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So Jerus, you want to turn this into something bigger, now that it's done?
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Mar 7, 2014 20:02
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| # ? Apr 19, 2024 21:51 |
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I've watched the entire series at least a half dozen times and there's something that's never fully explained or that I never understood completely. I was re-watching season 3 ep 6 (I think) where Daniels is explaining to Pearlman the "trophy husband" situation he's in with his wife. He tells her something like "I owe it to her. I disappointed her before. And I did some bad things back in the Eastern." My question is, do they ever fully explain what Daniels actually did back in the day? Is it meant to be ambiguous? What's in the folder Burrell has on him? It always seemed implied, by Burrell's blackmailing of Daniels and Daniel's personal reprimanding of Herc and Carv for skimming money, that Daniels and his crew were stealing drug bust money or something but I don't get how that would be the thing that he'd have to make up for to his wife. Am I missing something?
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Mar 17, 2014 06:48
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They never come straight out and say it, but it is very heavily implied that Daniels (and pretty much everyone in his unit, including his Lieutenant) were skimming drug money from busts, logging in less than they actually found etc. The investigation into Daniels was able to uncover a lot of circumstantial smoke but no fire because he wasn't stupid about it, he left no paper trail on any purchases he made with his drug money etc but he had more things/lived in a nicer house etc than he should have been able to afford on what he and Marla were making. Basically he did dumb poo poo when he was younger, he got what he wanted out of it and then he cut that poo poo right out of his life and was a straight arrow from that point on, but it continued to dog him throughout the rest of his career till he reached the very top of the Department and just the smell of the scandal and the media coverage that would follow was enough to force him out even if nothing could ever be proven. If it had just been him he might have decided gently caress it and called their bluff, but he couldn't risk the damage to the careers of family and friends - Marla and Kima and Carver etc would have all had their careers stall or fail entirely even if he had weathered the storm. escape artist posted:So Jerus, you want to turn this into something bigger, now that it's done? All I wanted to do was talk about The Wire, elaborate on my own take on things and hopefully generate some discussion, so it is mission accomplished as far as I am concerned - the dope is on the drat table 
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Mar 17, 2014 07:01
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That's always been my impression as well regarding Daniels. McNulty's G-Man buddy specifically tells Jimmy that Daniels's asset investigation revealed that he had way more assets than he should have given his salary. This is really interesting because Daniels is one of the few characters in the show who have a very strong moral center even though he does make concessions to it every once in a while (he helps his guys fabricate a story to cover for the police car being burned, etc.). Knowing that he actually stole drug money back in the day makes his fierce opposition to Herc and Carver doing the same hypocritical but understandable.
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Mar 21, 2014 23:05
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I don't know if it's hypocritical so much as it is speaking from experience, and not wanting the people under him to develop the same habits he learned.
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Mar 22, 2014 01:31
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Unzip and Attack posted:Knowing that he actually stole drug money back in the day makes his fierce opposition to Herc and Carver doing the same hypocritical but understandable.
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Mar 22, 2014 22:35
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comes along bort posted:I don't know if it's hypocritical so much as it is speaking from experience, and not wanting the people under him to develop the same habits he learned. I agree with this. Daniels seems* to be a decent man, as much as you can be in this piece of television. * Prisoner brutality aside.
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Mar 23, 2014 01:15
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In the context of the show it's hard to judge Daniels for police brutality. What many would call brutality is something the show treats as a pretty every day, accepted thing within the force. You can say this is a bit too cavalier an attitude to have but in any case they only treat the Hercs (it's implied he has a record of especially bad brutality complaints) and Collichios as particularly bad. Plus, the scene where everyone beats the poo poo out of Byrd is one of the funniest in the series.
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Mar 23, 2014 23:54
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"Eat my dick, Dike oval office bitch" Bird is the best
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Mar 24, 2014 16:55
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Sneaky Fast posted:"Eat my dick, Dike oval office bitch" Bird is the best Just a lucky guess by Bird that Kima is gay, right? (But still the best part about that little takedown on Bird is seeing Lester in action on the streets. Trying to think of any other times in the series besides when he comes to Marlo's court to arrest him in person)
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Mar 24, 2014 18:31
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thathonkey posted:Just a lucky guess by Bird that Kima is gay, right? She's a female police, and as far as stereotypical perceptions of people there go, "lesbian" is number one, easy. (Followed by "oval office" and "bitch", naturally.) Anyway, the scene where Bird gets taken away, never to be seen again, is the Wire's most unambiguously happy moment and I love it
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Mar 24, 2014 19:02
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My favorite joke is early in S1, when Kima has spent the last several episodes being the only competent adult in the room, and the cops are laying into Bodie. She goes sprinting toward the scene of the brutality, and you, accustomed television drama watcher think "Aha, good cop is going to tell those no-good knuckleheads what policing is about". But nope. She is sprinting over there to put her own mark on Bodie with a nightstick.
