FOT Forum
FOT Community => General Discussion => Topic started by: KickTheBobo on August 08, 2007, 11:36:01 PM
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My pick: Bunk.
(http://www.hbo.com/newsletters/img/originalprogramming/wire/252x190/characters/252x190_bunk.jpg)
http://www.hbo.com/thewire/cast/index.shtml#crew
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(http://img476.imageshack.us/img476/2057/donutid2.jpg)
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(http://www.hbo.com/thewire/img/castcrew/character_season04/omar.jpg)
Toss up between Omar (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kCaoMj5veyw&mode=related&search=)
(http://www.hbo.com/thewire/img/castcrew/character_season04/bodie.jpg)
and Bodie. (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WF-NWBzZ3h4)
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Sheeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeiiiit its got to be Senator Davis
(http://www.hbo.com/thewire/img/castcrew/character_season04/senatordavis.jpg)
Then of course there is the thorn in the side that is Lester
(http://www.hbo.com/thewire/img/castcrew/character_season04/lesterfreamon.jpg)
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It's like a cavalcade of African-American staples from the "Law and Order" franchises.
"Senator Davis" has been on THREE of them a total of ELEVEN TIMES - everything from a dirty cop to a scarily religious serial killer.
I checked - every single one of these actors has been in at least one episode of L&O, and most of them in more than one across multiple series. Dick Wolf, you really are doing your part to keep people East Coast actors employed, if only hand-to-mouth.
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There's a few Wire actors - including Omar and Bodie - in a new series called The Kill Point on Spike. I don't know much about it but apparently it's getting positive reviews.
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It's like a cavalcade of African-American staples from the "Law and Order" franchises.
"Senator Davis" has been on THREE of them a total of ELEVEN TIMES - everything from a dirty cop to a scarily religious serial killer.
I checked - every single one of these actors has been in at least one episode of L&O, and most of them in more than one across multiple series. Dick Wolf, you really are doing your part to keep people East Coast actors employed, if only hand-to-mouth.
I was watching an episode of L&O and both Omar and Namond were in it.
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Just want to say that Omar is the coolest criminal ever on TV. I mean who else can walk around in his robe to pick up some cereal and people go running.
Plus his boyfriend in the last series has some pretty good reading tastes.
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Pauly Walnuts is my favorite char... Oh. Wait.
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Burns & Simon -- Matchmakers:
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/08/09/us/09baltimore.html?ex=1344312000&en=70424f792e2f754f&ei=5090&partner=rssuserland&emc=rss
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Fuzzy Dunlop.
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I got to chat with Frankie Faison (Commissioner Burrell) last night, and he's a swell guy.
(http://www.hbo.com/thewire/img/castcrew/character_season04/burrell.jpg)
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Frankie Faison is really great - he lives in Montclair and used to teach in the theater department, though I'm sure he wouldn't remember me.
I'll have to go with Omar and Lester on this one. I also like Stringer Bell and McNulty, though it feels lame admitting that last one. I'm only on season 2, though. I don't have cable and I netflix everything.
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Probably Omar and Bubbles, though I had a crush on Stringer Bell and one on McNulty before he reformed. I'm also very fond of Lester and grew to like Prez in the last couple of seasons.
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Probably Omar and Bubbles, though I had a crush on Stringer Bell and one on McNulty before he reformed. I'm also very fond of Lester and grew to like Prez in the last couple of seasons.
Oh yeah, I love Bubbles. As long as I'm uselessly bragging my peripheral connections with actors on the show, I'm actually really good friends with the actress that plays his sister, Eisa Davis. I know, who cares, but it's always really fun when she makes appearances.
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Don't feel bad. I get the same kick out of seeing David Thornton, just because I snogged him once or twice when I was fourteen/fifteen.
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Don't feel bad. I get the same kick out of seeing David Thornton, just because I snogged him once or twice when I was fourteen/fifteen.
um, you mean this guy? i guess he never got over you, Sarah.
(http://kickthebobo.com//dthornton.jpg)
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Nope, this one:
(http://i.imdb.com/Photos/Ss/0119303/ha5.jpg)
He's a second- (or third- or fourth-) string actor, perhaps better known as Mr. Cyndi Lauper.
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Damn, this is tough one. Gotta go with my man Bubs, if not for the fact that he calls McNulty "McNutty", then because he was in some funny shorts a friend made: http://www.nike.com/nikelab/time_travels/index.jhtml
He also was in a short called "Big Bank Take Little Bank" which will soon be a feature (hopefully), and he plays an aspiring rapper named "Fruity Pebblez".
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Oh man, I wonder if I could do some Sydnor-like undercover work and pass for a crackhead:
http://baltimore.craigslist.org/tfr/399463929.html
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I'm all over that! Let's do it, Chris L!
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Yeah, what the hell, I'll send a photo tomorrow morning. I see that was posted on the 17th, hopefully it's not too late. Now that I think about it, I picture myself in a more imposing role. Perhaps Marlo's crew will need a new enforcer...
Dorvid, maybe you should submit the photo of us with Paul F. Tompkins ;D
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I just bought the new issue of the Believer which has an interview of David Simon conducted by Nick Hornby.
