating Junior is pretty low. Even Harris seemed uncomfortable.
Hero Antagonist: Although he is on the side of the law, he serves as an antagonist for Tony and Adrianna, and he is far from a pleasant person.
Smug Snake: Heroic example, technically speaking, but he genuinely seems to enjoy taunting and prodding the gangsters whom he is tracking and arresting.
What Happened to the Mouse?: After playing a major role as FBI chief of New Jersey division for years, he disappears from the narrative after the end of Season 5.

Robyn Sanservino

Played by: Karen Young

An FBI agent who notably serves as handler to Adriana La Cerva.

Being Personal Isn't Professional: She lies about having children when Adriana picks her brain on the topic, but she does betray a little of her private life when she relates her reasons for joining the FBI.
Butt-Monkey: She handles Federal witnesses Adriana La Cerva, Eugene Pontecorvo, and Ray Curto. Adriana is murdered, Eugene commits suicide, and Ray dies of an aneurysm in Robyn's car.
Jerk with a Heart of Gold: Though she is seen mocking Adriana's naivety with her fellow agents, she later warms to Adriana and seems to bond with her.
Lima Syndrome: Ambiguously. She expresses concern when Adriana goes missing but also doesn't care enough to follow up on her disappearance.
Villains Out Shopping: Inverted; she is once shown driving her daughter.
Wide-Eyed Idealist: Develops an emotional attachment to her witness, and is terribly upset when she hears about her death.
Robyn: She could've gotten out. She could be halfway to China by now.
Other FBI agents: Stare at her witheringly

Deborah Ciccerone

Played by: Lola Glaudini

A special FBI agent who goes undercover befriending Adriana.

Aborted Arc: Introduced in the Season 3 finale as an undercover agent who will befriend and gradually groom Adriana to be a Federal witness. Her courting process lasts all of two episodes before Christopher tries to fuck her, driving a rift between her and Adriana. At this point, the FBI decides to just arrest their mark and intimidate her into compliance. Deborah is summarily replaced as handler by Robyn Sanservino.
Demoted to Extra: Deborah's screentime wanes after she's taken off her mark's case, but she still shows up well into the fifth season.
Fair Cop: Part of why she was chosen to go undercover with the mob wives, despite her lack of experience. Also ends up ruining her cover.
Harris: You know what the problem was, right? She gave Moltisanti a hard-on.
Cubitoso: So, what do we do? Hire only schifosas?
False Friend: She goes undercover to befriend Adriana and manipulate information from her, and the latter is deeply hurt when the truth comes out.
Ice Queen: She does a fair job ingratiating herself into Adriana's personal life, projecting the image of a vapid socialite, but the mobsters she's forced to interact with find her frigid and false. Christopher at least arrives at the wrong conclusion.
Love Triangle: After Chris makes a pass at her, Adriana gets jealous of her and breaks off their relationship.
Mistaken for Gay: Christopher thinks she's hot for Adriana, who seems flattered enough by the insinuation. He makes a bid for a threesome, but it's a disaster.
The Mole: A cover agent who poses as a superficial gal and potential trophy girlfriend. Adriana doesn't learn she's FBI until much later.
Ms. Fanservice: She doesn't wear much around the house.
Not So Stoic: The usually cool and controlled Deborah seethes with frustration once her efforts to befriend Adriana are abruptly torpedoed.
Pet the Dog: Before their link is severed and Adriana is assigned Robyn as handler, Deborah alludes to a conversation she and her mark had about "the little creatures" and wishes Adriana good luck. A distraught Ade is far too hurt to appreciate it.
Villains Out Shopping:
- Meets Adriana in a fashion boutique, invoking a Commonality Connection.
- Inverted; she is one of the only FBI agents with an on-screen personal life; she is married and has an infant son.

Agent Frank Grasso

Played by: Frank Pando

A special agent with the FBI and part of the team that searches DiMeo crime family street boss Tony Soprano's house with a warrant.

Category Traitor: Tony is disgusted by the mere concept of an Italian-American working for the FBI.
Contrived Clumsiness: Tony thinks Grasso purposely breaks a bowl during a register of his house.
Hair-Trigger Temper: Easily baited to anger by Tony's insults. Whether this is his true character or an attempt to get Tony's guard down along with Contrived Clumsiness is not certain.
Shout-Out: His name is an homage to Sonny Grosso, co-author of the book The French Connection.
Token Minority: Tony suggests the FBI only brought Grasso along to the Soprano house because it was a mafia affair. According to Tony, Grasso would otherwise be doing grunt work at the office due to prejudice.

Agent Skip Lipari

Played by: Louis Lombardi

The handler of Pussy Bonpensiero.

Being Personal Isn't Professional: Rants to Pussy about his frustrations with work.
By-the-Book Cop: Although he can be a Cowboy Cop and even Dirty Cop as the job demands, he is professional enough to refuse gifts or bribes from Pussy.
Cowboy Cop: The most "mob-like" cop in the show, in both looks and temperament; a mob associate isn't too fazed when Pussy tries to pass him off as "a friend of ours". Although firmly opposed to the mob, he is blunt, abrasive, and confrontational when challenged.
Dirty Cop: Downplayed: He's not happy to do so, but he chooses to look the other way regarding Pussy's role in Matthew Bevilaqua's murder. Proof that Tony committed it would be an enormous asset... and there may be other reasons he was willing to give Pussy this reprieve.
Good Is Not Nice: One of the gruffest FBI characters, but unambiguously opposed to LCN.
Lima Syndrome: A non-villainous example. His boss fears that he's become too friendly with Pussy, reality checks notwithstanding.
Manipulative Bastard: As part of his job, he's quick to stoke the flames of resentment Pussy has for Tony and the Life.
No-Harm Requirement: Needless to say, he warns Pussy time and time again that the second he engages in violent crime under FBI watch, he's done for.
Politically Incorrect Hero: He and Pussy bond over their frustrations with ethnic newcomers usurping their job opportunities. Sal has Furio to contend with, while Skip seethes over being passed over for an inexperienced Samoan agent.
Speech Impediment: His lisp occasionally undermines his tough nature.
That Wasn't a Request: Becomes increasingly frustrated with Pussy's attempts to dictate where and when he wears a wire.

Ron Goddard

Played by: Michael Kelly

An FBI agent who is assigned as Harris' new partner when the latter moves over to counter-terrorism.

FBI Agent: A new generation one, focused on terrorism and unrelated to the organized crime division.
The Stoic: Rather stone-faced and cool.
Those Two Guys: Always appears with Harris.
What the Hell, Hero?: He doesn't say a word, but his body language screams the trope when Harris reacts to the news of Phil Leotardo's death with "Damn, we're gonna win this thing!"

Leon Wilmore

Played by: Charles S. Dutton

An incorruptible police officer who comes into conflict with Tony.

Being Good Sucks: He refuses to accept a bribe from Tony Soprano and writes him a ticket. For this, he loses his overtime pay and is forced to work a degrading retail job at a garden store. Here he once again encounters Tony, who feels remorseful for Wilmore's situation and offers him several hundred dollars unconditionally, which Wilmore refuses yet again.
Butt-Monkey: He's punished for holding a wealthy and powerful man accountable for his crimes. What's particularly galling about it is that Tony was clearly in the wrong and the fine was a small amount of money that he was more than capable of covering, meaning Tony had his career sabotaged because his pride was wounded.
By-the-Book Cop: This is his personality and archetype.
The Fettered: He is shown to be honorable and an upstanding police officer.
Good Is Not Nice: An upright officer of the law, who has the personality of a rock and reportedly suffers from depression.
Honor Before Reason: Refuses two bribes from Tony Soprano, the second of which was essentially charity.
Knight in Sour Armor: He's keenly aware of how corrupt and awful the world around him is but he still strives to do good regardless of how much it inconveniences him.
One-Episode Wonder: He's a one-off character who nonetheless has some memorable interactions with Tony.
Punishment Detail: He quit the force rather than take one.
The Stoic: Stands by his values and takes the resulting abuse in stride.
Token Good Cop: Deconstructed. He is shown to be an honest and incorruptible officer, as he refuses to accept a bribe and writes Tony Soprano up for speeding, while the rest of the North Jersey PD are either outright in the pocket of the DiMeno family or quietly looking the other way. This ends up ruining his life as it brings the wrath of the vengeful mob boss down upon him, causing him to be forced to transfer to a dead end post and an investigation being launched into him by his crooked superiors. As a result, he loses his overtime pay and is forced into a Soul-Sucking Retail Job to make ends meet. However, Wilmore still sticks to his principles, even refusing a large charity payment from the remorseful Tony when he attempts to make amends for ruining him over such a petty matter.
Token Good Teammate: The other law enforcement agents on the show aren't exactly portrayed as evil, but a lot of their behavior is morally grey. Willmore is the most unambiguously good and upstanding officer out of all the ones we see.
What You Are in the Dark: Passes on an opportunity that would have kept him his job as a police officer.
Working-Class Hero: His wages seem to be pretty meager even before he loses his overtime pay and is forced to work a second job.

