View Full Version : HBO's The Wire
Any feedback on this show? Heard it was pretty good, and HBO just re-broadcast it in HD for the first time, managed to get all the episodes recorded.
We don't watch as much TV as some do, and I keep hearing about all these great series out there that we've missed and need to watch. Trying to figure out where to rank this one. Mad Men is another contender.
It's a really great show. It took me three solid tries to get it started, though. There are a lot of characters and moving parts right from the start. Totally worth it when it finally clicked.
Uberjager
01-09-2015, 01:20
It's funny that you should ask. I literally just finished the third season. It's really great. The writing and acting is absolutely amazing. All kinds of great characters.
A friend at work says it's great, and even brought me in all the seasons on DVD. A lot of people from The Wire have shown up on the Walking Dead.
Watch it all....... You'll get the pun.
Uberjager
01-09-2015, 09:39
A friend at work says it's great, and even brought me in all the seasons on DVD. A lot of people from The Wire have shown up on the Walking Dead.
There's currently 3 actors from The Wire on Walking Dead. Rumor has it that there will be more.
Great-Kazoo
01-09-2015, 09:46
The Wire puts Breaking Bad to shame. It starts slow, building up each season. The guy who plays Garcetti [spck] appears on GOT. A good show that IMO shows the futility of the WOD.
Uberjager
01-09-2015, 10:08
The Wire puts Breaking Bad to shame. It starts slow, building up each season. The guy who plays Garcetti [spck] appears on GOT. A good show that IMO shows the futility of the WOD.
Definitely. For the record, Uncle Frank > Uncle Hank
mahabali
01-09-2015, 11:29
It's awesome, watch it, you wont regret it. I was at a Nuggets game about 6 years ago when the show was still on and the entire cast was there in a suite. Something to do with Carmelo Anthony because he is from Baltimore and apparently a superfan of the show.
Anyway we waited outside their suite stalker style at the end of the game and got to meet most of the cast. Everyone was really nice, talked to Omar for about 10 minutes while Marlo was hitting on one of my wife's friends. Bubbles was super cool too.
Ranger353
01-09-2015, 12:32
Great show, like everyone says. You really have to listen to the dialogue because there are dozens of names and clues dropped in seasons 1-3 that begin to play out and emerge in 3 going forward. Great writers and acting.
lostcolorado
01-09-2015, 13:23
I consider it one of those "must see" programs.
Speaking as someone who hates police procedurals, The Wire is easily one of the top five best television dramas of all time.
My son got me to order all of the disks through Netflix. He has been using some things from the show for his school research and has become a big fan. I have not watched the show, as I don't normally like cop shows. My son said that I would enjoy the show just for the scenery. Sort of like watching the opening shots from The Sopranos since I used to make the exact same commute to and from work every day for several years. Anyone else regularly drive the Pulaski Skyway? It is nothing like Pulaski Highway. [LOL]
It's the same guys that made Generation Kill. Both very well done. In the last couple of years it is starting to appear on the "best tv shows ever" type lists.
Awesome show, you won't regret it
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My wife and I binge watched the entire series after it was over on account of a trip to the Baltimore area upcoming. Turns out one of my online buddies over at Supraforums was a detective for BPD in the same district the show start out based on. He was our personal guide for a tour of all the areas you see in the show and as an added bonus we got to see Edgar Allen Poe's home and a crack deal go down on the corner of the same block. The rows and rows of boarded up homes was incredible to see in person. Just... weird man. I can't explain it but as someone in real estate investment at the time it was hard to wrap my mind around the concept that there was no money to be made they were such poison. Then, he would drive us about 1/4 mile away and a block over and the exact same housing had Audis, Mercedes and even one Lambo parked out front. He said they were million dollar homes and meanwhile the same homes were boarded up and used only for homeless people to reproduce & get high in. Crazy. But yeah, the show is amazing. Truly. One of the best production & writing jobs of any show ever on television. Incredible plots that evolve each season with a different aspect of the same city and acting & writing that truly makes you feel like you're in the middle of what's really going on. Gritty. Real. Such a good show and I highly recommend it.
