Ay-oh, oh-ay, it's "The Sopranos"

Finally, after two friggin' years, there was a new episode of "The Sopranos" last night. And it was pretty good. Sure, the thing kicked off with another of those wacky "Sopranos" dream sequences that have become tiresome. And there were no exactly zero scenes with one Paulie Walnuts. But other than that, the episode worked in the show's typical, ruthlessly low-key fashion. Except for the end, of course, which I won't discuss in too much detail.

(OK, maybe I will. So don't read the next paragraph if you DVR'd it.)

It's obvious that Tony won't die. This is the final season, but there are 19 episodes left and I can't imagine the series carrying on that long without the star. But it was definitely a surprise, and proof that Junior is far crazier than I assumed.

Another thing I liked about the episode is how the show contiues to throw in little, almost invisible jokes only obsessive fans would notice. For instance, when Melfi suggested that Junior be put away in a retirement community like Green Grove, Tony exploded: "It's a nursing home!" I also liked the scene where somebody talked about his mom dying, and Tony said, "What are you gonna do?", the same thing he said whenever people asked about his mom.

Any thoughts out there in blogland?