The Wire

[shadow_operative 15,932]

and just in case anyone is curious as to what all is on my list, or wants to see how many of these references they are familiar with:

Spoiler

Fantasy Team Names 

 

Our Lady of the Re-Up

 

Now I Have A Machine Gun 

 

Hot Ice

 

Diamond Dogs 

 

The Gods Will Not Save You 

 

Racist Ass Melly Gibsons 

 

I Rolls Dolo From State To State 

 

That's Simple Fact

 

That's Rich

 

If You See Something Say Something

 

Come On And Party Tonight 

 

Let The Boy Watch 

 

One Man Gang

 

White Boy Carl 

 

Any random line from "Loser" by Beck

 

Tackling Fuel 

 

Don't You Do It Hitler 

 

I'm Da Pappy 

 

Bulls On Parade 

 

Alive On Arrival 

 

The Truest Repairman 

 

I'M LIKE THAT!

 

Money Beets 

 

Secret Assistant to the Regional Manager 

 

Body Cam Charles 

 

Gregory Yelenovich 

 

Double Snookies 

 

Couple A Grape Sodas 

 

Fuck Y'all Box 

 

O'Shack Hennessy

 

[WhatTheBuck 28,775]

Not interested.

[Homercles 10,205]

Guess I’ve watched enough Wire clips that this came up from YouTube...The Wire 8-bit game parody.  Loved how Omar has ‘Honey Nut’ as equipment  

 

Edited May 6, 2021 by Homercles

[Guest Lobo]

the two screens needed to finish Davis' "Sheeeeeeeeet" was a nice touch.  That was pretty damn funny.  Pos rep

[Apep 645]

I would play the hell out of that.

[Party_Taco 3,723]

This is the game I wanted to make when we went indie, combined with GTA2, but I was outvoted by my colleagues.

Also would play the hell out of that experience.

[Homercles 10,205]

This clip has two of my favorites…figured I’d bump this thread

”.38 don’t jam”

”Don’t hold 15 neither”

 

[Seasick Sailor 3,747]

Just randomly started my fourth or fifth rewatch. Still holds up after all this time.

[WhatTheBuck 28,775]

SPOILER ALERT

I forget the name of the motherfucker that screwed Cutty on his package but I never mind seeing him take a bullet through his head on a totally unrelated matter. Something about a girl. That dude was an asshole and had it coming. Fuck that guy. 

[HornPhD 1,368]

53 minutes ago, WhatTheBuck said:

SPOILER ALERT

I forget the name of the motherfucker that screwed Cutty on his package but I never mind seeing him take a bullet through his head on a totally unrelated matter. Something about a girl. That dude was an asshole and had it coming. Fuck that guy. 

Fruit

[Jive Turkey 12,594]

13 hours ago, Homercles said:

This clip has two of my favorites…figured I’d bump this thread

”.38 don’t jam”

”Don’t hold 15 neither”

 

and the follow up:

 

[Prepuce of Doom 21,053]

We need a Kenard spinoff. 

[TheStoicPaisano 9,922]

Dukie made it out! If this dude is an Officer Walker type, I will be most disappointed.

 

[Jive Turkey 12,594]

Marlo gonna play a detective.

https://www.hbo.com/we-own-this-city

[lateshow 1,304]

1 hour ago, Jive Turkey said:

Marlo gonna play a detective.

https://www.hbo.com/we-own-this-city

He's been doing it for years on Bosch. 

[shadow_operative 15,932]

Bodie played a cop on SVU, and i think Marlo did as well. 

[Guest Lobo]

3 hours ago, TheStoicPaisano said:

Dukie made it out! If this dude is an Officer Walker type, I will be most disappointed.

 

Bold move, being a BPD officer with no weapon, no nightstick, no handcuffs, no pepper spray, no radio.  I think I see where this is going. 

That said, I'm in on the show.

[Homercles 10,205]

On 8/7/2021 at 1:54 AM, Prepuce of Doom said:

We need a Kenard spinoff. 

Package up my ass, gump!

The background voices and music always did lead a subtle sense of a living city to the series…’hey look at that little ***** gettin his ass beat!’ or ‘pandemic!!’ or even how music was essentially never a separate overlay audio track, but always part of the background 

(except for this epic scene) 

The tune is called Wax Box Music, a permanent fixture on my Chill YT playlist, complete with fitting word cloud/quote cover. 
 

 

For my one friend who really got into this show like I did, instead of saying ‘later’ when we end a chat on Teams (works at my company), one of us says ‘one more thing, price of the brick goin up’. 

[Seasick Sailor 3,747]

 

[NotActuallyALonghorn 4,975]

Currently working my way through season two, but...

On 4/2/2018 at 10:22 AM, UT Lawnghorn said:

On one hand I want to pos rep you for starting this thread. On the other, I want to neg you for saying it's not your favorite show.  I'm conflicted so I guess I'll just leave you with this.

