---
title: 'THE WIRE Full Series Recap | Season 1-5 Ending Explained'
source: 'https://youtube.com/watch?v=PRM_LDiAUF4'
video_id: 'PRM_LDiAUF4'
date: 2026-06-28
duration_sec: 2437
---

# THE WIRE Full Series Recap | Season 1-5 Ending Explained

> Source: [THE WIRE Full Series Recap | Season 1-5 Ending Explained](https://youtube.com/watch?v=PRM_LDiAUF4)

## Summary

The video provides a comprehensive recap of all five seasons of The Wire, detailing the interconnected stories of Baltimore's drug trade, police department, political system, schools, and media. It covers the rise and fall of major characters like Avon Barksdale, Stringer Bell, and Marlo Stanfield, as well as the systemic failures that perpetuate the cycle of poverty and crime.

### Key Points

- **Season 1 Setup** [0:00] — Season 1 introduces the Barksdale organization and the police detail formed to take them down. Key characters include McNulty, Daniels, Stringer Bell, and Avon Barksdale.
- **The Pit and D'Angelo's Role** [0:44] — D'Angelo is placed in charge of 'the Pit,' a low-rise housing project. He mentors Bodie, Poot, and Wallace.
- **Wallace's Murder** [4:07] — Wallace is murdered by his friends Bodie and Poot on Stringer's orders, devastating D'Angelo.
- **Kima's Shooting** [4:43] — Kima is shot during a buy-bust gone wrong, leading to a rushed raid that blows the case.
- **Season 1 Conclusion** [6:27] — Avon gets 7 years, D'Angelo gets 20, and Stringer remains free. The detail is disbanded.
- **Season 2: Stringer's Rise** [9:01] — Stringer kills D'Angelo in prison and takes full control of the organization.
- **Frank Sobotka and the Greek** [11:03] — Frank Sobotka, a union leader, gets involved with a smuggling ring run by 'The Greek.'
- **Frank's Death** [13:26] — Frank is killed by the Greek, and the investigation shifts to the docks.
- **Season 3: Hamsterdam** [16:55] — Bunny Colvin creates 'Hamsterdam,' a de facto legalization zone for drugs.
- **Stringer's Death** [19:31] — Stringer is killed by Omar and Brother Mouzone, and Avon is arrested again.
- **Season 4: The Kids** [21:04] — Season 4 focuses on four young boys from West Baltimore and the failing school system.
- **Bubbles' Tragedy** [25:59] — Bubbles accidentally poisons his protégé Sherrod with heroin and cyanide.
- **Season 5: Fake Serial Killer** [32:39] — McNulty fakes a serial killer to secure resources for taking down Marlo.
- **Marlo's Arrest and Deal** [37:52] — Marlo is arrested, Chris gets life, and Marlo is released on the condition he leaves the drug trade.
- **Final Montage** [39:31] — The series ends with a montage showing the cycle repeating: Michael becomes the new Omar, Dukie the new Bubbles.

## Transcript

Season one of The Wire introduces a large 
cast of characters living in the city  
of Baltimore. Homicide Detective 
Jimmy McNulty discovers that drug  
dealer D’Angelo Barksdale is acquitted of 
murder and released back onto the streets,  
thanks in large part to the machinations of 
drug kingpin Stringer Bell and his shady lawyer,  
Maury Levy. D’Angelo returns to work for his 
uncle, Avon Barksdale, who, alongside Stringer,  
runs West Baltimore’s corners, selling their 
dope. Avon is a much more classical kingpin,  
using violence and intimidation to enforce his 
power, while Stringer is focused on building a  
name for himself, taking business classes at night 
in an effort to turn their empire legitimate.
Back on the street, D’Angelo is placed in charge 
of a low rise housing project known as “the  
Pit”. Drug dealers under his employ include the 
teenagers Bodie, Poot, and Wallace. As D’Angelo  
does his best to mentor his workers and make a 
name for himself in the Barksdale organization,  
he also begins to grow disillusioned with his 
uncle’s more violent and cutthroat actions.
Detective McNulty grows frustrated with 
the police department’s focus on making  
easy cases against low level dealers to juice 
their numbers, instead of doing anything to  
address the real problem of Avon Barksdale. 
And so, McNulty breaks the chain of command,  
going behind the backs of Homicide’s Major 
Bill Rawls and Deputy Police Commissioner  
Ervin Burrell to seek out the help of Judge Phelan 
to put pressure on the police department. And so,  
despite Rawls and Burrell’s fury, a new police 
detail is formed to take down Avon Barksdale.
The new detail is led by Lieutenant Cedric 
Daniels, who has a past of shady police work  
but a determination to right his wrongs and 
fight back against a system that cares more  
about politicking than actually helping the city. 
Working under Daniels and alongside McNulty are  
the quietly intelligent seasoned veteran Lester 
Freamon, ace narcotics detective Kima Greggs,  
whose girlfriend Cheryl constantly worries 
about the dangers of her job, impressive  
rookie Leandor Sydnor, perpetual screw-up Roland 
“Prez” Pryzbylewski, who only has a job on the  
police force thanks to his father-in-law Stan 
Valchek being a respected police commander,  
and the best friends and partners Herc 
and Carver, who are used to the police  
system as it is, which encourages simple 
dope charges and a use of excessive force.
