History Recap / TheSopranosS6E21MadeInAmerica

* ScatterbrainedSenior: Uncle Junior, more than ever.

** It appears [[KarmaHoudini Paulie and Patsy are the only characters who don't have anything bad happen to them right away,]] so make of that what you will.

** Phil, the BigBad of seasons 5 and 6, is shot dead.
** Tony likely dies during the cut to black.

* KillerFinale: If the cut to black ''does'' represent Tony's assassination, then this episode serves as one.

The Jersey mob gets a break when Little Paulie (while pretending to be a cop with a fake badge) learns that Oyster Bay only has two gas stations with payphones next to them. That allows them to narrow their search for Phil considerably. Benny and Walden Belfiore finally track him down. Phil is saying goodbye to Patty and his two infant grandchildren. Walden shoots Phil in the head, and another time in the chest to make sure he stays dead. Patty panics and leaves the car with the grandchildren still inside. The van rolls forward, with the wheel coming over Phil's head and crushing it.

** The instant cut to black, followed by silence, implies that if Tony was indeed killed in the end, it happened this way.

* ChekhovsGunman: May or May not be subverted by the "Man in Members Only Jacket". Apparently, Steve Perry only let the show use "Don't Stop Believing" if no one died so in a way, WordOfGod says Tony survived. ''[[ZigZaggedTrope Unless]]'' Perry specifically meant if no one died ''[[ExactWords on-screen]]''...

* CruelAndUnusualDeath: Phil is executed in front of his wife and grandchildren, and then gets his head crushed with his own van, offscreen. It's left unsaid if Tony gets retribution for this gory method/outcome, as a death in front of your family is [[EvenEvilHasStandards a big no-no by many members of The Mafia.]]

* DeathByIrony: The ends with an infamous AmbiguousEnding, but it's ''very'' strongly implied that Tony suffered this in the final scene of the series. In "[[Recap/TheSopranosS6E8JohnnyCakes Johnny Cakes]]", AJ mentions that Tony's favorite movie scene of all time is the famous scene in ''Film/TheGodfather'' where Michael Corleone shoots Sollozzo and Captain [=McCluskey=] in a restaurant after retrieving a hidden gun from the bathroom. It's very possible that Tony is murdered in exactly the same way; while having dinner with his family in a diner, he gets several suspicious glances from a mysterious fellow in a Members Only jacket, who is last seen walking into the bathroom. Of course, the screen abruptly cuts to black before we ''actually'' learn whether he lives or dies.

** The future of the [=DiMeo=] crime family looks pretty grim; many of Tony's key guys are either dead or otherwise incapacitated, while most of the remaining members have lost faith in Tony's leadership, Carlo (one of the [=DiMeos=]' last trusted members) has elected to testify against the family, and it's implied that Patsy plans to either do the same or [[TheStarscream overthrow Tony]].
** While A.J. finally gets his life back on track, Meadow has completely embraced the MafiaPrincess life, with prospects of becoming an AmoralAttorney (to the dismay of Carmela).

* LastDisrespects: Bobby's funeral party seems like a rather upbeat affair with the attendants caring more about the food than the man himself, Paulie [[DirtyOldMan flirting with Bobby's niece]] [[EvenEvilHasStandards (at least until he finds out she is his niece)]], Paulie unzipping his pants, the two Jasons cracking jokes, and so on.

** Neither Tony nor Mink his AmoralAttorney can get the ketchup out of that bottle. Is there no way out of the legal jam for Tony?

* SmashToBlack: Infamously, the series ends this way, with Music/{{Journey|Band}}'s "Don't Stop Believin'" cutting off mid-''word''.

But Tony still has to take of business. With Carlo gone, the Aprile crew lacks an overseer. So Tony meets with Paulie and offers him the position. Paulie initially refuses, claiming that the crew is cursed, referring to the strokes of bad luck that befell all its previous leaders, but he relents and accepts the job when Tony tells him that he will just offer the position to Patsy instead.

But Tony still has to take of business. With Carlo gone, the Aprile crew lacks an overseer. So Tony meets with Paulie and offers him the position. Paulie initially refuses, claiming that the crew is cursed, referring to the all the bad luck that befell all its previous leaders, but he relents and accepts the job when Tony tells him that he will just offer the position to Patsy instead.

