The Wire: The Complete Fifth Season [4 Discs]

R. C. Connor

Overview

"For the fifth and final season of this groundbreaking urban drama, series creator David Simon returns to his old stomping grounds at the Baltimore Sun, where he worked for many years as a crime reporter, to examine the media's role in modern society. Thi

Product Details

Release Date:	08/12/2008
UPC:	0883929015368
Original Release:	2008
Rating:	NR
Source:	HBO HOME
Region Code:	1
Sound:	[Dolby Digital Stereo]
Language:	English
Time:	10:30:00
Sales rank:	2,461

Special Features

Audio Commentary; Featurette

Menu

Disc #1 -- Wire: The Complete Fifth Season
Set Up
Audio
English 5.1
Spanish 2.0
Subtitles
English
French
Spanish
Subtitles: None
Episodes
More with Less
Seasons One, Two, Three & Four Recap
Next On
Play Episode
Unconfirmed Reports
Previously On
Next On
Play Episode
Not for Attribution
Previously On
Next On
Play Episode
Features
Audio Commentaries
Commentary On Episode 1 "More with Less" by Joe Chappelle and Wendell Pierce (Bunk): On
Commentary On Episode 1 "More with Less" by Joe Chappelle and Wendell Pierce (Bunk): Off
Commentary on Episode 2 "Unconfirmed Reports" by William F. Zorzi and Clark Johnson (Gus): On
Commentary on Episode 2 "Unconfirmed Reports" by William F. Zorzi and Clark Johnson (Gus): Off
Series Index
More with Less
Episode Summary
Seasons One, Two, Three & Four Recap
Next On
Play With Commentary
Commentary on Episode 1 "More with Less" by Joe Chappelle and Wendell Pierce (Bunk): On
Commentary on Episode 1 "More with Less" by Joe Chappelle and Wendell Pierce (Bunk): On
Play Episode
Unconfirmed Reports
Episode Summary
Previously On
Next On
Play With Commentary
Commentary on Episode 2 "Unconfirmed Reports" by William F. Zorzi and Clark Johnson (Gus): On
Commentary on Episode 2 "Unconfirmed Reports" by William F. Zorzi and Clark Johnson (Gus): Off
Play Episode
Not for Attribution
Episode Summary
Previously On
Next On
Play Episode
Transitions
React Quotes
The Dickensian Aspect
Took
Clarification
Late Editions
-30-
Disc #2 -- Wire: The Complete Fifth Season
Set Up
Audio
English 5.1
Spanish 2.0
Subtitles
English
French
Spanish
Subtitles: None
Episodes
Transitions
Previously On
Next On
Scene Selection
At Your Pleasure
Volatile Times
This One, On me
Dead Man Walking
Give a Gift, Get a Gift
Breathe Easy
Play Episode
Play with Commentary
Commentary On Episode 4 "Transitions" by Ed Burns and Karen Thorson: On
Commentary On Episode 4 "Transitions" by Ed Burns and Karen Thorson: Off
React Quotes
Previously On
Next On
Scene Selection
A Dependable Man
Juice
Don't Ask Don't Tell
Lift Every Voice
Ready
Good to Go
Play Episode
The Dickensian Aspect
Previously On
Next On
Scene Selection
Spiderman
They Will be Stopped
It's the Boy
Clueless
The Laughing
Backed Up
Play with Commentary
Commentary On Episode 6 "The Dickensian Aspect" by George Pelecanos and Seith Mann: On
Commentary On Episode 6 "The Dickensian Aspect" by George Pelecanos and Seith Mann: Off
Play Episode
Features
Audio Commentaries
Commentary On Episode 4 "Transitions" by Ed Burns and Karen Thorson: On
Commentary On Episode 4 "Transitions" by Ed Burns and Karen Thorson: Off
Commentary On Episode 6 "The Dickensian Aspect" by George Pelecanos and Seith Mann: On
Commentary On Episode 6 "The Dickensian Aspect" by George Pelecanos and Seith Mann: Off
Series Index
More with Less
Unconfirmed Reports
Not for Attribution
Transitions
Episode Summary
Previously On
Next On
Play Episode
Play with Commentary
Commentary On Episode 4 "Transitions" by Ed Burns and Karen Thorson: On
Commentary On Episode 4 "Transitions" by Ed Burns and Karen Thorson: Off
React Quotes
Previously On
Next On
Scene Selection
A Dependable Man
Juice
Don't Ask, Don't Tell
Lift Every Voice
Ready
Good to Go
Play Episode
The Dickensian Aspect
Previously On
Next On

Editorial Reviews

"Competing ambitions. Competing vulnerabilities. Everything's a tangle in the end -- that was the fun of doing the last season." That David Simon quote, taken from the commentary on the 90-minute series finale, "30," puts all of 2008's Season 5 in perspective. The ten episodes are indeed a tangle, from the often inglorious Baltimore Police Department to Marlo Stanfield's (Jamie Hector) citywide drug operation to the Baltimore Sun newspaper to the mayor himself, Tommy Carcetti (Aidan Gillen). But fans of this landmark drama will be satisfied at how Simon and company are able to tie up not just Season 5 but the entire Wire universe. Budget cuts in the Baltimore PD mean the previous season's murders perpetrated by Chris (Gbenga Akinnagbe) and Snoop (Felicia Pearson) are quietly ignored -- but not by Jimmy McNulty (Dominic West). He and Lester Freamon (Clarke Peters) hatch an outrageous plan to shift departmental funds back onto the case, and that sets up one of the major storylines of Season 5. The other focus of the season is City Editor Gus Haynes (Clark Johnson) and his reporters at the Sun, who are told to "do more with less" in a town where crime is running rampant. In government, Mayor Carcetti faces troubles when the money he promised Baltimore schools fails to materialize, and he spends the rest of the season trying to keep up with the cutbacks. On the street, Marlo is now reigning king of Baltimore's drug trade, making enemies at every turn. A modern masterpiece, The Wire -- and native son Simon's exquisitely gritty from-the-heart storytelling -- will be greatly missed.