The Only Sopranos Character To Appear In Every Episode

The godfather of modern prestige television, HBO's "The Sopranos" is widely regarded as one of the greatest TV shows ever made. The series — which ran for six seasons through the late 90s and early 2000s — followed Tony Soprano's (James Gandolfini) efforts to balance his goals as a ruthless Mafia captain and his desires to be a good husband and father. Sure, there are some questionable aspects of the show that we ignore, but it still posited questions about masculinity, violence, aging, and family that are still challenging to this day.

Though "The Sopranos" was well known for its recurring guests — like Sal Bonpensiero (Vincent Pastore), Ralph Cifaretto (Joe Pantoliano), and Anthony "Tony B." Blundetto (Steve Buscemi) — the show was made undeniably famous by its core ensemble cast, which featured the talents of Gandolfini, Edie Falco, Lorraine Bracco, and Michael Imperioli. Even though every episode featured several familiar faces and would further their individual complex storylines over time, only one character actually appeared on-screen in every single episode of "The Sopranos."

Go ahead, I'll let you take a wild guess who it is.

During the show's 86-episode run, James Gandolfini's Tony Soprano is the only character to appear in each and every installment of "The Sopranos" (per IMDb). This might be somewhat surprising as the show featured an ensemble cast of characters, but even the most important supporting cast members were absent for an episode or two.

For example, Michael Imperioli (who played youthful wise guy and wannabe Hollywood star Christopher Moltisanti) had fewer appearances than Gandolfini, even if you count his credit-only appearances after his character's death in Season 6. His first absence is in the Season 2 episode "Bust Out," which focuses almost entirely on the fallout of David Scantino's (Robert Patrick) fateful poker game with Tony's associates.

Just behind Tony at 85 total appearances is Edie Falco's Carmela Soprano. The only episode which does not feature her character in any way is Season 5, Episode 3, "Where's Johnny?" The episode is mainly concerned with Tony's Mafia life, as tensions between the DiMeos and the Lupertazzis reach a peak. Interestingly enough, Lorraine Bracco's Dr. Jennifer Melfi is relatively far down the list, with only 71 appearances. No other character apart from Tony, Carmela, and Christopher appears in 80 or more episodes — though Steven Van Zandt's Silvio Dante comes closest, with 79 total appearances.