During a night in the field, Herc, Carver, and 
Prez take their excessive policing too far,  
resulting in Prez blinding a teenager and 
being removed from field work. With the help  
of assistant state’s attorney Rhonda Pearlman, 
who is also McNulty secret friend-with-benefits,  
the detail is able to get the subpoenas 
necessary to place wiretaps on payphones  
frequented by the Barksdale crew. Under Daniels 
and Freamon’s tutelage, Prez flourishes in the  
office deciphering the criminal organizations 
various codes, helping the team build a very  
sound case that could potentially put Avon 
and Stringer away for a very long time.
McNulty and Kima quickly realize they are 
like minded detectives and form a bond as  
they work the case against Avon. Kima uses 
her drug-addicted and homeless confidential  
informant Bubbles to help gather intel on 
the Barksdale operation. While Bubbles takes  
fellow addict Johnny under his wings to teach 
him all about life as a user on the streets,  
he also dreams of a clean life off the 
streets and working for the police full time.
Meanwhile, infamous stick-up man Omar Little 
begins robbing Avon’s crews to steal their  
supply of drugs. In an act of revenge, Avon 
puts a bounty on Omar and his crew. When Wallace  
spots Omar’s young boyfriend, Brandon, Avon’s 
crew torture and brutally murder Omar’s lover,  
inciting a war between the two rivals. 
Upon seeing Brandon’s mutilated body,  
Wallace becomes disillusioned with his place in 
the Barksdale organization and becomes resolved  
to return to school and leave behind his life 
of crime. D’Angelo supports Wallace’s decision  
and allows him to quit selling drugs, but when 
Wallace is picked up and questioned by the police,  
Stringer and Avon grow suspicious. Despite 
making a deal with the police and moving out  
of Baltimore to live with his grandmother in 
peace, Wallace grows bored of the simple life  
and wishes to return home to rejoin the drug 
game. Stringer remains suspicious of Wallace  
and orders his friends Bodie and Poot to 
murder him, which they tragically do. This  
act devastates D’Angelo and inspires him 
to also leave behind his life of crime.
McNulty and his homicide partner-slash-drinking 
buddy Bunk Moreland manage to turn Omar into their  
informant to gather intel on the Barksdale 
organization. As the battle between Omar and  
Avon erupts into further violence, Omar 
is forced to flee Baltimore to regroup.
As Daniels’ detail gathers more and more evidence 
against the Barksdale organization, they start to  
receive pressure from Burrell to act faster. This 
forces Daniels to send Kima undercover to perform  
a buy-bust, but unfortunately the plan goes wrong, 
with Avon’s main soldier Wee-Bey opening fire on  
Kima and nearly taking her life. The entire detail 
is left distraught over Kima’s near death, and the  
police department pushes harder for Daniels’ team 
to make showy, newsworthy arrests. When Daniels  
is given orders to raid Barksdale stash houses 
they’ve been monitoring, he realizes that Carver  
has been a mole in the unit for Burrell and is 
forced to carry out the raids. The minor victory  
is celebrated by the police higher-ups in the 
media, but Daniels knows that the raids have also  
blown their wiretaps and cost them any chance of 
charging Avon or Stringer with anything serious,  
along with ruining their chances at following 
the potential high ranking political connections,  
like a corrupt senator named Clay Davis, that are 
tied to the Barksdale organization. Daniels and  
McNulty try to take the Barksdales connections 
with political figures to the FBI, who are  
only willing to pursue the case if the drug 
dealers are used as pawns and not the targets,  
frustrating Daniels and McNulty and forcing 
them to abandon their planned FBI partnership.
Ultimately, Avon and D’Angelo are arrested 
on minor charges, with Stringer completely  
off the hook. The arrests are celebrated, 
but Daniels, McNulty and the rest of the  
detail see this hollow victory as more of a 
defeat. Still distraught over Wallace’s death,  
D’Angelo refuses to allow his family to help 
him and instead offers to cooperate with the  
police and give up everything he has on Avon. 
Unfortunately, Avon’s sister and D’Angelo’s  
mother, Brianna, remains loyal to Avon and 
convinces D’Angelo to keep quiet against his  
better morals and judgment. And when Wee-Bey is 
arrested for Kima’s shooting and willingly takes  
the blame for crimes he didn’t even commit, 
Avon’s charges are made even more minor,  
resulting in being sentenced to seven years in 
prison, while D’Angelo is sentenced to twenty.
As the season comes to a close, the detail is 
disbanded, with Daniels being passed over for  
promotion due to his attempt to take the 
Barksdale case federal, while a spiteful  
Rawls assigns McNulty to the dregs of the 
marine unit. Carver is promoted by Burrell  
for his role as a snitch in Daniels’ unit, while 
Freamon’s valuable police work earns him a spot  
as Bunk’s new partner in the homicide division. 
And the Barksdale organization remains in power,  
just with a different leadership structure, 
as Poot takes over the Pit, Bodie is  
promoted to the Towers, and the calculating 
businessman Stringer Bell oversees it all.
