Line #30 YMMV/TheWire


1	* AlternativeCharacterInterpretation: Unsurprisingly for an HBO drama, the show is ''full'' of this:
2	** Is Jimmy [=McNulty=] the OnlySaneMan in a city full of police officers who have lost their way, or is he a dangerously unhinged KnightTemplar with no regard for the law?
3	** Is Stringer Bell a coldly pragmatic criminal mastermind who only cares about profit, or is he a NobleDemon who tries to bring some much-needed dignity and integrity into the criminal underworld that he was born into? In the end, [[spoiler: did he meet a KarmicDeath after telling one lie too many, or did he meet a tragic death after futilely trying to rise above his station in life]]?
4	*** While we're at it, is Stringer a calculating genius trying to bring high-level economic concepts into the game, or is he cargo-culting economic studies 101 ideas he learned at his local community college without really understanding how they'd have to be implemented in a criminal marketplace?
5	** Is Omar Little a bona fide modern-day Myth/RobinHood (and the closest thing Baltimore has to a genuine hero) or is he just another crook who profits off of the drug trade and causes chaos for the simple thrill of it?
6	** Tommy Carcetti. He's either a sellout, a narcissist who ultimately only cares about himself and his career, or a well-meaning politician who is forced to make compromises due to events beyond his control.
7	** Baltimore, which is a character by itself. Is the town a forsaken post-industrial [[WretchedHive rotten apple]] that never found a new drive, or just a deeper of examination of [[CrapsackWorld ''the'' American City, and by extension America]]? The writers go beyond that and affirm that Baltimore represents any city of the Western civilization.
8	** Was Avon trapped in a life of crime because he didn't know anything else or did he simply enjoy it?
9	*** Did he come to enjoy it because he was trapped?
10	* AndYouThoughtItWouldFail:
11	** The series was initially rejected by Creator/{{HBO}}, who weren't even sure that they wanted a police procedural in their programming lineup - they had to be convinced by Creator/DavidSimon (who had previously collaborated with them on 2000's ''Series/TheCorner'') to produce a pilot episode. The resulting season didn't fare so great in the ratings, and the series was on the verge of cancellation - until critics started promoting the show as one of the best new series in years. The show subsequently survived multiple attempts at cancellation, lasted five seasons, and has been regarded as one of the best dramatic series produced from the 21st century.
12	** At a reunion of some of the cast in 2014, it was revealed that the actors weren't all that satisfied with the show at first. "I told my agent to call ''Series/LawAndOrder''", said Creator/WendellPierce; Creator/SonjaSohn said, "A lot of us were like, 'I don't know; it's kind of slow.'"
13	** Creator/DominicWest was reluctant to do the series since it meant signing a five-year contract to live in Baltimore. His agent eased his fears by telling him "[[ItWillNeverCatchOn don't worry; it'll only last one season]]."
14	* {{Anvilicious}}: While they are well crafted into the general theme about dysfunction, the metaphors about UsefulNotes/TheWarOnTerror in general and the then ongoing Iraqi War (Season 3 was produced in 2004) in particular are not subtle by the standards of the ''The Wire''. But then again, many would agree than Simon's vision was VindicatedByHistory, if not right from the beginning.
15	-->'''Slim Charles:''' Don't matter who did what to who at this point. Fact is, we went to war, and now there ain't no going back. I mean, shit. It's what war is, you know? Once you in it, you in it. If it's a lie, then we fight on that lie. But we gotta fight.
16	* AwardSnub: The series didn't win a single UsefulNotes/EmmyAward and was nominated for only two (for writing). This despite routinely being the subject of gushing critical praise and more than once being declared the Best Show Ever. This might be because the Emmy nominations are done on the strength of a single episode that the producers submit to the judges, and this show is difficult to appreciate (or even understand) by watching a single isolated episode.
17	* BaseBreakingCharacter:
18	** Stringer Bell. Is he a new kind of player, using his intellect to elevate the drug business, or is he a TooCleverByHalf KnowNothingKnowItAll who creates his own downfall? Many in the fandom joke that you see Bell differently depending on at what age, and what level of job experience you are watching the show, with older and more experienced viewers seeing him as similar to any incompetent but self-important middle manager they've had to deal with.
19	** Brother Mouzone is seen as unrealistic or out of place with the tone of the show by some fans. Others point out that Mouzone is implied to be a representative of the Nation of Islam and his manner of dress and speech are [[RealityIsUnrealistic quite accurate to the organization]], and him calming down the front of the tower blocks is [[AluminumChristmasTrees based on a real program the NOI had]] where members would stand guard outside notorious drug and gang ridden housing projects to keep peace, and that members of Fruit of Islam, NOI's militant wing, did work as hitmen for drug organizations.
20	** Some see Namod Brice being TheOneWhoMadeItOut of the Tilghman Middle School cohort to be unearned, as he was already privileged in comparison to his peers, and the problems he faced were lesser, and more self-inflicted than what befalls Michael, Randy and Dukie. However, there are textual hints that the dissonance is deliberate, as there are hints of Namond being a MirrorCharacter for Clay Davis.
21	* BetterOnDVD: Due to the huge cast, intricate plot, and stubborn refusal to hold the viewer's hand, it's ''much'' easier to catch all of the details by binge-watching. (Between this aspect and the relentless focus on the drug war, policing, race, and the headaches of the modern American city, it seems to have been tailor-made not for the decade it was made in but the one after.)
22	* CommitmentAnxiety: One of the reasons why the show wasn't more successful. The show can be downright intimidating to newcomers, as the deliberate pacing, ruthlessly bleak tone, absolute rejection of AcceptableBreaksFromReality and {{Expospeak}}, and a level of ShownTheirWork that demands some knowledge on the fields covered, all seem purpose-built to drive off anyone not willing to meet the show on its level.
