RALPHIE GETS THE RALPHIE TREATMENT: "Sopranos" fans who have bitched all season long about the lack of violence and "whackings" of major characters finally got their wish when the character of Ralphie Cifaretto (Joe Pantoliano) was rubbed out on tonight's episode. And even though Ralphie has been at the top of every "who's gonna get whacked" poll since he joined the show at the beginning of last season, his death still came across as a surprise.
What I noticed is that Pantoliano really must've done something to piss off the writing staff, 'cause they've really put him through a series of humiliations this year: first he begins an affair with Tony's unsightly sister Janice, then we find out about his bizarre sexual proclivities (which don't need to be repeated here), then he loses his mistress (Leslie Bega) to Tony, then he gets killed, and then his toupee gets pulled off his corpse. It was a surprise that the teaser for next week didn't include a scene of Tony's whole crew pissing on Ralph's severed head.