Civilian Characters

Dr. Jennifer Melfi

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/DrMelfi2_2063.jpg

"How are you, Anthony?"

Played by: Lorraine Bracco

Your mother, believe me, in your childhood, she's inflicted serious psychic injuries on you that are still there.

Italian-American psychiatrist and in some ways confidant of Mafia boss Tony Soprano.

All Girls Want Bad Boys: It becomes such a problem, Jennifer ends up seeing her own head doctor to deal with her growing attraction to Tony. Finally, she admits to her problem and is able to strongly refuse Tony's advances by the end of the series.
All Therapists Are Muggles: A non-supernatural version, where "Muggle" means "somebody not involved with The Mafia". Tony initially tells her that he's a waste management consultant. That said, she quickly figures out what Tony's real occupation is.
Audience Surrogate: Played with. While she doesn't see the exact details of Tony's life, she's been with him since the beginning of the show and listened to some of his most private confessions. Like most viewers, she's sometimes charmed by him and oftentimes disturbed by his lifestyle and mindset. She also slowly stops humoring his callous behavior and is even one of the few characters to cut him out of her life entirely.
Beware the Nice Ones: She's a genuinely nice person for the most part... but don't push her buttons too hard (as Tony realizes pretty quickly).
Brainy Brunette: Has brown hair and is a very intelligent and educated individual, except for a few episodes where she has an auburn tint in her hair.
Confess in Confidence: Partially, she's only given vague details for pragmatic and potentially legal reasons (partly, this is overcautiousness, but partly — and Dr. Melfi references this — it's because she would have a duty to warn and to notify the authorities if Tony revealed evidence of a future crime).
Critical Psychoanalysis Failure: Gradually gets distraught by her therapy sessions with Tony, leading to weight gains, drinking, and needing therapy herself.
Day in the Limelight: "Employee of the Month".
Deadpan Snarker: Despite how soft-spoken and shy she usually is, she can actually be pretty sarcastic at times. Especially when she's angry with Tony.
Descent into Addiction: Specifically, borderline alcoholism, as the toll of treating Tony leads her to greater drinking.
Drinking on Duty: Seen taking a shot of vodka before Tony's appointment in "House Arrest."
Drowning My Sorrows: She's a borderline alcoholic.
The Fettered: Has the chance to unleash Tony against her rapist, but decides not to.
Florence Nightingale Effect: Present and discussed.
Foil: To Carmela. They’re both women who arguably understand Tony in ways no one else does, but their differences are night and day with Carmela enabling Tony’s criminal activities and even coming to negotiations for their marriage to work, while Melfi stays true to her principles and rejects all of Tony’s advances and lifestyle.
Know When to Fold Them: In the final season, she realizes how futile her attempts to rehabilitate Tony have been and ends their sessions once and for all.
Leg Focus: Her legs are one of her defining physical characteristics, which Tony notices early on.
My God, What Have I Done?: After she reads the psychiatric study The Criminal Personality, which argues that therapy is at best ineffective on sociopaths and at worst can actually make them more successful criminals. Convinced by its findings, Melfi realizes she's effectively become another one of Tony's accomplices and, to her credit, ends their sessions thereafter.
Not So Similar: On meeting her for the first time, Tony is pleased to learn that her father's family came from Campania, the same region in southern Italy his family is from. In general, he assumes their shared heritage means she'll have an easier time understanding his mindset and motivations, which makes him more impatient when she doesn't. What Tony doesn't understand is that he's primarily a product of mob culture rather than just Italian-American culture.
Only Sane Man: Tends to be as objective as possible about whatever issues Tony is facing and can gently call him out or offer insight as needed.
Out of Focus: She delivers the first line in the series and is arguably the 2nd most important character in Season 1 besides Tony himself. Her importance gradually decreases as the series goes on, though she makes regular appearances until the end.
Put on a Bus: There are several occasions in which Tony, in one way or another, ceases his therapy sessions with her. These tend to be at or near the end of seasons, thus the audience doesn't really notice.
"The Reason You Suck" Speech: After Tony tries to pursue a personal relationship, she's driven to land some truths on him, who takes it as expected.
Melfi: ... you're not a truthful person. You're not respectful of women, You're not really respectful of people. Maybe you love them, I don't know. You take what you want from them by force or the threat of force. I couldn't live like that. I couldn't bear witness to violence...
The Shrink: She serves as Tony's, and his seeking her help was the initial premise of the show. She actually is a very skilled therapist and is able to help him through some of his issues. She could best be described as combining both sides of the Awesome variety, calling Tony out while also showing him compassion for how dysfunctional his upbringing was. However, later episodes indicate that he may well be a sociopath and beyond actual rehabilitation, and the biggest effect of therapy for Tony has been helping him seem normal (as normal as a mob boss can be).
Token Good Teammate: Of the show's main cast. Melfi has her flaws, but she also has one of the strongest moral compasses in the show and is able to resist the temptation of more directly benefitting from her connection to Tony.
Unresolved Sexual Tension: With Tony as she’s the only character who knows him better than anyone else, but their clinical relationship, as well as Tony being in the mafia and his traditional family values, keep them apart.
The Watson: Has this role in the series; Tony summarizes and bluntly explains almost of all the major plotlines to Melfi.
What You Are in the Dark: Jennifer has a moment like this when she discovers the identity of the man who raped her. She considers telling Tony, knowing he would give the culprit a long and painful death, but eventually decides against it.

Arthur "Artie" Bucco

Played by: John Ventimiglia, Matteo Russo (The Many Saints of Newark)

Tony's childhood friend, who now owns a restaurant.

