This must be said: The Wire is overrated

[andgar923]

I've been waiting to watch this show for years. The hype around this around the inter webs had me salivating.

"GOAT show!!!" many typed around the webs.

Patton Oswalt even wrote an entire article on AintItCool proclaiming his adoration for the show.

Posters quoted Wire lines, used 'Avon' and Stringer as their board handles with Avatars of their fav characters. Even some here have proclaimed it to be better than Sopranos, the best show ever!!!

I was anxiously anticipating to watch it, and I was let down.

Cliche, cliche, cliche.

Acting was good, rarely great. The big bad drug dealers were not, nothing original, nothing groundbreaking, nothing spectacular, shit

[The Real JW]

Agreed.

[El Kabong]

I've only watched seasons 1 and 2 and wasn't blown away by it, but I've been told that it gets better. I still don't have any huge motivation to continue watching it though.

[Loneshot]

further proof that andgar is not only the worst poster of all time, but worst human of all time

damn :oldlol:

Imagine once a year, every city/town in the world submitted their nominations to the UN for the world's worst human being. And each year one person would be given that title.

[Graviton]

Eh it was too slow and boring for me, like a parody of a gritty dramatic crime series instead of a real one. Not as bad as Breaking Bad though.

From the HBO series I liked Oz the most, had more of a flavor and personality. Better humor, acting and entertainment value.

[andgar923]

Eh it was too slow and boring for me, like a parody of a gritty dramatic crime series instead of a real one. Not as bad as Breaking Bad though.

From the HBO series I liked Oz the most, had more of a flavor and personality. Better humor, acting and entertainment value.
BB has some shaky writing but even then, it's better than Wire.

Shit, the acting on BB alone trumps anything on Wire, with ease.

Omar being the scariest character on Wire:coleman:

[InspiredLebowski]

I never watched Lost, but when you think Breaking Bad, The Wire, and The Sopranos aren't very good the problem isn't the shows.

[Graviton]

BB has some shaky writing but even then, it's better than Wire.

Shit, the acting on BB alone trumps anything on Wire, with ease.

Omar being the scariest character on Wire:coleman:
Well Breaking Bad had some completely retarded moments.

Like the Mexican drug lord's mansion with only like 1-2 guards, no people on the rooftop with machine guns or no small army around the house. :oldlol: Gus just walks in, poisons everyone and walks out like nothing happened.

Or the billionaire chicken chain owner only having around 2-8 bodyguards, that one Mexican sniper coming in and scaring him all by himself by ambushing his shipments and shooting at his laundry spot. :oldlol:

The show had big time "bosses" that operated like local drug dealers, was hard to believe they are some hardcore guys making 100+ million like nothing.

And the school teacher ends up outsmarting all of them? :bowdown:

[andgar923]

Well Breaking Bad had some completely retarded moments.

Like the Mexican drug lord's mansion with only like 1-2 guards, no people on the rooftop with machine guns or no small army around the house. :oldlol: Gus just walks in, poisons everyone and walks out like nothing happened.

Or the billionaire chicken chain owner only having around 2-8 bodyguards, that one Mexican sniper coming in and scaring him all by himself by ambushing his shipments and shooting at his laundry spot. :oldlol:

The show had big time "bosses" that operated like local drug dealers, was hard to believe they are some hardcore guys making 100+ million like nothing.

And the school teacher ends up outsmarting all of them? :bowdown:

Not so.

Even then, Gus was an invited guest along with others from the cartel who also had their bodyguards. It isn't rare to see a home with minimal bodyguards in small towns like those, because they're very secluded for starters.

Gus didn't walk out like nothing happened. YES he poisoned basically everybody, but he had a shootout, but even then, most were already poisoned or shot.

But he wasn't a 'Billionaire' chain owner. It also common to see millionaires walk around with no bodyguards. Either way, Mike or somebody else was always with him. Remember, only very few knew of his power. The Mexican cartel for the most part had his back, it was only when things went bad that he was in any danger and he was well protected then.

[macmac]

Freedom of speech is overrated.

[Graviton]

Not so.

Even then, Gus was an invited guest along with others from the cartel who also had their bodyguards. It isn't rare to see a home with minimal bodyguards in small towns like those, because they're very secluded for starters.

Gus didn't walk out like nothing happened. YES he poisoned basically everybody, but he had a shootout, but even then, most were already poisoned or shot.

But he wasn't a 'Billionaire' chain owner. It also common to see millionaires walk around with no bodyguards. Either way, Mike or somebody else was always with him. Remember, only very few knew of his power. The Mexican cartel for the most part had his back, it was only when things went bad that he was in any danger and he was well protected then.

There wasn't a "shootout", Gus, Mike and Jessy walked out and Jessy shot just ONE GUY! Then they left in the car. There is no way the biggest drug lord in Mexico would be that defenseless. :oldlol:

He was almost a billionaire, when Jessy and Walter talked about their 3 month deal, they did the math and I think said Gus was gonna have like 250+ million worth of meth after those 3 months, if you add his chicken chain and near decade of meth business you get a very very very rich drug lord in control of all meth distribution in the East/South.

The fact there were so few henchmen and bodyguards in that billion dollar business wasn't realistic, Gus and the Mexican guy were basically Pablo Escobars in the show yet they never displayed their power or influence. The show just feels like a budget series going for big time scale but not really giving you that sense. If the show was done by HBO instead of AMC I am sure the set pieces and all the events would be much more refined.

[MMM]

Freedom of speech is overrated.

minus of speech
agreed

[dunksby]

OP reminds me of dumbasses who have watched second hand stupid rip offs all their life that when they watch something actually original they find it cliche. Never realizing what they found original and non-cliche are actually cheap copies of the real thing.
PS: andgar923 is so cool.

[IcanzIIravor]

Not enough Apple product placement in the Wire.

[Jackass18]

So basically, you listened to other people and then raised your expectations to an unattainable level? The show wasn't the problem. I'd say your level of expectations was probably the problem. IMO, that's not the correct frame of mind to go in to watching a show (or pretty much anything for that matter). I'd say it's certainly your loss if you're going to give up on the show without giving it a real chance. Sit back, relax and try to enjoy the effing show instead of trying to nitpick stupid things like a contrarian.

[LJJ]

I could have predicted Andgar’s opinion of The Wire. His favorite brand is Apple, his favorite band is The Beatles, his favorite current show is apparently Game of Thrones.

Don’t get me wrong, I actually like all of those things. But still, these things all share similar traits in a way and are telling of Andgar's taste. Apple is known for their aesthetically pleasing, easy to use computer products. The Beatles are known for their instantly catchy songs and universal appeal. Game of Thrones is essentially a very slick and simplified cliffnotes version of ASOIAF.

What they all share is that they are some of the most accessible brands within their respective segment. Which is good. However, accessibility also tends to come at the expense of depth, which is clearly the case for all of these things.

The Wire is the opposite of that, it’s value doesn’t show on the surface. It's not slick, it's not simple, it's not catchy. Instead it’s introspective, symbolic and heady. It’s exactly like the sort of stuff I figure someone like Andgar wouldn’t appreciate.

[andgar923]

LOL @ all the personal attacks

I guess some of you can't form an objective argument.

Never did I say that the show sucked now did I?

And to Jackass, you have a slight point. But there's been other shows that I've seen that met or surpassed the hype. It's hard not to get impacted by anything none of us are impression less and I always try to detach myself from the hype. If I had seen the Wire without any of the hype I would've said it was a good show highly recommended. Only reason this thread exists is because the hype around it is monumental. Like I stated, a large amount of people online consider it GOAT, which it is not.

But some of the replies only make my case.

Some of you need to work on your predictable comebacks and learn how to make better arguments.

[andgar923]

[QUOTE=LJJ][FONT=Arial]I could have predicted Andgar

[LJJ]

Personal attacks?

