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Why all the hype about the Wire?

Just popping by to say Season 1 Episode 6 is one tight piece of work; tight, tight, tight ! All the early investment in setting the stage is seriously paying off now . . .


Curious about the episode lengths, this DVD download has each at about 64 minutes, that's 1 1/2 hours in USA viewing time, and 1 hour 20-25 on UK commercial TV. That would be unusual, is that how it plays ?
 
London_Calling said:
Just popping by to say Season 1 Episode 6 is one tight piece of work; tight, tight, tight ! All the early investment in setting the stage is seriously paying off now . . .


Curious about the episode lengths, this DVD download has each at about 64 minutes, that's 1 1/2 hours in USA viewing time, and 1 hour 20-25 on UK commercial TV. That would be unusual, is that how it plays ?
Click to expand...

It's a HBO series who are pay for view and they don't have commercials breaks. This means they can make their episodes as long as they like rather than having to fit them into the 42 minutes that's the standart for dramas on network stations.
 
London_Calling said:
:eek: I can't cope . . .
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And the actor who plays Lester Freamon is a resident of London for the past 30 years, making his living playing the black American in virtually every play that requires one and writing musicals like Five Guys Named Moe. :cool:
 
so how come there are 2 genuine brits in the wire and one by proxy????

They not have enough actors in maryland?


dave
 
Reno - thanks for the explanation.

kained&able said:
so how come there are 2 genuine brits in the wire and one by proxy????
Click to expand...
Similar Brits-speaking-American in Lost. Actually, in Lost the actor from Wandsworth speaks Iraqi English and another actor from London spoke African English.

I did wonder if it's because they're of a decent standard, they don't carry any US tv character baggage and they're cheap - the writer said the scenes of McNulty in his bedroom used the actor's actual 'hotel' room, and that's def Travel Lodge-ish.
 
Oz has a few Brit actors in it too - Adebisi is played by Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje, who's a Londoner (also Mr Eko in Lost) and Karim Said is played by Eamonn Walker, who was Marigold the gay social worker in In Sickness & In Health
 
[back to original thrust of thread]

I can also remember being slightly foxed by the first few eps of the Wire that I watched (and I'm now one of its biggest fans, even for this board of fine TV connoisseurs.)

The point - and the key to why The Wire is The Greatest Television Ever Made (TM) - is that unlike almost every other TV serial, it does NOT pack the script with vast wads of explanation of what everyone is doing at any given moment. The scripting just doesn't include the hand-holding, step-by-step padding which makes up most police/serial dramas. In The Wire you'll NEVER hear lines like "... and then we are going to get the warrant to open Character X's house, which will allow us to gather the evidence about their links with Character Y, thus explaining Incident Z", or "oh look, it's Character A, isn't he connected to Character B?".... you have to WATCH and PAY ATTENTION, even to apparently insignificant or passing details, and figure it out for yourself.

Which is why it's brilliant telly, for intelligent people. In fact, it's only when you watch The Wire that you realise how much of "other telly" is made up of plodding, hand-holding explication and how little it makes you think. Whereas the Wire actually makes you work for your kicks.

That said, ep 1 series 1 is good, but gives you very little hint of the glories which lie ahead. Give it another go and have patience!

PS: as others here have said - Baltimore policemen and drug dealers tend to be macho and sweary types. They don't DO cake and doilies:rolleyes:
 
David Simon speaks about it on one of the extras to the DVDs of Season 3 - he says each series is like a novel and novels rarely start with a whizzbang intro, but take a while to establish the story
 
trabuquera said:
The point - and the key to why The Wire is The Greatest Television Ever Made (TM) - is that unlike almost every other TV serial, it does NOT pack the script with vast wads of explanation of what everyone is doing at any given moment. The scripting just doesn't include the hand-holding, step-by-step padding which makes up most police/serial dramas. In The Wire you'll NEVER hear lines like "... and then we are going to get the warrant to open Character X's house, which will allow us to gather the evidence about their links with Character Y, thus explaining Incident Z", or "oh look, it's Character A, isn't he connected to Character B?".... you have to WATCH and PAY ATTENTION, even to apparently insignificant or passing details, and figure it out for yourself.
Click to expand...

