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One of my biggest takeaways from the The Wire season 1 is that police on the show are very sensitive flowers. I had more than one "You're beating him up because he said THAT" moments.
The Wire: A Couple Brief Thoughts
Sep. 9th, 2023 12:53 pm 1. It really struck me in season 4 when Kima calls Marimow a cocksucker - given that she herself is a lesbian. I didn't think it was out of character, but I wish there had been more exploration of what it means to be "one of the boys" when you are not, yourself, a boy.
2. In season five, while Gus clearly is aware of and respects Alma's talent, there is still a kind of condescension in how he interacts with her. I don't think it's there with any of the male reporters.
2. In season five, while Gus clearly is aware of and respects Alma's talent, there is still a kind of condescension in how he interacts with her. I don't think it's there with any of the male reporters.
I only realized after writing these thoughts down that they both deal with gender, and both focus on women of color. As a white woman it is easier for me to articulate gender the gender dynamics of these situations, but I am sure there is a lot to be said about race.
The Wire: Carcetti's Wife
Aug. 18th, 2023 09:21 am In my opinion Jen Carcetti is one of the most poorly realized characters in The Wire. She appears in several episodes, but never has any personality beyond Supportive Wife.
The worst moment for me is when Thomas Carcetti wins the election for mayor, and she asks, "Are we happy about that?" It's like, her husband has been running for mayor for months and she still doesn't have her own opinion about whether he should win or not?
Beadie Russell vs. Lisa Braeden
Jul. 29th, 2023 06:43 pm*Spoilers for The Wire and Supernatural*
I see a lot of similarities between McNulty/Beadie and Dean/Lisa. The man shows up unexpectedly on the woman's doorstep and is taken into her home, where he becomes her romantic partner and helps to raise her child/children. The man finds domestic bliss with the woman, but ultimately he reverts to form and the relationship is strained.
I've discussed at length how much I dislike the writing on Dean/Lisa. The writing on Beadie is a lot better, as one would expect from The Wire. I complained that Lisa never gets to be angry at Dean on her own behalf. But when Beadie finds out about McNulty faking the serial killer, her first response is not to think about his feelings, but her own. "You had no fucking right….This is my life, too." Lisa's decision to end things with Dean seemed out of the blue, more something that was required for the plot than something that had a lot of build-up. I think Beadie made a mistaken in taking McNulty back after everything he put her through, but it was her decision. It was foreshadowed by her statement that she doesn't like giving up, and I believed it as something she would do.
Media Consumption 07/21/2023
Jul. 21st, 2023 01:25 pmI've decided I'm going to make regular posts about what media I am consuming - what I am listening to, watching, and reading. I don't have a particular schedule planned: I'll make posts when I realize I have something to say.
I'm currently reading Becoming Dr. Seuss: Theodor Geisel and the Making of an American Imagination, by Brian Jay Jones. I pulled this one off the biography section of the library, and didn't expect to find it as interesting as I have. Some interesting facts I have learned: Geisel's father's family owned a brewery that went under when prohibition become law, Geisel was recruited into the army during World War II by Frank Capra to help create propaganda and educational videos for soldiers, Geisel edited Stan and Jan Berenstain's early books and mentored them.
I'm on a re-watch of The Wire, specifically season four. One thing I like about this season is that ( Spoiler )
I finished listening to the podcast We Didn't Start the Fire, which had an episode for each historical reference in the Billy Joel song of the same name. I'm checking out You're Wrong About, which seems to be about the contrast between how people remember a certain newsworthy event and what actually happened. The first episode focuses on the panic about Satanists in the 1980s. I haven't yet made my mind up about the podcast, but I enjoyed the first episode enough to keep listening.
I recently stumbled upon the Mary Chapin Carpenter song "He Thinks He'll Keep Her". It's based off of a sexist advertisement - see the article here for details. It's definitely one of those songs that I like more the more I listen to it.
