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WhenThe Wirefell silent ten years ago, it was a critical darling but far from a hit.
Toward its end run, viewership was barely registering on the ratings scale.
The show just doesnt work that way.
They stay with you.
With that said, heres our highly subjective ranking of every episode ofThe Wire.
Dont agree?Sheeeeeeeee-it.
Ebb Tide (Season 2, Episode 1)
The shows most-watched episode also happens to be its worst.
What they got instead was longshoremen.
For a lot of viewers, shifting the action from the projects to the docks was an unwelcome twist.
Collateral Damage (Season 2, Episode 2)
58.
This is one of those episodes.
Fortunately, even the fence theyre dealing with George Double G Glekas concludes that Ziggys amalaka.
(Thats Greek for asshole.)
Which, if were being honest, isnt the craziest thing hes ever done.
Unconfirmed Reports (Season 5, Episode 2)
Barksdales and Greeks and Bubbles, oh my!
in prison, but finds Avon sitting in his place.
Even Bunk shakes his head.
But decimation goes beyond the physical.
He may have been the black sheep of the family, but he was also its heart.
(Hes right.)
Also foretelling: Omar, being Omar, robs Marlos poker game.
Marlo warns him that wont be the end of their dealings.
You cant say the man is not dedicated.
Like any other business, theres a distinct hierarchy to police work, whichThe Wireexamines in full.
Health department regulations be damned!
The aforementioned Ziggy-duck situation pushes it down even further.
But you would be wrong.
Not for Attribution Season 5, Episode 3
McNultys whole lets fake a serial killer ploy isnt going well.
Naturally, Freamon instead tells McNulty to go bigger.
React Quotes (Season 5, Episode 5)
Everyones a liar!
Season two reiterated that, as Franks body throat cut is dragged from the harbor.
Nick turns himself in and agrees to tell the police everything, while Serge gives up the Greek.
But its too late Vondas and the Greek are already at the airport.
Theres just one problem: The dealers use a code the cops cant crack.
Prezs all-important victory kick-starts one of the shows most compelling character arcs.
The lesson: Finding a paper bag solution to the areas drug problem could help reduce murder rates.
May we all learn more lessons from Bunny.
McNulty, meanwhile, is a new man.
And they do it all with dialogue that consists entirely of variations of the word fuck.
AndThe Wireisnt known for false notes.
The episode is also notable for introducing Omar, everyones favorite drug-dealer-robbing Robin Hood of West Baltimore.
The idea: Police will look the other way on drug use as long as theres no violence.
(There areplenty of peoplewho still like the idea.)
Cracks are beginning to form in the Barksdale organizations carefully cultivated structure.
Elsewhere, Avons homecoming from prisonturns into a wake-up call to just how different his and Stringers goals are.
Yeah, thatll work.
Just when you start to forget that these kids are still just kids, they remind you.
That conflict comes to a head in season four with the election of a new whitemayor.
The golden heart and innocence he had just a year earlier is gone.
Whos to blame but society as a whole?
So he decides to call in some favors.
(All in the game, yo.)
Moral Midgetry (Season 3, Episode 8)
Stringer is at a crossroads.
Avon: I bleed red and you bleed green.
I look at you these days, String, you know what I see?
I see a man without a country.
And it sets what mightve been the shows best relationship on a path to destruction.
But show these kids a little kindness, respect, and discipline, and theyll do the same.
Or the Baltimore mayors office.
Or… you get the point.
Try finding another series or showrunner with that kind of narrative restraint.
But TV shows, no matter how complex or thought-provoking, shouldnt require that much work.
Yes, the episode is dense but so is the rest of the series.
Its a litmus test for your willingness to go all-in on one of televisions most elegantly crafted series.
Meanwhile, Randy lets it slip that he has intel about Lexs murder.
Also left floundering: a newly sober Bubbles, whom Greggs had promised to help keep off the streets.
As Herc puts it, You mess with the environment and some species get fucked out of their habitat.
But what about yall, huh?
What, the government?
Like its the end of the world coming.
Its an undeniable treat for viewers every time hes onscreen.
Nowhere is this more evident than when hes called as a witness against Bird in a murder trial.
Within seconds oftaking the stand, Omar has got the courtroom wrapped around his finger.
This is Omars shining moment.
The Cost is one very notable exception.
The wire be damned.
If only he had been wrong.
But much like DAngelo, Wallace is from a different stock than those around him.
Its gut-wrenching, and meant to be.
Its the cycle of life inThe Wire.
Mission Accomplished (Season 3, Episode 12)
Who the fuck was I chasing?
It makes McNulty (and the audience) wonder whether it was all worth it.
In the final episode of the third season, the reset button has been hit once again.
Much has happened; nothing has changed.
Bad Dreams (Season 2, Episode 11)
Yes, a season-two episode in the top ten!
Sentencing (Season 1, Episode 13)
Justice is blind, and severely broken.
Thats the only conclusion one can logically come to as the credits roll on the first season finale.
Its not a happy ending, but it is a chillingly realistic one.
Its the rock bottom that he needs to finally kick his habit once and for all.
Its one of the more painfully poignant lessons the show has to offer.
(Fortunately, he gets saved in time, pushing him back onto the path to sobriety.)
That was the point.
Is it depressing as hell?
Yet it turned out to be the shows best season, starting with the standout premiere.
Trying to push them toward the right path is Prez, who reinvents himself as a public school teacher.
Ultimately, though, hes the one wholl do the learning.
And when it comes, its probably going to be a violent one.
But Stringer?String?
(Well, that last bit is actually cut off by gunfire.)
Neither knows that the other has betrayed him, and that only one will survive the season.
George Pelecanos, who wrote the episode, called it the best thing Ill ever have my name on.