My son got me to order all of the disks through Netflix. He has been using some things from the show for his school research and has become a big fan. I have not watched the show, as I don't normally like cop shows. My son said that I would enjoy the show just for the scenery. Sort of like watching the opening shots from The Sopranos since I used to make the exact same commute to and from work every day for several years. Anyone else regularly drive the Pulaski Skyway? It is nothing like Pulaski Highway. [LOL]
Funny you brought this up because I watched some of this in preparation for my trip to the New York/New Jersey area a long long time ago to pick up said Supra that got me onto the aforementioned Supra forum. I was amazed at how on Sunday night it wasn't just a show but a lifestyle man. I couldn't believe how guys were having people over and constantly getting calls strictly to talk about the show while it was on. The dude I stayed with (also some sort of FBI fella that worked on Manhattan Island every day) was like one of the characters on the show. So funny. Speaking of the characters, I got to meet a few of them (didn't know the show well enough to remember their names) at his wife's bar in Breille NJ. They came in to hang out because it was low-key and they also got some queues from some actual mob members that frequented the joint too. She introduced me to some fellas that I guess were pretty big deals and they seemed pretty normal to me. Not really what I expected or pictured. Obviously Hollywood plays that aspect up for effect but pretty cool none-the-less. I had a great trip to both places and it's crazy to see such crazy aspects of this great nation. Puts it all into perspective of how good most of us have it even when we think things are going badly.
OctopusHighball
01-10-2015, 17:36
It is worth the watch. SOOO much good stuff in this show. For Amazon Prime members, all 5 seasons are available on-demand.
Season 2 starts off a little slow because tonally it is so different from the other seasons, but stick with it.
Better than BB? I'm not sure I would agree to that, but I would rank the two shows pretty closely with a slight edge to BB. That is NOT faint praise in my book.
As an aside, the little Mrs. and I saw "The Gambler" a few nights ago, and there were at least three actors from The Wire in there as well (including Omar as a main character).
Season 2 is like watching an animal slowly die.
It's just a bunch of people completely trapped in a rapidly failing system with no idea how to adapt or overcome.
Kraven251
01-13-2015, 17:08
one of the best scenes ever in a tv series "Library Card"
Uberjager
01-13-2015, 23:25
I absolutely love Clay Davis.
Great-Kazoo
01-13-2015, 23:53
I absolutely love Clay Davis.
SHEEEEET, Ain't nobody gonna put Clay Davis in jail.SHEEEEET.
OctopusHighball
01-14-2015, 00:06
This is the one that gets me everytime...
WARNING: NSFW language and images. This is, after all, a cable show.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SO0WW2QXIYc
I absolutely love Clay Davis.
The scene where he takes the witness stand and basically destroys the entire case against him with smooth talk and charm is one of the most potent commentaries on the problems inherent to identity politics ever scripted.
Great-Kazoo
01-14-2015, 09:49
The scene where he takes the witness stand and basically destroys the entire case against him with smooth talk and charm is one of the most potent commentaries on the problems inherent to identity politics ever scripted.
No spoiler alert for those who haven't seen it yet?
The show has been off the air for six years, so I think we're past the statute of limitations on spoilers.
Also, Rosebud was a sled.
hurley842002
01-14-2015, 10:49
No spoiler alert for those who haven't seen it yet?
That's what I was thinking.
OctopusHighball
01-14-2015, 11:32
I have never heard of this show before this thread. I just googled it and read the first line.. This show is about criminals? Why do you guys want to watch a show about dirtbags? Help me to understand why moral, law abiding people would want to watch a show about scumbags. I finally gave in and watched 1 episode of the Biker show that everyone recommends. I would never watch another episode. Violence, drugs, etc. nothing wholesome there to want to watch.
So, why?
This show is centered around the cops who are dedicated to bringing down the criminals.
Breaking Bad is centered around the criminals.
Given the whole reason I posted in the first place was because the show has just aired in HD for the first time and I'm thinking about watching it, would appreciate it if you could skip the spoilers... lol.
Based on all the positive comments, it's definitely on deck as the next thing we'll watch.
I have never heard of this show before this thread. I just googled it and read the first line.. This show is about criminals? Why do you guys want to watch a show about dirtbags? Help me to understand why moral, law abiding people would want to watch a show about scumbags. I finally gave in and watched 1 episode of the Biker show that everyone recommends. I would never watch another episode. Violence, drugs, etc. nothing wholesome there to want to watch.
So, why?
Actually, the biggest criminals are the politicians, not the street thugs.
I have never heard of this show before this thread. I just googled it and read the first line.. This show is about criminals? Why do you guys want to watch a show about dirtbags? Help me to understand why moral, law abiding people would want to watch a show about scumbags. I finally gave in and watched 1 episode of the Biker show that everyone recommends. I would never watch another episode. Violence, drugs, etc. nothing wholesome there to want to watch.
So, why?