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They called and asked me if I was available tomorrow!
I'm gonna be a uniformed cop! Woo hoo!
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They called and asked me if I was available tomorrow!
I'm gonna be a uniformed cop! Woo hoo!
Now the big question will you be hanging with Omar, Bunk, McNulty, or even The Greek
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Looks like you got in just under the wire (Ha. Ha Ha! HA HA HA HA HA!!). The posting's been removed now. Curse my procrasination!
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Chris L.
Call Seamus @ Pat Moran Casting - 410-558-0400
Ask him if they need any more extras for tomorrow.
Worth a shot!
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Thanks, Dorvid. I got the machine though, and calling off work tomorrow would be problematic anyway.
There is at least one curious, out-of-date casting notice on craigslist though if anyone wants a potential story hint.
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I don't want any hints/spoilers. In fact, even if I find myself in the middle of a McNulty funeral scene tomorrow, I'm gonna tell myself that it's either a dream sequence or one of those alternate endings shot to throw off the press.
The costume lady called and got my measurements, but no one's given me a call time or contact number yet. I'll be pissed if this falls through - I just got a really dorky haircut for it.
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This was a very mild hint, pretty much just confirmation about an appearance.
I've already predicted, based on nothing, that McNulty dies this season.
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I am officially in! They told me it was for the series finale!
[does a little troll dance in his basement apartment]
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Congrats!
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No love for Bunny Colvin?
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Oh dear sweet Bunny and his bright ideas for changing the world... I kept fearing that he would be like the detective in the McBain bit in the Simpsons who kept talking about how he was going to retire in a week and live with his wife on their boat called the "Live Forever" before getting gunned down.
And I'm changing mine to tie between Brother "Elijiah Mohamed meets Clint Eastwood" Mazzone and "Soulful Marvin Gaye released from Prison on a Moral Journey" Cutty.
(http://www.hbo.com/thewire/img/castcrew/character_season04/brothermouzone.jpg)
(http://www.hbo.com/thewire/img/castcrew/character_season04/cutty.jpg)
(http://www.metroactive.com/papers/cruz/03.27.02/gifs/gaye-0213.jpg)
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(http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2349/1736510963_76b2e876c2.jpg?v=0)
Just got back! It was awesome - all expectations exceeded. That's all I have to say on the matter until May(?)
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Guess what: the ad reappeared on craigslist and I'm in for tomorrow!
I don't know what they'll have me doing yet but they want to use my car. I hope I'm not just driving around, I'll be missing a meeting for this. But if you see a Ford Escort with a WFMU bumper sticker in the series finale, it'll be mine.
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Can you stick Ted Knight on your bumper as well, just to give us all even more of a thrill?
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What role would Ted Knight be? New Police Commissioner? Junkie? Out of town mafia?
I vote for Brother Mazzone style hired gun.
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Jeez, Chris L. - DC, FOT, PFT, The Wire, and now this?!
(http://i111.photobucket.com/albums/n129/DorvidBarnas/escortsticker.jpg)
my current whip.
We should either become best friends or fight to the death.
I'm so glad you're driving up for that. Let's chat about it privately, bouncing back and forth between giggly star-effing and a serious discussion of what it was like to spend a day in East Baltimore with a lot of downtime to look around and reflect on that. For me, the day was: moment of fun --> moment of heart-breaking reality --> tiny water --> repeat every five minutes. And I was wearing a Kevlar vest, which, if you have a gut, SUCKS. It was truly a surreal experience, unforgettable more for the non-show-biz stuff. One can certainly see why all of the people who work on that show are so stone-faced in interviews - holy moley.
Also, be sure to Mapquest the address. The directions the Pat Moran website gave me were inaccurate, and I made it with only 4 minutes to spare. Finally, a lot of people had cameras and no one seemed to care.
Edit: Ok, so I didn't seal my lips, after all, but I'm still not spoiling anything.
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Still no details until tomorrow morning, other than that it's now an evening shoot, which monkeys with some other plans I had for the day. The whole thing could still fall through, depending on what they want me to do, so it's a good thing I shot my mouth off!
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The whole thing could still fall through, depending on what they want me to do
Let me clarify: you do it, best friends; don't do it, fight to death.
Seriously, if they're interested in the make and model of you car, it might be featured somehow. Maybe Herc will commandeer you! How cool would that be?
Come on.*
*Come on.
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Just got back! It was awesome - all expectations exceeded. That's all I have to say on the matter until May(?)
Did you get to shoot the nail gun? Huh huh huh???
(Let us know which episode when it gets closer... that sounds great)
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Just got back! It was awesome - all expectations exceeded. That's all I have to say on the matter until May(?)
Did you get to shoot the nail gun? Huh huh huh???
(Let us know which episode when it gets closer... that sounds great)
'ey yo, he said series finale already.
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Well, my experience was a tad different than Dorvid's. When they said they wanted to use my car, they meant it. Shockingly, they didn't have much use for a pasty white guy in the neighborhoods where they were filming. You might see a flash of my spindly arm in traffic when the series finale airs but that's about it. There were three scenes shot, one of which was in a park where I was too far away to tell what was going on. Unlike Dorvid, I'll dish about the other two and who else I saw if anyone wants to know.
