The Wire vs The Sopranos vs Breaking Bad

RodgersLFC

Mods feel free to move/delete this as you see fit, but i thought it'd be interesting to see which of these fantastic shows poll the highest. Obviously very different shows but all influential and superb in their own ways.

My vote is for The Wire. Greatest tv show of all time in my opinion, the depth of the story and the quality of the writing makes it essential for any tv fan.

Cheers

Mr E

Not again. :cool:

repsol

RodgersLFC wrote: »

Mods feel free to move/delete this as you see fit, but i thought it'd be interesting to see which of these fantastic shows poll the highest. Obviously very different shows but all influential and superb in their own ways.

My vote is for The Wire. Greatest tv show of all time in my opinion, the depth of the story and the quality of the writing makes it essential for any tv fan.

Cheers

Never seen Breaking Bad.My own favourite is The Sopranos but I loved The Wire.My only criticism is that it was quite hard to understand some of the dialogue between the drug dealers due to their accents and tendency to mutter.If you enjoyed those shows you should watch The Shield.Its brilliant!

Oz.

James McNulty

Has to be The Wire and closely followed by Breaking Bad. I never got the Sopranos and watching it recently, it seems to have aged very badly. Very similar to watching a Martin Scorsese movie over 6 seasons. Sorry to any Sopranos fans out there.

VinLieger

Pointless polls are pointless,

Also a very quick search reveals

http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?p=71725881
http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?p=56678078

And thats just a small taste of them

--Kaiser--

I'd put Breaking Bad ahead of The Sopranos but The Wire is not in the same league as the other two. It's just not

PeterStrauss The Second

VinLieger wrote: »

Pointless polls are pointless,

Also a very quick search reveals

http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?p=71725881
http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?p=56678078

And thats just a small taste of them

This is the first I have seen with breaking bad included.

If people don't want to post that's fair enough but why try criticise things if you can't be bothered to put an opinion forward.



Anyway, Breaking bad for me with the wire second, followed by sopranos.

I think that these polls really should include The Shield and as Oz. Oz because of its sheer brilliance and the fact that all the other shows came about because of Oz and The Shield due to the fact that it's superior to the Sopranos. Good as the Sopranos was and it was very good it lacked the consistently evolving storyline that The Shield had. Every season the story of Vic and the Strike team evolved and grew bigger and more interesting whereas The Sopranos has a habit of revisiting the same ground over and over. The less said about the whole anti war craP which they stuffed down our throats in the final season the better.

Ould Mr Brennan

Id have to say the Sopranos. Paulie Walnuts says it all really

RodgersLFC

VinLieger wrote: »

Pointless polls are pointless,

Also a very quick search reveals

http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?p=71725881
http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?p=56678078

And thats just a small taste of them

I'm sure it took you a long time to find those threads in order to make that pointless remark, cheers. If you dont like it, dont bother posting.

Plus, neither of those have breaking bad which is extremely popular at the moment and I wanted to see how people compare it to these two HBO classics.

Should've put Oz on this as well. Superb show.

kupus

Poll dosent have battlestar galactica=Invalid.

RodgersLFC

kupus wrote: »

Poll dosent have battlestar galactica=Invalid.

Keep meaning to watch that. Its worth the time investment then?

lertsnim

I have never seen The Sopranos but I would put The Wire ahead of Breaking Bad

SB-08

Breaking Bad due to how it consistently gets better with each season. The Wire goes up and down in quality and season 5 was ridiculous at times. Season 4 was simply amazing though. The Sopranos is incredible and probably the most entertaining of the three but overall I would go with Breaking Bad. In terms of, consistency, character development, how incredibly well it's shot and especially the acting of Cranston and Paul it just about shades it.

Sir Digby Chicken Caesar

polls like this are worthwhile because it's worth knowing which show comes in second place to deadwood as best tv show ever

don ramo

The West Wing > everything else

The Wire will win, as usual,

Bench Press

Breaking Bad for me, and I love them all, but some of the scenes in BB are awesome, the tension is unbearable sometimes

Emeraldy Pebbles

Never seen the Wire, and the Sopranos just pipped Breaking Bad for me, as it is a more richly-layered show, IMO. Every time you re-watch an episode of the Sopranos, you take something new from it. I don't think BB quite has that depth.

I'm surprised Breaking Bad is in the lead, and TBH I'd just put that down to it being current. This poll should be redone once they've all been finished a few years.