Acquired Situational Narcissism: Due to his need to feel important, Artie consistently and smirkingly over-estimates his own abilities and personal charm. This leads him into regular Humiliation Congas that last for most of the series.
Angry Chef: Whilst he projects an affable front, the high levels of stress involved with his job coupled with everything that comes from being a friend of Tony's means he's never too far from snapping.
Awful Wedded Life: Are Artie and Charmaine in the same scene? Then they're arguing. They seem to absolutely detest each other.
Bad Boss: Slightly towards Martina, for spurning his advances.
Baldness Angst: Is a bit sensitive about his naked pate, probably because all the mobsters constantly break his balls over it. He even suspects this is the reason Adrianna doesn't reciprocate his attraction.
Bullying a Dragon: Points a gun at Tony Soprano. Subverted in that Tony lets him off the hook. He also gets a crush on Adriana and tries to pick a fight with Christopher, a fight that would have gone poorly for him if Tony hadn't stepped in. He then thinks he can get away with picking on Benny in front of his fiance after Tony prevented the guy from murdering him for beating him up.
Butt-Monkey: From the very first episode, very little goes right for him. Subverted however, in that his friendship with Tony allows him certain privileges that very few civilians, or even mobsters for that matter, would have, getting bailed out of trouble on several occasions. At the same time, a lot of those misfortunes likely wouldn't have happened if Tony weren't his friend to begin with.
Childhood Friends: With Tony Soprano. Probably about the only person that could have pulled a gun on Tony (outside possibly his own immediate family) and lived another day.
A Day in the Limelight: He gets episodes centered on him from time to time.
Divorce Is Temporary: Has a temporary separation with Charmaine that was meant to develop into a full-blown divorce.
Earn Your Happy Ending: Artie manages to put aside his pining for the mob and focus on his family roots and restaurant. By the end of the series, and in direct contrast to how things come crashing down for Tony and most of the DiMeo family, he ends up keeping his marriage and business while still hosting notable guests like Eric Mangini.
Foil: The Many Saints of Newark shows that he's one to Tony. Both of them were troublemakers as kids and were tempted by the Mafia lifestyle. However, while Tony did eventually join the group because of his gangster father and mother's lack of concern about it, Artie's law-abiding and caring parents made sure that he didn't.
Former Teen Rebel: The Many Saints of Newark shows that he was actually a bigger troublemaker than Tony in their youth and he had actually wanted to grow up to become a successful mobster like Dickie Moltisanti. Thankfully, his father was having none of it and forced him to join the family's restaurant business.
Henpecked Husband: Charmaine constantly criticizes him and shuts down his ideas.
Hollywood Mid-Life Crisis: Elements of this, particularly in his pursuit of Adriana.
Adriana: Is that a ring in your ear?
Artie: Oh, this? I've always had this.
In Love with the Gangster's Girl: A brief infatuation with Adriana.
In-Series Nickname: Artie.
Kick the Dog: He pettily rebukes his failed conquest Martina after it becomes apparent she's sleeping with Benny. Arguably turns into Kick The Son Of A Bitch when it's revealed she and her gangster boyfriend were running a scam at Vesuvio's, which she frames as a Mistreatment-Induced Betrayal.
Lovable Coward: Sort of. Artie is completely harmless in comparison to most of the people on the show, so it's easy to laugh at him throwing punches into a crowd of Native American protestors and then running away, or dodging Davey's attempts to lend him some money.
Morality Pet: Artie is Tony’s oldest friend, and one of the only people outside either of his families who he has any regard for.
Never Lend to a Friend:
- One of the rare instances of this having a relatively positive outcome for the civilian. Artie turns to Ralph for money at first, but Ralph doesn't go for it, correctly noting that Artie's friendship with Tony would put him beyond reproach were he to fail to make his payments. Tony himself seals the deal for Artie, and when he's inevitably unable to get Tony the money back, he's let off the hook with a very light penalty (looking the other way with Tony's already open tab at Vesuvio's). Contrast this with the life-destroying consequences that befell Davey.
- Artie himself declines to lend his old friend David Scatino the money to pay off his gambling debt to Tony. Affection for his friend aside, Artie knew this would have been a bad situation to get involved in.
No-Holds-Barred Beatdown: Beats the shit out of Benny for jeopardizing his business.
The One Who Made It Out: An Italian-American childhood friend of Tony's who went straight. It's actually implied during one of Tony's dreams that he was originally a bit of a hoodlum when Tony's coach reminds him that Artie was a bad influence on Tony. The Many Saints of Newark confirms it.
Politically Incorrect Hero: Throws out several anti-French slurs to a Frenchman who scammed him. He also joins Silvio and other mobsters against Native American protestors who took issue with a statue of Christopher Columbus.
Protectorate: Tony's. Artie resents it.
Self-Made Man: An honest restaurant owner. Tries to expand his activities with the Armagnac wine deal, but it goes sour.
Supreme Chef: An excellent cook and renowned restaurant owner.
Too Dumb to Live: Constantly antagonizes and even assaults several gangsters (Christopher and Benny). The only reason why he's alive is because of Tony.
Took a Level in Badass: Loses a fight to some French guy who scammed him in Season 4. He then beats up Benny Fazio in Season 6.
Work Off the Debt: Tab cleared off and free meals for Tony.

Charmaine Bucco

Played by: Kathrine Narducci

Artie's wife.

The Bartender: Hostess at the Vesuvio.
Divorce Is Temporary: Separates from Artie and asks for a divorce, but it doesn't take and they reconcile.
The Dog Bites Back: After getting fed up with Carmela's condescending attitude and treatment of her, Charmaine reveals that she had a fling with Tony in high school and he was going to dump Carmela for her. However, she chose to end things and is content with her choice, leaving Carmela speechless.
Fanservice with a Smile: Lowers her neckline and shows more cleavage to attract male clientele.
The Glasses Gotta Go: Said by her husband, because the glasses work against the fanservice.
Jerkass Has a Point: She is very abrasive and domineering with Artie, but most of her vocal concerns and complaints are usually valid and sensible.
Male Gaze: Charmaine's ample bosom is often the subject of this.
The Missus and the Ex: When Carmela deigns to treat Charmaine like hired help, she tells Carmela that she and Tony had a short affair when they were young to prove to her that she could have had Carmela's life if she wanted, but she chose not to.
Old Flame: Tony would like to resume an affair he had with her. During his coma at the beginning of the sixth season, the voice of his unseen wife as he hallucinates life as a civilian sounds like Charmaine and not Carmela.
Only Sane Woman: Unlike all of the mob wives, she recognized that marrying into the group is something that should be avoided and ended her high school affair with Tony.
Took a Level in Kindness: After the reconciliation, she still tries to steer Artie in the right direction, but is noticiably nicer in her ways.
Ugly Guy, Hot Wife: Charmaine is quite the looker while Artie is... not.
Wet Blanket Wife: She often comes across as bad-tempered and controlling towards Artie, but considering his past as a troublemaker and his frequent poor decisions during the series, her behavior is fairly justified.
Women Are Wiser: Unlike Artie, she knows well that mobsters should be avoided or at least not befriended under any circumstance, but her livelihood depends on them anyway. More generally the advice she gives Artie is always good, and of course his pride dictates he always ignores it.

Marianucci Gualtieri

Played by: Frances Esemplare

Paulie Walnuts' mother. It's later revealed she's actually his aunt and adopted him as an infant.

Due to the Dead: Dies off-screen on the same episode as Christopher, whose wake overshadows Nucci's. Paulie sees this as a final insult from beyond the grave by Chris.
Even Bad Men Love Their Mamas: Serves as proof that Paulie isn't totally evil.
I Am Not Your Father: Paulie is actually the son of her sister, knocked up by a sailor. Nucci took responsibility for the boy and raised him as her own. When Paulie finds out, he disowns Nucci and has a major identity crisis. Eventually, they reconcile, though.
Kindhearted Simpleton: She just isn't very bright, from being tricked into a panic attack by Ralphie's ridiculous lies to annoying other retirees with her slowness. Paulie however couldn't possibly have had a kinder or more forgiving mother figure, which probably explains why he is the way he is.
Morality Pet: She's this for Paulie, sort of.
Satellite Character: Basically serves as a foil to develop Paulie's character.
Shrinking Violet: Is very shy and has difficulty making new friends in the retirement home.

Liz La Cerva

Played by: Patty McCormack

Adriana La Cerva's mother.

Alcoholic Parent: Carmela and Tony comment on this during The Ride. Subverted in that Liz claims not to have had a drink in years. She's just depressed following Adriana's disappearance.
Beauty Inversion: She doesn't look any worse than the other mob wives/moms in most of her appearances. By Season 6, she becomes depressed enough to not bother keeping up with the Jersey fashion.
Bungled Suicide: After she loses Adriana and everyone around her disregards her theories surrounding the matter, she ends up trying to kill herself.
Cassandra Truth: She minces no words when she tells Adriana that Christopher is not a good man and getting engaged to him would be a big mistake that will destroy her life. She turns out to be 100% correct.
Excellent Judge of Character: She sees Christopher for the abusive lowlife he is and tries to get Adriana to realize it herself.
Outliving One's Offspring: Correctly assumes that Adriana ended up getting killed. She's just unclear about the details.
Struggling Single Mother: There's no mention of a Mr. La Cerva and Liz is shown to be living in a very modest house. She also tries to keep Adriana away from troublemakers like Chris.

Father Intintola

Father Phil Intintola

Played by: Paul Schulze

A priest who is close to Carmela.

Big Eater: Tony refers to him as "Monsignor Jughead" when he correctly guesses who ate all the ziti.
Demoted to Extra: A major character in the first season, but makes only occasional appearances after it.
Hot for Preacher: Close, but doesn't get to happen.
Mistaken for Gay: Carmela vaguely suggests that she mistook him for being gay when they are having a conversation about Robert Wegler (who she also mistakes for being gay).
The Movie Buff: He uses classic movies as an excuse to spend time with Carmela.
"The Reason You Suck" Speech: Gets a pretty scathing one from Carmela in the Season One finale, after she discovers that he's quite intimate with other mob wives, using them for an easy sexual whiff without technically breaking his vow of abstinence.
Sexy Priest: He's quite good-looking and charismatic, which is part of the reason why he has such an easy time drawing spiritually confused women to him.
Unresolved Sexual Tension: With Carmela; they almost do something midway through Season 1, but it doesn't happen. He makes sporadic appearances later on during which it is implied he still possesses some feelings for her.