23	* CompleteMonster:
24	** [[Characters/TheWireTheStanfieldGang Marlo Stanfield]], the final BigBad, [[TyrantTakesTheHelm wages war]] against the [[Characters/TheWireBarksdaleOrganization Barksdale organization]] after a member makes him an offer to join their coalition, seeing the partnership as a sign of weakness and preferring the bloody combat that ensues. A ruthless sociopath, Marlo orders Junebug and his whole family killed in response to an alleged verbal insult; orders Snoop to kill the 14-year-old Michael, on the mere suspicion he was a snitch; and murders his own mentor after feeling [[YouHaveOutlivedYourUsefulness he is of no further use to him]]. Revealed to keep vacant houses as "tombs" for the bodies of people he orders killed, over 20 corpses are found in them, both of Marlo's enemies and innocents. Egging on a security guard by purposefully committing petty theft in front of him, when the man tells Marlo he would rather avoid confrontation and just wants to support his family, Marlo orders him killed for "talking back".
25	** "[[Recap/TheWireS02E02CollateralDamage Collateral Damage]]": [[SmallRoleBigImpact "Sailor Sam" Choksey]], a crewman on the ''Atlantic Light'', is a [[HumanTrafficking human trafficker]] with "[[Characters/TheWireTheGreeks the Greeks]]", handling the import of young women for the sex trade. With a shipment of 14 girls, Sam began to pimp them to the sailors for money until one girl resisted. Having murdered the girl or covered her death up, Sam panics and proceeds to [[Recap/TheWireS02E01EbbTide lock the others in a container to suffocate]], [[DirtyCoward all to save his own hide]] when "the Greek" himself seeks answers.
26	* DeathOfTheAuthor: There have been [[http://www.overcomingbias.com/2008/10/the-wire.html some arguments]] that the creator's stated message and moral for the show is not the same as the message that many viewers infer. There was even a [[http://www.iop.harvard.edu/Multimedia-Center/All-Videos/The-HBO-Series-The-Wire-A-Compelling-Portrayal-of-an-American-City Harvard symposium]] that addressed this at one point. This is probably because the show's depiction of Baltimore's social structure is so realistic and detailed that it presents realities that are open to a wide variety of interpretations. It's fairly easy for a viewer to come to a different conclusion than David Simon's views, which tend left with sympathy for front line cops. [[https://twitter.com/AoDespair/status/1542161664816123906 The author is aware of his death.]]
27	* DracoInLeatherPants: Inevitable given the moral complexity of the show. The criminals are so nuanced and three-dimensional that it's easy to forget they can be very bad guys. The charismatic Stringer Bell, a man trapped between two worlds, is a main example. Being played by Creator/IdrisElba also helps.
28	* EnsembleDarkhorse:
29	** Omar Little. Even UsefulNotes/BarackObama has called him his favorite character. Creator/DennisLehane revealed that he was given the duty of writing [[spoiler:Omar's death scene]] specifically because none of the other writers wanted to be known as the guy who [[spoiler:killed Omar]].
30	** Slim Charles is also very popular for a relatively minor character. Reliable, competent, honorable and loyal, he displays plenty of positive but scarce virtues.
31	** Brother Mouzone, for much the same reasons as Omar. Appeared in six episodes of the whole series, but his popularity rivaled some of the regular characters. And then taken up to eleven when he first [[CoolVsAwesome fought Omar]] and then [[EnemyMine teamed up]] with him to [[spoiler: take revenge on Stringer.]]
32	** During a premier party for Season 5's debut, the loudest cheer for cast/character accrediting went to Michael B. Jordan/Wallace.
33	** Pryzbylewski, for some.
34	** Senator Clay Davis. Owing it to his charisma and his trademark catchphrase. In Seasons 1 and 2, he's mostly a OneSceneWonder any time he appears; in Seasons 3 and 4, he's much more involved in some of the series' subplots, and finally, in Season 5, he's a regular cast member appearing in most episodes and even having one mostly devoted to tying up his storyline.
35	** Bodie too.
36	** Out of the child characters, Michael Lee is probably the only one with a significant fandom, thanks to a combination of his warm-hearted personality, [[TheWoobie tragic childhood]] and signs of genuine badassery. His [[TakeThatScrappy pounding the shit out of Kenard]] didn't hurt, either.
37	** Felicia Pearson/Snoop. The opening scene of Season 4 when she bought a nailgun probably had something to do with that.
38	** Chris Partlow, who's strangely likable despite (or perhaps ''[[EvilIsCool because of]]'') his being ''the'' single most prolific killer in the entire series.
39	* EvilIsCool:
40	** Prop. Joe, Avon and Stringer are highly competent, have more than a fair share of introspective and quotable dialogue and benefit from superb and naturalistic acting, which turns them into magnetic characters without harming the realism, as they don't rely on over-the-top exploits, just their deep personality.
41	** Omar is undoubtedly cool, but it's left up to the viewer to classify him as evil or not. Brother Mouzone, another smooth operator who doesn't target civilians is a similar case.
42	** Among the major players, Marlo is probably the one who avoids the trope, as he's very cold, aloof and unsophisticated. But even Stanfield is given a shining moment when he single-handedly bests two corner punks in the finale.
43	* FandomRivalry: ''The Wire'' nowadays gets comparisons to ''Series/BreakingBad''.
44	* FanficFuel: Omar's exploits in New York during the latter half of Season 1.
45	* FranchiseOriginalSin: One of the biggest complaints about the fifth and final season is how unrealistic [=McNulty=]'s fabricated "serial killer" is in a show that's otherwise grounded in its depiction of Baltimore. Yet, unrealistic plots had been done in the earlier seasons, namely Season 3, when Colvin essentially legalized drugs and managed to get away with it for a long time, and Season 3 is held in higher esteem than Season 5.
