Re-Watching The Wire: Seasons 1 & 2
Friday, June 29, 2012 at 11:07AM I somehow forgot just how good The Wire is and just how much it influences great modern TV like Breaking Bad.
The Wire, especially Season 2, is a great example of how separate plot lines in a show can come together to tell a great over-arching story while still proving that no character is too small. If you want to know about character development look at anyone in The Wire. Even the smaller characters. The bit parts are amazingly well-rounded.
The show was one of the first that I can think of that started to really move away from focus on one or just a few main characters. Each one became important, even if they were only in a few episodes in the season. Bubbles and Omar are good examples of how minor characters can steal the spotlight and grow.
The Wire wasn't afraid to put any or all of its characters through the gauntlet. McNulty getting put on harbor duty. Lieutenant Daniels getting sent to the basement. D'Angelo Barksdale getting killed in prison for trying to go his own way. No one was safe. That gave the show realism. Bad things can happen to the characters you like. And good things can happen to the characters you hate.
It's a show that isn't only about drugs and police work, but it successfully did more and talked about politics, the City of Baltimore, and the state of the nation after 9/11. One of my favorite things about the show so far is that the investigation of Season 2 started over petty jealousy on the part of Major Valchek over a guy who throws around a little more money at church. Not only is it a show about bigger things, but it's also about people - both good and bad. The line is constantly blurred between the two and we see the positives someone like Omar has, and the negatives of the cops like Herc and Ellis.
The Wire manages to fit all this in - the huge cast of characters and their development, the varying storylines, the big picture, the little picture - without being convoluted. It's a show you have to pay attention to, but as long as you pay attention, you are well rewarded.
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