Best season of HBO's The Wire

Message Bookmarked
Bookmark Removed

i hope i'm not the only one voting for no. 2

Poll Results

OptionVotes
season 4 38
season 3 24
season 2 12
season 1 6
season 5 1


groovemaaan, Monday, 18 May 2009 17:12 (seventeen years ago)

i thought 2 was one of the worst of the seasons. 4 was my favourite.

languid samuel l. jackson (jim), Monday, 18 May 2009 17:13 (seventeen years ago)

This is actually a tough call for me between 2 and 4, with 3 right there behind those two. 1 and 5 were easily enough eliminated.

homage is parody gone sour (jon /via/ chi 2.0), Monday, 18 May 2009 17:13 (seventeen years ago)

4 with 2 close behind, sorry 2

Ømår Littel (Jordan), Monday, 18 May 2009 17:14 (seventeen years ago)

I went with Season Four. I think I rank them this way - 4 >>>>2>3>1>>>>>>>5.

The only reason 2 beats 3 is Nicky's girlfriend's boobs.

Two Will Get You Three (B.L.A.M.), Monday, 18 May 2009 17:15 (seventeen years ago)

head says 4, heart says 2

Swat Valley High (goole), Monday, 18 May 2009 17:15 (seventeen years ago)

Four is totally going to take this, but I'm tempted to go for three, since that's really the point where the show starts spinning out onto a whole new level. (Also I was rewatching one of them recently and enjoying the realization that the whole investigation winds up hinging on Bernard-the-cellphone-buyer's girlfriend.)

nabisco, Monday, 18 May 2009 17:19 (seventeen years ago)

the scene where lester cons bernard and his chick is great!!

rip dom passantino 3/5/09 never forget (max), Monday, 18 May 2009 17:20 (seventeen years ago)

Bernard-the-cellphone-buyer's girlfriend

Bernard's best line - "Man, I can't WAIT to go to jail."

Two Will Get You Three (B.L.A.M.), Monday, 18 May 2009 17:22 (seventeen years ago)

i've argued this before (in fact i'm pretty sure every Wire thread has diverged into a long argument about the relative quality of each season at least once) but 3 for me is the best

uh oh I'm shaving, a fantasy (some dude), Monday, 18 May 2009 17:23 (seventeen years ago)

B.L.A.M. pretty much OTM, but I'd set it 4=2>3>>1>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>5.

homage is parody gone sour (jon /via/ chi 2.0), Monday, 18 May 2009 17:26 (seventeen years ago)

i'd go 4>>3>2>1>>>>5 (5 is clearly the most muddled but i still think it gets a bum rap, it's got some astonishing bits)

u have a new mistress my friend and her name is little debbie (omar little), Monday, 18 May 2009 17:29 (seventeen years ago)

5 wasn't that bad, jeez

Ømår Littel (Jordan), Monday, 18 May 2009 17:29 (seventeen years ago)

5 was terrible and stupid! i think 3=4>2>1>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>5

fantazy land (harbl), Monday, 18 May 2009 17:31 (seventeen years ago)

i didn't like 2 until i saw it a second time though

fantazy land (harbl), Monday, 18 May 2009 17:31 (seventeen years ago)

I think five would have annoyed me no end if I'd been watching it week to week as it aired; as a whole it's, like, yeah, muddled and not as great as the others, but pretty good and satisfying nonetheless

Two has, like, atmosphere

nabisco, Monday, 18 May 2009 17:33 (seventeen years ago)

Season 5 was totally not that bad...quite good, actually...but out of the 5, its the one I liked the least.

Now, that said - the Chris/Snoop/Omar parts are awesome. The newspaper parts just drove me crazy.

Two Will Get You Three (B.L.A.M.), Monday, 18 May 2009 17:33 (seventeen years ago)

5 did have some decent moments, but the whole McNulty premise was so g-d ridiculous that I just couldn't throw myself into it like I could other seasons.

homage is parody gone sour (jon /via/ chi 2.0), Monday, 18 May 2009 17:34 (seventeen years ago)

1 is a police procedural, 2 is a working-class drama, 3 is the "shakesperean tragedy", 4 is a horror film, 5 is going for institutional satire to some degree

u have a new mistress my friend and her name is little debbie (omar little), Monday, 18 May 2009 17:35 (seventeen years ago)

4 will win in a landslide

4
2
3 - v well executed, loses points for being kinda all over the place plot/theme wise
1
5

ice cr?m, Monday, 18 May 2009 17:35 (seventeen years ago)

Can you really deduct points in a season for setting up a payoff in a later season?