It's not exactly a secret that you prefer shiny and simplified over more complex and challenging. If you think that's an attack you need to get more comfortable with your own identity.

Read your opening post again. The body of your argument is this:

[QUOTE=andgar923]Acting was good, rarely great. The big bad drug dealers were not, nothing original, nothing groundbreaking, nothing spectacular, shit

[andgar923]

Personal attacks?

It's not exactly a secret that you prefer shiny and simplified over more complex and challenging. If you think that's an attack you need to get more comfortable with your own identity.

Read your opening post again. The body of your argument is this:



What, you expect intelligent replies? No. You get what you deserve.

LOL

You know me so well because I like Apple products, :rolleyes:

I tried adding some quick tidbits for fun, whoopee!!! I still made my main point, it isn't what ya'll say it is. This groundbreaking revolutionary show. That my friend was the Sopranos, Simpsons, Twilight Zone to name a few.

None of the characters are original.
None of the plot lines are original.

As some mentioned on another thread, this is a plot driven show. They touch briefly on some of the character's lives, they attempt to do some character analysis but it's just that

[Stuckey]

list 3 better crime dramas

if you say Breaking Bad, would neg

[LJJ]

A cop that has morals and is driven to crack the case but is filled with personal issues
A drug dealer with a heart
Cops tired of their jobs
Corrupt cops
Corrupt higher level officials
The wise old cop that solves crimes

Wow, you understood so little about the show or the characters. Keep confirming my biases buddy. :oldlol:

This is what you call an "analysis"?

Wow.

The show isn't even really about the plot or the characters. You failed at even the very basis of the show.

[Go Getter]

[QUOTE=andgar923]LOL

You know me so well because I like Apple products, :rolleyes:

I tried adding some quick tidbits for fun, whoopee!!! I still made my main point, it isn't what ya'll say it is. This groundbreaking revolutionary show. That my friend was the Sopranos, Simpsons, Twilight Zone to name a few.

None of the characters are original.
None of the plot lines are original.

As some mentioned on another thread, this is a plot driven show. They touch briefly on some of the character's lives, they attempt to do some character analysis but it's just that

[andgar923]

You never watched the whole series so commenting on it's layers is pretty pretentious.

The seasons on the school system and the one on Baltimore politics were deeper than I've seen on TV. The authenticity of the show is about as good as it gets for TV. The fact that you don't see it probably means that you can't identify with the themes or characters.

I mentioned that I only saw the first season. Perhaps you're correct, it may develop into something more as seasons progress.

[andgar923]

Wow, you understood so little about the show or the characters. Keep confirming my biases buddy. :oldlol:

This is what you call an "analysis"?

Wow.

The show isn't even really about the plot or the characters. You failed at even the very basis of the show.

So I'm lying?

Correct me then.

And of course that isn't a full analysis, it was a simple rundown.

[RidonKs]

:roll: you've only watched the first season??

this is the equivalent of walking out of a good movie after 20 minutes and then complaining to your friends who saw the whole thing

shut up and watch the rest of it

[LJJ]

So I'm lying?

Correct me then.

And of course that isn't a full analysis, it was a simple rundown.

You want me to spoil the whole thing for you?

That's all the hints I care to give, the real meat of the show is not the plot or the characters. It's not about that. That's not the subject of the show.

Also the way you think of the characters, like "the cop with morals, the drug dealer with a heart" is a completely wrong train of thought for this show. Just a word of advice.

[RidonKs]

the show is intended as a dramatic rendition of an institutional analysis more or less. its not about the way people are, its an explanation for why they do what seems inexplicable.

[andgar923]

list 3 better crime dramas

if you say Breaking Bad, would neg

Sopranos
OZ

Don't really watch too many (or any) crime dramas on tv since most of them are the same and almost all of them are on network tv. I haven't seen the Shield so I can't comment on it.

And YES Wire is a good show, never said it wasn't.

Again, do most of you not understand what the term 'overrated' is?

To refresh everybody's memory, many have said it was the GOAT show. Not GOAT crime drama but GOAT show period and that's my main reason for this thread.

In regards to BB vs Wire

[andgar923]

the show is intended as a dramatic rendition of an institutional analysis more or less. its not about the way people are, its an explanation for why they do what seems inexplicable.

Thanks for the great insight!




















This is something that isn't even subtle, hard not to see how this is one of the main driving themes. Corrupt system, class inequalities, broken down families, gay tolerance (or views on gays), welfare system, most of that stuff is covered and hard not to miss.

Yes if you compare it to network tv this kicks its ass.

But we covered this stuff with OZ, Sopranos, Twilight Zone (albeit on different angles).

[niko]

LOL

You know me so well because I like Apple products, :rolleyes:

I tried adding some quick tidbits for fun, whoopee!!! I still made my main point, it isn't what ya'll say it is. This groundbreaking revolutionary show. That my friend was the Sopranos, Simpsons, Twilight Zone to name a few.

None of the characters are original.
None of the plot lines are original.

As some mentioned on another thread, this is a plot driven show. They touch briefly on some of the character's lives, they attempt to do some character analysis but it's just that…. a touch. Given, only so much you can cover on a show with such a large cast, but this show is primarily plot driven.

A plot that's been done to death before, with characters that have existed before. Done well I agree, but when doing a show such as this introduce something different.

You want an analysis?

Howabout all of the characters being paper cut out cliches.

A cop that has morals and is driven to crack the case but is filled with personal issues
A drug dealer with a heart
Cops tired of their jobs
Corrupt cops
Corrupt higher level officials
The wise old cop that solves crimes


Etc.etc. seriously, if I continue to analyze the shit outta this show I'll continue to expose it. And to top it off, they're linear characters with little to no arc (so far), almost all of them are very predictable.

None of this sounds like the show at all. Literally none of it. Thus thread is stupid. (Yes i know if you take some of the characters are take 1 facet of them you can call them CORRUPT COP but no one is the CORRUPT COP in the way they'd be in a simplistic network show.)

[andgar923]

:roll: you've only watched the first season??

this is the equivalent of walking out of a good movie after 20 minutes and then complaining to your friends who saw the whole thing

shut up and watch the rest of it

This is fair, I'll concede.

[andgar923]

None of this sounds like the show at all. Literally none of it. Thus thread is stupid. (Yes i know if you take some of the characters are take 1 facet of them you can call them CORRUPT COP but no one is the CORRUPT COP in the way they'd be in a simplistic network show.)


Then you missed the first season.

[LilKateMoss]

None of this sounds like the show at all. Literally none of it. Thus thread is stupid. (Yes i know if you take some of the characters are take 1 facet of them you can call them CORRUPT COP but no one is the CORRUPT COP in the way they'd be in a simplistic network show.)
I could've guessed that without even opening the thread, just knowing who the OP is.

[Stempel, HERB]

Another week, or a month, and you'll be right back here telling everyone how super fantastic The Wire is. You'll tell the world how rich and technically mindblowing the show is. That's your exit strategy.

You need to look back on this first season with contempt. That's the most important thing to remember here. It will separate your fine taste from the lot of these crude wire fans. This should be easy for you since you're already doing it towards Raidohead fans who like the song Creep.

[LJJ]

Solid thread this has become.

http://i.imgur.com/NwgJPgC.jpg

[Styles p]

only watched the first season? you haven't even seen some of the best characters yet.

[andgar923]

Another week, or a month, and you'll be right back here telling everyone how super fantastic The Wire is. You'll tell the world how rich and technically mindblowing the show is. That's your exit strategy.

You need to look back on this first season with contempt. That's the most important thing to remember here. It will separate your fine taste from the lot of these crude wire fans. This should be easy for you since you're already doing it towards Raidohead fans who like the song Creep.

And I'll have no problem stating that much. I'm not afraid to say that I'm wrong.

