Tag Archives: TV Shows

Why The Wire is One of the Best Crime TV Series Ever Made

February 7, 2023 jowellapollo Leave a comment

The Wire is an American crime drama TV show created by David Simon and broadcast by HBO. The series, which featured 5 seasons and 60 episodes, premiered in 2002 and ended in 2008. Although the Baltimore-centered show wasn’t given the appreciation it deserved when it was originally released, it is now regarded by many television critics as one of the greatest TV shows ever made. In this article, we’ll discuss why The Wire deserves a permanent place among the best crime series ever made.

5 Reasons The Wire is One of the Greatest Crime TV Shows of All Time

Here are 5 reasons The Wire is one of the best crime series to grace television:

1. Rich Plot

The Wire presents a well-conceived, entertaining, and largely unpredictable crime plot loosely based on true events. It features several literary societal themes and portrays urban life and the affairs of criminals and law enforcers in Baltimore, Maryland. As reflected in the show’s name, the employment of electronic surveillance and wiretap technologies is a recurrent theme in the series.

For the most part, particularly in the first three seasons, the show is centered on the Barksdale crime family/organization and the members of the Baltimore Police Department, who investigate their criminal activities using wiretaps and other means. The show also incorporates other intriguing subplots, such as the life of the Sobotkas, a Polish-American family of port workers associated with unlawful smuggling, and the Hamsterdam project– a social experiment involving the legalization of drugs in a monitored space to reduce the rate of homicides. Generally, the show dishes out an immensely enjoyable plot that makes you anxious to see the next episode.

2. Illuminating Portrayal of the Life and Activities of Police Officers and Lawyers

Suppose you want to learn about the US police or you’re interested in knowing what to expect if you become a police officer. In these circumstances, The Wire is your best bet at finding the answers to your questions without reading them up in a book. Although The Wire focuses on the Homicide and Narcotics units of the Baltimore Police Department, these two units are enough for you to peer into the life and activities of cops.

The show characterizes different shades of police officers. You get to see an overzealous, broken cop in the character Jimmy McNulty, a lesbian cop with a relationship crisis in Kima Greggs, an intelligent and decent policeman in Lester Freamon, loyal policemen in Bunk and Carver, a clumsy, protected cop in Roland Pryzbylewski, a middle-aged policeman with the desire to make a change before he retires in Bunny Colvin, a police lieutenant determined to do what he thinks is right in Cedric Daniels, and even a cop that uses drugs.

Furthermore, the show depicts the interaction between police officers, lawyers, judges, and the FBI to achieve better results. It also illustrates the sexcapades, flirting, and romance between these government officials, as well as depicts the corrupt ones.

3. Accurate Depiction of Baltimore Politics

David Simon wasn’t afraid to portray and explore Baltimore politics in the show. The Wire frequently demonstrated the activities of the police authorities, including the commissioner, deputy commissioner, police majors, and other commanding officers, and how they pulled the strings and manipulated the Baltimore Police Department. Similarly, it revealed the political games in the Baltimore mayoral office and how the Mayors, both Clarence Royce and later Tommy Carcetti, made sure any decisions they took favored them ultimately.

4. Sumptuous Portrayal of Various Crimes

The Wire succeeds in captivating aficionados of the crime genre as it serves its viewers an “eyeful” of various crimes. The show featured drug trafficking, drug abuse, murder, smuggling, human trafficking, robbery, animal abuse, corruption, financial crimes, torture, illegal prostitution, illegal immigration, and so on.

5. Representation of Realistic Societal Elements and Issues

The Wire deserves applause for its ability to display real societal issues and events on television. The series threw light on realistic elements, such as drug addiction, the life, struggles, and activities of the urban poor, gang conflicts, HIV/AIDS, crime in Baltimore, prison life, public empowerment programs, betrayal, drug wars, family bond, marital crisis, and gun violence. More interestingly, the Hamsterdam project in season 3 of the show illustrated the consequences of legalizing drugs.

Bottom Line

Other factors that seal The Wire’s status as one of the GOATs of crime TV shows include its impressive acting, characterization, and character development. Overall, the show is one of the best things to have happened since the invention of television.

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5 Reasons House of the Dragon Won’t Measure Up to Game of Thrones

December 9, 2021 jowellapollo 1 Comment

The year 2018 saw millions of TV series lovers around the world saying goodbye to one of the most-watched TV shows ever, Game of Thrones. The HBO show is reputable as one of the most loved and highly rated TV series on Earth and was even claimed to be seen by the Queen of England, Queen Elizabeth II, herself.

