HBO - The Wire vs The Sopranos

[gangass]

y'all can pick only one 
The Wire or Sopranos ?

[Mister Pink]

I hate to say one is better than the other. They're two different shows and both exceed and push the boundaries of television. They both pioneered a style of show that was not before seen on TV. In terms of originality and pushing television in a new direction, both of these shows are equally great. Different but equally great in their own respects. The Sopranos might have a more popular edge in terms of pushing the movie-style grand TV narrative and The Wire pushes a narrative that is so entrenched in detail and realism, it lends itself more a like a book with each season being like a different chapter. 

 

The Wire is different  show than Sopranos as it's focussing more on the bigger picture of social commentary and institutions in Baltimore using Baltimore as a main character itself.  The Sopranos is better at doing family drama, metaphor and nice subtext (dream sequences, ducks, psychology).

 

The Sopranos is more of a character study of Tony Soprano and how he operates as a human being within the confines of being the head of his household and as crime family.  The Wire is more of a study of institutions and groups (Baltimore police department, schooling system, drug gangs) and how many individual characters operate, succeed, fail, survive or die within those institutions and groups. So both shows are similar in how Tony is navigating two groups (his personal family and his crime family) while having mental health issues and psychological issues. And The Wire shows so many people operating within 'the system'  and how we all play 'the game.'

 

Both shows are just incredibly fascinating. People that watch those shows tend to watch them again and again and learn something new with each following. The Wire actually has books written about it and Harvard curriculums studying the social justice of show. 

 

I think The Wire should be mandatory viewing as a part of social studies in school. It really shows humanity good and bad, both sides of the law. It asks a big question on the war on drugs and the schooling and prison systems as well as media and politics. It never panders or lectures you. It only shows you a stories from each place in society and leaves it up to the view to unravel it and form their own opinions. 

 

Both shows are 10/10 

 

 

Edited June 18, 2021 by Mister Pink

[Candy_Licker]

The Wire for me. I prefer the  holistic view of Baltimore where everything is connected and  the sheer amount of great characters over the more "focused" family drama/character study.

Not taking away anything from The Sopranos of course but sth like The Wire hasn't been created before or since in my opinion. An epic for the ages and yes, it's an intriguing social study that should be watched by everyone.

 

This show has everything, and it achieved sth. for me that very few shows manage: it made the side of cops not only interesting, but even more interesting than the criminals. Beyond the usual trope of either corrupt or hero cops, it paints an incredibly intelligent, nuanced and believable picture (well, except for Hamsterdam maybe ) of the inner workings on a PD.

 

The Wire is one of the few works of art that manages to strike a perfect balance between morals/meaning and first class entertainment.

 

 

[TheSantader25]

The Wire for me. It could be the fact that I usually prefer "street crime" to the organized or mafia genre. Other than that the thing that The Wire does incredibly well is making you completely care for and enjoy every character. It's insane how many top tear characters are in that show and how they manage to unleash their full potential with such limited screen time. Other than that the show makes me feel satisfied with every second I spend because I feel like my time was completely well-spent but in The Sopranos I sometimes felt like some scenes where fillers and unnecessary. I never felt like that for a single scene in The Wire.

 

Also I think The Wire really makes you "think" about stuff more. I felt like I was more aware of what was going in the world after watching The Wire. It made me feel I learned something. Like a documentary. It does all of that and it entertains you and makes you laugh at times as well. It's a complete package. Not to take anything away from the Sopranos(it's definitely one of the best shows out there) but I think The Wire is in a different league. 10/10 for The Wire and 8/10 for The Sopranos.

 

Oh and also The Wire has something The Sopranos doesn't. Cold Opens. I really like those in almost every show.

 

 

Edited April 14, 2021 by TheSantader25

[Mister Pink]

6 hours ago, TheSantader25 said:

Also I think The Wire really makes you "think" about stuff more. I felt like I was more aware of what was going in the world after watching The Wire. It made me feel I learned something. Like a documentary.

This is one of things I really love about The Wire. I feel like it's an education and real eye-opener. The fact things that go on in the police department and they way they "juke the stats" is incredible. And when Prez makes fails at being a cop and goes into education as a teacher, he learns it's the same in the schooling system. The way the tied those instructions by that commonality over 2 seasons is phenomenal.  It also makes me wonder if I was in the position, what would I do? As much as I don't like to admit it, I most likely wouldn't be some maverick like McNulty. Nope. I'd probably just play the game. 

Edited April 14, 2021 by Mister Pink

[Guest]

The Wire is much better than Sopranos.

 

It feels more real, and the dialogue between the characters is engrossing. 

[Legomanarthur]

I liked The Sopranos but The Wire has left a much deeper impression on me to the point of becoming one of my favorite shows. I would like to say more about The Sopranos but I've only watched it once years ago and I can barely remember a thing about each season so I don't really have a lot to say about its overall story.

On the other hand, I've watched The Wire three times so far and I plan on watching it again in the near future. I enjoyed The Sopranos and especially Tony's character but I think The Wire has a lot more interesting characters, all of them being rich and varied. I also loved how The Wire renewed itself season after season by showing different sides of Baltimore and the "war" on drugs (you can't call this sh*t a war) all the while being connected to one another. It's a fascinating story and I find it incredible how it slipped under the radar for so many years while it was in production. It truly is a testament to how David Simon and the crew handled those subject matters in such a realistic way that it no longer was for entertainment purpose only but rather a commentary on the system itself. And while I wish Season 5 had a little more than ten episodes, I still think they nailed the ending, if you can really call it that.

Both are amazing shows, but I like the scope of The Wire a lot more and I find the way the writers told its story to be much more effective, to the point of becoming timeless, for better or worse.

 

[Lonely-Martin]

A man always remembers his first love, I'm gonna give this one to Tony and the gang. The Sopranos is my pick here.

 

We really are contenders for best TV series ever made. HBO really did push the envelope and create something special that other networks are starting to really get with.

 

It is hard to argue with why The Wire gets the praise it does of course, it truly is compelling stuff and @Mister Pink makes a great point that with each viewing we often find more these shows can give, we really are talking top shelf stuff here and you guys do make great points, but I'm gonna give the nod to my man Tony and families. 

 

What an ending too!

[sabitsuki]

Easily The Wire

 

The Sopranos bred a whole generation of wannabe guidos.

Edited April 17, 2021 by DownInThePMs

[Funktipus]

The Wire.....Clay Davis....'nuff said.

 

 

 

Avon lets Marlo know who the real KING is;

 

 

Edited April 23, 2021 by Funktipus