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In season two of The Wire, Stringer Bell finally 
has the chance to run the Barksdale organization  
exactly how he wants, with the imprisoned 
Avon’s more narrow minded thoughts pushed  
aside for a more ambitious expansion. When 
the crew’s drug supply falls in quality,  
Stringer makes a deal with East Baltimore’s 
rival gang leader Proposition Joe to sell his  
product in exchange for giving up some of their 
most valuable corners. And when Stringer grows  
concerned that D’Angelo will become a snitch 
in prison, Stringer goes behind Avon’s back  
and secretly has him murdered, with his death 
staged as self-inflicted. Unaware of Stringer’s  
moves behind his back, the imprisoned Avon 
orchestrates infamous hitman Brother Mouzone  
to scare off Prop Joe’s crews. Wanting 
to repair his relationship with Prop Joe,  
Stringer further betrays his partner Avon by 
making a deal with their rival, Omar Little. Lying  
to Omar that Brother Mouzone was responsible 
for his lover Brandon’s torture and murder,  
Stringer offers a truce between Omar and the 
Barksdale organization if Omar murders Brother  
Mouzone. But when Omar attempts to kill his 
target, Mouzone reveals that Stringer is a liar,  
leading to Omar sparing Mouzone and 
swearing his revenge against Stringer.
Meanwhile, Major Stan Valchek finds himself 
in a petty battle with stevedore union leader  
Frank Sobotka. Despite having no evidence of 
Frank being involved in any serious crimes,  
Stan uses his position in the police force to 
form a new squad to investigate the stevedores  
and take down Frank. Stan tasks his son-in-law, 
Prez, with assembling the unit, and Prez brings  
along many of his old friends and colleagues, 
including Daniels, Freamon, Kima, Herc,  
and Carver. Daniels, who has considered leaving 
the police force to pursue a career as a lawyer,  
only agrees to join with the promise that this 
detail will be turned into a permanent Major  
Crimes Unit under his command should they end 
the case in success. Daniels' commitment to good  
police work over being more politically savvy 
causes a strain in his marriage to ambitious  
councilwoman Marla, leading to the two getting 
a divorce. Meanwhile, McNulty, now working the  
marine unit, finds a dead body in the harbor 
that he connects to a shipping container found  
on the docks containing the bodies of several 
women who were being illegally trafficked  
into the country. The patrolling officer, 
Beadie Russell, who discovered the bodies,  
is pulled into the investigation and taken 
under the wing of Daniels and his unit, who  
now must determine what if any connection Frank 
Sobotka has to the dead women found on his dock.
Meanwhile, the good-intentioned Frank Sobotka is 
struggling in his role as union leader to secure  
jobs and keep his men employed. His failing 
financial situation leads him to an uneasy  
alliance with a mysterious man known only as “The 
Greek”, who does all of his communication via his  
right hand man, Vondas. The Greek tasks Frank with 
helping smuggle illegal products into Baltimore,  
including Proposition Joe’s drug supply. Frank’s 
wildcard son, Ziggy, and ambitious nephew, Nick,  
begin working closer with Vondas and the Greek to 
make some money of their own. Ziggy’s embarrassing  
recklessness eventually has him cast off by the 
Greek, but Nick proves himself a useful soldier  
and quickly moves up the ranks. As Ziggy is 
forced to work on his own and grows more erratic,  
he eventually snaps and murders one of the 
Greek’s associates, Glekas, for slighting  
him. Feeling immediately remorseful, 
Ziggy turns himself over to the police.
Daniels’ unit quickly realize that Frank is a 
minor player and therefore divert their attention  
to taking down the Greek. Faced with a failed 
marriage and a dead-end position in the marine  
unit, McNulty falls into a heavy drinking 
problem and hits rock bottom. Fortunately,  
McNulty’s old pals Bunk and Freamon 
are able to convince their boss, Rawls,  
to forgive McNulty and allow him to rejoin 
Daniels’ unit. As the team use wiretaps  
and surveillance to definitively connect the 
Greek to drug smuggling and human trafficking,  
Herc and Carver grow resentful that they are 
constantly relegated to grunt work, while  
Valchek becomes furious that their attention has 
moved away from his rival, Frank. Valchek brings  
in the FBI to take over the case, and demands 
his son-in-law Prez quit the detail. But Prez  
stands up for his colleagues and their good police 
work, and punches his father-in-law in the face.
With the FBI now involved, Daniels and his 
team are forced to act immediately against  
the stevedores and the Greeks, leading to 
a massive coordinated raid. Although they  
arrest Frank and Nick, a corrupt FBI 
agent informs the Greek of the raids,  
giving the real targets the chance to destroy 
all evidence of their crimes and escape. Frank  
agrees to work with the police to find and 
take down the Greek, in exchange for leniency  
for Nick and Ziggy. Meanwhile, Nick convinces 
Vondas and the Greek that Frank can be trusted,  
and the Greek prepares to use his connections 
to have Ziggy cleared of Glekas’ murder. And so,  
Frank abandons his plan to become an 
informant, and agrees to make a deal  
with the Greek. Unfortunately, the Greek learns 
of Frank’s involvement with the police, and  
due to a lack of trust, is forced to have Frank 
murdered. Everyone is devastated by Frank’s death,  
and the police agree to put Nick and his family 
into witness protection. Meanwhile, the Greek,  
who it turns out isn't actually Greek, flees 
Baltimore to continue his empire elsewhere.
Despite losing the Greek, Daniels’ detail is 
considered a success and officially made a  
permanent Major Crimes Unit. The disgruntled 
Herc and Carver quit the unit to join a unit  
in the western district, while Daniels is able to 
convince Valchek to allow Prez to keep his job.
