History TheWire / TropesCToD

* {{Catchphrase}}:

** Speaking of John Munch's cameo, there's [[http://www.imdb.com/search/name?roles=tt0306414,tt0106028 quite a bit of overlap]] between the casts of ''The Wire'' and ''Series/HomicideLifeOnStreet'' (justified, as both shows were filmed in Baltimore and East Coast casting is not as robust as West Coast casting).

* TheCity: Baltimore

-->'''McNulty''': No, I did not.

** In one case, however, the show notably averts this and plays the aversion for laughs. Before retiring, Colvin spends a day going around his district in a [[PaperThinDisguise fairly obvious but unmarked police car]] and stops by a corner at a red light. A ''very'' young dealer at that corner comes up to see if he's buying. Colvin is incredulous, (he is, after all, sitting in a police car, in uniform, listening to the reports coming from his police radio) and not until he puts on his police hat does that kid get the message that he approached the wrong car. The other corner kids and dealers laugh hysterically at the kid for not being able to recognize a cop.

* CardiovascularLove: Averted (or possibly subverted) with the gangster "No-Heart" Anthony: he got his nickname not from a reputation for cruelty, but because he once tried to escape arrest by shooting himself in the chest.

* ChristianityIsCatholic: Averted and played straight; the African-American ministers who wield massive influence (to the point where you can just say "the ministers" and everyone knows exactly who you're talking about) aren't Catholic (though they aren't identified specifically with any particular church), but Tony Gray, the only religious character who isn't a minister, is Catholic. Also, Season 2 starts off as a pissing contest between Major Valchek and Frank Sobotka about who gets to put in a new stained-glass window at the historically Polish Catholic parish church in Southeast Baltimore.

** Generally averted with guns. Most criminals are always shown dumping their guns into storm drains or, if they can't do that, wiping them with their shirts and throwing them away. Even the otherwise dumb-as-bricks ones are smart enough to listen to their cleverer colleagues and dump their guns. But it's not always perfect. In "Stray Rounds," Bodie and his crew get involved in a shootout with a rival crew in which a kid in an apartment on the corner was hit by a stray. Stringer tasks Bodie with getting rid of the guns, which Bodie does so by tossing the bag over the side of a bridge. Unbeknownst to him, they land on a barge and are turned over to the police. Fortunately, the guns were wiped clean beforehand, allowing Bodie to resist Cole's attempt to bluff him in the interrogation room.

** ''Narrowly'' averted when Stringer forms his "co-op". In his spare time from being TheDragon for the Barksdales, Stringer is taking business classes at the community college. When he has to step up and lead the street operations due to Avon being locked up, he applies his education, going so far as to hold "staff meetings" for the dealers that are conducted according to ''Robert's Rules of Order''. Then he takes it further, convincing the city's other kingpins to join him in a co-op so they can get a bulk rate on shipments of drugs and reduce the violence. At the first meeting, he notices his assistant Shamrock writing on a legal pad.
--->'''Stringer:''' Muthafucka, what is that?\\
'''Shamrock:''' The Robert book says we gotta have minutes for a meeting, right? These the minutes.\\
'''Stringer:''' Nigga, is you taking notes on a criminal fucking conspiracy? ''[destroys pad]'' The fuck is you thinking, man?

** Usually averted, but the scene of [[spoiler:Stringer]]'s death had quite an aesthetic tinge to it.

* ChildhoodMemoryDemolitionTeam: A rather cynical version. The whole neighborhood gathers to watch the demolition of some high-rise housing projects. Most people are glad to see them go, even those who grew up there, because they had been a focal point for some of the worst drug and violent crime in the city. Poot, however, expresses sadness and nostalgia, mainly because that was where he lost his virginity. Bodie mocks him for his AnythingThatMoves reputation, and Bodie says the real tragedy is that they're about to lose a prime drug market.

