I was just about to make this thread, and I'm surprised there's so little love for this great show on this site.

I like the sixth season but I have to say that it's not nearly as good as the first five. I like all of them, but I really don't think it lived up to it. I know people have been saying that all along, but that's how I really feel, and I think it's a shame that it ended this way with around 20+ episodes that sucked.

I read somewhere that after the fifth season, the head of HBO approached david chase and suggested that he end the series. Afterwards we had that long hiatus, and I think Chase basically wanted to ruin HBO while at the same time, sort of doing his series justice.

As far as the ending, I heard an interesting theory that it's the audience that gets wacked. The Sopranos goes on, but we won't be there to see it.