The Wire: The Rewatch... and all the pieces matter.

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Redundant: Sep 24, 2011; Even robots have feelings!

I'm up to episode 7 in my rewatch now I think. It's been years since I watched it so having the write-ups to read at the end of my viewing was nice. Since I'm at home ill though I've been burning through a few episodes a day so I'm having to plow on alone now which is a shame, I liked all the little things that I missed being pointed out (like the Avon/Stringer basketball stuff). I'm really looking forward to rewatching the second season because I feel like I glossed over that in my first viewing, also looking forward to the rise of Marlo with the benefit of hindsight.

All the little things in this show make me love it all the more, add in already having a feel for the characters from the very beginning and it's much easier to see how things slot into place.

# ¿ Mar 4, 2013 18:50

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# ¿ Apr 23, 2024 16:38

Redundant: Sep 24, 2011; Even robots have feelings!

I finished watching the first season for the second time last night and it's just great. I wanted to come and give a pithy summary to first the entire season, then the final episode and then just the final few scenes but they cram so much into each shot that it felt like I was doing it a disservice since one of the major points to come out of the season is "all the pieces matter". So instead I have decided to comment on my favourite part of the entire episode which is how pretty much everyone on the case regards it as their best work, but that pride is tempered by the knowledge that with just a bit more time and support they could have made a much bigger case and actually taken down a major organisation instead of just weakening it. Along with that the show does a good job showing that even if that was the case, and they did completely destroy the Barksdale organisation, nothing much would really change when looking at the big picture. New dealers would move in, a small organisation would become a big one by taking advantage of the power vacuum and it would all start ticking over again back from the beginning. I think I am enjoying my second viewing more than my first one.

# ¿ Mar 14, 2013 15:26

Redundant: Sep 24, 2011; Even robots have feelings!

Lugaloco posted:

This was my experience too. I went through seasons one to five at a fair clip and never really took time to contemplate exactly what was going on and, even though I thoroughly enjoyed it, didn't fully appreciate everything that was happening. Second time through I know who everyone is and as a result could devote more brainpower to noticing bigger themes and little subtleties. It also helped that after my first watch I read various reviews and the threads on this site which really opened my eyes to how complex this show is.

I'm a bit sad that I got ahead of the write ups in this thread because I don't want to miss some of the smaller details. I don't suppose anyone has any good resources they could link me to so I can keep on learning do they? I tried googling it but holy balls there's a lot, I tried to filter through them all to find good ones but :effort:

e: VVV This is exactly the kind of thing I was looking for, thanks.

Redundant fucked around with this message at 00:45 on Mar 15, 2013

# ¿ Mar 14, 2013 22:34

Redundant: Sep 24, 2011; Even robots have feelings!

SpookyLizard posted:

Also, do we know if D told Avon about Orlando's schemes or if Bey or any of the other guys mentioned it first?

I'm not sure if it's ever really explained but since D says that he was planning on talking to Avon about it and the others just take him at his word on that I figured it was D. I've always seen that scene as being like the McNulty and Wallace scene that was left out, it wouldn't have added anything so it was safe to cut it out and just show the consequences, if it was someone like Stinkum going behind Ds back to tell Avon about the deal it would have potentially put D in the firing line so I don't think they would have skipped it quite so readily.

Jerusalem posted:

It's really standing out to me now that I'm writing it up, but I love the use of contrasting scenes or scenes that are somewhat symbolically linked - Stringer in school followed closely by Herc and Carver sitting an exam, the party vs Daniels' quiet night at home, Avon giving orders to the troops and his disappointed conversation with Stringer and Omar being called in front of the detectives where they make clear their disappointment with him (and his utter indifference).

