The Wire: should I stick with it? (no spoilers)

[ALF]

Watched 4 episodes. And quite frankly I'm bored. Find it very hard to pay attention to it...

I think 4 episodes is enough. I've always used 4 eps as the TSN turning point.
4 episodes into Lost I couldn't stand it anymore. Same deal with The Wire. I knew to get out while the gettin' was good. Just not my kind of shows. I've taken a lot of shit from everyone over the years for not watching Lost, but I don't like the premise or the characters and judging by the reaction from the finale, I made the right choice.
On the other hand, I didn't like Mad Men until episode 4. After that I started to enjoy it. My friend urged me to sit through it until 4 and decide then.
4 episodes is enough to get the premise and get to know the characters and if you don't like 'em... there are plenty of other good shows on to watch.

 

[Alidar Jarok]

It took me until episode 6 to really like The Wire. As for when you should give up, I don't have an answer. Whatever the cutoff is, it's different for each person. I think it's unrealistic to say wait until episode 10 because then you might as well finish the season. On the other hand, I think 4 is too few. Finish episode 6. I think that's when things start to come together. Then you can decide if you like where things are heading.

I tell people this show doesn't cater to anyone. It tells the story the way it wants to tell it and makes no apologies if you are having trouble getting into it. But, in the end, you end up glad they did. The first season, for me, is like a great novel. Some of my favorite books I almost gave up because I couldn't get into the beginning (All the Kings Men is a good example), but I'm glad I didn't.

 

[Lindley]

I've taken a lot of shit from everyone over the years for not watching Lost, but I don't like the premise or the characters and judging by the reaction from the finale, I made the right choice.

Not really. The trouble with the finale of Lost wasn't that it gave answers people didn't like----it's that it chose not to give answers at all to some things.

Frankly the appeal of Lost was always more in the mystery than the answers anyway, so leaving things a bit open to interpretation was a perfectly valid choice.

That said, the entire final season did feel like a step down from the time travel adventure of season 5.

 

[bluedana]

I'll add my two cents: stick with it. Everything shown has meaning -- it is a very tightly written, tighly plotted show. My one suggestion would be this: use subtitles or closed captioning. A lot of the dialogue is real slang, and it can be hard to follow what the characters are saying. As someone mentioned above (and as illustrated by the "f*ck" scene), they don't explain everything to the viewer; it's nice to be able to put stuff together and not be spoon fed.

I'm not a big cop show, procedural, or even "we can get away with this because we're cable" show type of person, but I loved The Wire.

 

[Roger Wilco]

I'm glad to hear I'm not the only one who had problems understanding what people where saying at times in Wire at times at times, thought my English was just inadequate, but apparently it was really difficult.

 

[sidious618]

I'm glad to hear I'm not the only one who had problems understanding what people where saying at times in Wire at times at times, thought my English was just inadequate, but apparently it was really difficult.

My parents had no idea what any of the black characters were saying for the whole first season.

 

[Lindley]

You get used to it after a while. No different than watching a British show with all their little language variations.

 

[Alidar Jarok]

Yeah, pretty much. It's as close to dialect as you're going to get in this country, though. McNulty's Baltimore accent was terrible (gets better), but that doesn't make it harder to understand. It's the true Baltimore accents (and especially the black Baltimore accents) there are difficult.

Eventually you'll get to the point where this scene is completely understandable.
Note, while there really are no spoilers there, it's from much later in the show.

 

[USS Kongo]

Started watching The Wire in the second season, got hooked on it and went back and watched the first. I've since seen all five seasons.

I loved that it was an epic, sprawling story with a multitude of characters. Equal time is given to both the cops and robbers, and no real judgment is passed down by the writers. That's ultimately left up to the viewer to decide.

One of the best writen and best acted series ever, and well worth the ride.

Sean

 

[Yassim]

I posted virtually the same thread about a year ago... I bought the whole series without knowing much about it, and three episodes in, I wanted my substantial investment back. I stuck with it, and was floored. It's one of the best pieces of TV ever.

half a year ago, I lent it to a co-worker. He took forever to watch four or five episodes, so I stopped asking him about it... he recently told me he watched two or three seasons in a week.

It really is a show where you watch the dominoes getting set up for 6-7 episodes, and then they start to fall. I would say watch a season, and if that doesn't grab you, give it up.

 

[TheGodBen]

Eventually you'll get to the point where this scene is completely understandable.

Yeah, it took a couple of episodes to pick up on what Snoop was saying, but she was still easier to understand than Bunk and Freamon.

Spoiler: very minor spoiler

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[Goliath]

Eventually you'll get to the point where this scene is completely understandable.

Add my voice to the chorus of people saying "stick with it," until the end of Season One.

I understand that The Wire is not for everyone, but the seasons are short. Even if you don't like it, in the end, it's not that big an investment of time. And if you don't stick it out, everyone will keep telling you that "You should have kept watching until Episode [Blank]."

 

[nevermore]

Yeah, pretty much. It's as close to dialect as you're going to get in this country, though. McNulty's Baltimore accent was terrible (gets better), but that doesn't make it harder to understand.

Goddamn, yes it was. I thought he was supposed to be from Boston or something.

It's the true Baltimore accents (and especially the black Baltimore accents) there are difficult.

Eventually you'll get to the point where this scene is completely understandable.
Note, while there really are no spoilers there, it's from much later in the show.

pfft. If anyone needs translatin' lemme know.

Snoop recently plead guilty to conspiracy to sell heroin, by the way.

 

[Avon]

i gave up after 4 episodes and watched homicide: life on the street again instead.

 

[Alidar Jarok]

Snoop recently plead guilty to conspiracy to sell heroin, by the way.

I think it was always pretty clear acting was just a side gig for her.

 

[Goliath]

Snoop recently plead guilty to conspiracy to sell heroin, by the way.

I think it was always pretty clear acting was just a side gig for her.

I've heard of method acting, but... damn.

 

[Lindley]

Goddamn, yes it was. I thought he was supposed to be from Boston or something.

Herc's Boston accent wasn't much better.

 

[Harvey]

Herc, like the actor who plays him, has an accent from the South Bronx of New York. It's established that Herc was from this area in season five, not Baltimore.

 

[Star Wolf]

Yeah, pretty much. It's as close to dialect as you're going to get in this country, though. McNulty's Baltimore accent was terrible (gets better), but that doesn't make it harder to understand. It's the true Baltimore accents (and especially the black Baltimore accents) there are difficult.

Eventually you'll get to the point where this scene is completely understandable.
Note, while there really are no spoilers there, it's from much later in the show.

Now you did it, I NOW have to rewatch on my next vacation. It is so understandable this was the scene chosen to start the season with

 

[Lindley]

Herc, like the actor who plays him, has an accent from the South Bronx of New York. It's established that Herc was from this area in season five, not Baltimore.

Really? I could have sworn he wore a Red Sox hat at some point.