The Wire - Series 1-4 discussion and NO Series 5 spoilers please

[SpookyFrank]

As for Omar's place, it's tricky, but I do think it goes beyond the comic relief character. He's essentially outside the various groupings set up, seemingly able to move between them as and when he wants, and yet his life is constrained by those groups.

Spot on. I reckon the purpose of Omar in the show is to negate the supposed moral authority of the police and to show that the boundaries between the various groups are arbitrary. He also exists as a random factor who frequently upsets the best laid plans of all concerned.

And he's very funny. The old man in a wheelchair scene cracked me up

 

[Vintage Paw]

Spot on. I reckon the purpose of Omar in the show is to negate the supposed moral authority of the police and to show that the boundaries between the various groups are arbitrary. He also exists as a random factor who frequently upsets the best laid plans of all concerned.

And he's very funny. The old man in a wheelchair scene cracked me up

I loved it when he went to buy cereal, in his pyjamas, without his gun, and all you could hear was kids shouting "Omar coming", and people running away - and then the dude in the store thinking he was going to shoot him It verged on being a caricature of itself at that point, but I think it reigned itself in just in time. Great scene.

 

[SpookyFrank]

It verged on being a caricature of itself at that point, but I think it reigned itself in just in time. Great scene.

Sometimes he pops up just when things are getting overly dark as well, for a spot of finely calculated comic relief just before it gets even darker.

 

[Vintage Paw]

Sometimes he pops up just when things are getting overly dark as well, for a spot of finely calculated comic relief just before it gets even darker.

Yep. I can see how some might see him as just the comic character, because of those well-timed moments, but he does go beyond that.

Maybe it's because he's become something of a known quantity. Saying that, there are plenty of other characters who fit neatly into their own little character boxes - it's just that he is such a prominent and well-liked one I suppose.

 

[mrsfran]

Omar is also the only one so far who has stuck 100% to his own moral "code". He's never let himself down and he's always done what he believes is right. What it means is that a man we see perpetuate crime and murder on a regular basis is in fact the most "moral" character in the show. Which shows morality up for exactly what it is - a purely personal code.

Also, he's a survivor. He shows that you can play the game but keep it impersonal. He believes in himself and that carries him through.

Also, he's a funny motherfucker.

 

[Vintage Paw]

Omar is also the only one so far who has stuck 100% to his own moral "code". He's never let himself down and he's always done what he believes is right. What it means is that a man we see perpetuate crime and murder on a regular basis is in fact the most "moral" character in the show. Which shows morality up for exactly what it is - a purely personal code.

Also, he's a survivor. He shows that you can play the game but keep it impersonal. He believes in himself and that carries him through.

Also, he's a funny motherfucker.

True, dat. *nods*

 

[SpookyFrank]

Omar is also the only one so far who has stuck 100% to his own moral "code". He's never let himself down and he's always done what he believes is right. What it means is that a man we see perpetuate crime and murder on a regular basis is in fact the most "moral" character in the show. Which shows morality up for exactly what it is - a purely personal code.

Also, he's a survivor. He shows that you can play the game but keep it impersonal. He believes in himself and that carries him through.

Also, he's a funny motherfucker.

He's also the only character who has the luxury of doing what as he pleases according to his own moral standards; everyone else has obligations to some authority or other forcing their hands.

 

[mrsfran]

Unrelated little touch I liked: the guy in the hospital bed next to Cutty watching Deadwood and laughing saying "He said cocksucker!".

 

[mrsfran]

He's also the only character who has the luxury of doing what as he pleases according to his own moral standards; everyone else has obligations to some authority or other forcing their hands.

True.

I liked the introduction of more humility to his character this season. I liked when he was almost pleading with Bunk to get him out of that jail. I was worried for him.

 

[London_Calling]

Omar is also the only one so far who has stuck 100% to his own moral "code". He's never let himself down and he's always done what he believes is right. What it means is that a man we see perpetuate crime and murder on a regular basis is in fact the most "moral" character in the show. Which shows morality up for exactly what it is - a purely personal code.

Also, he's a survivor. He shows that you can play the game but keep it impersonal. He believes in himself and that carries him through.

Also, he's a funny motherfucker.

Yusss, but ummm.

I haven't reflected on Omar as much as some but . . . while he certainly has his own code, I don't grasp why his code is better than anyone else's i.e. 'good' (not that everyone has said it's good, but I do infer that in some posts). After all the drugs he steals still end up being sold on the streets, it’s just that he makes the profit rather than the gangs (unless of course he sells them back to the gangs as he latterly does). He really is not, for instance, a Robin Hood type - he is in it for personal gain/wealth.