RodgersLFC

Emeraldy Pebbles wrote: »

Never seen the Wire, and the Sopranos just pipped Breaking Bad for me, as it is a more richly-layered show, IMO. Every time you re-watch an episode of the Sopranos, you take something new from it. I don't think BB quite has that depth.

I'm surprised Breaking Bad is in the lead, and TBH I'd just put that down to it being current. This poll should be redone once they've all been finished a few years.

Yeah my thoughts too, i guess a current show will attract a few extra votes cos its fresh in peoples minds. BB is a top quality show though, has some of the best characters ever in TV. Mike Ermentraut being an example, i really enjoyed his character.

Richard Dower

WHAT!....No Gossip Girl ? :eek:

kupus

RodgersLFC wrote: »

Keep meaning to watch that. Its worth the time investment then?

Well worth it, a fantastic show from beginning to end......
AND well worth it even if you dont like sci-fi, because the scifi takes a back seat to everything else thats going on in the series.

But this thread will throw up the usual suspects: BSG, the wire, deadwood, the shield, the sopranos, dexter, breaking bad, Oz, six feet under, carnival, game of thrones---for that one I have to thank a friend for making me watch the 2nd episode as I thought the 1st was horsemuck. Rome, Tudors, borgias, Sherlock.

All good in their own way and different from each other.....so if you dont like any of these, well, there's always...........

•_•)
( •_•)>⌐■-■
(⌐■_■)
YEAAAAAAAAAAAAAH.

Emeraldy Pebbles

Richard Dower wrote: »

WHAT!....No Gossip Girl ? :eek:

Or Dawson's Creek! :mad::pac:

kupus

Richard Dower wrote: »

WHAT!....No Gossip Girl ?

Emeraldy Pebbles wrote: »

Or Dawson's Creek! :mad::pac:

Ladies Lounge

---

that way

---

>

Richard Dower

kupus wrote: »

Ladies Lounge

---

that way

---

>

i cant enter, because...i am not a

Cienciano

The Wire
The Sopranos
Breaking Bad

In that order.

I love breaking bad, but it's a step below the other 2.

Patty O Furniture

RodgersLFC wrote: »

Keep meaning to watch that. Its worth the time investment then?

It is worth it, You may get your chance tonight:

Time - 23:50 to 00:50 (1 hour long).
When - Sunday 4th November on Sky2


33. Series 1, episode 1.
The hit TV show returns with an exciting and edgy new look. After Cylons destroyed the universe, can mankind's few survivors find the mythical planet Earth?
Director: Michael Rymer
Starring: Edward James Olmos, Mary McDonnell, Katee Sackhoff, Jamie Bamber, James Callis, Tricia Helfer, Grace Park

Emeraldy Pebbles wrote: »

Never seen the Wire, and the Sopranos just pipped Breaking Bad for me, as it is a more richly-layered show, IMO. Every time you re-watch an episode of the Sopranos, you take something new from it. I don't think BB quite has that depth.

Also on:
Time - 22:00 to 23:00 (1 hour long).
When - Tuesday 6th November on Sky2

Water. Series 1, episode 2.

repeated on Sun

I'm surprised Breaking Bad is in the lead, and TBH I'd just put that down to it being current. This poll should be redone once they've all been finished a few years.

Same here, The Sopranos just finished recently on Sky Atlantic & watched it immensely, but have only watched 1st 2 series of The Wire & have found 3rd series hard to watch on Sky Atlantic.

Only able to watch Breaking Bad thanks to TG4 & deserved award to Aaron Paul, compared to the shows, i wonder whose got the most awards, or maybe that's another poll?:P

Sir Digby Chicken Caesar

you'd want to watch the pilot before you watch the first ep of BSG, jumping straight in might be a bit confusing

Patty O Furniture

You're right there, but i dont know if sky had showed it as i saw that when i was browsing the tv guide earlier on today, as sky2 is is a bit of the radar on ch121.

Emeraldy Pebbles

What makes both BB and the Sopranos is the acting, which is almost universally top notch.

MaxSteele

The Wire Season 1 was OK, but season 2 was dreadful I'm afraid.

The Sopranos never disappointed, the same with Breaking Bad.

I don't know who to pick.

MaxSteele

MaxSteele wrote: »

The Wire Season 1 was OK, but season 2 was dreadful I'm afraid.

The Sopranos never disappointed, the same with Breaking Bad.

I don't know who to pick.

Season 2 is the strongest season and I think people write it off far too quickly due to the fact that it's the most layered and difficult to get into. It really showcases everything that is best about The Wire, intelligent, layered adult drama where every line of dilagoue plays into the overall story.

