The Blue Comet

Did You Know?

• The song played over the final scene and end credits is an extended instrumental version of Tindersticks' song "Running Wild."
• The episode features the deaths of Burt Gervasi (garrotted by Silvio Dante), Alec Kastropovic (shot by a hitman who mistook him for Phil Leotardo), Yaryna Kastropovic (shot after being present at the failed hit).
• The intermezzo from Cavalleria rusticana plays when Bobby, Sil, and Tony go out to eat.

Synopsis

A.J. recognizes another patient, Rhiannon Flammer, Hernan O'Brien's old girlfriend, who has had food issues and depression; after discharge they continue seeing each other. Jennifer Melfi attends a dinner party with colleagues including Elliot Kupferberg, where conversation turns to a study claiming criminal sociopaths take advantage of talk therapy. Kupferberg angers and shocks her by revealing that Tony Soprano is her patient. She reads the study at home and is convinced by its findings.

At Tony's next session, his responses waver between contempt for A.J.'s depression and gratitude for his in-patient care; Melfi's replies become sarcastic and aggressive. She says she intends to cease treating him; he is taken aback and hurt, saying they are making progress after seven years. She tells him she does not want to waste his time since he is in crisis, waits for him to go, then closes the door. Janice tells Tony that Junior's money has run out and asks him to contribute so Junior does not have to go into a state institution; Tony scornfully refuses.

Silvio uses a garrote to kill Burt Gervasi, a soldato who has been negotiating with the New York family. Phil speaks contemptuously about "this pygmy thing over in Jersey," saying they decapitate and do business with whatever is left, ordering the murders of Tony, Silvio, and Bobby within 24 hours. The FBI learn from an informant that something is being planned, and Agent Harris warns Tony his life is in danger. Tony decides to kill Phil first using the Italian hitmen who performed the hit on Rusty Millio; the order is passed to Corky Caporale, but Phil is in hiding and they kill the wrong man—the father of Phil's comare—and kill his daughter too.

Tony orders Silvio to tell everyone to go to their safe house, but it is too late: Bobby is killed in a model railway store, and Silvio and Patsy are intercepted leaving the Bada Bing; Silvio is shot several times and severely wounded, while Patsy escapes unhurt.

Final appearances

This episode marks the final appearances of several main or longtime recurring characters. Jennifer Melfi, Tony's psychotherapist since the series began, ends their sessions after being convinced by a study that talk therapy enables his criminal behavior. Arthur "Artie" Bucco, a restaurateur and Tony's close childhood friend, appears for the last time. Charmaine Bucco, Artie's wife, also makes her final appearance. Elliot Kupferberg, Melfi's own psychotherapist and mentor, appears for the last time.

Production

The episode's general plot outline was developed collectively by the writing staff, which for the second part of the sixth season consisted of David Chase, Terence Winter, Matthew Weiner, and the writing team of Diane Frolov and Andrew Schneider. After the main story was outlined, the script was written by Chase and Weiner; it is Chase's 29th writing credit for the series and Weiner's 12th and final. This is the fifth time Chase and Weiner collaborated on a Sopranos script, following "The Test Dream," "Kaisha" (also with Winter), "Soprano Home Movies" (also with Frolov and Schneider), and "Kennedy and Heidi."

The research study that Elliot Kupferberg introduces to Melfi is an actual three-volume study called The Criminal Personality by Dr. Samuel Yochelson and Dr. Stanton Samenow, published between 1977 and 1986. David Chase discovered the study when he and some Sopranos writers attended a psychiatric conference; he also asked forensic psychologist Nancy Duggan to analyze Tony's mental state, and she opined that talk therapy was enabling him to commit crimes.

Chase decided that introducing the study would spell the end of Tony and Melfi's psychotherapy story arc. After the episode aired, psychotherapists reported an outpouring of questions from clients about the ethics of dropping patients unilaterally. Chase commented that the depiction of therapy was realistic, as it is often an endless process until one party decides they have had enough. Lorraine Bracco said she was "upset" at the way her character was written off, feeling it was abrupt and not meaningful enough.

Reception

According to Nielsen ratings, "The Blue Comet" attracted an average of eight million American viewers on its first broadcast, the show's second-best ratings for the second part of the sixth season, behind only the series finale which drew 11.9 million. The episode received universal acclaim and has frequently been named by critics as one of the best episodes of the series. Tom Biro of TV Squad awarded it the site's highest score of 7, praising the way the episode closes doors on some lives and its thrilling visual storytelling.

Geoffrey Dunn of Metro Silicon Valley stated that Chase orchestrated the tension to a full crescendo. Tim Goodman of the San Francisco Chronicle wrote that the veil of surprise vanishes in this penultimate episode, calling Bobby's death scene "priceless" and "really well done." Mary McNamara of the Los Angeles Times described the narrative as classic gangland payback. Heather Havrilesky of Salon noted the eerie quiet that settled after the violence.

Matt Roush of TV Guide called it a sensational way to prime viewers for the series finale. Maureen Ryan of the Chicago Tribune praised the episode as a classic for its suspenseful storytelling.