It was premature to make this thread after the 1st season, but I truly felt let down. I can't remember being pulled into the show and awed, which is something that's clearly happened with other shows in their first season.

Again, not that it was bad, it was good, just not GOAT worthy.

[Master Templar]

BB has some shaky writing but even then, it's better than Wire.

Absolutely not. If any of the shows that are considered upper echelon is overrated, it's easily Breaking Bad. The characters are paper thin and one dimensional (outside of Walt and maybe Jesse), the plot is so contrived and relies way too much on deus ex machina and coincidence, the dialogue is choppy and gets annoying (Jesse finishes every damn sentence with 'BITCH!'... and he says like how I spelled it :oldlol: ), everything is so terribly predictable too.


Shit, the acting on BB alone trumps anything on Wire, with ease.

Idris Elba and Andre Royo>>>>>>anyone on BB not named Bryan Cranston.


Omar being the scariest character on Wire:coleman:

Omar was not meant to be 'scary' :confusedshrug:

He's a multidimensional, fleshed out character. Not a one note caricature like these wonderfully written 'scary' characters:

http://25.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_mbdyui7EaF1ri48nso1_500.png

http://25.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_mbr61opczL1qgstflo1_1349999293_cover.png

http://24.media.tumblr.com/tumblr_m8xjviUaHA1rzipspo1_500.jpg

If you think the first season of the Wire is overrated, fine, you're entitled to your opinion. But don't bring up Breaking Bad as a counter example :oldlol:

[GOBB]

Solid thread this has become.

http://i.imgur.com/NwgJPgC.jpg

:roll: classic

[KevinNYC]

Howabout all of the characters being paper cut out cliches.

Name a single cop show that has ever given so much screen time to drug dealers and validated their point of view like the Wire has. And the cops are paper cutouts? Seriously? You should be forced to turn in your avatar because people might mistake you for someone with taste.

Don't even watch the second season. You don't deserve Ziggy.

[Pacers4ever]

[QUOTE=LJJ][FONT=Arial]I could have predicted Andgar

[GOBB]

I hate threads like this. Take something popular then try to meh it. I never got into Seinfeld given how popular of a following that show has. The humor from the episodes I forced myself to watch just didnt grab me. Too dry, stupid. But I cant bash the show or argue its not great. Never gave the show much of a chance given a couple episodes I saw. Funny part is I love Curb your Enthusiasm .

Anyway, saying The Wire is overrated is flat out dumb.

[SuperPippen]

It's curious the way people are so eager to conform to the opinions of others.

The Wire is the GOAT show. It really is as good as it is often made out to be. The acting is great, and the writing is incredible.


I see no legitimacy in any of andgar's complaints.

[Balla_Status]

Coming from a guy that's a huge fan of the overrated shit band Radiohead.

[Jailblazers7]

Pretty sure I can never watch Breaking Bad now because of the way some ISHers seem to overrate it. I'll prob end up sitting there picking out flaws instead of being able to enjoy the show.

[Go Getter]

Coming from a guy that's a huge fan of the overrated shit band Radiohead.
Yo I remember when my friend first played me radiohead, lmao....I really wasnt feeling it and I said it was like sleepy time music....no instrumentation.....kinda boring....he practically ended our friendship on the spot lmao

[kNicKz]

The Wire is one of the best shows I've ever seen

[bagelred]

The only thing I hate about the show is the name. "The Wire" is a terrible name. Should have been called "Baltimore". Simple. Relatable. The Wire? C'mon....just a bad name.

Other than that, excellent show on every level.

[RedBlackAttack]

Interesting point-of-view, OP. Completely wrong, but interesting.

Just kidding... Like music, television can be as much personal preference as anything. I think The Wire should be mandatory viewing for anyone who feels they don't know what's going on or can't relate to street culture or violence perpetrated by the War on Drugs.

I felt The Wire was so much more than a television show. It exposed a lot of flaws in how, what and who is prosecuted in the United States.

[iamgine]

I don't like The Wire either. Tried watching a few episodes, never got hooked.

[YAWN]

you watch one season and proclaim the series to be overrated? :facepalm

Having said that, season 2 is the weakest.. Season 3, 4, and 5 are the best.

The Wire, The Sopranos, Seinfeld, and Arrested Development are probably my favorite shows of all time.

[Stuckey]

you watch one season and proclaim the series to be overrated? :facepalm

Having said that, season 2 is the weakest.. Season 3, 4, and 5 are the best.

The Wire, The Sopranos, Seinfeld, and Arrested Development are probably my favorite shows of all time.

season 5 is the weakest, season 2 is underrated, I hated it at first but it's deep breh

[FPJ]

You guys need to understand that the Wire isnt for everybody. Its GOAT show in my opinion but i can understand why people who like FRIENDS or Star Trek might not enjoy it.

[BRabbiT]

http://static.guim.co.uk/sys-images/Media/Pix/pictures/2010/10/7/1286452686420/The-Wire-Monopoly-001.jpg

[InspiredLebowski]

Coming from a guy that's a huge fan of the overrated shit band Radiohead.I'm not sticking up for Radiohead, but dude. Hawker. Oasis.

[RedBlackAttack]

season 5 is the weakest, season 2 is underrated, I hated it at first but it's deep breh
Agreed. The thing that makes Season 2 difficult for people is that it introduces so many new characters and deviates from the street aspect. However, The Wire was never about following a specific narrative every season. It was about showing every aspect of the War on Drugs and just how deep the rabbit hole goes. Getting the drugs into the country is a major part of that.

[BRabbiT]

I've been waiting to watch this show for years. The hype around this around the inter webs had me salivating. ....

To be honest/fair I just saw the first season, and I'm really not anxious to begin season 2. Game of Thrones immediately grabbed me, the quality stood out from the get go.



you're being short sighted.

whether or not you're into it, the Wire can NOT be evaluated after one fukcing chapter. it's an epic story. it's not episodic.

although since i couldn't have summed it up much better than this review, read this:

[QUOTE]
[I]

[dunksby]

I'm not sticking up for Radiohead, but dude. Hawker. Oasis.
:oldlol: Repped!

[andgar923]

Reading some of the replies here basically reaffirms my main point which most either ignored or simply didn't want to get.... "It's overrated!!!".

I am humored by the personal attacks and strawman attempts tho. I discovered things about me that I never knew before such as:

Beatles are my fav artist, something I never knew! I always thought that they were a one of my fav artists but not my fav of all time.

That apparently I am a Friends fan. I guess those 4 episodes that I forced myself to watch makes me a fan!!

I learned that admiring and respecting Radiohead makes my opinion on anything moot. I did not know this makes me a retard.

I also didn't know that enjoying Game of Thrones made it my fav current show. That's a revelation that I am happy to know about.

Who would've known that preferring BB over Wire made you a tool that is too dumb to understand anything that needs an IQ higher than that of a toddler.

All this time I thought shows such as Sopranos, OZ and even some network shows touched on many of these similar themes. I guess movies have also never been made that have pieces of characters, plot lines like the Wire.

At the end I guess saying a show is good isn't enough. Not only does it have to be the best crime drama show of all time, it has to be THE best show of all time!!! If you don't agree then you're no better than a Friends loving-Adam Sadler movie watching-low IQ idiot.

[LJJ]

All this thread reaffirms is that you didn't understand anything about the show.

Literally every single insight in regards to the show you personally came up with was completely besides the point of the show. And this is not just me or your "haters" (:rolleyes: ) talking, literally everyone in the thread observed this.

You try to criticise the show based on it's content, but you completely fail to even identify said content. It's one of the most cringe inducing analyses I have ever seen.

[andgar923]

All this thread reaffirms is that you didn't understand anything about the show.

Literally every single insight in regards to the show you personally came up with was completely besides the point of the show. And this is not just me or your "haters" (:rolleyes: ) talking, literally everyone in the thread observed this.