As the season comes to a close, McNulty 
considers pursuing a relationship with Beadie,  
but realizing his own self-destructive 
tendencies, chooses to instead remain  
fully dedicated to his police work. And 
that work would now see the Major Crimes  
Unit fully dedicated to taking down their next 
target: the increasingly powerful Stringer Bell.
In season three of The Wire, the Major Crimes 
Unit continues trying to build their case against  
Stringer Bell, with little luck. The recently 
divorced Daniels begins openly dating Rhonda  
Pearlman, creating some slight awkwardness around 
the office between them and Pearlman’s former  
hookup partner, McNulty. As McNulty continues 
his drunken escapades with Bunk, he also begins  
teaching Kima his philandering ways. Kima grows 
resentful of her partner Cheryl’s attention to  
their newborn baby, and regrets ever even having 
the child, leading her to cheat on Cheryl using  
McNulty’s cover stories, before ultimately 
ending their relationship. Prez has further  
proved himself as a valued member of the team, 
but when he accidentally shoots and kills a fellow  
detective in the field, he realizes that he is not 
meant to be a police officer and leaves the force.
The long imprisoned Dennis “Cutty” Wise is finally 
released and forced to adjust to a new life as  
a free man. Formerly a legendary enforcer for 
Avon, Cutty resists his old friend’s offer to set  
him up with a job and instead decides to leave his 
life of crime behind him. Cutty takes a strenuous  
landscaping job to make money, and opens a boxing 
gym to help train local kids in the community.
The MCU’s efforts to take down Stringer 
are thwarted by his pivot into becoming  
a legitimate businessman. With Avon in 
prison, Stringer is given full control  
of their organization. He places the enforcer Slim 
Charles in charge of the day-to-day drug business,  
while he devotes his time to investing his money 
with wealthy benefactors and politicians, like  
the corrupt senator, Clay Davis. Stringer also 
forges an alliance with rival kingpin, Prop Joe,  
and the two form the New Day Co-Op, in which 
every local drug leader that joins is a part of  
a wide reaching alliance. Business thrives under 
Stringer’s leadership, but all of that is put in  
jeopardy when Avon Barksdale is finally released 
from prison. Avon is a more classical gangster,  
and resists Stringer’s business moves, 
alliances, and investments in favor of  
muscling out their competition. Avon’s violent 
nature escalates when a new drug kingpin named  
Marlo Stanfield hits the streets and starts 
stealing corners and refusing to join the  
co-op. To make matters worse for Stringer, McNulty 
finally learns of D’Angelo’s death in prison and  
realizes that the man was murdered. As McNulty 
starts planting doubt of D’Angelo’s death in the  
minds of his girlfriend and mother, Stringer 
is forced to confess to Avon his part in his  
nephew’s death. Avon accepts Stringer’s reasoning, 
but their relationship is irreparably damaged.
Meanwhile, Herc and Carver join the Western 
district squad under the command of Major Bunny  
Colvin. Bunny is nearing retirement, and with 
nothing to lose, devises a plan that he thinks  
will create real change in Baltimore. Essentially 
legalizing drugs, Bunny’s plan moves drug dealers  
off of public street corners and into a sanctioned 
area of vacant houses. This greatly reduces drug  
related crimes in public areas, and gives his 
officers time to do more actual police work over  
simple street rips. The designated free zone is 
dubbed Hamsterdam by the local dealers and users,  
who are at first suspicious of the plan, but 
eventually take full advantage of it. Bubbles  
tries to start up his own business in Hamsterdam, 
while his partner Johnny succumbs to his addiction  
and overdoses. Bunny’s officers, who are sworn 
to secrecy from exposing the plan to higher ups  
like Rawls and Burrell, are much more resistant 
to the idea. Under Bunny’s mentorship, Carver  
grows into a respectable detective who cares more 
about protecting and serving than bashing heads,  
but Herc is stuck in his old, problematic ways 
and leaks the details of Hamsterdam to the press.
Meanwhile, city councilman Tommy Carcetti has 
aspirations to become the new mayor of Baltimore.  
To unseat the current Mayor Royce, Carcetti 
begins enacting his plan to implement radical  
change throughout the city. He puts pressure on 
the newly promoted Commissioner Burrell and Deputy  
Commissioner Rawls to reduce crime at any cost. 
Upon the revelation of Hamsterdam making national  
headlines, Carcetti capitalizes on the bad press 
to throw Mayor Royce under the bus. Bunny is  
demoted and fired, receiving less pension than his 
contract promised. Hamsterdam is shut down, much  
to the dismay of Bunny and Carver, and the dealers 
return to their corners, same as it ever was.
When Stringer discovers that Clay Davis has been 
conning him and swindling him of large sums of  
money, he angrily asks Avon to assassinate 
the senator, which Avon refuses. Meanwhile,  
Avon grows closer to his enforcer, Slim Charles, 
and the two continue to escalate their war against  
Marlo Stanfield. Fearing that Avon’s recklessness 
will destroy their empire, Stringer goes to Bunny  
Colvin, infamous for creating Hamsterdam, 
and snitches on Avon in the hopes of having  
him arrested. Stringer then further discusses the 
assassination of Clay Davis on a phone call with  
one of his enforcers, in a rare act of his own 
recklessness that the MCU records on the wire,  
giving them the evidence they needed 
to finally arrest Stringer Bell.
