The Best of The Wire

The Best of THE WIRE (HBO)

Creator: David Simon

Seasons: 5 Episodes: 60 Years: 2002-2008

Premise: A dramatic detailed analysis of how drugs affect a city.

My 20 Standout Episodes

1. The Target S01E01 | #01

McNulty gets the go ahead to try take down Barksdale

2. The Buys S01E03 | #03

Omar robs Avon; D’Angelo teaches the others; McNulty wants a wire

3. Old Cases S01E04 | #04

Bodie escapes juvie; McNulty and Bunk revisit an old case

4. The Cost / The Hunt S01E10 / S01E11 | #10 / #11

Wallace snitches and Gregg goes undercover but gets shot

5. Cleaning Up S01E12 | #12

Stringer changes operations; Wallace has to face the music for snitching

6. All Prologue S02E06 | #19

Omar goes to court; Stringer orders a hit on D’Angelo in prison

7. Stray Rounds S02E09 | #22

Bodie’s corner is under attack; McNulty goes undercover in a brothel

8. Storm Warnings S02E10 | #23

Ziggy makes a stupid mistake; Valchek brings in the FBI

9. Bad Dreams S02E11 | #24

Sobotka sacrifices himself for Ziggy; The Greek gets Nick to do his bidding

10. Straight and True S03E05 | #30

Johnny tempts Bubbles; Colvin’s Hamsterdam is up and running

11. Slapstick S03E09 | #34

Prez shoots the wrong person; Bubbles is wired up; Carver moves a body

12. Middle Ground S03E011 | #36

Stringer and Avon reminisce; Colvin tries to save others from Hamsterdam

13. Boys of Summer S04E01 | #38

Snoop buys a nail gun; Prez is a brand new teacher

14. Alliances S04E05 | #42

Randy believes in zombies; Chris recruits Michael; Prez tries rewards

15. Margin of Error S04E06 | #43

Carcetti triumphs in the elections; Cutty is womanizing; Prez helps Dukie

16. Unto Others S04E07 | #44

Omar needs protection in prison; Prez tricks his students into learning

17. Final Grades S04E13 | #50

Bodie’s talk with McNulty puts a target on his back

18. Took S05E07 | #57

McNulty takes his fake serial killer even further with the help of Freamon

19. Late Editions S05E09 | #59

Marlon is finally taken down; Michael is nervous about an assignment

20. -30- S05E10 | #60

A copycat killer takes the blame as the series comes full circle in Baltimore.

My Top Five

1. Middle Ground

2. The Cost/The Hunt

3. Final Grades

4. Took

5. All Prologue