You try to criticise the show based on it's content, but you completely fail to even identify said content. It's one of the most cringe inducing analyses I have ever seen.
Yeah I didn't understand anything because it was extremely deep. Almost every single one of the things mentioned that I supposedly didn't "get" I did. I think most of you are trying too hard.

[LJJ]

Almost every single one of the things mentioned that I supposedly didn't "get" I did.

Which is why you "got it" only after people mentioned it and completely failed to properly assert it on your own iniation.

[bagelred]

whether or not you're into it, the Wire can NOT be evaluated after one fukcing chapter. it's an epic story. it's not episodic.




I disagree. If he watched the first season, and didn't like it, what makes you think he's going to like Season 2 or Season 3? The topics change season to season, but the tone is the same.

The Wire is just not for him. Probably likes CSI or CSI Miami or CSI New York. Stick with those.

[BRabbiT]

^^


well, i agree with you that he (or anyone) can decide if they don't like something (e.g., the Wire) after just a taste (e.g., one season).

no argument there.

but a small sample size isn't enough to properly evaluate something as 'worthwhile', 'overrated', or somewhere in between.

[johndeeregreen]

I never watched Lost, but when you think Breaking Bad, The Wire, and The Sopranos aren't very good the problem isn't the shows.
Game, set, match.

[johndeeregreen]

Also have to LOL @ show's lack of "originality" when 90% of the characters are drawn from David Simon's actual experiences in Baltimore.

[KevinNYC]

Also have to LOL @ show's lack of "originality" when 90% of the characters are drawn from David Simon's actual experiences in Baltimore.

Don't forget Ed Burns. He was The Wire's secret weapon (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ed_Burns).

He spent 20 years as a cop then retired and became a school teacher. The Wire is much more about his experiences than Simon's. In fact season 5 which focused on the failures of the press and thus was based on David Simon's experiences was the weakest season.


Burns was a producer, writer, and co-creator (also with Simon) of the HBO series The Wire. They originally set out to create a police drama loosely based on Burns' experiences working on protracted investigations of violent drug dealers using surveillance technology. He had often faced frustration with the bureaucracy of the police department, which Simon equated with his own ordeals as a police reporter for the Baltimore Sun. Writing against the background of current events, including institutionalized corporate crime at Enron and institutional dysfunction in the Catholic Church, the show became "more of a treatise about institutions and individuals than a straight cop show."[7]

David Simon obviously brought his own talents to The Wire, but Ed Burns is the real deal. I think both Burns and Simon come from religious traditions that teach that you can't give up on the poor. I know that watching The Wire, I was reminded of the best parts of Catholic moral teaching.

Here's an interview with him.
http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=6524743

[CeltsGarlic]

I havent seen it but hate how much love it gets. No way its better than sopranos. I will start watching it next week.

[bagelred]

Good show, but too many black people. I like Season 2 though. Less black people.

[SilkkTheShocker]

It's really good, but I have no clue how anyone can say its better than The Sopranos.

[Levity]

season 3 and 4 are up there in regards to best seasons of all shows all time.

[Levity]

I havent seen it but hate how much love it gets. No way its better than sopranos. I will start watching it next week.

I absolutely loved the sopranos when i started watching it. I thought christopher was such a bad ass. After i finished the sopranos, i started the wire. It out shined the sopranos is every facet.

[SilkkTheShocker]

I absolutely loved the sopranos when i started watching it. I thought christopher was such a bad ass. After i finished the sopranos, i started the wire. It out shined the sopranos is every facet.


This is where The Wire starts to get overrated. The Sopranos will forever be known and talked about. The Wire will be remembered by people that post on message boards and drive a Prius. Its a great show, but it isn't better than The Sopranos.

[andgar923]

[QUOTE=SilkkTheShocker]This is where The Wire starts to get overrated.

That's basically why I made this thread. The Sopranos revolutionized not just TV, but impacted culture and film in the process. Like you stated it will be rembered forever as that.

Wire was good but there's a difference between being good and GREATEST SHOW OF ALL TIME. Do people not see the hyperbole around this show.

[SilkkTheShocker]

Eh it was too slow and boring for me, like a parody of a gritty dramatic crime series instead of a real one. Not as bad as Breaking Bad though.

From the HBO series I liked Oz the most, had more of a flavor and personality. Better humor, acting and entertainment value.


Oz is very underrated. My only knock against it is the last season kind of sucks.

[andgar923]

Oz is very underrated. My only knock against it is the last season kind of sucks.
People are forgetting OZ in this thread and in general.

[SilkkTheShocker]

People are forgetting OZ in this thread and in general.


This. Oz always consistently keeps your interest throughout the whole show. And the characters were fantastic.

[SilkkTheShocker]

[QUOTE]

That's basically why I made this thread. The Sopranos revolutionized not just TV, but impacted culture and film in the process. Like you stated it will be rembered forever as that.

Wire was good but there's a difference between being good and GREATEST SHOW OF ALL TIME. Do people not see the hyperbole around this show.

The Wire a lot but its one of those things that starts to get overrated because it was underrated for so long. Sopranos had better everything imo. Even the side characters were better than The Wire's most interesting characters.

[johndeeregreen]

Don't forget Ed Burns. He was The Wire's secret weapon (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ed_Burns).

He spent 20 years as a cop then retired and became a school teacher. The Wire is much more about his experiences than Simon's. In fact season 5 which focused on the failures of the press and thus was based on David Simon's experiences was the weakest season.
You're right for the most part, but if you think David Simon's experiences were limited to the journalistic aspect of it you need to read his book "Homicide."

[andgar923]

Which is why you "got it" only after people mentioned it and completely failed to properly assert it on your own iniation.
Good try but not the case.

I never gave a detailed insightful analysis of the show. I just gave a rant on some of the things that popped into mind at the moment.

Or should I have given a literary critique on the show touching on every single theme, character, storyline structure, arc, with a dramatic timeline graph ranging 2-3 pages long?

And suppose I didn't get it, and now the insightful analysis from posters opened up another door

[LJJ]

Good try but not the case.

I never gave a detailed insightful analysis of the show. I just gave a rant on some of the things that popped into mind at the moment.


Yes, iniatially your main criticism of the show was "uuh guy looks like a Lesbian, am I rite? hurr durr". In other words, typical andgar shit.

Then you started going on a small, nonsensical rant about how characters were cliches which showed you simply didn't get the show.

If what you said made sense and you actually did understand the show and provided valid criticism, then why is no one agreeing with you? Or even arguing with you based on the merits of your argument? Oh, because everybody is your "hater" and is "personally attacking" you?! Keep thinking that the problem is the rest of the world and not you man, you are a misunderstood genius!

[Reef]

People are forgetting OZ in this thread and in general.

Oz went to shit once Adibese was killed.

[BRabbiT]

may not, in fact, be the GOAT drama. depends on your perspective, and your preference.

but your logic (e.g., "thus= overrated") is dumb.

but sleep if you want. sweet dreams.











http://www.blogcdn.com/www.comicsalliance.com/media/2010/10/50818250850e6e70457do.jpg

[KevinNYC]

You're right for the most part, but if you think David Simon's experiences were limited to the journalistic aspect of it you need to read his book "Homicide."

Yeah. I have. I read The Corner that both of them did too. I believe writing Homicide is where he first met Ed Burns.

It's also a tribute to Simon's instincts as a writer that he would want to hook up with Ed Burns because he's

A. Great source material
B. An incredibly unusual cop

Simon also had the instinct that Burns could turn into a screenwriter as well. He basically just gave him some scripts and said make it like those. Simon also to his credit wanted to work with great fiction writers like Richard Price and Dennis Lehane.

It's a tribute to Simon as a producer that he built the series with Burns and it's not a dis to Simon to say the show wouldn't have been what it was without Burns.

