Read this: The Sopranos' Joseph R. Gannascoli reflects on Vito's "Johnny Cakes" storyline

When it originally aired in 2006, the first half of The Sopranos’ sixth and final season was polarizing for several reasons: the overall length, an even heavier reliance on dream sequences than usual, and a storyline where the entire DiMeo crime family finds out that caporegime Vito Spatafore (played by Joseph R. Gannascoli) is gay. He flees to a quaint town in New Hampshire, falls in love with a man he affectionately nicknames “Johnny Cakes,” and eventually tries to return to his old lifestyle, only to be killed for his sexuality.
In a new oral history about the storyline in MEL Magazine, Gannascoli unpacks the story’s origin alongside assorted Sopranos writers and queer cultural critics. Together, they help examine the multidimensionality Vito brought to a show that often commented on repression and toxic masculinity. It also discusses what the show could have done better and what the legacy of the Vito story looks like in 2020.
One particularly illuminating section comes from adult film star and queer culture writer Ty Mitchell: