"All due respect, you got no fuckin' idea what it's like to be Number One. Every decision you make affects every facet of every other fuckin' thing. It's too much to deal with almost. And in the end, you're completely alone with it all."
— Tony Soprano
Phil Leotardo, Johnny Sack, and Jimmy Petrille reclaim Billy Leotardo's dead body from the morgue. Phil wants a long and slow death for Tony B. He and a henchman look for Chris as an attempt at partial satisfaction. Phil intimidates Chris' mother, who runs away crying, while his own henchman reminds him that family members of Mafiasos are off-limits according to the rules. Phil then shows up at the Crazy Horse and uses his cane to beat Benny Fazzio to within an inch of his life in the parking lot.
The rest of the Jersey mob is becoming increasingly unhappy with Tony S. The New York mob is squeezing them financially, and they also feel that Tony S won't protect them by giving up Tony B, especially after the beating Benny suffered. Tony S struggles immensely with whether to give up Tony B, knowing that Phil likely plans to torture his cousin to death.
Carmela and Tony S also struggle with what to do about A.J. Carmela also begins planning the new house with Hugh. She's also curious as to why Adriana hasn't been around for a while, so she calls Chris. Chris lies to her and tells her that Adriana broke up with him and moved away. A.J. starts to show a talent for planning parties and events. Carmela and Tony latch onto it as a hope that A.J. can somehow make something of himself.
Tony S heads over to Paulie's home to confront him over perceived disloyalty. There he notices that Paulie salvaged the painting of Pie-Oh-My and Tony, with Tony repainted to wear a uniform like Napoleon. Tony berates Paulie, leaves with the painting, and then tosses it into a nearby dumpster. But then Tony ponders the details of the Napoleon retouches to the painting and realizes that he has a responsibility to his own men.
Tony B drives to Uncle Pat's farm after shopping for groceries. Tony S ambushes his cousin and kills him with a shotgun blast, both to protect the rest of the Jersey mob from any fallout with New York and to spare his cousin from being tortured to death by the New York mob.
Johnny Sack calls Tony S afterward. Both Johnny and Phil are furious that Tony S gave Tony B a quick kill. Tony S tries to appease them by offering Phil a share of the profits from the casino that Tony B used to run. Tony S and Sack later meet up at the latter's residence and manage to work out a peace agreement, one that will require the brutally violent Phil to quell his own desires for vengeance. The two mobsters expresses mutual relief at being able to settle their feud admirably, but their reconciliation is cut short as Tony looks over Sack's shoulder and spots a group of armed men approaching the house; he immediately flees the scene. The men turn out to be part of an FBI raid, and they arrest Sack, taking him away in handcuffs.
Tony, meanwhile, manages to escape by making a frantic run through the woods and suburbs surrounding Johnny's estate, during which he throws away his handgun away in panic. He calls up his lawyer, Neil Mink, who informs him that the Brooklyn FBI wasn't there for Tony as their warrant focused exclusively on Johnny Sack. Mink also informs Tony that Jimmy Petrille had turned informer, leading to Sack's arrest. He finally returns home, where a worried Carmela notices his unkempt appearance and asks what happened to him.
Tropes:
- Actor Allusion: Vinny Vella plays Jimmy Petrille. His being The Mole for the FBI leads to Johnny Sack's arrest. Vella also played Artie Piscano in Casino. Piscano's careless keeping of detailed records, despite being told by his bosses not to, and running his mouth off with a wire set up on his grocery store, leads to the downfall of the mobster-run casinos in Las Vegas.
- All for Nothing: After Tony makes his escape from the feds arriving at Johnny Sack's house, he learns from Mink that the feds were only there to arrest Johnny and Tony was not mentioned in the indictment. So Tony ran a long distance through the snow, woods, and a brook, getting soaked and almost bitten by a dog in the process, for no reason.
- Amoral Attorney: Neil Mink gives legal advice to Tony S after the latter runs like hell from Johnny Sack's house.
- Angry Guard Dog: Tony S narrowly avoids getting bitten by one while running away from the FBI agents.
- Batman Gambit: Tony S decides to Take a Third Option and gives Tony B a Mercy Kill. He knows that Johnny Sack and Phil will both be furious over it, but Tony S correctly wagers that they can be appeased with profits from the casino that Tony B used to run.
- Black Comedy:
- An unintentionally funny example on Phil's part: "...before they put on all that pancake and shit!"
- Benny tells Phil that he's on his "way to the hospital". Phil's reply: "Well, that's up to you!"