Also it fairness, to Simon cops and teachers lend themselves better to drama than newspaper writers.

[SilkkTheShocker]

Oz went to shit once Adibese was killed.

It lost a ton of momentum, thats for sure. The storylines also got pretty bad

[GOBB]

Yes, iniatially your main criticism of the show was "uuh guy looks like a Lesbian, am I rite? hurr durr". In other words, typical andgar shit.

Then you started going on a small, nonsensical rant about how characters were cliches which showed you simply didn't get the show.

If what you said made sense and you actually did understand the show and provided valid criticism, then why is no one agreeing with you? Or even arguing with you based on the merits of your argument? Oh, because everybody is your "hater" and is "personally attacking" you?! Keep thinking that the problem is the rest of the world and not you man, you are a misunderstood genius!

:roll:

[Jackass18]

And to Jackass, you have a slight point. But there's been other shows that I've seen that met or surpassed the hype.

But that level of hype? 'Monumental, GOAT' level hype? That seems like the level of hype where you go in looking to nitpick things because you don't believe it could possibly be that good. Almost like you want it to fail maybe because you didn't experience it when it first came out and you don't want to be a latecomer to the party. It can be difficult to detach yourself from a high level of hype. I've just seen so many people come away disappointed with something when they go into it thinking it's supposed to be perfection. And well, your posts in this thread make it seem like you're rebelling against it and are biased against it.

I'd say to give it a chance. It's certainly worth it. I don't have HBO so I haven't seen Game of Thrones, so I don't have an opinion on that, but I have heard the hype for it.

[andgar923]

But that level of hype? 'Monumental, GOAT' level hype? That seems like the level of hype where you go in looking to nitpick things because you don't believe it could possibly be that good. Almost like you want it to fail maybe because you didn't experience it when it first came out and you don't want to be a latecomer to the party. It can be difficult to detach yourself from a high level of hype. I've just seen so many people come away disappointed with something when they go into it thinking it's supposed to be perfection. And well, your posts in this thread make it seem like you're rebelling against it and are biased against it.

I'd say to give it a chance. It's certainly worth it. I don't have HBO so I haven't seen Game of Thrones, so I don't have an opinion on that, but I have heard the hype for it.

This would be true, but I've loved plenty of shows that were hyped as much. Maybe I didn't think they were the GOAT show, but I'm apprehensive on calling most shows that no matter how much I love them.


Good show, not GOAT. Not better than Sopranos (which I'm not a huge fan of either). Sopranos moved very slowly, Wire is much faster compared to Sopranos. But I can appreciate Sopranos' quality. Although many will disagree, OZ was not only more 'entertaining', but on par as far as quality.

People get too hung up on "depth and meaning" without realizing that it ultimately has to be entertaining. OZ does a great job at both, Wire isn't as captivating edge of your seats, at least for me it wasn't. I wasn't as anxious to watch the next episode as I was other shows. I wasn't awed by the brilliant acting or scenes. It moved methodically, never too fast, never too slow, very even. Their faithful reproduction of gritty realism also caused it to feel like a doc instead of a crime-drama at times. Yes it is nice to make it an honest real life representation, but shit, make it a bit fun more frequently. As slow as Sopranos was, when they went hard they got your attention. Those f*ckers grabbed you by the balls and pulled you in. Dr Melfi and Tony talking in her office was just as captivating as some of the action scenes. Those scenes almost always delivered, brilliantly written, directed, shot, acted, they made you sit up and notice, at times stopped you dead in your tracks. Wire has those in much smaller quantities if at all in some episodes (again

[FPJ]

Andgar, the show starts pretty slow so if you wanted some type of action right away i can understand why you might not like it.

This show focuses mainly on building the characters and managed to do it like no other show in my opinion. You talk about cliche lines and characters. Its nothing of that sort. The characters are "real" and complex, This show is amazing because it managed to create A LOT of great in depth personalities.

Literally every portrait is amazingly created. The scenes in the show are "real". The thoughts of the average drug dealer are illustrated in a unique fashion. Take for example the "chess" lesson D'angelo gave to the little drug dealers and how it resembles the drug world. Take Bunk using a xerox machine as a lie detector on a young uneducated kid to make him confess a murder. Take Omar and his understanding of "the game". Take Prop Joe trying to civilize Marlo. When Marlo came to kill him, Joe said "i treated you like a child" to which Marlo replied something along the lines of "im not that kind of child".

This show is viewed as Goat because it managed to be so complex (reaching most of Baltimore's problems) and having such amazing characters. Literally every character has its role in the show and the writing and dialog are elite.

[andgar923]

Andgar, the show starts pretty slow so if you wanted some type of action right away i can understand why you might not like it.

This show focuses mainly on building the characters and managed to do it like no other show in my opinion. You talk about cliche lines and characters. Its nothing of that sort. The characters are "real" and complex, This show is amazing because it managed to create A LOT of great in depth personalities.

Literally every portrait is amazingly created. The scenes in the show are "real". The thoughts of the average drug dealer are illustrated in a unique fashion. Take for example the "chess" lesson D'angelo gave to the little drug dealers and how it resembles the drug world. Take Bunk using a xerox machine as a lie detector on a young uneducated kid to make him confess a murder. Take Omar and his understanding of "the game". Take Prop Joe trying to civilize Marlo. When Marlo came to kill him, Joe said "i treated you like a child" to which Marlo replied something along the lines of "im not that kind of child".

This show is viewed as Goat because it managed to be so complex (reaching most of Baltimore's problems) and having such amazing characters. Literally every character has its role in the show and the writing and dialog are elite.

Sopranos is slower, pacing isn't the problem.

Other shows have great writing and everything you wanna claim Wire has, I think people are forgetting some of those shows.

Again… good show, but not GOAT

Also, no actor in any scene made me go "That's some Emmy shit right there!!!" It was a true ensemble piece, with nobody dominating or standing out. Again, very methodical calculated I'm sure. I'm sure they don't want the show to become about a specific character but the group as a whole, and that's admirable. Every character plays their role fine, although I never bought D'angelo… nope. Still looks like a dyke to me, never bought his scenes. Avon and Springer in the first season were very muted, rarely saw them, rarely convinced me. I've seen both of the actor's work outside of Wire, naturally my man Idris in Luther is awesome, Avon was Hendrix, but I didn't see them at their best. All very subtle and muted. Not that they have to be bombastic characters, but give the actors some scenes man. D'angelo got some great scenes handed to him, but I never bought him. There's other actors that would've killed that role. Bubbles was great tho, stole most scenes he was in imo. Bunk was great as well, dude's nuances and approach are on point. That's just off the top, but as much as I liked them none are Emmy caliber.

The chess lesson I saw coming a mile away. The chess metaphor is used often.

[Levity]

[QUOTE=andgar923]Sopranos is slower, pacing isn't the problem.

Other shows have great writing and everything you wanna claim Wire has, I think people are forgetting some of those shows.

Again

[SilkkTheShocker]

It should be a sin to say there is a show better than The Sopranos in all honesty. Like I said, The Wire is a great, great show. But I don't think it has anything on The Sopranos. Literally, nothing. The 5th season of The Sopranos is better than the 3rd and 4th seasons of The Wire combined together.

[Styles p]

i was a huge wire fan before i saw the sopranos. i still love the wire but i think the sopranos is better i have about 8 episodes of sopranos to watch til i finish never been so sad about a show ending lol. plus med soprano could get the D.

[macmac]

Lol Andgar you're such a complete and utter moron. Give them some scenes man! Maybe you should, you know, watch the show to see their scenes? Avon comes out in season 3, what you think happens? He lived happily ever after and they rode the character into the Baltimore sunset? Watch the Fukkin show you imbecile, before making the most senseless criticisms I've ever read. Here's a couple more criticisms you can make after seeing less than half the show "I don't like how the show concludes." or how about "I wish they would have made more seasons to fully finish the story arc." You fkin dummy.