Game of Thrones is an American fantasy TV show based on the synonymous book and other books in the A Song of Ice and Fire series by George R. R. Martin. The eight-season long TV show is centered on the Iron Throne which is the supreme monarchy seat of the Seven Kingdoms.

Relatively recently, the producers of Game of Thrones announced that a prequel to Game of Thrones was set to be released in 2022. The prequel which was christened “House of the Dragon” will be based on the book Fire and Blood by George R. R. Martin.

House of the Dragon follows the events that occurred about 200 years before Game of Thrones, particularly the Targaryen Civil War that led to the fall of the great House Targaryen.

Even though the spin-off is highly anticipated and will feature stars such as Matt Smith, Emma D’Arcy, and Paddy Considine, I think that it won’t measure up to its predecessor. Perhaps, House of the Dragon may end up being a great show, however, it’s unlikely that it’ll be a match for GOT. We’ve seen other terrific prequel spin-offs like Better Call Saul. Still, one thing they’ve got in common is that the original TV show outshines them most of the time.

Why House of the Dragon Will Be No Match for Game of Thrones

Several elements determine the success of a spin-off show over the original show. When considering these factors, it appears implausible for House of the Dragon to outdo Game of Thrones.

The bases for this assertion are:

1. House of the Dragon Has an Expected End

One reason Game of Thrones was highly successful and gained substantial viewership was its unpredictability. Right from the beginning of the show to its end, it was difficult or rather impossible to foresee the potential events. Who foresaw the decapitation of the lead role Eddard “Ned” Stark in the very first season? Who expected Brandon “Bran” Stark to end up as the King of Westeros in the final season of the show?

Nevertheless, in the case of House of the Dragon, we already know what’s gonna happen at the end of the show. Regardless of the stunts the producer tries to throw into the plot, we realize where the story is leading ultimately. The Targaryens end up being usurped from the thrones and their dragons end up being reduced to almost nothing. So, the series will be less suspenseful and thrilling than Game of Thrones.

2. House of the Dragon has Fewer Characters and a Thinner Storyline Than Game of Thrones

Game of Thrones has to be among the TV shows with the most numerous characters. I admit that at some points when I was watching the show I found it difficult to follow the names of the numerous characters in the show. It was fascinating to see how the numerous characters in the show related to and with each other. This contributed immensely to the complexity of the show and the series’ fandom.

Again, Game of Thrones encompassed the so-called Seven Kingdoms of Westeros and Essos, myriads of houses and families, several religions and cultures, and various fantastic creatures. This complexity gave the viewers something to see in the show at all times and nothing to get bored of.

House of the Dragon is founded on House Targaryen and relatively few families making the storyline thinner and less intriguing.

3. New and Unfamiliar Characters in the Forthcoming Prequel

As Kit Harrington, the actor who played the legendary Jon Snow, stated, it will be “painful” to see new characters donning similar costumes to those in Game of Thrones. Since House of the Dragon is set 200 years before GOT, no single character from GOT is expected to be seen in the show. In this light, it will be more difficult for the viewers to connect with the unfamiliar characters. If the spin-off series were closer to the events of GOT, it’d have been more engaging.

Perhaps, we may have seen the Young Ned Stark, Robert Baratheon, and John Arryn.

Another spin-off prequel Better Call Saul solved these potential drawbacks by featuring two supporting characters ( Saul Goodman and Michael “ Mike” Ehrmantraut) from the original show Breaking Bad as its main roles.

4. Game of Thrones Had Better Source Materials

Usually, the key to making a good movie or TV show is to employ sufficient source materials when writing the plot. In the case of GOT and HOTD, the source materials are books in the A Song of Ice and Fire series by George R. R. Martin. Although Game of Thrones doesn’t follow the books faithfully, it draws its influences from multiple books in the series. Meanwhile, HOTD is based on a single book, Fire and Blood, written by Martin in 2018.

Though Fire and Blood is a fine book, all the books GOT is based on have higher Goodreads ratings. This factor also makes it unlikely for HOTD to measure up to GOT.

5. Game of Thrones Simply Set the Bar Too High

What are the odds that HOTD will be placed side-to-side to a show with an IMDB rating over 9/10, one of the most followed shows of all time, a show where we watched both the actors and characters age gracefully, a show that was a perfect mixture of politics, wars, love, family affairs, sex, philosophy, betrayals, power, fantasy, and drama? You’d agree with me that the odds are pretty high.

