The Sopranos (The Sopranos episode) The Sopranos (The Sopranos episode) "The Sopranos", also known as "Pilot", is the first episode of the HBO television drama series, "The Sopranos", which premiered on January 10, 1999. It was written and directed by the series creator and executive producer David Chase. New Jersey mobster Tony Soprano passes out while barbecuing. Tony's collapse is diagnosed as a panic attack, leading to his referral to psychiatrist Jennifer Melfi. Tony is initially uncooperative, but soon tells Dr. Melfi a story about a family of ducks which nested in his swimming pool. He goes over tensions between Carmela and Meadow over a
Walk Like a Man (The Sopranos) Tony and Carmela disagree about how to help A.J. They each try to have encouraging and consoling talks with him, but to no avail. In a psychotherapy session with Dr. Melfi, Tony tells her he has been once again seriously contemplating quitting therapy for good, but the situation with A.J.'s behavior has stopped his plans. Tony gets teary as he tells Melfi he blames himself for what he believes is a hereditary condition of depression in his family he passed over to his son. For lack of better options, Tony and Carmela assign A.J. to a therapist who prescribes an