I hope you cut your foot on your iPad charger and it gets infected and oozes puss for the next 3 months.

[Kblaze8855]

Seasons 3 and 4 of the wire are as good as anything ever on tv. Seasons 1 and 2 are probably top 90%. 5...top 80.

[Loneshot]

I saw The Sopranos first, then saw The Wire years later, and The Sopranos feels like a cartoon comedy in comparison.

[DonDadda59]

I saw The Sopranos first, then saw The Wire years later, and The Sopranos feels like a cartoon comedy in comparison.

Yeah, by end of the Wire Omar had become Batman in West Baltimore, jumping out of buildings with his flowing trench coat cape and shit:oldlol:

And let's not forget characters like these:

http://media.tumblr.com/tumblr_llw0y7alA21qcjzcm.gif

http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-wwM3s4JFNVs/TzTIR59LHuI/AAAAAAAABSo/pNI8hLViiGw/s1600/Ziggy+Sobotka.jpg

http://thejasminebrand.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/04/snoop-pearson.jpg

And the Sopranos was meant to be an absurdist comedy as well as a drama, and they never had any characters as comical and ridiculous as the above :oldlol:

Anyway, Season 4 of the Wire is up there for best season ever of any television show. I think all the ambitions that the creators set out with were fully realized that Season. The second season was eh, pissed me off that they wasted an entire run on characters I never really cared about and relegated the first season roster to background players. Season 3 got back to the first's groove, and season 5 went ahead and f*cked the whole thing up.

[SilkkTheShocker]

Seasons 3 and 4 of the wire are as good as anything ever on tv. Seasons 1 and 2 are probably top 90%. 5...top 80.

the best season of The Wire is maybe as good as the 3rd best season of The Sopranos

[Levity]

the best season of The Wire is maybe as good as the 3rd best season of The Sopranos

You're overrating the Sopranos the same exact way you are saying everyone in here is overrating the Wire

Season 3 or 4 is only as good as the Sopranos 3rd best season? get the fvck out of here.

[Mikaiel]

Sopranos is slower, pacing isn't the problem.

Also, no actor in any scene made me go "That's some Emmy shit right there!!!"

I couldn't disagree more.

The acting was one of the best part of the series. No other TV show/movie made me hate a character as much as I hated Clay Davis/Carcetti/Burrell/Rawls. I've never felt so much compassion as I did for Bubbles. Or for scumbags such as Avon or Bodie.

I'm actually kind of upset whenever I see any actors from the Wire in anything else because I forget they're just actors.

[kNicKz]

The second season was eh, pissed me off that they wasted an entire run on characters I never really cared about and relegated the first season roster to background players.

The second season shows the supply side of Avon's drug empire. The union workers smuggling the chemicals and other materials needed. Every aspect of the show relates

[1987_Lakers]

The Wire is a great show that should be viewed by every American, it's a great look into the police department, the streets, the education system, politics, & media. But it's also a show that hasn't aged well, The Sopranos will be more well known 10-20 years from now than a show like The Wire. The Sopranos was the first show that made you feel like you were watching a movie in every episode, and I love how we got a chance to get into Tony Soprano's head every time he visited his shrink, it was a genius idea to involve a psychiatrist on the show.

I also liked how Tony never banged Dr. Melfi, it would have been very typical and predictable if he did.

[Jackass18]

it's fair that people are shitting on me for dismissing it after the 1st season.

But other shows grabbed me by the 1st season and I was hooked!!!

It just strikes me as odd seeing someone so dismissive of The Wire. Threads about it always make me want to go back and watch it again. You didn't connect with any of the characters? McNulty, Bunk, Freamon, Stringer Bell, Bodie, Clay Davis, etc...?

[SilkkTheShocker]

I still laugh when people try to say The Wire had better acting. GTFO of here :oldlol:

[andgar923]

It just strikes me as odd seeing someone so dismissive of The Wire. Threads about it always make me want to go back and watch it again. You didn't connect with any of the characters? McNulty, Bunk, Freamon, Stringer Bell, Bodie, Clay Davis, etc...?

Connect in which way?

Like I mentioned, I only saw season 1 and the characters that got the most screen time (that you mentioned) were McNulty which I didn't care about. Everytime they showed his personal life I could care less. Bunk was one of my fav characters cause the actor playing him did his thing. Bodie was one of the most believable characters on the show, but the actor playing him often plays these roles often. I wanted to see more Bell but his character in the first season was limited.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MPp9CQjKEQw

As I mentioned before, Bubbles was easily my fav.

[Styles p]

also the ring little story line in the wire. omar took it from marlo at a card game, the cop took it from omar then michael took it from the cop. marlo asks mike where he got it from and he said "took it from some *****" marlo thought mike took it from omar, which immediately made marlo respect mike more.

[nightprowler10]

And let's not forget characters like these
I can kinda see your point about Ziggy, but what do you got against Snoop man? I thought she was great.

[Jackass18]

Connect in which way?

Being interesting in, want to see more of, and whatnot.


As I mentioned before, Bubbles was easily my fav.

I don't remember my opinion from just season 1, but from watching the whole thing I didn't like Bubbles. McNulty, Bunk, and Stringer Bell were my 3 favs from that show. What about Omar? I think he was the fav of many, but I found him overrated.

[sommervilleCdn]

Solid thread this has become.

http://i.imgur.com/NwgJPgC.jpg

haha needs to be repeated. Here's a well written 2004 review on this show. I must agree with my fellow ishtards. this show is great, I mean consider its pedigree. Someone already mention that writer david simon wrote this tv drama/documentary with former Baltimore detetive Ed Burns...when i watch the wire, it did feel like a documentary (in the truest sense of the word). -sprinkled with some funny moments of levity here and there.

It doesnt follow a follow hollywood convention. If that's what you're looking for , you won't find it here.

oh and the review that i mentioned http://ca.ign.com/articles/2004/10/12/the-wire-the-complete-first-season

[DonDadda59]

That's based on an actual even tthat happened in the real Omar's life....

Yeah... watch This (from 1 minute) (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dMa8e6VhnTs) then watch This (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-MY26avVXIk)

Tell me if you can spot the difference :oldlol:



And how is Snoop ridiculous? That's pretty much how that girl acts in real life, shes not an unrealistic character by any means.

That's all and well, but it's pretty hard to believe that a 90 lb, 5'3 girl is going to be one of the most feared killers in a city. But stranger things have happened I suppose.

[Heavincent]

Yeah, by end of the Wire Omar had become Batman in West Baltimore, jumping out of buildings with his flowing trench coat cape and shit:oldlol:


In real life, Omar actually survived a jump from the sixth floor rather than the 4th floor, so I don't see the problem.

[Reef]

Yeah... watch This (from 1 minute) (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dMa8e6VhnTs) then watch This (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-MY26avVXIk)

Tell me if you can spot the difference :oldlol:




That's all and well, but it's pretty hard to believe that a 90 lb, 5'3 girl is going to be one of the most feared killers in a city. But stranger things have happened I suppose.

She killed someone in real life when she was like 14 or something.

[Levity]

Yeah... watch This (from 1 minute) (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dMa8e6VhnTs) then watch This (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-MY26avVXIk)


That's all and well, but it's pretty hard to believe that a 90 lb, 5'3 girl is going to be one of the most feared killers in a city. But stranger things have happened I suppose.

she did roll with chris everywhere. I think that helped bring the fear.

[DonDadda59]

In real life, Omar actually survived a jump from the sixth floor rather than the 4th floor, so I don't see the problem.


She killed someone in real life when she was like 14 or something.

