THE THING ABOUT THE OLD DAYS ... THEY THE OLD DAYS: We may not appreciate it from our brisk rewind, but twenty-one months had passed since season three of The Wire aired before season four debuted, and with two episodes already in the books fans must have been getting antsy about the lack of Omar, even though Michael K. Williams was listed in the opening credits.
In "Home Rooms," (Sepinwall / Guardian / Goodman), Omar makes his return, and it's just as triumphant and cinematic as one could have hoped ... and even more naked. (A reader emailed last night to wonder whether HBO had requested more male nudity this season.) But Omar's not central to the plot this week ... we just get more evidence of his legendary status and moxie.
And there's a lot of plot this week -- the decimation of Major Crimes Unit, the first day of school, and real tightening in the mayor's race.
Prop Joe and Bunny Colvin (and the Deacon!) also return this week, and it's there that we see more plot advancement. Prop Joe's still running the New Day Co-Op (now 4-0 in ALOTT5MA FFL), for whom Marlo remains a thorn, and Bunny ... well, the private sector's not quite for him, is it, and whatever it takes to get him shoehorned into our plot, I'll take.
So Bunny's going to be spending some time in school, and man is Prez overmatched. You sorta knew he'd get the grace note of one kid actually working out the math problem ... but the "Fuck Prezbo" which followed is a healthy reminder of the problems which remain. That, and the girl getting slashed right in front of him.
There is lot of plot to discuss this week, and we haven't even gotten into Randy's entrepreneurial spirit and multiple polo shirts.
I can't stop thinking about Omar and his silky robe and jimjams. And, no not for the reason you might think. Did Omar walk into a store and buy those? Did his lover give him them as a gift? Mail-order? Were they plundered during a stick-up? But I did love the character detail it gave you - if for some reason you started watching The Wire with Season 4 and you had no idea who he was, you instantly know that any guy that can walk to the store in his peacock blue silken pj pants and matching (open) robe and STILL have people stepping off? That's a legendary BAMF right there.
ReplyDeleteEvery season there's one character that I look at and think, "You. They're going to break my heart with you, aren't they?" This season that's Michael.
Last thought, for now - the gang of tough girls in the 8th grade hallway? Man, I remember those girls. I had to ride the bus with those girls in middle school. Nightmare.
( A computer crash ate the comment I was working on. Sigh. Anyway...)
ReplyDeleteI am really loving this season. For some reason, it is easier for me to get into than any other so far - maybe it is that I intuitively understand the classroom environment better than the docks or the streets, maybe it is seeing these old characters in new environments (Colvin and Prez in school, McNulty (Not Dad? McNulty.) at Beadie's....) but whatever the reason, I'm already fully invested and usually that takes me until half way through because I'm just so confused.
Sepinwall already said most of what I wish I were articulate enough to say about the ending with the slashing and the fan, but man, that just about killed me.
I'm finding myself particularly interested in Bodie right now - I can't imagine how he can keep going like this, and what else is there for him to do? And Carver apparently learned something from Bunny - something useful - which is pretty damned great.
I watched the first three all this and am now caught up, but it's hard to know what to say. I will say this - am I the only one being driven slowly mad that they pronounce it "Car-KEH-tee" instead of "Car-SEH-tee"?