Super Frat

All five seasons of “The Wire” are back on HBO as part of the On Demand service.  If you haven’t seen them, you should.

The Wire is about the police of Baltimore, but also the city itself.  This decaying, urban landscape is the home of drug dealers and a department of cops so caught up in bureaucracy so thick that the good cops get punished and the bad ones just keep getting promotions.  As we’ve all experienced, politics is a part of the workplace, but never more so in a police department where one minute you’re hunting bad guys and the next minute you need to cover for the mayor.

The central character is McNulty, a detective that’s too smart and cares too much for his own good.  McNulty’s character arc as his own worst enemy is both fascinating and tough to watch.  I remember that when The Wire first aired, a lot of fans complained about Season 5 and its ending.  I am not among them.  Sure, in some ways it pulls too many elements together to wrap it, but I found it to be fairly satisfying.

One of the great things about The Wire is how characters come into the show, leave and then return.  It feels very organic, as opposed to most television shows where you know certain characters are never going to leave or get hurt because they are too important to the central cast.

If you’re looking for a great series to watch, this is it.  There’s a reason it was talked about and the great cast members went on to star in shows like The Walking Dead and A Game of Thrones.  No thread is left unraveled at the end and some great concepts are thrown in the mix on top of just a generally great cop show.

I give the Wire 10 out of 10 keggers.  Do not miss this.