Game of Thrones placed the bar so high that no other identical show has been able to reach till now.

Bottom Line

I’m not insinuating that House of the Dragon would be a bad show. Of course, the show could turn out to be a wonderful show. Rather, I’m skeptical that the show would be able to meet or surpass the legacy of Game of Thrones.

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Squid Game: The 3 Most Hated and 3 Most Loved Characters

November 13, 2021 jowellapollo 3 Comments

A lot of us must have seen the recently most talked about Netflix series ‘Squid Game’. It’s taking over as one of the most streamed Netflix Original shows and rightly so. The thrill it delivers from the beginning captures its viewers and the show manages to sustain its momentum till the end and leaves us in suspense and anticipation of the subsequent season.

Those that haven’t yet seen the show should beware of the SPOILERS ahead. This article aims to see the most loved and most hated characters from the show.

Most Hated Characters

3. Han Mi-nyeo (212)

Han Mi-nyeo was an eventful character in the show. From her survival-inspired love affair with Deok-su to her tricks in the show, she sure makes an interesting character to watch.

On the negative side, Player 212 was a highly annoying, manipulative, and self-centered character as we could see from her screen time in the first season of Squid Game. She derived pleasure from being irritable to the other players and guards. Do you remember when she pointed out that Ali (199) was an illegal immigrant and suggested that the team should be restructured? The fact that she got past the tug-of-war game with the team didn’t cause her to stop being manipulative and narcissistic.

Furthermore, Han Mi-nyeo was a “pest”. She could bug other people in a bid to survive. For instance, she pestered and clung to Deok-su during the games and tried to convince other players to be her partner when she had no partner for the pebble game.

Her way of life didn’t go well for her in the end as Deok-su thought she couldn’t offer anything special. Then, her desire for him developed into hatred and eventually led her to kill herself along with him.

2. Jang Deok-su (101)

Deok-su is the main antagonist in the intoductory season of the series. He’s a character you would love to hate.

A former gangster, he had a criminal history with Sae-byeok (Player 067). It may seem like he was the one who took her in as he explained in episode one, but their relationship grew sour and Sae-byeok ran away. He was surprised to see her in the game and didn’t hesitate to beat her to express his anger. Their little brawl continues throughout the first season of the show where they try to eliminate each other.

Some reasons people dislike the character include his bullying nature, maltreatment of women, self-centeredness, and the fact that he’s a brute murderous force.

Again, Deok-su instigated most fights in the show and was a character nobody wanted to be up against. He eventually met his demise in the hands of his supposed lover, Han Mi-nyeo, in the glass bridge.

1. Cho Sang-woo (Player 218)

Sang-woo is clearly the most hated character in the first season of Squid Game. Originally, he left the country for greener pastures, but it didn’t quite work out for him. The high expectations from his friends and family led him to dive into fraudulence after being plagued by his debts. He eventually joins the Squid Game to make enough money to settle his debts.

The first thing Sang-woo did that got us to frown in disgust was his failure to dissuade the protagonist Gi-hun (Player 456) from picking the umbrella shape in “The Man the Umbrella” episode (episode 2) though had known the implication of the game.

Similarly, he betrayed Ali (Player 199) by using his kindness and lack of intelligence against him. Though one might explain this act was a necessary evil, it doesn’t make us forgive Sang-woo for making Ali die in his stead.

Again, Sang-woo got to the peak of his evil deeds when he finally killed Sae-byeok (Player 67), an injured defenseless woman, who was no threat to him. Let’s face it, this action was cruel to the core. Even Hitler may have spared Sae-byeok in that situation.

The 3 Most Loved Characters

3. Ali Abdul (Player 199)

He definitely takes this spot. In the show, he was a Pakistani immigrant who came to South Korea seeking a better life. He was a factory worker whose boss withheld his pay. After leaving the game the first time, he confronted his stingy boss, which led to a struggle between both men. His boss ended up losing his fingers, while he made away with some money.

Ali was an innocent man with the heart of an angel, the strength of a bull, and the brain of a child. Thus, it wasn’t difficult for the viewers of the show to fall in love with him.

His relationship with Sang-woo grew as the show went on until the bitter part where he was tricked by Sang-woo and ultimately eliminated. Additionally, his kind gesture of trying to save Sang-woo may be considered naive in the kill-or-be-killed game, still, it remains one of the reasons he’s one of the most loved characters in the show.

