“You don’t spend seven years with someone and then discard them.”
In a recent episode of the Talking Sopranos podcast, actress Lorraine Bracco revealed she was “upset” over how her character Dr. Melfi’s arc ended. The episode of The Sopranos in question concerns “The Blue Comet,” which is the penultimate episode of the series. Melfi had been a staple of The Sopranos from the beginning, and Bracco felt that her character’s decision to end her therapy sessions with Tony Soprano (James Gandolfini) was uncharacteristic and an odd choice for her character.
The Talking Sopranos podcast is hosted by Michael Imperioli and Steve Schirripa, who played Christopher Moltisanti and Bobby Baccalieri respectively. Bracco said the following when on the recent podcast episode:
“I remember being upset [with] the direction that David [Chase] was bringing Melfi. I just felt like he wanted me to get rid of [Tony]. I felt that he did it in a very abrupt way. I don’t think that she should have done it that way. I would have liked for it to have been more meaningful. I think she cared for Tony. Even though he was a f***-up and he was never going to really straighten out. But I think she really cared for him. You don’t spend seven years with someone and [then] discard them. I felt bad about that.”
To clarify on Melfi’s decision, she attends a dinner party where she’s advised by colleagues that a recent study found that sociopaths often take advantage of talk therapy. Melfi ultimately looks into the study and can see the truth in the findings, in turn applying the results to her sessions with Tony. In the character’s next and final moment, she ends her tenure as Tony’s therapist. The whole decision obviously ticks off Tony, with him chalking up the decision to “female, menopausal changes.”
The T ony-Dr. Melfi scenes are some of the most iconic of the whole series, so it’s easy to understand why Bracco feels as she does with the abrupt end. Bracco also noted on the podcast that she would have preferred having Tony react to her presenting the study to him. She felt like this would have been “powerful” for Tony, and just another way for him to validate his criminal activities. And given all of the scenes and history between these two, it’s hard to not imagine Bracco’s version of the final events.
Dr. Melfi was an integral character to The Sopranos, with Bracco being nominated three times for Best Lead Actress at the Primetime Emmy Awards (and once for Best Supporting Actress). She was often pitted against her co-stars in Edie Falco and Aida Turturro. She’s also well-known for her role as Karen Friedman Hill in Goodfellas, for which she was nominated for an Academy Award.
