The Wire
I find it so hard to start a new show. Its probably an anxiety thing, but I spend most of my time re-watching shows I’ve seen before, there are no surprises to be had and I laugh at every joke like it’s my first time hearing it.
I’m of the mind that your favorite comfort shows reveal a lot about you.
Before we got cable I fell in love with Girlfriends and the Parkers and still watch them religiously, I even have each complete series on DVD. We did get cable eventually and I spent a lot of time watching Flavor of Love (iconic!) and Bad Girls Club. When we finally began to pay for premium channels, like the rest of the world I got swept into Westeros and binge watched Game of Thrones. While looking for something new to watch I was stuck between the Sopranos and the Wire. I couldn’t get into the Sopranos but the Wire was the perfect mix of drama, great characters, tragedy, comedy, and everything I could ask for in a show.
I finished watching all five seasons again at the end of the last year and restarted at the beginning of this year. (Listen, I gave it a break and started watching Charmed but I’m expecting a few more re-watches this year if I’m being honest with myself.)
One relationship that keeps me coming back to the show, especially seasons 1-3, is that of Avon Barksdale and Stringer Bell. Two men who grew up together, got to the top of the drug game on the Westside of Baltimore together like they always planned, all to turn on each other and cause each others downfall.
Avon is all about using muscle and putting fear into the hearts of people on the streets. He loves the drug game, being a big time dealer, and the respect and the money that comes with. Stringer on the other hand is a business man at heart, opting to use his brain. He would rather launder the drug money and use it for legitimate businesses and investments so he can leave the street life behind.
Based on their mindsets their relationship was doomed from the start and as the show goes on we see the deterioration. Avon goes to jail, Stringer takes over as the boss for the time being, he has someone close to Avon killed without him knowing, and when Avon is released and he’s back in charge, it’s the beginning of the end.
Their final scene together they spend reminiscing about the old days, sharing a drink in a penthouse in the sky after accomplishing things they had only dreamt of, each knowing this would be their last time seeing the other, unaware of what their “brother” had planned.
Avon, not knowing Stringer had become an informant by helping the police organize a raid that would send him back to prison, asks Stringer what his plans are for the next day. Where’s he going to be and what time? Stringer, knowing about the raid makes sure he’s anywhere else but with Avon, unbeknownst to him, Avon would give those details to his enemies which results in Stringer’s death. (Unfortunately, he had it coming.) They give each other one last hug, their fate sealed.
It’s Shakespearean, the tragedy of it all! The ultimate betrayal in a friendship, or according to them, a brotherhood. It’s quite sad when you think about it.
Initially, never expecting things to happen the way they did, I always wonder what could have been but this was the end of their story. The dynamics on the show, the politics and the power struggles keep me so engrossed. It’s my favorite show of all time. So much so that I’m always trying to convince people to watch it. Have I been successful? Not yet…
What does the Wire being my favorite comfort show say about me? I suppose I enjoy a little chaos!
