The Sopranos is a show equally at home with stark drama and hilarious black comedy. This episode is definitely on the dramatic side, telling parallel stories of Tracee, a stripper at the Bada Bing who has a very troubled relationship with Ralph, the show's newest arch-psychopath, and the charmed but also troubled relationship of Meadow and Noah at Columbia. The show does an amazing job intertwining the stories, with the creepy subtext that Meadow's education is in fact being paid for by the disturbing plight of Tracee and other strippers at the club. Meadow's college roommate plays something of a comic relief role in the episode, but her plight as a manic-depressive does not really lighten the mood much.
As this episode progressed, I got a feeling of impending doom. I won't say more because spoilers would need to follow, but suffice it to say the parallel endings are fascinating in the way that they play out. University, like many Sopranos episodes, is a profound and very thoughtful piece of art, something so unusual for TV. Watch and admire, your 50 minutes will be well spent.
As this episode progressed, I got a feeling of impending doom. I won't say more because spoilers would need to follow, but suffice it to say the parallel endings are fascinating in the way that they play out. University, like many Sopranos episodes, is a profound and very thoughtful piece of art, something so unusual for TV. Watch and admire, your 50 minutes will be well spent.