One of the things that made The Sopranos one of the best shows in television history was its complex characters. Most of them were, if we’re honest, terrible people, but every one of them had something that made fans love or at least appreciate them. Here is the best thing about the best characters on The Sopranos.
Tony Soprano
There is a lot of hate about the lead character of Tony Soprano, but there is a lot to love too. As a character, he is one of the most interesting and deeply studied of all time. James Gandolfini’s performance as Tony is mindboggling good as well. Sure, he’s a psychopath, but he does seem to love his family, even when he’s cheating on his wife. He’s also incredibly loyal to his friends.
Carmela Soprano
Carmela Soprano, played by Edie Falco, has a lot to deal with and in the end, that’s what is the best thing about her character. She is far too patient with her husband’s transgressions, but she sticks it out and clearly loves Tony. The same could be said about her kids, who test her at every turn but she remains unfazed in the face of the worst things in life
Uncle Junior
Corrado “Junior” Soprano is one of the hardest characters to find something nice to say anything about and in the end, that might just be the best thing about his character. He’s a jerk but that makes him a perfect antagonist for Tony throughout the show’s run.
Artie Bucco
Artie Bucco (John Ventimiglia) is such a great character and one of the most likable as an actual human being. The restaurant owner deals with a lot of bad luck throughout the show, but he stays just as hard-working as ever, no matter what is thrown at him. As a lifelong friend of Tony’s, he’s skirted the edges of organized crime but has done his best not to get involved (though sometimes he can’t help himself).
Christopher
Poor Christopher (Michael Imperioli). He is always messing things up. He’s passionate about everything, from his ridiculous attempt to make movies to his loyalty to Tony, but he’s a screwup. As a screwup, he has a trait that many of us can relate to in some ways. He wants to be a better person, but he just can’t figure out a way to get away from the lifestyle he’s chosen, both the crime in his professional life and the drugs in his personal life.
Dr. Melfi
Dr. Melfi (Lorraine Bracco) seems to be a very good therapist. The fact that she continues to keep Tony on as a patient shows (at least until the finale) how dedicated she is to her profession and that is admirable, if not advisable. She is a wonderful character unlike any other seen in a typical mob story.
Ralph Cifaretto
Okay, there isn’t anything nice to say about Ralph Cifaretto (Joe Pantoliano) as a person. Nothing. He’s a despicable human, but he’s a fantastic character on the show as such we can surely find something that is best about the character, right? He is completely ruthless, which makes him a danger to everyone around him, especially Tony, and that alone makes him one of the best characters on the show.
Meadow Soprano
As the daughter of the most powerful guy in the New Jersey mob, Meadow Soprano (Jamie-Lynn Sigler) has a lot to deal with. She still manages to get into an Ivy League school but never really shies away from who she is, other than for a little while in college. She is loyal to her family in the end deals with all of the horrible tragedies, but keeps moving forward.
Vito Spatafore
Vito Spatafore (Joseph R. Gannascoli) is one of Tony’s best-earning capos and is one of the most consistent characters on the show, with one major, incredibly realistic twist, he’s gay. That twist makes him so much more interesting than being just another guy in Tony’s crew.
Furio
It’s easy to pinpoint the best thing about Furio. He’s a ruthless killer who is so cold and calculating, that it makes him invaluable to Tony and the rest of the Family. The Italian native knows just where he stands and he never bites off more than he can chew in any way. He’s a late-comer to the show, but once he’s in the cast, he always makes his menacing presence felt. He’s also a pretty nice guy when you put all that aside.
John “Johnny Sack” Sacrimoni
Maybe the best character outside of the New Jersey crew and their family members is actor Vincent Curatola’s character John Sacrimoni, best known as “Johnny Sack.” He is a character with a ton of depth. As the head of the New York family who is sometimes at war with Tony and sometimes an ally, he is a brutal murderer, but also a loving husband to his wife. That kind of complexity is what makes the show so great.
Paulie “Walnuts” Gualtieri
Paulie “Walnuts” Gualtieri (Tony Sirico) is one of the funniest characters in The Sopranos. He is as loyal as they come to Tony and while he is clearly a psycho, his comic relief is one of the greatest things about the show. He’s not the kind of guy you’d ever want to be friends with, but he sure does make us laugh a lot.
Adriana La Cerva
Drea de Matteo’s performance as Adriana La Cerva is so realistic and heartbreaking as the girlfriend of a mess of a person in Christopher. She loves him and can’t leave him, stuck in a position many people have found themselves in. Her tragic end only endears her to viewers even more. It’s one of the hardest scenes in the whole show.
Livia Soprano
The best thing about Livia Soprano (Nancy Marchand) as a character is just how awful she is. It’s hard to believe someone could be so terrible to her children and, frankly, everyone around her. She’s just a wretched person and fans love the character for it. Not everyone has to be nice to be a great character, as Livia proves over and over.
Silvio Dante
Without a doubt, Silvio Dante is one of, if not the most popular characters on the show. Steven Van Zandt’s performance as the no-nonsense consigliere to Tony Soprano is just so…cool. Yeah, yeah, he’s a terrible person at his core, and he’s certainly violent, but that’s why we love mob movies and TV shows, right? He’s consistent in all of his terrible traits, and his loyalty is unmatched.
Richie Aprile
Like a lot of characters on The Sopranos what makes Richie Aprile great is how scary and violent he is. He’s one of the most violent characters on the show, but it all seems completely realistic. Terrifyingly so, even. Actor David Proval’s performance as the insane Aprile is superb because we love to hate the character.