But it’s not just the police that 
are after Stringer, as Omar Little  
and Brother Mouzone forge an uneasy alliance 
after discovering that Stringer had tried to  
manipulate them both into killing each 
other. To keep the peace with Mouzone,  
Avon reluctantly gives his blessing to kill 
Stringer. And so, before the police can act,  
Omar and Mouzone find Stringer and execute 
him. McNulty is devastated by the fact that  
Stringer died before knowing that he had been 
caught. Avon’s crew assume that Marlo was behind  
Stringer’s death, and they prepare for all out 
war. The MCU receives Stringer’s intel from Bunny,  
and alongside the Western squad, raid the 
Barksdale compound. Avon and many of his soldiers,  
including Poot, are arrested, leaving 
the streets open for Marlo’s taking.
As the season comes to a close, Daniels 
is promoted to Major and given command  
over the Western District. McNulty 
realizes that his self-destruction  
nature can’t be fixed by policework 
and decides to make a real change. He  
leaves the MCU to become a simple 
patrolling officer in the Western  
district, gives up drinking, and begins 
a simple, domestic romance with Beadie.
In season four of The Wire, Marlo Stanfield and 
his crew have completely taken over Baltimore’s  
west side. Prop Joe finally convinces Marlo to 
join the Co-Op, while Bodie now reluctantly works  
a corner selling Marlo’s supply, while Marlo’s 
enforcers, Chris and Snoop, murder anyone that  
stands in their way, using a nail gun to hide 
their bodies in vacant houses that the police  
never uncover. With a lack of dead bodies to pin 
on Marlo, the MCU is completely gutted by new  
Deputy Commissioner Rawls. He installs Lieutenant 
Marimow as the new boss, who in turn completely  
shuts down their Marlo Stanfield investigation 
in favor of returning to the basic street busts.  
Frustrated by Marimow’s actions, Freamon 
and Kima transfer from the MCU to Homicide.
Meanwhile, four teenagers from West Baltimore 
struggle to grow up in a system that  
is rigged against them. Michael is the leader 
of the group, a natural fighter and protector  
of his friends and younger brother, Bug. Randy is 
an optimistic foster kid with an entrepreneurial  
spirit. Dukie is constantly bullied by other kids, 
due to his lack of hygiene, caused by abusive,  
drug addicted parents who steal every single thing 
he owns. And then there’s Namond, an all-bark,  
no-bite wannabe gangster, and the son of the 
incarcerated Wee-Bey. When Wee-Bey and his wife,  
De’Londa, are cut off from the Barksdale money, 
Namond’s parents pressure him to follow in his  
father’s footsteps and claim a corner for himself. 
The four friends frequent Cutty’s boxing gym,  
where Michael proves himself to be a natural 
fighter. Despite Cutty’s efforts to train and  
mentor Michael, the kid is resistant to any of 
Cutty’s offers, due to Cutty’s selfish behavior  
of sleeping with the mother of every one of his 
students, and of Michael’s own past history of  
sexual abuse at the hands of Bug’s now imprisoned 
father. Michael’s leadership qualities also  
attracts the attention of Marlo Stanfield and his 
right hand man, Chris. At first, Michael resists  
Marlo’s offer to join his crew, but when Bug’s 
father comes home from prison, Michael seeks out  
Chris’ help in killing his abuser. The similarly 
abused Chris murders Bug’s father and takes  
Michael under his wing, teaching him how to kill 
and never be abused again. Now officially working  
for Marlo, Michael has enough money to buy his own 
apartment for himself, Bug, and Dukie to live in.
When the four friends return to Edward Tilghman 
Middle School in the fall, their math teacher  
is none other than Roland Pryzbylewski, whom 
they all nickname Mr. Prezbo. Prez wants to  
make a real impact on his students’ lives, and 
becomes frustrated with having to constantly go  
up against a school board that cares more 
about test scores and government funding  
than ensuring that their students are actually 
learning anything. Throughout the school year,  
Prez develops unconventional teaching 
methods that the kids engage with,  
bankrolls Randy’s candy selling business, 
and takes Dukie under his wing, bonding over  
their shared love of technology, and supplying 
him with fresh clothes and other necessities.
Also attending Edward Tilghman is Sherrod, 
a young drug addict that Bubbles mentors,  
but wants to help push away from a similar 
fate as Johnny. Sherrod quickly drops out  
of school and falls back into his 
addiction, much to Bubbles’ dismay.
The now retired Bunny Colvin takes a new job 
working as a researcher for the University of  
Maryland’s study on repeat violent offenders. 
Bunny suggests the research be focused on kids  
before they’re too far gone, leading them to 
forming their own class at Edward Tilghman,  
featuring the most disruptive 
and at risk students. Namond is  
one of the students selected for the 
class, and under Bunny’s mentorship,  
his well-meaning and caring nature is nurtured 
out over his false, gangster bravado. Despite  
the research study eventually being shut down 
for good, Bunny is able to convince Wee-Bey to  
look out for his son’s best interest, resulting in 
Bunny becoming Namond’s official legal guardian.
Carver continues to work in the Western district,  
utilizing all of the skills imparted on 
him by his former boss, Bunny. Carver  
makes a genuine connection to the kids in the 
district, hoping for the best for them, and  
forms a friendship with Cutty over their 
shared concern for the kids’ welfare.
