‘The Wire’ Week: Top Ten Episodes

After starting with the top ten quotes and top ten GIFs, “The Wire Week” continues with the top ten episodes from the series.

 

1. “Middle Ground” (Season 3, Episode 11)

The penultimate episode of the third season of The Wire perfectly encapsulates the high stakes in Baltimore. Just as the detail finally got Stringer Bell incriminating himself on the wiretap, he arrived at his development site and was ambushed by Omar and Brother Mouzone. The episode with Stringer’s death was one of the craziest of the series, and “Middle Ground” was the perfect name to describe what happened throughout. The portending rooftop scene with Avon Barksdale and Stringer the night before the latter’s death showed anything can happen in gritty Baltimore, and it remains perhaps the best scene in any episode of The Wire.

 

2. “-30-” (Season 5, Episode 10)

Finales are always tough because it’s typically the lasting image people have of a series, but The Wire came through with an exceptional one. The Wire’s final season might have been crazy at times, but it was still really good, and everything came together in the end. From Marlo being unable to get out of “the game”, to Michael becoming the new Omar, to Carcetti becoming governor, to an appearance of the Greeks, and so on—all in a montage while McNulty stood on I-95—was a perfect end to a great series.

 

3. “Final Grades” (Season 4, Episode 13)

Season 4 spent much of its focus on the education system in Baltimore, so the finale is aptly named, “Final Grades”. Prez and Bunny Colvin, while separate, have basically done all they could for their respective students, and it ends on a positive note for at least one of them when Colvin adopts Namond with Wee Bay’s approval. Unfortunately, though, Bodie isn’t as lucky after he is killed on the corner following his talk with McNulty. Also, the bodies that Chris and Snoop put in the vacants are found, but nothing leads back to Chris, Snoop, or Marlo—who is clearly the king of the streets. The Christmas setting gives this episode a boost, too.

 

4. “Mission Accomplished” (Season 3, Episode 12)

The first three seasons of The Wire are basically centered around the cops trying to finally get enough to put Avon Barksdale in prison for more than a brief stint, but he was always a step ahead of them. However, that changed when he and Stringer had their falling out, as before Bell was killed, he gave Bunny Colvin information to put away Avon—which is probably the worst possible way for him to finally be locked up (i.e. turned on by his best friend). In court to end the episode, Avon finally meets Marlo, who basically nods at the longtime kingpin out of both respect and pride knowing the corners are now his.

 

5. “That’s Got His Own” (Season 4, Episode 12)

“That’s Got His Own” was during Christmas season, too, which gives it a boost, but a ton happened: Michael turns further to the dark as he made Namon realize he’s not cut out for the streets, Bubbles deals with the death of Sherod, Omar pulls the heist of a lifetime, Cutty gets shot, and finally, Randy has his house set on fire. The final scene of the episode, when an upset and angry Randy yells at Sergeant Carver (who was trying to do his best) about protecting him, is about as heartbreaking as it gets.

 

6. “The Cost” (Season 1, Episode 10)

It was clear that The Wire was extremely realistic based on the first episode, but “The Cost” took it to another level with Kima going undercover and the rest of the unit helplessly driving around to find her when she’s shot and left for dead. It was a stomach-turning end to the episode with McNulty, Carver, and others losing it as absolute chaos surrounds them with helicopters and cars all over. Elsewhere, Avon and Stringer attempt to convince Omar they want peace, when in reality, they want him to get comfortable so they can eventually kill him, so we get an interesting meeting between Bell and Omar.

 

7. “Margin of Error” (Season 4, Episode 6)

This episode marks the turning point of the season, as it’s not only Election Day for Carcetti, but also the episode where Randy tells the principal about Lex’s murder—eventually leading to Randy being labeled a rat and basically destroying his life, as well as getting the police onto the bodies in the vacants. Also, Omar is ready to fight for his life in jail after his arrests, but Butchie fortunately sends help. The biggest moment was probably Carcetti’s win, though, as the primary was basically the mayoral race, so he’s set to be the next mayor of a major city.

 

8. “Clarifications” (Season 5, Episode 8)

Basically any death of an iconic character puts that episode towards the top of the list, so when Omar was murdered by Kenard, it was a complete shock to viewers, especially since he was just minding his business at a convenience store. What happens after is just as impactful, though, as McNulty isn’t all that affected by the news, and the episode ends with Omar’s dead body in the morgue—with the wrong tag on the body bag. The mortician corrects the mistake, but just like that, a beloved character is gone and forgotten, which is really what happens to gangsters; to viewers, he was a legend, but in real-life, he’d leave behind no legacy.

 

9. “Bad Dreams” (Season 2, Episode 11)

Season 2 was unique in that much of it took place at the port and centered around Frank Sobotka, and Ziggy going to prison for murder really puts Sobotka in a difficult predicament by the end of the season. In the penultimate episode, Frank is eventually convinced to turn informant to get protection for his imprisoned son, but meanwhile, Nick Sobotka is convinced by Vondas to set up a meeting for he and The Greek with his Uncle Frank. Nick is able to do so, as Frank believes they might be able to help more than the cops, but just as he arrives under the bridge, the episode ends with The Greek getting a call from a dirty FBI agent about Sobotka turning informant (even though he hasn’t yet)—essentially sealing his fate as a dead man when the screen fades to black.

 

10. “Late Editions” (Season 5, Episode 9)

As stated, the series finale saw Marlo being unable to get off the streets, but it’s by choice, not necessity. When he’s in jail with Chris and their crew, Marlo finds out that Omar (who is now dead) was putting his name in the streets, which gives viewers the first real look at Marlo being a legitimately hardcore gangster when he loses it and gives an angry speech that ends with the famous quote, “My name is my name!” This episode also saw Michael add to his reputation by killing Snoop, and he’s at point of not return as evidenced by his conversation with Dukie, who tragically feels he has no place to turn except for the drug-addicted streets.