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SlimWhiskey
Jun 1, 2010
Rewatched the first episode the other day, and something occurred to me. How exactly does McNulty know about Avon? I've seen the episode three times, but it never seems explained. When questioned about it, McNulty just says "Everyone knows." But he seems to be the only guy in the whole BPD who has even heard the name.

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SlimWhiskey
Jun 1, 2010
Just noticed that Rawls wears a wedding ring, at least in the first season. And he mentions having a kid. Huh. I really wish we learned more about his sexuality.

SlimWhiskey fucked around with this message at 21:38 on Jan 25, 2013

SlimWhiskey
Jun 1, 2010

Randomly Specific posted:

I'm the one who gets on Frank for basically walking on the can of dead women. Yeah, he angsted about it for a bit, but ultimately he puts his conscience away and crawls back in with the Greek.

However, what is noble in Frank's struggle is that he's one of the few in the game who isn't out for his own interests. The money isn't flowing back into his pocket, he's not living like a king. He's banking it and using it for the union and to advance their interests. When he bucks tradition to run for his office again, it's believable that he's doing it not for his own interests, but for the union.

Basically Frank is the anti-Carcetti of the series, but even so he still comes out dirty because he's playing the game.

That's probably why season 2 is my favorite. Another big difference between that season and the others is the end result of the investigation. Normally, the investigations are good. They might be half measures, they might not really change anything. But in season 2 the only outcome of their investigation was the destruction of the union. Some mid level people got caught, but the drug and sex trade wasn't even touched. And the docks got closed and all of those people lost their jobs. In the end it wasn't even about the prostitutes. It was just another way for the system to gently caress over the unions.

SlimWhiskey
Jun 1, 2010
I've got a question about Season 3. In order to sell the wiretapped burners to Bernard, Lester pretends to be a conman. In order to prove it, he has Bernard dial a number and Lester memorizes it while pretending to talk on a phone. Exactly what sort of con is that? Ican't figure out how you could make money just from knowing the number someone dialed.

SlimWhiskey
Jun 1, 2010

escape artist posted:

Lester is so smooth in that scene.
Bernard: "We can do business."
Lester: *lights pipe and walks away* "Mmhmmm"

Downtown Lester Smooth. Its the tweedy impertinence.

SlimWhiskey
Jun 1, 2010

Randomly Specific posted:

This puts me in the mind of a sitcom. Stringer, Avon, and Weebay, the core of a newbie drug gang. Weebay kills people so often that they're constantly losing track. Three seasons in, Avon's brain-dead nephew is introduced as a cast regular who always manages to klutz up their brilliant schemes.

I want a spin-off where it is retconned that Omar survived his shooting, and him and McNulty become private detectives!

SlimWhiskey
Jun 1, 2010
Almost done with my season 4 rewatch. It really struck me this time just how much Herc fucks everything up. He was never good for anything besides busting heads on the corner. And now that he has a little rank he just ruins everything he touches.

SlimWhiskey
Jun 1, 2010
If only Roman had been there with Stringer and Avon. You guys are like brothers. :(

SlimWhiskey
Jun 1, 2010
One of my favorite things about season 4 is how poorly Royce handles his campaign. Carcetti is hungry and fierce, and even if he's speaking to a room full of bored old people he's still out in the streets. Even after the debate lights a fire under his rear end, Royce just shaves his beard and yells at his inner circle. If it wasn't for race this wouldn't even be a competition, Royce has no game compared to Carcetti. I think I really enjoy it because it highlights the complacency of characters who assume that they are on top (Such as Royce and Stringer). Its not a theme that the show really digs into, but we see several times that there's always a bigger fish than you.

edit; After I wrote that I suddenly remembered Omar's wolf speech. No point in playing with puppies.

SlimWhiskey fucked around with this message at 13:38 on Aug 18, 2013

SlimWhiskey
Jun 1, 2010
McNulty and Lester's quest for "quality police work" first inspired a lot of sympathy for me. But really, by the end the show seems almost critical of it. We get hooked in season one when they use "The Wire" to take down a big time drug kingpin. But the show makes it pretty clear that it didn't matter. It doesn't stop violence, it doesn't halt the flow of drugs into Baltimore. Hell, in season five McNulty practically sells his soul to take down Marlo, but ultimately it was Bunk who solved the murders. And he did it by just checking things out, running some stuff down. McNulty's loving quest actually prevents Bunk from getting work done, since he's tied up the whole department.
With the excitement of building a good case, I guess nobody noticed that they can arrest the highest level possible, it still doesn't matter. It doesn't get boys of corners, it doesn't clean up junkies, it doesn't stop murders. Hell, even if they arrested the Greeks, there would still be drugs in Baltimore every drat day. The game keeps going. Only a few people get out of the game, and only by extraordinary effort on the part of well meaning individuals. The police, be they chasing stats or building good cases, aren't actually fixing the problem.
Makes for a pretty good argument for making drugs legal. You can't arrest your way to a drug free world. If people are going to be helped, it will have to happen person to person. Any systemic approach just continues the problem.

SlimWhiskey
Jun 1, 2010

Kaiser Soze posted:

Sorry if this was talked about because I'm only up to page 50 in the thread (please link me if it was discussed), but every time I re-watch I can't help but think "what's up with the cats?"
Random cats darting across streets, usually in silhouette. I know there are a bunch of strays in Baltimore and it could be an ambience thing, but just wondering if there is another meaning considering how often they pop up and run across the scene. Especially considering how seldom we see other stray animals like dogs or rats, other than the rat Butchie's terrier took down/the dogs under the bridge with the homeless. The only time a cat gets any focus is when the kids and Kenard are pouring lighter fluid on one. Curious if there was any point to the inclusion of all those background cats.

One of the qualities of living in run down areas is the huge number of strays. Perhaps I'm stretching, but the idea of a living thing being born into the world, unwanted, then abandoned, forced to fend for it self, and ultimately treated with nothing but cruelty is pretty familiar in this show.

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SlimWhiskey
Jun 1, 2010

Jerusalem posted:

I don't think so, though not because I don't think Levy is slimy enough to pull something like that. Levy's pleasure comes from that same thing that's just been the subject of discussion here - things tend to repeat themselves, people make the same mistakes, there is a clear pattern if you're able to step back enough to see it etc. He already knows the police are aware of Marlo and have been investigating him in the past, and now Marlo has a cellphone, so therefore it's only a matter of time because he gets busted and Levy makes a shitload of money at trial. He isn't (in my opinion) giving Herc a wink and a nod to grab the number, just sharing his pleasure with an associate about the eventual money-pile coming his (and thus indirectly, Herc's) way.


yeah, that's part of what makes Levy different from the people he represents. Gangsters live in the now, there is no tomorrow. Really, whether or not Herc leaks the number to the cops is a matter of indifference to Levy. It goes today, a month, a year from now? Doesn't matter. He makes a stack of money off of it, and the next day there is some other person looking to wear the crown. Its not even a matter of "Do I make more money selling him out or stringing him along?" because it doesn't matter. Levy is set up in such a way that he wins no matter what. He's just like the Greeks. Other people are either making concessions and trying to get by, or not dealing and getting crushed. But a lucky few get to have their cake and eat it too. Levy doesn't give a drat if the number ever gets leaked. If it doesn't, he makes his pay on the day to day charges. If it does, he makes a bundle on that case and then moves on to the next gang boss. Those people are nothing but pawns.

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