While, yes, The Wire can appear to some viewers as though the writers have lost hope for the inner city African Americans the show attempts to portray, and yes, there are some great things coming out of those same low-income neighborhoods, we need to keep in mind the point of this series. Simon has stated that he wanted to show how the system is broken and how that affects certain individuals. In my opinion, he also does a great job of pointing out the actual thoughts and motivations behind these so-called "thugs" and why they do the things they continue to do. The Wire showed how these characters are simply a product of their environment, yet their true innocence and naivety comes out quite often, especially with the young drug dealers in the pit.. These glimpses of curiosity and morals that we see in characters such as Wallace make me, personal, hopeful, not hopeless. There are real people out there just like each and every one of these characters, and while some cannot be reached out to (in the show and in reality), there are some who can.
The Wire is a series that amazes me with its close attention to detail and plot lines that draw the viewer in. While it would be nice for the writers to have included the amazing work done by Baltimore groups such as BUILD and ACORN, I don't believe that there was any more room in the show considering the 60+ characters they were already working with, that their contribution in the show would have been as interesting (for dramatic purposes) as the violence and the corruption.
To read more about the debate on the shows reality and "hopelessness," read "Is the Wire Too Cynical?" on Dissent Magazinemoreless
| S 5 : Ep 10 | -30- | Aired 3/9/08 | |
| S 5 : Ep 9 | Clarifications | Aired 2/24/08 | |
| S 5 : Ep 8 | Late Editions | Aired 3/2/08 | |
| S 5 : Ep 7 | Took | Aired 2/17/08 | |
| S 5 : Ep 6 | The Dickensian Aspect | Aired 2/10/08 |
Show Summary
EDIT
In chronicling a multi-generational family business dealing illegal drugs and the efforts of the Baltimore police to curb their trade, this series draws parallels between these organizations and the men and women on either side of the battle.
The words of Gary W. Potter, Professor of Criminal Justice and Police Studies at Eastern Kentucky University, in writing about the savings and loan scandals of the 1980s, can also be used to illuminate some of the central premises of the show:
"There is precious little difference between those people who society designates as respectable and law abiding and those people society castigates as hoodlums and thugs. The world of corporate finance and corporate capital is as criminogenic and probably more criminogenic than any poverty-wracked slum neighborhood. The distinctions drawn between business, politics, and organized crime are at best artificial and in reality irrelevant. Rather than being dysfunctions, corporate crime, white-collar crime, organized crime, and political corruption are mainstays of American political-economic life."
Tim Goodman, the television critic for The San Francisco Chronicle, summed the show up perfectly when he wrote: "This show is precisely the reason you pay for HBO."
In New York's Newsday, Diane Werts says: "Most TV crime series aspire to John Grisham's level. 'The Wire' aspires to Dostoevsky's."
Season Themes
Season One centers around a family of drug dealers and the innerworkings of their empire. It also follows the detectives who are trying to catch the high members of the empire. Season Two steps away from the drug trade (while still mentioning characters from the previous season) to a case of dead prostitutes which turns into a look at the corruption surrounding the Port. Season Three investigates politics and finishes the main stories that were left open in season one. Season Four focuses on four middle school students and their journeys through the public school system and continues to address the politics of an inner-city and the issues of an election. Season Five is rumored to be about the media's role in Baltimore. Season Five will be the show's final season.
Theme Music
In the Season One opening credits, the Blind Boys of Alabama did Tom Waits's "Way Down in the Hole". The Season Two opening credits feature Waits's version of the song. According to creator David Simon, "It was our way of saying: This is the same show (song) but this year, the tale itself (singer, tonality) will be different." The Neville Brothers's version of the song opens Season Three. The theme which plays over the end credits was composed by the show's music supervisor, Blake Leyh.
