"The Wire" on HBO

workin' fine, thanks.

thx! that's weird, usually the new stories don't require login. sorry abt that.

I enjoyed the end of S2 and S3 seems to be a return to form. The Carcetti plot is looking like it's going to be great, and I like what I've seen of Marlo and the new meaner streets.

I'm a little confused about the police rank situation:

- Did Rawls move up when Burrell became acting commissioner?
- What happened to Daniels, exactly, in terms of rank, and what's the deal with it relating to his wife's campaign?
- What's the title/rank of the concerned, about-to-retire Eastern District guy, the one who gives the *paper bag* speech?

Did Rawls move up when Burrell became acting commissioner?

yeah he became deputy ops, replacing burrell

What happened to Daniels, exactly, in terms of rank, and what's the deal with it relating to his wife's campaign?

he was a lieutenant in narcotics, but now has his own major case unit. maybe still as a lieutenant, but it puts him in line to be a major. it looks good for his wife, being a cop, which is exactly why the mayor (royce) doesn't want to promote him. his wife is running against one of the mayor's friends (jeanetta perkins).

What's the title/rank of the concerned, about-to-retire Eastern District guy, the one who gives the *paper bag* speech?

major colvin, commander -- of the western, i think.

rawls is deputy ops like burrell was
think daniels is still lt at your point because the mayor thinks his wife might challenge one of his pals?
major colvin

crosspost

awes:

Question: How did you and Melvin Williams become friends?

David Simon:
This is amazing. True story:

In December 1984, Melvin Williams - a lgendary player in the Baltimore drug trade -- was arrested by Det. Edward Burns as a result of an investigation of more than a year that included cloned pagers, wiretaps, undercover reverse buys of drugs, etc. Because of Little Melvin's long history, I was assigned to write a longer piece on his life, a profile so to speak. Over two years, I gathered string on Melvin -- meeting and getting to know Detective Burns in the process -- and ultimately, I wrote a long, five-part series about Melvin that ran in January 1987. During the reporting for that series, I was able to talk at length with Melvin at Lewisburg Penitentiary.

Less than a year ago, after winning his release from federal custody on a parole, Melvin Williams, Ed Burns, myself and Norris Davis (who plays Vinson on the show and has a lot of street history of his own, I must say) met for lunch in Little Italy, enjoying each others company, reflecting on things past and possible futures. It was a remarkable lunch, one of the strangest and improbable gatherings to which I have ever been a party.

At one point, Melvin handed me a business card with his cell number and Ed, dry as dirt, looked up from his salad just long enough to say, "What I wouldn't have given for that twenty years ago." Melvin smiled at that, and later, he gave Ed -- the man who had run the wiretap that finally caught him talking furtively at city payphones, who had brought about his last conviction and longest incarceration -- a little tease back. Professing that he was now retired from the game, Melvin declared that he was grateful that he was now free, that he had some good years left and that he still had a little money to spend.
"We didn't find much of the money, did we?" said Ed.
"No," said Melvin, smiling slightly. "You didn't."
I genuinely admired the way these two guys handled that lunch. Like professionals. Nothing personal, just two men with a lot of shared history accepting each other on present terms.

Melvin is now very active in Bethel A.M.E. church and outspoken against the drug culture. It seemed perversely appropriate to cast him therefore as the Deacon. He seems real and credible to me in the role. Having paid his debt and served his sentence, I wish him well and look forward to getting an expensive lesson in billiards from him.

Ah ok - the competition between his wife and the mayor's friend did get mentioned in season 2, and it slipped my mind. Now I see it.

I think I got confused about Colvin b/c they refer to him as a commander but he's a major - I guess I thought commander was a rank. Duh.

So Colvin is the major in charge of Eastern, Valchek is in charge of Southeastern, Rawls was in charge of Western but got promoted, and I don't think at my point we've seen Rawls's replacement or who commands any other districts, right?

xpost NO WAI!

So Colvin is the major in charge of Eastern, Valchek is in charge of Southeastern, Rawls was in charge of Western but got promoted, and I don't think at my point we've seen Rawls's replacement or who commands any other districts, right?