Philip Nunez, Monday, 18 May 2009 17:44 (seventeen years ago)

4
2
1
3
5

Alex in SF, Monday, 18 May 2009 17:45 (seventeen years ago)

3 > 2 > > 4 > > 1 > > > 5

I think quality of series might actually be propotional to quality of theme song.

I'm in the middle of watching the whole thing beginning to end, but I'm only 3 episodes in.

Edward Saroyan, Monday, 18 May 2009 17:48 (seventeen years ago)

I'm curious to see if my opinion stays the same.

Edward Saroyan, Monday, 18 May 2009 17:48 (seventeen years ago)

4-1-3-2-5

s1ocki, Monday, 18 May 2009 17:49 (seventeen years ago)

the season 5 serial killer thing was a little annoying to sit through (same for the newspaper stuff) but i remember it having some good payoffs

Ømår Littel (Jordan), Monday, 18 May 2009 17:50 (seventeen years ago)

what's wrong with the newspaper stuff? isn't that mid-management newspaper dude also in some weird verizon commercial with little miss sunshine?

Philip Nunez, Monday, 18 May 2009 17:55 (seventeen years ago)

My main problem with 2 was that I didn't really care for anyone at the docks apart from Frank Sobokta. Nick and motherfucking-Ziggy can basically go suck a fat one.

languid samuel l. jackson (jim), Monday, 18 May 2009 17:58 (seventeen years ago)

yeah but frank come on FRANK MOTHERFUCKING SOBOKTA

ice cr?m, Monday, 18 May 2009 18:03 (seventeen years ago)

And Valchek. That guy is just a SUPREME asshole.

omar otm - Season 4 is totally a horror movie.

Two Will Get You Three (B.L.A.M.), Monday, 18 May 2009 18:07 (seventeen years ago)

creeping doom all the way

ice cr?m, Monday, 18 May 2009 18:09 (seventeen years ago)

but nick's girlfriend and the duck are two of the wire's most beloved characters

Ømår Littel (Jordan), Monday, 18 May 2009 18:10 (seventeen years ago)

isn't that mid-management newspaper dude also in some weird verizon commercial with little miss sunshine?

Flight of the Conchords, more notably, but yes, he seems to do a lot of commercial work. (Also umm pretty sure that's not Abigail Breslin.)

nabisco, Monday, 18 May 2009 18:12 (seventeen years ago)

i love making fun of that commercial

Mr. Que, Monday, 18 May 2009 18:13 (seventeen years ago)

I guess it goes with the other Verizon commercial in the same series with the guy who plays Clay Davis

nabisco, Monday, 18 May 2009 18:14 (seventeen years ago)

Both with beards, I think!

nabisco, Monday, 18 May 2009 18:14 (seventeen years ago)

5 is odd because, you know, it's still miles better than most television. Compare it to the rest of the show though and it sucks balls.

3 > 4 > 2 > 1 > 5.

3 is ridiculously funny like a motherfucking 40 degree day.

I wanna be your toy boy (a hoy hoy), Monday, 18 May 2009 18:16 (seventeen years ago)

mel's boyfriend/newspaper editor/verizon shill is also on DAMAGES playing TOTALLY AGAINST TYPE as a SPOILER ALERT SPOILER SPOILER ALERT corrupt cop

rip dom passantino 3/5/09 never forget (max), Monday, 18 May 2009 18:18 (seventeen years ago)

2 has the Omar court scene, and many of the great characters from the first season. It is a nice cross between cop procedural, human drama, and political statement. I own all seasons except 5, and just going by what I find the most appealing to re-watch, I rate them like this: 2 > 3 > 4 > 1. 4 is amazing, but certain episodes aren't exactly good times, and it's probably the least funny season (for good reason).

slugbaiting (rockapads), Monday, 18 May 2009 18:34 (seventeen years ago)

i thought we did this before..anyways 4-2-3-1-5 imo

carne asada, Monday, 18 May 2009 18:35 (seventeen years ago)

4-3-2-1-5

Your heartbeat soun like sasquatch feet (polyphonic), Monday, 18 May 2009 18:37 (seventeen years ago)

poll should have been 4>3>2>1>5 vs. 4>2>3>1>5

Ømår Littel (Jordan), Monday, 18 May 2009 18:40 (seventeen years ago)

