We side with Tony instead of the truth-telling Charmaine not only because he's more charming but because Chase has invested him with a code of honor, especially toward women. Tony may be a murderer, a torturer, a thief and an adulterer, but we never see him behave unforgivably toward women. When fellow mobster Ralphie Cifaretto beat his girlfriend to death in a gruesome scene earlier this season, Tony even broke his brotherhood's rules by exploding in fury at Ralphie and punching him in the face -- and Ralphie a made guy! While Tony causes the women around him pain, it's almost never intentional. When he's confronted by the women in his life over his betrayals, he lapses into a little-boy act, one that Carmela -- and Melfi, for that matter -- always falls for.

In last week's episode, the penultimate one of the season, Tony roughs up Gloria, his va-va-vooomy but unstable mistress, almost choking her to death. But she basically asks for it -- first, as Melfi points out primly (and self-righteously), for being attracted to dangerous men, and second by pulling a "Fatal Attraction" move on Tony and threatening the sanctity of his family. (Note to self: Don't pick up women in psychiatrist's waiting room!) In short, the women around Tony catfight over his fleshy physique and increasingly get what's coming to them, while he somehow manages to maintain a veneer of gallantry.

The last two shows of this season have been terrific. "Pine Barrens," directed by Steve Buscemi, slyly paid homage to "Fargo" and Samuel Beckett as Christopher and Paulie get lost in the snow-covered wilds of New Jersey after a hit goes bloodily awry. They were left to freeze nearly to death and given a chance to contemplate overnight their place in a cold and white moral universe. (The strict attention to character detail in "The Sopranos" dictated that the wiry but much older Paulie suffer even more painfully than Christopher, with his trademark slick "wingtip" hair and his sense of self-assurance in frantic disarray by the time they were rescued.) This story line was nicely set off by Tony's activities in his own particular hell, attacked by an unrelenting swarm of various angry women.

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In last week's show, "Amour Fou," mistress Gloria goes nuts and Tony demonstrates that therapy has given him some useful insights into dealing with suicidal narcissists. Jackie Jr., the wayward young son of a late mob boss, makes an ill-advised move to get himself a reputation as a tough guy -- was he misled by Ralphie Cifaretto, the sociopath who's now sleeping with his mother? And as for Carmela, she's having another bout of conscience, and finds herself confused by a curious priest who dispenses some good medical recommendations but curiously relativistic moral advice. With its taut pacing, spectacular violence and ethical weirdness, "Amour Fou" ranks with the very best "Sopranos" episodes.

All Chase has to do on this Sunday's show (which is apparently only one hour) is tie up about 15 loose story lines. Will Carmela's crisis reach critical mass? Could she actually leave Tony? And what's wrong with her medically? The doctor told her there's nothing wrong, but she's a little young for menopause.

And by the way -- who slashed Gloria's tires?

What about the case the feds are building against the Sopranos? What of Uncle Junior's cancer and his legal troubles? And how about the waterfront development, complete with Museum of Science and Trucking, and the ominous move to Jersey by New York boss Johnny Sack? An uncertain fate hangs over Jackie Jr. as well as Paulie, after his own big mistake with the angry and dangerous former Russian commando.

And, finally, what will be the requisite sanguinary finale for a very bloody TV show?

What Chase needs to do in Sunday's episode -- and during the next season, which may be the last -- is take "The Sopranos" to a place truly original, one that says something that Americans haven't thought about before, rather than ultimately reinforcing stereotypes we've had drilled into our psyches since Ricky first bawled out Lucy. Then the show will become something more than a sophisticated "Married ... With Corpses" and take its place in a pantheon next to "The Godfather."

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