Robert Wegler

Played by: David Strathairn

AJ's high school guidance counselor who begins an affair with Carmela.

Bitch in Sheep's Clothing: Carmela's final assessment of him, after he feels - not without grounds - that she's using him to help an undeserving A.J.
Gentleman and a Scholar: A suave and cultured man, a refreshing change for Carmela.
The Ghost: Mentioned a few times in Seasons 4 and 5 before finally appearing in "All Happy Families".
Hot Teacher: This is how Carmela sees him.
If Only You Knew: Tony indirectly calls him a fag for being bland and enlightened, all while he's having sex with Tony's wife every other night. Carmela is quietly amused by it.
Mistaken for Gay: Carmela, AJ and Tony make that assumption, the latter of which is probably a good thing for him.
Psychological Projection: Implied. Calls out Carmela for being a "user" who is screwing him to get him to boost AJ's grades. However, he could just as easily be accused of doing the opposite, taking advantage of the situation with AJ to get sex, and Carmela seems to think so.
Satellite Love Interest: Serves to explore Carmela's new life as a single mother and as Tony's foil.
Secret Relationship: Tony is kept in the dark, and with good reason.
Sex for Services: Feels he has been manipulated by Carmela to bump up AJ's grades and college prospects.
Silver Fox: He's got grey hair, befitting his age, and is pretty suave and good-looking.
Single Woman Seeks Good Man: Carmela's good man during her separation from Tony. It doesn't stick.
What the Hell, Hero?: One teacher calls him out on his suspicious sudden interest in helping an undeserving AJ., whom the teacher calls Fredo Corleone.

George "Georgie" Santorelli

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/GeorgieSopranos_5636.jpg

Played by: Frank Santorelli

A bartender at the Bada Bing.

The Bartender: He tends bar, among other things, at the Bing.
The Bus Came Back: It turns out the bus never left. In "Walk Like a Man", he's shown tending the bar as usual on the background while Tony hits on some stripper.
Butt-Monkey: He's a walking punching bag. Tony tends to beat him up whenever he's frustrated.
Dumb Muscle: He's a big, burly guy, but he can't seem to figure out how to work a telephone.
Eye Scream: Ralphie reenacts Gladiator on Georgie's head, forcing him to wear an eyepatch.
Fatal Flaw: Opening his mouth around sociopaths with a Hair-Trigger Temper, the guy tries to socialize or just drops a word and gets randomly kicked for it.
Fat Idiot: The man has some kind of mental handicap, most noticeable in not knowing when to stop answering back. It's a very unfortunate flaw to have around bad-tempered mafioso.
Nice to the Waiter: The designated target of the series, the painful bad guy variety.
Punch-Clock Villain: Quite literally. He regularly sweeps the club for bugs but he's only a bartender surrounded by criminals.
Screw This, I'm Outta Here: Decides to quit after Tony leaves him partially deaf, but Silvio changes Georgie's mind.
Sex for Services: He demands blowjobs and a cut of the strippers' earnings for facilitating their work.

Elliot Kupferberg

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/pb_4.jpg

Played by: Peter Bogdanovich

The therapist of Dr. Melfi.

Admiring the Abomination: He's hardass about sociopathy, but at the same time he is fascinated by Soprano and not only in a clinical way, he closely follows the Mafia power play too.
Author Avatar: In a roundabout way, perhaps partially unintentional by David Chase. Despite how slimy and smug Elliot is, he is the one to point out Melfi's Critical Psychoanalysis Failure, so much that he manages to get under her skin. Elliot is the one to let both her and the audience know that they've been enthralled by people who are ultimately irredeemable gangsters.
Book Smart: Clearly very intelligent, so intelligent that he points out how Melfi messed up with Tony and how she essentially helped him sharpen his criminal skills.
Fan Boy: To the Italian mob. He even watches news reports of mob killings with keen interest.
Elliot: This Santoro thing, I called it a year ago.
Fascinating Eye Brow: So frequent it annoys Dr. Melfi.
The Ghost: First mentioned in episode 4, he doesn't appear until Season 2.
Horrible Judge of Character: Downplayed, but there is one moment in "The Weight" that shows he's a pretty judgemental person, and his judgements aren't exactly accurate. When he and Tony both happen to be visiting their daughters at college, Elliot's trying to park while Tony is walking back to his car, and when Elliot tries to rush him with his car, Tony turns around for a moment and tells him to "take it easy". Elliot interprets this as Tony being "very confrontational", when Tony was just being assertive about his boundaries (Elliot's car was very close behind him), though he acknowledges that it was mostly because of Tony's size and likely just a misunderstanding. Then, when he talks about it with Melfi, he mentions that "the stranger" he met was probably just another parent... or more likely, a repairman.
Hypocrite: He criticizes Dr. Melfi for her handling of Tony as a patient, but he himself has several shortcomings as a therapist, including being highly judgmental, making psychological assessments of people without having treated them first, and even breaking doctor-patient confidentiality to lambast Melfi's treatment of Tony in front of his colleagues.
Iconic Item: Carries around an enormous water bottle, complete with a mesh sleeve, that's often the first thing that comes to mind when fans think about him.
Jerkass Has a Point: He is definitely a smug asshole, but Melfi agrees with him that all her treatment of Tony only enables him.
Jerk with a Heart of Gold: In "The Weight" he has a genuinely compassionate moment where he explains to Melfi why she should not blame herself for her rape.
Manipulative Bastard: Although he has good intentions, he more than once uses blatant manipulation on Melfi. Particularly, in "Blue Comet", he slyly brings up new studies on sociopaths to manipulate her into dropping Tony as a client, and even reveals to their colleagues that Melfi is treating Tony. He can't even hide his satisfaction of successfully changing her opinion on a client he's never met.
Nerd Glasses: He has prominent square eyeglasses.
Recognition Failure: Has a brief but harsh encounter with Tony Soprano in an underground parking lot. The doctor doesn't recognize Tony but uses the incident as an example during therapy, in-which Tony is the main subject.
Secret-Keeper: In a very unprofessional move, he reveals inside a common social circle that Melfi is treating Soprano.
Smart People Wear Glasses: One of the most intelligent characters on the show and naturally, wears nerdy glasses.
The Shrink: The shrink behind the shrink who discusses her Critical Psychoanalysis Failure.
Slimeball: One of the biggest non-criminal ones in the show. He cares more about learning about the details of Tony's life rather than listening to his actual patient. He even breaks doctor-patient confidentiality at a dinner with other psychiatrists just to talk about Tony's relationship with Melfi.
Smug Smiler: Puts very little effort into hiding his own feelings of superiority over just about everyone else.
The Watson: Examines the Soprano's impact on Melfi, so much so that he get's under her skin and reveals uncomfortable truths to both her and the audience.

Blanca Selgado

Played by: Dania Ramirez

A Puerto Rican woman who briefly dates AJ in Season 6.

All Girls Want Bad Boys: Initially what drew her to date A.J. in the first place. Even though she appreciates how he treats her, she slowly realizes he's less of a competent mobster and more of a passive manchild.
Dating What Daddy Hates: While Carmela doesn't show it in front of A.J. and Blanca, she's clearly unhappy with the fact her son is dating a dark-skinned Latina with a child and is a good deal older than A.J. Tony at least takes comfort in the fact Blanca is a fellow Catholic.
Good Parents: Has a young son who she cares about very deeply.
Morality Pet: She and her son Hector inspire a major improvement in A.J.'s attitude.
Ms. Fanservice: She's very pretty and is not afraid to show it off.

Svetlana Kirilenko

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/tumblr_ktu21ketcc1qzazb5o1_1280.jpg

That’s the trouble with you Americans. You expect nothing bad to ever happen, while the rest of the world expects only bad to happen. And they’re not disappointed.

Played by: Alla Kliouka

Cousin of Tony's mistress Irina, and caretaker to Livia.