3>1>4>2>5

BIG HOOS aka the steendriver, Monday, 18 May 2009 18:41 (seventeen years ago)

maybe i'm a total dick but i didn't care about the school stuff in 4 ... i liked the kids and their plots, but the stuff about how hard it is to be a teacher and prez's never-dying optimism seemed pretty played out at this point. though i also liked the newspaper stuff so maybe my opinions are nuts

i think i'd go 3>1>2>4>5, with 3 and 1 being really close and 4 and 5 being really close

congratulations (n/a), Monday, 18 May 2009 18:52 (seventeen years ago)

Reasons why 2 rules the hardest of all of them:

- The enormous human Frank Sobotka tragedy at the centre of it coupled up with all that changing-nature-of-capitalism stuff
- Pretty much every scene with Ziggy
- All that awesome Bunk/Lester stuff
- I love Amy Ryan
- D'Angelo in the library
- Omar in the court
- BROTHER MOUZONE
- It's the last series without Carcetti in it
- "You and your brother would both be cadaverous motherfuckers"

S3 and S4 are both amazing as well, especially the rise and fall of Stringer, but it suffers from being a bit unfocussed and the Hamsterdam subplot is a bit far-fetched. S4 is better but has too much Prez and not enough McNulty. Also no matter how good the kids are, I can't bring myself to vote for it due it not having Avon and Stringer in it.

Enormous Epic (Matt DC), Monday, 18 May 2009 18:56 (seventeen years ago)

I like S2 a lot, so it's really more like S4=S3=S2 > S1 > S5, but if I have to rank, I have to rank.

Your heartbeat soun like sasquatch feet (polyphonic), Monday, 18 May 2009 19:00 (seventeen years ago)

Right away I can eliminate 3 and 5 because the Hamsterdam and serial killer plots were way too far fetched. The pure fiction of those storylines negated the realism that they so painstakingly try to create in the rest of the series.

I surprised folks are so unenthusiastic about the first season when it has so many classic moments. Still maybe not the best because it took them a while to really find their voice.

So it's down to 2 and 4. Both excellent, but I'm choosing 2. This is actually a bit of surprise to me because I had misgivings about the docks plot the first time around and liked it much more the second. The great thing about season 2 is that it covers so much. The focus shifts to the docks, but it still manages to keep the original plot in focus. The twin tragedies of D'Angelo's death and the failure of the Sobotka family make it a truly epic and sad season more than any other.

Moodles, Monday, 18 May 2009 19:16 (seventeen years ago)

Can someone refresh my memory about what happens with the docks and the Greeks after season two? Can't remember ... is the suggestion pretty much that there's a similar arrangement with the guy who was waiting to step up to head of the union?

nabisco, Monday, 18 May 2009 19:23 (seventeen years ago)

yo is that bunk watching rebirth at 3:10 in this video?

Ømår Littel (Jordan), Monday, 18 May 2009 19:42 (seventeen years ago)

Totally. I think he lives there.

Two Will Get You Three (B.L.A.M.), Monday, 18 May 2009 19:46 (seventeen years ago)

TV needs more season-spanning police procedurals imho.

mr. me too (rockapads), Friday, 26 June 2009 16:45 (sixteen years ago)

six months pass...

1 > 2

i thought i was gonna hate season 2 a couple episodes in, but they really got into a groove and i started liking it more and more as the season went along. feel like i might like it even more a second time. i think ive just got a whole lot more sympathy for barksdale's crew than zobotka's though the greeks were sweet and i hope they're back next season (don't tell me).

nick's girlfriend's boobs cancel out by far the two worst characters on the show so far, brother mouzon and ziggy

k3vin k., Thursday, 14 January 2010 05:28 (sixteen years ago)

this is pretty much otm though eventually i came to have a retrospective fondness for the dock guys like ayo they were alright

what u think i steen for to push a crawfish? (BIG HOOS aka the steendriver), Thursday, 14 January 2010 05:33 (sixteen years ago)

the dock guys fucking rule

Kate Sinclair (sic), Thursday, 14 January 2010 06:56 (sixteen years ago)

"...and I don't know why you got Horseface up there."

Kate Sinclair (sic), Thursday, 14 January 2010 06:57 (sixteen years ago)

Astonished at the love of season 3. For me, 1=2=4 >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> 3=5.