Meanwhile, Herc is now working in Mayor Royce’s 
security detail, hoping it will lead to a swift  
promotion. And when Herc accidentally catches 
Royce in the midst of an inappropriate sexual act,  
the Mayor has Herc promoted to sergeant and sends 
him back to the MCU. Herc and Sydnor are the only  
original detectives still at the MCU and they 
constantly clash with Marimow’s orders. Taking  
matters into his own hands, Herc goes behind 
Marimow’s back and uses a police camera to spy  
on Marlo and his crew, attributing any evidence he 
collects to a made-up informant. When Marlo finds  
and steals the camera, Herc becomes desperate 
to get it back to save his career. First,  
he interrogates Randy on a murder he suspected was 
connected to Marlo, then fails to properly protect  
Randy, despite Carver’s insistence. When word gets 
back to Marlo that Randy spoke with the police,  
the kid is labeled a snitch and violently harassed 
and attacked, forcing him back into a group home,  
where he is brutally assaulted by the other 
kids, devastating Carver. Next, Kima entrusts  
Bubbles to Herc as a CI. Bubbles promises 
to help Herc recover the camera, in exchange  
for Herc arresting a violent man who constantly 
attacks and robs Bubbles. But Herc’s selfishness  
leads to him frequently abandoning Bubbles in 
his times of need, prompting Bubbles to call  
in a fake tip and having Herc mistakenly arrest 
an innocent and highly regarded black minister.
With Herc proving to be of no help to him, Bubbles 
is forced to take matters against his attacker  
into his own hands. He creates a mix of heroin and 
cyanide that he intends to have his attacker steal  
from him and poison himself with. But when Bubbles 
and Sherrod reconcile, Sherrod unknowingly takes  
the poison himself and dies. Bubbles is devastated 
by Sherrod’s death and finally hits rock bottom.
Meanwhile, Omar and his new boyfriend, Renaldo, 
move on from robbing the now defunct Barksdale  
crew to the thriving Stanfield crew. 
When Marlo seeks revenge against Omar,  
Chris orchestrates framing him for robbing a 
store and murdering an innocent security guard.  
When Omar finds himself in prison surrounded by 
dealers and gangsters he had previously robbed,  
he realizes that it is only a matter of time 
before they all enact their revenge. Omar  
seeks out the help of Detective Bunk Moreland, 
who trusts Omar’s story and goes against his  
fellow detectives to prove the stick-up man’s 
innocence. In return, Omar swears to Bunk that  
he will never murder again. Upon his release, Omar 
and Renaldo seek their own revenge against Marlo,  
robbing Prop Joe’s entire shipment of heroin 
from the Greeks in a massive score. Omar sells  
the drugs back to Prop Joe and gives a portion 
of his money to his father figure and mentor,  
Butchie, then retires with Renaldo to Puerto Rico. 
Marlo and the other Co-Op leaders are furious  
about the robbery, and plan their revenge to rid 
themselves of the infamous Omar Little for good.
Elsewhere, Tommy Carcetti defeats Royce to 
become the new Mayor of Baltimore. Carcetti  
wants to enact real change in the city, and 
wants to start with bolstering the police  
department and cleaning up the streets. He 
promises significant raises to all officers  
and promises a new day has arrived. Carcetti 
also takes a liking to Cedric Daniels and  
his effort to focus on building cases for quality 
arrests over a simple stat based method. Carcetti  
promotes Daniels to Commander of the Criminal 
Investigations Division, with an eye on one day  
making him the police commissioner. In turn, 
Carcetti makes moves to fire the old school  
Burrell as the current commissioner. Burrell uses 
his connections with corrupt Senator Clay Davis,  
City Council President Nerese Campbell, and 
the influential black ministers to make his  
firing difficult, then proves his usefulness 
to Carcetti by helping him navigate the public  
scandal of Herc mistakenly arresting the 
black minister, leading to Herc’s firing.
From his new position of power, 
Daniels removes Marimow from the  
MCU and tasks Freamon with rebuilding the 
team to take down Marlo Standfield. And when  
Freamon discovers Chris and Snoop’s methods 
of hiding bodies in vacants, the dead bodies  
start quickly adding up. Jimmy McNulty becomes 
inspired by Carcetti’s promise of a new day,  
and attempts to get closer to his old corner 
frenemy, Bodie, in the hopes of turning him  
into an informant against Marlo. But when Marlo’s 
crew see Bodie talking with a police officer,  
they murder him, and Michael is officially placed 
in charge of his corner. Prez is devastated to see  
his protege Dukie fall in line to work the corner 
alongside Michael, while McNulty is devastated  
by his hand in Bodie’s death, and finally rejoins 
the MCU to help take down Marlo once and for all.
As the reformed MCU gain a renewed hope for the 
future, the newly elected Mayor Carcetti discovers  
that Baltimore’s schools face a $54 million 
budget deficit. Carcetti’s right hand man,  
Norman, encourages him to accept a 
bailout from the governor of Maryland,  
but Carcetti doesn’t want to accept the money, as 
it might negatively impact his future aspirations  
of running for governor himself. And so, Carcetti 
turns down the money for his own self interest,  
putting the city of Baltimore in 
a worse predicament than ever.
