CNN.com - Reaction to 'Sopranos' finale

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(CNN) -- Simmering tensions between Tony and Carmela Soprano boiled over in the season-ending episode of "The Sopranos."

Jerry Capeci with Ganglandnews.com and James Poniewozik from Time magazine gave their reaction to CNN anchor Daryn Kagan on Monday.

DARYN KAGAN, CNN ANCHOR: The finale of season four is one of the most anticipated events of this television season. Was it worth the wait? ... Did you like it or did you hate it? James, let's start with you.

JAMES PONIEWOZIK, TIME MAGAZINE: Yes, I liked it. I wouldn't say that I loved it. I think, like the whole season, it was an episode with a lot of really strong moments and, you know, a few scenes where your mind kind of wandered.

Some of the scenes between Tony and Carmela are really some of the just most incendiary things we've seen all season.

KAGAN: Jerry, let's bring you in here. In terms of the Mafia and the gang feel of it, what would you say of the season and of the episode?

JERRY CAPECI, GANGLANDNEWS.COM: I think like most people say, the middle of the season was kind of slow and a little bit too soap opera-ish. Last night had a little bit of that tendency as well. But I liked the show last night. I thought it was good. The gangster portrayals are pretty accurate. These are the way gangsters act. This is what they do. This is the kind of situation that a guy would have with his wife and kids -- the one that Tony Soprano has on the show.

Edie's Emmy clip

KAGAN: James, what about that scene between [Tony and] Carmela -- Edie Falco? [That was] a huge performance on her part.

PONIEWOZIK: Oh, yes, that had an Emmy clip written all over it. They have said that this season is focusing on Tony and Carmela's marriage, and I think that, in a sense, is a little bit of an overstatement, because much of the series really has.

Time magazine's James Poniewozik says Falco's performance may earn her an Emmy nomination.

But I think what we saw last night was that a lot of things that have been sort of simmering under the surface between them that would flare up occasionally really came right out in the open. And I think that is one of the cases where a lot of times where the show is very subtle, you know, sometimes to the point this season of being a little tedious, really pays off, because it's slowly been working up this explosion, I think that it was that much more powerful as a result.

KAGAN: It's funny what people like and don't like, and it depends on who you talk to. I like it more when it goes into the relationships and the family stuff. I think you, Jerry, like it more when they go to the -- well, not to the strip joints, but when it gets more into the Mafia and to the business side of it.

CAPECI: They've had just barely enough violence, blood and guts. Even last night, the two hit men that were hired by Christopher to go out, and you think they're going to get paid off, and [they] get whacked...

Real gangsters vs. fictional gangsters

KAGAN: Is that how it would work in the real world?

CAPECI: If you did hire two guys from outside the family to do a hit, that's the way it would work, whether they completed the job or not. They were going to die no matter what happened. It's unlikely, however, you would go outside the family to get two guys to kill a boss. That's something that generally you would do in-house.

Ganglandnews.com's Jerry Capeci compares "Sopranos" whacks to real gangster whacks.

KAGAN: Are we past the point of discussing about whether this glorifies crime and violence? Do we just accept it for what it is, that it's just a show on television?

CAPECI: I look at it as just entertainment. It's a show on television. A lot of Italian-American groups are upset about the negative portrayal of Italian-Americans, but, my answer to that is this is a show about gangsters. You would expect all of the Italian-Americans or 99 percent of them in the show to be gangsters and to be not nice people.

One more season remains

KAGAN: And, James, the final season would appear next year. How does this one wrap up?

PONIEWOZIK: I think that my understanding really is that David Chase, the creator of the show, sort of plotted out season four, and to an extent, season five simultaneously. It seems to be building up toward a lot of conflict. In a way, we're kind of in the middle of the conclusion, as it were, if they actually do wrap it up next year.

KAGAN: Will Tony Soprano be literally taken out before it's all over, do you think?

PONIEWOZIK: They're talking about doing "Sopranos" movies, so you'd think they'd want to keep him alive for that unless they do them all as flashbacks or make the whole thing a big dream.

KAGAN: Yes, well, it's been a dream in terms for HBO, a good dream for them. James Poniewozik and Jerry Capeci, thank you.