The Sopranos season 3

The third season of *The Sopranos* aired on HBO from March 4 to May 20, 2001, totaling thirteen episodes. It was released on VHS and DVD in region 1 on August 27, 2002. The season centers on Tony Soprano’s relationships with his children: Meadow begins her first year at Columbia University, while Anthony Jr. faces behavioral issues in high school. Tony’s conflict with his mother, Livia, reaches a critical point. Uncle Junior, now out of prison, deals with health problems. Dr. Melfi endures a severe personal trauma but makes headway in understanding the root of Tony’s panic attacks. Other major storylines include Christopher’s promotion to made man, Jackie Aprile Jr.’s entry into the crime family, and Tony’s affair with Gloria, another patient of Dr. Melfi.

The cast includes James Gandolfini as Tony Soprano, the de facto boss of the DiMeo crime family; Lorraine Bracco as Dr. Jennifer Melfi; Edie Falco as Carmela Soprano; Michael Imperioli as Christopher Moltisanti; Dominic Chianese as Corrado “Junior” Soprano Jr.; Steven Van Zandt as Silvio Dante; Tony Sirico as Paul “Paulie Walnuts” Gualtieri; Robert Iler as Anthony Soprano Jr.; Jamie-Lynn Sigler as Meadow Soprano; Nancy Marchand as Livia Soprano; Drea de Matteo as Adriana La Cerva; Aida Turturro as Janice Soprano; John Ventimiglia as Artie Bucco; Steven R. Schirripa as Bobby Baccalieri; Federico Castelluccio as Furio Giunta; Robert Funaro as Eugene Pontecorvo; Kathrine Narducci as Charmaine Bucco; and Joe Pantoliano as Ralph Cifaretto.

The season received widespread critical acclaim, scoring 97 out of 100 on Metacritic and a 100% approval rating on Rotten Tomatoes, with the critics’ consensus calling it “deftly using its complex characters to delve into thorny moral quandaries” and “consistently compelling, albeit controversial.” Caryn James of *The New York Times* described the show as a pop-culture phenomenon, stating it was “as good as it has ever been” even against high expectations. *The Los Angeles Times* praised it as “the elitist of the elite,” calling it a “superbly written and executed hybrid of popular entertainment and high art.” The *Detroit Free Press* commended creator David Chase and the show’s writing and acting, noting it was “still as good as television gets: wonderfully written, superbly acted, always unpredictable.”