The Wire, Season 5 -- Read Between the Lines

FANTASTIC. Don't miss this one. Thanks for posting this link.

 

Just finished season 4 and am officially now all caught up. Wow, that season was amazing. The acting from the kids is unbelievable, especially Michael, Randy and Namond.

I really, really am intrigued by Michael. He comes off as such a caring person when it comes to his little brother and sticking up for Randy, but he turns into such a cold person when it comes to the end of the season. Great job by that young man.

As for who is the most intimidating character, it has to be Omar. When you hear "The Farmer and the Dell" you know it's all over. That is just haunting. As for the enforcers, while Partlow and Snoop are cold blooded, I'd take my chances with Wee Bey. That guy comes off as tough and unbelievably cool under pressure.

 

I just finished Season 4 last night, too. Damn.

 

Nice piece by one of the few ESPN Page 2'ers that actually has a brain, LZ Granderson. No coincidence that he's a Wire Fiend, as well.

http://proxy.espn.go.com/espn/page2/story?page=granderson/080104

Even though he's out of character, Jamie Hector (aka: Marlo) still strikes me as an intimidating SOB. Those eyes, man... those eyes...

 

Watched the end of season four over the last few days. Very, very good.

 

Probably their best season, though 1,3 and 4 are in a photo-finish.

 

Reading between THESE lines, i agree 2 wasn't as strong. I didn't find the dockworkers nearly as compelling as the cops, the corner guys, the students, etc.
The actors just didn't have it, either.

 

I still think this is total mularky, but it's an opinion, so you're entitled to it.

The second season established that the show wasn't just about cops and corner boys. It was about the broken wail of an American city, and the decline of an empire and the American middle class. The way that poverty and the crushing power of institutions are far more important in deciding people's fates than race or geography. The work that Chris Bauer did as Frank Sobatka was as good as anything the series has done. DeAngelo's death established that the characters serve the story, not the other way around, as is the case on so many television shows.

Anyone who thinks the second season isn't as good as the other three needs to watch it again. I understand how some people's views are clouded by Ziggy, but Hot Shots, All Prologue, Stray Rounds and Bad Dreams are as good any episodes the series has done.

 

The sheer balls of the second season are what made the Wire the best show on television.

Not only, as DD so ably pointed out, do individual episodes stand up as among the series' best, but the decision to shift focus entirely to the docks showed the series as a post-modern literary triumph -- it is not a show about characters or a show about plot but rather a show about an ethos. This allowed the writers to paint a picture not only of a broken system, but also about universal humanity that is as powerful as most works of art we can expect to see in our lifetimes.

Give season two another shot.

 

It was good, but Ziggy alone soils it below 1,3 and 4.

If you think that 2 is as good as the other three.... puhlease.

 

Don't disagree with a single word of this (and it's beautifully expressed, thank you). Saying I enjoyed season 2 a little less than the other seasons doesn't mean it didn't thrill me more than anything I've ever seen in my life. It just thrilled me less than the other seasons. The show is beyond praise, so this is just purely subjective to my taste in acting (Ziggy, and in particular, his buddy, who I just didn't think rang true; Chris Bauer was great).

 

The hand-wringing reactions of DD and zeke are bizarre, as if we said that 2 was bad television.