The Wire - Why Every Season Matters

[00:00] the wire sets itself apart from other

[00:02] cop shows in its first season but the

[00:04] way all five seasons work together to

[00:06] illustrate a broader message is what

[00:09] really sets the show apart from other TV

[00:12] shows altogether this video is sponsored

[00:14] by Nord bpn I think you need a lot of

[00:19] context to seriously examine anything

[00:21] each season of The Wire doesn't just

[00:24] continue the story but adds a new layer

[00:27] of context to the show's examination of

[00:30] Baltimore's institutions and characters

[00:32] season 1 sets up a problem the

[00:35] ineffectiveness of the war on drugs and

[00:38] seasons two through five show why the

[00:40] problem isn't being solved by economics

[00:43] politics education and the media and how

[00:47] each of these things contribute to

[00:49] keeping the systems in a cycle of

[00:51] failure the opening scene of each season

[00:54] serves to illustrate the thesis of that

[00:56] season the opener to season 1 serves as

[00:59] a thesis for both season 1 and the

[01:02] entire show officer McNulty sits with

[01:05] the witness of a recent murder the

[01:07] witness who never appears again on the

[01:09] show laments the unnecessary death of

[01:12] snotboogie who kills not it's not been

[01:15] doing the same since all know how long

[01:17] kill a man over some bullish miss Napoli

[01:21] always stole the money why'd you let him

[01:23] play

[01:25] got this America man America indeed the

[01:30] game is the game and anyone is free to

[01:32] play it but that doesn't keep it from

[01:34] being rigged corrupt or having severe

[01:37] consequences season one is one of my

[01:40] favorites it works so well as a

[01:42] contained a story some by snapping

[01:45] pictures they got the whole damn thing

[01:47] someone snapping pictures got the whole

[01:48] deal nicely done it's circular nature

[01:51] and the book ending of the beginning and

[01:54] end of the season was what originally

[01:55] convinced me of the wires brilliance

[01:57] lester done but this isn't just clever

[02:00] story structure it serves to illustrate

[02:02] how everything in the world of the wire

[02:05] sits in a kind of stasis how cyclical

[02:08] and resistant to change

[02:10] everything is the ending of season 1

[02:12] provides no significant catharsis

[02:15] mirroring how the show will end while a

[02:18] bond is caught stringer bell goes by

[02:20] without a charge catch you later

[02:22] kima is shot which prompts an early

[02:25] shutdown of the case before it can bring

[02:27] in all its targets those we've been

[02:29] rooting for all season get punished by

[02:31] their respective institutions D'Angelo

[02:34] fails to successfully reform and doesn't

[02:36] flip and the death of Wallace one of the

[02:39] most vulnerable and lovable characters

[02:41] in season 1 sets the tone for the entire

[02:43] show no character is safe and includes

[02:46] us into the fact that the wire is going

[02:48] to go to some dark places in the process

[02:51] of exploring its themes no meaningful

[02:54] change occurs within the institutions

[02:57] only a few individuals change for the

[03:00] better and some of them change for the

[03:02] worse the second season of the show is

[03:06] one of the most controversial the story

[03:09] makes a hard right turn from the

[03:10] characters and primary narrative

[03:12] followed in season 1 and spends a lot of

[03:14] its time focused on a new set of

[03:17] dockworkers TV viewers are more used to

[03:19] this kind of maneuver in a show these

[03:21] days many of us have watched anthology

[03:23] shows or shows that evolved extensively

[03:25] from one season to the next but season

[03:28] two at the time of the wires release was

[03:31] startling to audiences it is however a

[03:33] vital season for two reasons first what

[03:36] the departure from the primary

[03:38] narrative signals to the audience about

[03:40] the show the departure from the main

[03:42] storyline is uncomfortable audiences

[03:44] want to spend time with the characters

[03:45] they already know and love but that

[03:47] shift signals that the story being told

[03:50] is about more than just the characters

[03:53] we met in season one while much of the

[03:56] show will continue to revolve around

[03:57] those characters storylines season 2

[04:00] marks the show's first expansion adding

[04:02] one of those additional layers of

[04:04] Baltimore to the scope of the show the

[04:06] second reason why season two is

[04:08] important is that it's the first step in

[04:10] illustrating part of why people move

[04:12] into the illicit drug trade in the first

[04:14] place I'm done I'm out I don't need

[04:17] nothing more to do it you people I don't

[04:19] need the trouble or the money I got a

[04:20] union a run it illustrates how the

[04:22] failing economy incentivizes people to

[04:25] find alternative sources of income they

[04:28] used to make steel then Oh

[04:35] smoke from the stacks

[04:38] but inside and importantly it shows that

[04:41] the institutional and systemic failure

[04:44] isn't just a race issue it's also a

[04:46] class issue the opening scene again sets

[04:49] up the thesis how they used to work

[04:51] there that steel and the shipyards there

[04:54] yeah and it uncle who was a supervisor

[04:55] there got laid off in 78 though

[04:59] 73 from my dad the images of the

[05:02] decaying ports are shown in contrast to

