20 Most Important TV Deaths This Decade

13. Christopher Moltisanti - The Sopranos (Season 6, Episode 18)

The body count sure began to stack up in the final episodes of The Sopranos, and one of the most important was Tony Soprano's murder of Chris following a brutal car accident. Prior to the crash, it is clear to both Tony and viewers that Chris is high on drugs, something that has been a frequent problem for Chris since the assassination of fiancee Adriana. Chris eventually crashes the car due to his poor motor skills and, unlike Tony, suffers severe injuries due to not wearing a seatbelt. As the pair try to decide what to do, Tony realises that the child seat in Chris' car, used for his daughter Caitlin, had been destroyed in the crash. After going to call 911, Tony instead closes his phone and decides that Chris is simply too much of a danger to others, especially his family, and suffocates him. Tony then calls an ambulance to cover it up. This death had been foreshadowed frequently throughout the final season of the show, particularly during Caitlin's baptism several episodes earlier. What makes it so compelling is Tony's reaction post-death: he is relieved that such a burden has been removed from his life, and given how long viewers had watched Chris' impulsive and childish behaviour, it was difficult to blame him or even feel mad at his decision to kill him.