So after hanging around the set from 3:30 pm to 3:30 am (the casting folks thoughtfully didn't tell me it might run that late), I got lost driving home a couple of times, stopped off @ my apt to freshen up, then drove 2 1/2 hours more to my mom's house where I'm dogsitting this weekend. I'm officially wiped out for the day.
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Yikes, Chris L. I hope there were a few highlights mixed in with that grind. At least you got some overtime pay out of it, and I hope you weren't kept in your car and away from the food truck the whole time. Hopefully when the grogginess lifts, you'll be glad you did it. Get any photos?
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I'm glad to have had even the loosest possible association w/ The Wire, although the extras thing is not something I'd care to do again. Also, the pay still wasn't much even w/ overtime.
I didn't get any interesting pics, although I would have liked to snap one of Bubbles checking his teeth makeup in my side view mirror.
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Bubbles checking his teeth makeup in my side view mirror.
Sweet.
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Sheeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeiiiit its got to be Senator Davis
(http://www.hbo.com/thewire/img/castcrew/character_season04/senatordavis.jpg)
[youtube=425,350]HrfCixsd2N8[/youtube]
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That was the clip I was thinking of Dorvid
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TheNewYorkerTheNewYorkerTheNewYorker: profile (http://www.newyorker.com/reporting/2007/10/22/071022fa_fact_talbot).
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So many favorites. Valcheck and Rawls are two that I haven't seen mentioned yet. I also really like Carver, Bunk, Bunny, and D'Angelo. I really like Omar also, but it seems kinda unnecessary to name him since he's everybody's favorite.
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Frankie Faison is really great - he lives in Montclair and used to teach in the theater department, though I'm sure he wouldn't remember me.
I'll have to go with Omar and Lester on this one. I also like Stringer Bell and McNulty, though it feels lame admitting that last one. I'm only on season 2, though. I don't have cable and I netflix everything.
i went to glenfield middle school, and i remember him coming to speak to us as a special guest when i was in sixth grade. he was really smart and cool. i think one of his kids went to school with me...although i don't remember his name.
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Ed Burns on Fresh Air. (http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=16771882)
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As The Wire naysayer (I just finished Season 3), I think Omar is the most ridiculous character on the show. He's so invincible he's like something out of a bad action movie. Brother Mouzone is a close second for sheer absurdity (do we see him lounging around reading Proust in Season 4? I can't wait!). Stringer Bell might have taken the cake if he didn't get got by the above two super badasses. Too bad because I was expecting him to run for the presidency next (confirmed by the appearance of Adam Smith's Wealth of Nations on his bookshelves).
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I hear ya, B_Buster. Omar is like some sort of John Wayne/Clint Eastwood/The Transporter superhero hybrid. Even the creators have admitted that he's the one case where they don't even attempt to be realistic. Still, I can't help but like his character. And I've gotta wonder if they're going to kill him off in Season 5.
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The ridiculousness of Omar and Brother is fantastic! In a show that tries to create (somewhat) realistic and complex characters it's nice to have those two nutjobs. Tell me the showdown with them in the alley in Season 3 wasn't fantastic and I will catapult you into my own personal Hate Pit.
And really, the addition of an openly gay character who is also a badass is great.
And also, everyone needs to PLEASE shut their trap on the boards about Seasons 4 and 5. December 4 my life officially is put on hold while I catch up on Season 4 and if any of you people post a Season 5 spoiler before my non-cable-having butt can get to the DVDs in 6 months --- HATE PIT SUPREME.
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I've got nothing against tossin in a couple nutjobs. But why not a couple of realistic nutjobs since the creators seem so bent on "keepin it real"? The contrast is jarring is all I'm saying.
Also, was I the only one who literally cheered when Johnny OD'd? I wasn't happy so much for the character's demise as I was for the end to all that bad acting.
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Also, was I the only one who literally cheered when Johnny OD'd? I wasn't happy so much for the character's demise as I was for the end to all that bad acting.
YES. I'm a big Bubbles fan and don't think he needs a wacky sidekick. And the whole HIV/AIDS subplot with Johnny was a bit trite.
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Prequel mini-episodes up on Amazon.
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/B000QXDJLI/ref=nosim/0sil8
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SPOILER ALERT (though I'll try to keep it vague)
Based on a scene as Brother Mouzzone's man waits for Omar in the gay bar in the 3rd to last episode of season 3: _____ is GAY? Do they ever delve into that, or is it just a David Simon throwaway moment?
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Throwaway moment.
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Throwaway moment.
Thanks, Jouster!
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New favorite character: The typo subpoena. This was in Season 2 or 3, and made a cameo again in Season 4. Look under the "SUBPOENA REQUEST" in bold for the new name of the City From Which Erika Hails.
[attachment deleted by admin]
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Anyone see the preview of Season 5 up on HBO On Demand? Looks like a real snore.
Only 7 more episodes of Season 4 to go before I can really lay into all The Wire fans!
Here's another criticism: all the non-actors in The Wire.