- Blatant Lies:
- When Chris tells Carmela that Adriana dumped him and moved away to parts unknown.
- Tony S tells his men that he doesn't know where Tony B is.
- And of course, he didn't know that Chris and Adriana "broke up".
- Tony S tells Dr. Melfi that A.J. is now focusing more on academics.
- A.J. is working on a college application, and couldn't possibly have been spending hours on the phone with friends.
- The Bus Came Back: Larry Barese comes back, although he's still a very minor character.
- Butt-Monkey: Both Johnny Sack and Sal Vitro get a face full of snow when they get arrested. Also Benny, whose car gets wrecked and is then beaten to a pulp by an irate Phil.
- Call-Back:
- The prostitute thanks Tony B for making her toe pain go away with a massage. It would have been a Continuity Nod but for the fact that it lampshades that Tony B is in his predicament because of how he stepped through more than one Heel–Face Revolving Door, and because he put Revenge Before Reason.
- Carmela remembers when Adriana was out of sorts during movie night with the girls. It fuels Carmela's curiosity about where Adriana has gone, obliging Tony S to make use of the new house as a Chekhov's Gift.
- Cane Fu: Phil uses his walking cane as an Improvised Weapon for his No-Holds-Barred Beatdown on Benny.
- The Chains of Commanding:
- Tony S tells Silvio that he has no idea what it's like to be "number one". Doubles as Foreshadowing when Silvio soon finds out for himself firsthand.
- Tony S really struggles with the Chains in this episode, on account of the Sadistic Choice described below.
- Tony S also has an "I told you so" moment with Johnny Sack, now that Sack has some experience under his belt and the realization that dealing with the Chains, and Starscreams along the way, come with the territory of being The Don.
- Chase Scene: When FBI agents arrest Johnny Sack, Tony S manages to escape, but throws away his handgun in the process. It becomes a Chekhov's Gun next season.
- Chekhov's Gun: Tony S throws his handgun away into the snow while running away from the FBI agents. It becomes legally significant next season.
- Cigar of Anxiety: Tony S continues to puff away on them as he struggles with the Sadistic Choice he has to make about Tony B.
- Close to Home: Tony S really goes ape at the sight of Paulie's picture, because it's a painful reminder of Pie-Oh-My.
- Combat Breakdown: A couple of kids fight at A.J.'s Wild Teen Party, but it basically just amounts to rolling around on the ground with each other.
- The Consigliere: Silvio takes up a With Due Respect conversation with Tony S (described below).
- Continuity Nod:
- Larry remarks that Tony S should have had Tony B sent back to jail instead of Feech Le Manna.
- Tony S stepping into rotting eggs near the dumpster plays like a reenactment of when Valentina tricked Ralph into stepping into horse manure.
- Sal Vitro is still working Johnny Sack's lawn.
- Mr. Wegler isn't A.J.'s college advisor anymore.
- Country Matters:
- Phil calls Chris' mom one.
- Tony calls Adriana one as well, when he discusses her with Chris.
- Diabolus ex Machina: Just as Johnny Sack and Tony finally patch things up and look to go back to normal business and making money again, Johnny is arrested by the FBI thanks to their mole Jimmy Petrille. With John in prison and awaiting trial, his decidedly less pragmatic and more Ax-Crazy dragon Phil Leotardo is free to take the reins of Acting Boss.
- Dies Wide Open: Tony B's eyes are wide open in death, and his facial expression still screams Et Tu, Brute?.
- Disposing of a Body: Tony S gives Chris the task of burying Tony B's body.
- Distracted from Death: Initially subverted but then eventually played straight. Carmela becomes more and more curious as to what happened to Adriana. And Tony initially struggles to quell that curiosity.
- Double-Meaning Title: The title could describe: Tony's striving to gain Johnny's respect; Johnny's striving to gain Tony's respect, and Tony's striving to keep the respect of his family.
- The Dreaded: Just the sight or sound of Phil can make dedicated mobsters like Chris or Benny piss in their pants.
- Dropped a Bridge on Him: Uncle Junior relates that Harold Melvoin has had a stroke, meaning he won't be around as the Amoral Attorney anymore. And just in time for Uncle Junior to go full throttle into a different arc.
- Drunk with Power: Tony S flat out tells Johnny Sack that he'll become a swollen head on a power trip if his tenure as The Don of the New York family will be marked by letting Phil his Dragon go full Ax-Crazy without any restraint.
- Et Tu, Brute?:
- The last things that go through Tony B's head (besides the buckshot from the shotgun) is the sight of Tony S with the shotgun aimed straight at him and the realization that Tony S is about to kill him.
- Chris still feels betrayed by Adriana having become The Mole.
- Even Evil Has Loved Ones:
- Phil is devastated at the sight of his younger brother lying dead on a morgue slab.
- Tony S really struggles with what to do about his own cousin Tony B, who is marked for a Cruel and Unusual Death by Phil. Part of Tony S' struggles stem from the fact that even giving Tony B a Mercy Kill may not be enough to get the Jersey mob out of the crosshairs of the New York mob.
- Tony S does his utmost to protect Chris from Phil. He then comforts Chris and gives him a Man Hug once the crisis has more or less elapsed.
- Even Evil Has Standards:
- Phil's henchman reminds Phil that family is off-limits when members of The Mafia have beef with each other. Could also double as Foreshadowing for the series finale.
- Carlo thinks it's unfair that Tony S's refusal to give up Tony B has resulted in Christopher becoming a target for Phil to get Revenge by Proxy.
- Every Man Has His Price: Johnny Sack and Phil are initially furious over Tony S giving Tony B a Mercy Kill. But Tony S starts to smooth things over by offering Phil a share in the profits from the casino that Tony B used to run.
- Father to His Men: Tony S decides to give Tony B the Mercy Kill, in part out of a realization that his own men will be made to suffer for it should the situation continue to go unresolved. He regains the respect of his men when they learn that he finally got around to dealing with it.
- Foreshadowing:
- Carmela tries to provide Chris with encouragement by telling him there's "other fish in the sea".
- Johnny Sack indicates that he's seeing a doctor for lipid and bone density tests .
- Half-Truth:
- Tony S on Adriana: "You never know about people".
- Tony S calls up Johnny Sack and tells him the location of Uncle Pat's farm. He doesn't mention that he already gave Tony B a quick death.
- Hates Small Talk: Tony commands Silvio to cut the preamble.
- Hidden Depths: A.J. starts to show a talent for "event planning". Carmela even mentions that A.J. has had an obsession with the Studio 54 movie. It fuels hope for Carmela that A.J. can somehow make something of himself.
- Holier Than Thou: Johnny Sack does come across as rather self-righteous in this episode. And when he invokes Kissing Cousins as a justification for having Lorraine killed, Tony calls him on it: "What are you? The friggin' Cardinal?"
- Hope Spot: After killing Tony B and offering compensation for Phil, Tony S and Johnny Sack seem to have reconciled, with Johnny even offering Tony inside his home for a cup of coffee. Unfortunately, the FBI then shows up and arrests Johnny, meaning Phil is now in charge of New York.
- Hypocrite: Chris is convinced that Tony S is bestowing Nepotistic favor to Tony B, notwithstanding the numerous breaks he's gotten for being Tony S' nephew. Silvio calls him out on it.
- Improperly Paranoid: There's a reason why Tony S got away from the FBI agents. They weren't even after him in the first place. His panicked efforts to run away cause him to make a key blunder by leaving behind a Chekhov's Gun that will come back to haunt him next season.
- Improvised Weapon: Phil uses his cane for his No-Holds-Barred Beatdown on Benny.
- Ironic Echo: Tony S throws "due respect" back at Silvio.
- Jack Bauer Interrogation Technique: Phil mixes in demands to know where Tony B is while beating Benny to a bloody pulp with his cane.
- Kick the Dog: Phil is a total Hate Sink and Jerkass when he puts the gears on Chris' mom.
- Kissing Cousins: Johnny Sack brings up that Little Carmine and Lorraine used to have relations with each other as second cousins as an additional justification for killing her.
- Lonely at the Top: Tony S tells Silvio that this is what being a Mafia boss amounts to.
- Maintain the Lie: Silvio knows that Tony S has discovered Tony B's location, but keeps his mouth closed when Tony S claims to the rest of the Jersey mobsters that he doesn't know where his cousin is.
- Man Hug: Chris and Tony S embrace after emerging from relatively unscathed from recent events. Tony even sheds a few Manly Tears.
- Memento MacGuffin: The painting of Tony S and Pie-Oh-My ends up helping Tony S decide on which Sadistic Choice he needs to make.
- Mercy Kill: Tony S decides to Take a Third Option and gives Tony B a quick death with a shotgun blast.
- The Mole:
- Raymond Curto is seen giving info on a deal between Tony S and Vito to his handler.