46	** Arguably, while Hamsterdam and the "serial killer" are both unrealistic stories, it's how they're ''handled'' that Hamsterdam is given more leeway with viewers. The seeds for the Hamsterdam arc are planted in Season 2, with the first appearance of Colvin in "Stray Rounds", but also at least one very specific reference to how the community is held hostage by the corner boys through a shot in the end-out montage in the last episode of Season 2. And then during Season 3, it takes four episodes for Colvin to set up Hamsterdam, and the viewers get to take part in the genesis of it after witnessing motivations from external pressures and internal cognition. The "serial killer" arc in Season 5, on the other hand, all originates within half an episode (two if you want to argue that the police department's budget crisis counts as direct exposition). It starts with [=McNulty=] learning about post-mortem bruising, then Homicide unable to get financial backing from the Feds to investigate the vacant murders, cut to a bar scene where Freamon, Bunk and [=McNulty=] discuss the media motivations to what kinds of murders get focus, and then [=McNulty=]'s "serial killer" is born. So whereas Hamsterdam feels like an extremely rational course of action due to a slow and steady build-up, the serial killer story feels illegitimate.
47	** In addition, the personalities of the characters behind these arcs matters too. Colvin is a loveable character, who only wants what's best for his community while also meeting the unrealistic expectations City Hall is demanding of the police to lower the crime rates. He clearly is "one of the good guys", as much as this is possible in the scope of this show. [=McNulty=] is mostly likeable in the first four seasons, but is really despicable in Season 5: drunk, not giving a shit about anyone else, and though you can argue he's doing kinda the right things by willing to get a more functional police department, he does it for selfish reasons (getting the money spigot turned on so he can bring down Marlo).
48	* GeniusBonus:
49	** "Herc" is notable for his strong South Bronx accent. South Bronx is the birthplace of hip hop, and its resident DJ Kool Herc is considered the father of the genre.
50	** In the first episode of Season 2, Frank Sobotka asks his priest to set up a meeting with a Senator Mikulski who attends the Polish-language Mass. Political junkies know that Maryland's senior U.S. Senator at that time was [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Barbara_Mikulski Barbara Mikulski]], who was from a Polish-American family and whose political base was "ethnic" working-class people like Sobotka and his longshoremen.
51	** Brother Mouzone is implied to be a member of Nation of Islam, or its paramilitary wing Fruit of Islam, which isn't spelled out except for a quick joke when Cheese encounters him. While Brother and his underlings arrive to Franklin Terrace under contract from Avon, they seem to operate under the cover of NOI's anti-gang violence patrols.
52	** After both city hall and the media gets wind of Hamsterdam, Mayor Royce looks at the lowered crime statistics and tries to argue that maybe the policy would be a good idea. His health commissioner says that it would be political suicide, and that the press would call him "the most dangerous man in America". The health commissioner is played by Kurt Schmoke former mayor of Baltimore, who did suggest decriminalizing drugs in a speech in 1987 which did get him labelled with that same epiteth.
53	* GrowingTheBeard: The first nine episodes are perfectly serviceable police drama. You start to get invested in the story and wondering how the detail is gonna put the Barksdale crew behind bars... and then "The Cost" happens. In a single scene, the show's JustForFun/HolyShitQuotient shoots into the stratosphere and you realize that while you weren't looking, the characters slowly snuck up on you and made you care for them. It's impossible not to be addicted after that point.
54	** Seasons 1 and 2 are certainly good television but Season 3 is when it really lives up to its promise. We're back on the street, new characters such as Bunny Colvin and Tommy Carcetti are introduced, we get a better balance between worlds and we see the social side of a PoliceProcedural. This coincides with Omar growing his goatee into a thick beard and Cutty, also bearded, arriving onto the scene. And then Season 4 also improved on that, continuing to look on the politics but also the education system.
55	* HarsherInHindsight:
56	** We get a lot of looks into the culture of the Baltimore P.D., including some of its more violent tendencies--and then, early in Carcetti's tenure as Mayor, there's an incident where the police culture is brought into question after a minister gets the wrong end of it and the suggestion that a civilian review board be established be brought up and politicking between the State's Attorney and police about what to do. Fast forward to 2015: the [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Death_of_Freddie_Gray death of Freddie Gray]] brings that selfsame culture of the BPD to national attention, and the result is protests across Baltimore City (and even Baltimore County) and riots in West Baltimore; proposals for stronger civilian review of police brutality; the State's Attorney filing charges of ''murder''[[note]]Charges that are, under the common-law definition of murder applied by Maryland, ''entirely justified''[[/note]] against one of the cops responsible and serious manslaughter charges against the rest; and the federal Department of Justice starting a "pattern and practice" inquiry into the BPD ''at the Mayor's request''. Oh, and Martin O'Malley (of whom Carcetti is generally seen as being something of a NoCelebritiesWereHarmed version)--he was running for President on the left wing of the Democratic Party at the time. The incident drew attention to O'Malley's role in creating the BPD's culture during his tenure as Mayor (particularly his acceptance of the systems that encouraged stats-juking), shifting him from being a long-shot candidate to no-shot.
57	** The show's depiction of municipal corruption in Baltimore now seems kind. O'Malley left office before the final season; the city has had four mayors since then. Two of them have left office early due to corruption[[note]]Sheila Dixon was convicted at trial of stealing gift cards and using city-owned gift cards for personal purchases and Catherine Pugh pleaded guilty to charges that she steered city contracts to bidders who bought copies in bulk of a children's book she wrote[[/note]]
58	** Kima Greggs is a detective who investigates drug dealers with the rest of the Major Crimes Unit. Creator/SonjaSohn was arrested in 2019 for drug possession in North Carolina.