It's especially bad in Season 4. Between the kids, some of the mopier drug dealers, and the assisstant principal, I don't think I've seen this much bad acting in a major television show in a long time. You can literally feel the life being sucked out of every scene they appear in.
And Season 5 looks like it's going to have even more non-actors in it (it looks like David Simon is putting every single person he ever worked with in the show).
And I'll be there to the bitter end because this is the "greatest television show ever"!
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I'm only halfway through season 1, but I'll agree you can spot a non-actor a mile away, and their "authenticity" doesn't really make up for the crap job they do at delivering their lines. I'm not even talking about Leo Fitzpatrick either.
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Don't worry, Buster, they're bringing in all those great thespians from The Sopranos for season 5. Little Steven is going to be the new crime boss.
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The Wire vs. The Sopranos feud is on! Bring it!
You know what I also love? When a Wire character says, "It's Baltimore" (a twist on the famous Chinatown line) as if it really means anything.
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The Wire vs. The Sopranos feud is on! Bring it!
You know what I also love? When a Wire character says, "It's Baltimore" (a twist on the famous Chinatown line) as if it really means anything.
Who even says this besides Carcetti in the season 5 trailer? We all know "What the fuck did I do?" and "Sheeeeit" are the show's wacky catch phrases.
Yes, in a show that juggles at least 50-60 characters per season, I think there's room for competent non-actors who are cast more for their authenticity for their chops. What exactly differentiates, say, Chris and Snoop as an "actor" and a "non-actor" besides training, anyway? Who is getting so much screen time that they're dragging down the show (http://www.hbo.com/sopranos/cast/character/vito_spatafore.shtml) with their horrid line readings? Did that assistant principal with the thick accent have an entire episode devoted to her that I missed? As for the four lead kids in season 4, all of them did a good-to-great job.
Hold on, I just got an IM from an anonymous film snob reminding me that Robert Bresson used a lot of non-actors to sterling effect as well. So there you have it: David Simon is the Bresson of Bawlmer. Take that, Movie Boy.
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Hey, Omar is going to turn out to actually BE a salesman from San Diego. Who knew?
Seriously - this battle between Ditka and da Bears is killing me inside. Won't somebody PLEASE think of the CHILDREN?
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...I like the show though.
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I love The Sopranos, but I'd contend they had far more crappy "non-actors" than The Wire. They even put a couple of them in Tony's immediate family!
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The Wire is amazing and there is nothing you can do about it. My favorite character is Bubs and Omar.
Oh, and Mouzone.
And Cutty...
Really, it's an ensemble show. No one character is supposed to take all of the spotlight. Every character has had his moments to shine. And that's what's so fucking good about The Wire.
Oh, and Freamon. And Bunny. And Chris and Snoop. Okay I'm done.
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Who even says this besides Carcetti in the season 5 trailer? We all know "What the fuck did I do?" and "Sheeeeit" are the show's wacky catch phrases.
Yes, in a show that juggles at least 50-60 characters per season, I think there's room for competent non-actors who are cast more for their authenticity for their chops. What exactly differentiates, say, Chris and Snoop as an "actor" and a "non-actor" besides training, anyway? Who is getting so much screen time that they're dragging down the show (http://www.hbo.com/sopranos/cast/character/vito_spatafore.shtml) with their horrid line readings? Did that assistant principal with the thick accent have an entire episode devoted to her that I missed? As for the four lead kids in season 4, all of them did a good-to-great job.
Hold on, I just got an IM from an anonymous film snob reminding me that Robert Bresson used a lot of non-actors to sterling effect as well. So there you have it: David Simon is the Bresson of Bawlmer. Take that, Movie Boy.
I've heard it 3 or 4 times (maybe they sneak it in once a season). I guess the main difference between the actor and non-actor is the ability to project a range of emotions. In the Wire most of the characters are good for one note and one note only (I'll include the actors in this category: how many times do we have to see jolly Landsman fumbling with a copy of Club magazine?). And, let's face it, Simon/Burns haven't been able to create one strong woman character in the whole series (Kima and Rhonda are as hardboiled as the guys).
And, no, I won't dispute Vito's ability to drag The Sopranos down. That would be a fool's game.
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I guess the main difference between the actor and non-actor is the ability to project a range of emotions. In the Wire most of the characters are good for one note and one note only (I'll include the actors in this category: how many times do we have to see jolly Landsman fumbling with a copy of Club magazine?). And, let's face it, Simon/Burns haven't been able to create one strong woman character in the whole series (Kima and Rhonda are as hardboiled as the guys).
Agree that the show could maybe use more compelling female characters besides Kima (who is great). I don't get the "one note" criticism at all -- that's one of the last things I'd accuse them of. If that were the case Prez would still be fumbling with his gun in the basement and Lester would be working on miniature furniture. Just about every character is remarkably well-shaded considered the limited amount of screen time most of the cast gets. Two of the only truly one-note characters I can think of are Maury Levy the evil lawyer and Namond's mom in season 4. Landsman is actually a good example of how most of the characters project a certain attitude or have to eat shit to survive in their environments, whether it be the streets or the police force.
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Anyone see the preview of Season 5 up on HBO On Demand? Looks like a real snore.
Only 7 more episodes of Season 4 to go before I can really lay into all The Wire fans!
