Bust Out
| "Bust Out" | |||
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| The Sopranos episode | |||
| Episode no. | Season 2 Episode 10 |
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| Directed by | John Patterson | ||
| Written by | Frank Renzulli, Robin Green and Mitchell Burgess | ||
| Production code | 210 | ||
| Original air date | March 19, 2000 | ||
| Guest stars | |||
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| Episode chronology | |||
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| Episode chronology | |||
"Bust Out" is the twenty-third episode of the HBO original series The Sopranos and the tenth of the show's second season. It was written by Frank Renzulli, Robin Green and Mitchell Burgess, directed by John Patterson and originally aired on Sunday March 19, 2000.
Contents |
[edit] Starring
- James Gandolfini as Tony Soprano
- Lorraine Bracco as Dr. Jennifer Melfi
- Edie Falco as Carmela Soprano
- Michael Imperioli as Christopher Moltisanti*
- Dominic Chianese as Corrado Soprano, Jr.
- Vincent Pastore as Pussy Bonpensiero
- Steven Van Zandt as Silvio Dante*
- Tony Sirico as Paulie Gualtieri
- Robert Iler as Anthony Soprano, Jr.
- Jamie-Lynn Sigler as Meadow Soprano
- Drea de Matteo as Adriana La Cerva*
- David Proval as Richie Aprile
- Aida Turturro as Janice Soprano
- and Nancy Marchand as Livia Soprano
- * = credited only
[edit] Guest Starring
[edit] Also Guest Starring
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[edit] Episode recap
It's now May, and the police locate an eyewitness to the Bevilaqua killing who identifies Tony Soprano from a book of suspect photos. He didn't get a good look at Pussy, but describes the second man as "a husky accomplice". Tony is panicked when word of the case reaches him, and he makes plans to flee until the witness can be identified and dealt with. He gives a sports bag full of cash to his lawyer, Neil Mink, to provide for his family. Luckily for Tony, the witness realizes (via a newspaper article) that the murder relates to the Mafia, and is not a drug-related dispute as the detectives had let him believe, and he urgently contacts the police department to retract his statement.
Tony and Richie Aprile squeeze money out of David Scatino's store, ordering Ramlösa bottled water, coolers, airline tickets, and sneakers on the store's credit and selling the merchandise on the street. They inform Davey the squeeze will continue unless he is able to pay the money he owes them. Davey is distraught over his situation and at one point, he lies on a pool table in his basement while pointing a pistol into his mouth. When his wife enters the room he hides the weapon in the ceiling tiles and claims to be fixing a light. Later, his wife and Carmela Soprano have lunch at Nuovo Vesuvio and she expresses concern about Davey's gambling, mentioning that the sporting goods store is in her name. Artie Bucco serves them the mineral water that Tony had Davey order, mentioning that he got a great deal on the price.
Unhappy with the cut he is getting from Davey's store and the deal he has with Barone Sanitation, Richie discusses with Junior Soprano the possibility of getting rid of Tony. When Junior admonishes him, Richie reminds him of Junior's plan to kill Tony the previous year.
After imploring Tony to stop cheating on her in the previous episode, Carmela is attracted to a new handyman, Victor Musto. Musto is the brother of Davey's wife, who is also a widower. He and Carmela share a passionate kiss, and then realize the futility of the situation. However, when he calls her, she invites him over for a "discussion" and gourmet meal, which she prepares herself. In the meantime, he learns of Tony's involvement with his brother-in-law (Davey) and sends an assistant to meet her instead of arriving himself.
Tony tries to get closer to A.J. and Meadow, but does not succeed until Tony takes A.J. on his boat at the end of the episode, where they crank the boat up to full power and capsize two men in a canoe.
[edit] Title reference
- A "bust out" is a common tactic in the organized crime world, wherein a business' assets and lines of credit are exploited and exhausted to the point of bankruptcy. Richie and Tony profit from busting out Davey Scatino's sporting goods store in this episode.
[edit] Connections to future episodes
- When asked by Davey why Tony let him get into debt, Tony replies that he knew Davey had the store and other assets he could take, and instinctively saw an opportunity for profit. In a similar situation with Artie in season four, Tony reacts angrily when Artie accuses him of that line of thinking.
- Junior's warnings to Richie of Janice's dishonesty foreshadow Richie's eventual murder by Janice.
[edit] Music
- The piano instrumental playing at Nuovo Vesuvio during lunch with Carmela and Christine Scatino is "Cast Your Fate to the Wind".
- The song "Con te partirò" by Andrea Bocelli appears for the third time this season, played as Carmela thinks about and receives a phone call from the handyman. This song was especially prominent in "Commendatori", playing (among other places) when Carmela and her friends discussed hoping to be free of their husbands.
- The music playing during the scene wherein the witness realizes the murder victim was a Mafia associate is the second movement from Anton Webern's Variations for Piano, Op. 27.
- When Carmela is preparing the food for her lunch with Vic Musto, "You're Still the One" by Shania Twain is playing in the background.
- The song played over the end credits is "Wheel in the Sky" by Journey; this song was also heard in the scene wherein painters were painting the Sopranos' living room. Another Journey song, "Don't Stop Believin'," would be featured in the series finale.
[edit] Trivia
- The witness reads Anarchy, State and Utopia by Robert Nozick in the scene where he realizes that the murder he has witnessed is a mafia hit.
- Carmela reads Memoirs of a Geisha by Arthur Golden in bed.
- Many items from the bust out appear throughout the episode, especially the water (at Artie's restaurant and Uncle Junior's house) and the red coolers (Carmela offers one, ironically, to Davey's brother-in-law, Vic Musto). The airline tickets would cause Tony problems later on, as he gives a pair to his mother, only to have her and her sister detained at the airport for attempting to use the stolen tickets.
- The "Easy Does it" sign along the stairwell of Davey's basement is popular among twelve-step programs, such as Alcoholics Anonymous, Narcotics Anonymous and, in Davey's case, Gamblers Anonymous.
- The soap opera Uncle Junior was watching was CBS's The Bold and the Beautiful.
