FAQ for
"The Wire" (2002) More at IMDbPro »

"Sad Song" by Nav Deep

This is in the FAQ because it shows up on the message boards all the time.

Simple answer, yes. Not because the first three episodes are bad (they are excellent), and not because the show gets "better", but because you have to become a more patient viewer. Each season is written like a novel and each episode is like a chapter in that novel. As with the beginning of a novel, the first third or so of a season serves mainly to introduce the characters and the story. So of course the first episodes is not going to have very much in the way of major plot developments. That is just the way that long-form storytelling works(at least around 95% of the time).

Also, this show never panders to the casual viewer with gimmicky shots or unrealistic plot twists. Violence is never glorified, nor is it ignored. It simply is.

Finally, one of the complaints from new viewers is that it seems to lack in character development. In no case is this true - you will come to know everyone. The main character, however, will remain a mystery for a little while....

Yes. There will not be another season. The sets have been dismantled and parts have been auctioned off.

According to published reports, David Simon envisioned The Wire as a 5 season story arc. During the run of the show, they came up with an idea for a possible sixth season involving the burgeoning Hispanic population in Baltimore, but as no one on the creative side of the show had any first hand knowledge of the situation, it was dismissed. The creators felt that they could not provide the same level of realism they have with the seasons already developed and it would be a disservice to attempt.

"The Wire" - The Complete Fifth Season (plus bonus features) was officially released in North America on August 12, 2008 for a MSRP of $59.99. Details at: http://www.amazon.com/Wire-Complete-Fifth-Season/dp/B00123BY6S/ref=pd_bbs_sr_1?ie=UTF8&s=dvd&qid=1218671947&sr=8-1

A box set of all five seasons was released in December 2008 (with the only unique special features being three short prequels and a gag reel), according to IGN and other sources. As noted above, there will not be a Season 6.

"Way Down in the Hole" written by Tom Waits.

Each season has had a different performer.

Season 1 - Blind Boys of Alabama

Season 2 - Tom Waits

Season 3 - Neville Brothers

Season 4 - Ivan Ashford, Markel Steele, Cameron Brown, Tariq Al-Sabir and Avery Bargasse 
(A group of middle school children in keeping with the season's theme)

Season 5 - Steve Earle

"The Fall" written by Blake Leyh, Music Supervisor for The Wire

Many thanks to shotcallerz15 for the answer to this one:

Season 1: "Step by Step" - Jesse Winchester
Season 2: "I Feel Alright" - Steve Earle
Season 3: "Fast Train" - Solomon Burke
Season 4: "I Walk on Gilded Splinters" - Paul Weller
Season 5: "Way Down in the Hole" - The Blind Boys of Alabama

Yes. Lockdown records released a soundtrack on January 8th 2008.

It features:

Way Down in the Hole The Blind Boys of Alabama (S1 opening).

Way Down in the Hole Tom Waits (S2 opening).

Way Down in the Hole The Neville Brothers (S3 opening).

Way Down in the Hole DoMaJe (S4 opening)

The Fall - Blake Leyh (Episode ending theme)

I Feel Alright - Steve Earle (S2 montage theme)

Fast Train - Solomon Burke (S3 montage theme)

I Walk on Gilded Splinters - Paul Weller (S4 montage theme)

The Body of an American - The Pogues (Cole & Foerster wakes)

The Life, the Hood, the Streetz - Mullyman (Final scene of S4)

Oh My God - Michael Franti (Season 1)

Dance My Pain Away - Rod Lee (Ep 44)

Jail Flick - Diablo (Ep 44)

Projects - Tyree Colion (Ep 47)

What You Know About Baltimore? - Ogun + Phathead. (Season 5)

and some Stelios Kazantzidis is also included, from some of the Greek semi-montage scenes in Season 2.

Some of the most memorable dialog from the programs five years is also included on the album. The CD booklet will feature essays by the author and series writer George Pelecanos, series creator David Simon and the noted hip-hop journalist Jeff Chang.

Dominic West plays Jimmy McNulty and is the apparent star of the series - his name appears first in the credits. However, in the fourth season he has a limited storyline and does not appear in several episodes. There are several reasons for this: 1. McNulty undergoes a change in his personal life that makes him more stable and a concurrent change in his professional life that means that he is not involved in major case work. 2. David Simon has stated that scaling back McNulty's compulsive behavior is a set up for his storyline in season five. 3. Dominic West requested reduced screen time so that he could spend more time in his native England with his daughter.

There has been a lot of speculation regarding this, but there are only two bits of hard evidence.

1) (Season 3) As one of Brother Mouzone's allies enters a gay bar looking for Omar, the scene ends with a quick shot of Rawls at the same bar.

2) (Season 4) When Landsman is in the restroom at the downtown Homicide division offices, there is a bit of graffiti on the stall wall that says "Rawls sucks cock", which causes a Landsman to chuckle.

Some have also noted that Rawls characters uses a lot of homosexual references when berating subordinates.

FBI Agent Terrance "Fitz" Fitzhugh explains the contents of the file to Detective McNulty in the pilot - the FBI did assets investigations and found that Daniels had far more money that any lieutenant should. They weren't able to go further with it and gave the file to Burrell but nothing ever came of it. The implication is that Daniels got the money from corruption while in the Eastern District Drug Enforcement Unit but there was no conclusive evidence - that is why Daniels often dismisses the contents of the file. It would have been enough to raise a scandal though and upsetting the bosses would have cost his ex-wife Marla and his current partner Rhonda a great deal.

It is clear from Daniels conversations with Carver in S2 (and other ocassions with Marla) that he has a history that he is not proud of but we never learn how he got the extra funds, nor would we have from reading the FBI file.

"-30-" is a journalistic term that has been used to signify "the end", "over and out", and "a sign of completion" since the Civil War when telegraphers tapped "XXX", the Roman numeral signifying 30, to end transmissions.

Towards the end of seasons two Spiros Vondas and the man known only as "The Greek" have a discussion where Vondas reveals that "Spiros Vondas" is not his real name, and where "The Greek" states that "I am not even Greek." Since then the character has only had a minor appearance in s4. He is never given a proper name and his ethnicity or nationality is left unanswered. Assuming that he was speaking the truth to Vondas, and there would seem to be no reason to lie in a private conversation with his most trusted lieutenant, The Greek is not in fact Greek. Given the makeup of his gang it would seem likely that he is of some Eastern or Southern European nationality. At one point in seasons two he makes some disparaging remarks about Turks so presumably he is not Turkish. The more credible fan suggestions seem to revolve around him being Armenian (which would explain the hostility to Turks), Albanian (since Albania is close to Greece and Albanian criminals are heavily involved in human trafficking), or Cypriot (Which would explain his being identified as "The Greek" and also his hostility to Turks).

"The Body of an American" by The Pogues.