History Recap / TheSopranosS5E11TheTestDream

** The next dream is of him walking through the hallways of his old high school. He makes his way to the varsity trophy case, pulls out his gun, and puts a silencer on it, as though to destroy a painful reminder that he was FormerlyFit. The halls go dark, and Tony makes his way to the office of his former football coach. The coach is aware of him, and even makes a joke [[gForSomething about Tony's gun being bigger than his manhood]]. They get into an argument that also has shades of a ClassReunion. Coach Molinaro saw himself as being a SinkOrSwimMentor who tried to get Tony away from [[ToxicFriendInfluence bad influences]] and realize his potential, although he's surprised that [[ButtMonkey Artie]] is doing well as a SupremeChef. Tony himself plays the BlameGame, pinning his issues on the Coach and his AbusiveParents. The Coach in turn accuses Tony of [[EvilPaysBetter "taking the easy way out"]]. Tony attempts to kill Coach Molinaro with a [[BoomHeadshot shot to the head]], but his cartridge falls out just as he pulls the trigger. He struggles to reload the gun, but the bullets disintegrate in his hand as he picks them up. The dreams finally end with Coach Molinaro telling him, "You'll never shut me up!"

** When Tony picks up the bullets he dropped when he tries to kill Coach Molinaro, the bullets turn into feces in his hands as evidenced by his retching and the bullets going from brass yellow to brown. This is a call back to when he []Recap/TheSopranosS1E12Isabella laments to Dr. Melfi]] that "everything he touches turns to shit".

** The next dream is of him walking through the hallways of his old high school. He makes his way to the varsity trophy case, pulls out his gun, and puts a silencer on it, as though to destroy a painful reminder that he was FormerlyFit. The halls go dark, and Tony makes his way to the office of his former football coach. The coach is aware of him, and even makes a joke [[TeenyWeenie about Tony's gun being bigger than his manhood]]. They get into an argument that also has shades of a ClassReunion. Coach Molinaro saw himself as being a SinkOrSwimMentor who tried to get Tony away from [[ToxicFriendInfluence bad influences]] and realize his potential, although he's surprised that [[ButtMonkey Artie]] is doing well as a SupremeChef. Tony himself plays the BlameGame, pinning his issues on the Coach and his AbusiveParents. The Coach in turn accuses Tony of [[EvilPaysBetter "taking the easy way out"]]. Tony attempts to kill Coach Molinaro with a [[BoomHeadshot shot to the head]], but his cartridge falls out just as he pulls the trigger. He struggles to reload the gun, but the bullets disintegrate in his hand as he picks them up. The dreams finally end with Coach Molinaro telling him, "You'll never shut me up!"

* CallBack: Tony S could smell the burnt hair from Valentina, and it reminds him of when Carmine Sr. said he was smelling burnt hair shortly before his HollywoodHeartAttack. RuleOfSymbolism may suggest that Tony S is himself living on [[YourDaysAreNumbered borrowed time]].

* FreezeFrameBonus: Paulie and Patsy can be found in the crowd witnessing Tony B's faux-execution of Phil.

Tony S goes on a business trip to central New York and checks himself into a luxury suite at the Plaza Hotel. Getting bored, he sees an ad for an escort agency and makes a call for an Asian girl. As she waits for her to arrive, he gets a phone call from Silvio, who tells him news of Angelo's assassination. He quickly puts two and two together, and realizes that Tony B was behaving weird because he knew what had happened to Angelo and is now likely to seek revenge against the Leotardo brothers. He desperately tries to contact his cousin, but is unable to get a hold of him. He then frantically calls everyone he can think of who would have a idea where Tony B is, but he has no luck there either, so he tells them to keep an eye for him. The prostitute arrives and, at some point, Tony falls into an uneasy sleep.