In season five of The Wire, Mayor Carcetti’s 
selfish aspirations to become the governor of  
Maryland have turned him into the exact 
type of politician he promised to save  
Baltimore from. With the city’s money going 
toward the schools, Carcetti is forced to  
make drastic cuts to the police department, 
destroying morale and forcing the shut down  
of the Major Crimes Unit and their case against 
Marlo Stanfield. Amidst the police budget cuts,  
Carcetti is able to successfully 
remove Burrell as police commissioner,  
naming Rawls as interim Commissioner and eying 
Daniels as his eventual permanent successor.
Meanwhile, Marlo is taken fully under 
the wing of Prop Joe, who teaches him  
how to put all of his newfound wealth to good 
use. Prop Joe introduces Marlo to the lawyer,  
Maury Levy, and helps him launder his money 
in an offshore bank account. But Marlo grows  
restless being just another member of the 
Co-Op and has his eyes on being crowned the  
true king of Baltimore. Marlo discovers that 
Prop Joe buys his drug supply from the Greeks,  
and secretly makes a deal using his 
newly laundered money to take over  
as their new buyer. With no more use for 
Joe, Marlo convinces Joe’s nephew, Cheese,  
to betray him, then has Chris murder him. Marlo 
then assumes full control of the Co-Op, where  
he immediately disbands their regular meetings 
and raises the price of the supply for everyone.
Despite his machinations to become the new head of 
Baltimore’s drug scene, Marlo hasn’t forgotten his  
vendetta against Omar Little. Marlo tasks Chris 
and Snoop with luring the former stickup man out  
of retirement and killing him. And so, Chris and 
Snoop find Omar’s mentor, Butchie, and torture  
and murder him. Upon learning of Butchie’s death, 
Omar returns from his tropical retirement to enact  
revenge of his own. But Omar is blinded by rage 
and becomes reckless, thinking he can take on the  
entire Stanfield organization by himself. After a 
violent shootout that results in Omar breaking his  
leg, the once legendary killer becomes crippled 
and desperate, hobbling through the streets of  
Baltimore, murdering random Stanfield soldiers, 
and begging for Marlo himself to show his face.  
But Omar never gets the confrontation 
he desires, as young corner kid Kenard  
easily murders the unsuspecting Omar, giving a 
sad, abrupt ending to the once living legend.
Meanwhile, Michael continues to train as 
a soldier under Chris and Snoop. At home,  
he pays his friend Dukie to be his 
younger brother Bug’s primary caretaker,  
while in the street he begins to voice his regrets 
over the violent acts he is forced to commit.
As State’s Attorney Bond attempts to prosecute 
Senator Clay Davis, he convinces Carcetti to  
give the resources of two detectives to look 
into Davis’ history of corruption. And so,  
Lester Freamon and Leandor Sydnor remain as 
the only members of the MCU and are assigned  
to follow Davis’ money trail. Lester and Sydnor 
uncover massive amounts of evidence that could  
take the case federal, but Bond dismisses 
key evidence in order to keep the case local,  
so that he can personally take down Clay 
Davis and use the victory for his own  
political aspirations. Unfortunately, the smooth 
talking Clay Davis charms the local jury and  
is acquitted of all crimes, frustrating 
everyone involved and humiliating Bond.
Jimmy McNulty is devastated by the abandonment 
of the Stanfield case, and falls right back into  
his alcoholism and infidelity. Desperate for a 
way to get the resources and attention needed to  
take down Marlo, McNulty begins staging random 
homeless deaths and overdoses as the work of a  
serial killer. McNulty hopes that the public 
attention of a supposed serial killer will  
force Carcetti to give the police department 
the budget they require. Bunk is appalled by  
his best friend and former partner’s actions, 
but when Lester learns of McNulty’s scheme,  
he gladly joins in, similarly obsessed with 
bringing down Marlo. The two are forced to  
escalate their staged murders when no one at 
first cares, resorting to placing bite marks  
on the victims and faking the kidnapping 
and hostage situation of a homeless man,  
when in actuality he was just dropped off by 
McNulty in a neighboring city. Eventually,  
McNulty fakes a call from the killer to reporter 
Scott Templeton at the Baltimore Sun, landing the  
story of the serial killer on the front page of 
the local paper. With his campaign for governor  
imminent, Carcetti is forced to give the police 
department all of the resources necessary to  
bring down this supposed serial killer as 
quickly as possible. McNulty and Lester are  
ecstatic about their success, using their newfound 
resources to instead focus on taking down Marlo.
At the Baltimore Sun, Desk Editor Gus Haynes is 
trying to do good and respectable journalism in  
the face of massive budget cuts and bosses who 
would rather have sensationalized stories that are  
more reader and award friendly. Gus begins growing 
suspicious of new Sun reporter Scott Templeton,  
who secretly fabricates details and quotes 
to create better narratives. Scott becomes  
obsessed with the attention he receives for 
being the reporter contacted by the killer,  
and begins fabricating his own details to 
embellish his own importance. McNulty is  
shocked and amused by Scott’s lies, 
but the further media attention only  
helps to funnel more money into his 
secret Marlo Stanfield investigation.
When Scott crafts a false story about a homeless 
veteran, the Sun editors love it and believe it  
could win them all Pulitzers. Gus pushes back 
on the story, arguing against its fabrications,  
but his bosses would rather win the Pulitzer than 
retract the false story. And so, Gus is demoted  
while Scott is lauded and awarded. Meanwhile, 
fellow Sun reporter Mike Fletcher does a bit  
of honest journalism and reports on the story of 
Bubbles, who has remained clean and sober while  
living in his sister’s basement, though still 
beating himself up over the death of Sherrod. With  
the help of his sponsor, Walon, Bubbles is finally 
able to forgive himself, as does his sister,  
who allows him to leave the basement and finally 
rejoin the family he so desperately missed.