On 4/9/2018 at 4:24 PM, SimonBolivar said:

That's like saying that sex with a 10 is better than traveling to Kandahar to save $5 on a root canal.

Most of us don't have any frame of reference for either of those comparisons. 

[NotActuallyALonghorn 4,975]

Also, not gonna read past the first page. I'm not too worried about spoilers because this show relies on characters more than plot, but I have no idea what most of the discussion is about yet.

[WhatTheBuck 28,775]

1 hour ago, NotActuallyALonghorn said:

Also, not gonna read past the first page. I'm not too worried about spoilers because this show relies on characters more than plot, but I have no idea what most of the discussion is about yet.

Just pay attention to everything on the show because most everything matters to the story. 

[South Austin 52,448]

Mega bump, because there was some discussion on the thread about actors who never made it big. 

I never thought The Wire looked that interesting when it came out in 2002 -- in fact, I was only vaguely aware of it, and I think I had HBO at the time.  At the insistence of my girlfriend -- when I'm getting laid on the regular, I'll watch just about anything -- we started binge watching a couple months ago, and we're on Season 5.  Holy shit, this is one of the best written, best cast shows I've ever seen.  I don't want it to end. 

[Mac8111 2,106]

The pussy always knows what is best.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[South Austin 52,448]

5 minutes ago, Mac8111 said:

The pussy always knows what is best.

Usually, but not always.  She's also having me watch the Sex and the City reboot "And Just Like That . . . ."  I better get anal out of that one.

[Frank The Tank 1,496]

The queen ain’t no bitch, she got all the moves. 

[Vic Mackey 47,009]

My gf has never seen it and we are going to watch it. This will be my 3rd time watching it but the last time was over 10 years so I am excited for another run through this. One of my favorite shows ever. 

[Buzzrock 14,902]

Finally watching this for the first time since it’s in HD on HBO. On the second episode. I’m liking it but the episodes feel very long so far.

[WhatTheBuck 28,775]

7 hours ago, Buzzrock said:

Finally watching this for the first time since it’s in HD on HBO. On the second episode. I’m liking it but the episodes feel very long so far.

They’re deep. And there are a lot of characters to get to know. When it first aired on HBO they’d run an episode on multiple nights each week so I’d watch each episode at least twice before seeing the next one.

I’m happy for you. Don’t get distracted. Give it your full attention. Everything matters.

And boy, episode 10...

I’m not even sure how to describe it. And I wouldn’t want to spoil anything for you. But it’s a big one.

Stay focused and strap yourself in for a great ride. The scope expands with each season.

[Buzzrock 14,902]

It’s kinda surprising that it doesn’t feel that dated for a 20 year old show. No one is wearing slim fit suits or anything but it holds up well.

[Dutch 4,465]

11 hours ago, Buzzrock said:

Finally watching this for the first time since it’s in HD on HBO. On the second episode. I’m liking it but the episodes feel very long so far.

I wish I could go back and rewatch it fresh.  Such incredible writing, acting, and world-building.  Still my favorite series of all-time.  As great as your first watch will be, your second and third run through will be even better as the subtle things you missed the first time through become apparent.

Edited May 19, 2022 by Dutch

[Vic Mackey 47,009]

1 hour ago, Dutch said:

I wish I could go back and rewatch it fresh.  Such incredible writing, acting, and world-building.  Still my favorite series of all-time.  As great as your first watch will be, your second and third run through will be even better as the subtle things you missed the first time through become apparent.

Absolutely. I watched this in full at the end of 2008. Then again at the end of 2011. And now a 3rd time with my gf. We started almost 2 weeks back and have finished the first 2 seasons. I know the overall arch of the series story but with it being almost 11 years since I seen it last, all the small details are developing fresh for me. Especially the character archs and how all the characters are introduced.

I know Season 2 gets a bad rap from many but watching it for a 3rd time, me and my gf liked it better than season 1. I loved the docks story line with the Greeks. And how the Barksdale/Stringer relationship is becoming different. Introduced Prop Joe in more depth and Brother Mouzone comes along. Cheese as well. 

Has anyone seen The Corner? It's a mini series set in Baltimore. It was made a few years before The Wire started. Not sure if it ties in directly or just the same setting and world. 

And is Homicide: Life On The Street worth going back to watch? I love those kinds of shows. I have seen Law/Order (the original) in full. I know there are episodes where those shows crossover. I didn't realize it was the same creator as The Wire. 

[Seasick Sailor 3,747]

1 minute ago, Vic Mackey said:

I know Season 2 gets a bad rap from many but watching it for a 3rd time, me and my gf liked it better than season 1. I loved the docks story line with the Greeks. And how the Barksdale/Stringer relationship is becoming different. Introduced Prop Joe in more depth and Brother Mouzone comes along. Cheese as well. 