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Mar 24, 2014 19:09
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Dark Weasel posted:She's a female police, and as far as stereotypical perceptions of people there go, "lesbian" is number one Yet, it still has to be explained to McNulty 
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Mar 24, 2014 19:45
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I need to vent a little. I just finished season 4 episode 12 "That's Got His Own". This is my first re-watch, and I haven't watched the show in over four years, so it's like I'm watching it all over again for the first time. What a heavy loving episode. I think I just sat there mad at my television for the last half hour. Sherrod dies from ingesting the cyanide Bubbles intended to use on the rear end in a top hat thief. Namond realizes he isn't cut out for the streets, and ends up pretty much disowned by his mother and his best friend, with nowhere to go. And Randy... gently caress. "You're going to help me, huh?" "You got my back?" "You're gonna look after me?" This episode hits all of the nerves.
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Mar 25, 2014 07:02
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A good rule of thumb with The Wire is that if you see any episode was written by George Pelecanos you surrender all hope for the next sixty minutes.
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Mar 25, 2014 07:16
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According to Wikipedia, he did the penultimate episodes for each season, along with S2E8 and S3E4. So yes, it is fair to say that his episodes are among (if not) the bleakest in the entire show.
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Mar 25, 2014 07:43
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thathonkey posted:Yet, it still has to be explained to McNulty They were clearly approaching it from different angles. For both of them it's not so bad if they guess wrong. In McNulty's case he wants to get laid. If he doesn't ask there's a zero percent chance he gets laid. If she is a lesbian then the downside is that he maybe looks a little foolish at the end of the day for most people it's still an ego boost if someone is interested in you. Even if you are not interested yourself. Bird wants to get under Kima's skin. He's expecting a beating. Even if she's not a lesbian she probably won't be happy that he's using that word to describe her.
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Mar 25, 2014 08:08
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grading essays nude posted:In the context of the show it's hard to judge Daniels for police brutality. What many would call brutality is something the show treats as a pretty every day, accepted thing within the force. You can say this is a bit too cavalier an attitude to have but in any case they only treat the Hercs (it's implied he has a record of especially bad brutality complaints) and Collichios as particularly bad. There's also the scene where Prez, Herc and Carver get drunk and blind a little kid for no reason other than because they could and Daniels covers for them.
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Mar 25, 2014 11:12
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Skeesix posted:They were clearly approaching it from different angles. For both of them it's not so bad if they guess wrong. Speaking of McNulty getting laid: http://www.foxnews.com/us/2014/03/21/hawaii-law-allows-undercover-police-officers-to-have-sex-with-prostitutes/
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Mar 25, 2014 15:48
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AStrangeDuelist posted:There's also the scene where Prez, Herc and Carver get drunk and blind a little kid for no reason other than because they could and Daniels covers for them. Again pretty clearly established as SOP in the department. In the meeting with Burrell after, Daniels says as much - Burrell knows full well that Daniels knew nothing about the "field interviews" but he "has to" cover for his guys. Morally questionable, yes, but no indication is given that any commander would have done otherwise. Also keep in mind, half the reason he had to take the heat there is because Prez was involved.
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Mar 25, 2014 19:02
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Sam. posted:Speaking of McNulty getting laid: Spot on 
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Mar 26, 2014 07:07
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The Chicago PD is essentially the Baltimore PD from the Wire now. Reclassifying crimes, even murders to try and juke the stats. http://www.chicagomag.com/Chicago-Magazine/May-2014/Chicago-crime-rates/
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Apr 8, 2014 19:17
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Meltathon posted:The Chicago PD is essentially the Baltimore PD from the Wire now. Reclassifying crimes, even murders to try and juke the stats. Well so is the real Baltimore PD. I posted about it a while back but at my job I came across a detective who reported someone for juking stats and he's been investigated by Internal Affairs and fighting to save his career for quite a while now. The stat-games in The Wire seem to be very realistic.
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Apr 8, 2014 20:17
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Basebf555 posted:Well so is the real Baltimore PD. I posted about it a while back but at my job I came across a detective who reported someone for juking stats and he's been investigated by Internal Affairs and fighting to save his career for quite a while now. The stat-games in The Wire seem to be very realistic. not only American PDs either. The Met in London have been saying "well this crime could be this, but we'll classify it as this so we'll look better" for years
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Apr 10, 2014 08:03
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e: nevermind
cheese and crackers fucked around with this message at 08:34 on Apr 10, 2014 |
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Apr 10, 2014 08:22
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Finished my second rewatch today and I only now realized that there's only one instance where a cop on the show fires their weapon, and that's Prez who accidentally shoots at a wall offscreen.  It only dawned on me around S5 so maybe I missed it but I can't think of any other time a cop shot their gun.
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Jun 20, 2014 15:41
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Stare-Out posted:Finished my second rewatch today and I only now realized that there's only one instance where a cop on the show fires their weapon, and that's Prez who accidentally shoots at a wall offscreen. Theres also the scene where Prez kills another cop.