It's sometimes hard for me to believe 3 and 5 were made by the same people as the others. Zero coherence, no themes, some dud characters. I can only guess people like it for the same reason they hated the end to The Sopranos--you get some kind of gratuitous closure when Stringer is killed.

aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa, Thursday, 14 January 2010 07:05 (sixteen years ago)

I am so in love with this show. Love it even more than the Sopranos. We also watched The Shield. Started watching Homocide and Oz. But nothing comes close to The Wire. Awesomest awesomeness.

Nathalie (stevienixed), Thursday, 14 January 2010 09:14 (sixteen years ago)

three months pass...

gang names seem kinda '90s

― Ømår Littel (Jordan), Thursday, May 28, 2009 1:15 PM (10 months ago) Bookmark

So this revive is to the subconversation about gang names from a year ago, but I figured I'd bring up Black Guerilla Family, since they're in the news this week.

http://www.baltimoresun.com/news/maryland/crime/bs-md.hermann-bgf-indictment-20100413,0,5438346.story?page=1

kingkongvsgodzilla, Wednesday, 14 April 2010 15:49 (sixteen years ago)

guess I shouldn't have given up after s3

鬼の手 (Edward III), Wednesday, 14 April 2010 16:22 (sixteen years ago)

halfway through season 4 now and it might be my favorite yet

k3vin k., Wednesday, 14 April 2010 17:21 (sixteen years ago)

four months pass...

I adore this show. I just rewatched Season Four. Knowing what happens to Duquan in Season Five makes this especially poignant; I teared up.

Gucci Mane hermeneuticist (Alfred, Lord Sotosyn), Sunday, 15 August 2010 23:14 (fifteen years ago)

one month passes...

hiyo five years late

http://www.nybooks.com/articles/archives/2010/oct/14/life-wire/?pagination=false

caek, Tuesday, 28 September 2010 11:09 (fifteen years ago)

o man i know.. i love lorrie moore but i really really dont need to read anything more abt the wire at this point

just sayin, Tuesday, 28 September 2010 11:16 (fifteen years ago)

three years pass...

We need a best image from opening montages poll

RAP GAME SHANI DAVIS (Raymond Cummings), Monday, 24 March 2014 21:14 (twelve years ago)

always into stringer unzipping d's gf's jacket

difficult listening hour, Tuesday, 25 March 2014 03:20 (twelve years ago)

one year passes...

S3 - completely forgot about Prez shooting the black cop, holy shit

Kiarostami bag (milo z), Friday, 19 February 2016 02:22 (ten years ago)

I rewatched s1 and s2 recently, s2 was way way better than I remembered it, the whole thing with the docks/Sobotkas was masterfully done

marcos, Friday, 19 February 2016 02:39 (ten years ago)

it was funny, I remembered the s1 e1 being such a boring painful switch from the barksdale crew and the streets and it felt the same way this time but once he season gets into it, and especially by the last few episodes it is just amazing

marcos, Friday, 19 February 2016 02:41 (ten years ago)

it was funny, I remembered the s1 e1 being such a boring painful switch

s2 e1 rather

marcos, Friday, 19 February 2016 02:44 (ten years ago)

Yeah, I remember being

http://i.imgur.com/2HYcebt.jpg

What the hell is this shit.

pplains, Friday, 19 February 2016 02:52 (ten years ago)

lol yes like are we really talking about stained glass donations to a church

marcos, Friday, 19 February 2016 02:54 (ten years ago)

Yeah from a distance it's all about s2

stanley krubrick (rip van wanko), Friday, 19 February 2016 03:03 (ten years ago)

yea in many ways I do think it's the best

marcos, Friday, 19 February 2016 03:04 (ten years ago)

oh no you guys i don't have time to run through this series again and this talk isn't helping

Crazy Eddie & Jesus the Kid (Raymond Cummings), Friday, 19 February 2016 03:08 (ten years ago)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DhX7hvzlaGc

pplains, Friday, 19 February 2016 03:14 (ten years ago)

xp - I started like ten days ago and I'm halfway through S3

Kiarostami bag (milo z), Friday, 19 February 2016 03:17 (ten years ago)

Fucking hivemind... Randomly decided to pop in s1 e1 - five days later I'm 3 deep in season two. Fucking love this show.

Mad Piratical (The Cursed Return of the Dastardly Thermo Thinwall), Friday, 19 February 2016 03:20 (ten years ago)

Season two might be the most important of the show, it's the one carefully putting down the foundation for an extended run, after season one ends pretty conclusively. I rewatched it a while back and was surprised at how great it was as well. But once you get to season four, it's pretty clear what's best. Those episodes are amazing.

