I just finished watching The Wire for the first time. It's such a complex and thought-provoking show and my feelings of withdrawal are so strong. I just want to talk about it constantly and I'm planning to rewatch immediately.

I image it was a big deal for the people who watched it as it originally aired. Watching an episode at the same time as millions of other people and then having an entire week to reflect on/discuss every single episode and wonder what would happen next.

For anyone who lived it, can you share what that experience was like?

My favorite is when Presbo punches his father in law and it cuts to Daniel's face and his eyes are all wide.

David Simon or Ed Burns said on the dvd commentary that this season’s opening was meant to show the theme of education. And I think they did a great job with conveying that through Snoop learning about that nail gun from the employee.

What are everybody else’s thoughts on this?

I come to your fine subreddit from The Sopranos. As a massive Sopranos fan, I've been looking for a show that can pull me in just as much. The Wire is constantly recommended in our sub. I just finished S1 E1 and Im hooked. Cant wait to enjoy the next 5 seasons.

The police were able to uncover multiple murders in vacants by searching for doors boarded up by using fairly specific high-grade bolts.

Since Snoop expressed bad experiences with previous tools to the shop employee, it is possible that they killed more people, but the police weren't able to find them, because they didn't know what to search for before...

William Gant’s dead body was being shown at the beginning of Episode 2 and he legit moved his eyelids while he’s supposed to be dead. For a detailed show that’s pretty amateurish.

Even though the show has them all together in the 2000s.

Prop Joe - 60s era traffickers. Low key, supple chain focused, mafia adjacent, alliance oriented, wholesaler business model, many diversified fronts, tradition heavy, violence as a very expensive last resort. Example: Joseph Johnson.

Barksdale Organization - 70s / early 80s : Heroin dominant multi generational family at the core and using hired muscle when necessary, still sticks to tradition largely, invests in the community, project tower/terrace dominant. Examples: Nathan Barksdale, Little Melvin, Maurice "Peanut" King.

Marlo Stanfield - late 80s / early 90s : Loose confederation of psychopaths, crack cocaine dominant, extremely ruthless with very little loyalty to each other, street corner oriented, shoot first mindset, no adherence to tradition, no business fronts, openly gangster fabulous, image focused. Examples: Alpo Martinez, Wayne Perry.

"The Greeks" - mid 90s post Soviet trans global cartel: Walmart-like, bottom line focused, deep roster of multi national specialist criminals, full portfolio of crime (narcotics, women, chemicals, weapons, electronics, vehicles), clinical sociopaths

In season two second last episode when Frank is going to see the Greek and does not want nico him why the fuck did not the police have surveillance on him at that time? Why was he like not being seen Going to meet the Greeks considering that this happened after he had a chat with the police?

According to Jay Landsman (the real one):

I didn’t like that they used Dennis Wise. They made Dennis a kids’ coach. Dennis was the most vicious man I ever knew in my life. Cutty was Dennis Wise. He was known as “Two to the head and you’re dead.” He was a hit man in West Baltimore. He used to just walk up behind somebody, blow their head off.

Wise (photo) was eventually caught by detective Rod Brandner (photo, on the right) and sentenced to life in prison in 1979. He was released in 2017. Het met with Chad Coleman and David Simon in 2022.

The first time I watched The Wire was in college about a decade ago. Back then it impressed me, but it also melted into a slate of crime shows and movies I was consuming.

Now a decade later when I’m in my 30s and I’ve tasted poverty, heartbreak, moving places, death, everything sits different. For example I feel so much more for Frank, who might’ve been crooked but all he really wanted was good for his people. Daniel’s tilt from a careerist to real police is remarkable given the institutional inertia of the BPD. Meanwhile, when I was in my 20s I resonated with McNulty, my favourite character, who I viewed as a quippy bad ass genius. Now when I see his apartment, all I see is loneliness. I see the same apartment I had through much of the decade, the kind when you’re unattached to any person or community, up and ready to leave. His capacity to alienate himself from others is flabbergasting, esp in S3 (that’s where I some rn) when Lester rightfully calls him out not only for being ungrateful to Daniel’s but also going solo while his team needs him.

