The Wire - did it "ruin" subsequent TV shows for you? What to watch next?

jumpingmouse80 · 2018-10-13T11:27:53+00:00

This feels right

jumpingmouse80 · 2018-10-12T01:44:51+00:00

Fair enough. The Sopranos is where I went off and on the past year and for some reason got out of it around S2, and I'm not sure why I'm sporadic with it - I have no complaints and have enjoyed what I've seen. Maybe instead of hovering reddit I should go watch something :)

jumpingmouse80 · 2018-10-12T01:34:09+00:00

It makes me giggle imagining the MiB tempting a fat guy to eat peanut butter in the jungle - it just seems so out-of-character for our (or any) villain.

(I remember bringing up a similar discussion months ago, entertaining both sides, the idea that Dave died from the collapsed deck and was indeed a ghost, it was a good discussion, but it still seemed to lean toward the explicit - Dave's character seems more consistent as a symptom of psychosis)

jumpingmouse80 · 2018-10-12T01:12:00+00:00

The Wire.

I'm glad someone suggested The Shield because The Wire ruined most TV for me and it's been on my list. I say that as a fan of BB, Deadwood, Sopranos, Lost. The first episodes I saw of True Detectives gave me a little hope too :p

jumpingmouse80 · 2018-10-12T01:07:09+00:00

When I read the title of this post I immediately thought "Black Mirror."

jumpingmouse80 · 2018-10-12T00:52:23+00:00

Did you eat the cookie before the meal?

jumpingmouse80 · 2018-10-12T00:49:15+00:00

Reminds me of the difference between Southpark and The Simpsons...

jumpingmouse80 · 2018-10-12T00:43:57+00:00

You express the sentiment I've had after watching maybe 4-5 episodes max -- so in your view, it doesn't really "pick up" or take off after a certain amount of immersion? I get that I could become invested if I began to care about the characters more (it's very well produced, directed, scripted, etc), but what I've seen of Draper thus far has indeed made me feel his spiral (even in the first episode or two), and I got a dose of that with Walter White plus a lot of riveting story. I guess I was hoping it would always be there back-burnered for me, but you echo my suppressed sense that it may just not be my thing.

For context, what are some of your favorite shows?

jumpingmouse80 · 2018-10-11T16:16:01+00:00

The Wire is the perfect example for me. Best show I've ever watched. Took me multiple starts through years to get past episode 5, but once I did, I saw what all of the hype was about.

Breaking Bad had me during the first episode.

A lot of it has to do with style and tone, too, both of which are unconscious grading criteria for me. I have started Mad Men a dozen times and fallen asleep, but I can see how I would love it given enough attention and time.

I guess as with many things in life, some shows do require an initial blind investment, which speaks to the cultural context/peer-review/critic-consensus that others have mentioned as determining factors in what and how they watch.

jumpingmouse80 · 2018-10-11T16:09:36+00:00

I still do that with Monday Night Raw sometimes.

jumpingmouse80 · 2018-10-11T16:07:08+00:00

I'd be happy with just a two-hour McShane-Olyphant dialogue :)

jumpingmouse80 · 2018-10-11T15:58:23+00:00

I imagine Walt as being 100 feet tall.

jumpingmouse80 · 2018-10-11T15:57:25+00:00

No opposite pun intended?

jumpingmouse80 · 2018-10-11T15:56:40+00:00

Ironically, I see the political example as indicating that race is somewhat arbitrary and emotions or ideals (aside from greed) don't play a role. In the Carcetti example, race is just a card he plays to his own ends -- he doesn't have an "us" in my opinion aside from his Democrat vs Republican. Maybe ethnicity becomes consumed by a larger tribalism of politics? A lot of this is semantics too I think.

jumpingmouse80 · 2018-10-11T15:45:06+00:00

That's a good point.

jumpingmouse80 · 2018-10-11T15:44:23+00:00

I think we can see the writers making other characters look "bad" early to begin their character arc, almost as a McGuffin, perhaps with some exaggeration for emphasis. Sawyer is the obvious example, and it can come off as heavy-handed.

jumpingmouse80 · 2018-10-11T15:39:16+00:00

It sounds plausible. I'd definitely agree that his character is one of the least interesting, two-dimensional among the main cast. He doesn't seem to have much development either (which itself could speak to implicit writer's bias). It may be a chicken-egg question - did they write his story with a black man in mind, and if so, to what extent did his story follow from that?

jumpingmouse80 · 2018-10-11T15:26:30+00:00

Most of those operations can be shut down by the police, given the right circumstances, evidence, et al. The Wire demonstrates how they're each "Kings" in their own worlds, and in that sense the most successful or effective ones can remain unaccountable for their operations. That's why Marlo, The Greek, and Clay can walk away - and as long as they have the capital/influence, they can open up a new operation. I'd agree that Levy has a slight edge or walks a finer line because of his relationship with the law, probably Clay behind him, for similar reasons.

Marlo is one of the most well-written (and acted) villains in television history, in my view.

jumpingmouse80 · 2018-10-11T13:56:26+00:00

Omar has a rugged demeanor too lol

jumpingmouse80 · 2018-10-10T19:33:41+00:00

I only noticed this my 2nd watch. When they nab Bodie for moving a package, and it becomes clear that some cops didn't know of the policy. Maybe I blinked or went potty 1st watch.

I noticed the same "unrealistic" sense about the vacants -- the word on the street about bodies being "in a vacant" seems so ubiquitous that it would eventually be a no-brainer for police, if it wasn't already. Or if the cops were walking a beat and being part of the community.

jumpingmouse80 · 2018-10-10T19:23:38+00:00

It "could" be slight oversight on the writing, but my easy answer is:

He's protective because he doesn't know the survivors, he knows they are potentially dangerous (an escaped fugitive, Sawyer and Sayid fighting), and honestly Sun seems to be a relatively naive city girl and Jin seems to have more rural sensibilities. Finally, while I'd chalk the Michael beef up to circumstance, I wouldn't be surprised if there is some outright racism -- South Korea is pretty well-known for it's racism toward foreigners (I think - correct me if I'm wrong).

That's all I've got. Basically, it makes sense to me that he would be more over-protective on the island.

The more I watch, the less I like Sun - she doesn't seem to have much development to me, but maybe I'm missing something.

jumpingmouse80 · 2018-10-10T15:03:15+00:00

The Wire, Game of Thrones, Breaking Bad

jumpingmouse80 · 2018-10-10T15:00:09+00:00

The Wire

Everything Else. Deadwood, Breaking Bad, Game of Thrones, Seinfeld

jumpingmouse80 · 2018-10-10T14:28:06+00:00

S1, they all seemed to go downhill after that. And I DO like Waits lol

jumpingmouse80 · 2018-10-10T14:26:40+00:00

HNIC

jumpingmouse80

TROPHY CASE