As the lead on the serial killer case, McNulty 
secretly gives away some of his newfound resources  
to his fellow detectives to allow them to work 
their own cases, while he and Lester continue to  
work on bringing down Marlo. When Sydnor discovers 
the fake plot, he reluctantly becomes the third  
member of the renegade team. When Kima is forced 
to neglect her real casework to focus on the  
fake serial killer, a guilty McNulty divulges 
his secret plan to her, realizing that it has  
spiraled out of his control. Kima is disgusted by 
McNulty’s actions, and joins Bunk in admonishing  
her former partner. Meanwhile, Bunk forges ahead 
with some good old-fashioned, honest police work,  
as he tries to connect the Stanfield organization 
to the many bodies found in the vacants. Bunk  
eventually uses DNA evidence to tie the murdered 
body of Michael’s stepdad to Chris Partlow, but  
McNulty pleads with him to hold off on any arrests 
until he and Lester can bring down Marlo too.
The disgraced former cop Herc is now working as 
a private detective for the shady lawyer, Maury  
Levy. Upon discovering that Marlo is Levy’s newest 
client, Herc steals Marlo’s cell phone number and  
gives it to Carver, as retribution for his errors 
in dealing with the young Randy Wagstaff. Carver  
gives the number to Lester, who then places 
an illegal wiretap on Marlo. Lester and Sydnor  
eventually crack Marlo and his crew’s secret 
codes, leading them to raid the Stanfield crew  
as they resupply their drugs from the Greeks. The 
raid is a massive success, celebrated extensively  
in the media by Carcetti, leading to the arrests 
of Marlo, Chris, and Cheese. Lester claims the  
information from the illegal wiretap actually came 
from a secret informant. Unsure of who snitched  
on them, Marlo and Chris reluctantly conclude 
that it may have been Michael, and give Snoop  
the order to murder him. But Michael has learned 
well from Chris and Snoop and sees his imminent  
death coming. Instead, Michael murders Snoop 
and flees with Bug and Dukie. Michael places his  
little brother in the care of their aunt before 
sharing an emotional goodbye with his best friend.
Herc becomes bitter over not joining in the 
success for his part in Marlo’s arrest, and tips  
off Levy that a wiretap may have been involved. 
An act that finally and fully sells Herc’s morals  
to the devil. With this knowledge, Levy threatens 
attorney Rhonda Pearlman that he could have the  
entire case against Marlo dismissed. Fortunately, 
Lester supplies Rhonda with information that Levy  
was paying an informant inside the courthouse 
to illegally obtain sealed documents. Using this  
as leverage, Levy and Pearlman negotiate a life 
sentence for Chris, the release of Cheese on bond,  
and the release of Marlo on the condition of 
him getting out of the drug game for good.
Feeling convicted over her knowledge about the 
fake serial killer, Kima informs Daniels about  
McNulty and Lester’s lies. A furious Daniels 
brings this revelation to Rawls and Carcetti,  
who are despondent over how to proceed. 
Admitting the serial killer to be a  
hoax from within their own police department 
would bring embarrassment to the entire city,  
and would ruin their very public victory against 
the Stanfield organization. Carcetti reluctantly  
decides to keep the hoax quiet, and Daniels goes 
along with the lie in order to protect his love,  
Pearlman, from any career consequences of 
her own. McNulty stays a detective for the  
duration of the serial killer case, with 
the intent of letting the story die down  
in the public eye before he is quietly fired. 
Unfortunately, a real copycat killer emerges,  
killing two new homeless victims. McNulty 
quickly catches the new killer, and Rawls  
does his best to tie all of the fake killings to 
the mentally unwell copycat killer in the media.
In the end, Carcetti is elected Governor of 
Maryland, bringing along Rawls as the new  
Superintendent of State Police. Carver follows in 
Daniels’ footsteps, overcoming an early career of  
bad police work to become a highly respectable 
Lieutenant. Daniels becomes fed up with the  
state of the Baltimore police department and 
retires with dignity, becoming a defense lawyer  
and sharing the courtroom with his love, the new 
judge Rhonda Pearlman. Detective Sydnor becomes  
the new McNulty, complaining to Judge Phelan about 
the higher ups obstructing his investigations.  
Michael becomes the new Omar, becoming a highly 
skilled and feared stickup man. Dukie becomes the  
new Bubbles, forced onto the streets and falling 
into drug use with a group of homeless addicts,  
robbing people who care about him most, like Mr. 
Prezbo, to fuel his addiction. Marlo is a free  
man, but now stuck in stuffy meetings with wealthy 
businessmen and losing the prominence and power of  
his name on the street corners. Slim Charles 
murders Cheese for his betrayal of Prop Joe,  
and works with the reformed Co-Op to take 
over the drug supply from the Greeks. Kima  
reconciles and bonds with her young son, 
while officially becoming Bunk’s new partner  
in homicide. Lester peacefully retires, while 
the fired McNulty resolves to clean himself  
up for good. He returns the fake kidnapped 
homeless man to the streets he’s used to,  
reconciles with Beadie, and admires the 
city of Baltimore, the place he calls home.