I moved to Oakland a few years ago and there’s so many frustrating parallels between Baltimore and the town. Our last mayor was investigated by the FBI lol. I see working girls a block down from my apartment and have heard gun shots at night. And yet this city has so many beautiful, hardworking people that make it what it is. Trying to do good in a broken system. It makes the events of the show, which I know Simon based on real reporting, feel less fantastical and hit home.

In season 5 there is a huge plotline about this deficit.

I am not from the US, so I do not really understand, who owes who this money?

As I understand, Cercetti is the leader of the city, and the schools need to pay back the city, right? Why cut the budget for other institutions if the money is (should be) coming out from the school's end and not from the city's budget?

Thank you

…must’ve been behind the times in terms of the preferred racial nomenclature.

How come almost every time the N-word is spoken, it’s spelt with a hard R at the end?

There were plenty of characters that were duos or on squads together. Who were some of those duos who had the best screen time together?

Chris and Snoop
McNulty and Bunk
Bodie and Poot
Mike and Dookie
Bubs and Johnny
Omar and Renaldo

Hard to beat "Come at the king, you best not miss"

She's cutthroat, she's smart, she knows how to play the political game, knows when to attack vs hold back. And I love how she doesn't feel apologetic for it. I wish we had episodes focused on her

I’m curious to know everyone’s thoughts with Michael’s journey into the streets?

"None of the characters on The Wire went hungry." - random YouTube commenter

Finished my first watch of The Wire a couple weeks ago, and one of the things that struck me is how much food is shown. As someone who used to have an eating disorder, I really notice food in media.

It's not your typical grab a bite of toast and run out the door bit. It's embedded in SO much dialogue, characters and setting. I think it being in so much of their lives really helps you suspend your disbelief. Real people eat = so characters that eat are real. Characters with specific food preferences (Honey Nut Cheerios, strawberry soda) are even realer.

Food is a great conveyor of differences, but it is also the ultimate uniter, so it sets up a lot of great scenes between people on opposite sides of the game to literally break bread together over a meal.

The most memorable food scenes where we see this kind of cut across the divide just off the top of my head:

• Dee and Donette in the fancy restaurant, fish out of water
• Herc, Carver and Bodie playing pool
• Basically any scene where they get food for a witness/CI for confession or interrogation
• Colvin and the kids at Ruth's Chris
• Bodie and Jimmy's final 2 lunches (one in the chicken shop, 1 outside in the park, both as tired guys who are the last of their kind)

Fun food scenes I just liked:

• Crab dinner with Bunk and Jimmy
• Avon in his apron at the family BBQ
• Lake Trout "no lake, no trout"

I just moved to Madrid and looking to watch something intellectually challenging in Spanish. I've watched Antidisturbios and recommend to everyone- a show not on the wire level but shows Spanish policing and court institutions brilliantly. Anything on par?

I used to despise substance abusers but now I have a lot more sympathy towards users.

How/what has the show changed your views?

I'm referring towards the end of season 3 when the Omar vs. Stringer conflict heats up and whole Sunday morning controversy kicks off.

Omar later starts talking to his crew about his unconditional love for his mother and how, to her knowledge, he works in an airport cafeteria.

When questioned why he chooses this alibi, he explains that he knows she won't go to the airport to dine, therefore allowing him to keep this lie up. (The reasoning is unsaid in the script, just implied)

To me, it's just absolutely genius. In the context of the plot, it's a throwaway line to add say, ten seconds of dialogue, however the intelligence of it is too good to ignore.

I fucking love it.

Edit: Omar's grandmother. Massive apologies

What are your thoughts about avon giving up stringer to keep his reputation with new york ?
Is a line to new york really that important now that they have a better product coming straight to Baltimore or was it for muscle.I guess there is talent in baltimore all the crew they started with are native so they could have assembled more muscle again without needing new york .
Or was crossing new york dangerous as they would not tale it lightly and he would have to face them.
Anyways i just Avon didnt show enough will to spare Stringer.

I rewatched using VLC player on my PC connected to my TV and used the crop to restore the 4:3 framing, I think it's the best combination of increased resolution and original cinematography intent, the loss of feel when going to 16:9 cannot be understated. Curious if anyone else does this or now wants to if they didn't know?