Elite of the Elite : The Wire

First things first, apparently I made a goof on the schedule. While I stated the "Bermuda Triangle of Television" will be on Fridays and the "Elite of the Elite" will be on Saturdays, I originally intended for each series to have the opposite day. This week was a simple hiccup in the grand scheme of this blog. Starting next week, the Elite of the Elite will be every Friday, and the Bermuda Triangle will be on Saturdays.

5th Season Promo Picture

Series Name: The Wire
Television Network : HBO
Running Time : 55-60 Minutes
Broadcast Run : June 2, 2002 (2002-06-02) – March 9, 2008 (60 Episodes)


Now that we got the house cleaning out of the way, let me tell you about possibly the best damn series television has ever seen. HBO's the Wire, a living breathing novel that lasted five seasons. Each season was devoted to one aspect of Baltimore's inner city life. The first dealt with a crack team of forgotten and downtrodden investigators trying to take down Avon Barksdale and Stringer Bell, two high level dealers in a low income neighborhood. The second introduced the ports and the unions, effectively dragging the working class man into the skirmish. The third introduced politics in a big way, with newcomer Tommy Carcutti attempting to run for Mayor, and looks at the effects of legalizing drugs with "Bunny" Culvin's "Hamsterdam." The fourth focused on the school system, primarely following a group of four friends as they enter high school. And the final season brought the element of the press into the show, meeting the characters who run the dying Baltimore Sun newspaper.

Created by David Simon(Mastermind of such classics as Generation Kill & Homicide : Life on the Streets, along with new show Treme) and being semi-autobiographical. David Simon spent his youth working as a police reporter for the Baltimore Sun, and used his experiences to help craft the fifth season media aspect of the show. Not to mention his years of reporting on crime, interviewing police officers and criminals alike.

A main theme of the series is institutional dysfunction. How the individual can have good and noble goals, but when brought together with a bunch of other people with their own noble goals, everyone essentially cancels everyone else out and the cycle continues just as it ever did. Despite being perceived as yet another crime drama, the Wire is more accurately considered a series focused on a city at large and not just one small nuanced problem.

The Wire Creates Internet Meme

Well, crime in the Wire isn't essentially small. Allies kill family members, shack up with their departed ex's. Gun tooting vigilante Omar(Michael K. Williams) walks around with a shotgun whistling "The Farmer in the Dell" to the terrified scuffled feet of children and gang members alike. The second season's plot line involves a large cargo freighter inexplicably dumped onto the ports of Baltimore, containing 9 dead prostitutes. The third season introduces Marlo Stanfield, who saw a new way to hide bodies from the police force by using abandoned houses that have long since been boarded up. The Wire wasn't shy about spilling blood of it's main characters, as any and all were fair game right up until the end.

The fact of the matter is, the Wire is a show where each character is nuanced and layered. They all have their specific goal and agenda in mind and usually these butt heads with other characters in the show. While there is a lot of violence and death, it's carried out in such a way that it's believable. When cops would retire or be unceremoniously killed, the police would get together at a local brewery and drink till high noon, stumbling around drunk walking the train tracks in the early morning. When dealers or gang members were arrested or killed, well, life moved on, and everyone just thought they were smarter for not having been "got" yet.

Mind you, there's so many characters, there are so many layers to peel back on this onion, that it takes a while just to feel acclimated to the universe. If you find yourself lost or confused after the first few episodes, I wouldn't let that discourage you. With the sheer number of individuals, watching it the first time through is like skimming through a novel. You get the jist, but you miss out on the minor characters and details. It just makes it a show that rewards you for repeated viewings.

It's so good, I've bought the Complete Series for over a hundred bucks, and then bought a book with full detailed production notes. I wish I hadn't seen The Wire yet, just so I could experience it for the first time all over again. I want to say so much, but I don't want to spoil the uninformed. It would be a crime tantamount to television heresy! Like saying Rosebud is Citizen Kane's sled!

Sheeeeeeeet. You already knew that, right?

Take a look at a clip from the 3rd episode of the first season which properly explains the entire concept in mere moments with a nice allegory about chess. Following it, watch the streets react to the oncoming Omar Little.

 A+