* CuffsOffRubWrists:
** Done by Wee-Bey after he's stopped in the middle of the street and released of his handcuffs with no charges.
** Bubbles does it when Santangelo releases him from custody after [=McNulty=] intercedes in his favor.

* CorruptHick: [=McNulty=] is clearly under the assumption that rural police departments are run by these. In season 3, before heading inside one office, he announces he going to meet "[[Film/WalkingTall1973 Buford Pusser]]". When he meets the cop in charge, [=McNulty=] starts making casually racist comments under the belief that this will ingratiate him to the man. When the rural cop turns out to be married to a black fellow police officer, [=McNulty=] is left hurriedly backpedaling on his previous statements and offers to introduce him to [[SomeOfMyBestFriendsAreX his partner, Kima]].

--->[[spoiler:'''Stringer]]:''' Well? Get on with it, motherf--

* CommutingOnABus: [=McNulty=] as above-mentioned in AbsenteeActor in season four. In season five, to great hilarity, the show also provides a literal example, when [=McNulty=] arrives at a crime scene on a bus because BPD has no funds for cars.

* CrazyEnoughToWork: Major Bunny Colvin comes up with a pretty interesting plan in season three. Faced with the drug trade sprawling over more and more of his streets, as well as an increasing pressure to get crime rates down, what plan does he come up with? Legalize drugs. More specifically, he sets up three "safe zones" in his district and makes a deal with the dealers: if they move all their trade there, the police won't touch them. And it works. Dangerous street corners are cleared for ordinary people and his men can focus on fighting crime more concretely, as opposed to making endless futile drug raids. Crime goes down 14%. But in the end, the series is too naturalistic for such a ZanyScheme to be workable: once his superiors find out about the whole thing, "Hamsterdam" is shut down, Colvin is disgraced and the streets return to normal. Major Rawls even comments that his plan was brilliant - insane and illegal, but brilliant.

** The first part of painting Marlo Stanfield as more dangerous than the Barksdales is the fact that the Stanfield gang is perfectly willing to use violence against the police. Major Colvin sends Herc and Carver to tell Marlo Stanfield to show up at a parley that Colvin is doing with various drug gangs in the Western District. When Marlo refuses, Herc gets up in his face over this disrespect....and then Carver notices that Marlo's men are all starting to reach for weapons, obviously with the intent of killing both Herc and Carver if they don't back off. Carver gets Herc to stand down, but the fact that the Stanfield gang has absolutely no compunction about killing cops proves to be an early hint about just how ruthless and bloodthirsty the group will turn out to be.

** Near the end of season 1, Savino Bratton, Wee-Bey Brice, and Little Man carry out a hit on Orlando Blocker, who they suspect of snitching to the police. They kill Orlando, but in the process, Little Man shoots the woman accompanying Orlando. What they don't know is that the woman in question is the undercover Kima Greggs. Kima survives, but the entire Baltimore police department cracks down hard on the Barksdales. The Barksdales acknowledge the utter stupidity of Little Man's improvised actions. Savino Bratton is forced to turn himself in, while Wee-Bey kills Little Man on Stringer's orders for his foolishness before going into hiding in Philadelphia.

* CameraSniper: Happens a lot, particularly in season one. For instance, the scene where Bubbles is doing his red hat trick (putting red hats on the suspects being monitored) and Kima is on the roof photographing them.

* CatchPhrase

** ''Music/TupacShakur'' existed in ''The Wire'' universe yet no one notices Avon Barksdale looks a lot like Wood Harris who costarred with Tupac in ''Above The Rim''.

** Omar is a fan of HBO's ''Series/{{Oz}}'', although many cast members on ''The Wire'' (including the actors who play Herc, Carver, Rawls, Daniels, Bodie, Freamon and Cheese) have appeared on it.

* CommutingOnABus: [=McNulty=] as above-mentioned in AbsenteeActor in season 4. In season 5, to great hilarity, the show also provides a literal example, when [=McNulty=] arrives at a crime scene on a bus because BPD has no funds for cars.