The Caretaker: Livia's nurse.
Foil: To Janice. Svetlana is a reliable, down-to-earth, and zero-nonsense character. After a silly dispute, their antagonism reaches a point where Tony has to meddle in professional quality. Also serves as a foil to her cousin Irina, who has a great body but is a childish emotional trainwreck.
The Ghost: First mentioned in episode 5, she doesn't appear until the Season 2 finale.
Inspirationally Disadvantaged: Having only one leg is not a handicap to her, and Tony admires her for it.
Irony: The most stable of Tony's mistresses is the one who had the worst hand dealt by life.
The Mistress: Tony tries to add her to the list after a one-afternoon stand, but she politely rejects him. He takes it graciously for once.
Mother Russia Makes You Strong: She's a stoic and hard-nosed Russian who doesn't take any shit. When Janice, who's practically a mob princess, plays rough by stealing her leg, Svetlana simply has two Russian toughs mug her for it. She gets away with it.
Never a Self-Made Woman: Defied, one of the reasons why Tony is attracted to her.

Bruce and Jeannie Cusamano

Played by: Robert LuPone and Sandra Sauntiago

The next-door neighbors of the Sopranos.

Damn, It Feels Good to Be a Gangster!: Bruce and his friends are fascinated by the Mafia mythology and are casually curious about it. During a golfing trip, they treat Tony as a zoo animal and pepper him incessantly with Mafia questions.
Demoted to Extra: They have a recurring presence throughout the first few seasons of the show, as they're the Sopranos' neighbors and Bruce was the one who recommended Dr. Melfi to Tony in the first place. As the show went on, though, their screentime grew more fleeting, to the point where their only appearances in the latter half of the show come from a drop-in Bruce makes in "Whitecaps" and a blink-and-you-miss-it cameo the two make in "Soprano Home Movies".
Doctor's Orders: From time to time, as Bruce is the Sopranos' family physician and the one who referred Tony to Dr. Melfi.
Embarrassing Nickname: Tony sometimes calls Dr. Cusamano "Cooze". Heh heh heh.
Housewife: Jeannie is this.
Not So Above It All: Despite how smug and condescending he is towards Tony, it’s revealed in “A Hit Is A Hit” that Bruce and his friends regularly engage in insider trading, which is a very serious white-collar crime.
Smug Snake: Bruce is the passive and superficially-pleasant kind. His condescension towards Tony really comes out during the aforementioned golfing trip. This is despite the fact that he’s a bit of a criminal himself (see Not So Above It All).

Anthony Infante

Played by: Lou Martini Jr.

Brother-in-law of John Sacramoni and his spokesperson.

The Consigliere: Pretty much the last real ally and advisor to John. He gives his opinion on his brother-in-law's decisions and even gives him the honest truth of how the mob world saw "The King of New York".
Establishing Character Moment: One of his first scenes appears to be a Villains Out Shopping moment, but it turns out to be a professional meeting in his optical shop. He's a mild civilian who is in over his head among hardened gangsters and is acting out of loyalty to his family.
Fish out of Water: He's the last connection Johnny Sack has to the mob world and has to deal with guys like Tony. He's also a meek guy who runs an eyewear store.
Mouth of Sauron: Semi-obligatory. Serves as Johny Sack's meek spokesperson.
No-Respect Guy: Tony robs him in front of his face and John chews him out.
Spy Speak: He's really bad at it. Played for laughs to show the inherent absurdity of the criminal world.

Noah Tannenbaum

Played by: Patrick Tully

Meadow's college boyfriend.

Ambiguous Situation: Was he breaking off his relationship with Meadow entirely his own decision? It is implied that it would very likely have happened anyway at some point, but it is quite possible his father might have forced the issue because he disapproved of his son dating a Mafia Princess.
Bitch in Sheep's Clothing: He initially comes across as an intelligent and decent guy who's a good boyfriend to Meadow despite the family drama. However, as their relationship continues, it's shown that he's more selfish and entitled than he initially lets on. He insists to Meadow that he's a Nice Guy, and not like the other college boys, because he's sensitive with her and compassionate towards her roommate. However, it takes a single mediocre essay grade to cause him to rail cruelly against the latter, and once he sleeps with Meadow, his interest in her quickly tanks.
Black and Nerdy: He's a very intelligent and well-spoken young man as well as half black.
Dating What Daddy Hates: On both sides. As Meadow's "un-Italian" boyfriend, Tony starts making racist, mean-spirited comments to his face when he meets him, while Carmela is more subtle in her dislike, making veiled snipes at the young man. Meanwhile, Noah's father disapproves of Meadow for being a Nouveau Riche Mafia Princess who doesn't share their family's academic background.
In-Series Nickname: Tony derisively calls him "Jamaal Ginsburg, the Hasidic Homeboy."
Ivy League for Everyone: Meets Meadow at Columbia University.
Jewish and Nerdy: Half Jewish, and just as ambitious and studious as you'd expect.
Meet the In-Laws: Of the Hate at First Sight variety. Tony wakes up and finds Meadow barefoot while Noah is in his bathroom. Tony makes it clear he doesn't want her daughter dating a black guy.
Miles Gloriosus: When Meadow tells Carmela about Noah's first meeting with Tony, Noah claims that Tony was "lucky I didn't punch his fucking lights out." In reality, Noah was lucky Tony didn't do this to him.
The Movie Buff:
- Praises Tony for his movie collection and tries to strike a rapport with him over their mutual love of classic gangster cinema. Unfortunately, it doesn't do much good.
- His eloquency during a history of cinema class is what made Meadow notice him in the first place.
Smug Snake: A mild, non-villainous example. Noah isn't really a bad dude by any means, but he clearly has a bit of an ego.
Twofer Token Minority: Much is made of the fact that he's both black and Jewish. Tony despises Noah for (supposedly) playing the race card by identifying himself as a black man, although Tony would probably still view him in this light regardless of how Noah acted. This nets him a demeaning In-Universe Nickname.
Tony: Jamaal Ginsburg, the Hasidic Homeboy.
Where da White Women At?: Tony baselessly claims that Noah's attraction to Meadow is motivated by an unsavory lust he feels for her white skin.
Uptown Girl: Meadow, who's spent her whole life thinking of herself as the upper crust, is a trashy outsider in comparison to Noah's financial/academic background. It's almost certainly the realization that he could do far better than a Mafia Princess with a particularly racist father that causes Noah to dump her.

Len Tannenbaum

Played by: Michael Garfield

Noah's father. Attorney for various celebrities.

Disproportionate Retribution: Files a restraining order against Caitlin after Noah gets a low grade.
Education Mama
Man of Wealth and Taste
Meet the In-Laws: The dinner with Meadow doesn't go well for her and is very uncomfortable. She mistakes Dick Wolf for a sports commentator and has to lie about her parent's line of work.
Small Role, Big Impact: Has a single scene, enough time to assess Meadow and very likely sink her's and Noah's relationship.
Snobs Vs Slobs: Quite snobby. Certainly he doesn't see Meadow as a good fit.
"Well Done, Son" Guy: Noah clearly seeks his validation and emulates him in many ways.

Caitlin Rucker

Played by: Ari Graynor

Meadow's roommate at Columbia.

Aborted Arc: She seems to be heading down a self-destructive path in most of her appearances, but there's never any crisis or resolution to it all. Once Noah breaks up with Meadow, partially due to frustrations over Caitlin, she falls out of focus. When we do see her, she seems to have mellowed out all on her own.
Country Mouse: She's from a small town in Oklahoma and is excited to be in a big city like New York until it starts getting to her.
Mood-Swinger: Goes through cycles of exuberance and numb depression.
Ms. Fanservice: When first seen, she's dancing in front of the dorm room window in just panties and a tank top.
Put on a Bus: Despite being a close friend of Meadow during the third season, she is never seen again after it.

Finn De Trolio

Finn DeTrolio

Played by: Will Janowitz

Meadow's college boyfriend, and later fiance.