I'm sure the real Omar has some great war stories and I'm well aware that Ms. Pearson has some dirt on her and spent 6 years in prison for killing another woman, as well as a recent drug bust she was involved in. I was just addressing a poster's assertion that the Sopranos was like a cartoon compared to the Wire, which clearly had the more outlandish characters and situations.

But I'm sure someone will fill me in on the exploits of the real nation of Islam, dead eye aim, bowtie wearing, one man muscle squad Brother Mouzone :cheers:

[andgar923]

I'm sure the real Omar has some great war stories and I'm well aware that Ms. Pearson has some dirt on her and spent 6 years in prison for killing another woman, as well as a recent drug bust she was involved in. I was just addressing a poster's assertion that the Sopranos was like a cartoon compared to the Wire, which clearly had the more outlandish characters and situations.

But I'm sure someone will fill me in on the exploits of the real nation of Islam, dead eye aim, bowtie wearing, one man muscle squad Brother Mouzone :cheers:

And let's suppose that The Sopranos did have more outlandish characters

[DonDadda59]

[QUOTE=andgar923]And let's suppose that The Sopranos did have more outlandish characters

[andgar923]

I disagree, especially when it comes to the Wire specifically. You say 'one is watching a show not a documentary', but in a way that's exactly what the Wire set out to do- be a study/documentary of the ills that plague a Metropolitan area like Baltimore. The war on drugs, politics, law enforcement, the educational system, the media are all subjects that were covered by the show. Even the way the seasons were constructed was like a sociology book separated into chapters about specific areas (ie, Season 1 was about the 'cops vs robbers' aspect, Season 2 was about the docks, Season 4 the educational system, Season 5 the media).

So a huge degree of realism is expected and is executed for the most part.

I agree, it depends on the kind of show in question.

A show such as The Wire needs more realistic characters, not as bombastic, whereas The Sopranos can even benefit from it. Sure the Sopranos wants realism, but they're not trying to be what the Wire was.

Only brought it up is because some knocked the Wire and BB for having over the top characters, but they're not trying to be a documentary-ish type show a la Wire.

[LJJ]

I'm sure the real Omar has some great war stories and I'm well aware that Ms. Pearson has some dirt on her and spent 6 years in prison for killing another woman, as well as a recent drug bust she was involved in. I was just addressing a poster's assertion that the Sopranos was like a cartoon compared to the Wire, which clearly had the more outlandish characters and situations.

But I'm sure someone will fill me in on the exploits of the real nation of Islam, dead eye aim, bowtie wearing, one man muscle squad Brother Mouzone :cheers:

Awww that was months ago, that's sweet that you still carry that with you. My criticisms of The Sopranos really hit you hard.

Funny that I even agree with you in this instance. Snoop and Brother Mouzone are two of my least favorite characters in The Wire, and Omar's supernatural feats annoyed me. I've criticized those characters years ago on this webzone, so no one can really pick at me for consistency. I definitely don't think The Wire is beyond criticism by any stretch, it's far from perfect. As long as it's valid criticism I'm totally cool.

It is kind of shameful though that you are deliberately trying to turn this thread into another Sopranos vs. The Wire thread. I understand your soul is burning, but we had that thread already. Bump that one if you must.

[DonDadda59]

Awww that was months ago, that's sweet that you still carry that with you. My criticisms of The Sopranos really hit you hard.

Funny that I even agree with you in this instance. Snoop and Brother Mouzone are two of my least favorite characters in The Wire, and Omar's supernatural feats annoyed me. I've criticized those characters years ago on this webzone, so no one can really pick at me for consistency. I definitely don't think The Wire is beyond criticism by any stretch, it's far from perfect. As long as it's valid criticism I'm totally cool.

It is kind of shameful though that you are deliberately trying to turn this thread into another Sopranos vs. The Wire thread. I understand your soul is burning, but we had that thread already. Bump that one if you must.

The hilarious thing is I have absolutely no clue who you are :oldlol:

Read back in this thread, I was addressing another poster.

But good to see you agree, that's something I guess :cheers:

[DonDadda59]

I agree, it depends on the kind of show in question.

A show such as The Wire needs more realistic characters, not as bombastic, whereas The Sopranos can even benefit from it. Sure the Sopranos wants realism, but they're not trying to be what the Wire was.

Only brought it up is because some knocked the Wire and BB for having over the top characters, but they're not trying to be a documentary-ish type show a la Wire.

Fair enough, but IMO Breaking Bad has a lot more issues than just over the top characters, but I'm sure that's a topic for another thread.

[longtime lurker]

So you conclude the Wire is an overrated show from watching one season in a five season series? OP is not serious about life. Sounds like just an attention whoring thread.

[Styles p]

also the ring little story line in the wire. omar took it from marlo at a card game, the cop took it from omar then michael took it from the cop. marlo asks mike where he got it from and he said "took it from some *****" marlo thought mike took it from omar, which immediately made marlo respect mike more.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hpKpMtLioUU

[Raymone]

I finally forced myself to watch the full first two seasons of this show. Holy shit, I do not see the appeal. At least not to the level it gets exalted. The only interesting characters to me are Omar and Stringer. The rest are either flat, poorly written or poorly acted. McNulty; boring. The black detectives; meh. The lesbian cop getting shot; are we supposed to feel something?

Oh, and the scene where Barksdale's nephew gets murdered in prison is some of the worst acting I've ever seen. Not even kidding. I wasn't thinking, "Oh wow, a main character is getting choked out!" I was thinking, "I'm watching an actor unconvincingly pretend to get strangled."

The only thing holding this show up at all is the plot and the acting from Williams and Elba. I don't think I'll make it into season 3. Verdict confirmed: overrated.

[KyrieTheFuture]

Of course someone with your terrible taste dislikes this show

[AlphaWolf24]

The show came out like 13 years ago....prolly seems a little dated now...

but it was good when it first aired

[IamRAMBO24]

The main character was using an Android.

[imdaman99]

Doesn't surprise me blandgar dislikes the Wire :oldlol:

Overrate apple and underrate the Wire. iSheep

[dazzer87]

Sooooo Breaking BAd >>>> The Wire and Sopranos????:facepalm


breaking bad is overrated....turned that shit off after first episode

[iznogood]

I agree with those that say Wire is great, but not that great. I remember watching The Wire for the first time and being completely hooked (the 2nd season was my favourite). It was my favourite show for a long time. However, I think it was mostly because I'm from Europe and not really familiar with the environment portrayed in The Wire.

Watching the show for the second time I admit I had a hard time watching it once I knew what the plot was about. I appreciate the fact that the show gave a very good inside in the way systems work and also presented another angle on the war on drugs, but at the same time I think it was often too simplified or sometimes very cheap or just wrong. I also felt like there was a lot of stuff thrown in just to keep the level of authenticity and I thought it killed the dramatic part of the show. I feel the same way about Treme, which was done by the same people and is basically The Wire happening in New Orleans. Bringing in a lot of authentic characters and locations to cover for the lack of story or some writing that felt very cheesy to me. I get it, life is neither simple not fair. I feel many people get overwhelmed by the show like I was when I watched it for the first time and then call out people who don't like it for not being able to "understand" it, which I find funny, since I don't think the ideas the show presents are particularly difficult to understand, unless you're not educated.

I also thought some of the acting was very bad, which is understood considering the fact a lot of the people in the show are not trained actors. I thought Marlo, Snoop and Chris were all bad even though I thought the Marlo storyline was really good. Also I hated the way McNulty and Bunk were portrayed. I love Idris Elba, but he just seemed like a naive douchebag and was not convincing to me at all. I also thought there was a lot of good acting, but on average it felt nothing special.

I also thought cinematography could be better. I understand they probably didn't want to make any "nice" shots to keep the feel of the city kind of ugly and bad, but they could've done it much better. Most of it just looks pretty boring.

