On a sweltering day in the summer of 2002, some of Baltimore’s finest basketball players assembled for a game on the city's east side at Collington Square Park. It was something close to an All-Star contest. And millions of people would end up watching. Fifteen years ago, The Wire debuted on HBO. The highly acclaimed series, which spanned five seasons from 2002 to 2008, depicts the decline of the American city, told through a fictionalized reality of Baltimore. The story is often defined by loss—of life, industry, opportunity and institutions. In 1973, Baltimore lost something else: the NBA, when the Bullets moved to Washington. But basketball continues to thrive in Charm City. It’s a pillar of the town that molded Carmelo Anthony, Keith Booth, Michael Lloyd, Skip Wise, Sam Cassell, Muggsy Bogues and so many other great players. Without basketball, the story of Baltimore would feel incomplete. The Wire’s ninth episode, “Game Day,” brings the police detail’s investigation of the notorious Barksdale organization to the basketball court, where rival drug dealers from the east and west side preside. This is the oral history of how The Wire’s hoops game unfolded, and how just a few minutes of on-screen gameplay managed to authentically portray Baltimore’s rich culture of basketball. CHRISTOPHER CLANTON (Savino Bratten): Baltimore is known for heroin as well as basketball. You already have the storyline of drug dealers, the typical cliche with a twist hood story. With Baltimore, you had no other choice but to involve the basketball aspect. DAVID SIMON (creator): We wanted to do something with the natural competition between east side and west side. Read the rest here - https://www.si.com/nba/2017/04/17/t...more-basketball-nba?xid=socialflow_twitter_si
Even if you think you won't like it, you will. I promise. Shit, I even like season 2. Season 4 may be the best season of TV ever, including Breaking Bad. Watch this for a taste (this is season 1):
How can anybody have not seen The Wire? It's the greatest show of the last 30 years! I had just about given up on TV until that show. Every POS on there was about the daily lives of self absorbed suburban housewives, self absorbed housewives that sold weed, or the husbands of self absorbed housewives that made crystal meth!
On my deployment to Helmand, about halfway through one of my cellmat---roommates decided to scrounge a projector and started showing Justified. I thought it was awesome. It only took 5 months to finish 4 seasons (I know, for some of you that's a solid weekend), but only at the end did he say "you know, you might like the Wire." I only got through season 1 before I left, but it was fantastic. At home, Mrs. FromWA doesn't really like watching gang violence, swearing or crooked cops. And since most of my TV time is spent watching sports or what she wants to watch, I haven't picked up again. Now I'm jonesing for it again.
I bet Mrs BFW would like it. The rest of the seasons each have an overlying theme, unions, education, politics, amazing story telling.
Just recently found out that they re-released this in 1080p. Was watching season 1 again on Amazon Prime last week. I hate season 2 though.