`SOPRANOS' SINGS; `PJS' DOESN'T.

Byline: Keith Marder Daily News Television Critic

Tony Soprano is going through a midlife crisis.

His business isn't what it once was, he's straying from his wife, and he has been stricken by panic attacks.

What does Soprano do? He does what any self-respecting man of the '90s would do. He starts seeing a psychiatrist and taking Prozac.

The only problem is that Soprano is not your average yuppy suffering from chronic fatigue syndrome. He doesn't work for a family business, he works for the family business.

Soprano is a mob boss in New Jersey, and seeing a psychiatrist is a no-no.

Tony's Uncle Junior (Dominic Chianese) is fighting him for power, his mother, Livia (Nancy Marchand), is high maintenance, and his nephew Christopher Moltisanti (Michael Imperioli) is an overzealous loose cannon who often overlooks Cosa Nostra protocol.

And in the middle of all that, Tony is falling for his psychiatrist, Dr. Jennifer Melfi (Lorraine Bracco).

And so goes ``The Sopranos,'' HBO's newest series. It deftly mixes drama with comedy and should do for the hourlong form what ``The Larry Sanders Show'' did for the half-hour: produce the best television available.

It's tough to say what's better in this series, the writing or the acting.

Brutal scenes are interspersed with brilliant comedy. For instance, in one episode a mob goon complains that Italian-Americans have been cheated because they are not reaping the benefit of the espresso and cappuccino craze. One mobster imitates Al Pacino from ``The Godfather III,'' and when a mob chief dies, a naked stripper announces that she will always remember where she was when she heard the news.

This is a series that can only play on a pay channel such as HBO. There is nudity, rough language and a lot of violence. It makes ``NYPD Blue,'' broadcast television's barrier breaker, play like ``The Teletubbies.''

James Gandolfini is superb in the lead role of Tony Soprano, and Bracco also stands out as Dr. Melfi.

HBO is starting out ``The Sopranos'' with a 13-episode order. It will be back for many more seasons.

Give this show a chance. It will be an hour you can't refuse.

The foamation technology used in ``The PJs'' makes the cartoon series nice to look at. The voice work by creator Eddie Murphy and the rest of the cast makes it a fun show to listen to.

But ``The PJs'' is not a great show to watch.

Other prime-time shows, such as Fox's own ``The Simpsons'' and ``King of the Hill'' and Comedy Central's ``South Park'' and ``Dr. Katz: Professional Therapist,'' have set a standard for animated series that ``The PJs'' doesn't approach.

The show's pace is slow. Its pilot story was nothing special, and the writing was standard sitcom fare.

PJs is short for low-income housing projects, where this show is set. Thurgood Stubbs (Murphy) is the building superintendent and the central voice.

The characters have very narrow heads and giant cheeks, sort of like pinheads with mumps.

The best bits of writing come in the form of pop culture-based puns. Thurgood exclaims at one point, ``What the LL Cool J. Holy Moesha.'' Another time he says, ``Whitney Houston, we have a problem.''

There's also a scene with a crackhead cruising down the street in a shopping cart, screaming ``I'm king of the world!'' a la Leonardo DiCaprio in ``Titanic.''

The rest of the script isn't worth mentioning.

``The PJs'' already has received criticism from African-American activists who think it pokes fun of the problems in the projects.

They contend that too many characters drink beer out of 40-ounce bottles, drugging is laughed at, and there are no redeeming characters.

Thurgood Stubbs, who they characterize as an illiterate janitor, is actually a well-meaning man with a good heart. But that doesn't make up for a sitcom that would make a better poster than a program.

THE FACTS

The show: ``The Sopranos.''

Where: HBO.

When: 9 p.m. Sundays.

Who: James Gandolfini, Edie Falco, Nancy Marchand, Dominic Chianese, Michael Imperioli, Lorraine Bracco, Jamie Lynn Sigler, Robert Iler.

What: A middle-aged mob boss goes through a midlife crisis in a series that is the perfect mix of drama and comedy.

Our rating: Four stars.

The show: ``The PJs.''

Where: Fox (KTTV-Channel 11).

When: Debuts 8:30 p.m. Sunday; regular time slot is 8:30 p.m. Tuesdays.

Who: Eddie Murphy, Loretta Devine, Shawn Michael Howard, Ja'net DuBois.

What: A high-tech cartoon series in something called foamation focused on a housing project and its building superintendent.

Our rating: Two and one half stars.

CAPTION(S):

2 Photos

Photo: (1) Despite its foamation technology and voice work by creator Eddie Murphy and the rest of the cast, ``The PJs'' suffers from slow pacing due to lackluster writing.

(2) ``The Sopranos,'' Sunday on HBO, stars Edie Falco and James Gandolfini.