* CopKiller: It's repeatedly driven home that criminals doing anything to incur the ire of the police is a very, very, bad idea, and everyone involved in organized crime is cognizant of this. Only the [[FearlessFool extremely foolhardy]] or most aggressive criminals try to do such a thing.

* CrazyEnoughToWork: Deconstructed. Colvin's "Hamsterdam" and Jimmy's made-up serial killer schemes only work in the short term and they both only do more harm than good.

** The real Jay Landsman plays Lt. Mello, while Delaney Williams plays "Jay Landsman." Made more confusing in a scene in the fifth season where Lt. Mello, Jay Landsman, and [[Series/HomicideLifeOnTheStreet Detective]] [[Series/LawAndOrderSpecialVictimsUnit John]] [[JustForFun/JohnMunch Munch]] (who was ''based'' on Landsman) all appear in a bar.

** Omar is a Fan of HBO's ''Series/{{Oz}}'', although many cast members on ''The Wire'' (including the actors who play Herc, Carver, Rawls, Daniels, Bodie, Freamon and Cheese) have appeared on it.
** In one episode, Avon mentions the RealLife Baltimore drug kingpin "Little Melvin" Williams when he's wondering how future generations in Baltimore will remember him. The now-reformed Williams (who was himself the inspiration for Avon) later got a recurring role as the Deacon in Season 3.

** Colvin, who appears briefly in Season 2 only to become very important in Seasons 3 and 4.
** Kenard, who appears briefly in season 3 as a kid on the street proclaiming, "It's my turn to be Omar!". He returns in season four, and then in season five [[spoiler:is the one to shoot Omar]]. The best part is that this wasn't even intentional on the writer's part, they only found out later that it was the same kid and he just happened to be cast for both roles. In one interview Creator/DennisLehane jokingly declared that IMeantToDoThat.

** The reason Major Colvin is able to get away with creating and running Hamsterdam for as long as he does is in part to this trope, as both his superiors and peers, even the well meaning ones, are drastically out of touch with life in the city and what is happening where.
** Colvin has a hard time getting information on the drug crews so he can set up Hamsterdam, due to the other district commanders being stretched thin and busy focusing on street rips. When Colvin stops by the MCU detail office, he's incredulous seeing that Daniels and his small unit have more information than any of the districts or headquarters.

** Cedric Daniels' Major Crimes Unit is designed as the dumping ground for the dead wood and ''humps'' from several departments.
*** Michael Santangelo is a bad homicide detective who frets over his low 40% clearance rate, which he tries to justify on the grounds that he doesn't get that many "dunkers" (easy to solve cases). This in part is why Rawls tries to use him to spy on [=McNulty=]. When Avon and Stringer pay a rare visit to the pit, Santangelo is pissing at the opposite side of the roof where he was supposed to be and misses them. When he tires of being Rawls' spy, Rawls gives Santangelo an ultimatum: clear one of his open cases, give something on [=McNulty=], or leave the Homicide Unit altogether. Thus, Jay Landsman tricks him into seeing a phony psychic named "Madame [=LaRue=]", keeping him out of the way while [=McNulty=] and Bunk clear one of his cases, giving Santangelo the spine to refuse Rawls' demands. He's demoted to patrol and placed in the Western District. [[ReassignmentBackfire Santangelo finds himself much happier in this position]].

*** Zigzagged with Roland Prezbylewski. He has genuinely been a terrible cop to date, managing to shoot up his car and later pistol-whipping a kid in the projects after going out drinking with Herc and Carver. While confined to the office, he proves to be great at data analysis and paper chasing. All his skills as an analyst and codebreaker notwithstanding, he is revealed to still be an utterly terrible street cop. But, when he [[spoiler:leaves the unit]], Sydnor--who is Board-certified Natural Po''lice''--laments his absence.

