I was wondering if anyone here had watched the series, "The Wire"?

Personally, I think it's the best television show ever, and I'm not sure if we'll ever have anything like it again.  Not only was it entertaining, but it was incredibly relevant and most of all, realistic.  

It takes a bit to get going through Season 1, but once you get started, it's really hard to stop until you reach the end.

I loved The Wire.  

The 2nd season wasn't the strongest & the last series was good but a little on the so/so side.  All that effort and not really a conviction of any note (if my memory serves me well).

What about The Corner?  Is that any good?  I'm kinda guessing if you've seen The Wire then The Corner isn't all that worth watching.

I really want to watch it, and it was recently hyped big-time by the BBC, but still I've failed to see it :(

Andrew

Quoted from jayrex The 2nd season wasn't the strongest

It wasn't the strongest, but I give them credit for changing it up a lot.  I mean, watching that season, it felt almost like an entirely different show.  But in the scheme of the show, I felt it was important to show that side of the drug trade as well.

Quoted from jayrex the last series was good but a little on the so/so side.

I enjoyed the last season a lot.  A lot of people found it a bit preachy (mainly because of David Simon's ax to grind against the newspaper business), but I thought it was a thoughtful analysis of a dying business.  Also, I thought the last episode was superb in showing how everything comes full circle.

Quoted from jayrex What about The Corner?  Is that any good?  I'm kinda guessing if you've seen The Wire then The Corner isn't all that worth watching.

I rented "The Corner" awhile back and never got around to watching it.  It got nominated for a bunch of awards and received praise, so I'd assume it's worth giving a watch.  But at the same time, odds are that "The Wire" just took everything from that and improved on it.

Even though it went full circle.  All those hours put in to break the code, only for the lawyer to figure it out which put all that effort to waste.  

I suppose this is what makes The Wire great as it typically didn't finish how most of us wanted it to finish.

I agree that the 2nd series was a fresh angle and not one that anyone would have guessed.  And in doing so, showed a great diversity in crime throughout the overall series.

Quoted from jayrex I suppose this is what makes The Wire great as it typically didn't finish how most of us wanted it to finish.

Being that the show was grounded so firmly in reality, it would have been hard to write an ending that pleased everyone and not make it feel cheap.

Finally got round to watching The Wire... And I f**king love it. Watched season 1 in 5 days, had season 2 for 3 days and I've only got 3 episodes left. Looking forward to starting season 3.

I know not everyone likes season 2, but I guess me and my older brother (who's watched all the episodes, and introduced me to The Wire) are in the minority: We love season 2.

Quoted from Toby_E Finally got round to watching The Wire... And I f**king love it. Watched season 1 in 5 days, had season 2 for 3 days and I've only got 3 episodes left. Looking forward to starting season 3. I know not everyone likes season 2, but I guess me and my older brother (who's watched all the episodes, and introduced me to The Wire) are in the minority: We love season 2.

I don't quite understand the hate that Season 2 gets.  It's a very necessary season that I think delivers just as much as the others.

I'll be interested to hear which one you like better: Season 3 or 4.  That's usually where the debate lies among fans.

I just re-watched Season 1 a few months ago.  I have to go back and watch Season 2.  As far as I remeber, I liked it pretty well, but it's still my least favorite season.  Season 4 is definitely my favorite.  Those kids were just amazing.  And how awesome is Prezbo?  And Cutty.  

Did you guys catch the link to the bible for the first season that was on the SS front page a few months ago?  Definitely worth a read if you're a big fan.

Finally brought Season 3 and 4 last weekend. Already finished Season 3, halfway through Season 4. It's too hard to say which season I prefer, but I'd have to say i prefer Season 4 slightly. I just love the new characters, and as Seamus said, Prezbo is awesome!

I f**king hate The Wire.

Every time I watch it I realise that I'm never going to be able to write anything anywhere near as good!  >:(

Seasons 3 and 4 are the best, in my opinion. But that might just be because I found the politics to be the most fascinating aspect of the series. All of it holds up extremely well though. Season 2, which a lot of people seem to have issues with, improves on repeat viewing (plus Frank Sobotka is one of the most interesting characters the show has produced). Even season 5, weak by The Wire's own standards, is better than 95% of what else is on TV.

I think its greatness stems from the fact that the two main people involved (David Simon and Ed Burns) knew the world they were writing about intimately. They were also lucky to be on HBO, which apparently more or less left them to it.

Do love The Wire. Loved the end too. I just watched Season 5 again today. I'm Wired out.

Started off slow but once things fell into place it was truly great TV. Amazingly good.

Re

Just finished season 4, absolutly loved it, My fave season to date. Bloody amazing show.

This is a really great, and very long, article on how and why The Wire was written. The best article I have ever read about a TV show.

It has made me want to watch it.

Enjoy...

http://entertainment.timesonline.co.uk/tol/arts_and_entertainment/books/article6872920.ece