Here's another criticism: all the non-actors in The Wire.
It's especially bad in Season 4. Between the kids, some of the mopier drug dealers, and the assisstant principal, I don't think I've seen this much bad acting in a major television show in a long time. You can literally feel the life being sucked out of every scene they appear in.
And Season 5 looks like it's going to have even more non-actors in it (it looks like David Simon is putting every single person he ever worked with in the show).
And I'll be there to the bitter end because this is the "greatest television show ever"!
Season 4 ends well, but yes, not the best season (still better than most tv). I vote for Season 3 with the whole clash of the titans finishing up. I think Season 4 is especially fulfilling for people who have been teachers to see how well they nail the system.
Most annoying line is still "It's all in the game." It's like they're hawking t-shirts with the motto on them.
Snoop was a great reason to watch the season on DVD and hit the subtitle button.
Season 5 is going to be awesome. I will fight for this. Though I am rather small and easy to frighten.
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Is anyone else reminded of Officer Tom whenever Herc is on?
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I'm with Mike on this, except I don't hate The Wire, I've just never watched it and at this point can't imagine that I ever will.
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Just for clarification, I don't hate The Wire. I wouldn't have made it this far along if I hated it. I hated John from Cincinnati and Tell Me You Love Me (based on the 10 minutes I was able to stomach). I just think The Wire is overrated by the critics who keep going on about it as if it was the greatest television show ever.
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I will say this about the Wire:
Every year my father tried to get me to watch the Wire, and every year I started by watching 2 or 3 episodes and then just completely lost interest. When I watched the little quickie wrap-ups that HBO did for each season (I think there was 45 minutes each for seasons 1, 2 and 3) I felt like that was sufficient and I wasn't compelled to watch more.
The only exception was season 4 which I really loved, but I think that had more to do with an emotional investment in the kids in this community and the Baltimore City School System which is a complete nightmare. I'd say that's the only season worth watching, from my limited perspective on the matter.
It's not a terrible show but it never grabbed me. And being that I love all things Baltimore, am a sucker for any HBO drama and love crime shows, etc... I think that says something about the quality of the show.
The Corner and Homicide did a much better job at giving a glance at Baltimore.
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The use of Duran Duran's cover of "White Lines" in the new trailer may have ruined The Wire for me forever. >:(
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I've noticed that some of their soundtrack choices are a little obvious or silly. Does poor Cutty get saddled with The Greatest Soul Hits of the 70s in his scenes because he hasn't heard any music since he got sent to the can? Or because he's Old School? He's almost like a character out of Peter and the Wolf. If I were blind, I could easily pick out all his scenes.
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What are these Wire fans so scared of? Mike don't love it like you do, that's all! It doesn't mean you have to take shots at another show in defense - defend your own turf, Wire Lovers! Launching broadsides at the Sopranos or any other program isn't helping your case.
Go, Mike, go!
Tom.
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OK, but then: Mike, what do you think the best TV show ever is? I'm saying all of TV, not just the HBO shows Tom gave you last week. I wouldn't say The Wire is the greatest work of narrative art of all time, but as far as TV goes, it's definitely up there, if not the best by default.
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That's a tough one, Jasongrote. I'll stick to dramas to narrow it down. Because it raised the bar for a lot of shows that followed (including Deadwood which I thought was more consistent due to its shorter run), I'm going to have to say The Sopranos. I realize I'm contradicting myself a little here, but the fact is The Sopranos finished strong and it was compelling enough even when it went on tangents I didn't find that interesting to keep me watching until the end (I don't think there's another show I've followed that long).
Twin Peaks might have been a contender if it didn't fall off the cliff. I've really got to revisit that show to see if it's as good as I remember.
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Twin Peaks still holds up, but good lord, when it falls off the cliff, it really falls. The non-Lynch episodes are some of the worst crap that's ever been aired on television. Seriously, it's like if you took the writer's room from Passions, gave them all head injuries, and forced them to write twenty episodes in a row on a twinkie-only diet. It's great when Lynch came back and gave us that hopeless, horrifying ending.
I'm not a particular Wire/Sopranos partisan, but I do think the former has a little more heart. In a good way.
I'm also glad you didn't say something like I Dream of Jeanie.
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I've noticed that some of their soundtrack choices are a little obvious or silly. Does poor Cutty get saddled with The Greatest Soul Hits of the 70s in his scenes because he hasn't heard any music since he got sent to the can? Or because he's Old School? He's almost like a character out of Peter and the Wolf. If I were blind, I could easily pick out all his scenes.
I look at it the other way, - what else would he be listening to other than what he was apparently into when he went to jail? I'd rather they stick with the show's technique and have the characters actually listening to what they'd have on their radios than shoehorn something in to underline in bold what they want you to think the characters are thinking. Plus, come on, this is what leads to great scenes like Chris Partlow going crazy for Lean Wit' It, Rock Wit' It.
What else did they show Cutty listening to besides the part where he's got Curtis Mayfield on his Walkman, anyway?
