The Knight in White Satin Armor (2 Apr. 2000)

Richie and Janice get engaged, but Richie's violent temper finally takes him too far. Tony, meanwhile, breaks up with Irina, much to her dismay.

Director:

Allen Coulter

Writers:

David Chase (creator), Robin Green,

Stars:

James Gandolfini, Lorraine Bracco, Edie Falco

Cast

Episode cast overview, first billed only:
James Gandolfini	...	Tony Soprano
Lorraine Bracco	...	Dr. Jennifer Melfi
Edie Falco	...	Carmela Soprano
Michael Imperioli	...	Christopher Moltisanti
Dominic Chianese	...	Junior Soprano
Vincent Pastore	...	Salvatore 'Big Pussy' Bonpensiero
Steven Van Zandt	...	Silvio Dante
Tony Sirico	...	Paulie 'Walnuts' Gualtieri (credit only)
Robert Iler	...	A.J. Soprano (credit only)
Jamie-Lynn Sigler	...	Meadow Soprano
Drea de Matteo	...	Adriana La Cerva
David Proval	...	Richie Aprile
Aida Turturro	...	Janice Soprano
Federico Castelluccio	...	Furio Giunta
Nancy Marchand	...	Livia Soprano

Storyline

Richie Aprile continues to be a major problem for Tony and now for Uncle Junior as well. Richie knows Junior can't be too happy with the current situation either and pesters him for permission to get rid of his nephew. Junior agrees but quickly realizes that Richie will be a bigger pain than Tony and promptly tells him what Richie has planned. Janice is busy planning her wedding but when an argument erupts at home and Richie hits her, she shows him just what she's prepared to put up with. Tony meanwhile tries to end his relationship with Irina, his Russian girlfriend, but she then tries to make good on her threat to commit suicide if he leaves her.

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Plot Keywords:

gangster

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Genres:

Crime | Drama

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Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

2 April 2000 (USA)

Filming Locations:

Silvercup Studios - 4222 22nd Street, Long Island City, Queens, New York City, New York, USA

Company Credits

Production Co:

Brad Grey Television, Chase Films

Technical Specs

Color:

Color

Did You Know?

Goofs

After Richie punches Janice and sits down at the table, we see the back of the wine bottle and basket with the bread is horizontal on the table, then the frame is showing Janice, then its back to Richie, we now see the bottle's label and the basket is vertical on the table, then Janice walks away, we see Richie eating, and the we see the back of the wine bottle again, Richie grabs the wine bottle to pour some wine, a 2 seconds later we see Janice pointing the gun at Richie and his glass is full of wine.

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Quotes

["Big Pussy" calls FBI Skip Lipari]
Skip Lipari: Lipari.
Salvatore 'Big Pussy' Bonpensiero: This is Fat Man.
Skip Lipari: Who?
Salvatore 'Big Pussy' Bonpensiero: You know...
Skip Lipari: Sal?
Salvatore 'Big Pussy' Bonpensiero: I just heard about they're gonna jack a load of these "Pokieman" cards. Moltisanti and another individual.

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Connections

References The Usual Suspects (1995)

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Soundtracks

"I Saved the World Today"
Written by Annie Lennox and David A. Stewart
Performed by Eurythmics

User Reviews

Bye bye, Richie...

After the relative calm of House Arrest, violence bursts in all its glory in the two-part season finale, of which The Knight in White Satin Armor constitutes the first half.

The screenplay focuses on two conflicting images: one couple forming, the other disrupting. In the left corner we have Richie Aprile (David Proval) and Janice Soprano (Aida Turturro), soon to be married despite general consensus nothing good can derive from their union (even Janice has her doubts, especially when it comes to Richie's bizarre sexual habits); in the right corner we have Tony and his Russian mistress Irina who, after learning the fat mobster is dumping her for good, threatens to kill herself and aims to keep that promise in a desperate attempt to win her man back. Death is also on the line in another context, as Richie keeps pressuring Junior to allow a new hit on Tony. However, it will ultimately be Richie himself who gets in trouble because of his extreme behavior, though not at the hands of who you might expect.

Apart from the opposite views on couples, Episode 12 of the second season deals prominently with the theme of trust, a fact underlined by Tony's comments when Junior tells him he was just pretending to be Richie's ally. In the world of organized crime, allegiances are in short supply, and the brief but very tense encounter between uncle and nephew anticipates the imminent closure of the subplot concerning Pussy's dubious activities.

But most of all, this show marks two departures: those of Proval and Turturro. Okay, so the latter returns in Season 3, Episode 2, but seeing her leave New Jersey to sort things out is a gripping moment. As for Proval, well, it was obvious he wouldn't last long (although James Gandolfini wanted Richie to live for at least another season), and it's equally evident the writers have the power to clip any character they please, but hey, he remains one of the serial's most charismatic presences. Oh, and his exit is just like his entrance: unforeseen, unstoppable and arbitrarily bloody. Magnificent.