[05:04] the image of a Baltimore police boat

[05:07] pulling a boat from Washington named

[05:09] capital gains you told us somewhere out

[05:12] of the way

[05:12] band plays aren't a lot longer

[05:14] throughout the season we'll see how the

[05:16] police department is used by people and

[05:18] power for their own personal gain

[05:20] while the investigation in season one

[05:22] was sparked by McNulty's plea to a judge

[05:25] for change in season two the

[05:27] investigation is motivated by major

[05:30] valchek's desire for petty revenge

[05:31] against Frank Sobotka need a detail CID

[05:36] people mostly though I could spare some

[05:38] bodies out of my district to what for I

[05:40] got some guys in the southeast that are

[05:42] showing a lot of money

[05:44] the seasons wiretap investigation will

[05:46] take a long time to get up and running

[05:48] the show subverts expectations for the

[05:51] storyline by actively resisting a the

[05:54] gangs back together type of moment

[05:56] carvers in Southeast now he's got second

[06:00] a tool I mean it'd be great to have

[06:01] caught we're on this right it's what we

[06:05] don't even know what the hell was

[06:06] supposed to be chasing here since the

[06:07] wire is expecting that you've paid

[06:09] attention much of the details of running

[06:12] the wiretap are left out or abbreviated

[06:15] this season this trend will continue

[06:17] through the show each seasons wiretaps

[06:20] storyline becoming more condensed making

[06:22] room for other subjects another key

[06:25] element of season two is illustrating

[06:27] why characters stay in a bad situation

[06:29] maybe if I had listened your mother

[06:31] because she's the one always talking

[06:33] about you should do the community

[06:35] college like your brother

[06:36] pop-pop dumped mirroring Wallace's

[06:39] inability to leave the city for good in

[06:41] season 1 season 2 shows how the

[06:44] generational nature of the dockworkers

[06:46] fuels a desire to continue where they

[06:49] are even when that situation may not be

[06:51] the best for them the nature of what

[06:53] motivates Nick and Ziyi into crime is

[06:55] important as well as a mere stringer

[06:58] Bell and Avon Nick and stringers

[07:00] motivations are more purely economic be

[07:02] fun as a package a week I seen on the

[07:04] bank while Avon and Ziggy's have more to

[07:07] do with feeling empowered this is

[07:09] reminding me

[07:10] you a handle that business better to see

[07:13] we're making money

[07:14] Avon is obviously more successful and

[07:16] calculating than Zig ever is but both

[07:19] their motivations come not from wanting

[07:22] economic gain itself but from their

[07:24] desire for respect and to have control

[07:27] over the production of gain season 3

[07:30] sees the introduction of politics we've

[07:33] seen how economic dysfunction creates

[07:36] and propagates crime institutions in

[07:38] season 2 now we'll see why these aren't

[07:42] easily solved political issues and how

[07:44] the attempts to solve these problems can

[07:47] often backfire creating new unintended

[07:50] consequences the opening scene of the

[07:52] season acts as an image of the

[07:54] government caught in a cycle of creating

[07:57] solutions to problems it has helped

[07:59] create and then tearing down those

[08:01] solutions as a solution to the

[08:03] unintended issues created by their

[08:06] original solution we also see the

[08:09] citizens cheering for the destruction of

[08:11] an old solution and everyone being

[08:13] caught off guard by the side effects of

[08:15] the new solution season 3 again subverts

[08:19] expectations for the wiretap storyline

[08:21] by picking up on the investigation in

[08:23] full swing but it's struggling three

[08:26] months and we've yet to hear his voice

[08:29] the season also contains the wires

[08:33] closest thing to an explicit political

[08:35] argument the development of Hamsterdam

[08:38] major Colvin's attempt to solve the drug

[08:40] problem through unofficial regulated

[08:42] legalization might legalize drugs

[08:45] is the wired argument for legalization

[08:48] and regulation as a potential solution

[08:50] they arrested every dude out there for

[08:52] tipping back a high life there'd be no

[08:54] other time any other kind of pulleys but

[08:56] even here I think the wire handles the

[08:58] issue well the government showed it to

[09:00] good

[09:01] come on let me show you Doug showing

[09:03] with a great degree of nuance the

[09:06] difficulties involved with this approach

[09:08] even as it argues for it the dope fiend

[09:10] come down here cow bellows something an

[09:13] area so Haslam Chavez in police they

[09:17] just let him be it's a good thing

[09:28] understand this story line is where the

[09:32] season mirrors the irony found in the

[09:34] opening scene the image of the

[09:36] government proudly destroying public

[09:38] housing to solve a crime problem created

[09:41] in part by corrupt policing is seen in

[09:44] the destruction of Hamsterdam an

[09:46] unofficial solution to a problem the

[09:48] city helped to create season four in my

[09:53] opinion is one of the most important

[09:55] seasons of the wire seasons one through

[09:57] three examined the institution's on and

[09:59] above the street level that hold crime

[10:02] in place while season four examines an

[10:05] institution below the street level so to

