Bada bing! What drama. 'The most important work of Americanpopular culture in fifty years' is how the New York Timesdescribes The Sopranos. Critically-acclaimed, award-winning, and the mostwatched show on HBO, the mobster drama swirls around the middle-agedMafioso, Tony Soprano (James Gandolfini). Having to negotiate two families,both at home and at work, is it any wonder he is suffering an epic midlifecrisis involving Prozac and visits to a therapist? The series quickly becamecompulsory watching when it first screened back in 1999 and has since goneon to become an international hit and subject of intense discussion. Coinciding with the sixth and penultimate series, Reading The Sopranosoffers a timely response to one of the most talked about shows on television. This book explores how The Sopranos has rewritten the rules of televisiondrama and changed attitudes about television itself. Contributors presentfresh perspectives on psychotherapy and dreams; racism and the Italian-American community; Carmela and post-feminism; The Sopranos as an HBObrand; racism; the full cast of 'gangsters Italianate' that people Sopranos'New Jersey and much more. Reading The Sopranos also features a timeline, character list andcomplete episode guide, as well as editor David Lavery's up to date'Intertextual Moments and Allusions on The Sopranos'.