The Wire

:

Season 5
  • Network: HBO
  • Series Premiere Date: Jun 2, 2002
Season #: 5, 4, 3, 2, 1
User Score
9.1

Universal acclaim- based on 417 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 392 out of 417
  2. Mixed: 9 out of 417
  3. Negative: 16 out of 417
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User Reviews

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  1. mfrank
    Oct 25, 2015
    3
    Season 5 was an even bigger disappointment than season 2 and honestly a waste of time. You can literally watch the script fall apart as the creator tries to put more and more of his b.s. newspaper writer perspective into the story. Nobody cares about the Baltimore Sun or any of the half dozen poorly developed characters that are introduced for no apparent reason. Maybe if he hadn't spentSeason 5 was an even bigger disappointment than season 2 and honestly a waste of time. You can literally watch the script fall apart as the creator tries to put more and more of his b.s. newspaper writer perspective into the story. Nobody cares about the Baltimore Sun or any of the half dozen poorly developed characters that are introduced for no apparent reason. Maybe if he hadn't spent so much time trying to add the Baltimore Sun, or B.S. perspective into the script, maybe then there would have been a valid conclusion to what could have easily been an overall 9 of a show, but with this season I just don't feel it anymore.… Expand
  2. MAKKIE
    Oct 14, 2010
    2
    I thought the WIRE was the best TV I'd ever seen - so it was really a shame to end on a low. The final WIRE season was a great disappointment. A number of well-known characters suddenly became two-dimensional and behaved in ways that were totally at odds with how their behaviour had built over previous seasons. New characters were introduced that did not show any depth (unlike in previousI thought the WIRE was the best TV I'd ever seen - so it was really a shame to end on a low. The final WIRE season was a great disappointment. A number of well-known characters suddenly became two-dimensional and behaved in ways that were totally at odds with how their behaviour had built over previous seasons. New characters were introduced that did not show any depth (unlike in previous seasons, the newsroom crowd did not become real people, compared to say the dock crowd). The plot became unrealistic to the point of farce, and rushed. I wonder how much of this was down to creative exhaustion, and how much of it was down to the reduced series length (in terms of numbers of episodes). Yes, my expectations were very high. But I realise that if I had come to series 5 of the Wire before any of the others, I would have thought it was just another slightly hyper-real gritty cop show.… Expand
  3. Aaron
    May 26, 2009
    2
    It was the worst season EVER season four was much better.

Awards & Rankings

1
#1 Best TV Season of 2008
8
#8 Most Discussed TV Season of 2008
6
#6 Most Shared TV Season of 2008

Critic Reviews

All reviews »
Metascore
89

Universal acclaim - based on 24 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 24 out of 24
  2. Mixed: 0 out of 24
  3. Negative: 0 out of 24
  1. Baltimore Sun
    Reviewed by: David Zurawik
    70
    While the police story line has never been stronger, the first seven episodes made available for preview contain nothing that matches the emotional power and sociological insight of the show at its best--namely the classroom scenes from Season 4.
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  2. New York Daily News
    Reviewed by: David Hinckley
    88
    The episodes that kick off this last 10-show run don't feel perfect. But they almost always feel intuitively right.
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  3. New York Magazine (Vulture)
    Reviewed by: John Leonard
    80
    In these last innings, as The Wire ties up its gnarled threads, it also makes its most daring departure yet, introducing yet another institution, and a brand-new cast of characters to disappoint us.
    Read full review
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