Warning: What follows may be deemed as controversial. Proceed with trepidation..

Look... I'm usually one to go with the flow, to fit the groove of my cultural demographic, to let things go and not make waves. However, there is one thing I need to speak up about -- it has to do with my identity and how I choose to live my life. I don't apologize for it in the least.

*deep breath*

The season premiere of The Sopranos is on tonight -- yet I really couldn't care less.

There. I said it. Not a popular opinion, I know. But I'm just not so enthralled by it, nor do I appreciate all the hype.

There are a couple of reasons behind this. Alias comes back with a new episode tonight on ABC, and I'm totally head over heels in love with Jennifer Garner. And the show in general. Not to mention we've had only one new episode in February. Also returning with a new episode is Arrested Development on FOX, possibly the most creative sitcom on TV for a while -- at least since Sports Night on ABC. That's on at 9:30 Eastern, Alias is an hour long starting at 9:00. So the TiVo's already doing double duty as it is. (For those of you wondering why I can't simply watch one show and tape two others -- it has to do with having to attend to a kid who usually sleeps through the night but may have the tendency to wake up unexpectedly.)

Network competition aside, I've watched the show and simply haven't gotten into it as I have with other HBO shows. I watched Sex And the City without fail -- a lot of this is due to my lovely wife following the show religiously -- yet I still found it cute, although over the top. Six Feet Under is an amazing show, and I can't wait for it to come back.

Wait: could it be that I don't like The Sopranos because it's too violent? Perhaps. However, I was an avid follower of Oz when it was on. How much more violent can you get than Oz? I even liked the Sicilians on that show, especially Pancamo played by Hell's Angel Chuck Zito.

The HBO comedy shows have been good. Larry Sanders: classic. Curb Your Enthusiasm: not my absolute favorite, but funny. There is no exception to this rule. (Except for Arli$$$ which really blew.)

So I was trying to determine what The Sopranos was lacking that Oz and Six Feet Under had to offer. The only thing I can think of: main characters who were involved in same-sex relationships. Sure, David and Keith had their ups and downs. Sure, Beecher and Keller had an unhealthy relationship which ended with Keller throwing himself off the second story of the prison. But they tackled these issues nonetheless.

The closest I've seen to this on The Sporanos was Tony incinuating that Berkeley had given us Nobel prize winners for "packing fudge," and that the Monsignor was "a fag" for not wanting to sleep with Carm.

Is this the magic ingredient missing in The Sopranos? Probably not -- since everyone else watches it. And everyone else will be talking about it tomorrow at work. Come to think of it, I'm interested in seeing How Steve Buscemi fits into the show. And I heard that Furio's coming back. And Dr. Melfi.

So maybe I'll see what the consensus is. If people start giving it rave reviews, maybe I'll start watching again. Just not on Sunday night. I guess I'm lucky that, with 12 HBO channels on digital cable, they show each episode about 15 times a week.

But tonight? I'll take Sydney Bristow kicking the crap out of yet another bad guy. And Jason Bateman fumbling all over himself to ask out Heather Graham.

See you in front of the tube!