- And it turns out that Jimmy Petrille being one has led to Johnny Sack's arrest.
- Negated Moment of Awesome: Briefly, it appears that Tony managed a somewhat impressive escape from the FBI. Then he finds out he wasn't the target of the arrest and they had just let him go.
- Nepotism:
- Tony S' men become more and more resentful that they're going to bear the brunt of the New York family's fury just because Tony S won't deal with Tony B. They also perceive favoritism towards Chris as well.
- Chris is especially resentful, notwithstanding his own hypocrisy.
- No-Holds-Barred Beatdown: Phil uses his cane as an Improvised Weapon to beat Benny to a bloody pulp.
- Oh, Crap!:
- Chris, when he hears Phil's voice outside his mom's place.
- Benny, when he sees Phil in the club.
- Tony B, when he sees Tony S with a shotgun aimed straight at him.
- The Oldest Profession: Tony B gets by with a prostitute or two while hiding out at Uncle Pat's farm.
- One Dialogue, Two Conversations: A minor example occurs when Carmela speaks with Chris on the phone about Adriana. Carm takes Chris' morose attitude and complaints about Adriana as him being hurt over her leaving, when in reality Chris is indeed upset, but over Adriana having been The Mole and her subsequent execution.
- Paper-Thin Disguise: Chris is apparently convinced that wearing a fedora and Cool Shades is enough to throw the New York mobsters off his scent.
- Pet the Dog:
- After seeing what Phil did to Benny, Tony S decides it's time for Benny to become a made man.
- A rather morbid example. Tony S is well aware that Chris had issues with Tony B. So he gives Chris the honor of burying Tony B to get some measure of satisfaction out of things. He also gives Chris a Man Hug.
- Pragmatic Villainy: Tony S finally manages to persuade Johnny Sack that it's time to end the Cycle of Revenge seen throughout season 5 and get back to doing business and making money. Unfortunately for him, Sack is immediately arrested by the FBI afterward.
- Vito also gets in on this, arguing against more reprisals against New York because it would be suicidal to escalate things further when the last strike (Billy Leotardo's murder) was so devastating.
- Pride: Tony S is hesitant to give up Tony B to Johnny Sack because it amounts to Kneeling Before Sack. And that's after Tony S had told Sack to go fuck himself.
- Professional Butt-Kisser: Paulie squirms when Tony S gets upset over the painting of Pie-Oh-My and himself by telling Tony S that it's an honor to have a picture of the boss himself and that the picture depicts Tony S as the "General".
- Protectorate: Tony S has the Jersey mob establish one over Chris, as Phil intends to kill Chris as a matter of Revenge by Proxy.
- Psychological Projection: Dr. Melfi points out that this is a large part of Tony's current struggles. He feels guilty over Tony B having gone to jail instead of him. Therefore, his real motivation for avoiding giving up Tony B to the New York mob is to avoid fueling his own guilt that goes years back. He's angry about A.J. not being given more time by the football coach because he really wanted to hear the coach tell A.J. that he's special. That in turn would validate Tony S' dream where Coach Molinaro told him he was special.
- Recovered Addict: Chris manages to get himself off the heroin, for now ...
- Revenge by Proxy:
- Phil makes an attempt on Chris as a stand-in for Tony B.
- Phil uses his cane as an Improvised Weapon to give Benny a No-Holds-Barred Beatdown. He stops when he notices some potential witnesses are starting to walk up, and says: "It's a start".
- Rousing Speech: Tony S tries to give one to his men on the basis that he's protecting Tony B from a Cruel and Unusual Death, and that he would protect any of them from the same. The men pretend to go along with it, but their resentment over perceived Nepotism only increases.
- Rule of Symbolism:
- Tony S is watching a History Channel documentary on Erwin Rommel, describing him as a Father to His Men, and who returned home during World War I to marry his sweetheart. The latter bit plays out just as Carmela pulls up to sit on the sofa beside him.
- The documentary also claims that Rommel had a "sixth sense of sizing up the situation".
- The painting of Pie-Oh-My and Tony S dressed up like Napoleon beckons to Tony to be a Father to His Men.
- At the end of the episode, Tony's emergence from the rustling bushes reaffirms the use of the bear as a symbol of Tony's dominating presence in his house. Based on the emerging location of the bear in earlier episodes, there is uncertainty as to the identity of the rustling figure.
- Sadistic Choice: Tony S has three choices, and all of them have the potential to backfire on him horribly.
