I think Mike has previously referred to The Wire as "Baretta with better production values and a slightly less sympathetic lead."
I actually agree with a lot of your take on Breaking Bad, Mike. At least in terms of the plotting issues, and some of the comedy/drama incongruity, though I think that was more of a problem in the first (and maybe early) season where they'd go for borderline wacky a little too often. Though performed excellently, Gus really is Brother Mouzone if they'd let him take over The Wire, or if Omar was routinely doing "some Spider-man shit right there" for multiple seasons, and the Twin Brothers were way over the top, especially in the unfortuante Slow Walk Away From An Explosion scene. That said, I came to terms this year that it's what the show is - a pulp, crime comic book style show - and in those terms, rather than being a show that strives for realism, I think it's great.
Things I do disagree on: I think Hank is actually a surprisingly nuanced character, especially in the third (and best) season. And I'd say Aaron Paul is great in seasons three and four, when they actually gave him things to do.
Also, is "a man resorts to crime to support his family" really what The Sopranos is about? I think it was more like "a man resorts to crime to get away from his family" or something like that, which is part of what made it so great. Though your point stands that this is arguably what Breaking Bad has morphed into in the last two seasons.
