The Sopranos season 2

The second season of the American crime drama series The Sopranos aired on HBO from January 16 to April 9, 2000. The second season was released on DVD in region 1 on November 6, 2001.

The story of the season focuses on Tony's growing mistrust of one of his closest friends Big Pussy Bonpensiero, who is revealed to be an FBI informant. Dr. Melfi continues meeting with Tony despite her growing disgust with his actions and contemplates the nature of their relationship. Tony's sister Janice also returns to New Jersey, and their collectively strained relationship with their mother Livia and each other continues.

Meadow is accepted into college, but her personal life intersects with Tony's crime life for the first time. Uncle Junior gets sent to prison again for his crimes. Tony introduces his new enforcer straight from Italy, Furio. Former boss Jackie Aprile's brother Richie is released from prison and causes trouble for Tony and his business.

Cast

 * James Gandolfini as Tony Soprano (13 episodes), the underboss of the DiMeo crime family who struggles with keeping his men and family in line.
 * Lorraine Bracco as Jennifer Melfi (11 episodes), Tony's former therapist, who is unsure if she wants to take him back.
 * Edie Falco as Carmela Soprano (13 episodes), Tony's wife, who begins questioning their relationship.
 * Michael Imperioli as Christopher Moltisanti (12 episodes), Tony's cousin by marriage, who is interested in screenwriting.
 * Dominic Chianese as Corrado "Junior" Soprano, Jr. (11 episodes), Tony's uncle and the boss in name of the family, struggling under house arrest.
 * Vincent Pastore as Sal "Big Pussy" Bonpensiero (12 episodes), Tony's best friend and a DiMeo soldier who struggles with his loyalty.
 * Steven Van Zandt as Silvio Dante (11 episodes), the family's loyal consigliere.
 * Tony Sirico as Paul "Paulie Walnuts" Gualtieri (11 episodes), a short-tempered capo.
 * Robert Iler as Anthony Soprano, Jr. (10 episodes), Tony's son.
 * Jamie-Lynn Sigler as Meadow Soprano (11 episodes), Tony's daughter, who is looking into colleges.
 * Drea de Matteo as Adriana La Cerva (9 episodes), Chris's girlfriend.
 * David Proval as Richie Aprile (9 episodes), the late Jackie Aprile's older brother, who quickly falls back into his old ways after being released from prison.
 * Aida Turturro as Janice Soprano (12 episodes), Tony's dramatic sister, who comes to town to live with their mother.
 * Nancy Marchand as Livia Soprano (9 episodes), Tony's petulant mother, who he is no longer on speaking terms with.

Recurring cast
• Louis Lombardi as Skip Lipari (8 episodes), an FBI agent tasked with handling a member of the DiMeo family.

• Federico Castelluccio as Furio Giunta (8 episodes), a violent Naples-based soldier.

• Lillo Brancato, Jr. as Matthew Bevilaqua (6 episodes), Chris's dim-witted subordinate looking to get recognition.

• Steven R. Schirripa as Bobby Baccalieri (6 episodes), Junior's kind-hearted aide.

• Jerry Adler as Herman "Hesh" Rabkin (5 episodes), Tony's Jewish associate.

• Chris Tardio as Sean Gismonte (4 episodes), Matthew's equally dim-witted friend.

• Peter Bogdanovich as Dr. Elliot Kupferberg (4 episodes), Melfi's therapist, who tries to get her to analyze her relationship with Tony.

• John Ventimiglia as Artie Bucco (4 episodes), Tony's non-mob friend who runs a restaurant.

• Toni Kalem as Angie Bonpensiero (4 episodes), Pussy's wife, with whom his relationship is strained.

• Vincent Curatola as Johnny Sack (3 episodes), the underboss of the Lupertazzi family.

• Oksana Lada as Irina Peltsin (3 episodes), Tony's Russian comare, whose relationship with him is fraying.

• Tom Aldredge as Hugo "Hugh" DeAngelis (3 episodes), Carmela's father.

• Suzanne Shepherd as Mary Pellegrino DeAngelis (3 episodes), Carmela's mother.

• Robert Patrick as David Scatino (3 episodes), Tony's non-mob friend, who has a gambling problem.

• Sharon Angela as Rosalie Aprile (3 episodes), Carmela's best friend.

• Nicole Burdette as Barbara Soprano Giglione (2 episodes), Tony's estranged sister.

• Joseph R. Gannascoli as Vito Spatafore (2 episodes), a soldier in Richie's crew.

• Dan Grimaldi as Phillip "Philly Spoons" Parisi (2 episodes), a capo who causes trouble for Tony.

• Sofia Milos as Annalisa Zucca (2 episodes), the acting boss of a Naples-based crime family.

• Frank Pellegrino as Frank Cubitoso (2 episodes), the FBI agent in charge of the investigation into the DiMeo family.

Critical response
The second season of The Sopranos received universal acclaim from critics—garnering a 97 out of 100 on Metacritic, and a 94% approval rating on Rotten Tomatoes with an average score of 9.5/10. The latter aggregator reports a critical consensus of "The Sopranos' strong cast and solid writing add depth to the show's occasionally unlikable characters and their repellent deeds, making for thought-provoking, consistently compelling viewing." Ed Bark of Dallas Morning News wrote, "[It] could be the best TV series of our times. Not for everyone, no. But for what it is, The Sopranos is near magical."

Steve Johnson of the Chicago Tribune praised the series for accurately portraying human communication, observing how the show reveals "matters of the greatest consequence stem from misunderstandings and misinterpretations." Eric Mink of The New York Times wrote of the show's unique writing and multifaceted characters: "The Sopranos remains a showcase for ferociously distinctive writing, inventive direction and brilliant portrayals of surprisingly, even disturbingly, sympathetic multilayered characters by a perfectly cast group of actors who hold back nothing."