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Buzzing Over The WireJeffrey Goldberg and David Plotz take readers' questions about HBO's hit urban drama.


Posted Thursday, March 6, 2008, at 4:59 PM ET

(Continued from page 4)

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Washington: I work in Georgetown, and yesterday saw Anwan Glover (Slim Charles) going into Uno's of all places. I stopped and said hello, lamenting the end of the show. I think he was a bit taken aback that this white business kid knew who he was. It's amazing how some of these characters can go on with their public lives so anonymously.

David Plotz: Anwan is an amazing guy—a popular radio DJ here, and frontman for the seminal go-go group the Backyard Band. And he has one of the greatest voices in the history of television.

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Washington: Do you agree with the claim that The Wire is the greatest show in TV history?

Jeffrey Goldberg: I'm more of an I Love Lucy sort of guy.
And The Sopranos. I Love Lucy and The Sopranos. Two great tastes that taste great together.

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Cast members working: I can't believe you gave no love to Andre Royo, aka Bubbles. I think he's a pretty good actor. A lot of The Wire cast members are experienced actors, and many were recast from other HBO vehicles -- particularly The Corner and Oz. Wendell Pierce has been in Hollywood productions like Get on the Bus (where he got thrown off of the bus) and Waiting to Exhale (where he should have been thrown out of bed). And the Clay Davis's character's signature line originally was done by the same actor playing a DEA agent in Spike Lee's 25th Hour.

David Plotz: There are Bubbles-lovers and there are Bubbles-haters. I'm sorry to say I fall in the later group. I have always found his plots a little cheap and emotional manipulative. Except for his turn as Lear's fool at the end of Hamsterdam, and his wonderful lashing out at Herc in Season 4, I've never been drawn to him. But I know that puts me in the minority.

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Baltimore: I really enjoy your back and forth commentary on this exceptional show. I know you have been critical of the fake-serial-killer plotline, and it is over the top. However I cannot help but admire McNulty and Freaman going after the real serial killer, Marlo Stansfield, when no else seems to care about 22 or 23 bodies left in the vacant houses. As for predictions, (or make that dear hopes) somehow Dukie is rescued and doesn't morph into Bubbles the Sequel.

Jeffrey Goldberg: I think it's safe to say that Dukie is not on an upward trajectory.
I also agree with your sentiment; the plot device is ridiculous, but it doesn't betray the natures of these characters, Lester especially. For Lester, it's all about catching the prey.

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Marlo and Cheese: Haven't you ever worked at a place where a smart higher-up noticed an ambitious youngster with little talent and realized how useful it could be to promote someone they knew would do whatever they told him to? Especially in a business where it's pretty easy to throw people away.

David Plotz: Right—and maybe if they stretched the plot forward a few more episodes, we would see Marlo drop Cheese and replace him with someone more capable (like Slim Charles). Marlo also has the problem that all homicidal sociopaths have when they are boss: The only people who want to work for you are also homicidal sociopaths.

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Anonymous: I still sit in amazement that this show never has received any accolades or awards. I won't debate the action, but the writing and story lines alone warrant more respect and acknowledgement. (I understand the demographic of the show, but the white actors were not even acknowledged.)

Jeffrey Goldberg: I think you're on to something. The actors who play Bunk, Clay Davis, and Cedric Daniels in particular deserve accolades.

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Re: Casting: Actually many of the stars, including Idris Elba and Dominic West, are not American at all.

David Plotz: Yeah, Dominic West's accent is always kind of touch-and-go.

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Jimmy's Demise: At the beginning of the season, HBO offered three minor character studies (I forget what buzzword they used to describe them) as part of the OnDemand products. They were a young Omar robbing the robber and "robin-hooding" the victim, a young Prop Joe backstabbing an opponent with a proposition for his teacher, and McNulty's first day on the homicide squad. Prop Joe and Omar are gone. I could see McNulty killing himself in the last episode. So, was Simon foreshadowing the deaths of three prominent characters?

Jeffrey Goldberg: Provocative thought. Part of me wishes that Jimmy disappeared a long time ago.

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Chicago: Does the portrayal of Levy the Jewish lawyer make you wince at all?

Jeffrey Goldberg: I don't wince. Or cringe.
I get angry, however.
To answer your question, yes and no, mostly no. This is what HBO does—it plays it close to the line, it isn't afraid to offend. And it's equal opportunity offense.

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Jeffrey Goldberg is a national correspondent for the Atlantic and the author of Prisoners: A Story of Friendship and Terror. David Plotz is Slate's deputy editor and author of The Genius Factory: The Curious History of the Nobel Prize Sperm Bank.
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