I'm currently reading Becoming Dr. Seuss: Theodor Geisel and the Making of an American Imagination, by Brian Jay Jones. I pulled this one off the biography section of the library, and didn't expect to find it as interesting as I have. Some interesting facts I have learned: Geisel's father's family owned a brewery that went under when prohibition become law, Geisel was recruited into the army during World War II by Frank Capra to help create propaganda and educational videos for soldiers, Geisel edited Stan and Jan Berenstain's early books and mentored them.
I'm on a re-watch of The Wire, specifically season four. One thing I like about this season is that ( Spoiler )
I finished listening to the podcast We Didn't Start the Fire, which had an episode for each historical reference in the Billy Joel song of the same name. I'm checking out You're Wrong About, which seems to be about the contrast between how people remember a certain newsworthy event and what actually happened. The first episode focuses on the panic about Satanists in the 1980s. I haven't yet made my mind up about the podcast, but I enjoyed the first episode enough to keep listening.
I recently stumbled upon the Mary Chapin Carpenter song "He Thinks He'll Keep Her". It's based off of a sexist advertisement - see the article here for details. It's definitely one of those songs that I like more the more I listen to it.
Brief Wire S3 Thought
Jul. 16th, 2023 10:16 am I don’t think McNulty walked out on D'Agostino just because he realized she was using him for information, but because she was so obvious about it. The implication was that she thought he was too stupid to put two and two together. If she’d been more subtle, I could almost see him continuing the relationship for the challenge. But she insulted his intelligence, and he walked away.
*Warning for offensive language*
In season 1, episode 7, Bird, in custody, refers to McNulty a “downtown white whore”. Bird's insults are very specific to their targets : Landsman is a "fat man". Kima is an “ugly-ass cunt-eater”. This led me to see if there are any other references in the show to McNulty being a "whore".
I came up with four references:
- Season 1, episode 1. McNulty himself, jokingly. When asked where he’s been, he says, “Drinking, crack smoking. Whoring myself on the streets of Baltimore.”
- In season 1, episode 7, as mentioned above.
- Season 3, episode 8. McNulty rejoins the detail just as they are planning to infiltrate a brothel. McNulty comes into the room as they are discussing who should go undercover. They all look at McNulty. Greggs says, joking, “Takes a whore to catch a whore.”
- Season 3, episode 9. McNulty is trying to convince D'Agostino that they should go on a date instead of just sleeping together. He says, “we make a date, I don't feel like I have to charge by the hour.”
There don't seem to be any after that, though I know McNulty jokingly calls Bunk a "whore" on at least one occasion.
The Wire Thought - Clearing Cases
Jun. 23rd, 2023 07:01 am It's interesting that for all the pressure we see on police departments to solve cases, we never see the police pressure an innocent person into confessing, as happens in real life. The police in The Wire sometimes have questionable strategies for clearing a case, but they are never shown to be wrong about who they think is guilty.
The Wire - Bunk Moreland
May. 31st, 2023 06:54 pm Sometimes when watching The Wire season five, I get this idea in my head that McNulty is crazy and Bunk is the sane one.
Then I rewatch the early seasons.
In which Bunk:
- Points his service weapon at McNulty while drunk
- Shoots a mouse with his service weapon
- Gets drunk, has a one-night stand, and decides to burn his clothes with a lighter so his wife won't find out
Definitely can give McNulty a run for his money in the lack of sanity department.
I have decided to share that I have been obsessively watching and re-watching The Wire. I've heard about it for years, but I'm glad I held off watching it until recently. If I'd watched it when I was younger I might have had an attitude, "Oh, is this really so good?" I'm old enough now that I can appreciate it for what it is - and what it is is excellent. It lives up to the hype. I actually love it more than I expected to - I expected to watch it and think, "Oh, this is a great show". I wasn't expecting it to inspire such fannish passion and obsessive re-watching.
Anyway - that's what I'm up to fannishly these days. I may share analysis at some point, but right now I'm too impressed by it to even want to share analysis.
Anyway - that's what I'm up to fannishly these days. I may share analysis at some point, but right now I'm too impressed by it to even want to share analysis.
ETA: If you know any good articles/posts/fanfiction etc related to The Wire, let me know!