59	** Omar is a robber who targets drug dealers. Creator/MichaelKWilliams himself died of a drug overdose in 2021.
60	** The insistence of locals in Baltimore that Ukraine and Russia are the same thing and having difficulty with accepting it when Ukrainian born Sergei Molotov says otherwise feels different after the two countries went to war in early 2022. Especially since one of Russian dictator Vladimir Putin's "justifications" for the invasion of Ukraine was by saying that the two nations are basically the same people and same thing anyway.
61	** Frank Sobotka pointing out the Francis Scott Key Bridge to Nick as a metaphor for how the Baltimore Port industry will “last forever” became sadly ironic in 2024 after the bridge collapsed as the result of a cargo ship colliding with one of the main supports.
62	* HilariousInHindsight:
63	** Rawls is very angry in the first episodes because the Deputy is "busting his balls" over some case he has no clue about. Once the viewer learns how [[MeanBoss overbearing Rawls is]], it's funny and gratifying to hear that for once, someone is sweating Rawls and giving him a hard time.
64	** Lester Freamon, likely the best detective of the story, is dismissed as a hump or a cuddly house cat in the first episodes. Little do they know he's [[TheAce natural police]].
65	** [=McNulty=] picking up the waitress in Season 2, after Dominic West got a whole show about his character cheating on his wife with a waitress, ''Series/TheAffair''. And he clashes once again with Creator/JohnDoman, who is his father-in-law. Just think about a family reunion with Rawls and [=McNulty=].
66	** After playing a perpetual screw-up cop here, Jim True-Frost would play the straightest of straight-arrow cops Eliot Ness in ''Series/BoardwalkEmpire''. Similarly, Omar would finally graduate from street thug to top man in the same show as Chalky White.
67	** We finally get to see Avon and Wallace together in the ''Franchise/{{Rocky}}'' spin-off film ''Film/{{Creed\|2015}}''.
68	** In the creator's commentary, Creator/DavidSimon mentions how hard Creator/IdrisElba took Stringer getting killed off and says that he had to assure Elba that he was talented enough get other roles. Elba has since become the most successful alumni of the show.
69	** Both Stringer Bell and Wallace would later join the Franchise/MarvelCinematicUniverse, Stringer as the [[Film/{{Thor}} Gatekeeper]] [[Film/ThorTheDarkWorld of]] [[Film/ThorRagnarok Asgard]] and Wallace as [[Film/BlackPanther2018 Erik Killmonger]].
70	*** Others actors from ''The Wire'' would have minor roles in the MCU, too. Notable instances include Herc appearing as [[ComicBook/TheKingpin Wilson Fisk's]] father in ''Series/{{Daredevil\|2015}}'', Lester as a detective again in ''Series/{{Jessica Jones\|2015}}'', Avon being a cop in ''Film/AntMan1'', Bubbles as a club owner in ''Series/AgentCarter'', and Landsman playing a Vietnam War veteran poser in ''Series/{{The Punisher\|2017}}''. Omar makes a cameo in ''Film/{{The Incredible Hulk\|2008}}''.
71	*** Taken up to eleven with ''Series/{{Luke Cage\|2016}}'', where Burrell, Kima, Levy, Cheese, Butchie, and Norman Wilson all make appearances.
72	** Even at the time: for all the fretting about majority-black Baltimore not being likely to elect a white mayor, at that time the city had a white mayor, Martin O'Malley, for several years.
73	** Scott Templeton, the reporter of ''The Baltimore Sun'' who finds success through falsifying flashy stories, is played by Thomas [=McCarthy=], who would go on to direct the movie ''Film/{{Spotlight}}'', which was about the dedicated reporters of the ''Boston Globe'' who cracked open the Catholic Church sex abuse scandal in Massachusetts. [=McCarthy=] went on to win the Oscar for Best Original Screenplay, making it even more hilarious.
74	** In the Season 3 premiere, Wee-Bey says that Cutty once shot a dude then dialed 911 to tell police to get him. While not related at all, we saw [[spoiler: Omar do just that (to Brother Mouzone)]] in the Season 2 finale.
75	* HoYay:
76	** Herc and some gangsters are messing around with the Make-a-Face program at the station, making their ideal girl. Carver then walks out and the camera subtly highlights the similarity. Not to mention Herc and Carver reuniting in Season 2.
77	---> '''Carver''' ''(from off-camera)'': Don't you be grabbin' my dick, faggot!
78	** When Carver is promoted in the finale, his family is nowhere to be seen. Herc is there instead, quick to congratulate and embrace him first.
79	** In Episode 5 when [=McNulty=] gets so excited that Prez has solved the phone number code that he grabs Prez and kisses him on the mouth.
80	** If it weren't for Herc and Carver, Bunk might just be the patron saint of HoYay.
81	--->'''Bunk:''' Fuck Norris. You're my real partner, Lester. My life partner. ''[Norris laughs]''
82	--->'''Lester:''' ''[starting to walk away]'' Don't tease, bitch.
83	--->'''Bunk:''' ''[to Norris]'' Look at that bow-legged motherfucker. I made him walk like that.
84	** And Avon and Stringer have a HeterosexualLifePartners dynamic in the first season, which gets strained in the second when Avon is in prison and Stringer figuratively gets into bed with Prop Joe without telling Avon, which is treated like Stringer having an affair behind Avon's back. In the third season, they play traditional gender roles; Stringer is the distant "husband" who arrives suitcase in hand, late and tired after a day's work, while Avon is the "housewife" who stays at home taking care of it and of the internal problems.