You never watched Smokey and the Bandit, did you? :) Criminals are more interesting...
Kidding aside, I do get your point though. There is a line somewhere and it keeps moving deeper into someplace dark... blame HBO.
KestrelBike
01-14-2015, 12:24
Actually, the biggest criminals are the politicians, not the street thugs.
They have House of Cards for this. And perhaps even worse, from a comedy standpoint, is Veep.
They have House of Cards for this. And perhaps even worse, from a comedy standpoint, is Veep.
We've been watching House of Cards too. Season 3 is coming up soon and I can't wait. It's scratching the itch that The Wire left as far as quality production top to bottom.
I have never heard of this show before this thread. I just googled it and read the first line.. This show is about criminals? Why do you guys want to watch a show about dirtbags? Help me to understand why moral, law abiding people would want to watch a show about scumbags.
The setup of the show revolves around inner-city criminal drug gangs, the cops who are trying to bust them, and the cat and mouse tactics that ensue.
However, it's way, way, way bigger than that. The thing that really makes the show fascinating (beyond the characters) is how it fleshes out the various systems these people inhabit, and how, in many cases, even when someone is trying to do the right thing, the outcome may be doomed simply because the particular system simply isn't designed to be able to allow for creative or, in many cases, even moral solutions.
The show manages to weave a story through the trials and travails of the people in these various systems, and shows what happens at the edges where, say, the cops are trying to track down and bust low-level street dealers, but end up finding connections that run into the city council.
Furthermore, each season can be more or less broken down into a fairly detailed examination of a number of systems. Season 1 covers the aforementioned systems of law enforcement and drug dealing, season 2 covers the blue collar workers involved with a dying union as well as the high-level guys responsible for importing narcotics into the country, season 3 covers the high-level political shenanigans of the Baltimore city council and mayor's office, and the political race of an upstart mayoral candidate, season 4 is probably one of the most heart-breaking examinations of inner-city public school systems you're ever likely to see, and season 5 wraps it all up with an examination of the place of reporters and big city newspapers during a time of mergers and downsizing.
If you want a show that has clear-cut upstanding heros and bad guys, The Wire isn't going to be your cup of tea. A lot of the characters come across as very real, and in some cases, deeply flawed people.
The writing on the show tends to lean left (as do the real-world politics of a city like Baltimore), but in many cases, it's clear that David Simon and the writers aren't interested in just being a bunch of left-wing cheerleaders.
I finally gave in and watched 1 episode of the Biker show that everyone recommends. I would never watch another episode. Violence, drugs, etc. nothing wholesome there to want to watch.
So, why?
Comparing The Wire to Sons of Anarchy is about like comparing Shakespeare to an Archie comic.
Kidding aside, I do get your point though. There is a line somewhere and it keeps moving deeper into someplace dark... blame HBO.
Anti-heros and flawed protagonists have been popular for way longer than HBO.
That said, I think that as various power structures become more entrenched, and you have statist bureaucracies that make life difficult for the average joe, stories about characters who work outside of, or even against, those power structures inevitably become more compelling to the average person.
Ranger353
01-15-2015, 15:44
The setup of the show revolves around inner-city criminal drug gangs, the cops who are trying to bust them, and the cat and mouse tactics that ensue.
However, it's way, way, way bigger than that. The thing that really makes the show fascinating (beyond the characters) is how it fleshes out the various systems these people inhabit, and how, in many cases, even when someone is trying to do the right thing, the outcome may be doomed simply because the particular system simply isn't designed to be able to allow for creative or, in many cases, even moral solutions.
The show manages to weave a story through the trials and travails of the people in these various systems, and shows what happens at the edges where, say, the cops are trying to track down and bust low-level street dealers, but end up finding connections that run into the city council.
Furthermore, each season can be more or less broken down into a fairly detailed examination of a number of systems. Season 1 covers the aforementioned systems of law enforcement and drug dealing, season 2 covers the blue collar workers involved with a dying union as well as the high-level guys responsible for importing narcotics into the country, season 3 covers the high-level political shenanigans of the Baltimore city council and mayor's office, and the political race of an upstart mayoral candidate, season 4 is probably one of the most heart-breaking examinations of inner-city public school systems you're ever likely to see, and season 5 wraps it all up with an examination of the place of reporters and big city newspapers during a time of mergers and downsizing.
If you want a show that has clear-cut upstanding heros and bad guys, The Wire isn't going to be your cup of tea. A lot of the characters come across as very real, and in some cases, deeply flawed people.
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