The Wire

[Gamerforlife]

I just thought the show deserved a thread. I mean we have threads for other noteworthy shows like Breaking Bad, The Walking Dead, and Game of Thrones. I'm a little more than halfway through season 2 and I'm enjoying it. I should preface this though by say that contrary to what I've heard, it's not a flawless masterpiece or the best show ever (I can think of some shows that easily best The Wire in certain areas). The dialog can be incomprehensible and it feels like it's written for people who already understand Baltimore cop lingo and urban slang. Some characters really mumble through their lines too. Also, the pacing is the slowest of any show I've ever watched in my entire life. The show is chock full of boring scenes where you're just watching cops do stakeouts or listen to wire taps over and over and over again. The Wire pretty much shows you all the boring aspects of police work and the drug trade that other shows don't, as well as the bureaucracy involved in working a case or capturing a criminal. While there is a certain admirable quality to that (again, this show is all about the realism), it doesn't make for entertaining television.

Still, it's got great characters, realism that few shows can match, philosophical moments and examinations of various aspects of our society. The show is surprisingly funny too at times despite its usually dark and hopeless tone. I love the way it handles character deaths too. Very real. There's never any music to manipulate your feelings, and from what I've watched so far this isn't a show with last minute swerves to trick you into thinking someone is about to die when they aren't. The writing isn't manipulative like a lot of other shows. It respects your intelligence and often what you see is what you get. You never feel like the writers are pulling stuff out of their ass, and there is incredible attention to detail and continuity (at least from what I've seen so far). It also doesn't seem afraid to kill off anyone either. There are only a small number of shows I can say that about (Game of Thrones, Supernatural and maybe Walking Dead). No one seems off limits in The Wire. The show is so damn quotable too. A recent fave of mine that those of you who've already seen season 2 will recognize is, "I got the shotgun. You got the briefcase. S'all in the game though right?"

Love that scene

I'll probably stay away from this thread for a while until I work my way through the remaining seasons, even though I know most of you will spoiler tag any major story events. Still, someone spoiled a major character death that I have't seen yet so I'm spoiler paranoid right now. Fortunately, the character in question is one I kind of hate right now so in a way it gives me something to look forward too

[gtmtnbiker]

How many shows are you watching per night? I think I was averaging 2 per night with occasional days off.

Subtitles are a must for this show IMO.

In the beginning, I was confused by the number of people in the police dept and who did what, who worked for who, etc. It got better as time went on.

[dsheinem]

I I'm a little more than halfway through season 2 and I'm enjoying it. I should preface this though by say that contrary to what I've heard, it's not a flawless masterpiece or the best show ever (I can think of some shows that easily best The Wire in certain areas).

Wait until you've finished it as a whole before you decide on "best ever" status...

[dlmvii]

I just started this a week or 2 ago - I'm on the 6th episode of the first season. It took a couple episodes to pick up, but I'm digging it so far

[d123456]

This is a very unique show. What I like it is has lots of great actors, characters. How did they afford to make this show? Cliche, but this show does go downhill from the first season on and the last season is a total joke. Just remember that when at a certain moment you feel like the show gets slow, it gets worst from there on and there are no real big surprises.
Omar is just a great character, all of his scenes are great.
Bunk as well, the sigar smoking is so awesome
Shame all of it was filmed in 4:3. The creators say that they like the 4:3 format . I usually watch it in 14:9 mode on my tv.
The 9.5 rating on imdb? Must be based on the first 2 seasons. I´d say overal 8.5. Still very good. Happy watching

[Gamerforlife]

How many shows are you watching per night? I think I was averaging 2 per night with occasional days off.

Subtitles are a must for this show IMO.

Well I'm watching it streaming on HBOGO. So subtitles aren't an option. I'm seriously budgeting right now as my financial status took a bit of a hit this year, which is why I haven't considered buying the DVD or blu rays for this show. I'm turning to stuff like Netflix, HBOGO and Gamefly right now to keep up with my entertainment since I probably won't be spending money buying games, movies, etc. for at least a couple months. Unfortunately, The Wire isn't on Netflix. That's a shame since Netflix offers all of the subtitle options of a DVD. So I've had to settle for watching it on HBOGO with no subtitles and the annoying bits of buffering that happen at least three times an episode. I find myself rewinding the stream a lot when I don't understand what characters are saying. It makes getting through episodes a rather time consuming affair

Fortunately though, I have picked up on a lot of the lingo now so it's getting easier to follow everything and even when I don't get what characters are saying I usually get the gist of what's happening in a scene. Context and all that.

On another note, I've been watching Sherlock on Netflix with subtitles turned on. British people by nature seem to talk pretty fast and have their own words unique to them, but when a character like Sherlock is explaining the deductive process his brain is going through and talking just as quickly as thoughts are forming in his brain, subtitles help A LOT

Sherlock is a great show by the way. Aside from being fun and having great writing and performances, the show also has a nice visual quality to it that surprised me as it uses onscreen cues to show you what's going on in a way I've not seen in other shows. The only comparison I can think of is something like the Scott Pilgrim movie.

[sabrage]

This is a very unique show. What I like it is has lots of great actors, characters. How did they afford to make this show? Cliche, but this show does go downhill from the first season on and the last season is a total joke. Just remember that when at a certain moment you feel like the show gets slow, it gets worst from there on and there are no real big surprises.

What, are you kidding me? "I'm not interested in this" does not equate to a "total joke".

[gtmtnbiker]

Shame all of it was filmed in 4:3. The creators say that they like the 4:3 format

Yeah, it was tough watching it in 4:3. I've been spoiled by HD. But I adjusted and still enjoyed the show very much.

[dsheinem]

This is a very unique show. What I like it is has lots of great actors, characters. How did they afford to make this show? Cliche, but this show does go downhill from the first season on and the last season is a total joke. Just remember that when at a certain moment you feel like the show gets slow, it gets worst from there on and there are no real big surprises.

What, are you kidding me? "I'm not interested in this" does not equate to a "total joke".

The last season - and each, really, is fantastic and consistent...what's wrong with the final one in your estimation, and how the hell could you argue it went downhill from season to season?

[Razzmatazz]

Greatest show ever, end of. Season 4 is my favourite, the youngsters are phenomenal actors.
I had the first 3 seasons in 2008 and watched them in succession over a few weeks, and although I missed some of the cop slang, I understood the majority of the street slang. Perhaps as I listen to a lot of hip hop. But I have re-watched the first four seasons over the winter to get my fiancee into it, and watching it a second time through is vastly rewarding.
Has anyone watched The Shield? I would rate it just behind The Wire, I always feel the show doesn't get the respect it deserves.