The Wire - does it ever get going?
Discussion
muffinmenace said:
I am so envious of people who have never seen The Wire.
It's an odd sort of feeling, isn't it?To the OP, nothing in the series is filler in the conventional sense. All of the slow panning shots do actually serve to tell a bit of the story, rather than just being there to make it easier for the network to wedge the adverts in.
The genius of The Wire is that there isn't anything extraneous to the plot
apart from Rawls in the gay bar...
so you have to pay attention all the time.
"...and all the pieces matter".
This thread has come at the perfect time for me, over the past few weeks I have watched seasons 1-5 start to finish. And I.......loved it. Brilliantly shot with great depth of each character. From some of them on a nasty downward spiral Bubbs/McNulty to great power struggles Avon/Marlow/Carcetti.
But my fave character...The Bunk!
If his Cuban cigar came out, you know your in trouble!!
But my fave character...The Bunk!
If his Cuban cigar came out, you know your in trouble!!
Edited by attym3 on Wednesday 28th September 06:23
muffinmenace said:
I am so envious of people who have never seen The Wire.
The Shield, The West Wing, The Sopranos all come close, but no cigar.
I am watching it for the first time, every Wednesday on FX. Just finished series two. I love it. Props, Omar, McNulty, Bunk, Colonel Rawls. I even started to like that bloody minded stevedore polack in the last moment.The Shield, The West Wing, The Sopranos all come close, but no cigar.
The second series has just finished, now it'll be episode 1 series 3 on this Wednesday
It has zoomed up to one of my favourite series along with Sopranos, BSG, Damages and Game of Thrones.
youngsyr said:
Understanding what they're saying isn't a problem, it's just that it takes so long for anything to happen. Like I said, I'm 5 hours in and all that's happened is getting to know the characters and pretty minor office/department politics.
I think people must be looking back on the whole show with rose tinted glasses and haven't watched the early episodes recently, as if this had started on tv last month at S1 E1, there's no way I would have bothered to tune in past episode 3, let alone push on through to the next season and I'm a big fan of US shows.
As for the typewriters, I worked as an auditor 9 years ago and so got to see a wide variety of offices, including some that were pretty down market and dated; not once did I see a type writer!
So not quite the pace of The Shield...I think people must be looking back on the whole show with rose tinted glasses and haven't watched the early episodes recently, as if this had started on tv last month at S1 E1, there's no way I would have bothered to tune in past episode 3, let alone push on through to the next season and I'm a big fan of US shows.
As for the typewriters, I worked as an auditor 9 years ago and so got to see a wide variety of offices, including some that were pretty down market and dated; not once did I see a type writer!
davepoth said:
To the OP, nothing in the series is filler in the conventional sense. All of the slow panning shots do actually serve to tell a bit of the story, rather than just being there to make it easier for the network to wedge the adverts in.
I've been wondering in the back of my mind why the episodes are an hour long when all other US shows are c.50 minutes, is it because when it originally aired they cut out 10 minutes per show for adverts?This would make sense to me, there are easily 10 minutes in most episodes that could be cut out with damaging the story line (as far as I can tell with the story to date).
Watched episode 6 last night: 6 hours in and still no real progress in the overall plot, although we got to know a lot of the "minor" characters a bit better.
I don't disagree that the acting is superb, or that it smacks of realism, but good acting and realism is rarely enough to make me sit through 6 hours of tv when viewing time is limited.
I have to laugh at some of the "not appreciating grown-up" drama comments and insinuations though - I've studied foreign language films and novels at degree level, so am more than capable of understanding the qualities of a series. There's a difference between being aware of those qualities and being entertained by them though.
Agree with all the replies on here..you have to stick with it
anyone that has, tends to say its one of the best TV they have ever seen (and likely to see!)
It's more like a book (game of thrones..) rather than film or something like the Shield.
-I really enjoyed the Shield, which is fast paced. but does not compare to the wire
...I'm also jealous of people who have not yet watched the sopranos (currently watching for the second time)
Can;t wait for Boardwalk Empire 2 (which is also slow) and Game of Thrones to return (may have to add OZ to my xmas list!)
anyone that has, tends to say its one of the best TV they have ever seen (and likely to see!)
It's more like a book (game of thrones..) rather than film or something like the Shield.
-I really enjoyed the Shield, which is fast paced. but does not compare to the wire
...I'm also jealous of people who have not yet watched the sopranos (currently watching for the second time)
Can;t wait for Boardwalk Empire 2 (which is also slow) and Game of Thrones to return (may have to add OZ to my xmas list!)
Right, before I or someone else throws their toys out of the pram and has a pop at you for not liking it, I will urge you again to relax and give it time, watching one hour at a time and then going doing something else is the rookie mistake when watching Boxsets. Find a day when you have 3-4 hours spare, get some junk food organised, kick the missus out, close curtains and settle down on the couch for a long viewing session, you will find yourself getting ever more immersed, it just takes time.
I was not that keen on the Shield to start with I stuck it out and come the end, like other great boxsets I was watching 5 or 6 episodes on the trot.
P.s. since you have been so critical so far you have to watch it to the end, just so we can all say we told you so
I was not that keen on the Shield to start with I stuck it out and come the end, like other great boxsets I was watching 5 or 6 episodes on the trot.
P.s. since you have been so critical so far you have to watch it to the end, just so we can all say we told you so
youngsyr said:
I've been wondering in the back of my mind why the episodes are an hour long when all other US shows are c.50 minutes, is it because when it originally aired they cut out 10 minutes per show for adverts?
Nothing to do with that. The Wire is an HBO production and HBO being a premium pay channel (think Sky Movies) does not have adverts during their programs.You will find that other "1 hour" shows filmed for regular network broadcast in the US (CSI, The Shield etc) are closer to 40 minutes to allow for adverts.
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