Wirenomics

Jesse Walker | July 20, 2007

An economist analyzes my favorite TV show. Money quote: "you could probably base an entire course in Industrial Organization on episodes of The Wire."

Elsewhere in Reason: My interview with Wire creator David Simon.

Elsewhere not in Reason: Simon's show as localist television.

Comments

x,y|7.20.07 @ 4:13PM|#

For my money, The Wire is the best. And I'm only through Seasons 1-3. I hear Season 4 is the best, though.

crap-action-jackson|7.20.07 @ 4:42PM|#

When the hell does the next season start?

Jim Anderson|7.20.07 @ 4:46PM|#

The "Hamsterdam" subplot is itself a marvel of economic and social analysis.

Rhywun|7.20.07 @ 5:08PM|#

Never seen it. I just got HBO a couple months ago - been meaning to check it out sometime. Homicide was outstanding.

|7.20.07 @ 6:39PM|#

It is the best show that has ever been on television. Number two isn't very close.

Season 2 was the weakest of the bunch, but still far better than anything else on the tube. Get them on DVD.

|7.20.07 @ 7:00PM|#

I've been watching it on BET in re-runs, and even as edited as it is, I'm inclined to state that it is in the top 3 of greatest television shows ever. All In The Family and earlier-era M*A*S*H are right there, too.

|7.20.07 @ 7:26PM|#

Sure to provoke a Holy War:

Which is/was better--The Wire or The Sopranos?

(My answer is clearly Big Love.)

|7.20.07 @ 8:19PM|#

Love that show. I got sick last weekend, so on Sunday I rented Season 3 and watched five or six episodes back to back. Easily one of the better Sundays of my 2007, and this was on a day my ass was raw from crapping at least five times.

|7.20.07 @ 8:36PM|#

I think it was like 3rd season when the two main homicide did a whole scene saying only the word "fuck" with different inflection while they searched a cold crime scene.

Seriously it was like 3 mins long

|7.20.07 @ 8:37PM|#

two main homicide detectives

|7.20.07 @ 8:41PM|#

in fact here it is!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KQbsnSVM1zM

Rhywun|7.20.07 @ 9:32PM|#

Fuck, that's great.

|7.20.07 @ 9:43PM|#

Joshua,

That was from season one. It also was the scene that completely sold me on the greatness of that show.

Cerro|7.20.07 @ 11:19PM|#

Does anybody know where it can be watched online? That would be tremendously useful to an impoverished student such as myself.

|7.21.07 @ 12:04AM|#

Does anybody know where it can be watched online?

Youtube has some clips other then that you will have to pirate it.

HBO has not gotten into the broadcast on the internet thing yet.

Randolph Carter|7.21.07 @ 11:57AM|#

There's this thing called Bittorrent...

notsneaky|7.21.07 @ 6:27PM|#

Season 2 was the weakest of the bunch

That's what I thought originally too but it has really grown on me. I hope there's some tie-back in the last season to at least some of the characters from 2.

notsneaky|7.21.07 @ 6:46PM|#

And of course the Wire is ways above the Sopranos (which wasn't bad either)