whats the craic with this series?

johnnyboy4711

watched a couple of episodes of series one and was told by all insudry that it was Gods gift to television.
I was eternally waiting for something to happen(watched 3-4 episodes).
Better out there!
Or am I impatient?

tvnutz

Yes you are impatient. It is the best written tv show ever made. However it is written like a novel,12 or 13 eps a season,each episode like a chapter in a novel. In many novels not much happens after 3 or 4 chapters,it is built up over time.

The Wire is not like any run of the mill tv show like CSI where every person is beautiful,where it is largely unrealistic storywise and how the characters act and unlike CSI etc the Wire does not have a storyline that is wrapped up after 45mins in a nice little bow. An episode of the Wire can just end without tying up anything from that episode. The storyline plays out over the entire season.

Dubhthamlacht

The stories in the wire are deep, intertwined, spiralling stories that are tricky to get into. It's often to not until around say episode 5 or 6 in each season where you can see where things are going.

I agree with the remarks by the previous poster. After a few episodes of season 1 who may be wondering what all the fuss is. However, this is a show that rewards persistance. Stick with it, it will all come toegther.

Schism

Agree completely with the previous posts.

I'd like to add though that it sounds like it was hyped up far too much for you. As with anything that's over hyped the end result often leaves the viewer wondering what all the fuss was about. I started watching it after a friend said I should check it out (had heard nothing about it) and was engrossed from the start.

Also even though the show was acclaimed by fans and critics alike there's always the chance that it's just not your type of show.

krudler

johnnyboy4711 wrote: »

watched a couple of episodes of series one and was told by all insudry that it was Gods gift to television.
I was eternally waiting for something to happen(watched 3-4 episodes).
Better out there!
Or am I impatient?

Name one show better, if amazingly written, densely plotted, well thought out , brilliantly acted shows that you genuinely feel emotion for the characters and want to invest the time in it isnt your kind of show then dont expect car chases or shootouts either as there arent any, it shows cops doing what real cops actually do, not out catching serial killers in a 45 mins episode, crap like CSI is there for that kind of thing

Penn

johnnyboy4711 wrote: »

watched a couple of episodes of series one and was told by all insudry that it was Gods gift to television.
I was eternally waiting for something to happen(watched 3-4 episodes).
Better out there!
Or am I impatient?

We were pretty much all the same. Well, I know I was anyway. I stopped watching after 5 episodes. Left it for a week thinking "Nothing is happening in it. Its kinda boring"

A week later, said I might as well finish off the first season since I'd already bought it anyway. 3 weeks later, I finished season 5. The best tv show I've ever seen.

The beginning of each season is slow, and the first few episodes, you feel like nothing has happened. But the end of each season everything comes together in such a way that, after watching all the seasons through for a second time, you see how important everything in the first few episodes were, and really get an appreciation for the little things they put in, the writing, the characters, everything plays a part overall.

In the words of the immortal Lester Freamon, "...all the pieces matter"

Sosa

The Wire is the best program on telly other than The Sopranos.

The carachters are outstanding,i like the big fat fella in the police office giving mcnulty a hard time...he's great.
Mayor Carcetti was a good storyline,Stringer Bell top class...
but my all time fav was brother mouzone ...where did they get him out of ? and dont forget Omar...the gay drug dealer rip off artist...great stuff.

In a year or 2 i will watch them all again.

lukin

[QUOTE=krudler;61512843 dont expect car chases or shootouts either as there arent any, it shows cops doing what real cops actually do, not out catching serial killers in a 45 mins episode, crap like CSI is there for that kind of thing[/QUOTE]

Aye that's what makes it so good IMO.

Beau

I would recommending reading a walkthrough such as this as there is actually a fair bit going on, it just takes awhile to appreciate it. The walkthrough will help after each episode to gice a clearer understanding as to what is going on at first.

dolby

The wire is top class! end of.. shame there is only 5 seasons!:(

croker95

johnnyboy4711 wrote: »

watched a couple of episodes of series one and was told by all insudry that it was Gods gift to television.
I was eternally waiting for something to happen(watched 3-4 episodes).
Better out there!
Or am I impatient?

Its an acquired taste but you need all the box sets lined up because most people end up watching 6-7 in a row.:)

However it probably explains its lack of success at the emmys etc and its relatively low ratings when first broadcast.

mckildare

croker95 wrote: »

Its an acquired taste but you need all the box sets lined up because most people end up watching 6-7 in a row.:)

However it probably explains its lack of success at the emmys etc and its relatively low ratings when first broadcast.

Yep, pretty much what I did for a few months

Fantastic show, defo on my list as one of the best ever made.

Clay Davis for President!!!

brendansmith

dolby wrote: »

The wire is top class! end of.. shame there is only 5 seasons!:(

Its better to go away from 5 series wanting more than watch the demise like that miserable abortion 'LOST'.

Schism

croker95 wrote: »

Its an acquired taste but you need all the box sets lined up because most people end up watching 6-7 in a row.:)

Quite true, a lot of series I'd see once and be happy enough with that but with this I keep coming back for more.

mckildare wrote:

Clay Davis for President!!!

Sheeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeet.

Hitman Actual

I don't mind that they only did 5 seasons, tbh. You have to wonder was there much more left to tell in the story, and even season 5 was a bit of a dip in form. Also, four seasons seems to be a magic number with a lot of good series. Both The Sopranos and The West Wing also dipped a bit after the first 4 seasons, imo.

In any case, at least The Wire stands up really well to a second or third viewing. I'd go so far as to say it's essential to watch it more than once to really see everything that's going on.

godtabh

tvnutz wrote: »

Yes you are impatient. It is the best written tv show ever made. However it is written like a novel,12 or 13 eps a season,each episode like a chapter in a novel. In many novels not much happens after 3 or 4 chapters,it is built up over time.

The Wire is not like any run of the mill tv show like CSI where every person is beautiful,where it is largely unrealistic storywise and how the characters act and unlike CSI etc the Wire does not have a storyline that is wrapped up after 45mins in a nice little bow. An episode of the Wire can just end without tying up anything from that episode. The storyline plays out over the entire season.

I think I might sticky this post. This always comes up

lukin

Hitman Actual wrote: »

In any case, at least The Wire stands up really well to a second or third viewing. I'd go so far as to say it's essential to watch it more than once to really see everything that's going on.

What I did after watching each ep was go on to wikipedia and read the episode summary. Made things much clearer. Dunno if that is an admission that I am thick.:)

tvnutz

lukin wrote: »

What I did after watching each ep was go on to wikipedia and read the episode summary. Made things much clearer. Dunno if that is an admission that I am thick.:)

Best to watch it over again,perhaps about 6 months to a year later. You see so many things you missed before and since you know all the characters it is even better.

davelerave

i've just started watching it on bbc2 .it's brilliant but depressing

BloodyDeath

only got into this while on hols in costa da wexford a few weeks back
sheeeeeeeeetttt i cant live with out now, waiting each day for the next airing.

best thing ever put on tv. (and i was on tv myself once)