It's perfectly fine to not like the show, I just disagree with most of the reasons in the thread so far. Why can't a character be "hardboiled" and still be a strong female character? Women can't be hardboiled? Especially women dealing with this environment and having to put up with people like McNulty every day? I also wouldn't say that Beadie Russell is all that similar to Kima.
In any event, I'm all for more discussion of it - positive, negative or anywhere in between - as long as people are interested.
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Wes, no zinger? I kept waiting for it. It's hard to top Mike's "Peter and the Wolf" comparison, though.
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There's a very subtle one in there that will pay off handsomely when we reach page eight of the thread, drawing from an actual conversation I had with Ed Burns when he sent me to prison 20 years ago.
While it was disappointing when at the time, when the show was still airing and we all had hopes it could keep up the momentum, I now think that there's no better way that Twin Peaks could have gone out than with the spectacular, awful flame-out of that second half of the second season. Evil drug-dealing lumberjacks, a psychotic chess-obsessed former FBI Agent, Link from the Mod Squad, hints of Project Blue Book, Billy Zane...it really couldn't have ended any other way, could it? Though I loved what happened when it was forced to be a movie, I still wonder whether we might have missed out by not seeing Mullholland Drive play out on TV the same way.
Regarding the actual topic, my favorite characters on the respective shows discussed are: Bunny Colvin, Albert Rosenfield, the cardboard cutout of Little Steven in Tony's safehouse, Pembleton and Jeannie's Evil Twin Sister.
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I read chapters 3, 4, and 11 of Moby Dick, but it never grabbed me, and I love all things whale.
Edit: Ugh, I was in a bad mood when I posted that. Sorry, POB.
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What are these Wire fans so scared of? Mike don't love it like you do, that's all! It doesn't mean you have to take shots at another show in defense - defend your own turf, Wire Lovers! Launching broadsides at the Sopranos or any other program isn't helping your case.
Go, Mike, go!
Tom.
I only act like this when someone else starts it. I was working at a bar over the summer, and a guy at closing asked me what my favorite show on TV was. I said "Oh, The Wire, hands down. I think it's some of the best television out there." His response was "WHAT ARE YOU TALKING ABOUT? LOST SHOULD BE YOUR FAVORITE SHOW! IT'S SO MUCH BETTER!"
That was a particularly long drunken rambling night.
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What are these Wire fans so scared of? Mike don't love it like you do, that's all! It doesn't mean you have to take shots at another show in defense - defend your own turf, Wire Lovers! Launching broadsides at the Sopranos or any other program isn't helping your case.
Go, Mike, go!
Tom.
I only act like this when someone else starts it. I was working at a bar over the summer, and a guy at closing asked me what my favorite show on TV was. I said "Oh, The Wire, hands down. I think it's some of the best television out there." His response was "WHAT ARE YOU TALKING ABOUT? LOST SHOULD BE YOUR FAVORITE SHOW! IT'S SO MUCH BETTER!"
That was a particularly long drunken rambling night.
I like both shows for different reasons
I also thought that Frisky Dingo was some excellent TV
those dudes can WRITE.
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Two new Wire specials, The Wire: Odyssey and The Last Word are on HBO On Demand and are excellent.
The three mini-flashback episodes, which I call The Wire Babies, are not so good.
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Speaking of those specials on HBO On Demand, David Simon comes across as a really pretentious guy in them. He seems to have a hard time admitting that The Wire, in the grand scheme of things, is essentially a cop show. He keeps pushing the idea that The Wire is something completely different. It's like a book (the critics have gone nuts with this one). It's a sociology lesson. It's "a calling." Give me a break. He also seems to be one of those conflicted people who doesn't think it's enough to entertain a television audience; we've all got to learn something, too. My question to all The Wire fanatics out there: what have you learned from watching The Wire?
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Mike, it may be pretentious to say The Wire is more than a cop show but neither is it inaccurate. Simon seems like enough of a cynical guy that I doubt he's under the delusion that he's going to change things or teach people through a tv show. Yes, among other things, he and Burns set out with the hugely ambitious goal to portray the life of a city and show how, in their experience, its institutions have failed people and ruined lives time and time again. That he and the writers are able to do this - to realistically show the decay of a public school system as it's almost never portrayed on television, for instance - and still keep the show entertaining and often very funny is the measure of their success, not their ambition. I'm not on the edge of my seat by the end of each season dying to find out what lesson Simon is going to impart; it's to find out the fate of the characters and marvel at how the frequently disparate season-long threads eventually tie together.
That said, I think the biggest lessons I specifically have learned involve ways to foil police investigations and evade surveillance. Don't think I'm not planning to capitalize on this info to become Bethesda, MD's most dangerous crime lord either.
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I learned that "shorty" can refer to a child, a girlfriend, an attractive woman, a short person, or an attractive short woman.
I like The Wire because it's kinda like watching the bureaucratic mechanizations of my day job, but with the consequences ratcheted up for dramatic effect.
I think people are mad at Mike because he picked the "I like The Wire" thread to take a dump on The Wire.
Can anyone post a link to one of B. Buster's first ever posts where he was slagging off Gerard Cosloy? From Humble Beginnings he strode forth and now he resides in the Hall of Fame.
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I think people are mad at Mike because he picked the "I like The Wire" thread to take a dump on The Wire.
