HBO produces
The Wire, $79.99 US, which is an original drama that I've only recently discovered.
The Wire is the creative vision of
David Simon and
Ed Burns, and skilled writers like
George Pellecanos have even been caught contributing to episodes. The thing I like most about
The Wire is this, it doesn't condescend to the audience. The plot is fairly intricate for a one hour drama, and there are many different characters to follow, actors to keep track of. Also, the show is fairly realistic in its portrayal of a months long investigation, wherein criminals engage in deadly but lucrative turf wars, and hard working cops face mean-spirited reprisals for simply doing their jobs. People that live in
Baltimore will especially enjoy this show, since it's the setting for the drama and exteriors are shot here. There are also some good inside jokes that people from
Baltimore will understand, such as when a detective holds up a
Laura Lippman paperback.
I was able to check out
The Wire: The Complete First Season on DVD from my local library, otherwise I might never have reviewed it. Surprisingly, many DVDs (Desperate Housewives, Mr. & Mrs. Smith, Sex in the City, The Forty Year Old Virgin) can be found at the library, especially boxed sets, so I'd suggest you check out the online card catalog (and interlibrary loan & hold) at your local branch before you blow your meager paycheck at the nearest
Blockbuster. If you like audiobooks, you can find many of these at the library also. Some of the actors that headline
The Wire are:
Dominic West, John Doman, Idris Elba, Frankie R. Faison, Larry Gilliard, Jr., Wood Harris, Deidre Lovejoy, Wendell Pierce, Lance Reddick, Andre Royo, and Sonja Sohn.
Each episode of
The Wire has (as an added feature) audio commentary from the writers, and it was fun to go back and listen to the commentary after watching each episode. If you don't speak english, you can listen to each episode in
French or
Spanish. Deaf viewers can follow along with
English, French, or
Spanish subtitles. The run time is 775 minutes, so I'd suggest setting aside a rainy three day weekend for maximum viewing pleasure. If you lose track while switching between disks, you can review an optional
Previously On... or
Next On... trailer for each episode of
The Wire. The video is clean and vibrant, displayed in a 4:3 aspect ratio. The DVDs featured no biographical information about the actors featured in
The Wire, so disappointingly I cannot tie names to all faces. I think all the acting was superb.
Although I love the theme music by
Blind Boys of Alabama, I didn't enjoy having to sit through (or click through) the show intro 13 times. When you have the whole season in a box, I think one intro is enough. I'd rather have had a short audio bumper inserted in front of episodes 2-13, and the front end credits replaced with title cards on the back end. 41 whole minutes could have been carved out of the run time if the intro were removed from 12 episodes, and this might have allowed
HBO to squeeze the season onto four discs instead of five, eliminating the overdone packaging in the process. I think the actors deserve more credit than I can accord them here, because if there were any paper booklets or inserts that were supposed to accompany the box set -- well -- the library must've removed them from the slipcase. Any details in the summaries below are purposefully vague. Enjoy viewing!
DISC 1
Episode 01: The Target
The Baltimore prosecutors' star witness recants her testimony during the trial of D'Angelo Barksdale - a mid-level dealer accused of murder - resulting in a not guilty verdict. After the trial, Detective McNulty explains to Judge Phelan how he suspects the Barksdale crew for a line of related murders. After the judge contacts McNulty's superiors about this revelation, McNulty is taken to task for his openness. Meanwhile, D'Angelo's free to resume work, but discovers that he's been demoted to street level deals.
Episode 02: The Detail
The witness who testified against D'Angelo winds up being a murder case for Detective "Bunk" Moreland. However, McNulty informs Bunk that, since the victim testified against D'Angelo, Avon Barksdale probably ordered this murder. McNulty and Bunk pick up D'Angelo for questioning and convince him to write an "apology" the the victim's three orphaned children. Just as he's about to comply, D'Angelo's attorney arrives and makes him leave.
Episode 03: The Buys
After early morning "field interviews" conducted by Herc, Carver and Prez lead to a minor riot and bad publicity for the police, the Deputy Commissioner calls in Daniels. McNulty sends Mahone and Polk to the terrace to get a photo of Avon Barksdale. They come up short, but soft-spoken Freamon comes through with an old photo from Barksdale's boxing days. McNulty and Greggs get surveillance equipment from McNulty's FBI contact.
DISC 2
Episode 04: Old Cases
Bodie manages to slip through security and escape from lockup. Meanwhile, Herc and Carver continue their renegade ways by traveling to Marlboro to find Bodie and beat him into giving up information on the case. Once they get there, Herc has a change of attitude after meeting Bodie's grandmother. Furious of being robbed of his product during the "re-up," Avon Barksdale instructs Stinkum, Wee-Bey and Stringer to double the existing reward for anyone who eliminates Omar and his crew.