** Happens again in season 2 when Major Stanislaus Valchek, in a bitter feud with Frank Sobotka over a stained glass window, wants an investigation opened into Sobotka's finances. Valchek offers Ervin Burrell political influence from the Polish council members in his district in exchange for a special unit devoted to investigating Sobotka. Rawls sends an investigative team from CID to Valchek, all "highly recommended" officers, who are, like the Barksdale detail from season 1, just dead-weight "humps" that other divisions wanted to get rid of. Witnessing the task force's lack of work ethic infuriates Valchek, who promptly demands a real police detail under Daniels' command (on Prez's recommendation and repaying a favor Valchek owed to Daniels from Season 1), threatening to complicate Burrell's effort to become Commissioner if he doesn't agree.

** In an unusual outdoors example, Frank is seated on the breakwall near the Key Bridge, gazing out at the water, when Niko answers his summons to come talk about what turns out to be the theft of the cameras.

** Prez's stepfather creates a detail to investigate Frank Sabotka just as a murder case crops up at Sabotka's harbor that attracts [=McNulty=]'s interest.

** Near the end of season 1, Savino Bratton, Wee-Bey Brice, and Little Man carry out a hit on Orlando Blocker, who they suspect of snitching to the police. They kill Orlando, but in the process, Little Man shoots the woman accompanying Orlando. What they don't know is that the woman in question is the undercover Kima Greggs. Kima survives, but the entire Baltimore police department cracks down hard on the Barksdales. The Barksdales acknowledge the utter stupidity of Little Man's improvised actions. Savino Bratton is forced to turn himself in, while Wee-Bey kills Little Man on Stringer's orders for his foolishness.
** In season 3, the undercover officer Kenneth Dozerman is trying to buy drugs when the dealers he's talking to simply rob and shoot him instead. Dozerman survives, but once again it triggers a massive police reaction. When the shooter is found, he does confess after the patrol wagon takes an "unscheduled stop", and the officers "[[PoliceBrutality mistake him for a pinata]]". Bunk finds himself being saddled with the task of recovering Dozerman's gun, while the shooting itself is also the final straw that leads to Major Colvin's creation of Hamsterdam.

* CorruptHick: [=McNulty=] is clearly under the assumption that rural police departments are run by these. In season 3, before heading inside one office, he announces he going to meet "[[Film/WalkingTall1973 Buford Pusser]]. When he meets the cop in charge, [=McNulty=] starts making casually racist comments under the belief that this will ingratiate him to the man. When the rural cop turns out to be married to a black fellow police officer, [=McNulty=] is left hurriedly backpedaling on his previous statements and offers to introduce him to [[SomeOfMyBestFriendsAreX his partner, Kima]].

*** There's also another layer of deconstruction present with Jimmy. On several occasions he gets impatient with doing things the proper ways and tries to take shortcuts in getting the information he wants. He winds up getting the information... only to find that other competent detectives going through the proper ways have already gotten the same information, or more than he did, without committing unprofessional or possibly illegal actions, as Jimmy did.

* DecoyProtagonist: [[spoiler:D'Angelo is set up in the first season as a deuteragonist of the show, serving as the principle viewpoint character for the underworld just as [=McNulty=] does for the police side. However, he's killed in the second season]].

** Wee-Bey Brice is a pretty defining case, after season 1. With the exception of season 4, where he has slightly more prominence because of the storyline surrounding his son Namond, in seasons 2, 3, and 5 he gets only one or two appearances per season.

* DirtyCop: Daniels, who has some skeletons in the closet about it, openly implies that corruption runs rampart in the Eastern district.

* DisposingOfABody: Marlo's hit squad Chris and Snoop have a darkly ingenious system that allows them to off a huge number of rival dealers before the police start to notice [[spoiler: (22 bodies are eventually recovered, but their actual hit count is unknown)]]. They take them at gunpoint into one of hundreds of derelict row-houses, kill them and cover the body in lime, then wrap them in a plastic sheet and board the house back up.

* ContemplativeBoss: Rawls is posed this way when McNulty comes into his office to try to talk him out of the Barksdale detail during the first season.