-- Hurting 2, Wednesday, September 5, 2007 2:21 PM (2 minutes ago) Bookmark Link

nuh, rawls was head of homicide. colvin is head of the western. he was mcnulty's boss when mcnulty was a beat cop.

the commander of the eastern is the guy rawls roasts at comstat meetings and replaces. i don't think he figures much in this series.

and hurley actually owns locke's company.

I wish the HBO site would keep more past season cast profiles up on its site - Colvin's not even there anymore.

Just finished catching up fully. Season 4 totally devastated me and my share ratio!!!

Simon called the show a 66-hour movie. Since we've already had 50 episodes, does that mean next season is going to be 16?~ Stoked!

Actually, it's been trimmed back to 10, from what I hear.

I'm okay with it. Trim the fat!

"I'm okay with it."

Haha, as if my opinion matters.

there is no fat on this show.

landsmansbutt.jpg

That Williams story is 0_o

> there is no fat on this show.

I love The Wire as much as anyone, but I don't see how you can say we needed to see another of Bubs' sidekicks self destruct.

I don't see how you can say we needed to see another of Bubs' sidekicks self destruct.

Does it really happen again in S4? Shit.

http://www.citypaper.com/bob/story.asp?id=14532

12/4: http://www.amazon.com/Wire-Complete-Fourth-Season/dp/B000QXDJLI

u beat me to it

profile of the show in nyer

Once, a man pressed a package of heroin into the hands of Andre Royo, the actor who plays the sympathetic junkie and police informant Bubbles, saying, “Man, you need a fix more than I do.” Royo refers to that moment as his “street Oscar.”

lots of spoilers + fuck the new yorker.

Spoilers for season 5?

yeah.

I don't even see the point of running a feature like that 2 and a half months before the season starts.

this part is pure b.s.:

Sometimes the fan base of “The Wire” seems like the demographics of many American cities—mainly the urban poor and the affluent élite, with the middle class hollowed out.

> lay the pipe of plot.

Uh....

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QFQVSvG5x54

OMG SO FN AMPED YAYA !!!!!!!!!

season 4 on dvd in less than a month...

I'm getting Season 4 as a belated b-day present. Psyched.

u guys have seen season 4 tho right

nope, i'm torrent-challenged

nope, i'm torrent-challenged

-- Jordan, Friday, November 9, 2007 1:39 PM (1 minute ago) Bookmark Link

that teaser fucking stings because it feels like it's talking about actual local headlines as much as the show. i think the current murder rate is putting anything ever depicted in The Wire to shame.

I just finished season 3, and I figured I'd just wait for the DVDs. Also my wife wants to catch up, and she just finished season 1.

o u poor bastards (but on the other hand u have so much enjoyment to look forward to)

and uh learn torrents ffs

Nothing has outdone S1 for me so far, but I think that's partly just that you can't recapture that first thrill of "OMG I have never seen any show like this." Still, S3 was at times as good as S1. S2 was a slight letdown but still miles better than anything else.

My wife is actually almost done reading The Corner, which from what she's told me is considerably grimmer and grittier than The Wire.

they just took hbo offa my stolen cable so now im totes torrent dependent

season 4 was the best imo - but i kinda just love them all in their own way

the corner mini series is wicked sweet too - and yeah way more gritty/realistic

SPOILERS
POILERSS
OILERSSP
ILERSSPO
LERSSPOI
ERSSPOIL
RSSPOILE
SSPOILER

I don't know how I feel about the return of Jimmy Bustballs. :\

Picking a favorite season is like picking your favourite childe. Except season 1 is the adopted one.

Anyone who doesn't think S1 is the best is nutty.

I love the way in S1 every scene was "NEW INFORMATION! NEW INFORMATION! DID YOU HEAR WHAT HE SAID? DID YOU SEE THAT? DID YOU CATCH THAT?"

mcnutty

xpost

yah i was happy to have dude fade away like ok i get it already right xp