The fourth season of “The Wire” is lauded by critics as the hands down best of the entire season. It’s good. But it still isn’t as good as Season One.
This time new characters include a group of young teens caught up in the vicious game of life on the streets. Much of the story takes place in a local junior high school. Shades of “Lean on Me” and “Dangerous Minds” are present. As always, there is a great parallel between the kid’s storyline and the adults.
Characters and the story continue to evolve. There are even Christmas vibes as the setting is the latter months of the year. Season four ends on a bit of a cliffhanger, and can and should be included with season five.
Returning are the usual players. Dominic West as Jimmy McNulty, Aidan Gillen as Tommy Carcetti, Deirdre Lovejoy as Rhonda Pearlman, Clarke Peters as Lester Freamon, Wendell Pierce as William “Bunk” Moreland, Lance Reddick as Cedric Daniels, Sonja Sohn as Kima Greggs, etc. Jamie Hector plays the brutal new villain, Marlo Stanfield, and does a fantastic job.
I look forward to concluding the series and ranking the seasons for myself.
“The Wire” is currently available to stream.
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