Episode no. Season 6
Episode 18 Produced by David Chase | Directed by Alan Taylor Cinematography by Alik Sakharov | |
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Written by Matthew Weiner
David Chase Featured music "Comfortably Numb" by
Roger Waters, Van Morrison and The Band
"The Adultress" by
The Pretenders
"Minas de Cobre (For Better Metal)" by
Calexico | ||
"Kennedy and Heidi" is the eighty-third episode of the HBO television series The Sopranos. It is the sixth episode of the second half of the show's sixth season, the eighteenth episode of the season overall. It was written by Matthew Weiner and series creator and showrunner David Chase, and was directed by Alan Taylor. The episode premiered in the United States on May 13, 2007.
Contents
Near the beginning of "Kennedy and Heidi", series protagonist Tony Soprano (James Gandolfini) and Christopher Moltisanti (Michael Imperioli) are involved in a car accident that leaves Christopher incapacitated. In a subplot, A.J. (Robert Iler) continues with his college courses and reconsiders his relationship with his friends. The episode was nominated for an Emmy Award for writing and won for directing.
Starring
* = credit only
Plot summary
The heads of the Lupertazzi and DiMeo crime families meet to discuss the removal of asbestos from a building project. Tony Soprano rejects Phil Leotardo's demand of a 25% cut of the money from the illegal dumping. Christopher Moltisanti drives Tony home in the dark along a winding road. He is agitated and repeatedly changes the radio station, finally settling for a CD of The Departed soundtrack. As the road curves and Christopher ups the stereo volume, he swerves into the opposite lane, then must swerve to avoid a car, causing his Cadillac Escalade EXT to go off the road and roll over. Tony suffers minor injuries but Christopher is seriously injured and has difficulty breathing. He tells Tony he will not pass the drug test and will lose his driver's license, angering Tony as Christopher had promised to stay away from drugs lest he be a liability. Tony begins to call for help, but after noticing that a tree branch has impaled Christopher's vehicle directly where his daughter would have been seated had she been in it, Tony suffocates him, then calls an ambulance. At the hospital, he leads the staff and his family to believe that Christopher died from the crash.
In a dream, Tony admits to Dr. Melfi that he killed Christopher along with Big Pussy and his cousin Tony Blundetto. He also regrets ever placing Christopher in a position of power, considering that to be his "biggest blunder," and is relieved that Christopher's death has now eliminated that blunder. After he awakens the next day, Tony asks Carmela if she feels any relief at Christopher's death, which she denies. When meeting with Dr. Melfi for real, he tones down the rhetoric from the dream and simply recalls Christopher as a liability (due to his drug use and weakness, as well as his continuing resentment of Tony for killing Adriana) and an embarrassment (due to his thinly-veiled portrayals of Tony and Adriana in Cleaver), and says he resents having to feign remorse in front of his family. At Christopher's wake, Tony is disgusted by the ostentatious display of sorrow. He and Carmela make an appearance at the wake of Paulie's adoptive mother Nucci, who has died of a stroke; Paulie is angered by the poor attendance and thinks Christopher has upstaged him once again.
A.J. continues to spend time with Jason Parisi, Jason Gervasi and their friends at their frat house. They are amused to learn that Victor, whom they injured with sulfuric acid, had to have two toes amputated, which he has publicly attributed to his accidental spillage of car battery acid. A.J. impresses his therapist by telling him he is taking college courses (at Rutgers) again. After Jason and his friends racially taunt and physically abuse a Somalian student, A.J. joins in, but afterwards relapses into depression.
Tony eavesdrops on Joane, Carmela and Christopher's widow, discussing Christopher's death. On a private trip to Las Vegas, he receives a phone call telling him that the asbestos must be dumped somewhere, and another call from Phil, who refuses to assist with the asbestos and mocks him over Christopher's death. Tony meets Sonya, a stripper Christopher knew, and tells her about his death. They have sex and smoke marijuana; she tells him he seems sad. They take peyote and win in roulette. Tony mumbles "he's dead" and collapses on the floor laughing, seemingly attributing his winning streak to the fact Christopher is no longer in his life. In Jersey, the asbestos is dumped into a lake. Tony and Sonya watch the sunrise over the Red Rock Canyon, where Tony cries: "I get it!"