85	* JerksAreWorseThanVillains: Scott Templeton from Season 5 is an intentional HateSink, but he is nonetheless absolutely '''''despised''''' for being nothing more than a slimy ImmoralJournalist, far more so than the legions of murdering drug dealers and human traffickers the show is filled with. Partly this is because a lying, manipulative, and self-righteous jerkass is something far more viewers have to deal with than the aforementioned hardened criminals, partly because he is a KarmaHoudini who gets rewarded with a Pullitzer for shamelessly printing fake news. Scott's lies also end up torpedoing the only realistic chance to reform the Baltimore Police Department from within.
86	* JerkassWoobie: Ziggy. Lampshaded by him explaining to his father that he [[spoiler: killed Glekas]] because he was "tired of being the punchline of every joke." Ziggy also has a sympathetic side, in spite of also being frustratingly stupid. His father's dedication to saving the docks often meant he didn't have time to fully care for his son. [[SadClown It's suggested that Ziggy's constant acting-out is because he's insecure and depressed]]. [[spoiler: The genuine angst and horror he feels after shooting Glekas is also portrayed rather poignantly.]]
87	* MagnificentBastard:
88	** [[Characters/TheWireOmarAndAssociates Omar Devon Little]] is a "stick-up man" in Baltimore who [[KarmicThief robs drug dealers]] for a living. His first episode has him robbing one of Avon Barksdale's stash houses. Avon puts out a hit on him and his crew and manages to succeed in killing one of his crew and torturing Omar's boyfriend to death. Over the course of the next three seasons, Omar [[RoaringRampageOfRevenge retaliates]] against the [[Characters/TheWireBarksdaleOrganization Barksdale organization]], culminating in him killing Stringer Bell, Avon's right-hand man, becoming a major reason for the fall of the Barksdale organization. In Season 4, Omar robs [[Characters/TheWireTheStanfieldGang Marlo Stanfield]], a new West Side kingpin. Marlo, wanting revenge, frames Omar for murder though Omar beats the charge, and then {{blackmail}}s Proposition Joe, another kingpin, into giving up Marlo's new drug shipment, only to double-crosses Joe and steal a much larger shipment instead of Marlo's. Omar then sells it back to Joe and announces his retirement until Marlo kills Omar's mentor for revenge. Omar returns to Baltimore, but he is briefly outgunned. He then goes on a warpath and calls Marlo out to face him. While he dies before this can come to fruition, the taunts prove to be very effective, as by the end of the series Marlo has faded into obscurity whereas Omar has become a legend.
89	** [[BadassBookworm Brother Mouzone]], a legendary [[ProfessionalKiller hitman]] from New York, is called down to Baltimore by Avon Barksdale to deal with Proposition Joe's drug dealers in Season 2. He first shoots Cheese, Joe's nephew, with a rat shot, and is then able to intimidate Joe's gang into staying away with his presence alone. Stringer Bell, Avon's right-hand man, had cut a deal with Joe, and manipulates Omar into attacking Mouzone, claiming Mouzone tortured Omar's lover to death. Omar shoots Mouzone but realizes the man is innocent and calls an ambulance for him. While in the hospital Mouzone is able to deduce that Stringer was responsible but keeps this information to himself. Returning in Season 3, he tracks Omar down, asking him for help killing Stringer. He then blackmails Avon into giving up Stringers location. Together, he and Omar ambush Stinger and kill him at his condo developments. AffablyEvil and WickedCultured, Mouzone showed why he was [[TheDreaded so feared]] as a hitman.
90	** [[NobleDemon Slim Charles]] is one of the most skilled and effective enforcers the Barksdale Organization has. Coordinating a series of hits on Marlo Stanfield's operations, Charles is even able to get close to Marlo himself. Intelligent enough to [[PragmaticVillainy balk at a hit on a politician]], Charles holds to a number of standards including being disgusted at an attempt to kill Omar Little during the "Sunday Truce" while he takes his grandmother to church. Managing to stay active even after the downfall of Avon Barksdale and Stringer Bell, Charles joins Proposition Joe's Co-Op where he advises young dealer Bodie Broadus to stay clear of Marlo and builds up his own organization. When Joe is killed, Charles calmly executes his treacherous nephew Cheese and uses the chance to take over the organizations, a rare example of a pawn who [[EarnYourHappyEnding crossed the board and has become a queen]].
91	** [[BadassAdorable Michael Lee]] is a kid just trying to make his way in Baltimore. Looking not to be beholden to anyone, he [[StaringDownCthulhu stares down Marlo Stanfield]], who, suitably impressed, tries to recruit him. When his stepfather, who is strongly implied to have molested him, comes home, he becomes desperate to get rid of him and takes Marlo up on his offer. Growing into a criminal, he still constantly questions Marlo's orders, until he finally questions too much. Marlo orders his execution, but Michael realizes this and [[AssassinOutclassin outwits the assassin]]. Going on the run, he makes sure his friends and family are safe and with Omar dead decides to become Baltimore's next legendary KarmicThief.
92	** [[CoolOldGuy Lester Freamon]] is one of Baltimore's finest detectives. Once [[ReassignedToAntarctica taken off Homicide to be put on the Pawn Shop Unit]] over pettiness, he shows his brilliance constantly, breaking cases wide open due to his intellect. In Season 5, he decides to help Jimmy [=McNulty=] fake a serial killer, giving him the idea to sensationalize it. Using the resources they have gathered, he sets up an illegal wiretap on Marlo Stanfield and then after a couple of weeks breaks the code. In the meantime he blackmails Clay Davis into giving up info on Marlo's lawyer, Maurice Levy. While the case falls apart, they're still able to use the info on Levy's dirty dealings to charge most of Marlo's crew. While being forced to retire, he still takes it in stride, and happily retires with his girlfriend to make luxury dollhouse furniture for the rest of his days.
