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Finished watching The Wire Season 1 tonight. It sort of hooks you right around episode 9 and won't let go. I couldn't wait to see the next episode. And I got emotionally invested in certain characters and really despised others. (Stringer Bell? I'm looking at you. )
It bookends rather well - so well in fact that you can tell the writers outlined all 13 episodes ahead of time and wrote them out, story-boarded them, and then did the teleplays. Ed Burns and David Simon are mostly responsible for the plot arc. Ed Burns according to Wiki is a former Baltimore police detective for Homicide and Narcotics division and public school teacher, before becoming a novelist and screenwriter, he co-wrote the miniseries the Corner with Simon, and recently wrote the mini-series Generation Kill in Africa. Simon was head-writer of Homicide Life on the Streets - which was in turn based on a non-fiction novel and in part on Burns' experiences in Baltimore as a Homicide cop.
In regards to how realistic the series is? I can tell you that a former DEA agent, who worked in DC and Baltimore during that time period has stated that yes, this is exactly what it is like. And from my own personal experience working as an intern with legal aid, public defender's office, and defense project - yes, that's what that world looks like and the series is realistic. Depressingly so, in some respects. It reminded me of why I decided not to pursue a career as either a legal aid attorney, prosecutor, or defense attorney and why I want nothing to do with that world. You end up much as Jimmy McNulty and Nekome Greggs discovers in the hole. What's that line from Joseph Conrad's classic novel "Heart of Darkness"? You stare long enough into the abyss, it stares back at you.
Reality aside? The series snakes its way inside your head and grabs a hold of you. Last night I was furious, but I could not wait to see what happens next. The characters live inside you, they take root in your imagination. But not in a fanfic sort of way - more in a -- yes, I've met that guy, or I want to know what happens to him, curious, sort of way, if that makes sense?
It's so tightly written, that Stringer Bell tells McNulty the same thing McNulty told him in the beginning. Nice circular structure. Also every storyline is wrapped up at the end. This season could literally stand on its own, it does not require a second season. Which explains why people who loved the Wire may get irritated with a show like Game of Thrones or True Blood - which is not a self-contained unit and ends on a frigging cliff-hanger. I like both, but I admit the series that wrap up neatly with a satisfying ending to each season - are a treat, there's no long wait, no frantic hunt for more or spoilers, you don't have to commit to it, and it leaves you fulfilled, like at the end of a satisfying four course meal.
Damn, I can't write anything quickly, can I? This is why I don't really like Facebook or Twitter.
The reason I'm writing my impressions after each episode - is I sort of want to see if my views on the series and the characters change as it enfolds or stay the same.
( spoilers on Season One Finale of the Wire )
It bookends rather well - so well in fact that you can tell the writers outlined all 13 episodes ahead of time and wrote them out, story-boarded them, and then did the teleplays. Ed Burns and David Simon are mostly responsible for the plot arc. Ed Burns according to Wiki is a former Baltimore police detective for Homicide and Narcotics division and public school teacher, before becoming a novelist and screenwriter, he co-wrote the miniseries the Corner with Simon, and recently wrote the mini-series Generation Kill in Africa. Simon was head-writer of Homicide Life on the Streets - which was in turn based on a non-fiction novel and in part on Burns' experiences in Baltimore as a Homicide cop.
In regards to how realistic the series is? I can tell you that a former DEA agent, who worked in DC and Baltimore during that time period has stated that yes, this is exactly what it is like. And from my own personal experience working as an intern with legal aid, public defender's office, and defense project - yes, that's what that world looks like and the series is realistic. Depressingly so, in some respects. It reminded me of why I decided not to pursue a career as either a legal aid attorney, prosecutor, or defense attorney and why I want nothing to do with that world. You end up much as Jimmy McNulty and Nekome Greggs discovers in the hole. What's that line from Joseph Conrad's classic novel "Heart of Darkness"? You stare long enough into the abyss, it stares back at you.
Reality aside? The series snakes its way inside your head and grabs a hold of you. Last night I was furious, but I could not wait to see what happens next. The characters live inside you, they take root in your imagination. But not in a fanfic sort of way - more in a -- yes, I've met that guy, or I want to know what happens to him, curious, sort of way, if that makes sense?
It's so tightly written, that Stringer Bell tells McNulty the same thing McNulty told him in the beginning. Nice circular structure. Also every storyline is wrapped up at the end. This season could literally stand on its own, it does not require a second season. Which explains why people who loved the Wire may get irritated with a show like Game of Thrones or True Blood - which is not a self-contained unit and ends on a frigging cliff-hanger. I like both, but I admit the series that wrap up neatly with a satisfying ending to each season - are a treat, there's no long wait, no frantic hunt for more or spoilers, you don't have to commit to it, and it leaves you fulfilled, like at the end of a satisfying four course meal.
Damn, I can't write anything quickly, can I? This is why I don't really like Facebook or Twitter.
The reason I'm writing my impressions after each episode - is I sort of want to see if my views on the series and the characters change as it enfolds or stay the same.
( spoilers on Season One Finale of the Wire )