Audience Surrogate: His primary role is to show how an average person who had the opportunity to bear witness to the reality of mafia society might react. He's horrified.
Cassandra Truth: Downplayed. Though on friendly terms with Tony, he's fully aware of the violent, criminal nature of Tony's associates, and is the only character to so explicitly warn Meadow about them, including all but telling her that Tony's associates are going to kill Vito. She completely ignores him.
Deconstructed Character Archetype: His arc showcases that a love story between an honest civilian and a Mafia Princess doesn't really work, with crime rationalization being an insurmountable obstacle.
Foil: To Meadow. They're both college graduates of Italian-American heritage, but Finn is much more Americanized and is a civilian from a civilian family. His role in the story primarily serves to show how skewed Meadow's worldview has become under the influence of her family.
- Also to Jackie Aprile Jr. Whereas Jackie Jr. was born into, fully aware of and embraced the mafia lifestyle and was willfully blind to its downsides, Finn is horrified by it, has no heritage in it, and just wants to live a normal life and only sees the bad side of the life and is uncomfortable even around the privileged side. Meadow romanticized Jackie and her relationship with him, but is fairly disillusioned with Finn, foreshadowing that she will eventually succumb to the same self-deceptions that the rest of her family have. Similarly, Jackie was abrasive, entitled, and incredibly stupid while Finn is laid-back, humble, and smart. While Jackie had lofty illusions about the mafia lifestyle and his own capabilities that ended up getting him killed, Finn is horrified by what he sees, knows how out of his depth he is, and eventually distances himself from the life entirely, likely saving himself.
- Also to Carmela Soprano. While Carmela is conflicted about her relationship with Tony, she never actually does anything about it and remains complicit in his misdeeds. Finn, on the other hand, realizes his relationship with Meadow is never going to be healthy as long as she's still involved with the mob, and breaks off his engagement to her.
He Knows Too Much: Fears that Vito is gonna whack him/make him disappear at a baseball game to keep the gayngsterism a secret.
Interrupted Intimacy: He witnesses Vito going down on a security guard, but keeps his mouth shut and only shares it with Meadow. He's called to testify on this much later by the Jersey crew.
Ivy League for Everyone: He met Meadow at Columbia.
Nice Guy: He's a pretty decent guy overall and one of the few in the whole series.
Only Sane Man: In every scene he's in, compared to any other character he's with.
Offscreen Breakup: After a gradual degradation of their relationship, they drift apart and in the middle of Season 6 Meadow is single all of a sudden and doesn't want to talk about it. It's never explained when, how or why they broke off their engagement.
Put on a Bus: Leaves the picture after a sudden breakup with Meadow, his longtime fiancee. The exact details are left ambiguous and only mentioned in passing or hinted at, at best.
Screw the Rules, I Have Connections!: Defied, when the mobsters learn he may be the son-in-law of the big man, he's excluded from doing actual work at a construction site, but he dislikes this favoritism and keeps working honestly anyway.
Screw This, I'm Outta Here: Panics and decides to leave town and flee from Vito, but Meadow talks him out of it.
Surprisingly Realistic Outcome: Much of his character is built around showing how an ordinary person would react to the kind of stuff Mafia people and those used to the lifestyle don't think twice about. Needless to say, he's absolutely scared and spends much of his time around other characters in fear for his life.
Sympathy for the Devil: Vito may have threatened Finn with violence and possible death to keep his homosexuality secret, but Finn's both horrified and aware that Tony's crew will kill him after finding out.

Hunter Scangarelo

Played by: Michele DeCesare

Meadow's troubled friend from high school.

Back for the Finale: After not appearing for a very long time, she makes what is essentially a cameo in the last episode.
Childhood Friends: Meadow's best friend at the start of the series.
Demoted to Extra: After season 1.
Foil: The reason for her reappearance in Season 6. She's a medical student, the noble profession that Carmela and Tony Soprano wished for their daughter. While both Meadow and Hunter grew up together and have similar backgrounds, Hunter is implied to have experienced much hardship, actually suffering from her misdeeds, and ultimately changing for the better, whereas Meadow, who lived a more sheltered and non-punitive life with doors opened for her, is gearing up to effectively become a mob lawyer.
Former Teen Rebel: Although she was involved in a lot of reckless behavior and abused drugs in her youth, when she reappears in the finale she's become a medical school student who got her life in order and put her past behind her.
Precocious Crush/All Girls Want Bad Boys: Has a crush on Brendan Filone in season 1. She never mentions him after his death, but it’s unknown if she ever found out.
Weight Woe: Meadow once mentions she's in the “Eating Disorders” clinic at the hospital, and implied she’s been there before.

Davey Scatino

David "Davey" Scatino

Played by: Robert Patrick

An old friend of Tony and Artie's from high school who now runs a sporting goods store.

And Starring: "And Robert Patrick as David Scatino"
Asshole Victim: Tony actually tries to make him back off from gambling in his games, but Davey forces his way in and promptly runs up even more debt than Tony would have allowed. Davey engenders no sympathy by taking away his son's car to pay off his debts and then blaming his brother-in-law for not helping him after he's lost everything.
Beard of Sorrow: When Tony runs into him at the high school graduation, Davey has a day or two of stubble. This shows that he's not doing well, in spite of his claims to the contrary.
Butt-Monkey: Davey's life goes downhill in the most exaggerated way possible after he lets his gambling addiction get out of control.
Call-Back: In season three, Meadow reminds Tony about how he took Davey's car to give to her. She also reveals that he's now in a mental health facility.
The Gambling Addict: A rather horrific example. He continues to gamble in spite of the consequences and ruins his family's future in the process, all while avoiding responsibility.
Hypocrite: Tells his son - while unfairly confiscating his car in order to sell it and pay off his gambling debts - that "accountability is everything."
In-Series Nickname: "Davey".
Interrupted Suicide: Has a gun in his mouth and is playing with the trigger when his wife walks in.
Manipulative Bastard: Tries to weasel his way out of his debt with Tony by exploiting their old friendship. Tony sees right through his attempts.
Never Lend to a Friend: Tony initially refuses to let David into the card game, but David insists and worms his way in anyway. Tony decides to treat him no different than any other debtor, which soon destroys David's life – just as Tony had feared.
Never My Fault: At one point, he blames everyone - including his family - except himself for his predicament.
Parental Neglect: His gambling problem gets so bad that he has to drain his son's college fund just to pay back his debts, preventing the poor kid from accepting an offered place at Georgetown.
Protectorate: His friend Tony shields him from Richie, an even more predatory mobster. This does Davey no good, as Tony does give him a clobbering at one point and also allows Davey to play in his Executive Game, which puts Davey further down in the hole, only this time indebted to Tony himself.
Put on a Bus: Leaves town for Nevada after his business with Tony drains all his money and alienates his family. Though he and Tony don't depart on bad terms, even mildly joking about meeting up in Las Vegas.
Tempting Fate:
- Tony tells him multiple times to not get involved with the high-stakes game. Davey unfortunately doesn't get the hint.
- Davey eventually moves away to a ranch close to Las Vegas. He's later mentioned to have been institutionalized in a mental health facility, possibly due to his gambling addiction.
Too Dumb to Live: He forces himself into Tony's game after he already owes money to Richie Aprile and promised not to play until his debt is repaid. Richie spots him at Tony's game and is furious that Scatino lied to him. It's only because of Tony that David doesn't end up like Beansie.
Trapped by Gambling Debts: To the mafia. When selling his son's car and draining his son's college fund wasn't enough to settle, Davey is forced by Tony and Richie to commit credit and bankruptcy fraud with his store.

J.T. Dolan

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/1ab53e2a_7f22_4ed5_b23f_babb3da413e9.png

Played by: Tim Daly

Chris, you are in the Mafia!

A TV writer who meets Chris Moltisanti in Narcotics Anonymous.

Acting Out a Daydream: Anticipating a TV contract in a Dick Wolf series, he brushes off his gambling losses as "a month's salary". The contract never comes to pass...
Addiction Displacement: He trades his drug and alcohol addictions for gambling, which only makes things worse for himself in the long run.
Butt-Monkey: Pretty much every appearance has something awful happen to him, usually due to Chris.
Celebrity Paradox: In Season 3, Noah Tannenbaum's dad mentions he got his ear talked off by Tim Daly on the flight to New York to meet Dick Wolf.
Dude, Where's My Respect?: He is stiffed in credits by Chris with their projects.
He Knows Too Much: Killed by an intoxicated Christopher after the mobster gives away too much information.
The Gambling Addict: In addition to being a heroin addict. He eventually breaks out of it.
Ironic Echo: He's introduced discussing being a writer by discussing his past as a heroin addict, with a thick layer of grandiosity and romanticism attached to it. When he reappears later on in the story, he's teaching a writing seminar discussing the self-narrativization that writers are susceptible to - except he's doing the same thing in discussing his more recent past as a gambling addict, with the same pomposity.
Kick the Dog: Chris figuratively destroys his life by deliberately preying on his addictive personality and getting him involved in gambling. Then, once he's managed to get things back on track, Chris comes back and literally destroys it for no reason. The only justification for any of this is the guy's a bit full of himself.
Most Writers Are Writers: An established TV writer, he participates in the script of Cleaver.
No Good Deed Goes Unpunished: His time as Chris' sober companion and attempts to help him stay straight end up ruining his life and getting him killed.
No Sympathy: He's disinclined to offer Christopher a shoulder to cry on after all the extortion and abuse he'd suffered across their association. Chris kills him for it.
Off the Wagon: He shows signs of this during his first few scenes with Chris, then ends up fully relapsing after losing at the high-stakes poker game.
Stunned Silence: Is absolutely baffled that Chris genuinely cares about his sobriety on top of demanding money from him.
Work Off the Debt: Christopher offers to clear the debt if he accepts to write Cleaver. J.T. gets the implication it in fact is An Offer You Can't Refuse.
Yank the Dog's Chain: He's able to sober up, work off his gambling debt and get his career back on track writing for Law & Order. Then he's pointlessly murdered by a drunken Chris.

