Re: The Wire.......any good?

41
Full respect for everyone but for me there is no tv series that can be compared to the Sopranos. They are untouchable on the first place in each segment. I don't intend to offend anyone,but all the other series are child's play compared to the Sopranos. Before "The Sopranos" I regularly watched all kinds of TV programs. After "Made in America",I only watch sports and I believe that "Don't Stop Believing" is not without reason the last thing we heard that night.

Re: The Wire.......any good?

42
I recently watched The Wire start to finish over a short period of time. Glad I searched out this thread and found the comments of so many prominent, thoughtful Chase Loungers. Greatly enjoyed their reactions to The Wire and comments on comparisons of the 2 shows.
I found The Wire compelling and captivating; I could not (and fortunately did not have to) wait long before advancing to the next episode, can't imagine having had to wait months, a year or more between seasons. Love it; a definite rewatch, upon which I expect my appreciation may grow as it similarly did with The Sopranos.

Others above have hit on what I'd consider the three main differences - the intense focus on an individual person, and the brilliant blendings of humor and surrealism.
To me, The Sopranos remains the favorite, my preference, what I'd choose to argue if necessary as the "best". But The Wire should (also) not be missed.
I haven't seen all of the contemporary series which are often claimed to be contenders to the Throne, yet of what I have seen The Wire, Boardwalk Empire and Mad Men are all must-sees for various appreciations. Who wants to watch only one show/one style? Did Chase really leave some unable to love anew (tho not instead of)?
(Did you ever revisit it, Fly?)

Re: The Wire.......any good?

44
Billyv wrote: (Did you ever revisit it, Fly?)
No I didn't, Billyv, not because I didn't think it was worth watching. Too many people whose sensibilities are akin to my own have sung the praises of the Wire, and the episodes I did watch were good enough that I know I would have loved the whole series. It's just that life stuff intervenes, and the limitations of time and energy force one to make priorities.

I'm at the point now where I can't imagine watching any TV series, no matter how good it is. Heck I never even watch Sopranos DVDs anymore since about 2009. I can't remember the last time I went to the theater, and I almost never watch movies on TV at home, either. In fact, my whole TV should be taken out of my home, LOL, except that I do watch a little basketball casually (and some NFL with my aunt). But all my energies for the past 5 and a half years have been intensely focused on psycho-spiritual growth (and the artistic expression that came from it -- poetry, poetic prose, and a film, which I'm writing the screenplay for now). My multitasking abilities are virtually non existent, so I'm afraid I'll never see The Wire or some of the other touted shows that followed in the wake of you-know-what.:icon_cool:
Tony, his spirits crushed after b-lining to the fridge first thing in the morning: "Who ate the last piece of cake?"

Re: The Wire.......any good?

46
I prefer Sopranos by a tiny margin, but you could argue that The Wire is both better-structured and more consistent in quality (only the disappointing fifth season brings it down). This is because The Wire really was planned out in a painstaking way, way in advance, in a manner Sopranos just was not. And as much as I adore the Sopranos, you can tell at times that they don't quite know where they're going, and seasons like 5 or 6A (as great as they are) do have a slight wheel-spinning feel to them at times. Not so with The Wire. However, The Sopranos just has such a variety of "stuff." Its tone is much more varied, there are more episodes and there is the "mini-movie" format, and it all lends to a show much more easily rewatchable (in the sense of throwing on a random episode) than Wire. Because with Wire you really have to either start at the beginning or at the beginning of a certain season; it's just not satisfying to come in in the middle, no matter how well you know the show.

Ultimately Sopranos' ambiguous, lifelike, mysterious and surreal/filmic style and emphasis on character wins out over The Wire's adherence to plot, but still, Season 4 and maybe 2 of The Wire are at least as amazing as any season of the Sopranos. And as relatively disappointing as S5 of Wire is, I'd still probably take it over the overpraised S1 of The Sopranos anyday.

I think zwingli hit most of the points on the head in his analysis a page or two back.

Return to “Television”