The Wire

With The Sopranos, The Shield, Monk, Psych and Entourage all in hiatus, the only thing I watch on TV today is The Wire on HBO. I never followed this show until this year as there is nothing to watch on Network TV. It's really sad that all these reality shows and even new scripted shows all suck ass. No wonder I see more people say they don't watch TV at all than ever. The two new shows that had potential are Heroes and Studio 60. But Heroes has become a teen version of Lost, and Studio 60 is just way too much like The West Wing. Lost has become too annoying to watch. As for reality shows, the only reality show I watch is the one that follows paparazzi hunt celebrities.

The Wire is really interesting. It's set in Baltimore, and follows the city government, the police department, the school system and life in inner-city neighborhoods. It exposes flaws of social beliefs and theories of both conservative and liberals alike. Acting is pretty good, and while Law & Order and CSI franchise (and others) use sensationalized murders, rapes and one-liners (damn you, Horatio) to attract audience, The Wire relies on strong writing and more realistic plots. The show is also a lot less violent than its network counterparts. It's like comparing an indie-film with strong writing, plot and acting from no-name casts, to a big-budget "stuff-blows-up" summer flick.

One of these days I'll find the DVDs of early seasons and watch the series from the beginning.