Tony S goes on a business trip to central New York and checks himself into a luxury suite at the Plaza Hotel. Getting bored, he sees an ad for an escort agency and makes a call for an Asian girl. As she waits for her to arrive, he gets a phone call from Silvio, who tells him news of the assassination on Angelo. He quickly puts two and two together, and realizes that Tony B was behaving weird because he knew what had happened to Angelo and is now likely to seek revenge against the Leotardo brothers. He desperately tries to contact his cousin, but is unable to get a hold of him. He then frantically calls everyone he can think of who would have a idea where Tony B is, but he has no luck there either, so he tells them to keep an eye for him. The prostitute arrives and, at some point, Tony falls into an uneasy sleep.

Tony S wakes with a start. He looks outside his hotel window to see a central New York still sleeping in the small hours of the morning. The hotel's the night manager calls his room's phone and informs him that Christopher has shown up at the hotel to speak with him. Chris breaks the news that Tony B made an attempt to kill both Leotardo brothers during the night, but only managed to kill Billy. Phil survived with minor wounds and is now in the hospital. Tony is now very worried about the repercussions that the New York family may try to inflict on the New Jersey family.

* DoWrongRight: PlayedWith but also averted. Chris starts off by telling Tony S that Tony B killed Billy Leotardo. Tony asks if Chris meant Phil, hoping for a correction. But Chris insists that it was Billy, while Phil only got "winged". The fact that Tony asks for Phil as a correction, and the [[OhCrap look on his face]] when Chris maintains that only Billy died and Phil survived, says it all. If Tony B really had to go on his RoaringRampageOfRevenge, then Tony S truly would have preferred that it be Phil, first and foremost, to die. Phil surviving (as the powerful {{Dragon}} of the New York family) means that he will now [[TheDeterminator move heaven and hell itself]] to get {{Revenge}} for Billy, who in the grand scheme of things had been a low-ranking thug. But the [[AvertedTrope trope itself is averted]] in that Tony S never has the opportunity to contact Tony B before he goes through with things.

* EpicFail: The fact that Tony B killed Billy Leotardo but left Phil the {{Dragon}} alive cannot be considered as anything other than monumental failure.

* SpannerInTheWorks: Any efforts by Tony S to smooth things over with the New York family are set back immeasurably by Tony B's attempt at a RoaringRampageOfRevenge against the Leotardo brothers and [[{{TheDragon}} Phil]] surviving.

* APupilOfMineUntilHeTurnedEvil: Tony's dream about his high school football coach, Coach Molinaro, shows that the man saw a lot of potential in Tony and tried to steer him away from the bad influences that eventually led to Tony joining the mob. Molinaro in the dream laments that even if Tony never made it as a football player, he could have easily became a coach himself with his great leadership skills and is disappointed that Tony took "the easy way out".

** Tony S has a dream whereby the [[TheOldestProfession prostitute's]] voice in the bed next to him gives way to seeing [[TheDon Carmine Lupertazzi Sr.]] in the bed next to him. The dream plays out like an AfterlifeAntechamber where [[TheDon Carmine Sr.]] reveals that an afterlife [[LonelyAtTheTop without his beloved wife]] and cut off from [[{{God}} "the man upstairs"]] is [[MundaneAfterlife enough to amount to Hell]] without the need for fire and brimstone and the like. He then answers a phone at Carmine Sr.'s urging. A voice on the other end of the line tells Tony that somebody must be killed, [[FinishHim "Our friend. He's gotta go."]]
** The next is where he's describing his dream about Carmine Sr. to what at first is assumed to be Dr. Melfi, but is actually [[{{Yandere}} Gloria Trillo]] sitting in Dr. Melfi's chair. Tony asks Gloria [[WhatDoesSheSeeInHim what she saw in him]], but she turns it around on him and insists that the important question is what Tony saw in her. He ends up likening his therapy sessions as a CatharsisFactor, although he crudely terms it as "taking a shit". Gloria prefers a giving birth reference. Gloria relates that she never had children as she was DrivenToSuicide, partly on account of [[MyBiologicalClockIsTicking Her Ticking Biological Clock]]. She points Tony to a TV screen, leading to ...
** The next dream. He's in the back seat of the car, with Tony's father, Giovanni "Johnny Boy" Soprano driving in the front seat. The other seats are occupied at different points in the dream by different characters that Tony feels [[GuiltComplex guilt]] over, such as Ralph, Big Pussy, Artie, and Mikey Palmice.