Babylon 5 really is a show that should be included in this poll, it was the most ambitious and intelligent show of the past two decades. One of the few shows that knew where it was going before the first episode even aired. there isn't a single line in the entire show that was there for the sake of it. Lines overheard in series 1 played a major part 2 series later. Really was exceptional stuff.

Cienciano

I think the Sopranos episode Pine Barrens is the best single episode between all 3. Paulie and Chris head off to the snowy forest to kill some russian guy

Lenin Skynard

Love all three of these shows but I think The Wire is a long way ahead of the other two. I'd nearly advise people who haven't seen it, not to watch The Wire because nothing else ever measures up.

enfant terrible

Lenin Skynard wrote: »

Love all three of these shows but I think The Wire is a long way ahead of the other two. I'd nearly advise people who haven't seen it, not to watch The Wire because nothing else ever measures up.

Very re-watchable too, have it series linked on sky and will always stick it on when nothing else is on.

Whereas have little interest in watching the Sopranos or BB again.

Jayob10

its the Soprano's for me. Lived up to the hype.

I watched all three after reading all of the critical acclaim.

Breaking bad is not as layered as the other 2. The Wire is a very good show (lots of people with crazy love for it, but I cannot class it as the best because some of the seasons were not for me).

The Soprano's was epic. Never before have I watched a TV show where I literally had to watch the next episode, i've watched 8 hours straight

Breaking Bad is similar, but the depth of character and story does not match Soprano's.

The Wire was hard to watch, not due to lack of understanding or feel, but it didn't draw me in like the others.

Different strokes for different folks though.

Sea Sharp

It's a tough one because it's comparing apples, oranges and bananas but I'm going to have to go with Breaking Bad. I think the most recent season is making it pull ahead.

The Wire was good because it's a realistic depiction of sluggish, choked by bureaucracy, public sector institutions. It also depicts the gritty, lower end of American society really well.

The Sopranos, mobsters trying to adapt to modern times. Tony Soprano is what every 50 year old man wishes he was. It was good, but I don't think it's a candidate for the best show. Mind you It definitely belongs in the top 10.

Breaking Bad: an abundance of clever innovative solutions to obstacles, unpredictable and exciting plot, and the cinematography is brilliant!

I guess they all raised the bar in their own way.

Da Shins Kelly

The Sopranos is my favourite of the three, followed by The Wire and then Breaking Bad.

The acting, writing and characters are just so rich in The Sopranos. A great cast and such a deeply layered script. Tony Soprano is hands down the greatest television character of all time (for me).

The Wire is an excellent show, but I found it very slow and difficult to engage with at times and it didn't have any great stand-out character that really gripped me like Tony.

Breaking Bad is incredibly thrilling to watch and is probably the most entertaining and exciting of the three, but I don't think it stands up to repeated viewings in the same way The Sopranos and The Wire do. It's not as richly layered. I've watched The Sopranos all the way through three times, and every time I've come away with a different understanding and something new. I've re-watched episodes of Breaking Bad, but haven't had the same experience. It's a great, great show with a brilliant cast and great acting, but I feel like watching it is a one-time experience that doesn't really go much deeper than what you see the first time.

Kirby

Da Shins Kelly wrote: »

The Wire is an excellent show, but I found it very slow and difficult to engage with at times and it didn't have any great stand-out character that really gripped me like Tony.

Jaysus don't say that so loudly. Omar's coming!

Da Shins Kelly

Kirby wrote: »

Jaysus don't say that so loudly. Omar's coming!

I liked Omar, but again he didn't totally grip me in the same way Tony Soprano did and

his death was an anti-climax

.

inforfun

1. The Wire
2. Sopranos

No 3. Tried Breaking Bad for one and a half season but i just couldnt get into it.

My number 3 (of series i own) will be Boston Legal.

Sir Digby Chicken Caesar

Deleted User wrote: »

Season 2 is the strongest season and I think people write it off far too quickly due to the fact that it's the most layered and difficult to get into. It really showcases everything that is best about The Wire, intelligent, layered adult drama where every line of dilagoue plays into the overall story.

Babylon 5 really is a show that should be included in this poll, it was the most ambitious and intelligent show of the past two decades. One of the few shows that knew where it was going before the first episode even aired. there isn't a single line in the entire show that was there for the sake of it. Lines overheard in series 1 played a major part 2 series later. Really was exceptional stuff.

s2 of th wire was a great season, but it has ziggy.. so I just can't enjoy it as much as I should. **** ziggy.

you're right about babylon 5 though, incredible show. that feeling you get when you're rewatching an episode in season 1 a throwaway line from a background character suddenly makes sense because of something in season 4.. more tv shows need proper arcs instead of just being made up on the spot.