As for the gay device . . . I dunno . . . I guess it contributes to him being distinct and probably adds a personal conflict for those watching in inner city USA projects. I need to think more on that.

The key to the Omar character, I do currently think, is that he is the only cast member not institutionalised - institutions and the impact of them on individuals is a theme threading through all 50 hours, imo.

Once I have that idea in place, the issue of his personal morality makes sense (to me), he's the Clint Eastwood character (with the shotgun and long coat), he provides the non-institutional contrast. The Outlaw Josie Wales reincarnate. But hey, I'm still fleshing out the whole Omar thing . . .

 

[London_Calling]

Eloquent as ever London_Calling.

You're too kind . . .

I'm not as eloquent as you though, so I can't quite explain what I mean.

Well tbf, you're not doing a bad job. Carry on, let it flow . . .

 

[mrsfran]

Yusss, but ummm.

I haven't reflected on Omar as much as some but . . . while he certainly has his own code, I don't grasp why his code is better than anyone else's i.e. 'good' (not that everyone has said it's good, but I do infer that in some posts). After all the drugs he steals still end up being sold on the streets, it’s just that he makes the profit rather than the gangs (unless of course he sells them back to the gangs as he latterly does). He really is not, for instance, a Robin Hood type - he is in it for personal gain/wealth.

As for the gay device . . . I dunno . . . I guess it contributes to him being distinct and probably adds a personal conflict for those watching in inner city USA projects. I need to think more on that.

The key to the Omar character, I do currently think, is that he is the only cast member not institutionalised - institutions and the impact of them on individuals is a theme threading through all 50 hours, imo.

Once I have that idea in place, the issue of his personal morality makes sense (to me), he's the Clint Eastwood character (with the shotgun and long coat), he provides the non-institutional contrast. The Outlaw Josie Wales reincarnate. But hey, I'm still fleshing out the whole Omar thing . . .

But that’s exactly the point- his moral code is not good. There is no “good”. Omar demonstrates that adherence to a moral code and hence behaving “morally” does not equal goodness. He doesn't kill people who aren't in the game. But he does kill people.

As for him being gay, I understood that this part of his character was based on a real Baltimore gangster.

 

[CalmerChameleon]

Yusss, but ummm.


As for the gay device . . . I dunno . . . I guess it contributes to him being distinct and probably adds a personal conflict for those watching in inner city USA projects. I need to think more on that.

I think the fact that he's gay is partly to explain why he's an outsider type who couldn't become part of a regular drug gang, as he wouldn't have been accepted, so he had to do his own thing.

 

[London_Calling]

I was looking for a particular qoute from Omar in which he responds to a jibe about being gay by saying something about it being the toughest thing possible, didn't find it but I did come across this: We are not alone - some very high quality commentary there. Oh, indeed.


Still thinking on Mr Omar.

 

[London_Calling]

Btw, The Bunk educating Omar on his code:

Bullshit boy, no victim? I just came from Tasha's people, remember? All this death, you don't think that ripples out?

You don't even know what the fuck I'm talking about. I was a few years ahead of you at Edmonson, but I know you remember the neighborhood, how it was. We had some bad boys, for real. Wasn't about guns, so much as knowing what to do with your hands. Those boys could really rack. My father, he had me on the straight. But, like any young man, I wanted to be hard too. So I would turn up at all the house parties where all the tough boys hung. Heh, shit, they knew I wasn't one of them. Them hard cases would come up to me and say "go home, school boy, you don't belong here".

Didn't realize at the time what they were doing for me. As rough as that neighborhood can be, we had us a community. Nobody no victim who didn't matter. And now, all we got is bodies, and predatory motherfuckers like you. And out where that girl fell, I saw kids acting like Omar. Calling you by name, glorifying your ass. Makes me sick, motherfucker, how far we done fell."

 

[Santino]

Perhaps Omar illustrates that you can succeed outside of institutions. What you can't do is live within them and go against their rules.

 

[London_Calling]

Yep, and the Rawls character certainly suggests you can't operate inside some institutions and be openly gay - though you can apparently if you're a butch-macho lesbian (at least inside the Police Dept).

So it would seeem reasonable that Omar's sexuality framed his non-institutional career path first e.g. he's outsider because of his sexuality, and after that came his code.