2. Ji-yeong (Player 240)

To be factual, we know little of this character aside from the fact that she was once in prison for murdering her abusive father. We first took notice of her in the third game where a team of 10 was to be formed and Gi-hun’s team needed to recruit more members.

Although Sang-woo was opposed to taking in more ladies, Sae-byeok ignored him and brought Ji-yeong seeing she had no teammates.

Her relationship with Sae-byeok developed shortly in the show, with Ji-yeong promising to do anything to make sure Sae-byeok wins the money. She literally gave her life up for Sae-byeok after deliberately throwing short in the pebble game, claiming Sae-byeok had better reasons to win the money.

1. Kang Sae-byeok (Player 067)

Am I the only one who thinks Sae-byeok was unnecessarily taken out? I mean what was the point of shattering the glass after the fifth game, the Bridge game. Sae-byeok was a good and lovable character who was unjustly taken out. Most of us wanted her to win the 45.6 billion Won with Gi-hun. However, the creators of the show didn’t share a similar feeling.

Sae-byeok had an impressive character development from the quiet, ever-frowning pickpocket to a fascinating main character who had the solid goal of reuniting her family with the prize money. Again, she developed a healthy friendship with the show’s lead role, Gi-hun, which brought her to the spotlight.

She had initially defected and emigrated from the North with her brother, leaving her mother behind. However, her brother was compelled to reside in an orphanage. Although she couldn’t carry out her plans by herself, she made Gi-hun vow to reclaim her brother from the orphanage.

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Demon Slayer: 3 Reasons Why Kyojuro Rengoku’s Death Was Painful, Yet Necessary

November 12, 2021 Watchmantis 1 Comment

The Demon Slayer Movie: Mugen Train which was released in October 2020 saw one of the legendary Hashiras being killed in a fight against one of the upper fives. Kyojuro Rengoku, the Flame Hashira, was involved in an intense battle against Akaza, the Upper Moon 3 of demon leader Muzan’s demonic horde. Though Rengoku gave his all during his fierce encounter with Akaza, he was not able to eliminate the demon. Kyojuro died from his severe battle injuries leaving the younger demon slayers, Tanjiro and Inosuke in tears and grief.

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It Was a Tremendous Means to Introduce an Upper Moon Demon

During the introductory season of the anime show, we got to see the strength and abilities of various Lower Moon demons. We also realized that the Hashiras were a great force to be reckoned with after watching some intense actions of Hashiras, such as Giyu Tomioka, Shinobu Kocho, and Kyojuro Rengoku.

Still, we didn’t really know the implication of the Upper Moon demon category. Of course, the demons had to be way stronger than Rui the formidable Lower Moon 5 or the show would’ve been considered sloppy. So, the creators of the show didn’t mind killing off a powerful Hashira to prove that battling the Upper Moon demons isn’t just a stroll in the park. Poor Rengoku!

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His Death Was Needed to Motivate Tanjiro, Inosuke, And Zenitsu To Train Harder

Before Kyojuro Rengoku’s painful demise, the younger demon slayers were training at a relatively sluggish pace. While Tanjiro was inspired to kill Muzan as a revenge against killing his mother and siblings, Inosuke and Zenitsu had less tangible reasons to train as demon slayers.

However, as Tanjiro and Inosuke witnessed Kyojuro Rengoku’s heroic death, they realized they had to put in more effort to become better demon slayers. Zenitsu also learns that he can’t climb to the position of a Hashira by being weak and lazy. Thus, Kyojuro’s death was significant.

1/3

It Paved a Way For Tanjiro to Learn About His Innate Sun Breathing Ability

Though Tanjiro primarily made use of the water technique in the first season of the anime series, the show’s second season makes us understand that the Sun Breathing technique, which is apparently the most powerful breathing technique and source of other breathing techniques, is Tanjiro’s innate ability. His father utilized this breathing technique to perform the Hinokami Kagura dance.

Tanjiro only became aware of his innate ability when he visited the Rengokus’ family home after Kyojuro’s death. In an unconventional way, the makers of the show may have felt the need to kill off Kyojuro to lure Tanjiro to Kyojuro’s father, who knew about his hidden ability and subsequently revealed it to Tanjiro. What other way could Tanjiro have met Kyojuro’s dad?

Hence, Kyojuro Rengoku sadly needed to die to allow Tanjiro discover and reach his full potential to defeat Muzan.