I'm normally really terrible at spotting this kind of stuff but watching the first episode of season 2 there is the scene with Bodie and co tearing apart a car looking for drugs that aren't there which ties in nicely with Herc and Carver tearing apart a car for money that is. The reaction of the higher ups in the chain of command is also interesting. Both are suspicious, but whereas Stringer is very hands on in ensuring nothing goes wrong (sending people to follow the car, noting the mileage etc) Daniels is more standoffish and puts the burden of sorting it all out on the officers in question. With Stringer the plan works well, Bodie is shown to be trustworthy and Stringer gets a nice boost to his reputation with someone upwardly mobile (later in the episode Bodie has complete faith that Stringer has some kind of master plan despite the fact that things are going a bit sour). Daniels however seems to alienate Carver and Herc somewhat, even though they bring back the cash that is just taken as further evidence that they did steal it in the first place which is, at least in my opinion, one of the reasons they take the cash when they're taking doors in a later episode.

# ¿ Mar 15, 2013 21:40

Redundant: Sep 24, 2011; Even robots have feelings!

All I could think of as Omar was walking towards Avon was the "you only got to gently caress up once. Be a little slow, a little late, just once. And how you ain�t never gonna be slow? Never be late? You can�t plan for no poo poo like this, man" scene, which I guess is the point. I also like that it's Wee-Bey being fast that "saves the day", it's a nice counter to that scene. Sure, you can't "plan for no poo poo like this" but by having "good" people around you they can pick up any slack that you leave.

# ¿ Mar 18, 2013 17:39

Redundant: Sep 24, 2011; Even robots have feelings!

escape artist posted:

For god's sake guys. He says "You can't even read a playbook." Not "You are illiterate." A playbook is just a bunch of sketches with X's and O's. I can't even loving read it, and I've been watching basketball for 20 years.

It's a jab at him pretending to be something he isn't. An NBA coach. That's why it comes right after "You're out here dressed like Pat Riley and it's 85 degrees." Pat Riley was a highly successful NBA coach.

I can't remember exactly, but I think right after he says "you can't even read a playbook" he says something along the lines of "be for real" and at some point Prop Joe says "look the part, be the part". It's not an illiterate thing, just Avon taking shots at Joe.

Speaking of "poo poo people said", doesn't Prop Joe say something along the lines of "he's Baltimore born and raised, he's home now" in relation to the ringer from Europe? As has been said a few times, it's a massive stretch to assume this has any bearing on the Greek and is done more to show just how seriously they take the game whilst also showing that Prop Joe has a bigger resource pool due to having a broader scope. It could just as easily be that the player still has connections in Baltimore who suggested the idea to Joe.

I know it's The Wire and "all the pieces matter" but I think in this case we're reading far too much into Prop Joe (allegedly) not being able to read a playbook and a ringer coming in from Europe.

# ¿ Mar 19, 2013 03:54

Redundant: Sep 24, 2011; Even robots have feelings!

escape artist posted:

Well, not being able to read a playbook is no big deal. I can read Shakespeare and do calculus, but I can't read a playbook, even though I love basketball. poo poo I was watching two basketball games at once when I typed that post. (one on my TV and one on the computer)

And yeah, the guy was born in Baltimore, graduated college, played overseas professionally (seriously-- if you don't know about professional basketball... this is EXTREMELY common) and was back home at that point in his life.

Yeah, I was saying that Avon was having a dig, not about reading or the play book or even the suit, he was mocking Joe for acting like something he isn't, which was a fair point. Like I said, Avon even tells Joe to "be real", I don't think there's any more to the scene than that.

# ¿ Mar 19, 2013 04:16

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# ¿ Apr 23, 2024 16:38

Redundant: Sep 24, 2011; Even robots have feelings!

escape artist posted:

Okay, for all the manly men tough guys in this thread, us hardcore gangsters like Marlo and Chris, which moments made you cry (while you were sober)?

In my first viewing I guess the moment that stands out the most for me was the Wallace shooting. I'm really looking forward to the write up of that scene.

Weirdly on my second viewing the most emotional I've gotten is Kima getting shot, mainly because of what it signifies for Bubbles. The scene of him taking the money from McNulty and telling him not to tell Kima before using it to get high just breaks my little heart.

# ¿ Mar 20, 2013 01:48

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