Fwiw, I have known one or two properly fearless people and have found them utterly fascinating to observe in action. Maybe that is a less appreciated aspect of the Omar character . . .

 

[mrsfran]

Although if we're including The Game as an institution, Snoop survives while being a lesbian. But then, lesbians are usually more accepted than gay men anyway.

 

[sleaterkinney]

I loved it when he went to buy cereal, in his pyjamas, without his gun, and all you could hear was kids shouting "Omar coming", and people running away - and then the dude in the store thinking he was going to shoot him It verged on being a caricature of itself at that point, but I think it reigned itself in just in time. Great scene.

They were lilac padded pyjamas as well, about as non-street as you can get.

So it would seeem reasonable that Omar's sexuality framed his non-institutional career path first e.g. he's outsider because of his sexuality, and after that came his code.

No, if you watch the prequels he had that code as a kid. I think he's in there to provide another viewpoint on the game.

 

[London_Calling]

No, if you watch the prequels he had that code as a kid. I think he's in there to provide another viewpoint on the game.

It is a point, though I'm not sure of the merits of those prequels - I see they work as promo's (what are they called on the Internet?), but Simon was clear about only conceding to HBO that one flashback (in the very first show). Maybe. I suppose we'd probably all agree he wasn't sexualised in 1985?


Possible Spoilers Alert !


Elsewhere, The Wire is currently in the news due to the final series starting: Google News

USA Today

The Bunk speaks - read the third page.

 

[Dillinger4]

It is a point, though I'm not sure of the merits of those prequels - I see they work as promo's (what are they called on the Internet?), but Simon was clear about only conceding to HBO that one flashback (in the very first show). Maybe. I suppose we'd probably all agree he wasn't sexualised in 1985?


Elsewhere, The Wire is currently in the news due to the final series starting: Google News

USA Today

The Bunk speaks - read the third page.

Warning - There are potential spoilers in there!

I like them though.

 

[London_Calling]

I didn't read the google ones, I though they were the USA and Bunk ones when I first linked - apologies !

 

[Dillinger4]

Just read the third page.

That is possibly the coolest thing I have ever read in my entire life, and I hope it happens.

Pierce also said that he and "Wire" co-star Sonja Sohn approached HBO and Simon about a prequel movie to "The Wire," which would chart the rise of the fictional Barksdale crime family depicted in the first three seasons.

 

[Vintage Paw]

I'm refusing to read any spoilers. I found out about Bodie before it happened, and it totally spoiled it. If I'd have known about Stringer I think it would have been a deal breaker.

Nope, I'm avoiding any and all spoilers. Even tiny little ones. I know enough already from the various teaser films that have been posted around.

I'll savour it when I watch it all

 

[mrsfran]

I'm refusing to read any spoilers. I found out about Bodie before it happened, and it totally spoiled it. If I'd have known about Stringer I think it would have been a deal breaker.

Nope, I'm avoiding any and all spoilers. Even tiny little ones. I know enough already from the various teaser films that have been posted around.

I'll savour it when I watch it all

Me too. I really, really wish Bodie getting killed hadn't been spoiled on here

 

[London_Calling]

From what I've read, this stuff isn't what I'd call 'spoilers' at all, teasers more like (about the general themes) - I wouldn't have read them or linked to them otherwise.

Certainly nothing on the scale of the morons about Bodie.

 

[DotCommunist]

Two things.

I fucking LOVE the way Bodie projectile spits between his teeth in a contemptuos manner. I have a tooth gap, and wil be practising that in the garden tomorrow


Omar has a bigger willie than me



third ting.

Prop Joe and Bodie are perhaps my favorite character baddies. For the good guys i'm liking mcnulty. I'm on ep 3 season 4, and Mcnulty's high point for me was last seasons drunk drive and fuck in that bit that comes before the titles.

 

[Crispy]

Just starting S4 now. If it can be better than S3, I'll buy a hat, then eat it.

PS: Did I see who I think I saw in a lingering background shot at the gay bar?!?

 

[Dillinger4]

Just starting S4 now. If it can be better than S3, I'll buy a hat, then eat it.

PS: Did I see who I think I saw in a lingering background shot at the gay bar?!?

YES you did!!!

it has been much discussed.

And almost everyone had the same reaction.

 

[DotCommunist]

Just starting S4 now. If it can be better than S3, I'll buy a hat, then eat it.

PS: Did I see who I think I saw in a lingering background shot at the gay bar?!?

you'll be needing some condiments to go with that hat sir