The first season of The Sopranos finds lifelong "organization man" Tony Soprano (James Gandolfini) taking over from Jackie Aprile Sr., terminally ill boss of the northern New Jersey branch of the DiMeo crime family. Tony's promotion is met with mixed reactions from his wife Carmela (Edie Falco), daughter Meadow (Jamie-Lyn DiScala) and son AJ (Robert Iler), but his loyal lieutenants Paulie Walnuts (Tony Sirico), Sil (Steve Van Zandt) and Big Pussy (Vincent Pastore) are effusive in their congratulations. Also pleased by Tony's ascent is his protégé and surrogate nephew Christopher Moltisanti (Michael Imperioli), who will soon come to enjoy the perks and publicity attending Mob "royalty" (if his growing dependence on crystal meth doesn't kill him first). But uneasy lies the head that wears the crown, and soon Tony is suffering more than usual from anxiety attacks and weird nightmares. Thus he seeks out the counsel of analyst Dr. Jennifer Melfi (Lorraine DiBracco), who despite her fears that she'll be "whacked" once her usefulness comes to an end is fascinated by Tony and won't let him go. One of Tony's biggest headaches is his Uncle Junior (Dominic Chianese),who is p.o.'d that he was denied Jackie Aprile's job in favor of his nephew. Junior spends most of the season conspiring against Tony--and ironically, his chief co-conspirator is Tony's own mother Livia (Nancy Marchand). Also vexing Tony is the revelation that there's an FBI "mole" in his midst--and when that mole is revealed in Season Two, it's a real heartbreaker for the troubled Mr. Soprano. ~ Hal Erickson, All Movie Guide

The Fisher clan suffers, suffers some more, and eventually begins to heal in the fifth and final season of HBO's Six Feet Under. As the season begins, Nate (Peter Krause) and Brenda (Rachel Griffiths) are finally ready to wed after four seasons of tumultuous courtship. But when Brenda miscarries Nate's baby before the ceremony even gets under way, the prospects for their union don't seem particularly bright. Federico (Freddy Rodriguez) and Ruth (Frances Conroy), too, face trouble on the marriage front: Rico as he attempts to win back the love of estranged wife Vanessa (Justina Machado, now a series regular) and Ruth as she cares for mentally ill husband George (James Cromwell). When George's daughter, Maggie (guest star Tina Holmes), arrives in town to help out, she unexpectedly strikes up a friendship with Nate, her stepbrother, whose mood grows dark as his 40th birthday approaches. David (Michael C. Hall) isn't exactly a ray of sunshine, either, as he continues to deal with the emotional fallout of his near-murder the previous season. Then he convinces partner Keith (Mathew St. Patrick) that they should become parents, leading to a whole new cycle of joy and heartache. As for the youngest Fisher, Claire (Lauren Ambrose) drops out of art school and dates Billy (Jeremy Sisto), Brenda's frequently unbalanced brother. When things with her photography career and her relationship go south at the same time, Claire takes a menial office job to support herself. There, she meets Ted (Chris Messina), the Republican lawyer and unlikely love interest who will support her during the unexpected tragedy that brings Six Feet Under to a close. By the end of the show's final episode, the fates of the entire cast have been revealed in a finale as offbeat as it is elegiac. ~ Brian J. Dillard, All Movie Guide