Episode 05: The Pager
When Avon becomes more and more suspicious, he orders Wee-Bey to change phone lines in his apartment. He also promotes Stinkum to manage a new territory and he gets word that one of Omar's crewmembers has been "got." Stringer warns D'Angelo that a snitch may be in his camp and D'Angelo should tighten up his pit crew by withholding their pay. While talking with Orlando, D'Angelo learns of Stinkum's promotion.
DISC 3
Episode 06: The Wire
Brandon's bloodied body is discovered in a lot that's coincidentally located next to Poot and Wallace's house. Wallace reports this to D'Angelo, and also expresses how seeing Brandon's body has started to bother him. D'Angelo tells Wallace to simply get over it, but Wallace is still unsure. Wallace gets further unsettled after Avon rewards D'Angelo and him with extra cash for their parts in getting Brandon taken care of.
Episode 07: One Arrest
Greggs, Carver, Herc and Sydnor grab the runner holding the re-up stash for the pit. Now that the cops have their stash, a furious Avon questions D'Angelo about a snitch being in the pit. D'Angelo denies the allegation but Stringer tells D'Angelo and his crew to use pay phones a block away now, and not to use the same phone twice. Afterwards, they snatch out the existing pit pay phones. This, of course, disconnects the detectives' wiretap.
Episode 08: Lessons
McNulty has his sons play the game of 'front and follow' with Stringer Bell as the target, and they get Bell's license plate number for their efforts. Greggs and Carver bust a driver picking up a large amount of cash from the towers, only they're forced to return the money on orders from the Deputy Commissioner. Avon finds out about Orlando's inquiries to branch out into "dirty" business, and makes it clear to Orlando that that's not the plan.
DISC 4
Episode 09: Game Day
Freamon gets Sydnor and Prez started on Barksdale's money trail. They discover the usual ties to dummy companies, but they also find large sums of political contributions. Herc and Carver bust Wee-Bey holding $22,000, but only $15,000 is reported. Lieutenant Daniels discovers the discrepancy and orders them to turn over the cash before the next morning roll call. Omar's mission takes him to Proposition Joe, where he promptly offers another recently stolen Barksdale stash to Joe in exchange for Barksdale's pager number.
Episode 10: The Cost
After being clean for three days, Bubbles gets strong advice from former addict Walon and a promise of extra help from Detective Greggs. When Omar's murder attempt on Barksdale fails, Stringer lays down the law to Barksdale - no phone use, no more money runs, a new pager number - anyone that needs to speak to Barksdale also needs to speak to Stringer first. Barksdale and Bell also send word to Omar that a truce is possible.
Episode 11: The Hunt
While Greggs' life hangs in a delicate balance, the officers deal with the shock of the shooting in different ways. Herc, Carver and Sydnor get back on the case after Freamon puts the incident into perspective. After seeing McNulty close to the breaking point, Rawls instructs McNulty to unload his guilty conscience, because he's not really responsible for the shooting. Daniel is ordered by the Deputy Commissioner to raid all the known drug locations to appease the Commissioner's desire for a photo op where 'dope on the table' is prominently displayed.
DISC 5
Episode 12: Cleaning Up
After Barksdale's supply gets confiscated in the bust, Stringer hands down new rules to the crews. Barksdale and Stringer meet with Levy to discuss their next steps, which includes the elimination of any and all persons that can connect Barksdale to the drugs. Wallace returns to the pit and asks to get put back on the crew. However, Stringer has other plans for Wallace, and asks Bodie to step up for the job. This is perhaps the strongest episode in the first season of *The Wire.
Episode 13: Sentencing
Greggs musters the strength to finger "Little Man" as one of her attackers. Daniels and McNulty attempt to take their wire investigation to the feds, after damning evidence ties Baltimore politicians to Barksdale, but the feds only want the politicians and ultimately don't care about Barksdale. Freamon gets promoted to homicide from the pawn shop unit after the investigation concludes, and McNulty gets demoted to harbor patrol. D'Angelo can't swing a deal after being collared for picking up a kilo in NYC, and he agrees to a possession charge and 20 years hard time to save the family territory. Bodie and Poot resume working the pit for the Barksdale family and Stringer Bell, having learned hard lessons from D'Angelo.
I'll have to check out the complete second season now that I've viewed this. If
HBO had included more extras and goodies in the boxed set, I'd have given this a solid 5 star rating. Hope this helps with your buying decision!
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_______________________________________________________________________
The DVD:
The Wire: The Complete First Season,
HBO Video
ISBN:
0783127928
Format:
5 Disc Set
If You Like The Wire: The Complete First Season, You Might Enjoy:
Oz: The Complete Seasons 1-5,
The Shield: The Complete First Season,
The Shield: The Complete Second Season,
The Shield: The Complete Third Season,
The Wire: The Complete Second Season ,
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