[10:08] speak the season-opener subtly begins to

[10:11] probe the theme of education Snoop is

[10:14] educated by the store clerk about the

[10:16] nail guns you might want to consider the

[10:18] powder-actuated tool the hill TDX 460 MX

[10:22] or the Simpson PTP

[10:24] he's two of my Cadillacs she's motivated

[10:26] to learn and is a fast learner when the

[10:29] subject is relevant to her and she

[10:32] learns by relating that knowledge to

[10:34] what she knows guns

[10:39] will see this play out repeatedly

[10:41] through season 4 with our band of kids

[10:45] the numbers you can calculate the odds

[10:47] Michael have four diamonds showily

[10:50] what about guys I mean those guys have

[10:54] eyes too because mostly that's what we

[10:57] play it's not that they're unable or

[10:59] unwilling to learn in fact they're quite

[11:02] sharp and adaptive it's that what

[11:04] they're learning in school has little

[11:07] relevance to the reality they live on

[11:09] the streets this theme is supported by

[11:12] the fact that major Colvin's project to

[11:15] seize success by meeting those kids

[11:17] where they are without season four we

[11:20] never see how the characters shown in

[11:22] seasons one through three ended up where

[11:24] they are we might be left to assume that

[11:27] those characters are in the position

[11:29] they're in just because of their own

[11:30] choices or fate season four however

[11:34] presents a more difficult and complex

[11:36] answer it's not so simple as a one

[11:39] individual's choice to enter a life of

[11:41] crime or become a corrupt police officer

[11:44] every influence around you acts as a

[11:46] magnet drawing you towards certain

[11:48] outcomes but it's also never as simple

[11:51] as mere fate and those magnetic

[11:53] influences come from institutions which

[11:56] are made up of the sum of all the

[11:59] choices of all the individuals within

[12:01] that institution the way season 4

[12:04] relates to the school system and the

[12:06] police department strengthens the

[12:08] argument that it's not just the

[12:09] Baltimore Police Department or mayor's

[12:11] office that has a problem it's the way

[12:14] institutions themselves are run and

[12:17] structured that can create negative

[12:19] incentives and again Colvin's project

[12:22] like Hamsterdam while it sees success is

[12:24] dismantled by an institution that's

[12:27] afraid of appearances but you wouldn't

[12:29] be teaching test curriculum here do

[12:31] these would be that children left behind

[12:32] so to speak

[12:34] but as it is I mean where we leave them

[12:37] all behind anyway we should someone did

[12:39] bid it season five gets a bad rap and I

[12:45] won't argue that it's the lowest quality

[12:46] season of The Wire the departure of Ed

[12:49] Burns from the writing staff weakened

[12:51] the writing team and it shows in an

[12:53] attention to detail and realism and

[12:55] storytelling that doesn't quite live up

[12:57] to the standard of past seasons that

[12:59] said season five is still a critical

[13:01] part of the narrative that the wire is

[13:03] constructing it shows why media when it

[13:06] looks at everything that the previous

[13:08] seasons examined also fails to create

[13:11] meaningful change in many ways I think

[13:14] the narrative of the newspaper in season

[13:16] five is a reflection of many of the

[13:18] struggles the wire itself faced here you

[13:21] have a TV show that is attempting to

[13:23] seriously examine real difficult themes

[13:26] and it's completely overlooked by the

[13:28] industry Awards in favor of more

[13:31] sensational content just like the

[13:34] stories that are being considered for

[13:36] awards in season five are the more

[13:39] sensational stories instead of the more

[13:41] important ones but it isn't just Awards

[13:44] before it became somewhat of a cult hit

[13:46] when the DVDs came out the wire

[13:48] struggled to keep viewership and

[13:50] repeatedly had to fight to get renewed

[13:52] McNulty's crazy scheme to invent a

[13:55] serial killer to get the attention of

[13:57] the press and by proxy readers in a way

[14:00] mirrors David Simon's frustration that

[14:02] more sensational shows got higher

[14:05] viewership while the wire went largely

[14:07] unnoticed as a serial killer but he only

[14:12] became an officer again the opening

[14:15] scene tips us off to the broader theme

[14:18] of the season deception and how it's

[14:20] used within institutions and by

[14:23] individuals to game those institutions

[14:25] being Adlai

[14:30] the story of each character and the

[14:32] stories within each season of the lier

[14:34] are important and significant but I

[14:37] think the most impressive aspect of the

[14:39] show is the way it all works together in

[14:41] concert to illustrate the city of

[14:44] Baltimore and its different institutions

[14:46] the show illustrates how incredibly

[14:49] complex the problems it talks about are

[14:51] and how difficult finding a solution for

[14:54] those problems is every season of The

[14:58] Wire helps strengthen its argument and

[15:00] adds details and context to that

[15:02] argument

[15:03] the seasons aren't just arbitrary chunks

[15:05] of the story to divide production time

[15:08] and distribution their parts in the book

[15:10] working together to do something no TV

[15:13] show had done before thank you so much

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