Season 2 is my favorite season. 

[Vic Mackey 47,009]

8 minutes ago, Seasick Sailor said:

Season 2 is my favorite season. 

I need to see how Seasons 3 and 4 play out again to see which one of Season 2-4 are my favorite. I do know Season 1 and 5 are the bottom 2 of my rankings. Season 5 in my remembering watching it, kind of gets a little goofy. I believe this is the season that taps into the newspaper story and they move bodies of murders for some reason. Maybe to skew the stats for whatever reason. I thought it was a little silly. 

[WhatTheBuck 28,775]

1 hour ago, Seasick Sailor said:

Season 2 is my favorite season. 

Same here. 

[WhatTheBuck 28,775]

1 hour ago, Vic Mackey said:

Has anyone seen The Corner? It's a mini series set in Baltimore. It was made a few years before The Wire started. Not sure if it ties in directly or just the same setting and world. 

I’ve seen it. I’ve also read the book. You should read the book.

Clarke Peters, who played Lester Freamon, aka “Cool Lester Smooth,” in The Wire, played a junkie in The Corner. He also played Big Chief Albert Lambreaux in David Simon’s follow up Treme (which was awesome). Peters is a brilliant actor. You never see a hint of any of those characters in his portrayal of another. Wendell Pierce, on the other hand, who played Bunk Moreland in The Wire, played Antoine Batiste in Treme. He’s basically playing himself. Which is fine. A lot of actors do that and I like him. But Peters is more of a character actor.

And you really should read The Corner. It’s a good book. 

Edited May 19, 2022 by WhatTheBuck

[Vic Mackey 47,009]

32 minutes ago, WhatTheBuck said:

I’ve seen it. I’ve also read the book. You should read the book.

Clarke Peters, who played Lester Freamon, aka “Cool Lester Smooth,” in The Wire, played a junkie in The Corner. He also played Big Chief Albert Lambreaux in David Simon’s follow up Treme (which was awesome). Peters is a brilliant actor. You never see a hint of any of those characters in his portrayal of another. Wendell Pierce, on the other hand, who played Bunk Moreland in The Wire, played Antoine Batiste in Treme. He’s basically playing himself. Which is fine. A lot of actors do that and I like him. But Peters is more of a character actor.

And you really should read The Corner. It’s a good book. 

Thanks! I will check out the series and book for sure.

I looked up Treme. Never heard of it but the cast looks solid. Thanks for the suggestion. No idea how I missed this show seeing its right up my alley and its HBO, meaning it is usually great quality.

What about We Own This City? Is it pretty good?

Edited May 19, 2022 by Vic Mackey

[WhatTheBuck 28,775]

4 minutes ago, Vic Mackey said:

What about We Own This City? Is it pretty good?

I’ve never seen it.

Treme is a genius take on storytelling. I don’t know of another show that so perfectly blends the real and the fictional. The Corner was basically a documentary. The Wire was a pseudo-documentary for the first two seasons and then it introduced the hypothetical.

Treme blended actual events and real people, real people playing themselves, actors playing real people, real people playing other people, real musicians playing themselves, real musicians playing fictional musicians, actors playing musicians, real chefs playing themselves, actors playing fictional chefs.

Most of the New Orleans scenes were shot on location. Anthony Bourdain wrote the dialog for the New York City kitchen scenes.

The music is outstanding. It introduced me to both Kermit Ruffin and John Boutté. And I really didn’t know much about the culture of the Mardi Gras Indians. Big Chief Lambreaux and his son are based on real people.

Steve Zahn’s character Davis McAlary is based on a real person, and that person actually appears in the show playing someone else. “Twisted” isn’t the right word to describe it. “Tapestry” might be an overstatement. Whatever the right word is, it’s brilliant and unique and totally original.

Love the lighting in this scene. I was hooked from the start. And notice not a hint of Lester Freamon.

 

[Buzzrock 14,902]

We Own This City is good, and what prompted me to go back and start The Wire.

I need for my family to leave town for a week so I can binge it all.

[Dutch 4,465]

11 hours ago, Vic Mackey said:

Absolutely. I watched this in full at the end of 2008. Then again at the end of 2011. And now a 3rd time with my gf. We started almost 2 weeks back and have finished the first 2 seasons. I know the overall arch of the series story but with it being almost 11 years since I seen it last, all the small details are developing fresh for me. Especially the character archs and how all the characters are introduced.

I know Season 2 gets a bad rap from many but watching it for a 3rd time, me and my gf liked it better than season 1. I loved the docks story line with the Greeks. And how the Barksdale/Stringer relationship is becoming different. Introduced Prop Joe in more depth and Brother Mouzone comes along. Cheese as well. 