93	** Kimmy is a clever crook adept at robbing drug dealers who becomes one of Omar Little's best allies. Kimmy works with her partner and lover Tosha to use their [[FemmeFatale looks]] and wits alike to scope out stash houses, lower the defenses of the guards, and hold up the places to rob them of their money and drugs. Conscripted by Omar, Kimmy continues to use intelligent ploys like the sympathy for a little girl or dressing herself up as a hooker to get the drop on enemy goons and help Omar stage heist after heist. Upon losing Tosha in a gunfight, Kimmy murders Barksdale minion Tank and departs from Omar, returning later for one final heist that earns her a fortune to see her off into retirement, Kimmy being smart enough to take her earnings and get out of the game for good.
94	* MemeticBadass: Omar and Brother Mouzone, in-universe.
95	* MemeticMutation:
96	** "Where's (insert name of thing here) at?"
97	** "Omar coming!"
98	** "It's all in the game."
99	** "Sheeeeeeeeeeeit." There have been posters made parodying the famous Obama Hope poster, with Davis replacing Obama and the word SHIT replacing HOPE.
100	** Basically, any and all of the {{Catch Phrase}}s listed above.
101	** "Got that WMD!"
102	** "Nigga, is you ''takin' notes'' on a criminal fuckin' conspiracy?"
103	** [[https://knowyourmeme.com/memes/wee-beys-reaction Wee-Bey's reaction]] upon finding out that Orlando's "girlfriend" was an undercover cop in Season 1, Episode 11, has become a popular reaction gif for delayed realizations.
104	** "You come at the king, you best not miss!"
105	** "I want some of that Peppa steak!"
106	** "[[PunctuatedForEmphasis Frank. Sobotka.]]" Often proceeded with, "I'm not hearing the name", or "This is about..."
107	** "Price of the brick goin' up" walks off
108	** "This... is ''BULLSHIT!''"
109	** "First thing we gonna need to do is get you some Chrome". Slim's line about getting a gun for Cutty when he returns to the game is used whenever an internet browser other than Google Chrome is in a system (usually after a fresh OS installation).
110	* MisaimedFandom:
111	** As in most gangster stories, it struggles with DoNotDoThisCoolThing and RootingForTheEmpire.
112	-->'''David Simon''': I think there’s a great deal of forgiveness for the streetwise badass in this world. I mean, there’s a peculiar way in which the gangster chic tends to overwhelm some viewers’ sense of morality. I was always amazed when we would present the idea of some 15-year-old kid who, because he bore witness and talked to the police, would have people online saying, "Oh, Randy got to be got because he was snitching." I’d be thinking, No, Randy needs to be 15 in America. He needs to have a childhood, you asshole.
113	** Mayor Carcetti and his UsefulNotes/TheWarOnDrugs position also got this despite how much Season 3 is about the failures.
114	-->'''Ed Burns''': Yeah, we did enjoy ourselves playing with the idea of demagoguery and the political hyperbole. I remember at the end of third season, when he was still a councilman, we had Carcetti give an impassioned speech, and the camera gently panned in on him as he rhapsodized about saving neighborhoods and demanding better for the city. And it really was a beautiful speech. And, you know, we wanted - the writers worked on it for a long while. And yet, everything about the speech was just a recall and retread of the drug war. And he was arguing for more warfare. And - whereas, the whole of third season had shown this police commander trying to struggle with it on pragmatic and practical terms, in terms of Bunny Colvin. And I was amazed to find that a lot of viewers, you know, longtime viewers, had watched that episode and they followed Carcetti right off the cliff. They were - despite what they have been showing for, you know, 12 episodes in terms of, you know, the box that the drug was is, they were - they thought he was the solution, because he sounded like the solution. And, you know, that taught me a lot, you know, I kind of went all candid on myself. I forgot what I was writing because I was shocked that so many people went with Carcetti.
115	* MoralEventHorizon:
116	** For Stringer: [[spoiler: arranging D'Angelo's death. Dee was one of the only completely likeable members of the Barksdale gang and was on the way up education-wise at The Cut. Then Stringer has him killed and [[MakeItLookLikeAnAccident makes it look like a suicide]] just because he's afraid of Dee ratting to lower his sentence, ''[[ManipulativeBastard and he does so without Avon's consent]]''. Not to mention the fact that before and after the hit he spends a lot of the time fucking D'Angelo's girlfriend, and even has the balls to pick up and hold D'Angelo's infant son while he's plotting to have his dad murdered.]] Holy shit.
117	** For Omar, the Barksdale hitmen [[GodzillaThreshold attempting to kill him]] on a Sunday morning when he's taking his grandmother[[note]]who has ''no'' idea about his criminal activities[[/note]] to church is a line he never expected anyone to cross.
118	-->No shame on them niggas
119	** Carcetti goes from being a decent candidate with ambition not only for high office but also to make a difference, to leading an administration perhaps more morally bankrupt than the one that preceded him. His corruption is complete when he refuses to ask for money from the Republican governor to save the city's education system as this will hurt him politically when he runs against the governor, abandoning the city he promised to save.
120	*** AND THEN, after justifying the above decision by saying he can help the schools from a better position, when [[spoiler:he begins his race for governor, he promises half of any new school funds created in the state to be sent to Prince George's County just to avoid a primary challenge]].
121	** Marlo was never very far from it to begin with, but all of his early killing were at least related to The Game. Then, in Season 4, he deliberately shoplifts a $.25 lollipop while making eye contact with the security guard just to tweak him. When the man confronts him outside the store and basically asks to be treated like a human being, Marlo blows him off. ''And then has him murdered.''
122	--->'''Marlo''': You want it to be one way, but it's the other way.
123	* OffendingTheCreatorsOwn: Creator/DavidSimon, who is Jewish himself, caught a lot of flak for creating such a stereotypically villainous Jewish character as Maurice Levy.
