I think the series does expose them very skillfully to be reviled and mocked by the audience. Their moral bankruptcy and banality is on full display. It has traditionally been a very secretive organization that enforced secrecy with fear, threats, extortion, and pure evil. To see it laid bare was very cathartic. Only a fool would look at these men and women as role models.
What I have found praiseworthy is the honesty of bursting the balloon of mystique around prior generations of mob bosses and bullies, their absurdity revealed, the great cinematic artistry and exceptional scriptwriting of the series, and the extraordinary juxtaposition of this 19th-century secret society with the tawdry pop culture of the late 20th century—such as a mob boss having anxiety attacks and going to a psychiatrist instead of seeking a priest he could manipulate and making a confession and a big donation, like his forebearers in the organization.
Purely as drama and tragicomedy, it was extremely well done. I am a person who has read most of Shakespeare, and I found The Sopranos very compelling, and very entertaining.
Nice Take,
Thanks.
I agree with Big Red Badger.
Your take roughly mirrors my own.
I would say that “The Godfather” glamorized the mob, but movies like “Goodfellas” and this series removed that glamour by exposing them to the light of day.