Kirby

Da Shins Kelly wrote: »

I liked Omar, but again he didn't totally grip me in the same way Tony Soprano did and

his death was an anti-climax

.

That was kind of the point though and was one of the things that made The Wire great.

Life isn't a movie. There was no pomp or ceremony. He didn't get some dramatic last stand all guns blazing. It was a tiny kid, from behind, while buying gum. Frankly I found it much more fitting than the "spiderman sh*t" he had performed previously.

Da Shins Kelly

Kirby wrote: »

That was kind of the point though and was one of the things that made The Wire great.

Life isn't a movie. There was no pomp or ceremony. He didn't get some dramatic last stand all guns blazing. It was a tiny kid, from behind, while buying gum. Frankly I found it much more fitting than the "spiderman sh*t" he had performed previously.

You're right, life isn't a movie.

How often do we see little kids killing experienced stick-up men in real life?

I actually found it a little bit ridiculous, and given the desire of The Wire to constantly appear as realistic as possible, I thought it verged on pretty unrealistic.

That aside, Omar is a great character and easily the most interesting on the show.

gimli2112

Sopranos for me.

The bit when

Adrianna

was killed by

Silvio

freaked me out for weeks.

Mr E

Wow... poll as at 8:50am this morning. I've never seen one this close before. I know I joked about this thread (i.e. "Not again"), but maybe this is the holy trifecta right here? One or two votes will settle this poll...

Da Shins Kelly

gimli2112 wrote: »

Sopranos for me.

The bit when

Adrianna

was killed by

Silvio

freaked me out for weeks.

Absolutely one of the best moments in the entire show. Really sad (

I really hoped that Adriana would make it

), but really well done. One of my favourite episodes of the series.

--Kaiser--

I can't see why people are putting The Wire in the same category as the other two, let alone putting ahead of the other two.

It's pretty badly acted in places, (also the accents of West and Gillan are appalling), the dialogue is inconsistent in quality, there are a lot of filler scenes that are obviously supposed to be humorous but just fall flat. There are frequently too many plot threads (yes, you can have too many) and just gets a bit too confusing. I can't level any of these criticisms at The Sopranos or Breaking Bad

kingtiger

very hard to pick as the three shows as they are right at the pinnacle of quality TV shows

but I will go for The Sopranos as being the show that broke the mold

kupus

Da Shins Kelly wrote: »

I liked Omar, but again he didn't totally grip me in the same way Tony Soprano did and

his death was an anti-climax

.

Da Shins Kelly wrote: »

You're right, life isn't a movie.

How often do we see little kids killing experienced stick-up men in real life?

I actually found it a little bit ridiculous, and given the desire of The Wire to constantly appear as realistic as possible, I thought it verged on pretty unrealistic.

That aside, Omar is a great character and easily the most interesting on the show.

But thats the thing it was completely realistic.....kids having guns at 12, gang wars etc, it might not be realistic to you but a friend of mine was a truck driver loading off one day in a not so nice neighbourhood.

A young kid stands at the back door when J was up the front taking a load from a pallet.
The 12yr old kid pulls out a gun and points it straight at j, now J was a former US marine and he nearly crapped his pants. After surviving tours and duty etc, it was the scariest scenario he ever encountered.
He reckoned the kid was just itching to pull the trigger so he could get his colors.
J gave him his wallet and some stuff from the back of the truck and he quit the job straight away.

As he said, he didnt come back to get shot in the back by some 12yr old gangbanger looking to make a name for himself. Someone was going to be shot by that kid eventually and he didnt want to be around when it happened...... as that delivery was going to be daily in that neighbourhood ...No thanks.


now back to tv, I watched FireFly recently. WHY did they finish after one season. Serenity the movie was not enough:mad:

Cienciano

Kirby wrote: »

That was kind of the point though and was one of the things that made The Wire great.

Life isn't a movie. There was no pomp or ceremony. He didn't get some dramatic last stand all guns blazing. It was a tiny kid, from behind, while buying gum. Frankly I found it much more fitting than the "spiderman sh*t" he had performed previously.

Was reading about the characters Omar was based on, Donnie Andrews. The spiderman shít actually happened, but in real life it was actually from a greater height. The shows director had to make it lower because the real life height was too unrealistic!