But even when you take the Mafia out of the equation, the Italian seasonings of ”The Sopranos” are utterly irresistible, beginning with the ethnic pride and underdog scrappiness these characters still carry with them on their hejira to upper-middle-class respectability.

hejira (n) : the flight of Mohammed from Mecca, September 13, a. d. 622 (subsequently established as the first year of the Moslem era); hence, any flight or exodus regarded as like that of Mohammed [syn: exodus, hegira] – source: We are family