Re The Wire and Breaking Bad

[backseatcookers]

I've never watched either despite multiple people saying I would LOVE both.

So, do I need to commit some time to watching them as they're worth it?

Or are they overrated?

Couldn't get into Game of Thrones if that's any help!

I am gay, so there's a big reason I'm fairly uninterested in the male-centric series

s-p-i-r-a-l

The women are hot in that as well btw, not just the guys.

That's the French for you though.

The Wire is very good. I recommend subtitles though. I am Canadian and couldn't understand the Baltimore accent.

Stringer Bell in reading glasses is exceedingly sexy.

@SomeHalfHumanCreatureThing definitely agree about the 'male'ness of BB (which I loved, but actually feels dated already). We've been watching Queen of the South on Netflix recently, and it's basically Breaking Bad-esque but with more central female characters, which is refreshing!

Reading this with interest.
Have always wondered about these two , especially the wire (Idris Elba? Yes please). I got about halfway through the first episode and have up.... Maybe I should try it again.

Another vote here for spiral. It's one of my favourite shows ever.

Recently binged peaky blinders and loved it personally. The music is incredible

Breaking Bad In my opinion was outstanding but “Better Caul Saul” well just Fabulous .
I recently watched “The Secrets She Keeps”, on iPlayer and I have to say I thought it was outstanding and watched all episodes in one night, I would highly recommend it .

I also enjoy Narcos, although it also lacks female characters.

Southland - gritty and flawed characters
GLOW
Good Girls

The Wire is outstanding. Re-viewing the first episode I could see the narrative lines and visual clues that played out over the series were all there. Any programme that can induce me to watch anything about schooling/education has to be good.

Having said that, GoT does this too. Themes/ideas/characters also established in the first episode. Music too. That establishing shot of Winterfell is underscored by its muted signature. Tip-top.

It's what good writing does, though each series is very different so invidious comparisons about characterisation really don't work.

Three episodes off the end of breaking bad and am so gutted! It's just brilliant! Look forward to watching it every night and this is the second time I've watched it.

Ozark is really good too.

The Wire is an investment. It took me about 5 episodes to get fully into it but after that it was mindblowingly good.

If you enjoyed the Killing, Borgen is another Danish drama - political plot but still a good watch!

I absolutely loved Breaking Bad, Better Call Saul and The Wire. Ozark was excellent too and had strong female characters as did Orange is the New Black which was outstanding.

Sorry I'm just going to repeat what everyone has said.

The wire is possibly the best tv show I have ever watched. It took me & my DH a second attempt to get into it as a it's a slow burner to start with, but once we were into it omg, we couldn't switch it off! Proper binge worthy tv in a way that hasn't been replicated in recent times.

Also, another vote for the bridge, Borgen and big little lies.

Enjoy! (I wish I could go back and watch the wire for the first time again)!!!

@Andylion

The Wire is very good. I recommend subtitles though. I am Canadian and couldn't understand the Baltimore accent.

Stringer Bell in reading glasses is exceedingly sexy.

Completely agree with all of this. Except I'm not Canadian.

I loved BB and The Wire, but I think The Wire is far superior as a drama.

Loved both. Stick with The Wire through some of the slower seasons.

Snowpiercer on Netflix is amazing.

Breaking Bad gets better and better, I found the first few episodes hard going and abandoned it first time round.
I’ve watched it twice now, and each time I’ve been gripped. It’s so cleverly written.
My other all time favourite that I could watch over and over is The Americans, about a normal suburban American family that are actually deep undercover KGB spies. It’s amazing, and so underrated.

Can anyone tell me where I can watch The Wire ?

Thst one passed me by.

@boatyardblues

The Wire is far superior to Breaking Bad, seriously good. The characters are fully fleshed out, flawed but interesting. It does away with the usual black & white “goodies vs baddies” narrative you get in a lot of US drama. Some of the cops are venal, corrupt bastards, some of the drug gang members principled and sympathetic. Each season focuses on the crime issues in Baltimore from a different perspective: criminal justice system, education/poverty, politics, media etc though there is a continuous story arc through the whole thing. It’s also darkly humorous, heart-breaking, gripping etc. You have to go with it at the start, as it takes a while to tune into the street slang and cop slang. You need to give it your full attention too, no MNing on the side. It’s the full package. Breaking Bad is a poor imitation IMO. Stringer Bell is a great character, McNulty a love to hate one but compelling.

This is what I was going to say.

Breaking bad is not worthy of comparison to the wire.

I would say watch it with subtitles for a while until you get used to the lingo

I forgot to mention the subtitles for the start of The Wire, but others have - definitely helps with the dialect/slang to begin with. As others have said, it takes a couple of episodes to get sucked in but it is the best series I’ve ever watched. It helped me understand the US better. The writers were crime correspondents on the Baltimore Sun for 20+ years and the richness of their understanding of the issues shines through. It is brilliantly observed.

Another one for the Wire, give it a couple of episodes, and you have to watch it rather than mumsnet and watch.

The character development and writing is first rate.

Ozarks is good but not in same league, though does have more female characters, complex Ones.

BB just didn’t grip me...don’t know why because it is good. Maybe it was the maleness.

GOT gets much better when it stops being so soft porny.

The Wire is outstanding. So gripping, and Idris Elba too. Could I also recommend Treme, a series about New Orleans after the hurricane, from the same stable? Now that is full of GREAT female characters, and marvellous music too.

Btw David Simon who wrote The Wire was a proper journalist originally. He is married to Laura Lippman, one of my favourite authors. She writes books with interesting female protagonists, and the nostalgia for the Baltimore of old is like an extra character in all her novels. Sorry, off topic!

Slight crosspost with boatyard!

I couldn't get into breaking bad the first time I tried to watch it, but I am so glad I tried again because it was brilliant, I also watched el Camino and I'm watching better call saul now (all are connected) and they are both great too.