I also strongly disagree with the poster who suggested the comedy elements were better in The Wire than in Sopranos. I actually hated most of the humour in The Wire, most of it was extremely cheesy and very simple. Sopranos are very subtle in that aspect, but there's a lot of stuff in that's just ridiculously funny.

All in all, Sopranos and The Wire are 2 very different shows, but I think the level of acting, writing, depth and level of detail can't be compared. Sopranos are simply a better show. I don't even think The Wire is as good as Oz, Deadwood or Twin Peaks in that aspects. Fargo and True Detective also both looked nothing short of amazing so far, but it's to early to tell.

[iznogood]

I agree with those that say Wire is great, but not that great. I remember watching The Wire for the first time and being completely hooked (the 2nd season was my favourite). It was my favourite show for a long time. However, I think it was mostly because I'm from Europe and not really familiar with the environment portrayed in The Wire.

Watching the show for the second time I admit I had a hard time watching it once I knew what the plot was about. I appreciate the fact that the show gave a very good inside in the way systems work and also presented another angle on the war on drugs, but at the same time I think it was often too simplified or sometimes very cheap or just wrong. I also felt like there was a lot of stuff thrown in just to keep the level of authenticity and I thought it killed the dramatic part of the show. I feel the same way about Treme, which was done by the same people and is basically The Wire happening in New Orleans. Bringing in a lot of authentic characters and locations to cover for the lack of story or some writing that felt very cheesy to me. I get it, life is neither simple not fair. I feel many people get overwhelmed by the show like I was when I watched it for the first time and then call out people who don't like it for not being able to "understand" it, which I find funny, since I don't think the ideas the show presents are particularly difficult to understand, unless you're not educated.

I also thought some of the acting was very bad, which is understood considering the fact a lot of the people in the show are not trained actors. I thought Marlo, Snoop and Chris were all bad even though I thought the Marlo storyline was really good. Also I hated the way McNulty and Bunk were portrayed. I love Idris Elba, but he just seemed like a naive douchebag and was not convincing to me at all. I also thought there was a lot of good acting, but on average it felt nothing special.

I also thought cinematography could be better. I understand they probably didn't want to make any "nice" shots to keep the feel of the city kind of ugly and bad, but they could've done it much better. Most of it just looks pretty boring.

I also strongly disagree with the poster who suggested the comedy elements were better in The Wire than in Sopranos. I actually hated most of the humour in The Wire, most of it was extremely cheesy and very simple. Sopranos are very subtle in that aspect, but there's a lot of stuff in that's just ridiculously funny.

All in all, Sopranos and The Wire are 2 very different shows, but I think the level of acting, writing, depth and level of detail can't be compared. Sopranos are simply a better show. I don't even think The Wire is as good as Oz, Deadwood or Twin Peaks in that aspects. Fargo and True Detective also both looked nothing short of amazing so far, but it's to early to tell.

[Raymone]

Again; overrated to a laughable degree.

[ArbitraryWater]

This thread also: http://i.gyazo.com/15e82017f22a3179eea0e4ca406dcfc7.png

Gotta agree... its not GOAT.

BrBa >>

[Lebron23]

watching some reruns it was a good show. Edris Alba, and Michael B Jordan became huge stars because of the Wire.

[SATAN]

Only seen a couple episodes and never understood the hype. Didn't seem that much better than New York Undercover tbh.

[Lebron23]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xlWQA4IdDZg&t=63s

[Lebron23]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qCKKFA5Srjo

[Lebron23]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yB4s_-BhOxg

[Lebron23]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vhm6j7Dep4I

[Lebron23]

The wire is good. Just watched some episodes.

[ShawkFactory]

The wire is good. Just watched some episodes.

:oldlol:

[Baller234]

The Wire is one of the greatest shows ever.

This thread sucks.

[highwhey]

stupid ass argument. GOAT show.

[imdaman99]

Still quote some of it 10 years after watching it. It's def one of my favs.

[ArbitraryWater]

So basically, you listened to other people and then raised your expectations to an unattainable level? The show wasn't the problem. I'd say your level of expectations was probably the problem. IMO, that's not the correct frame of mind to go in to watching a show (or pretty much anything for that matter). I'd say it's certainly your loss if you're going to give up on the show without giving it a real chance. Sit back, relax and try to enjoy the effing show instead of trying to nitpick stupid things like a contrarian.

Thats what overrated means, asshat :oldlol:

[SouBeachTalents]

The Wire is a GOAT level show, and season 4 is literally one of the greatest seasons in television history, but I can see why it's not for everyone. It's very methodically paced, and seems a lot more dated than even the Sopranos, despite coming out around the same time.

I'm shocked at all the hate Breaking Bad was getting in this thread. I do agree with some of the issues regarding the believability of the writing at times, but people were playing it off like it was a 2nd tier show or something.

My issue with the Wire is it holds legitimately zero replay value for me, I could see myself maybe watching season 4 again, but I can't imagine watching the show again for a very long time. The Sopranos & Breaking Bad, in addition to being GOAT shows, have incredible replay value, especially the Sopranos.

Imo, the Wire is a GOAT tier show, but it's not as good or entertaining as the Sopranos & Breaking Bad.

[highwhey]

The Wire is a GOAT level show, and season 4 is literally one of the greatest seasons in television history, but I can see why it's not for everyone. It's very methodically paced, and seems a lot more dated than even the Sopranos, despite coming out around the same time.

I'm shocked at all the hate Breaking Bad was getting in this thread. I do agree with some of the issues regarding the believability of the writing at times, but people were playing it off like it was a 2nd tier show or something.

My issue with the Wire is it holds legitimately zero replay value for me, I could see myself maybe watching season 4 again, but I can't imagine watching the show again for a very long time. The Sopranos & Breaking Bad, in addition to being GOAT shows, have incredible replay value, especially the Sopranos.

Imo, the Wire is a GOAT tier show, but it's not as good or entertaining as the Sopranos & Breaking Bad.

another crazy take. BB is great, and i used to have it in the 2nd tier below Sops and Wire, but after a recent re-watch I had to bump it up to the same category that only 2 other shows reside in. But to downplay it bc of replay value. LOL. it has more memorable catchphrases among the 3 GOAT shows, meme-ability, GIF-ability...SHIIIIIIIIEEEEEETTTTTT. c'mon man. Sopranos has tthe clear advantage in rewatch value among all 3, but BB isn't much better than Wire in the sense.

[highwhey]

rant will be continued bc it's a holiday and i have nothing better to do atm.

entertainment value aside, the societal and cultural exposure alone give amazing value. i think the show should be mandatory in high schools. watch how drugs, politics, corruption all ruin our society and governmental system. anyone with an active brain will immediately want to join the libertarian party after watching that show. the government DOES NOT want to help you, neither do the police, your local drug dealer or councilman.

[Baller234]

I have The Wire over Breaking Bad. They are both amazing, amazing shows and I would highly recommend them to anyone that hasn't seen them before... but for me it boils down to which one I would rather rewatch.

As great as Breaking Bad was to experience in real time, it's a show that's very story driven and relies heavily on suspense. Once you know how the plot unfolds and you learn the fates of all the characters, there's not as much reason to revisit it when compared to The Wire.

The Wire invites you into a living, breathing world of diverse characters and intertwining stories. It's not as plot driven as Breaking Bad but it's way more character driven. Even after the show is over you just want to go back and spend time with these people and relive their stories.

Honestly though they are both so different that it doesn't even warrant comparing them. Breaking Bad was still an amazing show that got better and better with each season, and it ended in insanely climactic fashion.

[Patrick Chewing]

I will stand alone on this island if I have to, but it'd be nice if there were others to join me, but the following three shows have always been overrated to me:

The Wire
The Sopranos
Breaking Bad

[Axe]

I guess no way it gets bumped if it's that bad.