It just hit me: Mike wants to be on The Wire! After all, this is the man, is it not, who landed a sweet cameo in a Kevin Smith movie essentially by attacking Kevin Smith movies online? All the pieces matter - Mike just wants to be in the game.
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Score one for Jouster!
Jouster v B Buster - IT'S ON!
Tom.
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I think people are mad at Mike because he picked the "I like The Wire" thread to take a dump on The Wire.
It just hit me: Mike wants to be on The Wire! After all, this is the man, is it not, who landed a sweet cameo in a Kevin Smith movie essentially by attacking Kevin Smith movies online? All the pieces matter - Mike just wants to be in the game.
(http://i127.photobucket.com/albums/p155/fradom/jaymikekev.png)
Mike with his two cinematic heroes.
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Good point, jouster. And now that I've finished Season 4, I think my true intentions are clear: I want to be Bubbles' new sidekick. I can't wait till I get to croak!
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Two new Wire specials, The Wire: Odyssey and The Last Word are on HBO On Demand and are excellent.
The three mini-flashback episodes, which I call The Wire Babies, are not so good.
I just finished watching season 3 of The Wire and am now scouring this thread for stuff to read/see about the show. I'll look for these, Dorvid. Thanks.
Also, thanks Omar for posting that 12 page New Yorker article way up on the thread.
Since I probably won't get my hands on season 4 for about another 3 weeks I may re-watch season 3 with the commentaries. The extra features with interviews and panel discussions were interesting. Wow, the actor who played Stringer Bell has an English accent (!).
B_Buster, I have a feeling you started out as a fan. I haven't seen season 4 yet and don't have your perspective or insight, so I may end up getting sick of it too, who knows. In the interviews I've seen and read with David Simon, he doesn't seem to come off as pretentious at all - just the opposite. He fumes about New Yorkers feeling like they're the centre of the universe in the extra features in season 3 - I would think that that alone would endear him. Well, looking forward to season 4.
Some of my favorite moments from season 3
*spoiler alert*
-String drones on about the trials and tribulations of getting building permits while Avon sits in a Marlo hate infused haze
-Theresa D'Agostino rejects McNulty on their date, making him feel small for not fitting into her world, then, in a later episode, McNulty kisses her off when she clumsily attempts to get information from him. It was kind of nice to see Theresa's incompetence in an area in which McNulty excels.
-the way my sympathies shifted from String to Avon leading up the final mutual betrayal. When Avon gets out I hate him for his short sighted corner grabbing preoccupations while I feel for String's frustration in trying to get him to move beyond his street level pettiness. Later, String comes across as the loser when Clay Davis hoodwinks him, and Avon appears the sympathetic one who is shocked that his crew would attempt to get Omar while he is at church with his granny, and later gives Cutty not 10 but 15 Gs for his youth boxing club.
-and I loved the numerous exchanged glances between Herc and Carver
and on and on... those are the ones that come to mind
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Two new Wire specials, The Wire: Odyssey and The Last Word are on HBO On Demand and are excellent.
The three mini-flashback episodes, which I call The Wire Babies, are not so good.
I just finished watching season 3 of The Wire and am now scouring this thread for stuff to read/see about the show. I'll look for these, Dorvid. Thanks.
I highly recommend waiting until you're done with season four. They cover it pretty thoroughly in those specials.
I'm currently re-watching that season(also on HBO On Demand), and I'd like to formally change my choice for favorite character:
(http://www.hbo.com/thewire/img/castcrew/character_season04/michael.jpg)
Michael
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will do, Dorvid.
cheers, and happy new year. :)
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Right back atcha!
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Two of the only truly one-note characters I can think of are Maury Levy the evil lawyer and Namond's mom in season 4.
Also, Officer Walker from Season 4. He's a relatively small character, but very one-note.
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(http://www.buddytv.com/usrimages/usr83/83_johnny5.jpg)
SEASON FIVE IS ALIVE!
THEWIRETHEWIRETHEWIRE #51 (now on HBO On Demand)
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I'm finishing up Season 4. I think it's very good, but...
Everytime I see Chris and Snoop, I think "Mr. Kidd and Mr. Wint." Then I laugh, and it kind of ruins the whole vibe.
Also, Snoop reminds me tremendously of Bubb Rubb's "Lil' Sis," which is also distracting.
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Alan Sepinwall is inviting people to vote on the best/funniest scene (http://sepinwall.blogspot.com/2007/12/great-moments-in-wire-history.html) from the show.
McNutly's epic drunken binge that opened one of the season 2 episodes might be hard to beat, but I'm thinking of voting for this one:
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/v/1kYNDte3Jqg&rel[/youtube]
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Call me a curmudgeon, but I don't think I've laughed once during all four seasons of The Wire.
On the other hand, this guy continues to crack me up (I just watched the Season 1 finale again on HBO On Demand):
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JbDL4rI4zu8
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Watching season 1 now. It's depressing me. When the show started I thought it might focus people's attention to the problem of drugs and violence in this city. But in the past few years (at the height of the Wire's popularity) Baltimore has become a more dangerous, sad place. Higher crime, higher taxes, worse race relations, etc. Politicians who want to legalize gambling while raising sales taxes and "renovating" neighborhoods to raise rent and drive low-income people further into the shitty parts of town.
