Rewatching this season, 20 years later, I'm reminded by the way things work out with Sal, Paulie and Feetch, which shows us that the wise guys are total scum. Feetch assaulted Sal, took his territory, leaving him disabled, and Paulie tells Sal that he will fix it for him for "a couple of percent" off the top of Sal's income from his business. Paulie then attacks Feech's nephews and tells Tony a lie at the sit-down to justify his attack on them.
Tony rules that Feech has to pay Sal a grand for his injury, and then gives Feech's nephews half of Sal's territory. Paulie, lying scumbag that he is, then tells Tony that Sal will cut Tony's lawn free. He then goes to Sal, and gives Sal $500, instead of the grand Feech gave him, and tells Sal that he's going to have to do a couple of lawns free.
Sal is then seen working on Johnny Sac's big 4 acre lawn, which should cost Johnny at least $600 a month. Johnny wasn't even in the deal, so it's just Paulie trying to score brownie points with Johnny at no cost to himself.
I wonder if other viewers thought that Paulie was clever, or funny, or both, but I see him as a parasite who deserves to be shot by one of his victims. The people in this series are almost all unlikable, amoral scum. What I take away from the stories of what these crooks do, is that none of them are worthy of any sympathy, other than the family members and other people who live alongside the "wise guys". Of course, though, Janice isn't some innocent victim in the stories, and she deserves to get whatever Tony, Paulie and the rest have coming.
Tony rules that Feech has to pay Sal a grand for his injury, and then gives Feech's nephews half of Sal's territory. Paulie, lying scumbag that he is, then tells Tony that Sal will cut Tony's lawn free. He then goes to Sal, and gives Sal $500, instead of the grand Feech gave him, and tells Sal that he's going to have to do a couple of lawns free.
Sal is then seen working on Johnny Sac's big 4 acre lawn, which should cost Johnny at least $600 a month. Johnny wasn't even in the deal, so it's just Paulie trying to score brownie points with Johnny at no cost to himself.
I wonder if other viewers thought that Paulie was clever, or funny, or both, but I see him as a parasite who deserves to be shot by one of his victims. The people in this series are almost all unlikable, amoral scum. What I take away from the stories of what these crooks do, is that none of them are worthy of any sympathy, other than the family members and other people who live alongside the "wise guys". Of course, though, Janice isn't some innocent victim in the stories, and she deserves to get whatever Tony, Paulie and the rest have coming.