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Jun 20, 2014 15:47
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James Totes posted:Theres also the scene where Prez kills another cop.
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Jun 20, 2014 16:36
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Also technically Prez "uses" his gun to clock that kid in the eye outside the towers in S1. I always hated Prez. gently caress his redemption arc or whatever you call his role in s4.
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Jun 20, 2014 16:50
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I never minded the character (like Carver, he came a long way since the first few episodes), but the plot turn to make him a teacher left a bad taste in my mouth. It was one of those points that started giving the show the "Dickensian aspect" that critics began to identify in late season three (and throughout all of season four) and which Simon meta-grumped on in season five.
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Jun 20, 2014 19:21
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thathonkey posted:Also technically Prez "uses" his gun to clock that kid in the eye outside the towers in S1.
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Jun 22, 2014 21:35
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3Romeo posted:I never minded the character (like Carver, he came a long way since the first few episodes), but the plot turn to make him a teacher left a bad taste in my mouth. It was one of those points that started giving the show the "Dickensian aspect" that critics began to identify in late season three (and throughout all of season four) and which Simon meta-grumped on in season five. To be fair, it's based on the life of co-creator Ed Burns, who became a teacher after retiring from the police. As an aside, this guy is a Vietnam vet and has a successful 20 year career on the police force in Baltimore, and he said that teaching in the school system was as stressful as being in Vietnam.
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Jun 22, 2014 22:37
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Jerusalem posted:To be fair, it's based on the life of co-creator Ed Burns, who became a teacher after retiring from the police. I'll add to your point and say that Burns' experience (and using Prez as the link between the cops and the schools) lead to one of the most powerful seasons of any show ever televised, so it isn't exactly a bad thing. But the character transition might've been smoother if, for example, Prez just got fed up with the department politics and decided to quit. The accidental shooting just came off as particularly forced in a season that was already giving up a fair amount of realism to make either a social point (eg Hamsterdam) or for pure entertainment value (eg the Muzone/Omar teamup). But this is me picking nits on a unicorn. There's a lot I love about season three, and it's always the most fun on a rewatch.
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Jun 23, 2014 00:33
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I'm just starting season two on my first watch through of this, and I just must post about how much I giggled in episode 1 when Bodie learns about how radio signals work and turns the dial to what is clearly a Garrison Keillor monologue. Then he stares kind of half into the distance with a very studious look on his face, contemplating the cosmic meaning of this rambling treatise about gardening in Lake Wobegon 
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Jun 28, 2014 00:20
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Finally got into this show after picking it up again about halfway through season 2. Season 1 was really boring and Season 2 wasn't much better with the Union stuff (up until the end) but Season 3 really picked up and I got pretty invested in the street characters.
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Jun 28, 2014 06:24
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The first time I watched the Wire I hated season 2 so much. I was so invested in the Barksdale organization that I almost didn't want to like all the new characters. After many rewatches of the entire series it's grown on me so much that I think season 2 is actually the strongest one. I love the Sobotkas and the Greeks and dock workers and SWEET BEATRICE RUSSELL so much! The scene after Ziggy kills Glekas and goes back to his car while the police show up always makes me get hot in the face. It's just so intense. Also, when Nick and Ziggy's ex-girlfriend reminisce about Ziggy in the park while getting drunk makes my heart sink so deep in my stomach. "College kids ain't poo poo!"
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Jun 29, 2014 04:33
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So tempted to start it again. It's been over a year.
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Jun 29, 2014 07:50
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frenton posted:The first time I watched the Wire I hated season 2 so much. I was so invested in the Barksdale organization that I almost didn't want to like all the new characters. After many rewatches of the entire series it's grown on me so much that I think season 2 is actually the strongest one. I love the Sobotkas and the Greeks and dock workers and SWEET BEATRICE RUSSELL so much! I'm in the same boat, and I wonder if it has to do with familiarity. I guess it's possible to love season 2 immediately on first viewing but it seems pretty rare. I know I haven't seen much (any?) other TV about blue collar union workers, and beyond the superficial level I didn't really get how it fit in with the show until the second go round. This thread helped a lot too, explaining how it's just another side of the same coin. If, I dunno, I knew more about my grandpa as a steel guy then maybe it would've made sense right away. Whereas I've been to middle school so failing schools makes a bit more sense to me, and I've seen cop shows and drug shows on tv so my total inexperience there at least has a bit of a fallback. Season 2 sneaks up on you.
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Jun 29, 2014 08:32
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I certainly went into Season 2 expecting it to be not as good because the focus was moving away from the Barksdales and the inner city, but it didn't take long at all for me to absolutely love it. It probably helps that I was able to watch it all at once and not have to sit there and wait a week between episodes, it wasn't even a week until I was into season 3 and back to the Barksdale Organization being center stage again.
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Jun 29, 2014 08:39
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Season 2 is secretly the best season. But yeah, it definitely needs a re-watch before you can truly appreciate it.
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Jun 29, 2014 09:30
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