• by Wayne Friedman , Staff Writer, June 12, 2007

You find yourself in a TV show. Just rolling along. Tension building. Expectations high. Then everything turns black.

You think, “Oh! I’ve been hit!”  But no shots ring out. Then you realize you’ve seen the last “Sopranos” episode ever. And it’s just enough to make you crazy -- not because Tony didn’t get whacked, or turn state’s evidence, or go on one massive gun-wielding rampage.

It makes you crazy because -- like the TV addict you are -- you are ready to give another HBO show a chance to become “the” TV show.

One wonders whether other TV producers will get the wide-open TV series building opportunities “Sopranos” creator David Chase had at his disposal (as well as what Alan Ball had with “Six Feet Under” and others) to get to a show of that production level.

The mystery stays inside HBO for viewers. The network always lets the TV show do the talking, with very little extra marketing finesse -- apart from the Harvey Weinstein approach of letting critics spread the good buzz of your always quality TV, and of your major awards. 

Can HBO count on the same tricks of the trade for new series such as “John From Cincinnati,” which got, at best, mixed reviews?

The question isn’t what happens to Tony Soprano in that diner -- but how long do we have to wait for the next “Sopranos” (called one of the best pieces of entertainment in modern TV history) to find its way to TV screens? 

Love it or hate it, that black screen ending is just what HBO needed: an empty drawing board to redesign, restart HBO’s programming and marketing juices. 

Going black wasn’t intended by David Chase to piss anyone off. He said he did it because he thought it was the right approach for the characters and the story. His was a singular vision with little, if any, HBO executive programming interference.

You want original TV programming ideas in cable -- or anywhere else?  Go black. Then try to find the light.