** Tony B is [[MoreDakka shooting multiple times]] at Phil. Phil struggles out of his car, and Tony B [[SubvertedTrope seemingly]] [[FinishHim finishes him off]] with a couple of [[FingerGun Finger Guns]]. Tony S asks Tony B, [[WhatTheHellHero "Do you know what you just did?"]] Tony B's reply suggests that he does indeed have [[TheResenter lingering resentments]] over the [[ICouldaBeenAContender robbery where he got jailed but Tony S didn't]]. It turns out that Phil is NotQuiteDead, and asks questions of Gloria, who's holding a mic to him as though she were a journalist. Bystanders at various points ask Tony S why he didn't stop Tony B. The disapproving crowd [[ShamedByAMob closes in on Tony S]], forcing him to run in the opposite direction. The crowd pursues him in what becomes an EscalatingChase led by Carmela. There's even a ColdSniper who takes a shot at him but misses. But Artie is waiting for him to [[ComeWithMeIfYouWantToLive provide him with an escape ride]]. The car ride itself becomes a GilliganCut to ...
** Artie continues to drive Tony S away. Tony S briefly notices Richie and Gigi sitting in the back. The next scene is of Tony S [[EroticDream shagging]] Charmaine in the hotel room, with Artie right next to them and providing encouragement. Artie tells Tony S that: "She likes it when you rub her muzzle", which itself becomes a GilliganCut to ...
** [[FriendToAllLivingThings Tony S]] sitting on [[Recap/TheSopranosS4E5PieOhMy Pie-Oh-My]] and petting her. He then gets into an argument that [[{{Foreshadowing}} Foreshadows]] to the possibility of Tony and Carmela [[TemporaryDivorce reconciling]], but where Carmela insists that the horse can't stay in the house. RuleOfSymbolism suggests that Tony showed more love and affection to a racehorse than his own wife. Tony also shows Carmela his [[HiddenWeapons hidden gun]] as an assurance that he'll be safe before he goes off to work, which suggests that he'll always be MarriedToTheJob.
** The next dream is of him walking through the hallways of his old HighSchool. He makes his way to the varsity [[TrophyRoom trophy case]], pulls out his gun, and puts a silencer on it, as though to destroy a painful reminder that he was FormerlyFit. The halls go dark, and Tony makes his way to the office of his former football coach. The coach is aware of him, and even makes a joke [[TeenyWeenie about Tony's gun being bigger than his manhood]]. They get into an argument that also has shades of a ClassReunion. Coach Molinaro saw himself as being a SinkOrSwimMentor who tried to get Tony away from [[ToxicFriendInfluence bad influences]] and realize his potential, although he's surprised that [[ButtMonkey Artie]] is doing well as a SupremeChef. Tony himself plays the BlameGame, pinning his issues on the Coach and his AbusiveParents. The Coach in turn accuses Tony of [[EvilPaysBetter "taking the easy way out"]]. Tony attempts to kill Coach Molinaro with a [[BoomHeadshot shot to the head]], but his cartridge falls out just as he pulls the trigger. He struggles to reload the gun, but the bullets disintegrate in his hand as he picks them up. The dreams finally end with Coach Molinaro telling him, "You'll never shut me up!"

** The next is where he's describing his dream about Carmine Sr. to what at first is assumed to be Dr. Melfi, but is actually [[{{Yandere}} Gloria Trillo]] sitting in Dr. Melfi's chair. Tony asks Gloria [[WhatDoesSheSeeInHim what she saw in him]], but she turns it around on him and insists that the important question is [[OedipusComplex what Tony saw in her]]. He ends up likening his therapy sessions as a CatharsisFactor, although he crudely terms it as "taking a shit". Gloria prefers a giving birth reference. Gloria relates that she never had children as she was DrivenToSuicide, partly on account of [[MyBiologicalClockIsTicking Her Ticking Biological Clock]]. She points Tony to a TV screen, leading to ...