 

11 hours ago, Seasick Sailor said:

Season 2 is my favorite season. 

Both of these. Didn’t really like S2 on my initial watch. Felt like a slog. By my third run through, hosever, it had become my favorite. So much depth, and it’s where the webs all began to intersect (and would begin to branch off). 

Edited May 20, 2022 by Dutch

[TwiceHorn 31,438]

I didn't watch all of Homicide:  Life on The Streets, but the couple of seasons I did watch, it was damn good.

It's hard to find, except on DVD.

[Chico_SA 521]

The Wire is my favorite show.  I love Treme and probably spent more time researching New Orleans, Katrina, and the Indians then I did watching the show.  I'm a big Steve Earle fan, and this became one of my favorites of his.  

 

 

 

Edited May 20, 2022 by Chico_SA

[WhatTheBuck 28,775]

5 hours ago, Chico_SA said:

The Wire is my favorite show.  I love Treme and probably spent more time researching New Orleans, Katrina, and the Indians then I did watching the show.  I'm a big Steve Earle fan, and this became one of my favorites of his.  

 

 

 

That’s sweet. I hadn’t heard Steve Earle’s album version of that song. He was great in both Treme and The Wire.

That violinist is Lucia Micarelli, an actual professional musician who plays a fictional musician in Treme. I’ve seen one of her concerts on PBS. In the show we see her develop as a musician, struggling to play things sometimes and getting better as time goes by. That’s a special kind of acting. There are times in the show where someone can’t play is part of the story and you just have to be able to hear it to get it. The music is such a huge part of the show.

To keep this tied to The Wire, I forget the song but I used Shazam to identify the song Beadie Russell had playing on her radio in her car the first time she appeared in season 2 patrolling the docks and it was some New Orleans band. Maybe it was foreshadowing. I don’t know.

Anyway, back to Steve and Lucia. I’m going to post three videos of one song, and then a fourth which is a spoiler if you haven’t seen Treme. The first is the version of This City that was played during the closing credits of the show. The second is Steve performing it live and giving some background info. The third is Lucia performing it in concert. And then the last video with the ensemble playing Will The Circle Be Unbroken was one of my favorite moments in the show. (Again, spoiler alert.)

Again...spoiler alert.

 

Edited May 20, 2022 by WhatTheBuck

[South Austin 52,448]

I tried to get into Treme, and I love New Orleans, but I just couldn’t. Partly because I think Steve Zahn is such a terrible actor.

[WhatTheBuck 28,775]

2 hours ago, South Austin said:

I tried to get into Treme, and I love New Orleans, but I just couldn’t. Partly because I think Steve Zahn is such a terrible actor.

That’s a weird hangup. He’s great in that role. You’re not the first one in this community to gripe about Zahn. Did he insult Texas at some point? The hate seems outsized.

Not sure what problem you could have with this (shout out to Galactic saxophonist Ben Ellman):

 

[Stringer 1,438]

Finally watching this for the first time since it’s in HD on HBO. On the second episode. I’m liking it but the episodes feel very long so far.

I would definitely watch it with a guide of some sort as it is so thick. Alan Sepinwall did a whole episode by episode recap for new watchers (and veterans) a while back. If you just search Alan Sepinwall The Wire it should come up. It has no spoilers, but with all the characters and relationships, I’m sure it’s helpful.

Treme was really great too. I think it took off after season one, after they dialed in the Steve Zahn and Michiel Huisman characters. They were pretty bad in season one, IMO.

[Seasick Sailor 3,747]

10 hours ago, TwiceHorn said:

I didn't watch all of Homicide:  Life on The Streets, but the couple of seasons I did watch, it was damn good.

It's hard to find, except on DVD.

The book is great too. I wish a streaming service would pick up the show. 

[Buzzrock 14,902]

Assistant State’s Attorney Rhonda Pearlman is very polite.

[WhatTheBuck 28,775]

15 hours ago, Stringer said:

Treme was really great too. I think it took off after season one, after they dialed in the Steve Zahn and Michiel Huisman characters. They were pretty bad in season one, IMO.

Just because you didn’t like the characters doesn’t mean the actors did a bad job. McAlary was supposed to be a pretentious douche even though he had an encyclopedic knowledge of New Orleans music and Sonny was supposed to be a second-rate musician pretending to belong when he was just a Dutch immigrant. And he had a drug problem. Those were the characters. They didn’t get “dialed in.” The characters developed. That’s just good storytelling. I don’t think Sonny was ever supposed to be a sympathetic character and McAlary really wasn’t until he tried to convince Janette Desautel, played by Kim Dickens, not to leave New Orleans for NYC. That and when he ended his hostile relationship with his gay neighbors downstairs.

This was another of the great scenes:

 

[South Austin 52,448]

We’ve clearly upset Steve Zahn’s brother.