Theres two scenes in epsiode two session 1 that are stand out. Daniels is in with Burrell and Rawl, and discussing McNulty, the Judge, and the leak, Rawls, is washing his hands of Mc Nulty, Burrell, is in a bind, he cannot weak sister this investigation, otherwise the Judge goes nuts, and to the press, but he cannot investigate the possibilty that a states witness has been murdered he cannot, let this get out, because they don't have the resources to protect witnesses. The general unspoken concencus is that Mc Nulty has go.

Then theres the scene later, where Mc Nulty comes to Daniels, and argues for the exact investigation that Burrel doesn't want.

Theres no hand holding in the script, Daniels doesn't say yes doesnt say no, but you're left with the understanding that Daniels agrees with McNulty thats the way it should be done, but knows theres no way it's going to happen.
 
I've also just been watching Homicide: Life On The Streets, and the prototypes for The Wire are there alright. McNulty, Bunk, Prez, all of them!
 
Genghis Cohen said:
If you're having trouble now, wait until snoop comes in.

goddamnchartrentyopinlolikeamotherfuckerman.
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its all about snoop, cold as ice! you have to get used to her slurring a bit but i just assume shes an alcoholic rapper which makes it a lot easier to understand her.

micheals mum is a bit fo struggle(the one who starts becoming a soldier in marlows army) but shes a crack head so should be hard to understand.


dave
 
I hate US tv, especially cop shows, but I downloaded all four series after reading the other thread. I'm halfway through already and loving it. It's handy as there's nowt on tv at the moment
 
Kept seeing this [The Wire] mentioned various places on the boards and, on the basis of this thread decided to download season 1 and give it a bash.

Watched the whole of the first season yesterday (:eek: :eek: ) since I couldn't be arsed leaving my seat in front of the computer. Anything that can hold my attention for about 15 hours ( I had a lunch break :)) has to be decent although I'm not entirely sure where they're going to go with it in the second season.

Didn't they pretty much tie everything up at the end? Plus the prog's name 'The Wire' comes from the wire tap they had on the payphones - they're not just going to do the same thing in season 2 are they?

Anyways, season 2 will be with me in about 6 hours (broadband connection withstanding) so will have a look and find out. :)
 
The second series changes focus to activities at the docks. You'll still see all the main characters (and when you do, it's like "Yay! The gang's all back together!") but it's a new storyline.
 
missfran said:
The second series changes focus to activities at the docks. You'll still see all the main characters (and when you do, it's like "Yay! The gang's all back together!") but it's a new storyline.
Click to expand...

Season 3 gets even better. Without giving anything away it goes back to the drug gangs on the street and is more open about showing the insanity of the "war on drugs"

I can't wait for the first copies of Season 4 DVD's to appear as I'm too lazy to download it and not willing to pay for satellite or cable.

And to answer the original question The Wire is a million miles ahead of anything else on TV. Everything else is like an Australian soap in comparison.
 
24 is rubbish. And Prison Break is much more like a dumb action series than an intelligent drama. Sure, they're both gripping, but in all the wrong ways
 
dumb action series??? prison break???? micheal scofield has to be one of the most intelligent and well thought out charecters of all time. The way he plans everything and uses people so maticulously is amazing.

As for 24 i know realise i shouldnt have bothered typing your clearly delusional. Jack bauer is the saviour of the world!


dave
 
kained&able said:
dumb action series??? prison break???? micheal scofield has to be one of the most intelligent and well thought out charecters of all time. The way he plans everything and uses people so maticulously is amazing.

As for 24 i know realise i shouldnt have bothered typing your clearly delusional. Jack bauer is the saviour of the world!


dave
Click to expand...

I think what people are saying that 24 and prison break are implausible and totally unrealistic, enjoyable well made fiction. The wire is pratically a dramatisation of real life and people.
 
Orang Utan said:
exactly. It may be a matter of taste, but I prefer drama to action - much more satisfying in the long run
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As much as I love the wire, I'd describe watching it as being immensely satisfied, it doesn't translate to the glee that get from my Doctor Who.
 
Orang Utan said:
And the actor who plays Lester Freamon is a resident of London for the past 30 years, making his living playing the black American in virtually every play that requires one and writing musicals like Five Guys Named Moe. :cool:
Click to expand...

Watching season 3 just now, Aiden Gillen (he of Queer as Folk) is in it.
 
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