Minn Matrone

Played by: Fran Anthony

A grumpy old woman living in the same nursing home as Nucci Gualtieri.

Alpha Bitch: The nursing home director describes the place as a "high school with wheelchairs".
Asshole Victim: Her bullying treatment of Nucci is unlikely to endear her to the audience.
Do Not Taunt Cthulhu: She's smart enough to see Paulie for what he is. Unfortunately, she's not smart enough to keep this to herself.
Dies Wide Open: Her glassy eyes in death are downright creepy and almost supernatural looking.
Dying Declaration of Hate: Tells Paulie he was "always a little bastard" just before he smothers her to death.
Jerkass: Nearly every scene has her grouchy and standoffish with whoever is talking to her, including her own son.
Too Dumb to Live: She handles her fatal altercation with Paulie in probably the worst possible way. After catching him trying to rob her, he tries to save face and excuse himself, but rather than take the out — and she's fully aware that he's a hardened criminal — she chooses to try to call his mother on him, insults him, knees him in the groin and ineffectually waddles away screaming, leading to a rather predictable outcome.
Vorpal Pillow: Paulie murders Minn in this fashion after she catches him breaking into her home and makes a big scene over it.

Carter Chong

Played by: Ken Leung

A patient at a mental hospital who befriends Junior Soprano.

The Dragon: Becomes an odd variant to Junior, helping him to set up illicit card games among the patients.
Hair-Trigger Temper: Swings between calm and content to enraged and screaming at a dime.
My Beloved Smother: Implied when his mother visits him.
One-Shot Character: He only appears for one episode, as he is presumably shipped off to a more high-security facility after beating up Junior.
Psychopathic Manchild: Has shades of this.
Replacement Goldfish: Junior sees the troubled, temperamental Carter as a surrogate Tony.
Suddenly Shouting: Does this while telling the story below.
"Well Done, Son" Guy: Implied, as Carter recounts to Junior when he brought home a spelling test he scored a 96 on in the second grade, only for his father to ask what happened to the other four points.

Dr. Krakower

Played by: Sully Boyar

A psychiatrist and teacher of Dr. Melfi who delivers an ultimatum to Carmela.

Brutal Honesty: He doesn't sugarcoat his words or spare Carmela's feelings at all when laying out the facts to her.
Cool Old Guy: Happily married for three decades and willing to spell out Carmella's issues to her.
Dr. Jerk: A more heroic one than normal but he's not interested in any kind of gentle approach to helping Carmela grow enough to leave Tony, merely spelling out the facts to her in the bluntest manner possible and making no effort to hide his judgment of her if she doesn't leave him.
Good Is Not Nice: He's morally in the right but his prickly, judgemental demeanor and somewhat less than progressive views of modern society don't exactly make him the most charming character.
Jerkass Has a Point: He's not the nicest guy in the world but his frank assessment of Tony, Carmela's culpability in his behavior, and the fact that she can't change him, as much as she might wish to, and that she can't say she wasn't aware of what being with him would lead to are all dead on.
The Mentor: To Melfi, he is an older colleague of hers.
Only Sane Man: One of the very few characters on the show who says in plain English, without euphemism or rationalization, what sort of person Tony is and how inherently corrupting it is to maintain any relationship with him.
One-Shot Character: Appears literally for one scene, but states some truths to Carmela that no series regular would dare acknowledge. This is largely due to his actor dying shortly after filming.
Politically Incorrect Hero: He expresses some borderline homophobic views, describing pride parades as an example of the products of the modern culture of psychiatry, focusing on making people feel better about themselves rather than fixing what's actually wrong with them. Though given that he specifies "ethnic" pride, it's likely Krakower is referring to the self-aggrandizing views we see the guys hold in "Christoper" that the natural Italian Furio didn't even hold, framing his comments more as a mockery of Americans claiming heritage to cultures they are almost entirely divorced from.
"The Reason You Suck" Speech: He very bluntly outlines the cold hard facts of Carmela's marriage to her.
Carmela: Everybody's marriage has problems.
Dr. Krakower: Is he seeing another woman?
Carmela: You can make that plural. He sees other women. I look the other way. I want to help him.
Dr. Krakower: Do you? Moments ago you used the word "divorce."
Carmela: I said I was considering divorce. I may be overstepping my boundaries, but you are Jewish, aren't you?
Dr. Krakower: Is that relevant?
Carmela: Well, us Catholics place a great deal of stock in the sanctity of the family. And I'm not sure that your people...
Dr. Krakower: I've been married for 31 years.
Carmela: Well, then you know! How difficult it can be...he's a good man, he's a good father.
Dr. Krakower: You told me he's a depressed criminal. Prone to anger, serially unfaithful. Is that your definition of a good man?
Carmela: I thought psychiatrists weren't supposed to be judgmental.
Dr. Krakower: Patients want to be excused from their predicament...because of events in their childhood. That's what psychiatry has become in America. Visit any shopping mall or ethnic pride parade to witness the results.
Carmela: What we say in here stays in here, right?
Dr. Krakower: By ethical code and by law.
Carmela: His crimes...they are, uh...organized crime.
Dr. Krakower: The Mafia?
Carmela: Oh, Jesus (Dabs her eyes with tissue) Oh, so what? So what? He betrays me every week with these whοres.
Dr. Krakower: Probably the least of his misdeeds. (Carmela prepares to go) You can leave now or you can stay and hear what I have to say.
Carmela: You'll charge the same.
Dr. Krakower: I won't take your money.
Carmela: That's a new one.
Dr. Krakower: You must trust your initial impulse and consider leaving him. You'll never be able to feel good about yourself. You'll never be able to quell the feelings of guilt and shame that you talked about, as long as you're his accomplice.
Carmela: You're wrong about the accomplice.
Dr. Krakower: Are you sure?
Carmela: All I do is make sure he's got clean clothes and dinner on his table.
Dr. Krakower: So "enabler" would be a more accurate job description than "accomplice." My apologies.
Carmela: ...So, you think I need to define my boundaries more clearly...keep a certain distance, not internalize my...
Dr. Krakower: What did I just say?
Carmela: Leave him.
Dr. Krakower: Take only the children, what's left of them, and go.
Carmela: My priest said I should try and work with him. Help him to be a better man.
Dr. Krakower: How's that going?...Have you read Crime and Punishment? Dostoyevsky? (Carmela shakes her head) It's not an easy read, it's about guilt and redemption. And I think, were your husband to turn himself in, read this book...reflect on his crimes for 7 years in his cell, then he might be redeemed.
Carmela: I would have to get a lawyer...find an apartment, arrange for child support...
Dr. Krakower: You're-You're not listening. I'm not charging you, because I won't take blood money. And you can't either...one thing you can never say: That you haven't been told.
Carmela:...I see.
Screw the Money, I Have Rules!: Refuses to accept blood money from Carmela.
The Shrink: Plays this role to Carmella for one scene.

Jim "Johnny Cakes" Witowski

Played by: John Costelloe

A New England barman and volunteer firefighter who begins an affair with Vito Spatafore.

