The wire is easily one of the most in-depth takes on a lot of things. It centres on the depiction of the war on drugs. While it does so spectacularly, it also goes into the corruption, politics and the systemic rot which is all around us.
It starts off as one man's spirited fight against a local drug kingpin, and the first season devotes itself to this fight, but in doing so, it continues to bring other characters into the picture and over the course of 5 seasons, convincingly takes them to closure.
It is a masterclass in character development. People truly evolve through the five seasons of the show, and dynamics change. There is no plot armour for anyone. Also, there are no heroes. The approach McNulty takes in the fifth show is arguably deplorable, but it seems natural coming from that character.
Among many bigwigs fighting it out, what truly stays with you is the story of Reginald Cousins, aka, Bubbles. A heroin addict who loses everything, hits rock bottom, but then manages to rise back up to a life which he could die peacefully with. Many of the scenes with Bubbles hit hard. Andre Royo has given his best in living the role through 5 seasons of the show.
The show does not need any manufactured drama. Reality takes care of it. The director just had to keep looking and reality provides all the friction needed. With such an in-depth focus on the matters, the series is definitely a slow burn but it is still definitely worth your time.
Review by SolBlockedParent2022-05-15T11:40:50Z
The devil lies in the details.
The wire is easily one of the most in-depth takes on a lot of things. It centres on the depiction of the war on drugs. While it does so spectacularly, it also goes into the corruption, politics and the systemic rot which is all around us.
It starts off as one man's spirited fight against a local drug kingpin, and the first season devotes itself to this fight, but in doing so, it continues to bring other characters into the picture and over the course of 5 seasons, convincingly takes them to closure.
It is a masterclass in character development. People truly evolve through the five seasons of the show, and dynamics change. There is no plot armour for anyone. Also, there are no heroes. The approach McNulty takes in the fifth show is arguably deplorable, but it seems natural coming from that character.
Among many bigwigs fighting it out, what truly stays with you is the story of Reginald Cousins, aka, Bubbles. A heroin addict who loses everything, hits rock bottom, but then manages to rise back up to a life which he could die peacefully with. Many of the scenes with Bubbles hit hard. Andre Royo has given his best in living the role through 5 seasons of the show.
The show does not need any manufactured drama. Reality takes care of it. The director just had to keep looking and reality provides all the friction needed. With such an in-depth focus on the matters, the series is definitely a slow burn but it is still definitely worth your time.
Also, this series has some magnificent writing I have experienced to date. Take Major Colvin's take on the war on drugs,
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BA5za4VsskM&t=23s