Frederik B, Friday, 19 February 2016 05:50 (ten years ago)

Ha, wife and I just jumped into S3 after many years away. Still really great and so much easier to pick up in the little things the second time thru!

tobo73, Friday, 19 February 2016 15:13 (ten years ago)

I've said this somewhere before but I still can't bring myself to rewatch S4, just too emotional to hang out with those kids.

conditional random jepsen (seandalai), Friday, 19 February 2016 21:44 (ten years ago)

And it's harder to watch when you already know where their arcs go.

That said, I re-watched s4 last year then had to stop after 1 ep of s5 because it's just too corny

Check Yr Scrobbles (Moodles), Friday, 19 February 2016 21:51 (ten years ago)

I watched a new Hannibal Buress netflix special the other night, and there's a bit about how his dad is just now getting around to watching the wire and enthusiastic about it and Hannibal didn't want to spoil the fact that S2 is the worst season, and I was like what? Season 2 is soooo underrated. Don't know if it is the best, but it's really good.

Check Yr Scrobbles (Moodles), Friday, 19 February 2016 21:55 (ten years ago)

Snoop buying the nail gun is the best cold open ever.

stanley krubrick (rip van wanko), Friday, 19 February 2016 22:04 (ten years ago)

S5 is the only one I haven't rew... re-screened, I'm curious how that's going to go as a binge vs. week to week.

Kiarostami bag (milo z), Friday, 19 February 2016 22:16 (ten years ago)

there are plenty of good parts in S5.

sarahell, Friday, 19 February 2016 22:30 (ten years ago)

Snoop buying the nail gun is the best cold open ever.

Cold open for the season, right?

pplains, Saturday, 20 February 2016 01:14 (ten years ago)

S5 had moments but in some ways everything has been SO PERFECT albeit DEVASTATING up to that point that it can't help but disappoint

Crazy Eddie & Jesus the Kid (Raymond Cummings), Saturday, 20 February 2016 01:23 (ten years ago)

I have to agree with Hannibal - season two is the low point for me.

Mad Piratical (The Cursed Return of the Dastardly Thermo Thinwall), Saturday, 20 February 2016 01:52 (ten years ago)

And it's still phenomenal as far as low points go.

Mad Piratical (The Cursed Return of the Dastardly Thermo Thinwall), Saturday, 20 February 2016 02:00 (ten years ago)

ha I read on wikipedia that when s2 was rebroadcast on BET most of the docks shit was cut out

marcos, Saturday, 20 February 2016 02:45 (ten years ago)

That would make it a pretty short season

Check Yr Scrobbles (Moodles), Saturday, 20 February 2016 04:01 (ten years ago)

Seriously. That's like 60 mins tops without the polishes.

Mad Piratical (The Cursed Return of the Dastardly Thermo Thinwall), Saturday, 20 February 2016 05:46 (ten years ago)

I just got to the ep where D departs, btw. Down as I may be on this season - that shit still breaks my heart.

Mad Piratical (The Cursed Return of the Dastardly Thermo Thinwall), Saturday, 20 February 2016 05:48 (ten years ago)

He was who he was, and he did what he did.

pplains, Saturday, 20 February 2016 06:10 (ten years ago)

did these come out on16x9 format yet?

Spottie, Saturday, 20 February 2016 06:27 (ten years ago)

The Frank Sobotka "we used to build shit" stuff didn't play as well this time around but Nick and Ziggy are such wonderful tragic characters.

Kiarostami bag (milo z), Saturday, 20 February 2016 08:13 (ten years ago)

One of the details that pisses me off a lot is how the FBI gets involved immediately once it becomes about 'union busting', but does nothing against crime in general. Season 2 is a whole lot about skewed interest.

Frederik B, Saturday, 20 February 2016 12:04 (ten years ago)

4 eps into S5, just starting the serial killer bit. Newsroom stuff is a little less strident than I remember, but still not very good (aside from Gus's acting), the parallels are way too blunt. Wish the emphasis had been more on city politics behind the police cutbacks instead of police and paper response.

Kiarostami bag (milo z), Friday, 4 March 2016 01:57 (ten years ago)

nine years pass...

RIP Ziggy

Jordan s/t (Jordan), Tuesday, 23 December 2025 17:27 (four months ago)

Also my favorite character in Generation Kill. Really sad.

trm (tombotomod), Tuesday, 23 December 2025 18:15 (four months ago)


You must be logged in to post. Please either login here, or if you are not registered, you may register here.