Episode ten, season four of The Sopranos, “The Strong, Silent Type," centers around Christopher —

Tony's nephew and second in command in his mafia family —

and his drug addiction. As such, this is arguably the tensest The Sopranos episode I have seen yet. With strong metaphors and an engaging focus, this Sopranos episode highlights growing tensions among several characters as well as Tony's powerful position as a “strong, silent type" within his business, his family, and specifically, in Christopher's life.

Christopher is deep in his heroin addiction at this point in the series, to an end that it has deeply affected his relationships, his ability to function as a captain in the mafia and his self-worth. In this episode, this significant issue in Christopher's life comes full circle as it affects everyone in his life in one way or another.

The most obvious symbolism in this episode deals with animals, and characters' inclinations to sympathize with animals in a way that is arguably stronger than for humans. With the death of Tony's favorite gambling horse so recent and strong in his psyche, the concentration on animals and Tony's deep sympathy for them is emphasized. This theme ties to Christopher's heroin addiction

Secondly, envy is emphasized continuously in this episode. First, this can be seen with tension between Furio and Carmella increasing as their lust for each other grows. In addition, with tension between Tony and Paulie growing in a similar sense, Paulie's jealousy of Tony's power increases as he demonstrates his conflicting emotions surrounding the painting of Tony and the horse.

In Christopher's intervention scene, the audience observes how Christopher's rash decisions affect several of the series central characters in one form or another. In this scene, Tony's strong, silent personality takes control of the situation as he uses his authority over Christopher as the mafia boss and father-type figure in his life to knock some sense into his nephew. Tony's strength is additionally emphasized in this episode as he concludes his therapy with Dr. Melfi and asserts his masculinity in an affair with Junior's Russian caretaker.

With Christopher's drug addiction increasingly taking control of his life, his relationship with Adriana stands as the central point of interest in this episode. But again, with other tense relationships emphasized as well, the audience can see how conflicts between different characters demonstrate an overall tense energy within the show. These current affairs will make for quite an interesting season finale.