The Sopranos - Series 6 Vol.1 (DVD)

Having watched Season 1, I was totally hooked; nothing was going to prevent me from getting the complete collection

The main plot of Series 6 (Part 1) sees Tony Soprano trying to avoid a confrontation with the New York Family, not easy when the new boss (Phil Leotartdo) still holds a grudge against Tony for not allowing him to take revenge on Tony Blundetto

I though the scripts were not as tight as the previous series, the sub plots did not quite fit the previous series to go anywhere

When I bought this boxset I did not realise it was not the complete series even after watching the last episode, as it seemed to end with all the sub plots resolved.

However when discussing this with my friends who saw the series on TV, it soon became apparent that I had missed some episodes.

Having to buy part 2, I felt cheated (this may have effect my final grade of the boxset, however having talked with my friends and reading the comments of various forums I think it is weaker than the rest of the boxsets)

If you are already familiar with the film, and are about to add it to your personal collection, consider buying the Complete Boxset Seasons 1 to 7

(Not sure if it is available at the time of writing), it may be more cost effective.

BE WARNED: The following section will more than likely reveal plot spoilers, character discussions and would just generally be bad if you haven't watched the show before, so read this at your own risk

I love watching The Sopranos, and I don't mind when these little layoffs in between seasons occur. However this wasn't always the case; When I first saw the teasers for the then-fledging show to air, because of the anticipation for Analyze This, I was expecting a cheap, semi-knockoff gangster show that would fade away. But then as I watched the show more and more, I noticed the show that was, in fact, quite serious, with many different layers of family tensions and relations, aside from those of the "man of the house" variety. And when last we left Tony (James Gandolfini, The Mexican), Carmela (Edie Falco, Sunshine State) and the gang, Tony was fleeing a FBI raid at Johnny Sacrimoni's (Vincent Curatola) house, coming home to safety.

In Season Six, the hiatus was explained away as "Johnny Sac" being brought up on federal RICO charges, while Phil Leotardo (Frank Vincent, Goodfellas) serves as the de facto head of the family during his proceedings. Phil and Tony have some still-lingering blood between them from season five when Tony's cousin Tony Blundetto (Steve Buscemi, Fargo) killed a family member of Phil's.

The shows start off innocently enough in the opening episode, and then the viewers are all in the lurch as Tony is shot by Junior (Dominic Chianese, Godfather Part II, When Will I Be Loved) and remains in intensive care with a coma. "Join the Club" is clearly an attempt to score Falco an Emmy nod as she wonders what to do about Tony, not to mention herself, upon seeing him and discovering the news, but she turns in an amazing performance, arguably her best work since the end of season four, when Tony and Carmela finally had it out about his continued infidelities.

For me a disappointing part of season six was that some of the events that occurred to some of the supporting characters were almost ignored. Christopher (Michael Imperioli, Summer of Sam) was still trying to deal with having to have his fiancée Adriana (Drea de Matteo, Joey) killed for being an FBI snitch, so he briefly fell off the sobriety wagon and used heroin, only go back on it again, and even became engaged to a woman in the process. AJ (Robert Iler, Daredevil) was embracing more and more of his father's name and lifestyle, until Tony found out and dealt with him on his most blunt level to date.

For fans of the show, it's not the best season in the world in terms of quality. You're talking to someone who (aside from the first season) found season five to be the best that the show's done collectively over the course of a season. Season Six, Part I, is a disappointment and shows that wasted potential may be worse than no potential at all.