124	* OlderThanTheyThink: Isiah Whitlock Jr.'s catchphrase "Sheee-it" is most associated with this show, but he actually first came up with it in ''Film/TwentyFifthHour''.
125	* OneSceneWonder: The 1968 mayor, "white Tony", who, in [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VjzqO6UOPFQ the parable of the bowls of shit]], graphically describes governing as eating shit from one community or another, time and again.
126	* RetroactiveRecognition:
127	** Creator/MichaelBJordan has become easily the most successful of the show's younger actors, making it pretty fun to see him so young here.
128	** This was Creator/IdrisElba's first major role. Near the end of his stint, David Simon had to reassure a struggling Idris that he would find good acting jobs again.
129	** After the huge success of ''Series/GameOfThrones'', Tommy Carcetti is probably better known to people as Petyr "Littlefinger" Baelish.
130	** Likewise, Lance Reddick may be better known to people not as Cedric Daniels, but as [[Series/{{Fringe}} Philip Broyles]].
131	** Looks like Gale Boetticer worked in the news business before becoming a [[Series/BreakingBad meth cook]] [[Series/BetterCallSaul for Gus Fring]].
132	* RewatchBonus: Practically mandatory, as you can appreciate just how well put together the show is far more when you're not spending the first couple episodes of every single season drowning in new characters. This is a major factor in the show's above-mentioned AwardSnub.
133	* SacredCow: Being one of the greatest shows ever to come from HBO and of all time, very few will tolerate baseless criticism of it.
134	* TheScrappy:
135	** Ziggy seemed to exist for no reason other than to constantly make things worse for himself and those around him through sheer stupidity, and fans disliked him as much as the characters themselves.
136	** Even as Carver comes to understand that being a police officer demands restraint and responsibility on his part, his friend Herc never stops acting like an obnoxious, belligerent idiot. His corruption, arrogance, racism, and lack of professionalism become difficult to overlook as the show progresses and his incompetence has increasingly severe repercussions. The worst of this comes in Season 4 when [[spoiler: he casually makes a serious breach of witness confidentiality by [[WouldHurtAChild disclosing that Randy has talked to the police]], something that ends up ruining the poor kid's life as well as possibly getting his foster mother killed]]. It's clear by the final season that Herc hasn't changed one iota and is completely indifferent to how his actions have affected other people, meaning that beneath his meathead charm he's just another violent, amoral scumbag like officer Colicchio.
137	* SeasonalRot: While not considered bad by any stretch of the word, there are those who think that Season 5 is weaker and unrealistic compared to the other seasons. The side-plots of the previous seasons were fascinating and expanded the strong ensemble cast, to the point that they could practically carry the show by themselves when the main cast were absent from an episode. In Season 5, though, the newspaper sideplot feels extremely superfluous. Seen as a severe WriterOnBoard moment on the part of David Simon, it didn't introduce any memorable or compelling new characters, and the whole "serial killer" plot line came across as implausible, getting away from the "true to life" feel of the show. It may also have been sinking under the weight of the sheer number of characters and plot lines of the first four seasons (in fact, the fifth season is saturated with cameos by characters from past seasons, and they don't serve much purpose). Reducing the episode count to 10 (as opposed to the normal 12-13 per season) did not help matters either.
138	* SlowPacedBeginning: Newcomers will be likely overwhelmed by the staggering number of characters and the [[InfoDump molasses slow exposition]] that unfolds during the first season. The exact point when new viewers' opinion of the show crosses over from "above-average cop drama" to "GREATEST SHOW EVAH!!!" varies — from a few episodes to the ''entire'' first season.
139	* SpiritualSuccessor:
140	** To ''Series/HomicideLifeOnTheStreet''. Both were based on ''Homicide: A Year on The Killing Streets'', with ''The Wire'' essentially using the plots and characters that went unused for ''Homicide''. Creator/DavidSimon, having greater control over ''The Wire'' as well as freedom from Network interference, was able to make a more honest crime drama. Munch did have a brief cameo, talking about his former bar, and one of Luther Mahoney's family was mentioned, along with being set in Baltimore, so it at least has some subtle hints of being a sequel even if it's merely set in the same version of Baltimore.
141	** Also to ''Series/{{Oz}}''. It's an epic crime drama with a huge cast of characters, it's known for blending gritty depictions of crime with philosophy and liberal social commentary, and it spends much of its running time discussing institutional dysfunction and the perils of government bureaucracy. The fact that a ''huge'' chunk of ''Oz'''s [[http://thewire.wikia.com/wiki/Oz cast is also]] in ''The Wire'' [[note]] Including John Doman (Edward "The Colonel" Galson in ''Oz'' and Major William Rawls in ''The Wire''), Lance Reddick (Detective Johnny Basil in ''Oz'' and Lieutenant Cedric Daniels in ''The Wire''), Frankie Faison (Cornelius Keane in ''Oz'' and Deputy Commissioner Ervin Burrell in ''The Wire''), Seth Gilliam (Clayton Hughes in ''Oz'' and Ellis Carver in ''The Wire''), Wood Harris (Officer Gordon Harris in ''Oz'' and Avon Barksdale in ''The Wire''), J.D. Williams (Kenny Wangler in ''Oz'' and Preston "Bodie" Broadus in ''The Wire''), Reg E. Cathey (Martin Querns in ''Oz'' and Norman Wilson in ''The Wire'') and Domenick Lombardozzi (Ralph Galino in ''Oz'' and Thomas "Herc" Hauk in ''The Wire'').[[/note]] just strengthens it.
142	* SpecialEffectsFailure: You can clearly see light glinting off Bubbles's "missing" tooth in a number of close ups.
