But I'll try. Because a show as remarkable and history-making as this deserves an appropriate swan song.

As it winds down a six-season run, which concludes with nine episodes beginning Sunday at 10 p.m. on HBO, I've found myself wallowing through the stages of grief.

Finally, after bouts of denial, anger, bargaining with HBO, and depression, I've come to accept the end is near.

And after seeing the first two episodes of the last half of the sixth season, I'm happy to report that the beginning of the end is a glorious return to core "Sopranos" territory.

The first episode Sunday involves Tony (James Gandolfini) and his wife, Carmela (Edie Falco), going to a summer cabin with Tony's sister Janice (Aida Turturro) and her husband, Bobby (Steve Schirripa).

But of course with a dysfunctional family like the Sopranos, it's not going to be a weeklong picnic.

From the beginning, tension taints the air inside the cabin, and ultimately a fight erupts that could have long-term repercussions.

It's hard to say more than that without spoiling surprises, but this riveting episode brings back the frayed emotions of some of the best episodes of the past.

The second episode is not as nervy, but the rift between the New Jersey and New York crews intensifies as one of the main bosses dies.

It's impossible to determine how the show will end based on the first two episodes. But so far the signs look good.

After a disappointing start, this season was shaping up as one of the series' least successful. The first half, which ran last summer, seemed to meander as one storyline - like the tale of a gay mobster's attempt to escape Tony's crew - moved in and out without being connected to the overall arc. Let's hope the last half is more cohesive.

It would be difficult for writers to wrap things up on one of television's most celebrated and complicated series without starting early to lay down the framework. You could never end the series in just the last few episodes. Ideally, with nine episodes left, creator David Chase can take the time to lead us through an overall storyline that will punch us in the gut in the finale.

For most of six years, the cast and crew of "The Sopranos" have created the most fascinating character studies in television history. There's no reason they can't bring it home in style the same way it debuted in 1999.

"Sopranos" mania: The most fun I've had in a while putting something together for the newspaper is on display in the PDF link on this page (click on Tony). There you will find a full-page graphic of "Sopranos" food for thought.

I got to sit down with friends and hammer out a list of the top 10 "Sopranos" episodes to ever air. I had a minor coronary when my editors told me I had to pare the list down to the top five due to space constraints.

I could have made a list of top 20 if they let me.

Also on the page you'll see some of my favorite quotes from what has to be one of the most quotable shows on television.

And there also is a list of ways I think the show could end. No matter how it does, when that final scene fades to black, it's going to be a sad moment in televisionland indeed.

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* VINCE HORIUCHI'S column appears Mondays and Fridays. He can be reached at vince@sltrib.com or 801-257-8607. For more television insights, visit Horiuchi's blog, "The Village Vidiot," at blogs.sltrib.com/tv/ and catch his PopCast podcast every Tuesday at sltrib.com/entertainment.