8 Reasons It’s Tough to Watch The Sopranos Today

Many consider this TV show to be one of the best of all time, and it’s easy to see why. It practically invented the trend of complex, flawed heroes on television and revolutionized storytelling for viewers. But even the most beloved shows can start to feel dated over time.

Even though it’s been over twenty years since it first aired, some aspects of The Sopranos haven’t held up as well as others. Modern audiences might find its slow speed, older visual style, and occasionally problematic viewpoints difficult to enjoy. Here’s a look at why rewatching The Sopranos now might be different than you remember.

The Sopranos Is Slower-Paced Than Most Modern TV Shows

Today’s viewers often prefer short, quick videos. Because of this, many TV shows are now made as miniseries with just a few episodes. However, The Sopranos is different. It tells its story slowly, over many seasons, and isn’t afraid to use pauses and quiet moments to build tension and character.

Some modern viewers might find The Sopranos slow-paced, especially if they prefer faster-moving shows. However, knowing this beforehand can help new viewers adjust and appreciate the show’s deliberate storytelling.

The Sopranos’ Treatment of Women Has Aged Poorly

Tony Soprano, the central figure in The Sopranos, consistently demonstrates deeply ingrained sexism. Throughout the series, his interactions with all women – including his mother, wife, daughter, therapist, and lovers – reveal outdated and prejudiced beliefs.

Characters like Carmela Soprano and Adriana La Cerva are products of the early 2000s, and their actions are shaped by the gender expectations of that time. Today’s viewers might find it frustrating to see these strong women consistently downplaying their own power or compromising themselves to please the men around them.

The Sopranos’ Casual Racism and Homophobia Can Be Jarring

The show The Sopranos doesn’t shy away from portraying the prejudiced views of its main characters, including racism and homophobia. While this was likely intended to make the show feel realistic, it can still be difficult to watch.

Christopher and his fellow gangsters often use anti-gay insults to put others down. When Meadow starts a relationship with Noah Tannenbaum, Tony’s biases create a significant conflict with his daughter. This plotline appears to be a way of highlighting the flawed beliefs and hurtful language used by Tony and many of the other characters in the show.

The Sopranos’ Groundbreaking Style Has Been Imitated to Death

When The Sopranos debuted in 1999, it marked the beginning of a new era for television. Unlike shows before it, The Sopranos moved at a more deliberate pace, often using silence and a subtle color scheme. Its editing style felt intentionally rough around the edges, but audiences loved it, and other shows quickly began to follow its lead.

Today’s TV viewers are used to the innovative style of shows like The Sopranos – they’ve come to expect it. Because of crime dramas like The Wire, a first-time viewer of The Sopranos might find its techniques feel familiar rather than groundbreaking.

Tony Soprano Isn’t as Compelling Now That Modern TV Is Full of Morally Gray Protagonists

Just like how the style of The Sopranos feels less fresh now that many shows have copied it, the character of Tony Soprano might not seem as groundbreaking to viewers today. People who became fans watching Walter White’s transformation in Breaking Bad might not fully appreciate Tony Soprano’s impact on television.

Walter White, the main character of Breaking Bad, owes a lot to Tony Soprano. While Walter’s actions might seem more personal and unsettling, that’s largely because The Sopranos tells a much broader, multi-generational story, unlike Breaking Bad, which focuses on one man’s turn to crime.

The Lack of Social Media or Smartphones In The Sopranos Feels Like a Time Warp

It might seem minor, but seeing familiar technology like smartphones on TV helps viewers connect with shows and movies. It makes the world on screen feel more realistic and relatable. For example, The Sopranos is now over twenty years old, and a lot has changed with technology since it originally aired.

The TV show The Sopranos really captures what life was like in the late 1990s and early 2000s, and that includes the technology people used. Characters constantly use pay phones, pagers, and big, early cell phones. Computers appear, especially at home or in the FBI office, but they’re slow, with dial-up internet. Even things meant to show wealth, like Tony’s home stereo or car phone, remind you of how different things were back then.

The Sopranos’ Dream Sequences Test Even the Most Patient Viewers

As a critic, I’ve always admired how The Sopranos wasn’t afraid to take risks, and their use of dream sequences was a prime example. The episode “The Test Dream” from Season 5 is legendary for being one of the longest, most elaborate dreams ever shown on TV. But they didn’t stop there – Season 6’s second episode also plunged us into a lengthy dream world while Tony was unconscious, proving they were willing to really play with form and narrative.

Tony’s dreams offer clues about his inner struggles and the conflicts he faces living a double life. However, for today’s viewers, these dream sequences can be slow-paced and frustrating. The Sopranos is built on suspense, and audiences often want the story to move forward quickly, making extended dreams feel like a detour.

Everyone Already Knows How The Sopranos Ends

The ending of The Sopranos is incredibly well-known. The abrupt cut to black has been analyzed endlessly, and most fans have accepted they’ll never know what truly happened to Tony. Thanks to the show’s huge impact on popular culture over the last twenty years, many people are familiar with the finale, even if they haven’t seen the series itself.

Watching The Sopranos today, knowing how it ends can be especially upsetting for new viewers. While the experience of watching something is often more important than knowing the outcome, viewers become very connected to Tony Soprano over the course of the show. Learning his fate is uncertain right from the beginning is just as painful as going in without any spoilers.

2025-11-02 02:11