* SideBet: Agent Harris is quite pleased to hear the news about Phil's death, and implies that he and some of his fellow agents had a bet going on whether the [=DiMeo=] or the Lupertazzi would end up on top in the MobWar.

Janice meets Uncle Junior in the state-run asylum, hoping to lay her claim to what's left of his money. Uncle Pat is there and reports his suspicions to Tony. Tony still wants nothing to do with Junior. But Tony decides he needs to make sure that Bobby's children get the money in trust, so he pays a visit to Uncle Junior. But Junior does not recognize Tony, and barely remembers anything of his past life. Tony leaves the state-run institution on the verge of tears.

Paulie calls up Tony after Carlo missed a meeting with them. They correctly deduce that Carlo has turned government witness in order to get his son, Jason Gervasi, out of a lengthy prison term for dealing Ecstasy. The Sopranos and the Parisis meet to celebrate the pending marriage between Meadow and Patrick. Tony tries to question Patsy as to what is going on with the two Jasons, but Patsy is not forthcoming.

Tony and his men continue to hide out in their safe houses. Phil expresses frustration at Butchie for not having taken out the most important target, Tony himself. Butchie tries to vaguely suggest that maybe it is time to call off the war for the sake of resuming their business, but Phil will hear none of it. He promises Butchie that once everything is over they'll have a sit down in the future and hangs up, leaving the latter with a worried expression on his face.

** [[SmashToBlack The final scene]] implies Tony might have just been murdered in front of his family; even if he wasn't, he's likely to be imprisoned on RICO charges due to Carlo's testimony.

** [[SmashToBlack The final scene]] implies Tony might have just been murdered in front of his family; even if he wasn't, he's likely to be indicted on RICO charges due to Carlo's testimony and potentially wind up in prison.

* NoEnding: One of the most iconic examples with the SmashToBlack mid-scene, which ends the episode without a clear resolution. Either way, the Soprano Crime Family's future doesn't look too bright with most of their major players out of the picture and Tony most likely about to be indicted, assuming he didn't get [[NothingIsScarier killed right in front of his family]].

* KillerFinale: If the cut to black ''does'' represent Tony's murder, then this episode serves as one.

** [[SmashToBlack The final scene]] implies Tony might have just been murdered in front of his family; even if he wasn't, he's likely to be indicted on RICO charges due to Carlo's testimony and wind up in prison.

** The future of the [=DiMeo=] crime family looks pretty grim; many of Tony's key guys are either dead or otherwise incapacitated, while most of the remaining members have lost faith in Tony's leadership, Carlo (one of the last trusted members of the organization) decides to testify against Tony and others, and it's implied that Patsy plans to either do the same or [[TheStarscream overthrow Tony]].

** [[SmashToBlack The final scene]] implies Tony might have just been murdered in front of his family; even if he wasn't, he's likely to be indicted on RICO charges and wind up in prison.

* PapaWolf: One of Carlo's motivations for flipping and joining WitnessProtection is certainly to save his son, Jason, from a lengthy sentence for dealing Ecstasy.

* ChekhovsGunman: Subverted by the "Man in Members Only Jacket".
** Maybe not, considering how many people think he actually shot Tony.
** Apparently, Steve Perry only let the show use "Don't Stop Believing" if no one died so in a way, WordOfGod says Tony survived. ''[[ZigZaggedTrope Unless]]'' Steve Perry specifically meant if no one died ''[[ExactWords on-screen]]''...
* CloseToHome: Carmela is visibly struck when she learns that Hunter is in her second year of med school, the very thing she wanted for Meadow. And Meadow is instead on her way to becoming a [[AmoralAttorney Mob lawyer]].

** The future of the [=DiMeo=] crime family looks pretty grim; many of Tony's key guys are either dead or otherwise incapacitated, while most of the remaining members have lost faith in Tony's leadership, Carlo (one of the last trusted members of the organization) decides to testify against Tony and others, and it's implied that Patsy either plans to do the same or [[TheStarscream usurp Tony for control]].

** [[SmashToBlack The final scene]] implies Tony might have just been murdered in front of his family; even if he wasn't, he's likely to end up in prison on RICO charges.

* GainaxEnding: A subtler example than most but the smash to black lends itself to this. This may or may not have signified the main character's death.