What I have been watching

Video on demand is quite possibly the best thing ever invented. Over the past six months I have been watching The Wire using video on demand. I was one of the people that didn't watch the show when it was on HBO because I never really knew what it was about and with HBO shows you have to be committed to them from the very beginning because missing a single episode really screws things up. When I would tune into a new episode I was always lost and could not distinguish one character from another. I'm glad that I have made the investment to go back and watch what has to be one of the best shows ever made.

For those who don't know, The Wire is a police drama set in Baltimore (mainly the projects), but it's nothing like the crime shows you see on network TV (CSI, Law & Order etc.) Rather, the show has a serious tone when it examines a different theme revolving around drugs and the war on drugs. The first season focused on how police efforts to stop the drug trade was futile in a post-911 America. The second season took a completely different turn and focused on the drug trade and it's affects on blue collar America. The third season shifted yet again and focused more on politics and a really interesting sub-theme about the legalization of drugs. The forth season shifted to the education system and how children are affected by drugs in every aspect of their lives. Finally, the fifth season (I haven't seen it yet) shifted to how the media covers drugs.

While the plots can be slow at times (especially in the first and second seasons) there isn't anything that I can say that hasn't already been said about The Wire except that it should be watched by anyone who likes their TV to be smart, thought provoking, and just damn entertaining. I give The Wire seasons 1 -4, 5 overdoes out of 5.