Finally catching up with the Wire Season One after plowing through the other 3 seasons first illustrates why this show isn't more popular. Despite its great acclaim, the first season is significantly less sophisticated and dense than subsequent ones. It's poorly written (each scene is guaranteed to have at least one remedial, 15-line expository monologue--watch it again), distractingly theatrical in its dialog and blocking (and in this way not unlike its nearly unwatchable precursor, The Corner, HBO's 6 episode miniseries about addicts starring Charles S. Dutton). The whole thing feels like a 21st century Theodore Dreiser, which would be cool but, like that moment passed a hundred years ago dude.
On the otherhand, I'm still pitching underhand: Season 4 makes such gigantic leaps that it's not hard to doubt that a hundred years from now, letters will be making use of its brilliant revision of the bildungsroman. Grinding, deflating, yet completely emotionally fulfilling.
This is NBA related. Yes, ladies and gents, because that description doubles as my take on your 2006-2007 Orlando Magic:
p.s. shaq is still bullshit.
2 comments:
Waddup, God? I think you're being a little harsh on Season 1. I concede that it's flawed in the ways you list, and would even add to that list of flaws the bizarre conceit that Carver, et al. find Herc's doofy comments hysterically funny. Still, there's a lot to love in Season 1. While I have yet to be able to sit through more than one full episode of The Corner, I've been able to not only watch Season 1 in full, but in fact have re-watched it several times (I would do the same with the other seasons, but Season 1 is the only one I've purchased on DVD). Again, I'm not trying to say it's God's gift to Wire seasons, or even that it's not the worst season (though I don't know if I would, in fact, say that). I'm just saying, it is worth watching, and if The Wire hadn't made it past the first season, it would still be the best show on TV.
Favorite Ariza slam this season:
Two-hander on Mourning
Tomahawk with Kick to the Groin on Emeka Okafor
Tomahawk on Jermaine O'Neal
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