International Airings
Australia -- Monday at 12:00 p.m. on Ch.9. Currently airing Season 3. New Zealand -- Wednesday at 11:40 p.m. on TV2, beginning December 15, 2004.
moreless
The words of Gary W. Potter, Professor of Criminal Justice and Police Studies at Eastern Kentucky University, in writing about the savings and loan scandals of the 1980s, can also be used to illuminate some of the central premises of the show:
"There is precious little difference between those people who society designates as respectable and law abiding and those people society castigates as hoodlums and thugs. The world of corporate finance and corporate capital is as criminogenic and probably more criminogenic than any poverty-wracked slum neighborhood. The distinctions drawn between business, politics, and organized crime are at best artificial and in reality irrelevant. Rather than being dysfunctions, corporate crime, white-collar crime, organized crime, and political corruption are mainstays of American political-economic life."
Tim Goodman, the television critic for The San Francisco Chronicle, summed the show up perfectly when he wrote: "This show is precisely the reason you pay for HBO."
In New York's Newsday, Diane Werts says: "Most TV crime series aspire to John Grisham's level. 'The Wire' aspires to Dostoevsky's."
Season Themes
Season One centers around a family of drug dealers and the innerworkings of their empire. It also follows the detectives who are trying to catch the high members of the empire. Season Two steps away from the drug trade (while still mentioning characters from the previous season) to a case of dead prostitutes which turns into a look at the corruption surrounding the Port. Season Three investigates politics and finishes the main stories that were left open in season one. Season Four focuses on four middle school students and their journeys through the public school system and continues to address the politics of an inner-city and the issues of an election. Season Five is rumored to be about the media's role in Baltimore. Season Five will be the show's final season.
Theme Music
In the Season One opening credits, the Blind Boys of Alabama did Tom Waits's "Way Down in the Hole". The Season Two opening credits feature Waits's version of the song. According to creator David Simon, "It was our way of saying: This is the same show (song) but this year, the tale itself (singer, tonality) will be different." The Neville Brothers's version of the song opens Season Three. The theme which plays over the end credits was composed by the show's music supervisor, Blake Leyh.
International Airings
Australia -- Monday at 12:00 p.m. on Ch.9. Currently airing Season 3. New Zealand -- Wednesday at 11:40 p.m. on TV2, beginning December 15, 2004.
moreless
 Wendell Pierce |
Det. William "Bunk" Moreland |
 Paul Ben-Victor |
Spiros "Vondas" Vondopoulos |
 Wood Harris |
Avon Barksdale |
John Doman |
Col. William A. Rawls |
 Amy Ryan |
Off. Beatrice "Beadie" Russell |
 Robert Wisdom |
Maj. Howard "Bunny" Colvin |
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Wednesday
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BLOODYFACE + PEPPER = LOVE
News Briefs: American Horror Story Season 3 Will Be Romantic
Plus: HBO and Spielberg head back to WWII, how many people watched Lance admit he's a dope?, and Homeland demotes a regular.
By Tim Surette, Jan 19, 2013
BAD MEDICINE
American Horror Story: Asylum "Spilt Milk" Review: No More Trauma (PHOTO RECAP)
As Season 2 barrels to a close, this astonishingly filmed third-to-last episode tied up a surprising number of loose ends!
By Price Peterson, Jan 11, 2013
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-30-
S 5 : Ep 10
Aired 3/9/08 (1:34:00)
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Clarifications
S 5 : Ep 9
Aired 2/24/08 (59:00)
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Late Editions
S 5 : Ep 8
Aired 3/2/08 (1:00:00)
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Took
S 5 : Ep 7
Aired 2/17/08 (59:00)
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Banner for The Wire
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© 2008 Amy Graves/WireImage.com
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© 2008 HBO Networks
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© 2008 HBO Networks
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"The Wire" is horrible and reinforces stereotypes
02/16/133Reply
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Who wishes "The Wire" would go on to a 6th Season?"
01/20/1332Reply
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Favorite Character
01/20/1364Reply
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The Theme Songs
01/06/1321Reply
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TV.com voters = idiots
05/10/121Reply
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More Info About This Show
Themes
bloody and violent, city living, corruption, drug addiction, drug trafficking