143	** The CGI on the project towers being demolished during the Season 3 premiere is much less convincing on modern high definition televisions.
144	* StrawmanHasAPoint: We're supposed to see ''Baltimore Sun'' Managing Editor Thomas Klebanow as the bad guy because of the cuts to personnel that have been occurring and his nagging of Gus over small matters like profanity, but he is also right that the old-school, free wheeling journalistic environment that Gus represents can't exist anymore, professional settings call for a certain decorum, and as the boss he is perfectly within his rights to request that and expect his instructions to be obeyed.
145	* TooBleakStoppedCaring: The show's bleak tone, with so many sympathetic characters [[NoGoodDeedGoesUnpunished ground between the cogs of the system]] while the same system [[KarmaHoudini rewards some of its most heinous members]], can alienate some viewers. That said, the show does have a ''lot'' of humor on it, which Simon has admitted to inserting to prevent the show from being too depressing.
146	* TooCoolToLive: This trope might as well be renamed [[spoiler: The Omar.]]
147	* ToughActToFollow: The series is regarded by many TV critics as one of, if not ''the'', best television show ever made. Creator/DavidSimon's follow-up, ''Series/{{Treme}}'' has been chugging along in relative obscurity, which is admittedly what ''The Wire'' did for most of its run as well. Within the run of the series itself, there are many who cite the fourth season as one of, if not THE greatest season in all of television. By contrast, quite a number of fans and critics complained that the final season was hindered by Simon [[AuthorTract hanging his dirty laundry out to dry]] (particularly regarding its criticism of journalism, which echoed Simon's real life feelings on the ''Baltimore Sun''). Luckily, those critics still cite the series finale as among the greatest episodes the show had done, so the show was still able to finish on a high note.
148	* UnintentionalPeriodPiece:
149	** The technology used dates it pretty firmly to its 2002-08 run. In Season 1, the detail's investigation into the Barksdale Organization is driven by cracking their network of pager signals to justify wiretaps on payphones the gang uses to communicate. By Season 2, the street has transitioned to burner cell phones ("the latest in yo-tech" in Kima's words) -- to the surprise of many cops (who don't realize how cheap phones have gotten), and the Greek is using text messages on a [=BlackBerry=]. As the series goes on, the crooks get more sophisticated in using mobile technology -- and the cops get ever more sophisticated in using the technology to track them down. It's also dated to the 2000s by the ''absence'' of two key technologies: true smartphones and social media.
150	** Starting in Season 3, the [=ComStat=] system is shown for tracking police performance (a fictionalized version of the [=CitiStat=] system actually implemented in the early 2000s, based on New York's [=CompStat=]). While data-driven policing and [=CitiStat=] still exists in Baltimore, the arrests-driven approach is definitely an artifact of the 2000s, before more recent policy trends towards criminal justice reform.
151	** Season 4 makes heavy reference to the "No Child Left Behind Act" and its effects upon the education system.
152	** Throughout the series, street level dealers gave their product topical brand names like "Troop Surge", "[=WMDs=]", and "Pandemic" (i.e. bird flu).
153	** Several figures are slightly time-shifted versions of late 1990s-early 2000s Baltimore pols:
154	*** The most prominent is Tommy Carcetti, a white councilman who becomes Mayor of Baltimore and then Governor of Maryland, who is a pretty obvious stand-in for Martin O'Malley. O'Malley did the same thing 1999-2007, although, to his credit, O'Malley served two full terms as Mayor before seeking the governorship rather than skipping out after two years like Carcetti.
155	*** Council President (and Carcetti's eventual successor) Nerese Campbell appears modeled on Sheila Dixon, who was Council President during O'Malley's term as Mayor and eventually succeeded him.
156	*** The unnamed antagonistic Republican governor is pretty transparently supposed to be basically the same as Bob Ehrlich, who was governor during O'Malley's second term as mayor. Ehrlich himself even cameos as the aide who tells Carcetti and Norman that the (fictional) governor is ready to see them
157	** With the rise of smartphones and social media, there's no way Colvin would be able to keep Hamsterdam under wraps for more than a day or two.
158	* UnpopularPopularCharacter: Omar is hated by the dealers and cops alike, but loved by the fanbase -- up to and including UsefulNotes/BarackObama.
159	* ValuesResonance: Everything that this show took to task - the failures of the War On Drugs, the problems with education failing our kids, the systemic poverty, scandals surrounding police brutality towards minorities - back in the early 2000s are still problems today (the 2020s). And not just in Baltimore.
160	* ViewerGenderConfusion: Snoop has a gender-nonconforming style and a husky voice and some viewers do not realize that Snoop is a woman at first glance.
161	* VindicatedByHistory: The series spent its five seasons, for the most part, ignored, a minor-league show overshadowed by the likes of ''Series/TheSopranos''. A while after it ended, UsefulNotes/BarackObama (a huge fan) became the U.S. president and his public appearances increasingly referenced the show. It is now showing up on numerous critics' lists as one of the greatest television dramas ever made.
162	** This can also apply to Season 2, as multiple people tend to say they didn't appreciate it as much the first time around but is their favorite season during re-watches.
163	* TheWoobie:
164	** Poor, poor Bubbles.
165	** Wallace, a sweet kid who wasn't cut out for the gang lifestyle. [[spoiler: If only he had stayed in the countryside...]]
166	** The Sobotka family and the rest of the stevedores in Season 2. Their way of life is disappearing due to mechanization and they're powerless to do anything to stop it. Although they're working with [[RuthlessForeignGangsters the Greeks]], they're only doing so out of desperation and are otherwise swell guys. Frank Sobotka is especially tragic; all the sacrifices he made for the docks and his men [[spoiler: [[ShootTheShaggyDog end up being for naught and get him killed]].]]

Context YMMV / TheWire