The Ace: A local hero who owns a diner and lives a perfectly balanced life.
The Bartender: When he isn't putting out fires.
Did Not Get the Girl: Vito eventually gets bored of his safe civilian life and abandons Jim in the middle of the night. He calls back from New Jersey to apologize, only to be rebuffed by Jim and told in no uncertain terms to never call back again.
Firemen Are Hot: A fireman with a ripped body.
Last Het Romance: He has a daughter, but it's unclear if his previous relationship was an example of this and Jim came out late in life, or he's just bisexual.
Love Hurts: Learning that Vito stood him up in the middle of the night to return to New Jersey and that he is a mafioso very much breaks his heart, and he shows absolute contempt towards Vito when he calls him back.
Manly Gay: Ripped, a fireman and bartender, rough and tumble, and gay with a thick mustache.
Meet Cute: Vito is a regular patron of his establishment.
Satellite Love Interest: His only role is as part of a short-lived romantic story arc with Vito when he's hiding out in New Hampshire.
Self-Made Man: Built his life in New Hampshire by opening his own diner.
Supreme Chef: At least as regards breakfast foods. Vito (who knows good food) is clearly impressed by both the johnnycakes and the house-made sausages at Jim's diner.

Robert "Bobby Jr." III and Sophia Baccalieri

Played by: Angelo Massagli and Miryam Coppersmith

The children of Bobby and Karen.

Butt-Monkey: Bobby is bullied by AJ and this makes him wary of family meetings. Additionally, both their parents and their paternal grandfather are killed in unpleasant circumstances within the space of a few years, and they have none other than Janice as their stepmother.
One-Steve Limit: Bobby is Robert Baccalieri III, but he is simply called Bobby Jr.
Trauma Conga Line: Their mother dies and Janice becomes their stepmother. It only gets worse with the death of their father.

Sal Vitro

Played by: Louis Mustillo

A gardener who gets in the middle of a feud between Paulie and Feech.

Butt-Monkey: The poor guy becomes the official gardener for the mob.
Family Business: His son has to drop out of college to lend a hand because of the ensuing money shortages.
Throw the Dog a Bone: His slave-like workload gets happily reduced when Johnny Sack has to change his residence.

Bryan Spatafore

Played by: Vincent Orofino

Brother of Vito and a construction worker.

Butt-Monkey: Ends up in a coma because he just happened to be in the wrong place at the wrong time.
Golf Clubbing: Mustang Sally beats him badly with a golf club.
Innocent Bystander: Gets involved in a street incident when the girlfriend of Mustang Sally turns to him for help.
Mugging the Monster: The monster's brother. Mustang Sally pays with his life for the beating of a made man's brother.
Put on a Bus: In a coma after the events of "Another Toothpick". Plays a sporadic minor role again in Season 6.
Sibling Team: Serves as Vito's protector when his brother negotiates with Tony.
Sibling Yin-Yang: He mostly stays out of the mob lifestyle and has a legitimate career.

Alan Sapinsly

Played by: Bruce Altman

Attorney and owner of the Whitecaps property.

Amoral Attorney: Refuses to return Tony's deposit despite cutting out the previous buyers without a second thought.
Jerkass Has a Point: When he hears about Tony's separation from Carmela, he advises Tony to talk to the best divorce lawyers before his wife to establish conflict of interest. This ends up being one of the biggest factors to their marriage mending.
Rich in Dollars, Poor in Sense: He's used to intimidating people with legal action. Tony however brushes off all of his threats with ease.
Significant Monogram: Has the same initials as Tony. He even has the same photo of Rocky Marciano as the one in the Bing.
White Anglo-Saxon Protestant: Comes off as this with his wardrobe, affinity for shark-fin soup, and his derogative comments towards Tony's Italian background.

Ben Kingsley

Played by: Ben Kingsley

Notable Hollywood actor who Chris and Little Carmine try to cast for Cleaver.

As Himself: One of the few celebrities who plays themselves in the Sopranos universe.
Blatant Lies: He tries to be diplomatic about it, which is smart considering he's dealing with mobsters, one of whom has killed multiple people, but he can't fully hide his disinterest in Chris and Carmine or his desire to be far away from them.
Precision F-Strike: Let's out one to his assistant when he notices he'll be sharing the same flight as Chris.
Surrounded by Idiots: Justifiable in that humoring Chris and Little Carmine is the last thing he'd enjoy doing.
Title Confusion: Chris keeps calling him "Sir Kingsley" instead of the proper "Sir Ben".

Coach Hauser

Coach Don Hauser

Played by: Kevin O Rourke

Meadow's soccer coach.

Creepy Gym Coach: Meadow reveals that he's been sexually abusing Ally Vandermeed, another player on her team. It's enough for even the mob to want to whack him.

Coach Molinaro

Played by: Charley Scalies

Tony's high school football coach.

Disappointed in You: He had high hopes for Tony and was disappointed when he fell into a life of crime.
Dream People: He only appears in a dream Tony has, but it's safe to say the real man wasn't too different from the version conjured up by Tony's subconscious.
A Father to His Men: He went out of his way to spend extra time with Tony to further his football ambitions and keep him out of trouble. Suffice to say, he's disappointed in how he turned out after high school.
Good Is Not Nice: An honest high school football coach who was nonetheless a harsh taskmaster as well as foul mouthed.
Honest Advisor: Coach Molinaro was well aware that Tony's family and hoodlum friends would steer him into a life of crime and tried to keep him on the straight and narrow. Unfortunately, he failed.
My Greatest Failure: Views Tony as this, at least in Tony's dream.

Hernan O'Brien

Played by: Vincent Piazza

A.J.'s friend from high school.

Slimeball: One of A.J.'s worst friends. He hangs out with A.J. mostly just to use his mob father's clout and makes advances towards underage girls.
Toxic Friend Influence: Tony and Carmela do not approve of him. Even Rhiannon admits how bad he was.

Rhiannon Flammer

Played by: Emily Wickersham

A.J.'s friend and eventual girlfriend.

Age-Gap Romance: Ends up dating A.J. even though she's a junior in high school.
Bourgeois Bohemian: Comes from a family rich enough to keep her in the same rehab as A.J.. She also enjoys David Sedaris and Bob Dylan.
Hair of Gold, Heart of Gold: Generally a nice girl who helps bring A.J. out of his depression.

Others

Teddy Spirodakis

Played by: Joe Caniano

A Greek-American gambler from Boston, Massachusetts.

All for Nothing: Eugene kills Teddy as a favor to Chris to earn him some goodwill with upper management, hoping that Tony will approve his plans to semi-retire and move to Florida. Tony still rejects Eugene's Florida plan, as do the feds who he is secretly snitching to, so Eugene ends up hanging himself not long after killing Teddy.
Boom, Headshot!: Gets three, courtesy of Eugene Pontecorvo.
Call-Forward: He's fat, has the initials TS, and is murdered in a restaurant by a man wearing a Members Only jacket in the first episode of season 6. In the last episode of Season 6 (and the series), Tony Soprano's death is implied to have come in the exact same manner as Teddy's, even down to the Members Only jacket-wearing hitman.
Fat Slob: He's a heavy man who is seen messily eating in a fast food restaurant in his only appearance.
Red Herring: If the cut to black at the end of the series doesn't mean Tony dies, then he's this.
Significant Monogram: He shares initials with Tony Soprano, who is implied to have been murdered in the exact same way.
Trapped by Gambling Debts: He hasn't paid his debts to one of Chris' associates, which causes Chris to order Eugene to assassinate him.

"Man In Members Only Jacket"

"Man In Members Only Jacket

Played by: Paolo Colandrea

A man who enters the Holsten's diner in the final scene. He sits at the counter, glances twice at the Sopranos's table, then stands up, walking past the table before entering the restroom.

Ambiguous Situation: He could be just another patron with an elevated amount of screentime to amp up the feelings of paranoia, or a hitman.
Call-Back: In the first episode of Season 6, Eugene Pontecorvo kills a heavyset man with the initials TS in a restaurant while wearing a Members Only jacket. In the final episode of Season 6 (and the series), this is strongly implied to be what possibly happens to Tony Soprano at the hands of this character.
No Name Given: Just credited as "Man in Members Only Jacket".
Face of a Thug: The man certainly looks "mobbed up", and he wears the same kind of jacket wore by Eugene Pontecorvo during a killing in the Season 6 premiere.
Riddle for the Ages: Whether or not he killed Tony. And if he did, who hired him for the hit? David Chase has never addressed the second question.
Small Role, Big Impact: Strongly implied as being the man who possibly kills Tony Soprano.
Shout-Out: A man sitting down in a restaurant for a while, going to the bathroom and then committing a murder? That's Michael in The Godfather.
Walking Spoiler: His role is a massive one for the ending of the series finale.

Characters / The Sopranos: Law Enforcement and Civilians

Edit Locked