Little Carmine Lupertazzi
When the head of the Lupertazzi Family, Carmine, Sr., dies in Season 5 of the show it leads to the epic power struggle between his son, Little Carmine, and Johnny Sack. Little Carmine (Ray Abruzzo) isn’t the brightest bulb on the Christmas tree, but you have to respect his resourcefulness in gathering allies in the fight. He’s a lot like a like of sons of powerful men, he thinks is smarter than he really is.
A.J. Soprano
A.J. Soprano (Robert Iler) is hilarious. He’s maybe the most realistic teenager ever shown on TV. He’s grumpy, and dismissive, just an actual teenage boy. He’s lashes out, and gets in trouble a lot, probably a lot like his father did when he was AJ’s age.
Bobby Baccalieri
Hear us out here – the best part of Bobby Baccalieri, played by Blue Bloods cast member Steve Schirripa, is his love of toy trains. It’s the perfect encapsulation of why we love the character so much. He’s by far the quirkiest character on The Sopranos, but somehow that makes him even more realistic. You would never think a mob tough like Bobby would wear a little conductor hat and play with his model trains, but why wouldn’t they? Everyone needs a healthy hobby, even gangsters.
Phil Leotardo
Gangster movie veteran actor FRank Vincent joined The Sopranos in the fifth season and immediately made an impact with his character Phil Leotardo. Maybe it’s Vincet’s reputation, or maybe it was the character (or probably both) that made Leotardo so menacing, but it works. It’s his beef with Tony Blundetto (Steve Buscemi) that ignites a war between the Jersey family and the New York family.
Janice Soprano
Tony’s sister Janice Soprano (Aida Turturro) is a piece of work. She’s one of the more frustrating characters on the show in that she is completely unpredictable and that is exactly what makes the character so great. She’s maddening to Tony and to viewers alike with her quirky sometimes hippie, sometimes family-oriented behavior. You just never know what you are going to get with Janice.
Tony Blundetto
Steve Buscemi is always a great addition to any cast and The Sopranos is no exception. His character, Tony Blundetto, gets out of prison and returns home to join his cousin Tony Soprano’s crew. It provides a fantastic wrinkle to the dynamics of the crew, leading to temporary realignment, but one that doesn’t last long, nor does Tony Blundetto, really.
Jackie Aprile, Jr.
Like Little Carmine, Jackie, Jr. just doesn’t have what it takes to take over for his father. Though much younger than Carmine, it was clear he was always going to be a screwup. He’s a fantastic character, though, as his death adds a completely new dimension to Meadow, who he was dating at the time.
Agent Harris
Agent Dwight Harris, played by Matt Servitto is perfect as an FBI agent who is charged with bringing down organized crime in New Jersey. He works hard at his job, but he’s realistic in his chances of nabbing Tony. He has a good rapporte with Tony, which makes him less of the enemy and more of a nuisance.
Patsy Parisi
Patsy Parisi (Dan Grimaldi) looks like a mild-mannered, almost bookish guy. But looks can be deceiving, because even though he is in charge of a lot of the family’s accounting, he has a darker side. His loyalty is always in question, as his twin brother was murdered under mysterious circumstances (to Patsy at least) and he never seems to trust Tony.
Herman “Hesh” Rabkin
Herman “Hesh” Rabkin isn’t in the Family, as he’s not Italian, but he is a longtime, trusted associate of the family who has earned a lot of money for the family and for himself over the years. He’s not afraid to get dirty, but he’s a master at keeping things civil.
Giovanni “Johnny Boy” Soprano
Tony’s father, Johnny Boy Soprano, is the ultimate mob enforcer and earner. With the help of his brother, Uncle Junior, the two rise to near the top of the DiMeo crime family, dying before Tony takes over. The role, played by Joseph Siravo in The Sopranos) and Jon Bernthal in the prequel movie The Many Saints of Newark, is more fully expanded in the latter, as he’s only seen in a few flashbacks in the original show.
Rosaline Aprile
Jackie Aprile’s widow (and mother to Jackie, Jr) is one of Carmela’s best friends and in many ways the ultimate “Jersey girl.” She deals with the death of her husband well, though it clearly shatters her. Still, she is tough as nails and not afraid to mix it up to make sure she gets what she deserves.
Eugene Pontecorvo
Eugene Pontecorvo is a tragic character, and one of the more realistic ones as time goes on. He’s an enforcer at first, eventually rising to capo, but his struggle to deal with his personal and professional lives eventually leads him to start informing on the family. This, and other stresses in his life eventually leads to him dying by suicide in a very sad moment.
Charmaine Bucco
Artie’s wife, Charmaine Bucco, is one of the best minor characters on the show. Her patience with Artie is always right at the boiling point, and it’s easy to understand why. She wants so much for Artie and works her tail off to help him, but Artie just can’t get things right no matter how much she tries to help. She is also quick to fly off the handle, and even though she’s been friends with Tony and Carm for as long as Artie has, she smartly never trusts them.
Carlo Gervasi
In the controversial finale of The Sopranos, it’s revealed that Carlo Gervasi has been working with the Feds after cutting a deal to keep his son out of prison. The show ends before Tony has a chance to do anything about the famous “cut to black” and some have suggested Carlo may have played a part in the…uh… well… whatever it was that happened to Tony.
Salvatore Bonpensiero
Early on in the show, one of the most popular cast members on The Sopranos is Salvatore Bonpensiero. His nickname, which is NSFW may have played a part in that popularity, but he was also one of Tony’s top guys. That is until he becomes the first traitor on the show when he ends up working for the Feds. Something that eventually gets him killed by the rest of the family.
