Wired

"Driving 'round the city rings
Staring at the shape of things
I talk in pictures not in words
Overloaded with everything we said
be careful where you tread
Watch the wire"
- Peter Gabriel, "... And Through The Wire", Peter Gabriel 3

Vicki and I have now watched the first seven episodes of The Wire Season One, which was lent to us on DVD by buddy Tim. I suspect he's waiting with bated breath to hear how we're liking it, so I might as well give some early thoughts. After all, he was nice enough to do us the kindness of the DVD loaner.

It's definitely an interesting program. I think the more you like procedurals, the more you'll enjoy it. In other words, if seeing every little detail that goes into something like the drug operation investigation shown in The Wire is your idea of a great time, you'll be all over this. And I suppose Vicki and I do have some love for that genre, as we've been faithfully watching Law and Order (the original series) since Tammy first got us into it more than a decade ago, as well as CSI. Anyone who has no patience for that sort of thing, though, is probably going to be asking, "Why the Hell isn't more happening?" by about the second or third hour!

And by the way, that preceding exclamation would be several shades milder than just about anything said on The Wire! It regularly turns the air blue with the amount of profanity that's employed by every single character on the show, to the point where it really starts to seem ridiculous at times. The scene in which two of the central characters re-examine a murder scene from six months earlier, and realize that it was completely mishandled by the incompetent boob who initially wrote it up, is completely dialogue-free, if you don't count the word "fuck" and all its many variations. I'm sure the writer(s) thought this was very clever, but all I could think about as we watched it was that it seemed really stupid that the two detectives were using profanity at a time when a brand new avenue was opening up in something that had previously looked like a dead-end. It played very 'written' and completely took me out of the scene. And that tends to happen a lot on this show, as the most incidental character shows up briefly, shows off his - or her! - ability to swear creatively, and then exits again. It's probably the worst aspect of the series for me... not because I mind profanity, but because it's so clearly over-the-top. If that's faithful to the way Baltimore cops actually talk - and I have no reason to doubt it - do I really care? The fact that no one I know uses even 1/10th that many "fucks" in conversation, and that anyone using the kind of descriptive insults that lace every episode - most especially by the cops! - would be sued for workplace harassment in a heartbeat, makes it all seem very unreal.

On the other hand, the character development on the show is great, as each person - so far - has turned out to be more than he or she initially seemed to be. That's one of my favourite aspects of Lost, and I really like it here, too. Returning to the comparison of The Wire to Law and Order, one of the biggest differences is in this area, since L&O almost always concerns itself with the crime and the criminals, with little or no attention paid to the regulars. While there are certainly no shortage of unlikable characters in The Wire, at least they're all fleshed out well instead of being simple cardboard cutouts of "the drug dealer", "the drunk cop", "the redneck" and so on. I think without this going for it, we'd both probably have given up on the show by now.

Overall, and with 2/3 of the season still unwatched, I'd say we're liking it quite a bit. Tim likes to call it "the best show on TV" and I'm sure it is.. for him. It must have just the right ingredients for what he's looking for in a great show, whereas I think Vicki and I would, at most, call it a "very good show." Nothing I've seen so far makes me think it'll knock Lost off the top of my list, or even compete with Heroes, 30 Rock or Babylon 5 (from days gone by). But I can definitely see it maybe making it onto my Top 20 list, if it keeps going strong.