- Give up Tony B, his own cousin, to the New York mob for Cold-Blooded Torture and a Cruel and Unusual Death. Tony S almost makes this choice when he calls up Johnny Sack, but then hesitates, wavers, and hangs up.
- Refuse to give up Tony B, but face ongoing hostility from the New York mob, and possibly The Mutiny from his own men if they become convinced that he won't protect them.
- Take a Third Option and give Tony B a Mercy Kill. Problem is, there are no assurances that the New York family will actually accept it as a valid Third Option. Tony S ultimately decides to roll the dice on the Third Option.
- Sarcasm Mode:
- Patsy, after Tony S has left the party: "Thank you. That was great."
- A.J. to Carmela: "Could you amp up the drama a little?"
- Scatterbrained Senior: Tony S goes to Uncle Junior, hoping that he can act as a second Consigliere and provide helpful advice. But Junior proves too incapable of even following the conversation to be of any help.
- Sent Into Hiding: Chris takes to lying low after Phil comes looking for him.
- Seriously Scruffy: Tony S looks rather disheveled, with a twig scratch across his cheek to boot, after running from the FBI agents.
- Shotguns Are Just Better: Tony S uses one to grant Tony B a quick death.
- Small Name, Big Ego: Paulie certainly thinks a lot of himself, proclaiming himself as the most likely target of New York next to Tony S.
- Speak Ill of the Dead: Chris and Tony freely berate Adriana, convinced that she was Rewarded as a Traitor Deserves.
- Spoiled Brat: Tony S and Carmela lampshade that A.J. having it easy from day one has killed off any motivation, while Val's son works hard laboring under a not-so-well-off father.
- The Starscream: Johnny Sack is himself wary of the possibility that Phil won't be content with being a Dragon} or even The Consigliere.
- Suspiciously Apropos Music:
- "Glad Tidings" by Van Morrison is playing while Tony B is driving to Uncle Pat's farm. The lyrics could be interpreted to describe a Mercy Kill delivered by a loved one. Then there's the particular lyric about "glad tidings from New York".
- It plays again while Tony S is making his way home after running from Johnny Sack's arrest. The second playing invites a more benign interpretation of the lyrics.
- Take a Third Option: Tony S decides to both try to protect his own men from any fallout with New York, and save his cousin from Cold-Blooded Torture and a Cruel and Unusual Death, by giving Tony B a quick death with a shotgun blast.
- Thwarted Escape: Benny tries to hightail it out of the Crazy Horse after noticing Phil. Phil and his henchmen catch up to Benny as he's trying to start his car and get away. They then begin to pull him out, and Benny puts his car into drive by mistake, resulting in the car going into the nearby wall instead. He tries desperately to put it in reverse, only for the New York mobsters to pull on him enough to cause him to lose his grip on his drive shaft and then out of the car completely. The No-Holds-Barred Beatdown begins shortly thereafter.
- Title Drop: Tony S and Silvio multiple times during their With Due Respect conversation.
- Tranquil Fury: Phil arrives at Uncle Pat's farm with his henchmen. He makes as though to quietly sneak in through the front door, and that's when he notices that Tony S has already given Tony B a Mercy Kill. The look on his face says it all.
- Trouble Entendre:Phil We're, uh, from Alcoholics Anonymous.
Joanne: What's your name?
Phil: Well, we're anonymous. - Unishment: Carmela and Tony try withholding A.J.'s allowance until he finishes his college applications, but he doesn't care because he just made $300 on the party he threw with his friends.
- Unsafe Haven: Tony B hopes nobody can find him on Uncle Pat's farm. Turns out Tony S has known for quite some time, and guns down his own cousin at the front door.
- Wild Teen Party: A.J. has one in the backyard of his friend's house.
- With Due Respect: Silvio has a prolonged conversation with Tony S where he twice names the trope itself word for word. He points out to Tony S that his real hesitation in giving up Tony B is that Tony S is too proud to do something that amounts to bending the knee before Johnny Sack and after having told Sack to go fuck himself. Silvio also warns Tony S that if he can't get past it, he will risk The Mutiny from his men.
- With Us or Against Us: Tony S reduces it to an individual "with me or against me as the boss" version, when he initially refuses Silvio's advice.
- Would Hit a Girl: Phil grips hard on Joanne's wrist, and then threatens to ram the Discman up her "box". The "box" comment could also be considered a Shout-Out to Frank Vincent's classic line in GoodFellas, "Now go home and get your fucking shinebox!"
