Hi,
Richie was the best villain of season 2. David Proval played him to perfection. I read that David auditioned for the role of Tony but was turned down because he looked too much like a mobster. Richie really knew how to get under Tony's skin. He was also very funny at times. Look at what he did to poor Beansie. When Tony says to him, "I told you to back off of Beansie," Richie replies by saying sarcastically, "I did. Then I went foward again."

Paul

I totally agree Paul he was awesome I wish they wouldn't have killed him off. He was one of the best actors and he played his part so good.

I think Ralphie is a better villain. With Richie, you knew he was going to get whacked because he was such a jerk. With Ralphie, he is getting away with being a jerk because he makes so much money for them. Richie was expendable, Ralphie isn't.

Also, Ralphie has enough residual charm to make him more palatable, rather than Richie, where you just wonder why they didn't kill him earlier.

Don't get me wrong, Richie was a great character and was portrayed greatly. But you knew he was going to die because he had no positives, only negatives.

Ralphie, it seems they are trying to make his character more human this season. He broke up with one woman, only to get dumped by another, leading to some sympathy for him.

He was definately a good actor in playing Richie but i was itching for him to get whacked, What pisses Tony off pisses me off

i wasnt ready for him to yet either....

Hi,
Ralphie was toned down by the writers to make him more human. Many of season 3s critics also believed Ralphie would have been whacked out at the end of season 3. They toned down the character and as a result Ralphie was given a pass. IMHO they should have left his character alone. He was funny as hell at the start of season 3. His Gladiator quotes were history making especially when he knocked the guy's eye out.

Paul

Richie was definitely THE best new character of that season. Proval was el-supremo.
Ironically: Proval, in much pudgier trim, played Tony, a mild-mannered bar owner and cohort of DeNiro and Keitel in "Mean Streets." His character was totally different than Richie's. Also in "Mean Streets": Richard Romanus, who plays Melfi's ex-husband, was a loanshark.

when i first saw richie aprile, i know he looked so familiar. but i couldnt think of another movie...
but then i realized, AL PACINO! he has the a very strong resemblence of pacino (especially from the end of gf1 and all of gf2!)

David Proval did an exellent job,playing Richie.The guy really got under Tony's skin.I couln't stand the guy,but in his own way,he still had some manners.Ralph Cifaretto instead,was a disrespectful jerk,the way he talked to Spatafore,at the hospital,when his brother was in a coma,or how he talked to Gigi,after he was made capo,was enough reason to shoot him right away

Check out "Nunzio", one of Proval's first movies. He plays a slow-witted delivery boy who believes he's a superhero and its a gem of a movie. I saw it in the theater when it came out (probably 25 years) and haven't been able to find it anywhere since.

Yeah,i know the movie.Saw it years ago,and wouldn't mind seeing it again,cool movie.

I agree Richie was a great villian, my brother likes season 2 best solely for Richie. Between Ralphie and Richie, its a tough decision. At least with Season 3 they didn't kill off Ralphie which may have been repiticious and predictable if they have done so. Their just different, Ralphie brough some money and humor, while Richie brough some toughness and gangster like talk and behavior. As far as villians go I think I prefer Richie cause he was more gangster like and level headed, he never really did anything monumentally stupid till the end with Tony, plus Ralphie and the drug use was a big no, I don't know it was a tough call. One thing for sure is I hated to see them both go when they did.

I agree with most of these posts on the grounds that the guy who played Richie Aprile did an excellent job at the role. Plus, he could easily pass as a mafioso.

However, Richie's character was a jerkoff motherf*cker. If he would have got a pass into season three, I would have been pissed off. Richie Aprile definitely played a good asshole. That's why he was such a good match for Janice Soprano.

Yeah thats true, Richie didn't deserve a pass, unless it didnt come to him wanting to kill Tony cause he was screaming poverty. It would have been difficult to find conflict aside from Richie vrs. Tony in that season, which is probably why they did it.