Don't get me wrong I still love Baltimore -- and I do have some level of hope for the future -- it just makes me sad to watch this show while knowing that it's popularity has had no positive effect on the people it's portraying. And I'm nowhere near emotionally prepared to see how fucked up the Baltimore Sun is in Season 5.
That said, the story line is pretty good. I'm a sucker for Law and Order-type cop dramas.
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That's why I never watched Homicide when I lived in Baltimore. The whole city was so gung-ho about accomodating the filming of Homicide. There was all this pride about what a hit show Homicide was. I was always like, hello? It's called Homicide. They'd be filming a murder scene on the street where my girlfriend lived, and it would be the street where, in real life, people had gotten raped, and where people went to F prostitutes in the bushes, and they're filming a fake murder there, and it's like "Well, doesn't this make me feel great that my city is the canvas for your televisual painting." The city gets money for all this filming but where does it go? I like The Wire but it depresses me a bit too. It doesn't help that I still live in a neighborhood in L.A. where there's a lot of drug dealing. These types of shows are usually more "enjoyable" when you're not surrounded by the shit, I find.
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Homicide wasn't a hit show, though.
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Well, get in your time machine and tell that to the people of mid-'90's Baltimore!
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Well, get in your time machine and tell that to the people of mid-'90's Baltimore!
Yeah seriously. Around here it was like the golden child.
The city government is shitty. Any money that comes in probably goes into a few people's pockets or to pay for the gigantic signs Mayor Sheila Imajerkfacedjerk Dixon users to plaster her name next to every work site that's part of her giant "operation orange cone" project.
They're essentially ripping up every street in the prosperous part of baltimore to repave the streets and make them purty for all the hipsters. School system be damned...
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The whole city was so gung-ho about accomodating the filming of Homicide.
(http://brianmweaver.com/images/news/hack.jpg)
Then Hack was Philly's Homicide. Yikes!
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I heard that Season 6 of The Wire was supposed to be about the corrupt cop-show-about-Baltimore industry in Baltimore.
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Whoops!
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:o WRONG THREAD ALERT!! :o
8) UPDATE: CRISIS AVERTED! 8)
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just finished season 4. Man, I'm so drained.
This was by far the most disturbing season. Those kids break my heart - Randy, Duquan and even Michael.
If this is one-note, bad acting, please tell me what good acting is. I know it's not anything people like George Clooney or Russell Crowe are doing.
I think I'm going to watch the whole thing again with the commentaries. I need to get some distance.
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Whats wrong with McNulty? He's awe-inspiring!
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Every time I see McNulty I think of William S. Burroughs' advice:
Avoid fuckups. You all know the type. Anything they have anything to do with, no matter how good it sounds, turns into a disaster.
Do not offer sympathy to the mentally ill. Tell them firmly, "I am not paid to listen to this drivel. You are a terminal fool."
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"Never interfere in a boy and girl fight."
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Every time I see McNulty I think of William S. Burroughs' advice:
Avoid fuckups. You all know the type. Anything they have anything to do with, no matter how good it sounds, turns into a disaster.
Do not offer sympathy to the mentally ill. Tell them firmly, "I am not paid to listen to this drivel. You are a terminal fool."
Is that from Junky, buffcoat, or somethin' else?
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(http://nymag.com/images/2/daily/entertainment/08/01/16_humangiant1_lg.jpg)
Michael K. Williams to appear in Season 2 of Human Giant!
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Do not offer sympathy to the mentally ill. Tell them firmly, "I am not paid to listen to this drivel. You are a terminal fool."
This is kinda evil but also pretty amazing and right on.
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JJ - I'm pretty sure he means the "nontraditionally mentally ill."
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Omar on Fresh Air (http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=18299087).
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Oh, man, I thought Terry Gross interviewed you about your Best Show recaps. And that you started referring to yourself in the third person. Both of which I would be all for.
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Omar on . . .
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(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v102/rynhauld/distracted-by-angel.jpg)
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(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v102/rynhauld/distracted-by-angel.jpg)
who can resist a woman with a tat on her neck?
not me
that's for sure
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(http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v102/rynhauld/distracted-by-angel.jpg)
who can resist a woman with a tat on her neck?
not me
that's for sure
TremblingE, I think she's looking a little lower.
Season 4
Bunk: I'm thinking about pussssy
Snoop: yeah, me too.
was an adlib from Felicia Pearson
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I will concur with Mike about Brother Mouzzone and Omar. I love The Wire and almost all the characters, but those two always struck me as kind of absurd. They are supermen killers and all the character traits they give them seem contrived. I think Michael K. Williams makes Omar work, but the character is over-written.
Favorite characters for me are: Rawls, Freamon, Carcetti's assistant and Doughnut.
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RIP Wire/Corner staff writer David Mills (http://weblogs.baltimoresun.com/entertainment/zontv/2010/03/david_mills_emmywinning_screen.html). Died of a brain aneuryism Tuesday after collapsing on the set of Treme.
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Sad news.
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Mills was a great man.