The Wire

Buzz

The Wire ranks 763 out of the 18,222 shows on TV.com.

The 3,500 users who count themselves as The Wire fans have written a total of 86 reviews.

Status

Premiered

Ended

Genre

Theme

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... more »

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.

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• 3 Questions About This Great Show

  Ok, I've just finished Season 5 and I have three questions: 1) What happens to Marlo? He wasn't in the montage. ...more »

  Ok, I've just finished Season 5 and I have three questions: 1) What happens to Marlo? He wasn't in the montage. 2) When Sydnor was talking to the Judge, what was that all about? and 3) The song at the 'pretend' wake of McNulty, (yes I know it was in an earlier season too), was it definately The Pogues? I know it was a Pogues record but was it them who sang that version? Cheers less «

  AshC Last online 9 days ago
  1 comments, last one Jun 14, 2009 + Add Comment

• Favorite Scenes?

  What are some of your favorite scenes from the wire so far?  I will kick things off with a few of mine...I've just rewa...more »

  What are some of your favorite scenes from the wire so far?  I will kick things off with a few of mine...I've just rewatched seasons 1-3 with my girlfriend (who absolutely loves this show!) so I dont remember too much from season 4 right now...Anyway, here goes... - McNulty and Bunk figuring out the "tap tap...tap tap" murder that D'Angelo put on that girl in her apartment.  (I think Wee-Bay took the years for it though while he was eating up all those charges... and his sandwich) This is the MuthaF***a scene, where McNulty and Bunk go back and forth saying that to eachother as they figure out each part of the hit. - Omar and Brother Mouzone facing off in the alley at the beginning of the next-to-last episode of S3.  Great Stuff! - VERY short scene at the end of the same episode, Omar and Brother Mouzone walking into the building to put the hit on Stringer...never seen two more independent bad-asses gang up to hit a common foe.  Love the backhanded comment from Brother Mouzone to Omar: "Going in through the front door must be a new experience for you" (or something to that effect)  lol, to which Omar just responds "just hold up your end of it, bowtie"   - Stringer fessing up to Avon that he put the hit on D'Angelo.  "There went a life that had to be snatched" - Lester posing as a crooked cell phone dealer  LOL   I can't think of too much else right now since S3 is so fresh in my mind at the moment...what were the standout scenes for you guys? less «

  sublimnl Last online Apr 20, 2008
  37 comments, last one Jun 11, 2009 + Add Comment

• Reality Radio for "The Wire" Fans

  For anyone hooked on The Wire, get some Baltimore PD reality with a live feed of communications at http://www.rollcallradio.com :-)

  For anyone hooked on The Wire, get some Baltimore PD reality with a live feed of communications at http://www.rollcallradio.com :-) less «

  RollCallRadio Last online Apr 4, 2009
  2 comments, last one Jun 11, 2009 + Add Comment

•  

  9.5 Superb

  Based on the first season... hide « show »

  This review is based on the first season of The Wire because to date that is the only season I have watched (I know I need to watch the rest). BBC recently begun to air The Wire and I have to say after watching season one you can see why everyone praises this show it is brilliant, the script, the acting, the directing. Its realistic and gritty, I love gritty stuff. Season one was excellent and I plan on purchasing the entire series, it was that good shame I couldnt see the other seasons due to me being so tired when this show airs.

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  efc91 Added 4 days ago All my reviews
•  

  10 Perfect

  The Wire is and always will be the best Show ever made. hide « show »

  The Wire is without a doubt the best show ever made. Out of 60 episodes, there is not one bad episode. Sure, some may be slower than others but they are still brilliant. The show is criminally underrated, apallingly ignored and unbelievably highly thought of amongst fans and critics alike.
  
  The Show is an epic crime and punishment saga of a five year period in Baltimore, possibly one of the most run-down cities in the north est of America.
  
  It is a powerfule drama, a masterful documentary, a sublime comedy and has proven to be a mighty analysis of the american way of life.
  
  The show has,throughout its five seasons analysed almost every walk of life, from the homeless through to top flight politicians, we must remember, this s more than a mere cop show, it is best novel of our time, it is the best document of life in the early 21st century. If you think I am praising this series too highly, watch it from start to finish and tell me I am wrong.

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  bryanross1985 Added Apr 12, 2009 All my reviews
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  10 Perfect

  The Wire, simply one of the greatest TV shows ever aired… hide « show »

  Everything from the writing, to the acting is pure gold. This show relied on catching the viewer's imagination with superb storylines, and the connections made with the characters. We tuned in every week because we cared that happened to Bubbles (Andre Royo) or to see who Omar (Michael K. Williams) was going to hit this time. It didn't need CGI or over the top explosions to make us sit up and take note. Truthfully, special effects would have pulled the attention away from the brilliant performances. Which in turn would have given us a good show, but with out Computer-generated imagery the wire became a great one. Finally if you have seen the wire, and are considering buying it, hear this… unlike a lot of shows being broadcast it has an ending, I don't know if that's got anything to do with HBO but a lot of channels seam to just cut shows for the hell of it.

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  j_jameson Added Mar 13, 2009 All my reviews
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  10 Perfect

  21st century Epic hide « show »

  This is easily the greatest thing to ever appear on television. A very intellectual crime drama that manages to tell one of the most complex stories ever. Nothing even compares to this show. It creates intense characters that develop nicely and compliment the show's message.
  
  Every season adds on to the rooted story and creates a very deep understanding of the problems with society. It moves at a quick pace, which means it's impossible to be bored with this show. I'm glad the producers knew to end it while it was good, since many shows last too long and lose impact.
  
  Anything less than a 10 for this show is an insult.

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  moush31 Added Feb 18, 2009 All my reviews
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  10 Perfect

  So... hide « show »

  Why in the hell is this only an 8.7 overall??
  
  Seriously though, some serious sabotaging is obviously going on. This website lost what little credibility it had with me by allowing haters to make ghost accounts and vote this show down.
  
  Some garbage UK show called "Wired" comes up first in the search results since it has a 9.1 from 6 votes. Hilarious.
  
  Every episode is 9+, yet the overall is 8.7.. nobody thinks that's fishy? The overall score should ONLY be a composite of episode votes, not a separate choice.
  
  The McNulty and Bunk "F---!" "f------" "m-----f------" "f--- me" "f-----' a" scene makes this show a 10 by itself.

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  LdonovanG Added Feb 11, 2009 All my reviews